Hodgespodge

Get Carter remains a fave, a bleak foray into porn, familial ties, corruption, contract killers, revenge and pollution all set in a decaying city. Often hailed as one of the greatest British gangster movies, it’s the viewing equivalent of a kick in the solar plexus from a dirty, steel toe-capped boot. Amazingly, it was assembled […]

Plane (2023)

Film Title

Plane

Synopsis

A pilot is forced to land a storm-damaged commercial plane in a war zone.

Director

Jean-Francios Richet

Cast

Gerald Butler
Daniella Pineda
Tony Goldwyn
Yosn An
Mike Colter
Paul Ben-Victor

“Plane” – A better movie than January deserves. After the disappointing but perfect-for-January M3GAN, I fully expected Plane to be perfectly January as well. Plane stars Gerard Butler. We don’t need any other information than that to set our expectations. Butler’s filmography contains thirty-eight films (not including Plane or animated films) and just eight of […]

M3GAN

Film Title

M3GAN

Synopsis

So, you think you can dance?

Director

Gerad Johnstone

Cast

Allison Williams
Violet McGraw
Jen Van Epps
Brian Jordan Alvarez
Ronnie Chieng

“M3GAN” – So you think you can dance! As with Violent Night, I went into M3GAN expecting exactly what the movie ended up delivering – a doll committing murders. The difference between Violent Night and M3GAN is that Violent Night leaned all the way into its absurdity and premise, while M3GAN kept having second thoughts […]

RRR: Rise, Roar, Revolt

Film Title

RRR

Synopsis

An Indian historical action epic from the subcontinent of Asia.

Director

S.S. Rajamouli

Cast

Ram Charan Teja
N. T. Rama Rao Jr.
Ajay Devgn
Alia Bhatt
Olivia Morris
Ray Stevenson
Alison Doody

It is nearly impossible to begin describing the relentlessly entertaining over-the-top Indian historical action epic RRR (Rise Roar Revolt), so let’s begin roughly where the movie does, with the introductions of its two lead characters. Based on real Indian revolutionaries from the early 20th century, each is given an entrance that an average action movie […]

Boogie Nights: Much Better Than Not Quite

Film Title

Boogie Nights

Synopsis

A teenager with little formal education and a horse-like cock decides to play to his strengths. Or as he puts it: “Everybody’s given one special thing, right?”

Director

Paul Thomas Anderson

Cast

Mark Wahlberg
Burt Reynolds
Julianne Moore
Don Cheadle
John C. Reilly
Heather Graham
William H. Macy
Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Alfred Molina

Do you watch porn? C’mon, you can tell me. Maybe you’re one of those guys who wakes up and immediately staggers bleary-eyed across the bedroom to flip up a laptop lid, a short journey made hazardous by the combination of throbbing boner and ankle-pooled pajama bottoms that necessitate arms thrown out to the side while […]

The Menu

Film Title

The Menu

Synopsis

A lavish and shocking menu is served up to food snobs at a remote island. There is much more than food on the menu.

Director

Mark Mylod

Cast

Ralph Fiennes
Nicholas Hoult
Anya Taylor-Joy
Hong Chau
John Leguizamo


An amuse-bouche of mystery and rising tension bursts into shocking flavor in the early courses with the introduction of a familiar but always startling red claret, finishing with redolent notes ranging from The Wicker Man to Ratatouille (the movie, not the “peasant dish” after which it was named), which combine in the climactic denouement to […]

The English: Lost In A Wilderness

Film Title

The English

Synopsis

A woman seeks revenge for the death of her son



Cast

Emily Blunt
Chaske Spencer
Stephen Rhea
Tom Hughes
Steve Wall

The gross silliness of Heaven’s Gate reminded me to always cast critical eye on even Westerns. They should not get a go-bye simply because I love Westerns, that’d just be goofy. Although goofy is in vogue these days, it’s best to subscribe to the old values. So, when Amazon Prime offers a Western staring Emily […]

My Year In Movies: 2022 Edition

“My Year in Movies – 2022 Edition” – Was I talking about gas? It’s been a couple years, but we’re finally back to the film world resembling something like pre-Covid times. This is good news, because the world outside of film continues to resemble a horror show. As I said back at the end of […]

White Noise (2022)

Film Title

White Noise

Synopsis

Won’t anyone pay attention to what’s really happening?

Director

Noah Baumbach

Cast

Adam Driver
Don Cheadle
Greta Gerwig
Madison Gaughan
Daniel Williams
Matthew Williams

It’s award consideration season, so here’s my consideration. Synopsis Won’t anyone pay attention to what’s really happening? Writing I don’t know what’s really happening. The film has a very distinct three act structure that would have been better suited as vignettes. The first act introduces Professor Jack Gladney (Adam Driver), an expert in Adolf Hitler […]

The Whale

Film Title

The Whale

Synopsis

We are all chasing something

Director

Darren Aronofsky

Cast

Brendan Fraser
Sadie Sink
Ty Simpkins
Hong Chau
Samantha Morton

Going into Darren Aronofsky’s latest film The Whale, I prepared myself for at least one disturbing scene that would sear itself into my brain next to scenes from Requiem for a Dream and Black Swan. Like Stanley Kubrick, Aronofsky tends to make weird and dark movies, some of which feature scenes you cannot unsee. To […]