Tag Archives: books

Netflixable? DeNiro, Monaghan and Scott need answers from “The Whisper Man”

Crackling performances and a twisty plot that mixes melodrama with suspense recommend “The Whisper Man,” a new thriller based on an Alex North novel. It’s “Silence of the Lambs” paying homage to “The Slender Man,” a tale of fathers and … Continue reading

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Classic Film Review: A Catfight for the (Middle) Ages — “The Lion in Winter” (1968)

It was a gilded age for high-minded British cinema, of larger than life actors taking on epics as heroes and antiheroes — a life of “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Becket,” “Cromwell,” a dash or two of Shakespeare, and “A Man for … Continue reading

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Classic Film Review: Dietrich and Douglas, Posh Infidelity with “The Lubitsch Touch” — “Angel”

It’s 1937, and Marlene Dietrich would let the world know she could shed almost every hint of her German accent when it suited her purposes. Melvyn Douglas proved that all a bland leading man needed to do was grow a … Continue reading

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Classic Film Review: Cocteau Kink? “Les parents terribles — The Terrible Parents,” aka “The Storm Within”(1948)

One of the most praised French films of its day, Jean Cocteau’s 1948 dark comedy “Les parents terribles” still summons a chuckle or two and a cineaste’s appreciation of its compact, concentrated mise en scene-focused compositions, cinematography and editing. Its … Continue reading

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Neflixable? “Enola Homes 3” Beats a Dead Horse

The bare minimum you expect from a sleuthing action comedy of the “Anybody Named Holmes” variety is that it hold your interest. Netflix’s “Enola Holmes 3” falls short of even that low bar. It’s got a wedding and a few … Continue reading

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Netflixable? Schnabel’s Mad Monomania paints “In the Hand of Dante”

There’s a “just go with it” madness that is demanded of anyone who dives into the glorious — some will say wretched — excesses of “In the Hand of Dante.” A romantic thriller contrived out of history, great “lost” literature … Continue reading

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Movie Review: James Cromwell gets back to Herding Sheep — “Owd Bob” (1998)

James Cromwell’s long run at the top of the A-list of in-demand supporting actors began with a story of a sheep farmer, his dogs and a pig named “Babe” back in 1995. He landed a prime role in “L.A. Confidential” … Continue reading

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Movie Review: Travolta’s “Propeller: One-Way Night Coach” is One for the Ages — All Ages

Back in the good ol’days — the ’90s — John Travolta would love to get off the topic of “Michael,” “Pulp Fiction” or “Get Shorty” in interviews with film journalists like me and regale us with how utterly besotted he … Continue reading

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Netflixable? Sally Field and an Octopus each Ponder “Remarkably Bright Creatures” peering through the Glass

“Remarkably Bright Creatures” is a sweet, sentimental and gratingly-cloying tale of a grieving widow who forms a relationship with the ageing Giant Pacific Octopus at the small town aquarium where she’s the cleaning lady. It introduces but never really addresses … Continue reading

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Series Review: A “Grand(ish) Tour” returns… as a “clip show”

We all knew, or perhaps hoped, it would come to this. Richard Hammond even joked about it on their “farewell” program — “We don’t have to end up in the same old folks’ home, do we?” Our three blokey blokes, … Continue reading

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