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Reviews
Unfrosted (2024)
Snap, Crackle and Pop Culture
Absolutely delightful farce about the titans of cereal (Post and Kellogg) duking it out to be the first on the shelf with a revolutionary breakfast treat.
Like the brilliant Bill Forsyth film, Comfort and Joy, there are kernels of reality - but in the end it is simply a paean to Saturday morning cartoons and bowls of sugary cereal.
Weaving in not-so-subtle jabs and send-ups of politics (old and new), a milk cabal, advertising, management and labor strife, Dickensian kids who are often wiser than their adult counterparts, and 60s cultural icons, the movie breezed by.
Great cast and cameos. The jokes move at the pace of films like Airplane, but might be lost on the younger generation. Especially if the satire and cultural Easter eggs aren't familiar.
Like the cereals it depicts - it's a sugar rush, not deathless Art. But a great way to pass the time with a bowl of your favorite and a delicious trip down memory lane.
White House Plumbers (2023)
I can finally laugh about Watergate
Yes, Watergate was the crime of the century (until the recent TRE45ON trumped it) - but casting Hunt and Liddy as clandestine keystone cops (think of Peter Falk in the In-Laws or Kevin Klein in A Fish Called Wanda) was an unexpected delight.
I half expected a mini series in the vein of all the president's men - but this was straight comedy, and it is comedy gold. Yes, a bit over the top. But unapologetically. If you are looking for historical drama, Redford and Hoffman are still your best bet. But if you need political comic relief to take your mind off of real-world political stress, it's five hours well spent.
From (2022)
A Forest
The first two episodes were entertaining enough, albeit quite derivative of Stephen King and Lost. I hoped it would gather momentum as the story unfolded, but it never did. It might be unfair to pan this outright, since I have no intention of watching season 2, but the lazy writing and poor acting is too much to overcome.
The overall conceit is ok, and could have succeeded in the hands of a better writer, cast and director. But so far it is an unsatisfying journey to nowhere. Still, if you are a fan of movies that hint at horror and sci-fi - it's ok for a rainy day. The only thing that made it truly compelling was the same thing that kept people watching Lost until the end: what befell the characters? Vampires? ETs? Death? Another dimension? Purgatory? Well, you won't find the answer in this review. And you might not find it in From either.
PS - I hate writing negative posts about kid actors... but the scenes with Simon Webster were cringeworthy.
The Last of Us: Left Behind (2023)
Nothing burger
Episode 3 was amazing. Most other episodes were ok. Episode 7 was a total waste of an hour. The back story wasn't compelling at all, and the plot didn't advance a bit. You could skip this and miss nothing.
I am not a gamer so have no idea if the back story is at all relevant. And I don't really care. It does reveal how she was infected, but after six episodes, does that really matter? It was hard to get invested in characters and events that only marginally affect the story arc.
It was far too redolent of TWD back story episodes that were all filler and no thriller.
After episode three I had hopes that the last of us might provide something beyond formulaic post apocalyptic zombie fare - but only episode 3 lives up to that.
The Last of Us: Long, Long Time (2023)
The single best episode of television I've seen in years
I don't care about video games - and have seen a lifetime's worth of zombie apocalypse films and television- to the point where I was about to bail on this one.
But then came Long Long Time.
Impeccable pacing. Brilliantly acted. An episode of such high quality that I wish the whole series revolved around Bill and Frank.
Bill isn't exactly a fun guy to be with in the fungi apocalypse. He is a survivalist-but one who knows his wine as well as he knows his weapons. He was built to survive-and the only thing that could do him in is his own humanity, something that seemed missing until Frank fell into his world.
I will keep watching the show - but I can't imagine any other episode reaching this level.
Ignore the haters. They are either gamers who have no connection with reality or homophobic reactionaries. This is the easiest ten I've ever given.
Adventureland (2009)
Despite a solid cast, a flaccid flop
Great cast, but this is a soundtrack in search of a plot. And dialogue. And direction. The movie seems more a platform for someone showing off their hipster music 101 credentials than anything else. Nothing new here. Two stars. And that is because it is a great cast. But if you want to see a teen flick where the cast, dialogue, plot and music merge together beautifully, watch clueless.
The Walking Dead: Splinter (2021)
Worst episode ever
The show has been hit or miss since about season 4, but Splinter was everything bad about TWD wrapped into one show. Dire plot. Boring, and preposterously over-melodramatic. So utterly unwatchable that it has me rooting for the zombies to put an end to them all. Better to have no shows at all than the soap opera drivel they are spinning these days.
Perfectly Normal (1990)
A perfect film
If you like slow, stylish, cynically heart-warming humor...this movie is for you. This isn't sleepless in seattle or when harry met sally. This is a brilliantly conceived, written, directed and acted masterpiece that exalts the multifaceted idiosyncrasies of the great white north, combining it with a deft touch of the quieter side of British humor.
It combines my love of humor, hockey and music in a tale of romance and transformation that is smart, rather than sickly sweet.
Kenneth Walsh is great as the no-holds-barred coach that will fake cancer to motivate his team. Michael Riley gives a performance even more subdued and complex than Bud Cort in Harold and Maude. And Robbie Coltrane is a hugely under-appreciated comic talent - the John Candy of Great Britain.
I seldom gush over a movie...but this one hit the spot.
Perfectly Normal (1990)
A perfect film
If you like slow, stylish, cynically heart-warming humor...this movie is for you. This isn't sleepless in seattle or when harry met sally. This is a brilliantly conceived, written, directed and acted masterpiece that exalts the multifaceted idiosyncrasies of the great white north, combining it with a deft touch of the quieter side of British humor.
It combines my love of humor, hockey and music in a tale of romance and transformation that is smart, rather than sickly sweet.
Kenneth Walsh is great as the no-holds-barred coach that will fake cancer to motivate his team. Michael Riley gives a performance even more subdued and complex than Bud Cort in Harold and Maude. And Robbie Coltrane is a hugely under-appreciated comic talent - the John Candy of Great Britain.
I seldom gush over a movie...but this one hit the spot.