Monthly Archives: December 2023

Steven Spielberg mentioned in interviews over the years how a Cecil B. DeMille epic from the early 1950s changed his life. The spectacle, the larger-than-life presentation and the special effects of “The Greatest Show on Earth” turned little Steven into … Continue reading →

Almost every Hollywood movie of “the war years” was an embarrasment of riches when it came to European expats decorating the cast. “Casablanca” was practically a make-work project for conflict refugees. British films with a patriotic bent — “The 49th … Continue reading →

For everybody who figures The Hallmark Channel is too “edgy” and The Christian Channel too preachy, there’s UpTV, whose fare one hopes isn’t represented by “Something Brewing,” a bland, lifeless romance parked on Amazon Prime for the curious. Suffice it … Continue reading →

A $9 billion dollar year at the box office is capped off by a lot of Warner Bros. titles finishing up a memorable 2023 at the movies. “Wonka” is blowing up the four-day New Year’s holiday with a $33 million … Continue reading →

This version of “The Garfield Movie” is an origin story, with a discovery. “Garfield Doesn’t Like Burgers” once he discovers the wonders of lasagna. Chris Pratt voices the cat, with the voices of Samuel L. Jackson, Ving Rhames, Bowen Yang … Continue reading →

The lady priest tells the support group that “Grief is love that has become lost.” But Sara doesn’t want to hear it. Her last conversation with her husband, Daniel, was him telling her — by phone — that “This isn’t … Continue reading →

Less than a month before U.S. B-29s flew over Japan and leveled Hiroshima and Nagasaki with the only two atomic bombs ever used in combat, a bomb was mounted on a tower in the Middle of Nowhere, New Mexico, and … Continue reading →

It’s impossible to overstate the cat-fighting delights of George Cukor’s all-star adaptation of “The Women,” a title that often gets lost in the gilded glory of classic cinema’s greatest year — 1939. Consider the protagonists on offer. Rosalind Russell vs. … Continue reading →

And what does funnyman Jake write and direct? A movie about a “dark web” reality contest show where players are literally hunted. Andy Samberg plays himself, a celeb who recruits for the show. OK, that tracks. “You vill haff 30 … Continue reading →

This Jan. 26 release about “How much courage it took to be kind,” and how “small things remind us of our humanity” and how “kindness can cost you your life” when your leaders and your country descends into scapegoating madness, … Continue reading →