Author: John Stark

Blogger. EIC of macthemovieguy.com. Contributor to mjsbigblog.com and houseofgeekery.com. Previously featured on starpulse.com.
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Dangerous Animals

John Stark

“It’s safer in the water.” What a great tagline for this film. We have seen a barrage of shark films, all trying to take a bite out of a thirsty audience who haven’t been properly served since Jaws. Some films in the sub genre work because they don’t take themselves too seriously, like Deep Blue Sea or The Meg, so it is less about whether or not it has achieved cinematic perfection and more about having fun at the movies. But the films that try to take it seriously, and be scary, often run into the problem of feeling like … Continue reading Dangerous Animals

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The Small Screen Diaries- 06/03/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Etoile: S1E8 (Amazon) with audio description, Bet: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, The Pitt: S1E6 (MAX) with audio description,The Secrets We Keep: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, Government Cheese: S1E9 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Berlin ER: S1E6 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Ginny and Georgia: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, America Ninja Warrior: S16E1 (Peacock) with audio description, the Daily Show: Monday (Paramount Plus) with audio description New Shows (Kind of) Alert!: first time for Ginny and Georgia and American Ninja Warrior, right? Well, actually I did watch Ginny and Georgia Season 1, but not 2. … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 06/03/25

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Going In Blind: I Don’t Even understand You

John Stark

Well, it is pride month, and as I move through the month I do hope to review some films with pride. A lot of LGBTQ cinema doesn’t have audio description, because it seems to fall off the mainstream radar. Of course, LGBTQ and Blind is a thing, and we should have access to a wider range of titles too. This Friday, Nick Kroll and Andrew Rannells play for laughs (mostly) as a couple that is excited about impending fatherhood, and decide to take a trip to Italy. Like most Americans who travel abroad, they don’t know the language, and are … Continue reading Going In Blind: I Don’t Even understand You

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The Small Screen Diaries- 06/02/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Wondla: S2E6 (Apple plus) with audio description, Motorheads: S1E5 (Amazon) with audio description, Forever: S1E6 (Netflix) with audio description, You: S5E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Midcentury modern: S1E10 (Hulu) with audio description, last Week tonight: Most Recent (MAX) no audio description Best Episode: forever- I really enjoyed this one, as Keisha is forced to tell her mom about the sex tape. Justin’s mom now knows, and she can’t fathom a world where a parent doesn’t know that information, so she threatens to call Keisha’s mom herself. There’s also an excellent scene with Justin maybe about to be … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 06/02/25

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the Small Screen Diaries- 06/01/25

John Stark

The Netflix Tutem had some interesting announcements, including that the final season of Stranger Things is dropping in three parts, starting in November, and all dropping this year.One Piece has been pushed to 2026. Nobody Wants This Season 2 was given an October date. Some of the films, like Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein and Wake up Dead Man had trailers. Did you watch? TV Shows Watched: The Walking Dead: Dead City (AMC Plus) no audio description, Jurassic World: Chaos Theory: S3E8 (Netflix) with audio description, And just Like That: S3E1 (MAX) with audio description, Drag race All Stars: S10E4 (Paramount … Continue reading the Small Screen Diaries- 06/01/25

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Lone Pup

John Stark

it is amazing what you can easily get your hands on. Lone Pup was just sitting in the Apple Store, and was listed as having audio description. However, IMDb is very confused. it recognizes that the film completed filming, is available to rent on Amazon, but is slated for release in 2026. This has kept the film from having a score, user reviews, or potentially a Metacritic rating. I’ve seen something IMDb says isn’t possible, and I just pulled it from the regular good old fashioned store. No piracy required. There’s not much here, though the audio description is essential. … Continue reading Lone Pup

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Movies With Pride: Layla

John Stark

Kicking off Pride month, this year I decided to include LGBTQ films that don’t have audio description. The reason being is that a lot of them don’t have audio description. That’s what happens when the thing you make is essentially running counter culture to mainstream cinema. The same can certainly be said for other niche groups within independent film, but with queer cinema, it is possible to get circulation within the community. So, what about those who are LGBTQ and also blind and low vision? Are we stuck with just the mainstream offerings like Queer or Bottoms? Layla is a … Continue reading Movies With Pride: Layla

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The Small Screen Diaries- The Weekly Rankings

John Stark

Once again, a silly comprehensive list of every show I consider myself actively watching. Shows move up, down, leave, get cancelled, and join. New additions this week include And Just Like That (MAX), the Better Sister (Amazon), Dept Q (Netflix), America’s Got Talent (Peacock), The Buccaneers (Apple Plus), Earnhardt (Amazon), and a few others. this is also the last week shows like The Handmaids Tale and the Last Of us will appear, either forever, or for a while. WINNER: the Handmaids Tale (Hulu) with audio description- Just an excellent run, a brilliant cast, and The Testaments has a lot to … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- The Weekly Rankings

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The Small screen Diaries- 05/31/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Murderbot: S1E4 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Dept Q: S1E2 (Netflix) with audio description, The Buccaneers: S1E1 (Apple plus) with audio description, Battle Camp: S1E8 (Netflix) with audio description, Top Chef: S22E11 (Peacock) with audio description, Earnhardt: S1E2 (Amazon) with audio description, The Rehearsal: S2E1 (MAX) with audio description, Jeopardy Masters: S3E7 (Hulu) with audio description, and the Four Seasons: S1E7 (Netflix) with audio description. Best Episode: the Rehearsal- He’s using his powers for good, now diving into the hilarious topic of plane crashes, while pointing out that he has the resources to do something meaningful, but … Continue reading The Small screen Diaries- 05/31/25

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Going In Blind: the Year In Film So Far: June Edition

John Stark

I started doing this on the first of May, matching other critics who maintain lists of what they are watching. When I published my list in May, I had 92 releases from 2025, I now count 140 (counting streaming titles, and advance screeners for films releasing in June). Still, some critically acclaimed films haven’t crossed my path, including Sinners, so if it isn’t here, I might just have not seen it yet. the Top ten Films Of 2025 So Far: Deaf President Now Tornado the Parenting Lavender Men The Ruse The Assessment Thunderbolts Bonus Track The Luckiest Man In America … Continue reading Going In Blind: the Year In Film So Far: June Edition

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Tornado

John Stark

And now for something completely different. If IFC is interested in using a pull quote from me, let’s kick this review off with instant adoration. tornado is staggering in its refusal to convention, relishing in homage to masterworks of decades ago, while blending it with a fusion of fury and vengeance that propels this underrated gem to be one of the best films of 2025. I haven’t been this excited in a while. This film does have audio description by Audio Eyes, narrated by Nicole Cyrille, and it stars Tim Roth, Jack Lowden, Koki as the titular Tornado. this has … Continue reading Tornado

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Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall

John Stark

Many actors have signed onto films at the start of their careers with the enticement of a leading role. Matthew Mcconaughey and Renee Zellweger were both haunted by Texas Chainsaw Massacre: the Next Generation, Sandra Bullock tried to hide from Fire On The Amazon, and Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire actually sued to try and stop the release of Don’s Plum. What I’m saying is Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall is beneath Jenna Ortega, and it knows it. Somehow, this inferior title found its way to Paramount, which instead of platforming it theatrically, or even giving it a profile as … Continue reading Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall

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The Small Screen Diaries- 05/30/25

John Stark

Disney just loves pissing me off. I can already predict they didn’t describe the new Phineas and Ferb revival starting next week because they didn’t describe the Wizards OF Waverly Place revival last summer. I’m not even sure they got audio description for the documentary Sally, which premieres in June, because they are inconsistent with NatGeo co-productions. So, should I really be surprised The Golden Girls still hasn’t had its audio description restored? it is bad enough that we have to scrape, claw, and scream to get incremental movement in the field, and it makes it worse when something that … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 05/30/25

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Mickey 17

John Stark

Live. die. Repeat. I feel like I’ve heard that concept before, but yet there was a certain allure to having this simple concept taken by Bong Joon ho and morphed into something presumably staggeringly original. But is it? is Mickey 17 the kind of film that lives up to the hype of being from the director of Parasite and Snowpiercer? Bong Joon Ho loves to tackle class warfare and put the haves against the have nots. this is a formula that he’s managed to throw into nearly every film of his, regardless of the context, even if most land in … Continue reading Mickey 17

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A Minecraft Movie

John Stark

Let’s get deep on Minecraft. Before I lost my sight, I was a heavy Minecraft player, albeit only on the XBOX. it was by far my most played game, since XBOX loves to track your progress across all the games you played, i know I had over fifty days played. Days. that doesn’t mean fifty days of my life I turned on the console and played XBOX, it means the amount of time I was logged in specifically playing Minecraft exceeded fifty days. That’s at least 1,200 hours of Minecraft. I left with a fairly impressive map, that many of … Continue reading A Minecraft Movie