The Small Screen Diaries- 03/10/25

So, someone slid into my DM’s (really, just left a comment) about me previously listing The Leopard as having had the Best Audio Description based on the conglomerate of shows I watched on Sunday. most of that was based on the writing, but I don’t remember having a visceral reaction to the voice, and I thought it was strange, because I clearly remember there being credits at the end. So, with this new inside information, i did put The Leopard back into rotation again for today’s shows. Obviously, my awards are silly and random, because they involve throwing a different … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/10/25

The Small Screen Diaries- 03/09/25

TV Shows Watched: Vietnam: The War That Changed America- S1E5 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Surface: S2E3 (Apple plus) with audio description, The Leopard: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, invincible: S3E4 (Amazon) with audio description, The Baldwins: S1E2 (MAX) no audio description, Krapapolis: S2E12 (Hulu) no audio description: Grimmsburg: S1E2 (Netflix) with audio description, 1923: S2E2 (Paramount Plus) with audio description, and Celebrity Jeopardy: S3E? (Hulu) with audio description. Best episode: Vietnam: The War that Changed America- Apple’s winning docuseries is well structured, narrated well both by Ethan Hawke, and the audio description team, and takes a very personal look … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/09/25

Going In Blind (Playing Catch Up)- Dogman (2024), Hard Truths, Good One, The Mask, Sea Of Love, The Body Politic

Dogman (2024)- Luc Besson’s delightfully bizarre story plays like a grand modern urban epic. A young boy is abused by his father, left to live with the dogs, and grows up to be a disabled drag queen/tribute artist, who has some deep connection to the family of dogs that seem to be at his beck and call. it is through this unknown connection that he seemingly has no fear, daring to stop the most dangerous in his neighborhood,while he squats in an abandoned school. It is the kind of fever dream people don’t write without some medicinal assistance. Besson, who … Continue reading Going In Blind (Playing Catch Up)- Dogman (2024), Hard Truths, Good One, The Mask, Sea Of Love, The Body Politic

The Small Screen Diaries- The Weekly Rankings

Another comprehensive look at my active watchlist. How much do I really like that show? Where do the new shows stack up? What is being eliminated from the watchlist? Find out in this silly thing I’ve started to do. Winner: Cobra Kai (Netflix) with audio description- After an excellent penultimate episode that gave me damn near everything I wanted as a fan of the show, I’m giving Cobra Kai the top spot on my rankings. It has one episode left, and Severance has two. plus, the Harmony centric episode this week of Severance was my least favorite, which certainly made … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- The Weekly Rankings

The Small Screen Diaries- 03/09/25

And we are back. big stuff coming this week. returning favorites like The Wheel Of Time (Thurs/Amazon), The Righteous Gemstones (Sun/MAX), and Temptation Island (Wed/Netflix) are on the horizon, as well as movie premieres like Moana 2 (Wed/Disney Plus), Kraven The Hunter (Thurs/Netflix), and The Electric State (Fri/Netflix). TV Shows Watched: Yellowjackets: S3E4 (Paramount Plus) with audio description, Win or lose: S1E4 (Disney Plus) with audio description, the Traitors: S3E12 (Peacock) with audio description, Harley Quinn: S5E8 (MAX) with audio description, Shifting Gears: S1E? (Hulu) with audio description, Court Of Gold: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, ghosts: S4E? (Paramount Plus) … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/09/25

Going In blind (Playing Catch Up): We Live In Time, Girls Will Be Girls, Wyatt Earp, The Exorcism, Black Dog

Girls Will Be Girls- Yet another indie submitted for my consideration, albeit without audio description. While this movie is, I believe, fully in English, it does lack audio description, and I like to persistently stand by the idea that we do better as a people when exposed to stories about people who are not us,with representations of lives we have not lived, and have an idea of cultural differences. So a movie about Indian girls (No, not Native American girls) at an all girl school learning about life, and pushing back against the adult administration because boys are just so … Continue reading Going In blind (Playing Catch Up): We Live In Time, Girls Will Be Girls, Wyatt Earp, The Exorcism, Black Dog

Anora

Sean Baker’s Best Picture winning film deserves its own post. The winner of five Oscars, and the reward for perseverance from Neon, is a loud, brave, boisterous representation of a dream realized, and seeing the potential for that very dream to slip away. Initially, neon provided me a screener for this without audio description, so I was able to glean something in time to vote. later, i ended up owning a digital copy with audio description, because Baker is an auteur. Whether he likes it or not, there’s something in the connective tissue of his works, where he elevates the … Continue reading Anora

Going In Blind (Playing Catch Up):The Killers Game, Kill, Girl Interrupted, Armand, Exhibiting Forgiveness, laroy Texas

Exhibiting Forgiveness- Another screener from awards season that didn’t have audio description. Andre Holland and Andra Day star in a film that can best be described as coming to terms with the proverbial sins of the father, and how generational trauma is passed from one to another. Holland is always an engaging screen presence, and I’d love to see him get an Oscar nomination someday, but without audio description, this often meditative feature couldn’t engage me the way I hoped it would, and have heard from others that it does. Unwatchable Due To Lack Of Audio description The Fire Inside- … Continue reading Going In Blind (Playing Catch Up):The Killers Game, Kill, Girl Interrupted, Armand, Exhibiting Forgiveness, laroy Texas

Going In Blind (Playing Catch Up): The End, Juror No. 2, Million Dollar Baby

The End- As part of my package from neon,i got Joshua Oppenheimer’s apocalypse musical without audio description. I was actually looking forward to this film as a 2024 release, and while I’m not sure it will eventually land quite the world ending punch I thought a musical centered around the end times might, I also thought I liked it better than most critics. There were some complaints about the music not being particularly memorable, but I’ve seen Emilia Perez twice, and I couldn’t sing one bar from that. I also wouldn’t be able to give you anything from Moana 2 … Continue reading Going In Blind (Playing Catch Up): The End, Juror No. 2, Million Dollar Baby

the Small Screen Stories: 03/07/25

TV Shows Watched: Severance: S2E8 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Cobra Kai: S6E14 (Netflix) with audio description, Reacher: S3E3 (Amazon) with audio description, School Spirits: S2E? (Paramount Plus) with audio description, The Eastern Gate: S1E2 (MAX) with audio description, Going Dutch: S1E7 (Hulu) no audio description, Papa’s House: S1E? (Paramount Plus) with audio description, Running Point: S1E2 (Netflix) with audio description, and Pop Culture Jeopardy: S1E9 (Amazon) with audio description. Best Episode: Cobra Kai- I don’t care. this episode gave me everything I’ve ever wanted from the eventual series finale, and then promised me a little more in the final … Continue reading the Small Screen Stories: 03/07/25

Going In Blind (Playing Catch Up)- The Apprentice, green Border, Separated, The Shawshank Redemption, the Aviator, What remains

The Shawshank redemption- movie that cable built. Frank Darabont’s often quoted masterpiece benefitted from a persistent stream of cable channel viewings, and a strong word of mouth campaign, that took the Best Picture nominee right to the top of the iMDB Top 250. For years, this has been the representation of possibly the best film of all time by anyone who creates an iMDB account. For me, it is a film that I’ve lost track how many times I’ve actually seen it. I certainly wouldn’t know how many times from start to finish, as this was often a film that … Continue reading Going In Blind (Playing Catch Up)- The Apprentice, green Border, Separated, The Shawshank Redemption, the Aviator, What remains

River Of Grass

River Of Grass (2025)- Shows Deep Affection For The Everglades While almost every single day I eat, sleep, and breathe audio description and accessibility, there are times when I feel compelled by the subject matter, or a specific person being involved, and I’m aware the project doesn’t have audio description. I was offered the opportunity to screen the documentary River Of Grass, and it felt like a no brainer. I’m a Floridian. I’m a member of Critics Association Of Central Florida. For most of my life, I’ve lived in Florida. Technically, not born here, but I moved so young I … Continue reading River Of Grass

The Small Screen Diaries- 03/06/25

TV Shows Watched: Daredevil Born Again: S1E2 (Disney Plus) with audio description, Survivor: S48E2 (Paramount Plus) with audio description, Berlin ER: S1E3 (Apple plus) with audio description, Nine Bodies In A Mexican Morgue: S1E1 (MGM Plus) no audio description, Black Ops: S1E1 (Hulu) no audio description, The Masked Singer: S13E4 (Hulu) no audio description Good news for fans of Running Point. The show secured a super fast second season pick up from Netflix. Best Episode: Daredevil: Born Again- I didn’t really give it much competition, but the second episode started to push more into the season long arc of having … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/06/25

The Small Screen Diaries- 03/05/25

TV Shows Watched: Daredevil: Born Again: S1E1 (Disney Plus) with audio description, Prime Target: S1E8 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Paradise: S1E8 (Hulu) with audio description, The Great North: S5E3 (Hulu) no audio description, Toxic Town: S1E2 (Netflix) with audio description, With Love, Megan: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, The Daily Show: Tuesday (Paramount Plus) no audio description, and Suits: LA: S1E2 (Peacock) with audio description. Best Episode: Daredevil: Born Again- While my initial reaction may not be what everyone else’s was, as they did seem to pull back a little from the darkness of the Netflix series, it still … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/05/25

The Small Screen Diaries- 03/04/25

I’m going out on a limb here and guessing that the President didn’t stand up for disability rights last night and demand that 17 states currently suing to declare Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act unconstitutional to drop their suits. Just a guess. TV Shows Watched: Zero Day: S1E4 (Netflix) with audio description, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man: S1E8 (Disney Plus) with audio description, Mythic Quest: S4E4 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Grosse Pointe Garden Society: S1E2 (Peacock) with audio description, Love You To Death: S1E4 (Apple plus) with audio description, Court of Gold: S1E4 (Netflix) with audio description, Muslim Matchmaker: … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/04/25