Movie Reviews
And Then There Were None
Wow! First thing, if we’re going to make a movie out of this book, we have to lose that title! I gather that the, ahem, “N-word” is not such a linguistic bomb in England as it is here, or at least it wasn’t in 1939, when the book was published. Even back then, in America, that word was not used in polite company except in the South, where I grew up.
I have never read the book. It ... Read more »
Cop Car
My advice to you as this holiday season approaches (other than to buy more Varley books here at the website to give to your friends!) is to stroll right by all the big and usually stupid summer blockbusters that are appearing on Netflix and Redbox now, and rent this little gem. I can’t find out what the budget was, but it couldn’t have been much, and it barely appeared in theaters at all. ... Read more »
Pixels
I thought a lot about just what made this one such a downer for me, and concluded, sadly, that it was the presence of Adam Sandler. The man has committed so many felonious film “comedies” that even when he appears in a mere misdemeanor I can’t get the bad taste out of my mouth. That self-satisfied little smirk on his face, the way he grins at his own lame jokes … ugh. I just want to slap ... Read more »
The Age of Adaline
She was born in 1906, and when she is in her twenties she is in a car accident, is struck by lightning, and stops aging. This eventually attracts attention from government types who would like to take a good look at her. She quickly realizes that life as a guinea pig isn’t for her, and learns to change her identity when she begins to look too young for her current one. She is now over a ... Read more »
In the Land of Blood and Honey
Remember the Bosnian War? Waged in the country formerly known as Yugoslavia, which eventually broke into Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia, Kosovo, and probably several other Balkan republics I’m forgetting. Most of all there was Serbia. Although there were atrocities committed by all sides, Serbia was the unquestioned champion. At least 7,000 bodies in mass graves. Around 50,000 women interned ... Read more »
Five Miles to Midnight
The French title translates as “The knife in the wound.” Neither title really has much to do with the story. Tony Perkins is married to Sophia Loren, but she wants out. He boards a plane, which crashes. He is the only survivor, but no one knows that. He forces his wife to apply for the $120,000 insurance money so they can zoom off to Rio together. She agrees, but only if he will go away ... Read more »
Spy
For many years now I have approached movie “comedies” with an increasing degree of trepidation. I have seen too many of them without a single laugh. I admit, I worry that the fault (at least partly) might be my own. Have I lost my comedy mojo? I am pushing seventy, hard, and I realize these movies are not made for me or my generation. But in the end, I don’t ... Read more »
Boulevard
I guess there’s going to be several “last” films from Robin Williams. There is The Angriest Man in Brooklyn, reviewed badly, A Merry Friggin’ Christmas, reviewed even worse, the third installment of the Night at the Museum franchise, which wore out its welcome at number two, and a voice bit in Read more »
Longmire
This series played for three seasons on A&E, then it was cancelled, and picked up by Netflix. It seems to have remained popular. It is set in Wyoming, and centers around a sheriff who has lost his wife under so-far-unexplained circumstances a year ago. We have only seen the first season so far, but it’s clear that there is a deeper story concerning her loss that we have yet to hear. ... 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 »