Color Of Night: 30th Anniversary
Color Of Night: 30th Anniversary- I Nominate This For “So Bad It’s Good” Status Quick Take: The same year Bruce Willis made Pulp Fiction, he also pushed out this ill conceived, but somehow brilliantly terrible erotic thriller. This is one of the most entertaining terrible films I’ve ever seen. It was a first watch for me, and I’d love to open up more people to this experience. I think this is a gem waiting to be uncovered and have a new following of people who recognize it for all its awful glory. I’d say that this is the worst thing … Continue reading Color Of Night: 30th Anniversary
In The Land Of Saints And Sinners
In The Land Of Saints And Sinners- Liam Neeson’s Set Of Skills Wears Thin Quick Take: Even when Liam Neeson appears in an IRA drama, it still feels like one of those films that has its roots all the way back to a time when he was given a particular set of skills. At this point, Neeson has to avoid action movies altogether, and would be best served in a limited series of some kind, or cast completely against type in kids or comedy films. A nice romance perhaps. But, he’s still being thrown these scripts that go nowhere and … Continue reading In The Land Of Saints And Sinners
Inspector Gadget: 25th Anniversary
Inspector Gadget: 25th Anniversary- Was Matthew Broderick Really The Best Choice? Quick Take: I watched this again just because it had audio description. I didn’t like this when it came out. I wouldn’t have cast Matthew Broderick. I’m just not a fan. It is so hard for me to like him in things. So, to clear the air on my bias, he’s one of my least favorite actors. Do I find things I like that have him in it? Yes. but in all of those cases, he is never the sole reason I like those things. Election has an excellent … Continue reading Inspector Gadget: 25th Anniversary
Harold And The Purple Crayon
Not the most obvious choice for a film adaptation, but I liked it. It takes Harold out of the book and sends him on a journey to find his creator (the author of the book), along with his friends from the book, and his purple crayon. It smartly casts Zachary Levi, who is great at playing a manchild, and puts him opposite Zooey Deschanel, who is excellent at dealing with manchildren. Like Elf, which she starred in, she’s the voice of reason as Harold brings this new perspective. This was an utter failure, and it seems like everyone disliked this, … Continue reading Harold And The Purple Crayon
Always: 35th Anniversary
Always: 35th Anniversary- The Often Never Mentioned Steven Spielberg Film Quick Take: When tackling movies with audio descriptions that were in an anniversary year, I took this opportunity to get one film closer to having seen Spielberg’s entire filmography. I’m really close now, and basically the remaining ones are films people try to ignore. I’ve seen all his heavy hitters. Always is definitely at the bottom of his list, or near it, depending on your taste, which is sad because it is also the final film for Audrey Hepburn. For that reason alone, I enjoyed it. She doesn’t have a … Continue reading Always: 35th Anniversary
Timecut
TimeCut (Netflix)- Didn’t I See This Movie Already? Last Year? Quick Take: Last year, Amazon released Totally Killer, which saw Kiernan Shirpka travel back in time to save her mom from a serial killer. Netflix took that plot, and made it more confounding. Based on the dates given, this doesn’t make any sense. Bailee Madison now has to travel back, to save her sister, who was murdered 20 ears ago. but, she’s a teenager now, so like… her sister would be how old? I kept trying to pick up what this movie was putting down, and the random time travel … Continue reading Timecut
Janet Planet
Janet Planet- A24’s Spin On Coming Of Age Movies Quick Take: A24 gravitates toward movies that that take often typical concepts and present them in atypical fashion. Case in point, Annie Baker’s feature directorial debut Janet Planet, which evokes a similar style of last year’s Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret?, which was well received already. Toss that into a blender, with a dash of and a dash of a more complicated mother/daughter dynamic like in something like Anywhere But Here or 13, and you have the groundwork for this three act story. What looks like a coming of … Continue reading Janet Planet
The Small Screen Diaries- 12/21/24
One voting block done. It was all film, and I had the opportunity to vote for several of my favorites this year, including )in at least one category): Ghostlight, Conclave, The Substance, Ezra, A Real Pain, Nickel Boys, September 5, A Complete unknown, Sing Sing, The Last Showgirl, Late Night With The Devil, nosferatu, Deadpool and Wolverine, It’s What’s inside, Strange Darling, Boy Kills World, A Wild Robot, The Commandante’s Shadow, Wicked, Hard Truths, Problemista, and many others. It isn’t 100% reflective of my personal lists, which I’ll put out later, but I worked around titles that had been deemed … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 12/21/24
My Favorite Martian: 25th Anniversary
My Favorite Martian: 25th Anniversary- Does It Hold Up? Did It Ever? Quick Take: So, I only have passing knowledge of the TV show, and this was my first time watching this. Not every movie stands the test of time, and much like the 90’s adaptation of Leave it To Beaver, I’m pretty sure this has been buried. I’m surprised it had audio description on Disney Plus. The cast is intriguing, ranging from Jeff Daniel’s and Christopher Llloyd to Elizabeth Hurley and Wallace Shawn. Did it stand the test of time? Honestly, if this was the 10th Anniversary, I’d answer … Continue reading My Favorite Martian: 25th Anniversary
Entrapment: 25th Anniversary
Entrapment: 25th Anniversary- The Film Sean Connery Made Instead Of The Matrix  Quick Take: Entrapment isn’t a groundbreaking piece of cinema, but it is a fairly entertaining film from a very strong year full of movies. Sean Connery plays an experienced thief who is either being taken as a mark by Catherine Zeta-Jones, or she is actually a real thief herself, and her job is the cover. A game of cat and mouse is afoot, and for good measure, there’s a little bit of sexual tension between the generationally different leads, but it isn’t driving the story. In 1999, … Continue reading Entrapment: 25th Anniversary
The Small Screen Diaries- 12/20/24
So, this diary, and likely tomorrow’s will be a bit light on TV. I’ve been able to balance a pretty impressive amount of shows and movies, but basically today (Saturday) is one of my deadlines for guild voting. So, I’m going to cram a lot of movies in just in case something strikes my fancy at the last minute. Not a ton of TV here today, nor likely tomorrow. But… some. TV Shows Watched: Silo: S2E5 (Apple Plus) with audio description, St Dennis Medical: S1E? (Peacock) with audio description, No Good Deed: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, and Dream Productions: … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 12/20/24
Patrice: The movie
Patrice: The movie (Hulu)- A Winning Documentary With A Heart Of Gold Quick Take: It has been a minute, but when I saw this, the audio description track was FUBAR. I mentioned this, and an enterprising person let the producers of the film know, who responded basically with an apology and the fact that Hulu hadn’t responded to them. i don’t know if it has been fixed, but I loved Patrice either way. The movie centers around a disabled couple who just want to be able to put a ring on it, but due to current legislation, if they were … Continue reading Patrice: The movie
Canary Black
Canary Black (Amazon) The Director Of Taken Gives Kate Beckinsale A Set Of Skills Quick Take: A desperately forgettable vehicle for Kate Beckinsale finds her as a spy pushed to treacherous limits to save the one she loves. A simple premise. Director Pierre Morel is famous for giving Liam Neeson a particular set of skills, and the starved Kate Beckinsale is looking for leading vehicles that don’t involve reviving the Underworld franchise. Though, in this day and age, it does seem inevitable that Underworld will return with or without her. Based on the mediocrity of Canary Black, I’d suggest to … Continue reading Canary Black
Natural Born Killers: 30th Anniversary
Natural Born Killers: 30th Anniversary- Is Oliver Stone’s Controversial Film Resonant Today? Quick Take: Oliver Stone’s treatise on “if it bleeds it leads”, and a reflective look at violence in the media was sensationalized in 1994, but now seems like it was ahead of its time. The conversation on violence in the media certainly hasn’t gone away, but our news is still fascinated by mundane killings, because our society has become ultra obsessed with true crime. Natural Born Killers pre-dates an era of mass shootings, and true crime podcasts. In 1994, Dateline and 20/20 used to cover stories outside of … Continue reading Natural Born Killers: 30th Anniversary
The Small Screen Diaries- 12/19/24
TV Shows Watched: Jurassic World: Chaos Theory: S2E10 (Netflix) with audio description, Black Doves: S1E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Creature Commandoes: S1E4 (MAX) with audio description, Laid: S1E1 (Peacock) with audio description, Are You Smarter Than A celebrity?: S1E? (Amazon) with audio description, Happy’s Place: S1E? (Peacock) with audio description, and The Masked Singer: Season Finale (Hulu) no audio description. Podcasts/YouTube:: None Movies: Rumors (Apple Store) with audio description, Wicked (Screener) no audio description, Red One (Amazon) audio description, Handling The Undead (Screener/Hulu) no audio description, Zarofsky V Texas (screener) no audio description Best Episode Watched Yesterday: Black Doves- This … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 12/19/24
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