Drama

The Painted Bird (2019) Review – War Is Hell, European Version

Do you (somehow, in this day and time) feel happy, joyful and just wish to be down? Have you ever wondered how it would feel like to experience the war through child’s eyes, and to see many horrors, some of which, you didn’t want, or didn’t even think of seeing, happening to said child? Well, […]

The Painted Bird (2019) Review – War Is Hell, European Version

Movie Reviews

“To All the Boys: Always and Forever”

It’d be hard to overstate just how likeable Netflix’s “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” movies. Cute cast, realistic (if affluent) situations, upbeat messaging and first love-affirming, precisely what a teen rom com should be. And if Netflix wants to wring the life out of the “franchise,” even that doesn’t ding that likability. The […]

Netflixable? “To All the Boys: Always and Forever”

Disney Hulu

Documentary Review: “Framing Britney Spears” on FX/Hulu

When all this “Free Britney” hysteria started, and every time it’s kicked up since, I’ve shaken my head at the conundrum her unique situation seems to present. Is Britney Spears still with us because of the draconian conservatorship her family imposed on her in the middle of her head-shaving, lashing-out hospitalizations of 2007-8? Maybe you’re […]

Documentary Review: “Framing Britney Spears” on FX/Hulu

Crime

The 400 Blows

Welcome to The Best Movies I’ve Never Seen! This is the part of the blog where I work my way through 100 films I’ve never seen that are generally considered to be great. You’re invited to watch along with me if you can find a copy or find it streaming. So grab some popcorn and let’s […]

87 – The 400 Blows

Drama

Malcolm & Marie (2021) – Review

Malcolm & Marie premieres February 5 on Netflix. By Ariba Bhuvad Over the course of this year, we’ve seen television and film productions figure out a way to continue their work while following strict COVID-19 safety protocols. But perhaps none are more impressive than director/producer Sam Levinson’s latest Netflix movie, Malcolm & Marie. Levinson wrote, […]

Malcolm & Marie (2021) – Review

Comedy

THE DEATH OF STALIN

Multi-hyphenate Armando Iannucci might be the best working satirist today (all seven seasons of Veep are streaming on HBO Max and DirecTV). His take on the transfer of power in the USSR circa 1953 is so loaded with jokes you have to watch it twice to get it all. From backstabbing to assassination, pajamas and concert recordings, […]

THE DEATH OF STALIN

Drama

Movie Review: Korean Immigrants are tested by the American dream in “Minari”

“Minari” is a near classic of the timeworn “troubles on the farm” drama, a story of a family of non-farmers facing the whims of nature and the widening fracture in a marriage as they set out to work the land and grab The American Dream. It’s “Country” or “The Southerner” or “Jean de Fleurette” but […]

Movie Review: Korean Immigrants are tested by the American dream in “Minari”