 |
| Mark Rylance stars in The Phantom of the Open |
The Quiet Girl - 4 Stars - THEATERS - March 10, 2023 - Extraordinary story of a young girl's summer with relatives who treat her with kindness and respect. Quiet, languid, and compelling.
Air - 3 1/2 Stars - THEATERS - April 7, 2023 - Matt Damon and Ben Affleck recreate Nike's decision to create the Air Jordan sneaker for Michael Jordan. Viola Davis steals the movie s Michael's mother.
You Hurt My Feelings - 3 1/2 Stars - THEATERS - May 26, 2023 - Julia Louie Dreyfus delights in a post Woody Allen Manhattan centric comedy of marriage and manners. The plot revolves around an unexpected word of truth.
The Lost King - 3 Stars - THEATERS - March 31, 2023. Sally Hawkins delights as the quiet shy determined woman whose research leads to the bones of King Richard the third - under a parking lot. Based on a true story.
BlackBerry - 3 Stars - THEATERS - May 12, 2023 - The rise and fall of the mobile phone that never saw Apple coming. Hilarious and a bummer.
STREAMING:
Still: A Machael J. Fox Movie - 3 1/2 Stars - May 12, 2023 - Still documentary of Michael J. Fox's life and his current struggle with Parkinson's disease.
Weird: The Al Yankovic Story - 3 1/2 Stars - ROKU - September 8, 2022 - Song parody comic Al Yankovic creates a completely made-up story of his life, with Daniel Radcliff as Weird Al. One of the year's most hilarious delights celebrating Weird Al's music and current music biographies. A delight.
Tar - 3 1/2 Stars - PEACOCK - October 7, 2022 - Cate Blanchett mesmerizes as a talented arrogant genius conductor. Her rise and fall exhausts the viewer, but in a good way.
Emily the Criminal --- 3 1/2 Stars - NETFLIX - August 12, 2022. - Edgy Aubrey Plaza dares you to look away in this thriller crime drama. An art school dropout with student loan debt, she learns the art of credit card theft launching a breath-taking adventure.
All Quiet on the Western Front - 3 1/2 Stars - NETFLIX - October 20, 2022 - German boys learn war is not a game - the hard way. A powerful remake of a classic film and novel.
Vengeance - 3 1/2 Star - AMAZON PRIME - July 29, 2022 - East coast podcaster B.J. Novak undertakes adventure and a murder investigation in West Texas. Ashton Kutcher delights with some really weird dialog. A blue state fish out of water tale in red state Texas with sharp comedy and nice twists.
The Outfit --- AMAZON PRIME --- 3 1/2 Stars --- March 22, 2022 - Mark Rylance poses as a quiet British tailor in 1950's Chicago all the while keeping an eye on the mob using his store as a front. The set up turns into a twisty gob smacking thriller.
Cha Cha Real Smooth --- APPLE --- 3 1/ 2 Stars --- June 17, 2022 - Writer/Director/Actor Cooper Raiff creates a charming story of a just graduated college kid who finds his voice as a Bar Mitzva party "Starter" and grows up thanks to a connection with single mom Dakota Johnston and her autistic daughter.
The Fabelmans - 3 Stars - AMAZON PRIME - November 23, 2022 - Steven Spielberg reimagines his childhood through the eyes of his parent's marriage problems and his discovery of moviemaking. A little long and a little slick, but moving nevertheless.
The Banshees of Inisherin - THEATERS - 3 Stars --- November 4, 2022. Rural Irish comedy with Colin Ferrell and Brendan Gleeson.
The Good Nurse - 3 Stars ---NETFLIX --- September 11, 2022 - Tense medical thriller based on the true story of serial killer nurse Charlie Cullen. Great cast includes award winners Jessica Chastain, and Eddie Redmayne plus Noah Emmerich, and Kim dickens.
Elvis - 3 Stars - HBO MAX - September 2, 2022 - the rise and fall of Elvis told grand opera style by over-the-top director Baz Luhrmann.
Where the Crawdads Sing - 3 Stars - NETFLIX - July 13, 2022 - Romance, murder, and mystery in the North Carolina swamp over a 75-year span.
Top Gun: Maverick - 3 Stars - May 27, 2022 - AMAZON PRIME - Tom Cruise shows a new generation how it's done in a patriotic sequel to the 1980's original.
Sharper - 3 Stars --- APPLE TV - Con artists one up each other in a plot that manages to rise above the holes in it. Great cast includes old pros Julianne Moore and John Lithgow - and new pros Sebastian Stan, Briana Middleton, and Justice Smith.
Babylon - 2 1/2 Stars - December 23, 2020 - PARAMOUNT PLUS - Overstuffed 1920's Hollywood epic at least an hour two long, the boring parts offset by exhilarating moments.
The Menu - 2 1/2 Stars - November 18, 2022 - HBO MAX - Ralph Fiennes dominates this horror comedy as an angry chef intent on getting even with his best customers.
She Said - 2 1/2 Stars ---November 18, 2022. PEACOCK - By the numbers story of the New York Times reporting on the Harvey Weinstein scandal. Uplifting but lacks the tension of All the President's Men or Spotlight.
Empire of Light - 2 1/2 Stars - December 16, 2022 - HBO MAX - Olivia Coleman as troubled woman working for a struggling cinema in the 1980's. Morose story of film and community.
You People - 2 Stars - January 27, 2023 - NETFLIX - Black/White family culture clash with nice ensemble cast including Eddie Murphy and Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Nope - 2 Stars - STREAMING - July 22, 2022 - Jordan Peele's UFO sci fi drama feels ordinary compared to his masterpiece Get Out.
Marlowe - 1 Star - February 15, 2023 - THEATERS - ROKU - Lian Nesson as Private eye Philip Marlowe. Captures the look of the hard boiled LA noir classics but lacks the spark.
Blonde - 1 Star - September 23, 2022 - NETFLIX - Hard to watch story of 1950's icon Marilyn Monroe's life. Beautifully produced but explicit, long, and painful. Hint: She had Daddy issues.
The Son - 1 Star - January 20, 2023 - NETFLIX - Hard to watch family drama starring badly miscast Hugh Jackman as the clueless father of a depressed son.
White Noise - 1 Star - December 30, 2022 - NETFLIX - Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig can't save this talky 1970s environmental dark comedy.
The Whale - Zero - December 14, 2022 - APPLE TV - morbidly obese man tries to square thigns with his family. Mean spirited and hard to watch.
