Drama
The Dark Divide
THE DARK DIVIDE At first, I was distracted by the amateur backpacking and the bad science, but after I got over that, the drama, The Dark Divide, is a relatively satisfying story of self-discovery and moving on in life. Sasquatch (Bigfoot) discussions and sightings add a little mysticism and wonder to the film. The Dark…
Hillbilly Elegy
HILLBILLY ELEGY I read the book Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance in 2016, the year it was released. The book examined the Rust Belt area in Ohio and the Appalachian region in Kentucky through J.D. Vance’s family history. Advertising for the book in 2016 said it would throw light on one of the reasons Hillary…
- 2020
- Drama
What the Constitution Means to Me
WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME Do you need a theater fix after nine months in a theater free COVID world? What the Constitution Means to Me is a Tony-nominated semi-autobiographical play. What the Constitution Means to Me is a stinging political comedy and drama that points out deficiencies and wonders of the U.S. Constitution…
- 2020
- Drama
The Forty-Year-Old Version
THE FORTY-YEAR-OLD VERSION The Forty-Year-Old Version is a significant semi-autobiographical comedy, drama about a woman approaching forty and struggling to find her voice. The comedy is mostly the subtle self-deprecating type. Radha Blank wrote, directed, and stars as herself in the film as the lead character Radha. I am always hesitant as a white guy…
Enola Holmes
ENOLA HOLMES If I were a 16-year old girl, Enola Holmes would be empowering and would become my favorite film. I am as far from being a 16-year old girl as one can get. However, Enola Holmes, this coming-of-age adventure film on Netflix, is still entertaining, beautifully filmed and acted, and is a surprisingly complex…
The Devil All the Time
THE DEVIL ALL THE TIME The Devil All the Time is a psychological thriller about a boy named Arvin. Let me start again. The Devil All the Time is a psychologically scary film that makes you uncomfortable and makes you even more concerned about the state of humanity. The film depicts the life of Arvin…
Freaks: You’re One of Us
Freaks: You’re One of Us Freaks: You’re One of Us is a German superhero movie released by Netflix on September 2, 2020. It seems like Freaks is Germany’s first step at creating a German superhero universe. At this point, Freaks: You’re One of Us is slightly entertaining, and a quick Netflix watch but do not…
Mulan
MULAN Mulan is a name known in China since the fourth century. Around that time the nomadic Rourans were fighting the Emperor of the Northern Wei dynasty, in power from 386-534. The Ballad of Mulan (Ode to Mulan) came about during this time. The Ballad of Mulan is a relatively easy to read six stanza…
Radioactive
RADIOACTIVE Radioactive is a biopic drama about Madame Skłodowska Curie. The film begins in 1895 when she meets her future husband, Pierre Curie, and ends in 1934. Radioactive takes a broad sweep at almost every significant event in Madame Curie’s adult life. It shows some of the science where she discovers two new elements (radium…
The Lost Husband
THE LOST HUSBAND One doesn’t usually see Leslie Bibb in a leading role. I do remember her in small roles in Tag or Trick r Treat, and also in some TV roles such as The League. Most recently, one sees her accompanying her partner Sam Rockwell when he is receiving another movie or TV award. …
The Rental
THE RENTAL My daughter just rented a large beautiful house on the water so their wedding party can spend a couple of nights. Jocelyn, Claire, and the entire wedding party, under no circumstance should you watch The Rental, a horror, thriller film set in a similar location. Charlie (Dan Stevens, The Call of the Wild)…
Greyhound
GREYHOUND Greyhound is a tactical war drama known as a dad’s movie. Why? To fully appreciate the impact of the Greyhound engaging U-Boats in the North Atlantic, you must be either elderly (there are less than 300,000 WWII veterans alive out of the sixteen million who served in the US), or have known someone who…
Blow the Man Down
BLOW THE MAN DOWN Blow the Man Down perfectly sets the Maine seaport small-town tone in this quirky drama of surviving in a town run for the last 30 years by now elderly women. Mary Margaret Connolly dies, leaving her two daughters, Mary Beth (Morgan Saylor) and Priscilla Connolly (Sophie Lowe), to fend for themselves. …
The Night Clerk
THE NIGHT CLERK The Night Clerk ending will surprise you – or make you feel stupid as it did me – but it is a long slow plod to get to that ending. The Night Clerk is a crime thriller drama, released on Netflix, that almost borders on creepy, but remains just dull and only…
Da 5 Bloods
DA 5 BLOODS Da 5 Bloods is the superb Spike Lee follow-up to BlackkKlansman, the best film I’ve seen this year. Spike could have waited until theaters open to have an even more financially successful film. But he knew the Spring of 2020 is the right time to release this film. Da 5 Bloods is…
Mother’s Little Helpers
MOTHER’S LITTLE HELPERS Mother’s Little Helpers is a dark-comedy Indie film. The film begins when the four estranged children Sadie Pride (Kestrin Pantera, who wrote and directed the film), Julia Pride (Breeda Wool, the oldest), Jude Pride (Sam Littlefield under house arrest), and Lucy Pride (Milana Vayntrub, the youngest) reluctantly return home to care for…
Oldboy
OLDBOY Y’all tired of these cutesy Netflix or Amazon Original films that deal with teenage coming-of-age, or relationship issues that your girlfriend or wife asks/makes you watch. It’s time for a change – at least for 2 hours. Watch the original 2003 Oldboy, a South Korean action thriller film written and directed by Park Chan-wook. …
Extraction
EXTRACTION Extraction is a better than the average action movie on Netflix, set in an interesting but saddening city, with lots of action (killing), and one long uncut action sequence. That sums it up, but I’ll go on. Chris Hemsworth, aka Thor, is a mercenary named Tyler Rake. He works with a high-tech firm lead…
The Seagull
THE SEAGULL Brian Dennehy died this week. He was the big, burly, most of the time gruff character actor – I can relate to that – who died in the town I grew up in – New Haven, Connecticut. Therefore, I decided to watch one of his later-in-life films, The Seagull, a drama I would…
Never Rarely Sometimes Always
NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS Whether you are in support of, or against, a woman’s right to chose, Never Rarely Sometimes Always stirs up your emotions, and probably not good ones. The spectrum of feelings range from sadness, frustration, pissed off, bored, anger, and sadness (sadness deserves to be listed twice, maybe anger too, anger with…
- 2020
- Drama