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Anora (2024)
Russian Cinderella Story
I saw Anora, starring Mikey Madison-Better Things_tv, Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood; Mark Eydelshteyn-Chistye_tv, Smychok_tv; Karren Karagulian-Red Rocket, The Florida Project and Yura Borisov-Guest From the Future, Olga_tv.
This is a Russian Cinderella story about a Brooklyn sex worker, Mikey, that meets the son of a Russian millionaire, Mark. They meet at her place of business and he invites her to spend a week with him for $15,000.00 and after she agrees-Duhh-he asks her to get married to him. They make a trip to Vegas and word gets out to Karren, a priest that works for Mark's father, who gets a couple of his security men to try and talk some sense into Mark, but it's too late...they have already tied the knot. Yura is one of the security men. When Karren tries to take Mark back to his parents in Russia, Mark runs off and Karren, Yura and Mikey spend the night trying to find Mark before Mark's parents fly into town-the parents want the marriage annulled. It had a good story and the actors were good, as well, but the ending was a little off-It's one of those that could be interpreted in a couple of different ways.
It's rated R for language, drug use and sexual content-including nudity-and has a running time of 2 hours & 19 minutes.
It would be a good one to stream.
Moana 2 (2024)
Should Have Stayed A TV Series.
I saw Moana 2, staring the voices of Auli'i Cravalho-Mean Girls_2024, Crush; Dwayne Johnson-Red One, Black Adam; Hualalai Chung-NCIS: Hawaii_tv, Mad Men_tv and Alan Tudyk-Resident Alien_tv, Doom Patrol_tv.
This is a sequel to the 2016 movie-of the same name, without the number-that was supposed to be a tv series on Disney Plus in 2020 but was decided to be a theatrical release instead. It should have stayed as a tv series. The animation is great-as can be expected-but the story line could have been better. Auli'i is on a journey to find other tribes on nearby islands, but she has been unsuccessful so far. She decides to go in search of what happened to them and soon discovers that there are evil forces that want to keep the people from knowing each other. Hualalai, a fellow tribesman, and Alan, the chicken, are along for the journey and Dwayne joins in later, to help do the heavy lifting. The man behind the evil forces is shown near the end but I got the sense that there may be more of him in a sequel-he did not have much screen time but hinted that things were not over.
It's rated PG for action/peril and has a running time of 1 hour & 40 minutes.
It wasn't a bad movie but I liked the first one better. It would be alright to screen.
Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin. (2024)
Interesting Story
I saw Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin., starring Jonas Dassler-The Golden Glove, Never Look Away; David Jonsson-Alien: Romulus, Industry_tv; Flula Borg-The Rookie_tv, The Suicide Squad and Nadine Heidenreich-Die Flaschenpost_Insel, Rote Rosen_tv.
This is a WW2 story that is based on a true person. Jonas plays Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor that led a German resistance movement against Hitler and his enforcement soldiers, aka.....bad Germans-I didn't want to use the N word-that were working on exterminating whole cultures because of their religious beliefs, aka Genocide. Even though Jonas believed in equality, the church and just about everything Hitler did not, he helped plan to assassinate Hitler. David plays Jonas' friend that introduces him to jazz music and even takes him to his church in Harlem, New York. Flula is another friend of Jonas that helps him rescue some people that were to be executed by the bad Germans and takes them from Germany to Switzerland. Nadine plays Jonas' mother. It is an interesting story and helps remind us that not all Germans were bad guys, just as it is with any other country.
It's rated PG-13 for violence, thematic content and smoking and has a running time of 2 hours & 13 minutes.
If you like WW 2 movies, you should enjoy this one and it would be a good one to stream.
Wicked: Part I (2024)
Part One
I saw Wicked: Part 1, starring Cynthia Erivo-Pinocchio_2022, Bad Times at the El Royale; Ariana Grande-Don't Look Up, Victorious; Jonathan Bailey-Bridgerton_tv, Broadchurch_tv; Michelle Yeoh-A Haunting in Venice, Star Trek: Discovery Logs_tv and Jeff Goldblum-Asteroid City, the Independence Day movies.
This is the first part of a prequel story about what happened in the Wizard of Oz. It's based on the 2003 Broadway musical, which was based on the books. You learn how the Wicked Witch came to be, how the Wicked Witch and the Good Witch became friends and then ......well, not friends. You even learn about how the flying monkeys got their wings. I'm not normally a big fan of musicals but if you are, you should like this movie because it has plenty of singing in it. The story is good but I didn't know this was the first part until the movie actually started and it said, Wicked Part 1. They didn't advertise it as being that way in all the trailers I saw before hand. At the end, it says, To be continued.
It's rated PG for scary action, thematic material and suggestive content and has a running time of 2 hours & 40 minutes.
Like I said, if you like musicals, you will probably like this movie more than I did and it would be good to see it on the big screen of a theater. I liked it but once was enough.
Gladiator II (2024)
Good Action & Story
I saw Gladiator 2, starring Paul Mescal-Foe, Aftersun; Pedro Pascal-The Mandalorian_tv, The Equalizer 2; Denzel Washington-The Equalizer movies, Deja Vu and Connie Nielsen-the Wonder Woman movies, 3 Days to Kill.
This is a sequel to the 2000 Gladiator movie-yep, this one was made 24 years later-and it is chock full of gladiator action, as well as a good story. Paul plays the son of Connie-from the first movie-and he is captured as a prisoner of war by Pedro, the general for the invading Roman army, who is in charge of conquering other cities and bringing back slaves. In the battle, Pedro kills Paul's wife so Paul wants to kill Pedro, of course. Paul is bought by Denzel who puts Paul into gladiator training to fight in the Colosseum. It's been about 16 years since Connie sent Paul away but she soon recognizes her son in the arena and wants to help him. There are some interesting battles in the arena, besides the usual sword fighting. One that I liked in particular was when they filled the Colosseum with water, put ships in it to fight and even had sharks in the water.
It's rated R for strong bloody violence and has a running time of 2 hours & 28 minutes.
If you liked the first movie, you should like this one, too. I did and would buy it on Blu_Ray.
Small Things Like These (2024)
Catholic Atrocities
I saw Small Things Like These, starring Cillian Murphy-Oppenheimer, 28 Days Later; Eileen Walsh-Eden, Nicholas Nickleby; Zara Devlin-The Nightman, The Other Lamb and Emily Watson-Kingsman: The Golden Circle, Everest.
This movie takes place in 1985 in Ireland and is about the atrocities that took place in a Catholic convent. Cillian is married to Eileen and they are raising five daughters. Cilian works as a truck driver that delivers coal to everyone in town, including the local convent, run by Emily. While making a delivery, he sees Zara in the coal shed-she was locked in-and when he asks her about why she is there, one of the sisters comes and takes her back inside. Cillian soon learns about what is going on in the convent with Zara and the other children too, and wants to help them but is told to leave things alone.
It's rated PG-13 for thematic content and has a running time of 1 hour & 38 minutes.
It's not one that I would buy on DVD-once was enough-but if you are interested in the subject matter, it would be alright to stream.
A Real Pain (2024)
Polish Road Trip
I saw A Real Pain, starring Kieran Culkin-Succession_tv, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World; Jesse Eisenberg-Justice League, the Now You See Me movies and Jennifer Grey-Dirty Dancing, Red Dawn_1984.
This is a Polish road trip movie that was written and directed by Jesse Eisenberg, who also stars in it. Kieran and Jesse are cousins that have a Polish grandmother that died recently-leaving them some money-and so they decide to fly to Poland and take a tour, including the home she grew up in. Jennifer is one of the other people on the tour. Kieran and Jesse are polar opposites; Jesse is very quiet and settled down and he is also married and has a daughter. Keiran is jobless, living in his parents basement and smoking pot every day. Kieran is also very opinionated and outspoken and he has no filters on what he says to anybody. The tour goes to little villages and cemeteries across Poland and ends at the concentration camps that were used in the Holocaust. It was filmed in Poland and at the real camps that were used during the war.
It's rated R for language and drug use and has a running time of 1 hour & 30 minutes.
It's not one that I would buy on DVD-once was enough-but if you are a fan of either Kieran or Jesse, you might like it more than I did and stream it.
Juror #2 (2024)
Moral Dilemma
I saw Juror #2, starring Nicholas Hoult-The Menu, About a Boy; Toni Collette-Mafia Mamma, About a Boy; J. K. Simmons-the Spider_Man movies, La La Land and Kiefer Sutherland-Designated Survivor_tv, 24_tv.
This is a courtroom drama with a moral dilemma. It's directed by Clint Eastwood, who has said he is going to retire after this film-I hope not. Nicholas is driving home one night in pouring rain when he hits something. He stops and gets out to look around but doesn't see anything, except a deer crossing sign, so he thinks he hit a deer and it ran off. Weeks later, he is picked for jury duty on a murder trial for a man accused of murdering his girlfriend-FYI: the girlfriend is played by Francesca Eastwood, Clint's real life daughter. The boy friend claims his innocence but they were in an abusive relationship-he had physically hit her in public-and all evidence points to him. The only problem is that the murder scene was were Nicholas thought he hit a deer. The boy friend had a record of violence, not only with her but others, too and Nicholas has a pregnant wife at home that is due any day. Should he help convict or set free a possible innocent man, at his own peril? Moral dilemma. Toni plays the prosecutor, J. K. is a fellow juror and Kiefer is Nicholas' lawyer/friend.
It's rated PG-13 for violent images and language and has a running time of 1 hour & 54 minutes.
If you like courtroom dramas, you should enjoy this one. I did and I would buy it on DVD.
Red One (2024)
Action Packed Christmas Movie
I saw Red One, starring Dwayne Johnson-Black Adam, Baywatch_2017; Chris Evans-the Captain America movies, Knives Out; Kiernan Shipka-Twisters, Mad Men_tv and J. K. Simmons-the Spider_Man movies, La La Land.
This is an action packed Christmas movie, just in time for the holidays. Chris plays a computer expert that is paid to find high profile targets that are hard to find-basically a high tech bounty hunter. He does it on a dark web site-keeping details such as who is hiring him a secret-so he and his customer can be anonymous. Kiernan hires Chris for a job-not telling him who it is he is really looking for-and it leads her to Santa's fortress in the North Pole. Kiernan kidnaps J. K./Santa and has plans to disrupt Christmas for the whole world. Dwayne plays J. K.'s head of security that takes Chris-he can find anyone, remember?-with him in search of saving J. K. and Christmas. Along the way, they run into a witch, snowmen and Santa's brother, Krampus. There is plenty of action, humor and you get an insight into how J. K. accomplishes his toy deliveries, all in one night.
It's rated PG-13 for action, violence and language and has a running time of 2 hours & 3 minutes.
I really enjoyed this Christmas movie and would buy it on Blu_Ray.
Elevation (2024)
Fairly Entertaining
I saw Elevation, starring Anthony Mackie-the Captain America movies, 8 Mile; Morena Baccarin-the Deadpool movies, V_tv; Maddie Hasson-Impulse_tv, I Saw the Light and Danny Boyd Jr.-Watchmen_tv, Stranger Things_tv.
This is a fairly entertaining movie about an invasion, but some things are not explained properly. For instance, where the creatures came from, but it's hinted at as being from another planet. The creatures come up out of the ground and are pretty indestructible. For some reason-it's never explained why-the creatures can not travel above 8,000 feet elevation so all the surviving people stay above that line. They even mark the line so everyone will know where it is. Anthony has a son, Danny, who is sick and needs medicine that is below the line. Morena volunteers to go with Anthony because she is a scientist and has an idea on how to kill the creatures but needs supplies that are also below the line. Maddie also volunteers for the trip but it's because she doesn't trust Morena and wants to keep an eye on her and also help Anthony. On their trip, of course, they encounter the creatures. It's not a bad movie, it just seems like they could have put a few more details into it-like where they came from or why they couldn't go above 8,000 feet.
It's rated R for language and action and has a running time of 1 hour & 31 minutes.
I don't think I would buy it on DVD but it would be alright to stream.
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (2024)
Christmas Spirit
I saw The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, starring Judy Greer-the Halloween movies, the Ant_Man movies; Pete Holmes-How We Roll_tv, Fantasy Hospital_tv; Molly Belle Wright-Rippy, True Spirit; Beatrice Schneider-The Pradeeps Of Pittsburgh_tv, Blue's Clues & You_tv and Lauren Graham-Parenthood_tv, Bad Santa.
This is a good movie to get you in the mood for Christmas. It didn't say-so I could be wrong-but I think it was based on a true story, because during the end credits, they tell you what happened to certain characters. Every year, there is a Christmas pageant that is put on in this small town called Emmanuel. The 75th anniversary is coming up and it's a big deal-people from other towns are even coming to see it. When the lady that usually orchestrates the play gets hurt-2 broken legs-they turn to Judy to take control of everything. Molly plays Judy's daughter and Pete is Judy's husband. Beatrice is the leader of a family of 6 kids that are bullies to all the other kids-Molly included-and even scare most of the adults. No one has seen Beatrice's parents in a long time-some think they got scared and ran off and left the kids to fend for themselves. Beatrice and her siblings decide that they want to be in the pageant. Of course the townsfolk disapprove but Judy wants to give them a chance. Lauren narrates the movie and plays the adult Molly at the end of the movie.
It's rated PG for thematic content and smoking and has a running time of 1 hour & 39 minutes.
This is a good movie that will fill you with the Christmas spirit and be a good one to stream.
Heretic (2024)
Psychological Horror
I saw Heretic, starring Hugh Grant-Wonka, The Man From U. N. C. L. E.-2015; Sophie Thatcher-The Boogeyman, The Book of Boba Fett_tv; Chloe East-The Fablemans, Ice_tv and Topher Grace-American Ultra, Predators.
This is a psychological horror movie that showcases Hugh's disturbing ability to play a villain. He is very good at it, especially since he is known more for the romantic comedies. Sophie & Chloe are sisters-in the biblical sense-for the local Mormon church run by Topher. They go door to door passing along the teachings of their religion or even get requests from people to come to their house for a talk. Hugh is one of those that wanted them to come to him. Once they get there, the psychological cat & mouse games begin. It starts with Hugh asking them questions but the girls soon learn that Hugh knows more about religion than both of them combined. He poses disturbing questions they can't answer and gives his own opinions that make them think about their own faith. The movie does get a little bloody and there are a few twists but overall, Hugh's performance is entertaining.
It's rated R for bloody violence and has a running time of 1 hour & 50 minutes.
I enjoyed it and if you want to see Hugh stretch his acting skills, this is a good one to stream.
Weekend in Taipei (2024)
Action Packed Popcorn Movie
I saw Weekend in Taipei, starring Luke Evans-the Fast & the Furious movies, Dracula Untold; Sung Kang-the Fast & the Furious movies, Live free or Die Hard; Lun_Mei Gwei-Women in Taipei_tv, Flying Swords of Dragon Gate and introducing Wyatt Yang-his first movie.
This is an action packed popcorn movie written by Luc Besson, who has made his mark with movies like The Fifth Element, La Femme Nikita, Taken and The Transporter. Luke plays an undercover DEA agent that is working a case against Sung, a mobster. Luke tracks Sung to Taipei and gets a tip on some valuable evidence that could put Sung away for a long time. The tip is from Wyatt, the step son of Sung, who happens to be mad at him. Luke then crosses paths with Wyatt's mother, Lun_Mei, whom he ran into 15 years earlier on an undercover job-who is now married to Sung. There are lots of action sequences, car chases and plot twists. It was never boring.
It's rated R for violence and has a running time of 1 hour & 40 minutes.
I really enjoyed this one and would buy it on Blu_Ray.
Here (2024)
One Room Look At Families
I saw Here, starring Tom Hanks-A Man Called Otto, The Da Vinci Code; Robin Wright-the Wonder Woman movies, Forrest Gump; Paul Bettany-the Avengers movies, The Da Vinci Code and Kelly Reilly-Yellowstone_tv, the Sherlock Holmes movies.
This is a generational look at different families from the perspective of one house, specifically, one room in the house. The one room is the focus for all the different stories and most are connected to Tom. It's directed by Robert Zemeckis-Back to the Future, Forest Gump, Roger Rabbit, etc.-and based on the graphic novel Here, by Richard McGuire. The stories jump around from story to story; starting in the Ice Age and heading through 1776 when the house is built, but most are about Tom's immediate family. In the 1940's, Paul and Kelly are living in the house and they are Tom's parents. In the 1950's Tom is an adult but he and his wife Robin are living with Paul and Kelly in the house-for financial reasons. They used AI CGI to de age Tom and Robin so that they could play teenagers-and it looked good. Tom and Robin have kids, marriage problems, and basically just life happens, all through the view of the one room. The one room focus sort of reminded me of watching a play.
It's rated PG-13 for language, smoking and sexual content-nudity seen on a painting-and has a running time of 1 hour & 44 minutes.
It's an interesting concept but gets a little tiresome after a while. I wouldn't buy it on DVD but it would be a good one to stream.
Absolution (2024)
Running Out Of Gas
I saw Absolution, starring Liam Neeson-the Taken movies, Darkman; Ron Perlman-The Retirement Plan, Conan the Barbarian_2011; Frankie Shaw-No Sudden Move, Mr. Robot_tv and Yolonda Ross-The Chi_tv, Antwone Fisher.
This is a Liam Neeson movie that is running out of gas. It has a little action but most of the film is him seeking absolution for his past 30 years of being a bad guy. I had heard that he wants to quit making action movies because of his age-he is 72-and that's understandable, so this might be one of his last action movies. Liam plays an aging gangster that works for Ron as a collection agent. Liam's memory is deteriorating, he has to keep writing things down in a note pad. He sees a doctor and gets the bad news that he has a brain disease and only has about a year or two before he can not even take care of himself. Liam decides that he should settle things with his daughter, Frankie-he hasn't seen her in years-but she is not happy to see him since he abandoned her and her mother years ago because of his work. Yolonda plays Liam's girlfriend.
It's rated R for violence, language, drug use and sexual content-including nudity-and has a running time of 1 hour & 52 minutes.
I don't think I would buy this one on DVD. If you want to see it, I 'd wait until it comes to cable.
Let's Start a Cult (2024)
Hit & Miss
I saw Let's Start a Cult, starring Stavros Halkias-Salesmen, Inspector Ike; Wes Haney-Reveries, A Maine Movie; Katy Fullan-Chowder_tv, Man Under Table and Ethan Suplee-Babylon, The Wolf of Wall Street.
This is a comedy that is a hit and miss on the humor. Some things are funny but most of it is not. Stavros plays an obnoxious member of a cult that is led by Wes. Stavros is looking for something in his life but he doesn't know exactly what. Ethan plays his brother that is always giving him a hard time at home. In the cult, Stavros can't follow rules, nobody likes him, and he makes rude comments to the other cult members. Whenever Wes gets ready for a mass suicide, everyone votes to send Stavros away-like I said, nobody likes him-while they drink the poison. They don't want Stavros to transcend with them to their new unearthly home. Wes chickens out at the last minute and when Stavros returns-Wes makes up a story about why he didn't die-the two go in search of some new cult members to try it again. Katy is one of the new members.
It's rated NR but contains language, violence and sexual content-including nudity-and has a running time of 1 hour & 29 minutes.
If you have nothing else to do, I guess it would be all right to stream but it's more of a cable tv movie.
Your Monster (2024)
Fresh Take On Horror & Comedy
I saw Your Monster, starring Melissa Barrera-Abigail, In the Heights; Tommy Dewey-Saturday Night, Book Club; Edmund Donovan-Civil War, Gossip Girl_tv and Meghann Fahy-The White Lotus_tv, One Life to Live_tv.
This is a horror/comedy that has a fresh take on horror and comedy. Melissa plays a young woman that is dating Edmund, an up and coming want to be play write. They have both been working on a musical together with him writing the lead part specifically for her. Then, they break up. Melissa is really upset until Tommy/monster comes out of her closet. He is the same monster that lived under her bed when she was growing up-he moved to the closet when she became an adult. After a terrified Melissa calms down and they get better reacquainted, Tommy comforts Melissa and they become friends. She even wants to try out for Edmund's play but finds that Edmund gave the role to Meghann. Making matters worse, Melissa gets the under study part for the role created for her. It's a study of rage and anger and whether you should try to control it or let it out.
It's rated R for language, violence and sexual content-no nudity-and has a running time of 1 hour & 38 minutes.
I liked it and thought it was different enough to be a good one to stream.
Conclave (2024)
Picking A Pope
I saw Conclave, starring Ralph Fiennes-The Menu, the James Bond movies; Stanley Tucci-the Hunger Games movies, Captain America:The First Avenger; John Lithgow-The Old Man_tv, Bombshell and Carlos Diehz-this is his first movie.
This movie is about the Catholic Church and how they handle the death of a Pope. Ralph plays the dean of the Cardinals-sort of like the guy in charge of picking a Pope-when the Cardinals all gather to vote on a new Pope after the death of the current one. Stanley, John and Carlos are other Cardinals in the running for the position and there are secrets that come out about some of those wanting the job. Some, of course, deny the allegations that pop up. Some will even start them. Some also accuse Ralph of wanting the job himself, even though he has expressly said he did not want it. Each day, they take a vote and as the secrets keep coming out, the votes change and they get closer to a decision. There is a shocking twist at the end after the person is chosen as Pope.
It's rated PG for thematic elements and smoking and has a running time of 2 hours.
It is a little slow in spots but if you are interested in the way things are handled in such a situation, you might be more inclined to stream it.
We Live in Time (2024)
Nonlinear
I saw We Live in Time, starring Andrew Garfield-Hacksaw Ridge, the Spider_Man movies; Florence Pugh-Oppenheimer, Black Widow; Lee Braithwaite-this is his first movie and Grace Delaney-this is her first movie.
My wife wanted to go to the movies and this movie was advertised as a romance-her favorite kind-but we were both disappointed. The story itself was not that bad but the main problem we had was that it was told out of order, aka a nonlinear timeline. Andrew and Florence are the two main leads in the story, with Lee and Grace in smaller roles. You learn how Andrew meets Florence, woos her, gets married, has a child-Grace-and battles cancer. Just not in that order. Florence is a chef in a fancy restaurant and her co worker Lee is her choice to go with her in a food competition. Then she is having a baby. Then she is meeting Andrew. Then she is battling cancer. Then Andrew proposes to Florence.... It's just a little hard to keep it straight at times and it goes from scene to scene without warning.
It's rated R for language and sexual content-including nudity-and has a running time of 1 hour & 48 minutes.
If you like the nonlinear style of story telling, you might like it more than I did and it would be a good one for you to stream.
Venom: The Last Dance (2024)
Not The Best, But....
I saw Venom: The Last Dance, starring Tom Hardy-Peaky Blinders_tv, The Dark Knight Rises; Chiwetel Ejiofor-the Doctor Strange movies, Salt; Juno Temple-Ted Lasso_tv, The Dark Knight Rises and Rhys Ifans-the Spider_Man movies, Notting Hill.
This is the last part of the trilogy-hence the name Last Dance-starring Venom. The first one was in 2018 and the second in 2021. You learn more about the backstory on the Symbiotes-yes, there are more of them-and you get to see the villain, their king, Knull. The movie starts with Tom/Venom in the bar getting caught up on current events by the bartender-as seen last time-when he discovers that he is a wanted man for a murder he did not do. Elsewhere, the home world of the Symbiotes is shown as Knull sends some symbiote trackers to retrieve something he needs from Tom, so Tom is on the run from them, too. Chiwetel is heading up the government soldiers that are pursuing Tom and Juno plays a scientist that is studying some other symbiotes at Area 51. Rhys plays a hippie with his family wanting to visit Area 51 and they end up giving Tom a ride. Most of the best action is near the end when Tom is fighting the trackers. There are 2 scenes at the end; one is with a villain and one is with the a fore mentioned bar tender.
It's rated PG-13 for action, violence, bloody images and language and has a running time of 1 hour & 49 minutes.
It's not the best super hero movie I've ever seen-but I'm not a big Venom fan-but it's good enough that I would buy it on DVD.
Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party (2024)
More Like A Family
I saw Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party, starring Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and Cameron Crowe-Jerry Maguire, Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky.
This is a documentary and the first movie directed by Cameron Crowe. It covers Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers around 1982 and 1983, with some lost footage added to it, mostly donated by Tom's daughter, Adria and she appears in the film, talking to Cameron. The original documentary only appeared once on MTV and has some MTV footage added to it, too. It contains songs from many different concerts and shows the group waiting to see how their newest album, Long After Dark is received by the public. All through the film, you see Tom's sense of humor on display and that the group is more like a family than just a rock band.
It's rated NR but it contains footage of smoking and has a running time of 1 hour & 24 minutes.
I'm not a big fan-I like some of his songs-but if you are a fan, you should enjoy it more than I did. It would be a good one to stream.
Goodrich (2024)
Priorities In Life
I saw Goodrich, starring Michael Keaton-the Beetlejuice movies, Robocop_2014; Mila Kunis-the Bad Mom movies, The Book of Eli; Kevin Pollak-The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, A Few Good Men and Andie MacDowell-Ready or Not, Groundhog Day.
This is not a movie about the Goodrich tire company. It's more of a slice of life movie about your priorities in life. Michael plays a man named Goodrich, that runs an art studio. He works lots of hours on his job and tends to neglect his personal life. Kevin plays his business partner. Michael's wife goes into rehab, leaving Michael clueless on how to take care of their 9 year old twins by himself. So he turns to his daughter Mila, from his previous marriage to Andie for help. Mila has her own issues with Michael and how he wasn't around when she was growing up and to make things even more interesting, Mila is pregnant.
It's rated R for language and has a running time of 1 hour & 50 minutes.
If you want a change of pace from the horror and super hero movies out right now, you might enjoy streaming this one.
Smile 2 (2024)
Pretty Good
I saw Smile 2, starring Naomi Scott-Charlie's Angels_2019, Power Rangers_2017; Rosemarie DeWitt-La La Land, Poltergeist_2015; Ray Nicholson-he is Jack Nicholson's son and was also in Licorice Pizza, Promising Young Woman and Peter Jacobson-Fly Me To the Moon, House_tv.
This sequel starts off with the cop at the end of the first movie and proceeds to show how the demon entity goes from him to Naomi, a pop singer named Skye Riley who is going on a big world tour. In case you might have forgotten, the demon tries to take over a person and makes them see or do things. The demon can look like anyone and you can tell his work by the big smile on his victims' faces before they kill themselves. Whoever witnesses the suicide is then possessed with the demon. Rosemarie plays Naomi's mother and manager who works Naomi into exhaustion. Ray plays Naomi's boyfriend and Peter plays a doctor that may have a solution for Naomi to end the curse. There is a cameo with Drew Barrymore playing herself and there are the usual jump scares but overall, it's a pretty good horror movie.
It's rated R for violence, grisly images, drug use and language and has a running time of 2 hours & 7 minutes.
I enjoyed it and would buy it on DVD.
The Substance (2024)
Beauty & Looks
I saw The Substance, starring Demi Moore-Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, General Hospital_tv; Dennis Quaid-Reagan, Footloose_2011 and Margaret Qualley-Poor Things, The Nice Guys.
This is a movie about beauty and looks and how people view them, especially in the entertainment world. Demi plays an exercise entrepreneur that has a popular program demonstrating how to exercise-in skimpy leotards, of course. Dennis is her boss and he lets her retire when she reaches her 50th birthday-which is kind of funny, in real life, Demi is 61. Dennis says that they need someone young now and sets up a contest for a replacement. Demi gets in an accident and goes to the hospital-no serious injuries-but while she is there, a person gives her a card, telling her to call a number. She discovers that there is a drug called The Substance that will create a younger and better version of herself. The black market drug uses cell replicating technology. When Demi tries it, Margaret comes out of Demi's body-like being born but she comes out of her back-and Demi sort of goes into a coma. There are given directions that basically say that each has 7 days and then they have to switch places. One is in a coma while the other one is living her life and then vice versa. There are other rules, which have to be followed exactly or there will be consequences. Margaret wins the contest and is on her way to becoming a star, just like Demi was, but then doesn't want to stick with the rules. Things go henky from there. FYI: Ray Liotta was supposed to play the Dennis Quaid part but he passed away before he could film anything. Ray is still thanked in the end credits.
It's rated R for bloody violence, language, gore and sexual content-including graphic nudity-and has a running time of 2 hours & 21 minutes.
I thought it was an interesting take on the subject matter and I would buy it on DVD.
Terrifier 3 (2024)
Turned Up To 10
I saw Terrifier 3, starring Lauren LaVera-The Well, Not For Nothing; David Howard Thornton-The Mean One, Nightwing: escalation_tv; Elliott Fullam-Get Rolling With Otis_tv, Instinct_tv and Antonella Rose-Fear the Walking Dead_tv, Raven's Home-tv.
This is the third in the series, with the first in 2016 and the second in 2022-and at least one more coming. In case you are unfamiliar with these movies, they are horror/slasher-and I stress slasher-movies turned up to 10. David plays Art the Clown, a sadistic brutal murdering clown. He also has a lot of humor in his kills and he is a mime-no unnecessary dialogue here. The over the top violence is better left as surprises so I won't go into detail here but he uses chainsaws, knives, guns, liquid nitrogen, well.....just about anything he can get his hands on as a weapon. The first 2 movies had a Halloween background but here, it's Christmas when he appears. Lauren is released from the mental hospital she ended up in-after the events of episode 2.... I mean the second movie-and goes to stay with her cousin Antonella while her brother Elliott goes back to school. It's not long before David shows up and the killing continues. And yes, the killings are bloody, outrageous and sometimes funny. There are a few nice cameos; I remember seeing Clint Howard, Chris Jericho and Tom Savini.
It's rated NR but it has bloody violence, language and sexual content-including nudity-and has a running time of 2 hours & 5 minutes.
If you've seen the first 2 movies, you will probably like this one too. It would be a good one to stream.