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Category: Movies

  • Operation Mincemeat: Netflix’s Absurd, Extraordinary, and True WWII Drama

    Schindler’s List. Imitation Game. The Darkest Hour. Hacksaw Ridge. Zookeeper’s Wife. Valkyrie. The Monuments Men. Add Operation Mincemeat to the long list of relatively unknown and unbelievably true stories from World War II. The 2022 film, directed by John Madden (Shakespeare in Love), based on the novel of the same name by Ben Macintyre, is…

  • Windfall Movie Review: A Slow Burn Thriller Blows Up

    A tranquil courtyard and stripped-down tense music. Serene, beautiful California landscape complete with orchards and a swimming pool. Seven minutes of silence as a man cruises around the property, gains entry inside the house, helps himself to a glass of OJ, pees in the shower, and riffles through drawers for valuables. The wealthy homeowners unexpectedly…

  • The Night House Movie: A Ghost Story About Nothing

    “You were right. There is nothing. Nothing is after you. You’re safe now.” This is the nebulous suicide note that will send grieving widow, Beth, on an obsessive search for answers. Why did her husband, Owen, row a boat out from their lakeside home and shoot himself? What does the note mean? Safe from what?…

  • Oscars 2022: Well, the Academy Wanted Surprise and Drama…

    “That was the greatest night in the history of television, ” said presenter Chris Rock after Will Smith stormed the stage and slapped him on live TV. Rock was presenting the award for Best Documentary and made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head, “I can’t wait to see you in G.I. Jane 2,”…

  • Oscar Predictions: Maybe The Power of the Dog is Not a Sure Thing?

    My post last year after the Academy Awards focused on the dismal ratings of the ceremony – Oscars 2021: The Show, the Awards, and the Uncertain Future. Let’s not worry about that this time. Often by now many of the categories are sure things building an unstoppable momentum during the Awards season. That’s still the…

  • Amazon’s Encounter: A Road-Trip Movie About Aliens, PTSD, and Family

    A meteor lights up the night sky and crashes into Earth. Big bugs are multiplying in the forest. One is shown biting, burrowing, and exploding inside a human body. Malik Khan (Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal) wakes up in a motel room with bloodshot eyes and large insects loudly scurrying along the walls. The former…

  • tick, tick…BOOM! on Netflix: A Young Playwright’s Time Bomb

    Jonathan Larson wrote and composed the rock musical Rent in 1996. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize, Tony for Best Musical, and be one of the longest-running shows ever on Broadway (12 years). Larson died of an aneurysm the night before Rent opened Off-Broadway. tick, tick…Boom isn’t about Rent and doesn’t dwell on…

  • Ray Donovan: The Movie – The Series Gets Its “Shine a Light” Finale

    “It had to end…it had to stop.” Bridget Donovan sums up the saga of Ray Donovan, and particularly, the lifelong strife between Ray and his con-man father, Mickey. Ray Donovan: The Movie gives fans the conclusion to the series they were robbed of after Showtime unexpectedly canceled the show after the season seven finale. The…

  • Updated Post: Licorice Pizza – A Wholesome, Goofy Romp Through the SoCal 1970s

    Updated Post: Oops. Somehow, I deleted the music paragraph of this post before publishing it. Music is an important component of the movie, so if you’re interested check out the full post. Did you grow up in the 1970s? If so, Licorice Pizza could be for you. If you were raised in Southern California, particularly…

  • Hanna Delivers a Kickass Joyride Through CIA-Conspiracy Land

    A young girl growing up in the forest with her father who is training her to become an assassin. Their life is all about grooming Hanna to kill the CIA agent that is hunting her down. The training is all-consuming, focusing on intense physical fitness, memorizing reams of knowledge, and remaining emotionless and mentally steadfast…

  • Belfast: A Personal Coming-of-Age Story in a Troubling Time

    Soaring above modern-day Belfast in color turns into a black and white scene of an active working-class neighborhood with kids playing in the streets and Moms keeping watch and chattering with the neighbors. This tranquility is fleeting as the street transforms into a war zone with Protestants marching through throwing rocks, looting Catholic-owned stores, and…

  • King Richard: A Telling Look at the Man Behind the Williams Sisters

    The overbearing, obsessive father micromanaging the lives of his daughters, tennis superstar sisters Venus and Serena Williams. I wasn’t sure this story interested me when I first heard about it. I’m not a huge tennis fan, but as a devoted sports follower, I am well aware of their greatness. Serena is at GOAT status. But…