The video dating era of the late eighties and early nineties; pre-dating apps, pre-Match.com, and long before the phrase “swipe right” became an easy way to find a companion. It was a time when companies would hire a cameraman to record your video profile and you would go home and wait in the hope that the agency would find you a proper match. Those were the days. Or were they? In ... more >
MOVIES
“Hi, I’m David, I’m forty years’ young” (FILM REVIEW)
Wil Wheaton, Brian Landis Folkins and Amy Rutledge
Directed by Jon Stevenson
Director John Hyams achieves genre perfection with his new film “Alone” (REVIEW)
Julles Willcox, Marc Menchaca and Anthony Heald
Directed by John Hyams
Just so we're clear, I have never cared for man-against-the-wilderness type films ( “Dersu Uzala,” Joe Carnahan’s “The Grey,” and “The Revenant” being exceptions) and I dislike kidnap films, as well. No matter how well-made, this type of film falls prey to unavoidable cliché. In film after film we witness the long fall off an unexpected cliff into the icy water or the tree branch going through ... more >
An intellectual tonic filled with pleasurable mysteries: “I’m thinking of ending things” (REVIEW)
Jesse Plemons, Jessie Buckley and Toni Collette
Directed by Charlie Kaufman
“Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.” This Oscar Wilde quote, spoken by a character in the new film “I’m Thinking of Ending Things,” is the perfect key to help viewers unlock its many thematic mysteries. By this film’s end, you will certainly have questions. You will be confused and perplexed and possibly ... more >
With very uncertain days ahead “Surge” strikes a note of common sense and optimism
In the 2018 midterm elections, a then-record 117 women won seats in Congress, leading many writers to call it the “Year of the Woman.” Documentarians Hannah Rosenzweig and Wendy Sachs followed three Democratic women running in 2018, and the result of their years of work is a film called “Surge.” “So many women were activated to actually run for office—women who had never thought they would ... more >
It’s the story of a silverback named Ivan, “The one and only Ivan” – REVIEW
Sam Rockwell, Bryan Cranston and Phillipa Soo
Directed by Thea Sharrock
A problem with today’s family-oriented films is that they feel they must dumb everything down so the kids will sit quiet for an hour and a half and enjoy the movie. Many modern kid’s films refuse to put much substance into their characters and think their young audiences will be happy with messy slapstick and flatulent humor. It is this way of thinking that leads to so many family films insulting ... more >
The pursuit of self-realization taken to another level: “Rising Phoenix” (PREMIERING ON NETFLIX THIS WEEKEND)
Thanks to covid-19, both the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics were postponed to 2021. That means the competitors will have another whole year to train and prepare for their events in Tokyo. And however disappointing, it’s just one more bump on the road for the Paralympics athletes featured in the new documentary “Rising Phoenix,” which opens on Netflix this weekend. Directed by Ian Bonhôte and ... more >
MOVIE REVIEW: “WORDS ON BATHROOM WALLS”
AnnaSophia Robb, Walton Goggins and Charlie Plummer
Directed by Thor Freudenthal
Artistically, Hollywood has had a tough time adapting young adult novels. While usually finding an audience, most of their adaptations of the more serious YA novels have fallen flat. Sadly, and despite a solid cast, the new film “Words on Bathroom Walls” is no exception. Adapting Julia Walton’s novel, screenwriter Nick Naveda attempts to recognize the issues of mental illness in realistic and ... more >