Monthly Archives: August 2023

Tom Wolfe coined a Fitzgerald worth of phrases as he defined his era, the 60s through the early 2000s. He changed how we think of hippies, astronauts, New Yorkers, Wall Streeters, rich Southerners and, thanks to his dapper, larger than … Continue reading →

“The Running Man” is a heavy-handed 1960s crime-and-greed parable that has nothing to do with the 1980s Richard Bachman (Stephen King) novel or the Schwarzenegger film made from that. This version is most interesting because it’s built around a superbly-sinister … Continue reading →

The characters are self-decribed “archetypal cliches” fated to die “long, drawn out deaths.” And as they’re horror fans often commenting on the conventions of the genre, it’s safe to label “Killer Book Club” what it is — a Spanish “Scream” … Continue reading →

Not every B-movie getaway thriller has the ambition to aim for something existentialist/absurdist in its plot, so a deep bow and a tip of the hat to filmmaker Isaac H. Eaton — using a story idea of Daniel Devoto — … Continue reading →

Whatever its perceived shortcomings upon its 1958 release (1960 in the U.S.), “The Man Inside” offers plenty of delights for the classic film buff of today. It’s got veteran screen heavy Jack Palance, cast against type as a drawling, wisecracking … Continue reading →

“Before, Now & Then” is a dreamy Indonesian drama about changing expectations and ideas of “freedom” that pass through the life of a Muslim woman through twenty years of her life. This Berlin Film Festival award winner is a period … Continue reading →

Boy, it takes more than a few minutes to get one’s mind around the idea that Adam Sandler’s produced and co-stars in a comedy which you simply must use the word “endearing” to describe. “Charming” works its way in, “kind … Continue reading →

The stakes are higher, the cast has lost any pandemic-paunch/puffiness and everybody tries harder in “Vacation Friends 2,” which is something, I guess. And having John Cena reveal to the world, via a scripted character’s little admission, what we’ve all … Continue reading →

You think you know what you’re going to get from a Liam Neeson thriller titled “Retribution.” But his latest, the third remake of a “There’s a bomb in your car and you can’t get out” Spanish thriller (“El Desconocido”), has … Continue reading →

Hey, I’m talking about the MOVIE. Not the crook getting more of his just deserts. Yeah, I could’ve gotten a Lionsgate screener link for this title. But a friend loves Liam Neeson, and really The Big Irishman should ooooonly be … Continue reading →