Tag: Apple Plus

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The Small Screen Diaries: 08/03/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Eyes Of Wakanda: S1E3 (Disney Plus) with audio description, From: S2E10 (MGM Plus) with audio description, Black Mirror: S3E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Twisted Metal: S2E1 (Peacock) with audio description, Furia: S1E1 (HBO MAX) with audio description, Ginny and Georgia: S2E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Foundation: S3E4 (Apple Plus) with audio description, King Of The Hill: S2E12 (Hulu) no audio description, The Art Detectives: S1E6 (Acorn) no audio description, Ballard: S1E4 (Amazon) with audio description, Sherlock and daughter: S1E8 (MAX) no audio description Eyes Of Wakanda- Third episode was great. A Wakandian spy retrieves an artifact that … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 08/03/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 08/02/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Eyes of Wakanda: S1E2 (Disney plus) with audio description, chief Of War: S1E1 (Apple plus) with audio description, Untamed: S1E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Dexter: S5E9 (Paramount Plus) with audio description, And Just Like That: S3E10 (HBO MAX) with audio description, Leanne: S1E2 (Netflix) with audio description, The Summer I Turned Pretty: S3E1 (Amazon) with audio description Eyes Of Wakanda- Solid audio description, hated the episode. most of what we know about Troy is from The Aenead, and while most if not all is myth, it felt so weird for them to take this part of history … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 08/02/25

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Stick: Season 1

John Stark

Cast: Owen Wilson as Price “Stick” Cahill, Peter Dager as Santi, Mariana Trevino as Elena, Lilli Kay as Zero, Marc Maron as Mitz, Timothy Olyphant as Clark, Judy Greer as Amber Lynn Streaming Service: Apple TV + Length: 10 episodes Audio Description Created By: Pixel Logic Media Written by: Narrated By: What Is It? A washed up former professional golf player finds an undiscovered young golfer and goes all in on mentoring him, and getting him to the big show. Only if the kid was interested in even having a mentor. As they hit the road, they are joined by … Continue reading Stick: Season 1

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2025: The Best Of The Year So far: August Edition

John Stark

I haven’t seen everything, but as of my last count, I’m at 217 films. It’s slowing a bit as I try to back catalog my reviews onto Rotten Tomatoes, but here’s how I see the year so far. Top 25 Films So Far: #1- deaf President Now #2- Tornado #3- The Parenting #4- Lavender Men #5- My Dead Friend Zoey #6- Sinners #7- The Assessment #8- She Rides Shotgun #9- The Amateur #10- the Ruse #11- Thunderbolts #12- Ballerina #13- Materialists #14- Magazine dreams #15- K-Pop Demon Hunters #16- Bonus Track #17- The Luckiest Man In America #18- Bridget Jones … Continue reading 2025: The Best Of The Year So far: August Edition

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The Small Screen Diaries- 08/01/25

John Stark

TV Shows Cancelled: And Just Like that (HBO MAX) and FUBAR (Netflix). TV Shows Watched: Eyes of Wakanda: S1E1 (Disney plus) with audio description, Leanne: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, Stick: S1E10 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Countdown: S1E6 (Amazon) with audio description, Washington Black: S1E3 (Hulu) with audio description, Match Game: S?E2 (Hulu) with audio description, and Breaking Bad: S2E5 (Netflix) with audio description. eyes Of Wakanda- first episode was done well enough. I remember when a Wakanda series was in the works with Danai Gurira attached, and I’m guessing that died, and became this? This is… fine. the … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 08/01/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/31/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Building The Band: S1E10 (Netflix) with audio description, The buccaneers: S2E2 (Apple Plus) with audio description, The Wonderfully Weird World Of Gumball: S1E1 (Hulu) with audio description, FUBAR: S2E8 (Netflix) with audio description,and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire: S4E2 (Hulu) with audio description Building The Band- I’m not doing a full review, because reviewing reality television seems like the equivalent of reviewing fast food. It’s easily accessible and not actually good for you. The audio description continued to be excellent, highlighting the final performances, and the last little touching moment with Liam Payne. As a series, … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/31/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/29/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Too Much: S1E10 (Netflix) with audio description, Smoke: S1E6 (Apple Plus) with audio description, The institute: S1E2 (MGM Plus) with audio description, Euphoria: S2E1 (HBo MAX) with audio description, Adaptive: S1E3 (Peacock) no audio description, Silicon Valley: S3E2 (HBO MAX) with audio description, The Daily Show: Monday (Paramount Plus) no audio description, and Ballard: S1E3 (Amazon) with audio description Too Much- full review coming shortly… Smoke- Now that the series has pulled at a thread, the show is unraveling a little bit before the finale. It might have been a little too early to push at Taron … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/29/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/27/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Building The Band: S1E9 (Netflix) with audio description, Stick: S1E9 (Apple plus) with audio description, Mindhunter: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, Washington Black: S1E2 (Hulu) with audio description, Dexter: S5E8 (Paramount Plus) with audio description, Red Eye: S1E1 (Hulu) no audio description, Breaking Bad: S2E? (Netflix) with audio description Building The Band- Seems like the right final three. Liam is my favorite judge, as he actually feels like he wants to give real feedback, and not just “reality show judge” babble that Nicole is so used to giving, after spending years telling every mediocre celebrity they are … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/27/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/25/25

John Stark

TV News: In the past few days, Apple Plus renewed Stick for a second season, Paramount Plus confirmed it would not be moving forward with a second season of happy Face, Netflix gave an early season 3 renewal to Wednesday, SyFy/USA cancelled resident Alien, AMC renewed Daryl Dixon for a 4th season and announced it would be the last, Adult Swim announced a spinoff of Rick And Morty, and Amazon picked up The Legend Of Vox Machina for a 5th and final season. TV Shows Watched: Foundation: S3E3 (Apple plus) with audio description, the Sandman: S2E6 (Netflix) with audio description, … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/25/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/24/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Too Much: S1E9 (Netflix) with audio description, Building The Band: S1E8 (Netflix) with audio description, The Buccaneers: S2E1 (Apple plus) with audio description, Untamed: S1E3 (Netflix) with audio description, Washington Black: S1E1 (Hulu) with audio description, Patience: S1E6 (PBS) with audio Description, South Park: S27E1 (Paramount Plus) no audio description, All of Us Are Dead: S1E4 (Netflix) with audio description, The Art Detectives: S1E4 (Acorn) no audio description, and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire: Season Premiere (Hulu) with audio description Too Much- I will review this whole season, but for now, in the penultimate episode, Felix … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/24/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/22/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Too Much: S1E5 and S1E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Building The Band: S1E7 (Netflix) with audio description, FUBAR: S2E6 (Netflix) with audio description, Smoke: S1E5 (Apple plus) with audio description, Untamed: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, The Daily Show: Monday (Paramount Plus) no audio description Too Much- Now we’re getting into the meat and potatoes, and instead of just being a straight up raunchy comedy, the heart is being pulled in. Some truly terrific moments as we explore Jessica’s whole past asshole ex-boyfriend. We see this girl we’ve come to love, slowly be emotionally destroyed by her … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/22/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/21/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Too Much: S1E4 (Netflix) with audio description, The Sandman: S2E5 (Netflix) with audio description, The Waterfront: S1E8 (Netflix) with audio description, Stick: S1E8 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Patience: S1E5 (PBS) with audio description, The Guilded Age: S3E5 (HBo MAX) with audio description Too Much- our duo ends up going to a dinner party where it turns out Felix might actually know the hosts, if they remember who he is. A cute episode that ends on a nice moment for the couple. not quite as aggressively edgy as the other episodes. The Sandman- In what felt like … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/21/25

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The Buccaneers: Season 1

John Stark

Cast:Kristine Froseth as Nan, Alisha Boe as Conchita, Matthew Broome as Guy, Josie Totah as Mabel, Imogen Waterhouse as Ginny, Aubri Ibrag as Lizzie, Josh Dylan as Richard, Guy Remmers as Theo, Barney Fishwick as james, Mia Threapleton as Honoribl Marable, Amelia Bullmore as the Dowager Duchess, Adam James as colonel St. George, and Christina Hendricks as Mrs. St. George. Written and Created By: Katherine Jakeway, based on the book by Edith Wharton Streaming Exclusive To: Apple TV + Length: 8 episodes release Year: 2023 Audio Description Produced By: Pixel Logic Media Written By: Narrated By: Roy Samuelson What is … Continue reading The Buccaneers: Season 1

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/18/25

John Stark

After trying a new theme for a day, the genies finally figured out my original theme was Gazette. So, we’re back. The original theme. Let me know if something is still wrong, but this is the theme I had for ten years. Visually, I don’t know if I need to play around with anything to get it back to where it was, but there should be a search bar now. TV Shows Watched: Foundation: S3E2 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Building The Band: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, Stick: S1E7 (Apple plus) with audio description, Revival: S1E4 (Peacock) with audio … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/18/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/17/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: The Sandman: S2E4 (Netflix) with audio description, The buccaneers: S1E8 (Apple plus) with audio description,Adults: S1E7 (Hulu) with audio description, We Were liars: S1E7 (Amazon) with audio description, Patience: S1E4 (PBS) with audio description, Back To The Frontier: S1E2 (MAX) with audio description, and poker Face: S2E11 (Peacock) with audio description The Sandman- Delerium visits Dream because she has this feeling that they really need their missing brother, and she hopes Dream will help her find him. dream allows himself to again be influenced by Desire, who suggest the only reason he wants to go to the … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/17/25

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The Small Screen Diaries- 07/16/25

John Stark

A new theme for the blog. I’ve been told by the Happiness engineers that this is a theme with great accessibility, and the ability to easily add a search bar. Now I’m just waiting for the instructions on how to do that. but, i do believe, from what I can tell, a lot of the garbage from the previous theme is gone. TV Shows Watched: Smoke: S1E4 (Apple plus) with audio description, Building The Band: S1E4 (Netflix) with audio description, tires: S2E7 (Netflix) with audio description, the Pitt: S1E12 (HBo MAX) with audio description, and destination X: S1E8 (Peacock) with … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 07/16/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: The Weekly Rankings

John Stark

I actually finished a lot of shows this week, which should free up a ton of space and shake up the list next week. Joining the list this week are Dexter Resurrection (Paramount Plus), Building The Band (Netflix), Back To The Frontier (HBo MAX), Foundation (Apple Plus), Sullivan’s Crossing (Netflix), and The Art detectives (Acorn). Also, I took a look at A Different World (Netflix) which has audio description! WINNER: Squid Game (Netflix) with audio description- I’m not quite done with the final season, and I’ve basically lost all the new characters I was rooting for, yet something about this … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: The Weekly Rankings

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/11/25

John Stark

TV News: there’s been enough movement the past couple of days for me to recap some of the decisions. Netflix gave Virgin River an early Season 8 renewal, as Season 7 concludes filming. Apple also did the same for Slow Horses, which got a Season 7 renewal, even though Season 6 has yet to premiere. Apple also picked up the new Sci-Fi series MurderBot for a second season. ABC has gone straight to series on the Scrubs revival after Donald Faison and Sarah Chalke solidified deals to return to the series, which could land as early as mid season. In … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/11/25

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Dorian TV Awards Winners Announced! ‘Hacks’ and ‘The Pitt’ Take Honors

John Stark

Among the other things I do, I am a proud member of GALECA: The Society for LGBTQ Film Journalists, so naturally, I should announce the winners of the awards I voted for. for those who follow my small Screen diaries, you’ll note my finger is on the absolute pulse, as it also is for the many critics and entertainment journalists who voted in these awards.With Emmy nominations only days away, will these serve as a bell weather for things to come on that front as well? GALECA is the 2nd largest Entertainment Journalist organization in the world, boasting over 560 … Continue reading Dorian TV Awards Winners Announced! ‘Hacks’ and ‘The Pitt’ Take Honors

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/10/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Back To The Frontier: S1E1 (MAX) with audio description, Building The Band: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, The Sandman: S2E3 (Netflix) with audio description, Adults: S1E6 (Hulu) with audio description, Euphoria: S1E5 (HBOMAX) with audio description, Countdown: S1E4 (Amazon) with audio description, Invasion: S1E2 (Apple plus) with audio description, King Of The Hill: S2E5 (Hulu) no audio description, Breaking Bad: S1E8 (Netflix) with audio description, and Sherlock and Daughter: S1E5 (HBOMAX) no audio description Best Episode: Breaking Bad, Runner Up: Adults Best Audio Description: The sandman, Runner Up: breaking Bad best performance: Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/10/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/09/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: Black Mirror: S3E3 (Netflix) with audio description, The Buccaneers: S1E7 (Apple Plus) with audio description, Tires: S2E6 (Netflix) with audio description, motorheads: S1E10 (Amazon) with audio description, Destination X: S1E7 (Peacock) with audio description, Dexter: S5E4 (Paramount Plus) with audio description, Department Q: S1E8 (Netflix) with audio description, prison Break: S1E3 (Netflix) no audio description, Poker Face: S2E10 (Peacock) with audio description Best Episode: Poker Face, Runner Up: The buccaneers Best Audio Description: Poker Face, Runner Up: Dexter best Performance: Natasha Lyonne (Poker face), runner Up: Vince Vaughn (Tires) Best Moment Of Audio Description: The inciting incident … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/09/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/08/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: The Sandman: S2E2 (Netflix) with audio description, Ginny And Georgia: S2E1 (Netflix) with audio description, Stick: S1E6 (Apple plus) with audio description, Nine Perfect Strangers: S1E8 (Hulu) with audio description, The Pitt: S1E11 (MAX) with audio description, Sullivan’s Crossing: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, Patience: S1E3 (PBS) with audio description, Peaky Blinders: S1E7 (Netflix) with audio description, King Of The hill: S2E4 (Hulu) no audio description, The Daily Show: Monday (Paramount Plus) no audio description, Bosch: Legacy (Amazon) with audio description Best Episode: The Pitt, Runner Up: The Sandman Best Audio Description: the Sandman, Runner Up: Stick … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/08/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/07/25

John Stark

Today was a great day. I hope to give more on that later. But for now, you came to find out whaat i watched. TV Shows Watched: The Waterfront: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, Smoke: S1E3 (Apple plus) with audio description, the bear: S4E10 (Hulu) with audio description, Bet: S1E10 (Netflix) with audio description, The Better Sister: S1E8 (Amazon) with audio description, A Different World: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, Scrubs: S1E4 (Peacock) no audio description, King Of The Hill: S2E4 (Hulu) no audio description, Silicon Valley: S2E10 (MAX) wit audio description, The office: S3E16 (Peacock) no audio description, The … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/07/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/06/25

John Stark

TV Shows Watched: From- S2E7 (MGM Plus) with audio description, Squid Game: S3E3 (Netflix) with audio description, The Bear: S4E9 (Hulu) with audio description, Drag Race All Stars: S10E9 (Paramount Plus) with audio description, Invasion: S1E1 (Apple plus) with audio description, We Were Liars: S1E5 (Amazon) with audio description, Such Brave Girls: S1E2 (Hulu) with audio description, The Great North: S5E15 (Hulu) no audio description Best Episode: The Bear, Runner Up: Squid Game Best Audio Description: Squid Game, Runner Up: From Best Performance: Jamie lee Curtis (The Bear), runner Up: Jeremy Alan White (The Bear) Best Moment Of Audio Description: … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/06/25

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The Small Screen Diaries: The Weekly Rankings

John Stark

Once again I’m running down the sixty shows on my broad watchlist. Joining the list this week, which was fairly slow for new shows, are The Sandman (Netflix), All Of Us Are Dead (Netflix), The Office (Peacock), Such Brave Girls (Hulu), Nautilus (AMC Plus), Dexter (Paramount Plus), and Prison Break (Netflix). I wrapped some shows, and anything that would rank outside the top 60 dies. WINNER: Squid Game (Netflix) with audio description- I knew I was going to lose my favorites. After the tragic uprising didn’t work last season, it meant playing out Squid Game till the end. I’m only … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: The Weekly Rankings

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The Small Screen Diaries: 07/04/25

John Stark

Hope you had a fun National Day To Watch The Film Independence Day. You know you did. We all did. TV Shows Watched: Duster: S1E8 (MAX) with audio description, Murderbot: S1E9 (Apple Plus) with audio description, tires: S2E5 (Netflix) with audio description, Adults: S1E5 (Hulu) with audio description, Lazarus: S1E13 (MAX) with audio description, Ginny and Georgia: S1E10 (Netflix) with audio description, Peaky Blinders: S1E6 (Netflix) All Of Us Are dead: S1E1 (Netflix) with audio description, King Of The Hill: S2E1 (Hulu) no audio description, Breaking Bad: S1E7 (Netflix) with audio description, Yellowstone: S5E13 (Peacock) with audio description Best Episode: … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries: 07/04/25

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Echo Valley

John Stark

I know these streamers don’t think about patterns, but over the last couple of years, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed some June films dropping on Apple Plus. This was the window for Cha Cha Real Smooth, and also for Fancy Dance. If you haven’t seen either of those, I highly recommend. Echo Valley seems more in tune to the bumps along the way Apple struggled with last year, putting out the failed Oscar bait Blitz, the critically derided Argylle, and the forgettable The Instigators. they have a lot riding on their Brad Pitt/Joseph Kosinski collaboration F1, so echo Valley is more of … Continue reading Echo Valley

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Wolves

John Stark

Wolves (Apple Plus)- Clooney/Pitt Make This Jon Watts Action Comedy Worth A Theatrical Release Much like another review I just posted, I need to drive more traffic, so I’ve included my original YouTube review. For more in depth thoughts, feel free to check that out. Likes help drive traffic, Subscribers help me get to a point where people stop looking at me like I’m crazy. Ha. Wolves is from jon Watts, the man behind the last three Spider-Man films, and he has teamed with real life friends George Clooney and Brad Pitt for a rather basic story that relies heavily … Continue reading Wolves

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The instigators

John Stark

This has been a weird year for Apple Studios. It follows after they tried to make some box office headway last year with their major Oscar releases Killers Of The Flower Moon and Napoleon to middling results. Then, Argylle flopped, I’m not sure Fancy Dance had much more than a qualifying run, and The Instigators basically got the same treatment, though isn’t an awards contender. Doug Liman is reteaming with Matt Damon after kicking off the Jason Bourne franchise with him 22 years ago, and it also marks his second directorial effort after Amazon’s road House remake. The Instigators also … Continue reading The instigators

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Fancy Dance

John Stark

Lily Gladstone is having her moment. It is excellent to see her out front, gaining name recognition as an indigenous actress. Here, we have a film steeped in tribal culture, and it is told from a member of the Seneca tribe herself, Erica Tremblay, in her feature directorial debut. Apple Plus, I suppose out of gratitude for Lily Gladstone killing those flower moons, is carrying it. The narration is Roy Samuelson, who is everywhere these days. Fancy Dance is very much a representation effort for indigenous artists of North America. The movie begins with a thanks/certification from the Cherokee nation, … Continue reading Fancy Dance

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Girls State/Boys State

John Stark

This year, Apple released a documentary, Girls State, which I decided I had to check out. I ddidn’t realize it was technically a sequel, because documentary sequels are rare, but there was also boys State, which I had never seen and decided to check out. I’d love to buck the trend here, even as a mal critic, and tip my hat to the ladies, but there’s a contrast here. Although, both films have audio description of pretty similar quality. The first film, Boys State,takes place in Texas. It features aspiring high school leaders who come together and form a fake … Continue reading Girls State/Boys State

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Argyle

John Stark

Matthew was experienced in the field. He had been kicking around an idea for quite sometime, and was looking for a buyer. This wasn’t his usual ask, this was an investment. An idea to change all future ideas. He needed a buyer, and one with deep pockets. luckily enough, he knew just the mark. They never saw it coming. When Matthew exited the meeting, he had carte Blanche. He had hoped for maybe a solid 75, maybe 100 million, but they blew that out of the water with double his expectations. Confused, Matthew started to wonder how he would use … Continue reading Argyle

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The Bloody Hundredth

John Stark

The only film this year to list Tom Hanks and Hitler in the “cast list” section on iMDB. This is the companion documentary to Masters Of The Air, a fantastic limited series on Apple Plus, which was also narrated by Laura Post. This documentary tells the true story, and in many ways would be a spoiler if you wanted the series to surprise you. Real interviews are used, along with footage from the era, and commentary from those involved in the creation and production of Masters of The Air, explaining why this story is so worthy of its own incarnation. … Continue reading The Bloody Hundredth

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The Small Screen Diaries- 03/19/24

John Stark

Not surprising at all, but CBS will continue to air its Australian import, NCIS: Sydney for its second season, despite already having two NCIS shows, and currently in development on two more. Fun fact, this entire franchise only exists thanks to a series being rescued from cancellation. Possibly the smartest “save our show” ever has turned out to be CBS picking up JAG after it was cancelled at NBC after one season. Without that, they wouldn’t have had the long and successful run of the original show, nor would they have NCIS, NCIS Los Angeles, NCIS New Orleans, NCIS Hawaii, … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/19/24

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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 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- 02/24/24

John Stark

Man, i hope the SAG awards stay on Netflix. no commercials. Say anything you want. Fantastic. The predictable awards were predictable, and the other trophies painted a picture of the Actor and Actress race. Cillian Murphy has now won both the BAFTA and SAG, defeating Paul Giamatti at both. I cannot shake the feeling that Giamatti is winning for The Holdovers. It may just be because of how much I adore Paul, but I love both films and performances. On the actress side, Lily Gladstone closed the gap between her and Emma Stone by winning the SAG Actress trophy, while … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 02/24/24

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Napoleon

John Stark

Two years ago, Ridley Scott released the underrated The Last Duel, which went on to be largely ignored coming out of the pandemic, but still has its fans. I was recently putting together material for my Best Of 2023 lists for this year, and I noticed that my 2021 Award for Best Director went to Ridley Scott for The Last Duel. So, when i say Napoleon is not his best, please understand this is a man who is a very undervalued titan in this industry. Ridley Scott, who has never won an Oscar, is back again this year with Napoleon, … Continue reading Napoleon

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The Small Screen Diaries- 02/15/24

John Stark

Did you feel like you got hit on the head yesterday? That’s because Paramount Global has axed streamer Noggin, which launched as a cable channel in 199, before developing its own paid service in 2015. Nine years later, Paramount Global is on fire, and they need to cut costs. A lot of the basic core programs of Noggin are available on Paramount Plus anyway, so I’m sure this is just a redundancy they felt was needed. I was more surprised that 800 people worked for Noggin. Just to balance themselves out, they also cancelled Evil. So, something on either end … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 02/15/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 02/04/24

John Stark

the way my week works, is that I typically try and introduce new shows on Sunday to my rotation, and then Monday starts going through another episode of each show I’ve decided to continue with. So, this Sunday, my watching of Sexy Beast (Paramount Plus) was so disjointed and interrupted, I decided I’d just use its “second” episode that would happen later this week to rewatch the pilot coherently. but, technically I tried. While I do really enjoy the Jonathan Glazer film on which the series is adapted, it’s been years since I’ve seen the film. At least twenty, but … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 02/04/24

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Killers Of The Flower Moon

John Stark

No matter what words I have for this film, it already has won a barrage of trophies, and is a Best Picture nominee this year, among its many other nominations. Of course, it is directed by Martin Scorsese, who earned his 10th Best Director nomination, becoming the most lauded living director.It’s part of the reason streaming services like Apple and Netflix give him massive budgets for films that likely will never make that back. The profile his films hit, and the status he gives to them during awards season is almost this intangible quality you can’t put a price on. … Continue reading Killers Of The Flower Moon

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The Too Much TV Roundup- 01/14/24

John Stark

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! I don’t think I watched anything yesterday that fits with today. Maybe I’ll try to do that on the day of, but then I’ll be mentioning it the next day. It’s like having a Newsweek subscription nowadays, when everything has already been discussed. The Critics Choice awards last night were pretty predictable. I did see one site refer to Emma Stone’s win as a “shocker”. Really? Yes, Lily won the Globe… but so did Emma. They were just finally in the same category. Interestingly, the same “journalist” had nothing to say about the “shocker” … Continue reading The Too Much TV Roundup- 01/14/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 01/12/24

John Stark

Apple better be continuing on with For All Mankind. That season finale was a beast, and did exactly what I thought it would. Because the show takes these leaps forward in time, original cast members have to keep being shaved off because there’s only just so much you can age a person. Just like how last season ended with a few original cast members exiting, it’s highly likely that the way certain characters are written, means the end for them on the show (at least as regulars). However, there was one prominent character whose future was not shown, and that … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 01/12/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 01/11/24

John Stark

Starting off my column of the day with bad news. MAX has inexplicably struck again, cancelling Julia after two seasons, thus ending Sarah Lancashire’s terrific performance as the famous chef. I refer to everything I said when they cancelled Our Flag Means Death, reminding you that this is a company that used a completed film as a tax write off. But, sadly, Julia isn’t the only show exiting stage right. ABC has announced this will be the final season of the Good Doctor. After failing to produce a spinoff, it’s time for the ABC drama to go away, I guess. … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 01/11/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 01/09/2024

John Stark

I was totally all ready to watch Echo yesterday morning during my workout period, and it turned out that it didn’t drop until later? Weird. Anyway, I’ll have thoughts on the first episode of that in the next episode. I really want to start by acknowledging the loss of Adan Canto, who fans might know from The Cleaning Lady, but I recognized from Designated Survivor. A rather surprising loss, as he was only 42. Also, I would be remiss in mentioning that MAX, in their continuing wisdom, has decided not to do a third season of Our Flag Means Death. … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 01/09/2024

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The Small Screen Diaries- 01/04/24

John Stark

Well, I reached the season finale of Upload (Amazon) finally, and wouldn’t that be insane if this show didn’t get a 4th season? Just. Wow. Also, made it through part three of Far Away Downs (Hulu), which I love the fact it has an Australian narrator. I didn’t see Australia before watching this version, so I’ll be doing this in reverse, but this seems like a really toned down Baz Luhrmann. Usually his movies are big loud and fast, and this doesn’t feel like him at all. I wonder if he stripped his soul away ffor this version, or if … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 01/04/24

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The Small Screen Diaries- 01/02/2024

John Stark

Slowly moving into 2024, I’m getting closer and closer to finishing some series. One of those I’m close on is Fellow Travelers (Paramount Plus with Showtime), the excellent drama starring Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey as two men inexplicably forever linked through the passage of time. The latest episode I watched dealt with the murder of Harvey Milk, and that someone tried to blame their mental state on Twinkies. The jury actually had to deliberate for more than 5 minutes on that one, which highlights the absurdity of the period. But, Bomer was excellent as it turned out he was … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 01/02/2024

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Best Of 2023: Ensembles In A Comedy Series

John Stark

Another celebration of the best of 2023. Since shows can’t be trusted to actually stay Limited, I’ve just rolled them into what I either interpret as Comedy or Drama. Kinda like the Globes. All of these shows have audio description except one, and its first season had audio description. This is more than a Top 10, so rather than try to rank a lot of shows that are very close, I just worried about a winner, and a Runner Up. Are you watching these shows? Let me know in the comments. My interpretation of Ensemble is sort of like having … Continue reading Best Of 2023: Ensembles In A Comedy Series

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Best Of 2023: Top 10 Animated Series

John Stark

I’m making a greater focus on audio description and the importance of it in 2024. every title on this list has audio description at least in some part. So, for my first in a long list to come of celebrations of the best work of 2023, here is the list, with titles and where you can watch them. Honorable Mentions: Anamaniacs (Hulu), Young love (MAX), Scott Pilgrim takes off (Netflix), and invincible (Amazon) 10- Strange Planet (Apple Plus) 9- Fired On Mars (MAX) 8- South Park (Comedy/Paramount Plus) *only Paramount Plus content has AD 7) Solar Opposites (Hulu) 6) The … Continue reading Best Of 2023: Top 10 Animated Series

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The Too Much TV Roundup- 12/28/23

John Stark

The exciting TV news for the day? Night Court has axed Neil. of course, with my limited time, I was planning on axing Night Court anyway. Also, expect even less day and date releases in 2023, since the strikes pushed back a lot of films on the 2023 calendar. Now they are worried that 2023 could be a really slow year at the movies. Well, maybe you should have stopped trying to replace everyone with AI. 1) Neon (Netflix) English Audio Description?: Yes Status: Not Yet Renewed Santi pushes his crew further away as he chooses his fake alliance with … Continue reading The Too Much TV Roundup- 12/28/23