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Jon Espino

Tomatometer-approved critic
Biography:

As a queer Latinx critic, I examine films beyond just their technical aspects. Film is arguably one of the most powerful mediums, delivering social messages whether we realize it or not. It's necessary to discuss the social implications and what it says about our respective cultures, which is what I aim to do whenever possible.

Reviews

Movies TV Shows
Eternals (2021) 47% 4/5 EDIT “If you're not put off by the ponderous pacing or the humble lack of gaudy flair, this film offers not only an evolution of the comic book film genre but also a revolution in representation.” – HollywoodChicago.com Nov 5, 2021 Full Review Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) 92% 4.5/5 EDIT “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings toes the line carefully, delivering exactly the energy we expect from a Marvel film and more, even if it leans too much into the humor at the expense of real depth.” – HollywoodChicago.com Sep 5, 2021 Full Review The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021) 56% 2.5/5 EDIT “The most infuriating part of this sequel is that it isn't technically bad; it subsists in a sort-of cinematic purgatory full of the spirits of its squandered potential.” – HollywoodChicago.com Jun 7, 2021 Full Review A Quiet Place Part II (2021) 91% 4/5 EDIT “Even though this film has more bare feet than a Tarantino production, it is sure-footed and intentional with its approach.” – HollywoodChicago.com May 28, 2021 Full Review Army Of The Dead (2021) 68% 2.5/5 EDIT “The way [Snyder] milks every scene, slowing down the pacing and the passage of time, is both a wondrous sight to witness and a terror to sit through.” – HollywoodChicago.com May 25, 2021 Full Review Spiral: From the Book of Saw (2021) 39% 1/5 EDIT “[Spiral] tries so desperately to be part of a bigger conversation like The Purge but ends up falling so short that it's more in league with the likes of The Human Centipede, only nowhere near as novel.” – HollywoodChicago.com May 22, 2021 Full Review The Woman in the Window (2021) 25% 3/5 EDIT “... Wright adorns this film with such big and heavy-handed references that it doesn't end up resembling a film as much as it does a drag queen with chunky Hitchcock-inspired costume jewelry who calls herself Queer Wind-hoe.” – HollywoodChicago.com May 16, 2021 Full Review The Little Things (2021) 45% 1/5 EDIT “The Little Things pays homage to everything we love from an old-fashioned detective procedural but aside from being socially tone-deaf, it also has the misfortune of doing it a couple of decades too late.” – HollywoodChicago.com Feb 4, 2021 Full Review Supernova (2020) 89% 4/5 EDIT “Although Supernova doesn't take us on the incredible interstellar adventure its title would suggest, the grounded, emotional journey is still otherworldly.” – HollywoodChicago.com Feb 2, 2021 Full Review Sunset (2018) 61% 5/10 EDIT “Nemes and Royer create an over-encumbered plot that shifts the focus in so many directions that it leaves the viewer essentially cross-eyed.” – The Young Folks Dec 2, 2020 Full Review Steven Universe: The Movie (2019) 100% 8/10 EDIT “Everything in Steven Universe: The Movie will seem familiar, but only because that's the film's entire purpose. There is a newfound maturity that the show promises with this film; a glimpse into the new direction the show will take when it returns.” – The Young Folks Sep 16, 2019 Full Review Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019) 85% 6/10 EDIT “For the most part, I enjoyed Dora and the Lost City of Gold, but by the time the credits rolled, I was left with the same empty feeling I had come to know so well.” – The Young Folks Aug 12, 2019 Full Review The Farewell (2019) 97% 5/5 EDIT “Lulu Wang artfully creates something that's less of an explanation and more of an exploration.” – HollywoodChicago.com Jul 22, 2019 Full Review Stuber (2019) 43% 3/10 EDIT “With rides this bad, Stuber makes braving public transportation much more appealing.” – The Young Folks Jul 17, 2019 Full Review Annabelle Comes Home (2019) 64% 3/5 EDIT “Although Annabelle Comes Homes doesn't offer much in the way of meaningful messaging or genre-redefining radicalism, it does provide a solid summer scarefest that is equal parts humorous and horrifying.” – HollywoodChicago.com Jun 26, 2019 Full Review The Last Black Man in San Francisco (2019) 93% EDIT “Inside this gorgeous, painful, and honest look at the city, we are given the story of a wonderfully atypical male friendship that highlights why the normalized alternative is so toxic.” – The Young Folks Jun 25, 2019 Full Review Child's Play (2019) 64% 4/5 EDIT “While it chucks the original black magic for a black mirror approach, Child's Play ends up creating a justifiable timeliness for this successfully killer reboot.” – HollywoodChicago.com Jun 23, 2019 Full Review The Dead Don't Die (2019) 55% 3/5 EDIT “From the flagrant foreboding to the mildly amusing meta-isms, this film was made for one reason and one reason alone: Fun.” – HollywoodChicago.com Jun 20, 2019 Full Review The Secret Life of Pets 2 (2019) 60% 2.5/5 EDIT “[They] do their best to juggle the many opposing elements, but what should have been a gracefully choreographed performance devolves into a three-ring circus.” – HollywoodChicago.com Jun 20, 2019 Full Review The Souvenir (2019) 90% 9/10 EDIT “[Joanna] Hogg may have set this film as a period piece that follows her experience in the 80s, but the poignancy sewn throughout make the film evergreen, if not more relevant today.” – The Young Folks May 28, 2019 Full Review The Intruder (2019) 35% 6/10 EDIT “Although The Intruder will likely get swept over by the most recent Avengers wave, it serves enough nostalgic thriller elements and a truly magnetic performance from Dennis Quaid to deserve your screen-yelling attention.” – The Young Folks May 6, 2019 Full Review J.T. LeRoy (2018) 55% 6/10 EDIT “While seeing this unfold from a different perspective helps round out the story as a whole, everything in the film feels procedural.” – The Young Folks May 6, 2019 Full Review Penguins (2019) 92% 8/10 EDIT “On its own, with a typically dry, British voiceover, Penguins would still make for a serviceable documentary. What truly makes it stand out is the sheer amount of personality that Helms gives the entire film.” – The Young Folks Apr 18, 2019 Full Review Miss Bala (2019) 22% 5/10 EDIT “There is a clear difference between something that is complex and something that is just complicated, and the story in this Miss Bala is an over-complicated mess.” – The Young Folks Feb 6, 2019 Full Review Roma (2018) 96% 10/10 EDIT “The thing that Cuarón chooses to highlight the most is the strength of women, and how they are left to pick up after the messes that men make and refuse to take responsibility for.” – The Young Folks Dec 27, 2018 Full Review
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