Gallup Sun

Gallup Film Festival closes out 5th year

The Gallup Film Festival, held for three days at the El Morro Theatre, featured roughly 50 films from across the globe, Sept. 14 - 17.

Opening night was the highlight of the event, with the star-studded premiere of “The Watchman’s Canoe.”

A packed house of anxious fans attended the premiere along with cast members Adam Beach, Roger Willie, Kiri Goodson, Carter Jon, and director Barri Chase.

The Watchman’s Canoe is a story loosely based on the childhood of director Barri Chase, who at a young age found a totem pole in her home. She realized that she had to write a story about it and the indigenous impact it had on her. It also deals...

Navajo rap artist King Blizz hosts album-release party

Dineh/Navajo rapper Ryan Hardy a.k.a. King Blizz held an album release party Sept. 9 at the Juggernaut for his compilation CD, “It’s Hard To Explain.”

His first album “Patiently Awaited” came out in 2014. Hardy hails from Ganado, Ariz., and raps about his life, living on the Navajo Nation.

Along with Hardy, several other rappers attended the gala event to help promote his album in which some are Dineh as well, including “Shade” from Two Gray Hills, “Dopeness” from Shiprock, Terrell Matheny R&B Artist/Dancer from Aurora, Colo., and Matias Ashley from Burntwater, Ariz.

Hardy’s album speaks of the...

Rating: «« out of 4 stars

Running Time: 100 min.

It’s only been three years since the LEGO toy line hit the big screen, but in no time at all it has become a major franchise. The latest feature based around the blocky characters is based on the TV series LEGO Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu. As one might have guessed, it finds its inspiration from martial arts movies (with a few nods to giant monster flicks).  The LEGO Ninjago Movie also follows in the same style as previous entries. It feels a bit familiar and doesn’t always hit the mark, but it will certainly entertain children and offer a chuckle here and there for adults.

After a live-action prologue, the bulk of the story...

Well, it looks like there are some big new releases arriving shortly on Blu-ray and DVD. As always, we’ve got the highlights for you right here. So, if you can’t make it out to the movies this week, be sure to give one of these titles a try!

BIG NEW RELEASES!

The Bad Batch - This dystopian drama arrives from the director of the arthouse sensation A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. In this feature, a young woman finds herself deported from the US and dropped off in a desert, where she must fend off cannibals. During her travels, she takes in a child and begins a strange, chemically-induced relationship with the kid’s father. Reviews were very mixed on this effort, with a...