Tag: Ayo Edebiri

“The Bear – Season 4” Review: An Incredible Piece of Television for One of the Best Shows Running

June 27th, 2025

All episodes of season 4 of The Bear are available to watch now on Hulu. With Christopher Storer & Joanna Calo serving as showrunners, the season stars Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Ayo Edebiri, Lionel Boyce, Liza Colón-Zayas, Abby Elliott, Matty Matheson, and Edwin Lee Gibson, with a packed guest ensemble attached. Picking up immediately from the season 3 cliffhanger, Carmy Discovers a mixed Chicago Tribune review that could jeopardize funding and the restaurant’s future. Faced with dwindling resources and a literal clock ticking on their doors, they embark on a high-pressure mission to stabilize, simplify, and elevate The Bear.

It’s quite impressive how we have gotten a season of The Bear since it first premiered in 2022, especially when you take the quality and the star power into account. With the third & fourth seasons being filmed back-to-back, the decision to do so makes sense considering how busy the cast has become. I may in the minority when I say that I personally loved the third season, so it probably shouldn’t come as a surprise that I also really enjoyed the fourth (and final?) season.

Picking up right after the events of the season three finale, this season doesn’t waste any time getting into the plot. You can start to see where guest & supporting actors are sticking around longer, showing that this season is leading towards an endgame that looks to be closer than you’d think. Realistically, this is not a show that can go on for 10+ seasons. Even though its become widely popular and received numerous accolades, this is a show that is taking the time to lean into who these characters are to give them proper & meaningful arcs.

Out of all four seasons, I would say this is perhaps the calmest. You can see where these characters are evolving into better people with Jeremy Allen White at the helm of it all. He is certainly the calmest he’s ever been. There is a spectacular scene involving his mom, played by Jamie Lee Curtis, that deeply resonated with me on an emotional level. While some viewers may be turned away with how much slower the latest seasons have become, I have been seeing these two seasons from an artistic perspective where we are getting a better view into who these characters are.

Understanding who these characters are wouldn’t be possible without the amazing performances. There’s a solid reason as to why these characters are popular, and why they are already finding newfound success. I can’t wait to see what Ebon Moss-Bachrach does going forward, but it will always be Ayo Edebiri who steals the light. The way she can say so much with just her facial expressions makes her one of the most relatable characters on the show. This season also continues to boast one of the best guest ensembles that shows how much the talent believes in this show.

Every season of the show is known to have an episode that exceeds a little over an hour. I was always expecting something to go south during that episode. To my surprise, it was also the calmest extended episode we have gotten so far. I am glad to see where these characters are finding peace amongst each other when they all have so much internal conflict. It makes it nice to see these deeply complex characters come together as a community.

One of the most conflicting aspects of this season, however, is how it concludes. I love the way the final episode is really just a small group of the core cast talking to each other. You rarely get that in shows, especially in the season finale. While I did love it, the way it ends is conflicting. I am not really sure if this was supposed to be the final season or if we will get a fifth and final season. There’s a part of me that wants to say that this show doesn’t know either. It’s currently up in the air so that way the talent involved can go off and do other things in the meantime. Don’t be surprised if we get a fifth season at least a few years from now.

At the heart of the show, its identity still remains the same. Viewers may be turned away with how much slower it is, but the season goes on to resolve arcs while staying true to what made the show compelling in the first place. There’s a reason for all of the guest stars. The way Chicago is shot is still beautiful. The soundtrack perfectly matches the show’s tone. This is still a stellar season of television that works due to how relatable it can feel.

Overall, the fourth season of The Bear is phenomenal, but the future of the show may leave some feeling frustrated. The fact that the cast shot this back-to-back with season 3 goes to show how much they love this show and the characters. Whatever happens next for the show, this is still an incredible piece of television that had me engaged from start to finish due to its relatable story and characters.

VERDICT: 4.5/5 (Amazing)
“Opus” Review

March 15th, 2025

Opus is a new psychological thriller from A24 written and directed by Mark Anthony Green in his feature directorial debut. The film stars Ayo Edebiri, John Malkovich, Juliette Lewis, Murray Bartlett, Amber Midthunder, and Toy Hale. When Ariel (Edebiri) is introduced to a remote compound of legendary popstar, Alfred Moretti (Malkovich), who mysteriously disappeared 30 years ago. Surrounded by his cult, Ariel find herself in the middle of his twisted plan.

The film had all the ingredients of what I wanted out of a film. Ayo Edebiri is one of my favorite working actresses today. There is no denying she can lead a film. Malkovich is hit or miss for me, but the rest of the cast also intrigued me. Lastly, I will watch whatever A24 has to offer as I tend to find their films thematically rich. Unfortunately, aside from the lead performances, I didn’t find this film having much to offer.

If you go into this expecting a similar structure to Get Out or The Menu or Blink Twice, you’d be right. No, it’s not exactly the same, but when the film blatantly makes it obvious that it’s something we have seen before, it creates a monotonous chore to get through. With half a million feature length films, it’s going to be hard to get every single one original enough without borrowing some influence. The problem this film faces is that it borrows too much without creating something with its own identity.

The main character, Ariel, gets invited to a remote area on purpose. Sounds like Ex Machina. She visits a place where people are doing odd things. Sounds like Get Out. Everyone has to give up their phones. Sounds like Blink Twice. Everyone except for one character believes everything is normal. Sounds like The Menu. When a film is relying too much on those inspirations, I couldn’t help but be bored and turned off from what I was watching, especially when you are just waiting for a big reveal in the third act.

By the time the third act hits, it’s fine. It’s more entertaining and the visuals are impressive, but it also feels like I saw it coming a mile away. The motive behind what’s going on is beyond ridiculous and makes little to no sense. The film has multiple conclusions with even more reveals in the final conclusion. I do like the themes, but when they have to explain it to you in some of the most nonsensical dialogue, it takes away all of the intrigue of what came before.

Instead of just relying on aspects of other great films and making the film weird, I think the film could have done more with film’s themes in the second act. Why not show the influence music can have on a cult of followers instead of just showing odd things? There was so much more potential the film had that could have helped it differentiate itself from others. I honestly don’t mind movies like this. I was looking forward to it. I personally believe the film was going to do more to show how music can influence people in a negative way.

While I really didn’t like the film, I will admit that Ayo Edebiri & John Malkovich are completely innocent in all of it. Edebiri continues to show promise that she can lead a film. She even manages to help elevated the tired & cliche dialogue from the script. John Malkovich feels perfectly casted in the film for how weird the actor can get. Only he could embrace the weirdness the story requires out of this character.

As for the side characters, the film also had more potential for them. Juliette Lewis feels like she’s barely there. Murray Bartlett is the most interesting out of the supporting characters, but his motives are tiresome. Amber Midthunder is okay, but lacks characterization (good for her though for having two movies come out this weekend). Lastly, Tony Hale has one of the most pointless roles in a film in recent memory. And I thought Topher Grace was pointless in Heretic.

Overall, this is one of the most disappointing movies to come out of A24. I love films that thematically challenge you on a subject matter. This one just completely misses the mark by never tackling the negative repercussion of what music can do on cults of followers. Ayo Edebiri and John Malkovich are fine in their respective roles. I can’t help but see the true potential this film had.

VERDICT: 1.5/5 (Very Bad)

Tag: Ayo Edebiri

“The Bear – Season 4” Review: An Incredible Piece of Television for One of the Best Shows Running

“Opus” Review