Cole Powell

A talky historical drama, The Brink of War marks the second Ronald Reagan flick in as many years, the first being Reagan, starring Dennis Quaid. With two films tackling the same historical figure and released so close together, it’s…

Years ago on my old website blog, I regularly published a list of related movies, reviewing them in one sentence or, sometimes, less. In honor of Spider-Man: Brand New Day (my scathing review of which you can read here)…

The following review contains MAJOR SPOILERS for Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Reader be warned.

Although Tom Holland’s Wall-Crawler has never been “my” Spider-Man, I get it. He’s Spidey for Gen Z, and I’ve enjoyed his solo outings to varying…

Audio of 2026 JXN Film Festival Best Music Video nominee Q&A with singer/dancer/filmmaker Kayla Jones, producer Charlie J. Wright, and singer/songwriter/director Cole Powell. Hosted by Dr. Candice Love Jackson. Guest appearance by Kobe Singleton (aka DJ Brosia). Tougaloo College, Tougaloo,…

Thanks to The Daily Leader for covering “Never the Same’s” Best Music Video nomination at the JXN Film Festival. Daily Leader is one of Southwest Mississippi’s leading news publications, and I’m always honored to be featured. 

Read the full article…

Amnesia, superheroes, dream thieves, nukes — over the last quarter century, Christopher Nolan has tackled a plethora of subjects across a variety of genres to massive critical acclaim and box office success. Now, as the director’s hotly anticipated (and already…

Yesterday, I had the privilege of returning to Mississippi's statewide FM radio program Good Things with Rebecca Turner on SuperTalk Mississippi for an interview and live performance. We talked music, music reactions, and my Best Music Video nomination at the…

Newcomer William Franklyn-Miller shines as young George Washington in Angel Studios’ surprisingly solid biopic of the first American president.

Although studios known primarily for “faith-based” films have made significant strides in recent years, most efforts have remained bogged down by…

From revolutionaries battling Red Coats to super soldiers punching Nazis, nothing sets the mood for Independence Day quite like good old fashioned movies about American history and heroes. As we approach the 250th anniversary of America’s founding, I’m counting down…

Although the trailers for Toy Story 5 teased an all-out war on the childhood tech addiction epidemic, recent comments from directors Andrew Stanton and McKenna Harris had me bracing for a milquetoast message about electronics ultimately being fine for young…

As a parent of five, I have experienced the deleterious effect of screens on the child mind. A mere 30 minutes a day of screen time on the “kiddie tablets” someone gifted my children for Christmas yielded behavioral problems that…

Having disliked the one trailer I saw, I opted to catch Disclosure Day in theaters for one reason only: Steven Spielberg. As a millennial who grew up watching E.T., Jurassic Park, and the original Indiana Jones trilogy, I…

In the opening sequence of the new Masters of the Universe movie, we are introduced to a 10-year-old Prince Adam (pre-He-Man), as he fails spectacularly in a combat training session. Furious, his father, King Randor, reprimands him, essentially telling…

The trailers for the new Masters of the Universe movie had me hooked. The film looked to be aiming for a 2000s-to-2010s big-budget, speculative fiction vibe (think early MCU), and as a huge fan of that era, I headed out…

I am thrilled (and frankly, shocked) to announce the music video for my latest single, “Never the Same,” has been selected for the JXN Film Festival, one of the most prestigious film industry events in my home state of Mississippi.

…

Raised on a steady diet of crime novels, a flock of rural English sheep set out to solve their eccentric shepherd’s murder.

So goes the premise of Sheep Detectives, the new Hugh Jackman vehicle released in the U.S. by…

Promotional still from Netflix’s “Steps.” 2026.

How many reboots, remakes, and requels will Hollywood produce before the madness ends? At least two more, it appears, as Disney and Netflix have announced competing movies focusing on Cinderella’s stepsisters.

While Disney’s Stepsisters…

Timothée Chalamet delivers opera impersonation in Variety/CNN townhall. Feb. 24, 2026.

Between 2021 and 2024, Timothée Chalamet was Hollywood’s “it guy.” From the Dune films to a surprisingly decent Willy Wonka origin flick to a biopic of the 20th century’s…

Sam Mooney. Photo by Laura Amour.

Hailing from Brookhaven, Mississippi, Sam Mooney began his music career as something of a pop-fusion wunderkind, winning the Mid-South Talent Competition at age 17. The next summer he hit #10 on the iTunes U.S…

In October 2024, I’m not sure I could have felt more optimistic about my future as a YouTube content creator. Over the previous nine months, my channel had nearly doubled its total view count to the coveted 1 million mark…

A couple of years ago, I released an episode of my podcast, Words Like That, focusing on five excellent but under-appreciated Christmas movies. While you can read article versions of those recommendations on Medium, below, readers will find…

A look back at Drew Holcomb and The Neighbors’ seminal album, ten years after its initial release.

In many ways, Drew Holcomb and The Neighbors’ Medicine represents a quintessentially “Southern” sound — blues, rock, and country, shaken and stirred. A…

Although I grew up on oldies and classic rock, I didn’t know many Bruce Springsteen songs until I began producing music reaction videos for YouTube a few years ago.

At that point, I dove headfirst into “The Boss’s” catalog, listening…

I saw Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning this past Thursday afternoon, the earliest showing that was available in my area. I am a huge fan of the Mission Impossible franchise and Tom Cruise. I love all of these movies. I…