I do not understand Netflix’s budgetary decisions. They produce and release so much content that it is hard to keep up. For example, recently, they added a new four-part series about Laci Peterson and the exquisite documentary Daughters alongside . . .
You know what goes great with the string of rainy days we’ve had? Murder mysteries. On Netflix, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder follows a modern Nancy Drew, and on Hulu At Witt’s End picks up a cold case from the mid-90s.
In A Good Girl’s Guide . . .
When Twister came out in 1996, I was just a girl totally enamored by Helen Hunt’s hair and her aunt Meg’s mobiles. Since that summer, I have watched the classic disaster film countless times, most recently before heading to the theater to see the . . .
In the streaming era, there are plenty of reasons to skip the theater and introduce movies to children at home where they can move around, talk, and hide behind the couch if something (like the Beetlejuice trailer) scares them. But watching a movie . . .
The promotional poster for Am I OK? features a close-up of Dakota Johnson’s face as she cries beneath her heavy bangs. It looks like one of those influencers who, for some reason, film themselves crying, often in their cars. I was curious, and pleasantly . . .
Hit Man was an instant hit for Netflix and I was excited to see it. After screening the film, however, I think it’s clear that its success comes down to the performance of Glen Powell, the “It Man” of the moment. I understand I am in the minority . . .
Several years ago, when there was a boom in books and movies celebrating Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, LaVar Burton read the audiobook of A Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers. As I listened to his exquisite narration, it seemed only a . . .
"IF," a whimsical children’s film by John Krasinski, explores themes of childhood, grief, and imagination but falters due to unresolved story elements. Performances by Cailey Fleming and Steve Carell stand out, although Ryan Reynolds as Cal feels miscast. "Mother of the Bride," starring Brooke Shields, is a clichéd, poorly-written wedding movie offering little substance.
I sometimes wonder if John Green is the best thing to come from Indiana. He writes the voices and experiences of teenagers beautifully, is a passionate advocate for mental health, and he plays the gym coach in the latest movie made from one of his . . .
I do not generally find war movies appealing, so a film about the violent end of American democracy was a hard sell. I do, however, love journalism stories and Alex Garland’s blockbuster Civil War depicts the crucial role of journalists.
In the film, . . .
On the heels of Women’s History Month, a string of movies dropped that tell the stories of women making changes, both political and personal. Among these projects, I found a couple of movies featuring strong performances and thin plots as well as . . .
A filmmaker originally from Ft. Wayne, Cory Krueckeberg makes his Cinema Center debut later this month with the musical romance Glitter & Doom. The Homestead grad’s film opens at Cinema Center on April 19th, followed by a Q&A session featuring . . .
Whether you are in the mood for a classic romcom, a bizarre satire, or a moody miniseries, the major streamers have new content for you.
In Netflix’s Irish Wish, Maddie (Lindsay Lohan) has fallen in love with an author whose book she edited so well . . .
The close of awards season brings a peculiar moment with few good new movies, but award-winners getting rereleased or hitting streaming platforms. I write from the week before the Academy Awards, but the paper will not come out until afterward, so . . .
Critics write articles about the death of the romantic comedy so often that the argument has become a trope much like those writers bemoan in the movies. The rom-com is not going to die. It has been around since Shakespeare. And the predictability . . .
I must start by admitting that this selection is not close to exhaustive. Most streaming services have a collection of shows and movies celebrating Black Joy, Black History, Black comic book characters, and a full spectrum of creativity. These options . . .
Do you ever watch a heavy, emotional movie and need something silly to counter how you feel when the credits roll? This week, I am pairing Society of the Snow with two comedies for just that reason.
Available on Netflix, Society of the Snow tells the . . .
Mean Girls (2024) is a movie based on a Broadway musical, based on a movie, based on a book. I have not seen the musical on stage, but I have read the book (Queen Bees and Wannabes), and the first movie came out when I was barely still in high school. . . .
As promised, this week I will cover Candy Cane Lane and It’s a Wonderful Knife, but I also had time for Christmas As Usual. I want to wish Waynedale a very happy holiday season, and I hope for a great year of movies (and life) in 2024.
In Candy Cane . . .
Preparing for this issue, I created a list of new Christmas movies to review and, once I crunched the numbers, realized that I would have about 80 words per movie if every title made the cut. My husband asked if I had ever written reviews in emojis. . . .
When Meg Ryan released a new movie, her return to rom-coms, you know I had to see it. In What Happens Later, Willa (Meg Ryan) and Bill (David Duchovny) run into each other on Leap Day when stranded at a small airport due to a massive storm. The pair . . .
Recently, I experienced a phase where everything and nothing looked good enough to watch. Fortunately, I found some options worth spending an evening or two on.
Imagine crossing Jurassic Park with a David Attenborough documentary. Netflix’s Life On . . .
Mike Flanagan’s latest creation for Netflix, The Fall of the House of Usher, opens with patriarch Roderick Usher (Bruce Greenwood) burying his six children—Frederick (Henry Thomas), Tamerlane (Samantha Sloyan), Leo (Rahul Kohli), Victorine (T’Nia . . .
Every year, I enjoy snuggling up to watch creepy movies when the autumn chill hits the air. This season, there are many new movies available, but not all thrill.
On Amazon Prime, Totally Killer combines a slasher movie with a time travel story as Jamie . . .
Five years ago, El Conde surely would have had a limited release in arthouse theaters, so I am grateful that Netflix picked up this gem, giving many more people easy access to it. The movie really stretches the boundary between fiction and biography . . .
If you have never watched ABC’s Black-ish, I suggest you enjoy it while the ongoing strikes impact network TV. I was reminded of that smart, funny sitcom when I accidentally watched two movies featuring actors who the series gave their breaks.
New . . .
With each passing week, I fear that we are closer to the availability of new movies falling off dramatically due to the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Fortunately for younger audiences, Netflix has two new movies geared toward tweens and kids.
In . . .
Often, time travel stories focus on moving forward or backward in time to change the outcome, but what if all you needed was access to radio waves from the near future to completely change the course of history? In Lola, sisters Thomasina (Emma Appleton) . . .
“Barbenheimer” has come and gone, and although I only saw Barbie, in my opinion, the optimal lineup started with coffee and Oppenheimer, followed by a fun lunch and Barbie to lift the spirits. When I saw Barbie I found that the feature, based on . . .
This week, I think I found the two most medium movies I have seen, by which I mean they are not great, but also not bad. Maggie Moore(s) and 65 both strike the perfect note of unchallenging watchability, satisfying if not especially creative. Allow . . .