WOLF LIKE ME

This is a series but short, only 6 episodes 1/2 hour each, leaves you wanting more.

Very good, 4 - stars.

KIMI *2021)


Angela Childs (Zoe Kravitz) is a computer techie in Seattle, shut in by Covid and her own agoraphobia/OCD problems. She's weird, but brilliant and assertive. She works reviewing downloads from a company that produces Kimi, an Alexa-like product that they presumably and nefariously mine for useful data from users. Angela hears a scream on one download and eventually drills down far enough to realize Kimi has recorded a murder. She finally ventures out to report it to the company--and finds herself the target of a hit squad because revealing the murder will imperil their pending IPO. The plot is weak, but direction and filming by Steven Soderberg is excellent--constantly tense, edgy, hi-tech; and the chase and escape by the resourceful Angela is outstanding. Kravitz is terrific.

What's your rating TB? It's on my to watch list, just been putting it off?

Just watched THE GODFATHER at AMC in Dolby Cinema for it's 50th anniversary and if you don't see it in this quality, you can no longer post on this website. It is ABSOLUTELY gorgeous!

I'd say 7/10

OLD HENRY (2021)

In this "Unforgiven" wannabe, Henry Mccarty (Tim Blake Nelson), a middle aged, widowed farmer with a teenaged son and a mysterious past, spots a riderless horse with blood on its saddle. He finds the gravely wounded rider, Curry, with a satchel full of money, takes him in and warily nurses him. A trio of bad guys masquerading as lawmen come to Henry's door, supposedly looking to bring Curry to justice but obviously looking for the money. Henry knows it, they know he's hiding Curry, and it sets in motion a lively cat-and-mouse game, ending in a spectacular (if none-too-realistic) shootout, a betrayal, and a reveal that was obvious from early on. This movie is best for Nelson's superb rendering of Henry--laconic, brave, resourceful--for the intelligent script, and for the filming and the menacing mood it establishes. Its weaknesses are slow pace at times, an unconvincing teenaged rebellion, and clumsily handled flashbacks. "Unforgiven" it isn't (what could be?), but it's pretty good.

THE BATMAN

I can't believe as I'm typing this it's been 10 years since Batman's last solo film with the conclusion of Christopher Nolan's trilogy, THE DARK KNIGHT RISES. Right off the bat, THE BATMAN is the most gritty, edgy, and dirty I've ever seen Gotham (and I LOVE it!). Sporting a PG-13 rating, this film does push the envelope up against a R without crossing that line. The film follows the Riddler (played marvelously once again by Paul Dano, of who's work I'm a huge fan of), who goes on a killing spree amongst Gotham's most powerful figures. It's a cat-and-mouse game of the Riddler leading Batman on a path of corpses and clues before revealing his grand plan and reasoning behind the chaos in the finale. Director Matt Reeves gives the audience a new take on Batman as this is very much a crime film, much in the same way of David Fincher's 2007 masterpiece ZODIAC (Reeves has also publicly stated the mask of the Riddler was inspired by the Zodiac killer). Robert Pattinson takes a shot as Bruce Wayne/Batman and once again, the naysayers have been proven wrong, as Pattinson is excellent as the caped crusader with his interpretation of the character. The rest of the cast is equally as hard hitting and well rounded with Zoë Kravitz, who also exceeds expectations as iconic villain Catwoman, Jeffrey Wright as Lt. James Gordon, John Turturro as Carmine Falcone, and unrecognizable Collin Farrell as the Penguin. The script is equally solid and smart and I applaud Reeves' use of Nirvana's Something In The Way to open and close the film, as again, it brings home the alternate aspect of the film compared to previous Batman films. This is perhaps the best Batman of all-time or right up there with THE DARK KNIGHT! My only knock against it is you do feel the 2 hours and 55 minute runtime and much like the LORD OF THE RINGS, the film seemed to have multiple endings before it finally does. If maybe 15-20 minutes were cut out, I'd have given this a perfect score. Between this and SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME, comic book fans are getting spoiled lately with these groundbreaking films that are going to become harder and harder to top! 9/10

It was wayyyy too long. It was great, but the length took a lot from it. Loved Zoë! 8/10 from me

i agree with you irish and gia it was good (i think it was long but i enjoyed it).
i love batman i'm glad we got to see such an amazing movie !

We will try for b m an sunday

Thanks Meyer for your feedback. Enjoy it if you're able to make it DP. Would enjoy hearing your thoughts as well.

Anyone see DOG?

FRESH

Anne Hathaway doppelganger Daisy Edgar-Jones plays Noa, a lonely and isolated woman save for her best friend Molly (Jojo T. Gibbs), is tired of trying to meet men through dating apps. In need of groceries one night, she dons sweatpants and an overcoat (everyone's ideal attire for being hit on in public), before she is approached by the charming and handsome Steve (Sebastian Stan). They meet up for drinks one night and hit it off. Both at the point of f**k it, they subscribe to the honesty approach and don't want games or drama. As such, Steve soon thereafter takes Noa on a weekend getaway, where he reveals to her a big secret of his. The film is an allegory of misogyny and how men view women as nothing more than disposable pieces of meat. This is a horror film, with a R rating but there is little to no violence or gore as this plays more from the psychological aspect. Particularly, how men can mentally manipulate and control women. It starts out very intriguing until about the halfway point. Then, the story veers off a little, the pacing slows down, before a clunky final act that shoehorns in characters arc before the runtime expires. The message isn't too heavy-handed, which is appreciated, as we have enough of that coming out of Hollywood these days. Edgar-Jones and Stan have good chemistry and the film sports some great sounds; however, when all's said and done, this film is slightly better than average. Sad as it had promise, especially early on. 6/10

dues did you see the batman movie ?

No Bud, not yet….we had a repair project at home that needs attention.

Nothing serious but something we had been putting off and then a great opportunity for a carpenter who is high demand became available and we have him doing needed work on staircases and moldings.

I’m sure we will this weekend.
Will update.

cool i hope the house will be fix and make you guys happy !
i will wait for your update on the movie

THE HYPERIONS

The film follows 2 former superheros Vista Mandulbaum (Penelope Mitchell) and Ansel (Alphonso McAuley), who attempt to rob a museum in search of their former superpowers that are on display to the general public in the form of badges. Vista is the daughter of Professor Ruckus Mandulbaum (Cary Elwes), who is the creator of this superhero group and granted them their superpowers. I'm a fan of Cary Elwes but he looks rather rough in this film. Suffering from some type of paralysis or cerebral palsy, he grudgingly gets through it. The only stars to speak of are Penelope Mitchell, who plays Vista and Indi Star, who plays the younger version of Vista. Overall, this is a fun and alternative superhero film than the current Marvel and DC products that are being produced by Hollywood. 6/10

DOG 2022[/b][b]

Good movie, very entertaining. Military soldier ( Channing Tatum) Saves milDog who handler died.

We are huge Dog people so it was right up our ally.

7/10

THE ADAM PROJECT

Set in the year 2050, Ryan Reynolds travels back in time to find his missing wife Laura (Zoe Saldana). However, she's in 2018, and in a desperate attempt to avoid security attempting to shoot him down to avoid his time travel, he's sent to the year 2022. Upon his arrival, he's reunited with his 12-year-old self played marvelously by Walker Scobell. Having recently lost their father Louis (Mark Ruffalo) to cancer, Adam is an angry young boy with a fresh mouth, who lashes out and makes his mother Ellie's (Jennifer Garner) life's a living hell, trying to both comfort and accept Adam after the recent death of his father. The film is very heartfelt and nostalgic, playing like a 1980's film of the same premise. And while I did enjoy it, I don't understand the same hoopla around it. It's a good, enjoyable, and watchable film for sure but nothing great. Reynolds again is the quint-essential wise ass, full of funny jokes, and one-liners. The performances are all well-rounded and heartfelt, but this play has been seen before. Worth a watch but nothing out of the ordinary here. 6.5/10

SUDDEN FEAR (1952)

Myra Hudson (Joan Crawford), wealthy widow and playwright, fires Lester Blaine (Jack Palance) during tryouts for her new play. But Blaine has designs on her money. He romances her, she marries him--and he teams up with his mistress, Irene Neves (Gloria Grahame) to kill Myra for her money, Myra finds out in an interesting way, and then plots to kill Lester and Irene--all this occurring in a polite, high-society milieu. The movie is a bit slow at first, but director David Miller picks up the pace until the twisty plot has you firmly in its grip. The cast is good, especially Grahame--a real vixen. Palance, a consistently under-rated actor, fits right in. Definitely a first-rate suspenser.

KIMI

Zoe Kravitz stars as Angela Childs, an agoraphobic woman who works for a Seattle based tech company called Kimi. They are similar in nature to Amazon's Alexa and Apple's Siri; however, the difference lies in Kimi having real humans interpret and improve their software by listening to recorded requests, unlike Alexa and Siri that rely soley on algorithms. Angela is one of these workers and one day, she hears a woman's frantic cry and believing a crime has been committed, becomes obsessed with finding out what happened. Angela's agoraphobia was brought on by a prior sexual assault, so the viewer can understand why she so easily becomes invested in this case. She also is OCD, brushing her teeth multiple times per day, continuously cleaning her bed sheets and hands. This was all before the lockdowns and once Covid happened, her issues have only gotten worse, refusing to go outside at all costs. However, in order to discover the truth, she has to overcome her mental problems, leave her apartment, and investigate. Kravitz is passable as Angela and the beginning of the film plays very much like REAR WINDOW, being cooped up inside all day and neighbor watching. The story does enough within the first 30 minutes to connect and sympathize with Angela and also hook you into the story. However, once she leaves the apartment, the engagement I had flew apart. Trying to be silenced by her company for fear of this getting out, she's on the run from hired hitmen. I do applaud the efforts of the writers for really giving Angela depth, as well putting a spotlight on mental health issues (and in this case, how some of them originate). Wonderful use of sound as well by director Steven Soderbergh where the audio goes silent everytime Angela puts on her headphones until she plays something, and then immediately the noise of the street comes roaring back upon being taken off. A film that started out with some promise, but ultimately, didn't deliver in the end. 5.5/10

X

A beautiful homage to both THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE and FRIDAY THE 13TH, X finds a group of young friends looking to shoot a porno on location. Far away from the confines of big city Houston, Texas, the group sets out for a small, unnamed rural Texas town to shoot their film. Renting an outhouse from the landlord, the crew soon finds themselves on the run from said landlords upon the discovery of their plans. Mia Goth is the real star of this as she pulls double duty as both Maxine and Pearl (she is absolutely terrifying as Pearl). In a sick and twisted way, this is a film about youth vs old, passion vs lust. Brittany Snow makes quite an impactful statement as southern drawl Bobby-Lynne, who is wise beyond her years but pigeonholed by her gender. The film is a slow burn until the first killing but once it begins, all bets are off. Bodies soon begin to drop like flies and only the after-credits scene lends any comprehendence to the audience as to the motive. A decent film that only got me into the theater because of the studio (A24). 6/10

DEEP WATER

Based upon a novel of the same name, the film finds Vic (Ben Affleck), a wealthy entrepreneur who knowingly allows his wife Melinda (Ana de Armas), to have extramarital affairs. However, as Melinda's lovers soon become the victims of homicide, the light is shone brightly on Vic as the prime suspect in each of their demises. Is Vic passive enough to allow his wife to cheat on him, only to then, kill the very same individual with sleeping with his wife? Or is he just a patsy. Wonderful performances by both Ben Affleck and Ana de Armas, who exemplify the very definition of a loveless marriage. Having a daughter together, Trixie, complicates things as Vic is a very attentive and loving father, while Melinda is regretful and whoring around to enjoy herself. The pacing of this is slow as we contentiously see victim after victim appear before the final "reveal" at the end that is seen miles away before being shown to the audience. Again good performances by Affleck and de Armas but nothing groundbreaking here. 6/10

Great review i12…. I am watching this right now.

We like it very much

Just up to the part when the Author guy drives off the cliff, i think its the end….

Its like the black Widow.

What did you and the Mrs. think? I thought it was good, but not great and predictable.

THE POWER OF THE DOG (2021)
This isn't a Western per se, it's a psychological drama set in the West (Montana, 1925). Awkward, taciturn George Burbank (Jesse Plemons) and his mean-eyed, bad-attitude, , slovenly, unlikely Phi Beta Kappa brother Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) are cattle barons who live in a mansion in the middle of the prairie. George marries widow Rose Gordon (Kirsten Dunst), who brings with her Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee), her slight, un-masculine medical student son. Phil does his best to reject and harass both. But despite his menace, he develops a mentor relationship with Peter. The movie is slow to get moving, but it holds your interest, and Cumberbatch's brilliant, intense performance keeps you expecting the worst-- but things are never turn out the way they seem to be going.

One of my favorites from last year. Definitely in my top 5, maybe even top 3. Pulling for Cumberbatch to take home the Oscar on Sunday for his performance. What would you rate it TB?

I'd say 8/10, Irishman.

Nightmare Alley (2021)
This remake of a 1947 classic stars Bradley Cooper as Stanton Carlisle, a drifter who connects with a traveling carnival, learns the ropes of grifting, and rises to become a "mentalist" with plenty of money and a following. He meets his match in Dr. Lilith Ritter (Kate Blanchette), a sinister psychiatrist who's intent on ruining him. Cooper is excellent, and so is the rest of the cast, which includes Willem Dafoe, Toni Collette, Richard Jenkins, Rooney Mara, David Strathairn and Mark Povinelli. The filming in the second half shows some of the most gorgeous Art Deco I've ever seen.