Tag: audio description

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Tango And Cash: 35th Anniversary

John Stark

Tango And Cash: 35th Anniversary- Sylvester Stallone + Kurt Russell = Lethal Weapons Quick Take: The 80’s knew how to make fun action films. We’ve confused many of them with being technically proficient, or film classics, but truthfully is there a difference between a fil that seems to have achieved a high level of filmmaking, or a film that achieved a high level of entertainment value, and has proven rewatchable as a result? Lethal Weapon and Beverly Hills Cop certainly come to mind, but the 80’s was full of fun buddy cop movies, including Tango And Cash. This Sylvester Stallone … Continue reading Tango And Cash: 35th Anniversary

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Piece By Piece

John Stark

Piece By Piece- Pharrell Plays With LEGO’s quick Take: Piece by piece, brick by brick, putting it together. Sorry, my Sondheim got away from me. I managed to catch this Pharrell Williams documentary back during the consideration frame, but I think most people weren’t grabbed by the gimmick, and left it alone. The film is a documentary, but is shot using LEGO’s, so everyone appears as a LEGO figure. At the heart, it is a celebration of Pharrell and his music, but done in such a way that if he ever got a parking ticket you wouldn’t know. There’s so … Continue reading Piece By Piece

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Emilia Perez: A Second Look

John Stark

Emilia Perez: A Second Look- 13 Oscar Nominations Was Enough To Trigger English Audio Description! So, I originally made a pretty big fuss about the lack of audio description on the major Oscar contender from netflix. I did sit through the film, with only Spanish available at release, and reviewed the film as it was presented. I addressed the problems with the lack of inclusivity on a film touting nothing but, and how Netflix had previously ignored fellow Spanish-language Oscar nominees like El Conde, Brdo, and Roma, none of which got audio description in their respective years. But, as Timothee … Continue reading Emilia Perez: A Second Look

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Fat Albert: 20th Anniversary

John Stark

Fat Albert: 20th Anniversary- There’s A Reason We Can’t Have Nice Things Anymore Quick Take: Not all anniversary releases are golden, not all are memorable, and not everything with audio description is a good film. This is my second time through this live action adaptation of the classic cartoon series, and something has dramatically shifted since 2004. I just can’t put my Jell-O finger on it. The refreshing thing about watching this 20 years later starts with the continued growth of Kenan Thompson. We see him 20 years ago, knowing he was a fresh cast member on Saturday Night Live, … Continue reading Fat Albert: 20th Anniversary

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Inheritance (2025)

John Stark

Inheritance (2025)- Phoebe Dynevor and Rhys Ifans In A Father/Daughter Twisty Treat Quick Take: releasing today in theaters, Inheritance is the first title from IFC Films to kick off hopefully another year with some gems. Last year, they paired with Shudder on a handful of my favorites, like Oddity and late Night With The Devil, but also were responsible for my favorite film of 2024, Ghostlight. Everyone else can fall all over the year end Oscar bait, but Ghostlight had me at “what light on yonder window breaks”. As with most screeners, I was not passed audio description. I’m fairly … Continue reading Inheritance (2025)

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Red One

John Stark

Red One (Amazon)- Really Overcomplicates The Magic Behind Great Holiday Movies Quick Take: Talk about a film that made zero impact on me. My video was shot after having seen it, and just now catching up to this, I’ve almost entirely forgotten this film. I remember Chris Evans, and his character’s backstory. he had an accent. Dwayne Jonson was here. But, my brain has deleted this, because it was so average. I remember the films I loved or liked, and I remember the movies I didn’t like or hated, but put enough time between me and a movie I’m mostly … Continue reading Red One

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Dead Poets Society: 35th Anniversary

John Stark

Dead Poets Society: 35th Anniversary- Robin Williams Is Still The Captain Quick Take: For whatever reason, we do really enjoy watching movies about inspirational teachers at prep schools. While peter Weir’s Dead poets Society certainly was not the first, nor the last, it has endured. it is a tough realization to think this movie only has turned 35 years old, and it is far from Robin Williams’s last performance. Perhaps that is why I enjoy this so much, is because the Captain (My Captain) here is Robin Williams. Tasked with teaching and opening the minds of a group of young … Continue reading Dead Poets Society: 35th Anniversary

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Fly Me To The Moon

John Stark

Fly Me To The Moon (Apple Plus)- Scarlett Johansson Faked The Moon Landing! Quick Take: I’m one of the few, the proud, the rare people who didn’t hate myself after watching this. It isn’t the best film Apple put out in 2024, but it certainly isn’t the worst. The audio description is also pretty nice, really helping to sell the attempt to make Channing Tatum look more… like he’s intelligent. Scarlett Johansson plays an advertising guru who is recruited by a clandestine government official (Woody Harrelson) to help “sell NASA” so it can keep getting funding, ultimately leading to her … Continue reading Fly Me To The Moon

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Nutcrackers

John Stark

Nutcrackers (Hulu)- Ben Stiller Inherits Four Kids In Time For Christmas Quick Take: I know we are past Christmas, but this wouldn’t be me missing out on a beautiful gift for the holidays. No, Ben Stiller’s new film, relegated to Hulu after a pickup at the Toronto Film Festival, is a miserable excuse for holiday joy. David Gordon Green is returning to his roots after demolishing the Halloween and exorcist franchises, and he’s lost his touch. Stiller, playing a generic “all business” type is inconvenienced by the death of his sister, and the fact that his sister had a bunch … Continue reading Nutcrackers

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It Could Happen To You: 30th Anniversary

John Stark

It Could Happen To You: 30th Anniversary- Nicolas Cage, Bridget Fonda, Rosie Perez Quick Take: this romantic comedy is something I have seen more times than what I would have originally predicted. I’d say I’m between 4 and 7. It is just a simple high concept comedy about a nice cop (Nicholas Cage) who tries to do good deeds, and ends up pledging to share his lottery winnings with an out of luck waitress (Bridget Fonda) when he can’t give her a tip. Turns out, it is a winning ticket, but his wife (Rosie Perez) isn’t so quick to share. … Continue reading It Could Happen To You: 30th Anniversary

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The Only Girl In The orchestra

John Stark

The Only Girl In The Orchestra (Netflix)- Could This Win Best Documentary Short? Quick Take: Currently my favorite documentary short of 2024. I was surprised to find out that not only is our main subject interesting in her own right through her set of achievements, but she’s also the daughter of John Wayne. She talks about breaking standards and norms, but also not wanting a ticker tape parade for doing so, as the stories singled her out, when she was just one instrument. Her inclusion was already changing perspectives, but her fellow instrumentalists resented her individual attention. Well, now sh’es … Continue reading The Only Girl In The orchestra

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Azrael

John Stark

Azrael- Samara Weaving Is So Good She Can’t Even Speak Quick Take: Essentially a silent film, Azrael takes the Quiet Place approach one further by pushing humanity into a Hellraiser-esque landscape, and the humans alive actually sever their vocal chords so they can’t make noise even accidentally. Samar Weaving is a scream queen, and I thought this might get some more love from the horror community. it is pretty straightforward a horror film, like In The Mouth Of Madness, and some fucked up things are described through the fantastic audio description. Also, the film is fully reliant on audio description … Continue reading Azrael

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Smile 2

John Stark

Smile 2- Parker Finn Makes A Sequel That Improves On His Original Concept Quick Take: If I had made a list of films I wasn’t looking forward to in 2024, Smile 2 would have made that list. I thought the first was overrated, just a reinterpretation of It Follows, and full of cheap jump scares. As I write this, I know I’ve done a video of my Top 10 horror films of 2024, and it was a great year. Smile 2 made the top 10. I would have never guessed it. Parker Finn grows up a little, and his jump … Continue reading Smile 2

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The Wild Robot

John Stark

The Wild Robot- Dreamworks Beautiful Spin On What It Means To Be A Parent Quick Take: I’ve been waiting to catch up to this point. This is on my list of films to rewatch when I have free time. I caught this in the middle of my awards screener blitz, and it is the best thing Dreamworks has done since How To Train Your Dragon. Following the story of a robot created to help humans, who finds herself lost in the wild where there are none, the robot (voiced by lupita Nyong’o) has to adapt to her new surroundings. We … Continue reading The Wild Robot

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Quality Check: Back In Action

John Stark

I’m quite backed up in terms of reviews of 2024 titles. I wanted to shake things up a bit, so this is hopefully a first in a series for me. As of me writing this, I have not seen this movie. These thoughts are first impressions and immediate reactions to moments in the audio description track. I’m not sure, at the onset, who made this, who narrated, or who wrote it, so we’re in this cold. Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz star. Diaz hasn’t done a film in years, and you would think Netflix would give her a better slot … Continue reading Quality Check: Back In Action