MINDHUNTER (TV, Netflix)–If you’ve got a strong stomach, this Netflix thriller about the origins of the FBI’s behavioral profiling practices is a must. The first season was very good, this one is through the roof. A more focused investigation helps, and I think the writers have learned how their show works. I would like to…
The quickest way to review this movie is to say it’s pretty good but some people are going to very legitimately hate it. That’s because it really isn’t a story in the conventional sense that all QT’s other films are. It’s a slice of life, a series of amusing anecdotes about a collage of…
“The Office” was a landmark moment in television, setting the template for grounded ensemble comedies that focus on people brought together by a mundane, relatable workplace environment. Once it took off, it spawned two direct descendants: “Parks and Rec” and “Community.” Both started as knock offs, but quickly became unique stories in their own right. So!…
Let’s talk about things I’ve seen recently and what I think of them… SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME: I walked into “Far From Home” expecting a solid, forgettable coda, a light dessert to finish off the meal that was “Endgame.” But nobody told director Jon Watts or writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers that, because…
There’s literally no reason I’m doing this except I feel like it. 10. THE DARK KNIGHT RISES–it pains me to say this, but this film that I desperately love is riddled with flaws. Not the flaws you THINK it has, most of your nit-picky “plot hole” critiques are wrong (don’t even get @ me with…
THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY (TV)– A little too self-consciously “quirky,” and not above lapsing into trope (who among us doesn’t), but a great cast and some snappy writing brings it home. Ellen Page is the standout, yet another reminder of how criminally underutilized she is. BRIGHTBURN (MOVIE)— One of those ideas that makes writers pound…
As we draw nearer to “Avengers: Endgame,” I wanted to take a second to ponder on the best of all Marvel movies, “Captain America: Civil War” (“Avengers” is very close). It’s well-acted and technically impressive, like all or most Marvel movies, but what separates it is how savvy its script is in tackling that age-old…
In no particular order… 1. RIVERDALE. Hot damn is that show a good time. The plot is high-test nonsense, but that’s not laziness on the writers’ parts, it’s savvy. They know what makes their show fun, and to keep the moment-to-moment humming, they gotta stretch credibility and throw everything at you as fast as they can.…
The other day, Netflix released a new thriller from Dan Gilroy, starring (among others) Jake Gyllenhaal; the same pair that had great success with “Nightcrawler.” It’s a satirical horror film set in the world of modern day art, and it has the unbelievably awesome title of “Velvet Buzzsaw.” Jake gets top billing, but the legendary…
On weekends, I like to write while watching movies. You’d think it would be distracting and it can be, but it can also fire your imagination and keep you locked in a subconscious, creative state that’s very conducive to coming up with things. I keep the volume low-ish, turn the subtitles on, and pause it…