Category: Film Reviews

Film Review: ‘Dream Horse’: Toni Collette Stars in an Uplifting Sports Film for All Ages

PG | 1h 53min | Biography, Comedy, Drama | 21 May 2021 (USA) Pooling together every possible narrative hook from practically every uplifting movie ever made (but in a good way), “Dream Horse” tells a simple story of an unaffected group of people united in a cause that will tug at the heart strings of viewers, especially those who have…


Pulling Back the Curtain on the Unsung Heroes

Late last year, I was invited by a friend to come along for an official county visit to honor a 100-year-old veteran of World War II. His name was George Kaleel. The county commissioner had decided to surprise him with a certificate of appreciation for his service and to commemorate the fact that he had…


Popcorn and Inspiration: ‘A Brilliant Young Mind’

PG-13 | 1h 51min | Drama, Romance | 11 September 2015 (USA) It’s not uncommon to see many outstanding books adapted into movies. However, the same can’t be said for documentaries being turned into narrative cinema, let alone by the same director. But British director Morgan Matthews has done just that. Teaming up with screenwriter…


Film Review: ‘Wrath of Man’: Guy Ritchie Film Gets Lost in Translation

R | 1h 58min | Action, Thriller | 7 May 2021 (USA) What makes a Guy Ritchie movie unique? They tend to star world-class cinematic butt-kicker Jason Statham. Ritchie and Statham’s extended collaboration kicked off in 1998 with “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels,” followed by “Snatch” and “Revolver.” What else is unique? They tend…


Top 10 Overlooked Family Friendly Movies

Most households with children still living at home probably have a video library stocked to the gills with dozens of high-profile animated, fantasy, adventure, and young adult features. It’s also a good bet many of these productions have been viewed dozens of times each and perhaps have grown a tad too over-familiar. The following list…


The Moral Certainty of Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Rope’

Director and producer Alfred Hitchcock’s 1948 masterpiece, “Rope,” begins deceptively, with fine lilting music and scenes of an idyllic New York City block. A woman walks her baby in a stroller, a car glides down a one-way street, and a policeman escorts two boys through the light traffic. Despite omnipresent brick, glass, and concrete, the…


Rewind, Review, and Re-Rate ‘Jack Reacher’: Thriller Delivers Without Gratuitous Bloodshed

PG-13 | 2h 10min | Action, Thriller | 21 December 2012 (USA) By all accounts, the action and crime-thriller genres have become increasingly bloody and depraved in recent years. In general, pointless hyper-violence has been the de jour as detailed in my review of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum a couple of years ago….


Film Review of ‘The Father’: An Unflinchingly Realistic Look at Dementia

PG-13 | 1h 37min | Drama | 26 February 2021 (USA) There are some basic issues that we all think about from time to time: our own mortality, the meaning of our existence, what happens after death, and so on. But many of us have also thought about the mortality and decline of the elders…


Film Review: ‘Minari’: Korean Immigrants Succeed in America by Enduring Like Water Celery

PG-13 | 1h 55min | Drama | 12 February 2021 (USA) “Minari” did for the 2021 Academy Awards what the pop song “Gangnam Style” did for music in 2012; it gave notice to America that Korea can come over here and throw down an artistic gauntlet on our own turf. Not only can Korea play…


Popcorn and Inspiration: ‘Hotel Rwanda’: Keeping One’s Compassion in a Time of Genocide

PG-13 | 2h 1min | Biography, Drama, History | 4 February 2005 (USA) I recently watched a tourism video that focused on the capital of Rwanda, a beautiful city called Kigali. One of the things that stood out to me was how immaculate it is—it reminded me of a quaint Japanese town. I knew about…