Author: John Stark

Blogger. EIC of macthemovieguy.com. Contributor to mjsbigblog.com and houseofgeekery.com. Previously featured on starpulse.com.
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The Hill

John Stark

Sadly, Netflix did not have an available audio description track for this at the time of my viewing, so this inspirational Dennis Quaid baseball drama is going to get the grade it gets. In general, 2023 produced a few well made faith based films that had some money thrown behind them. I’ve seen a lot of sub par ones like Kirk Cameron’s Saving Christmas that seem like they are barely films. The hill tells the true story of a kid who is born with skeletal problems, and spends his time in a brace. He loves baseball, and he wants to … Continue reading The Hill

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The Small Screen Diaries: 03/17/24

John Stark

I know The Tourist (Netflix) was trending. I had no idea what it was so I didn’t check it out initially. Then, I clicked on it, and I found out that the second season had just dropped. Jamie Dornan? Audio Description? Sure, let me jump right in… wait. It says my next episode is Season 2, Episode 1. What? Have I seen this before? So, i went back and rewatched the pilot instead, and slowly these pieces started coming back. I don’t remember how the season ended though. when was this? Why did my brain delet this show? Is it … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 03/17/24

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The Zone Of Interest

John Stark

This years Oscar winner for best international Feature is brought to you by Jonathan Glazer, who previously directed films like Sexy Beast and Under The Skin. While there is some flair here, this couldn’t be more different. A24 distributed this, and it is tough to look away from. 30 years since Schindler’s List, and we are just getting another truly masterful but frightening look at one of the worst periods in our history. Glazer captures this through his determination to show the life of a Commandate’s family that lives just outside the death camp of Auschwitz, and how their mundane … Continue reading The Zone Of Interest

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20 Days In Mariupol

John Stark

This years winner for Best Documentary Feature was the right choice. In an increasingly uncertain world, the documentary branch has now had the opportunity two years in a row to bestow honors on documentaries that aim to bring focus to Russia’s extermination of Ukraine, first through a feature about Putin’s greatest opposition, who has since died in a Russian prison from “sudden death syndrome”, and now through 20 Days In Mariupol, which has a few journalists capturing the beginning of Russia’s strike on Ukraine. I couldn’t imagine voting for anything else, and there were some terrific documentaries. It is harrowing … Continue reading 20 Days In Mariupol

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The Small Screen Diaries- 03/16/24

John Stark

Apples Never Fall (Peacock) is just a travesty. Mostly, the show suffers from poor direction and writing, but I can pinpoint some specifics. This show centers around a retired wife (Bening) who goes missing from her family, and former tennis star husband (Sam Neil). Her kids think something is afoot, so they start investigating, and over the course of 7 episodes, we will learn why Apples Never Fall (far from the tree). They introduce a character, Savannah (Georgia Flood), who shows up in the middle of the night supposedly fleeing domestic abuse. Flood delivers one of the worst performances I’ve … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/16/24

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The Reeducation Of Molly Singer

John Stark

Now that I’m middle aged, I have these moments where I feel very old. Films celebrating anniversaries is one way of doing that. Last year, Mean Girls hitting 20 was kind of mind blowing. Now, I have Britt Robertson starring as “too old for college” in The Reeducation Of Molly Singer, which is a little like what it felt like to watch Jennifer Lawrence in No Hard Feelings. Lawrence is 33, so I guess she’s safely beyond college years, even if you stay and get your Doctorate and have a gap year or two. Shockingly, the former star of Life … Continue reading The Reeducation Of Molly Singer

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The Small Screen Diaries- 03/15/24

John Stark

Good news for fans of The Bear! Variety is reporting that as Season 3 of The Bear is ramping up production, Hulu is actually quietly ordering Season 4 so it can be filmed back-to-back. My guess, is the cast is getting popular now, and they have them for this window, so they are trying to film two seasons so they have another to follow even if their top talent are off shooting movies like Fantastic Four. I started a new show today, the MAX original The Girls On The Bus. As far as pilots go, it was really disappointing. I’m … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/15/24

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the Last Voyage Of The Demeter

John Stark

I think more people should take a small section out of other novels and adapt them into their own movies. It is a banner idea. It could mean that all the deleted Quidditch stuff in Goblet Of Fire could make for its own film. Yeah, I said it. But, in the meantime, let’s talk about that one time Dracula was on a boat, and it’s not a cool Saturday Night Live song either. This was surprisingly good, despite the premise. from the very beginning, we see the titular ship floating to land, and someone goes to inspect and finds everyone … Continue reading the Last Voyage Of The Demeter

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What Happens Later

John Stark

Meg Ryan is back. She’s writing, directing, and starring now. Blazing her own path. Perhaps, maybe, she shouldn’t. I love Meg Ryan, and I’ve long thought her exile from Hollywood was unfair. The idea that she reached a certain age, or didn’t look the way she once did while trying to live up to unreasonable standards of beauty, took nothing away from her acting. she never lost her charm. Sure, in the early 2000’s, she seemed more interested in chasing dramatic role than romantic comedies, but let the woman pivot back. For a machine that keeps finding ways for Liam … Continue reading What Happens Later

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The Small Screen Diaries- 03/14/24

John Stark

I’m not really sure what was going on with the actress playing Crystal on The Connors (Hulu), but her few lines were some of the worst line readings I had heard in a long time. Honestly, it felt like a regular person had won the chance to be on The Connors from their live studio audience, and had never acted before. I loved the meta moment where Darlene was trying to answer a trivia question in which she would be the answer in the real world. I also watched Abbott Elementary’s (Hulu) very special post-Oscar episode, which was hilarious as … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/14/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 03/13/24

John Stark

With all respect to Episode 5 of One Day (Netflix), and its heavier leaning subject matter, I just feel like the show hasn’t earned its emotional resonance. The format the show is taking is making it really hard to latch onto these characters. The male lead started out unlikable, and in the last episode just basically said he was looking for “fun”. So now he’s needing someone to talk to? I’m more concerned that there are people who find this person charming. You deserve better. This show does have fine audio description from a company that I’m unfamiliar with. The … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/13/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 03/12/24

John Stark

CBS came in clutch with two early, and easy, renewals. After previously picking up Tracker for next season, the network predictably confirmed that Ghosts and Fire Country would both be back for a 4th and 3rd season respectively. This is a no-brainer choice, since CBS has struggled to launch a new hit sitcom, and Ghosts is that for them, and Fire Country has a spinoff in contention for the fall. My early predictions would be that CBS retains its entire FBi lineup, current NCIS programs, The Neighborhood, and Elzbeth. I think their bubble shows are So Help Me Todd and … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/12/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 03/11/24

John Stark

I had quite a busy day yesterday, and I still managed to squeeze in some shows to talk about. First of all, kudos to the bold choice of using “ass” in the audio description over at Sexy Beast(Paramount Plus). I think the general line of thought from the old guard would be to avoid that word for some out of date reason. There’s no one watching Sexy Beast, who got to Episode 6, heard “ass” and got offended. The show features a lot of sex, is primarily set in and around porn, and that use was during a sex scene. … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/11/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 03/10/24 (with Oscar reactions!)

John Stark

Since the diaries are always about audio described television I watched the day before, The Oscars (ABC) are eligible, as I did actually watch the thing all the way through, live, with audio description. Even the red carpet had it. Shoutout to my friend Nefertiti for being half of the AD team on this. It is so hard to describe some of the garish fashion choices, but they did a great job this year. As far as the ceremony goes, I loved it. I didn’t get them all right, but every category I lost, the one I thought might win … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/10/24 (with Oscar reactions!)