Moana

This is either the 56th or 64th Disney animated feature, depending on how you count it. I go with the last figure, including films like Mary Poppins and Song of the South, which mixed live action and animation. I haven’t been actually disappointed with a Disney feature since Chicken Little back in 2003. I’d ... Read more »

Moby Dick

I seem to be one of the very few people who read the book and actually liked it. Even Ray Bradbury, who wrote the script with director John Huston, admitted he’d “never been able to read the damn thing.” Most people complain about all the whaling lore that they feel pad out the book; I thought all that was fascinating.

For some reason I had never seen this until last night. I’d seen ... Read more »

The Mod Squad

I won’t waste my time, as Claire Danes, Omar Epps, and Giovanni Ribisi did making this piece of shit, by discussing it much. It’s a total disaster, silly and boring. Avoid it at all costs.

Molly’s Game

Aaron Sorkin is responsible for some of the best television in recent years, including shows like The West Wing and The Newsroom. In movies he scripted A Few Good Men (from his play), Moneyball, and The Social Network. I wasn’t a fan of that last one, nor ... Read more »

Moms Mabley: I Got Somethin’ to Tell You

What I remember is the record albums. Not hearing them, seeing them. The parents of several of my friends had these “forbidden” albums, mostly by two women: Moms Mabley and Rusty Warren, famous for the song and album Knockers Up! (And I just discovered that Rusty is still alive and kicking at age eighty-five, with a Facebook page and everything!) There may have ... Read more »

Mona Lisa Smile

A female Dead Poets Society or The Emperor’s Club, and I haven’t really cared for Julia Roberts since Pretty Woman, but this was a lot better than I had expected, mainly because of a cast of some of the best young actresses working today.

Mondovino

I hardly know where to start in enumerating the things I didn’t like about this movie. … Let’s begin with wine.

I know nothing about wine. You know that slop bucket Paul Giamatti poured over his head in Sideways? If you gave me a glass of that I couldn’t distinguish it from Chateau Rothschild ’65. I do know a bit about wine snobbery, though. It is my ... Read more »

Money Monster

Here we have Jodie Foster’s latest directorial effort. She has proven to be a competent director, though nothing special. George Clooney is a … well, I guess you would have to call him a television financial advisor, though his shows have more phony showmanship than an Ultimate Fighting match. Julia Roberts is his director, one of the gnomes in the dark room overlooking the studio where he ... Read more »

The Money Pit

Though there is no attribution, this was inspired by the much better Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, with Cary Grant and Myrna Loy. Tom Hanks is a great actor, but he’s no Cary Grant, and he’s a bit over the top here in some scenes. Of course, the whole movie is over the top, but that’s not all bad. Tom and Shelley Long can’t resist buying a million-dollar ... Read more »