Tag: audio description

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The Turnaround

John Stark

The Turnaround (Netflix)- What If We Were Nice to Athletes During Their Slump? Quick Take: Even though Netflix couldn’t get this documentary short to the Oscars, it is still worth mentioning because it has audio description. I think it will resonate the most with fans who are aware of this team, and the centered athlete, but really anyone who roots for a team every single year understands that those are your players, whether you like it or not. And, a novel idea is shown, where instead of making them feel worse while already in a dark place. Jeering players on … Continue reading The Turnaround

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being John Malkovich: 25th Anniversary

John Stark

Being John Malkovich: 25th Anniversary- Step Right On Through This Door Quick Take: A quirky masterpiece. 1999 was such a strong year for film. An embarrassment of riches. It is so nice to know Spize Jonzes’s odd little comedy has audio description. It so totally needs it. From the floor with the lowered ceilings, to all the insanity of finding a door that leads you into the mind of John Malkovich, the amount of things that wouldn’t make sense without it is long. There is a scene where everyone looks like John Malkovich, facially, but it is all these different … Continue reading being John Malkovich: 25th Anniversary

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The Substance

John Stark

The Substance- I’ve Avoided It This Long….But It is Time Blindness is weird. Years ago, when I was sighted, I never could have made it through The Substance. I wasn’t a big gore fan, and this is one of the goriest films I’ve ever seen. But you’d be surprised what I can sit through now. I’ve seen so many films, which has really opened me up even more to the horror genre. Case in point, this year I finally tackled In The Mouth Of Madness. I watched In A Violent Nature. I have films in my top 25 that are … Continue reading The Substance

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Cheetah: 35th Anniversary

John Stark

Cheetah: 35th Anniversary- Made The Same Year We Shrunk The Kids, Does This Hold Up? Quick Take: One of my favorite film YouTube channels, Breakfast All Day, occasionally revisits older movies, and does “Was it great, or were you 8?” I was not 8. Not yet. But this was definitely not great. Cheetah, which has this odd history of being adapted from another work, and essentially whitewashing it, did not hold up. It doesn’t even feel like it is in the same year as some of the other Disney titles. I already revisited Honey I Shrunk The Kids, also from … Continue reading Cheetah: 35th Anniversary

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Endurance

John Stark

Endurance (Disney Plus)- Restoring The Legacy Of Shackleton, His Ship, And The Original Footage Quick Take: A pretty cool use of film restoration, and it has audio description on Disney Plus. This documentary parallels Shackelton’s ill fated trip to Antarctica with a modern day crew searching for his lost ship, the Endurance, which is entombed in protected waters. Not only do we see the trials and tribulations of both, but Shackelton originally took a cameraman with him on his voyage. While this would have just been footage, it is still restored for a sighted audience, which takes time and consideration. … Continue reading Endurance

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Alien: Romulus

John Stark

Alien: Romulus- In Space, No One Can Hear Fede Alvarez Quick Take: I’ve seen all the Alien movies except one. I don’t want you to know which one, but in general, I’m informed. A lot has been said about Fede Alvarez’s take on the franchise, as some find it to be nostalgia bait, with him just retreading steps taken before. There’s actually a lot to dislike here, or pick apart. he has literally used generative AI to bring back Ian Holm for an actual performance, despite his death in 2020. I wonder if ian would have agreed to this. Sure, … Continue reading Alien: Romulus

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Parenthood: 35th Anniversary

John Stark

Parenthood: 35th Anniversary- Steve Martin, Dianne Wiest, Rick Moranis Quick Take: just a few days ago I mentioned the anniversary of Ron Howard’s The Paper. But Parenthood, that has a bit stronger footing in the test of time, due in large part to the NBC drama starring Craig T. Nelson, that created a new generation of fans, and made people look back on the Steve Martin film that started it all. That drama wasn’t the first attempt to turn this into a series, as there was a short lived version in the early 90’s. But, here we have a stellar … Continue reading Parenthood: 35th Anniversary

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Spellbound

John Stark

Spellbound (Netflix)- Can We Stop Asking Javier Bardem To Sing? Quick Take: I had a lot to say. For a movie with Alan Menken working on the music, I had high expectations. Rachel Ziegler is voicing the main princess in this fantastical land, where she has to babysit her parents who have literally turned into monsters. She’s been trying to hide them, but on her birthday, things go awry, and she has to set off with her parents to try and break the curse. There is one great song at the end, What About Me, but the rest feels like … Continue reading Spellbound

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Immortal Beloved: 30th Anniversary

John Stark

Immortal Beloved: 30th Anniversary- Gary Oldman’s Surprise Symphony Quick Take: As someone who spent quite a bit of time in music classes, I think its funny how frequently I was treated to Amadeus, but all I remember was being shown about 5 minutes of Immortal Beloved at one point. So, technically, this is my first watch, even though I have this image burned into my brain of Gary Oldman as Beethoven. And, even though this has audio description, Amadeus is far and away the better film. With these anniversary releases, I always ask… “Did this stand the test of time?” … Continue reading Immortal Beloved: 30th Anniversary

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Larger Than Life: Reign Of The Boy Bands

John Stark

Larger Than Life: Reign Of The Boy Bands (Paramount Plus)- Justice For LFO! Quick Take: This made me wish I had gotten into the docuseries Dirty pop, because trying to cram the entire boy band movement into a reasonable film runtime is apparently harder than it looks. Not only did I think they spent very little time on major groups like Boyz II Men, but they also just didn’t mention groups like All 4 One and LFO. I guess they didn’t like girls who wear Abercrombie and Fitch. there’s quite a bit of time devoted to *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys, … Continue reading Larger Than Life: Reign Of The Boy Bands

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Maria

John Stark

Maria (Netflix) Could Angelina Jolie’s Grand Return Land Her An Oscar? Quick Take: When you hear “From the director of Jackie and Spencer”, the takeaway might be that you only remember the performances, and that is fair. Natalie Portman really swung for the accent in Jackie, and some people liked what Kristen Stewart did in Spencer. I’m not one of them. So, Pablo Lorraine is coming into Maria with a 50/50 shot of getting excellence from Angelina Jolie, and supporting her with a strong film. While I might have been mostly receptive to Maria, it seems as though many other … Continue reading Maria

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Quiz Show: 30th Anniversary

John Stark

Quiz Show: 30th Anniversary- Robert Redford’s Best Picture Nominee Is Still Fantastic Quick Take: As I am doing these anniversary releases, I’m realizing just how excellent some years were. 1994 brought us definitive classics like The Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction, and Forrest Gump, but also adored auteur efforts like Leon: The Professional and The Crow, and blockbuster smashes like The Lion King and True Lies. But, Quiz Show deserves to be remembered as well. The absolutely excellent historical drama unpacks the real story of 21, one of the original TV Game Shows, and how the producers rigged the results, and … Continue reading Quiz Show: 30th Anniversary

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Conclave

John Stark

Conclave- Is This One Of The Best Of The Year? Just two years ago, a director I was unfamiliar with made my best film of 2022. I see tons of films, every year, but in 2022, nothing quite stuck with me like the harrowing All Quiet On The Western Front remake. Oscar voters agreed, as the movie received a Best Picture nomination, and won is several categories. It stands as one of Netflix’s best audio description tracks, and certainly as an example of why they should continue to embrace more audio description for international content. Cut two years ahead, and … Continue reading Conclave

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Catwoman: 20th Anniversary

John Stark

Catwoman: 20th Anniversary- Chalk It Up To Cat Scratch Fever Quick Take: We all have those movies that we know aren’t good, but there’s something entertaining about them. There is an entire YouTube channel devoted to these “So Bad It’s Good” types, Good Bad Flicks, which dives into these movies in depth on YouTube. As this disaster turned 20, I decided to revisit it one more time. It even had audio description. My reaction to that is that whoever wrote it, is obsessed with Benjamin Bratt’s abs. Everytime he’s shirtless, the narration has an erotic reaction to his upper torso. … Continue reading Catwoman: 20th Anniversary

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The Crow

John Stark

The Crow (2024)- Don’t Just Push Out remakes Unless You Have A Fresh perspective Quick Take: Thank God, Bill Skarsgard is also in Nosferatu this year. This is a career killer. This is one of the most incompetent efforts of the year, made by a director who likely will never be handed a budget higher than “we’re trying to get on Tubi” ever again. It is such a weird thing, to think that no one stopped at any point and notice how awful this film actually is. Lionsgate dropped some massive bombs in the second half, and this is by … Continue reading The Crow