Category: Movies & TV

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Blog / Essays / History / Misc. Reviews / Movie Reviews and Essays / Movies & TV

Soujurn on The Odyssey; from Oral Tradition to IMAX

}} article also available on Substack {{ The Police, one of the most popular and influential rock bands of the late ‘70s through the ‘80s, has a line which either perplexes listeners or becomes glossed over by those without the initiative to reference dictionaries and encyclopedias. Written by frontman Sting, their most popular song from their last album was “Wrapped Around Your Finger,” and it includes the following refrain: You consider me the young apprentice Caught between the Scylla and Charybdis Scylla was, in Greek mythology, a many-headed monster, snatching sailing men from their ships, even the ships themselves, and often...

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Blog / Horror / Misc. Reviews / Movie Reviews and Essays / Movies & TV / SciFi

Scamper from THE LONG WALK

WAKING WALKING || SPOILERS AHEAD || HAVE WE SEEN THIS BEFORE? || SIMILAR DIFFERENCES || CELLULOID BLUNDERING || INELEGANT ENDING Mistakes Were Made Along the Way . . . My review of THE LONG WALK 4/10 WAKING WALKING I could see why it took decades to make a feature film of one of Stephen King’s earliest stories. Although from what I’ve seen, his novel The Long Walk was drafted at roughly the same time as his first published novel, Carrie, it was among the works he later released under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. It was collected with other stories in a...

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Blog / Essays / History / Horror / Misc. Reviews / Movie Reviews and Essays / Movies & TV / SciFi

3 New Movie Reviews

BLOOD RED SKY || MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: THE FINAL RECKONING || KNEECAP Vampires, Rappers and Daredevils, Oh-My! It’s been a while since I’ve been able to lay down an original post on this blog, what with responsibilities galore, stresses of everyday life and health concerns with myself and family, involvement in political causes, etc. I have ideas I do not have time to put to paper, but I have, while commencing my laboriously long drives for my beloved job (I mean it, I love my job) I have used voice dictation to lay down several movie reviews which I have posted below,...

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Biography / Blog / Diary Entry / Movies & TV

Finally Finished – My Music Video

Well, it’s almost entirely finished. George Lucas stated “…films are never completed, they’re only abandoned.”[1. In reality, this is the clip. I’ve just taken one person out of the saying: https://youtu.be/-_DOBJazR28?si=DYX58g1OAQVHK5fO .] Well, I can understand. The video is not yet 100% to my liking, as there are certainly still a few problems. The lip-sync is faulty in a few places, one of the transitions is not yet to my liking, and one microphone shot — with the speakers in the background — is a bit too long. I also hope to have another session to shoot with the model, the...

Skywalker When? 0

'Star Wars' / Blog / Movies & TV / SciFi

Skywalker When?

Life at Amazon has been — hopefully understandably — crazy.  Check back after whenever for my review of The Rise of Skywalker. I’ve seen it twice so far, and might have something to say about it.  [ feigning Shock and awe ] 2001.14: Since I never did a review of The Last Jedi, my review of Rise will include a review of Last.  That is the only way, I figure, to explain why I am such a defender of Last, especially as compared to Rise.  Should be finished before May 1st.

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Blog / Movie Reviews and Essays / Movies & TV / Science / SciFi

The Bad Physics of Ad Astra

a review of Ad Astra MULTIPLE SPOILERS AHEAD, IF YOU CARE TO SEE A TRUE STINKER When Brad Pitt’s newest sci-fi flick was forthcoming, it looked chock full of promise: an intriguing plot, Tommy Lee Jones as the long lost father, beautiful photography and special effects, and the trailers didn’t give away too much of the story, just enough to keep it interesting. In it’s attempt to be a legacy film, Ad Astra takes/steals/borrows straight plot points and even imitates shots from legendary entries in the sci-fi cinema corpus, most notably 2001: A Space Odyssey, Interstellar, Gravity and others.  That’s not...

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Blog / Movie Reviews and Essays / Movies & TV / Science / SciFi

China Takes to the Skies

a review of The Wandering Earth NO SPOILERS AHEAD Recently, Netflix released the Chinese blockbuster sci-fi epic The Wandering Earth (May 6, ’19). Having made over $700 million worldwide, the film made good bank on what has been called “China’s first full-scale interstellar spectacular”.[1. Brzeski, Patrick (4 Dec ’17) “Chinese Film Sector Charts a Course for a Sci-Fi Blockbuster to Call Its Own”.] As you would expect, it is a mixed bag, with moderate highs and usually unintentional lows. Science-wise the file is problematic, but epic in scale, heroic in scope. One of the main problems is when the Earth —...

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Blog / Horror / Movie Reviews and Essays / Movies & TV / SciFi

US and Peele

a review of Us NO SPOILERS Us (2019) is the 2nd major film from 5 season “Mad TV” comedic actor Jordan Peele.   After the maddening demise of that beloved variety show, he collaborated with (Detroit’s own) Keegan-Michael Key on the Comedy Central sketch series “Key & Peele” (2012-15).  His breakout “black horror film” Get Out (2017) is only the 2nd horror film to win the Oscar for Best Picture. Wow. He could rest on his laurels, but that just wouldn’t be the route of a talented and maybe even brilliant filmmaker in the tradition of his heroes, including Rod Serling, Alfred...

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Blog / Movie Reviews and Essays / Movies & TV / SciFi

Not So Marvelous

a review of Captain Marvel SPOILERS MAY ME LURKING IN THE NOOKS AND CRANNIES OF THIS REVIEW Think of a comedian. The material is fair, but brought down a few notches by the delivery. Several of the comedian’s jokes are colorless, lifeless, even shockingly lame.  Let’s not even discuss having more gaps in logic and continuity than the Old Testament. Welcome to Captain Marvel, the latest contribution to the MCU, the Marvel Comic Universe. While still not nearly as bad as the first Iron Man, CM – first of all – has one of the great hallmarks of origin stories, asking...