Uncle Frank

POSITIVES…

  • Dramatic premise and emotionally heartfelt. Excellent film.

  • Sophia Lillis is good in this, playing who is essentially the audience surrogate of the story. Plus she gets some killer lines and insightful monologues.

  • Paul Bettany is great in this complicated and nuanced role as the title character, and it’s hard not to get invested in his situation.

  • Peter Macdissi is the fantastic scene stealer, that brings a lot of fun energy to the movie.

  • Scenes with Lillis, Bettany, and Macdissi, all together are just golden. From the party, the morning after scene, the road trip, and more were wonderful stuff.

  • Plot moves at a solid deliberate pace, that’s not going to waste your time.

  • That final act was amazing and had so much to say thematically.

NEGATIVES…

  • Arguably too melodramatic at times.

  • There’s a couple of scenes that seemed a little too convenient to be believable.

  • I wouldn’t have minded if they stretched out that road trip a bit more. Felt like a wasted opportunity.

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Uncle Frank - watch it on PRIME VIDEO

The Christmas Chronicles 2

POSITIVES…

  • If you liked the first installment, then there are aspects of this sequel that you should like.

  • Kurt Russell continues to prove why he makes a great Santa, and now we have Goldie Hawn playing a fantastic Mrs Claus. The relationship they have here is presented in a very charming way.

  • Jahzir Bruno as Jack is a good addition to this franchise.

  • Julian Dennison as Belsnickel makes a good antagonist.

  • There’s a lot going on with the plot of the movie, filled with energetic set pieces. May seem all over the place a bit, but I felt like it managed to hit the landing overall.

  • The expanded world building and ambitious ideas does make this franchise even more interesting.

  • Has some worthwhile lessons to teach kids and adults.

NEGATIVES…

  • Might have too convoluted of a story for a Christmas themed movie.

  • The CGI animals and elves simply could look better.

  • Some parts were so silly ridiculous that they were just stupid.

  • Predictable plot turns and cliches.

  • The very final final scene was too on the nose saccharine and sentimental.

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The Christmas Chronicles 2 - watch it on NETFLIX

Happiest Season

POSITIVES…

  • A well executed familiar Christmas romantic comedy premise with modern sensibilities.

  • Comedic situations and awkward interactions. Fun stuff!

  • What a fantastic cast! Mackenzie Davis, Alison Brie, Aubrey Plaza, Dan Levy, and Victor Garber.

  • Kristen Stewart plays an excellent sympathetic audience surrogate of a lead character.

  • Mary Steenburgen and Mary Holland as Tipper and Jane respectively were an absolute delight!

  • Story moves at a great pace, successfully juggling the convoluted character connections, and plot turns.

  • Filled with entertaining scenes, like one involving a rooftop view, an ice skating rink, sneaking around, to a bar sing-along, plus several more.

  • The final act is exactly the way it should be for this Christmas movie.

NEGATIVES…

  • Familiar cliches and some unfortunate plot tropes.

  • There's a lot of comedy derived from the act of lying, which some might find annoyingly frustrating.

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Happiest Season - watch it on HULU

Run

POSITIVES…

  • The opening title card presenting the different medical disabilities. Brilliant.

  • Mysterious, creepy premise that absolutely kept me invested from beginning until the end.

  • Kiera Allen is amazing in this! She made it so easy to empathize with her predicament.

  • Sarah Paulson is great as expected. Perfectly intense.

  • That set piece with that urgent phone call. Excellent.

  • That other set piece that starts with the movie theater. Fantastic!

  • That other other set piece… There are just so many thrilling scenes in this unexpected movie! So enjoyable!

  • Here's another film that figured out a way to avoid the conveniences of the internet and cellphones to solve problems. Good job!

  • If there's one thing you should learn from this story, is that it helps to be smart and clever. Plus science rules.

  • Filmmakers Aneesh Chaganty and Sev Ohanian easily made one of the best; if not the best, suspenseful thrillers of 2020.

  • Oh, it's a little thing, but a lot of movies constantly show people parking their car badly. This is not one of those. Thank you.

NEGATIVES…

  • Some plot conveniences?

  • Requires a bit of suspension of disbelief to buy into the premise that might take awhile to get over.

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Run - watch it on HULU

1 Night in San Diego

POSITIVES…

  • If you’re looking for one of those “one crazy night, buddy comedy,” kind of movies, then here’s another one for you.

  • It may have a familiar premise, but It has its charms. Heck, it has a whole plot point about the San Diego Comic-Con, so that’s a plus right there.

  • The pop culture references, social media commentary, and opinions about relationships, were entertaining.

  • Jenna Ushkowitz and Laura Ashley Samuels successfully threw themselves into their roles as Hannah and Brooklyn. Totally buy their friendship, as represented here.

  • Alexandra Daddario was really fun when she showed up.

  • The whole sequence about a particular stage musical was just the funniest thing in this movie.

  • I loved seeing the familiar sights of San Diego.

NEGATIVES…

  • There’s a whole vapidness and toxicity going on with the lead characters that can be quite annoying.

  • Very much filled with your expected plot tropes and cliches.

  • Comedy is hit or miss, and it can be argued that it’s mostly miss.

  • Uninspired jokes about Southern California…

  • Honestly, I went into this movie because it had the plot point about the San Diego Comic-Con, and I was kinda disappointed with what they did with that.

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1 Night in San Diego - watch it on VIDEO ON DEMAND

Kajillionaire

POSITIVES…

  • What an eccentric film, but in the most fascinating, captivating, interesting, and humorous ways. Writer / Director Miranda July really likes to go places here.

  • Evan Rachel Wood and Gina Rodriguez are amazing in their roles. Both give off an exciting energy to the movie in very different methods.

  • Richard Jenkins and Debra Winger are also expectedly fantastic.

  • That whole set piece in Michael Twaine's home was done in a nicely weird way. It’s a huge turning point to the story.

  • “This is a full service deal” plot sequences.

  • Gotta love that whole stealth ducking avoiding visual gag.

  • I appreciated how this movie doesn't romanticize being thieves and con-artists.

  • Thematically says a lot. Thought provoking.

NEGATIVES…

  • Could possibly be too unusual and unconventional of a story for some people.

  • There are moments of just utter ridiculousness.

  • I know it's quirky and symbolic and all, but that whole thing with the bubbles leaking seemed a little too much.

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Kajillionaire - watch it on VIDEO ON DEMAND

The Life Ahead

POSITIVES…

  • It’s got my attention for having a curious enough premise, with an unlikely protagonist.

  • Kudos to Ibrahima Gueye for giving us a lot of range playing the character of Momo, who is that unlikely lead for this story.

  • Sophia Loren is still great at commanding the screen as Madame Rosa.

  • The connections that Momo makes with several of the supporting cast is what makes this film interesting to watch. Especially the one he makes with Madame Rosa.

  • While the plot progression is exactly unexpected, I appreciated the direction it went.

  • As a drama with fascinating topics meshed into this one story, there were scenes that were quite touching and emotional.

  • That Lioness.

NEGATIVES…

  • The premise isn't exactly going to grab everybody's attention.

  • Not exactly a fast moving film.

  • Some predictable plot turns that some might not find excusable.

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The Life Ahead - watch it on NETFLIX

On The Rocks

POSITIVES…

  • Surprisingly pleasant plot premise that kept my attention throughout.

  • Rashida Jones is excellent, and is the emotional core of this, that it’s so easy to get invested with her story.

  • As expected, Bill Murray is amazing, and gives this movie a huge boost of energy whenever he is on screen.

  • The chemistry and plot relationship between the two leads is fantastic, and is the main reason to see this film.

  • There’s a whole section of the movie involving an Alfa Romeo that is easily one of the big highlights.

  • I was quite satisfied with how this story concluded.

  • Thematically has an interesting and fascinating look on philandering and marriage.

  • It may be cliche to say this, but the setting of New York is like it’s own character in this film.

NEGATIVES…

  • Moves at a deliberately casual pace, which might not be exciting enough for some people.

  • Has a tendency to meander at times.

  • There’s a whole “rich privilege” vibe with Bill Murray’s character, that may seem fun to watch at first, but shortly kinda annoyed me eventually.

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On The Rocks - watch it on APPLE TV+

The Opening Act

POSITIVES…

  • Really liked the premise of this movie. It’s been done before, but it’s a topic worth revisiting, especially if it’s a solid story. It is.

  • Considering that this is about stand-up comics, you are right to expect some funny jokes, and you will find that in this movie.

  • Speaking of stand-up comics, this has a whole lot of awesome cameo from tons of comedians. Take a shot when you spot one.

  • Jimmy O. Yang carries this movie splendidly. I was all-in with his character’s journey.

  • Alex Moffat and Cedric the Entertainer both were excellent in their supporting roles.

  • That opening montage sequence was well done, mixing in that comedy, and a sad opening that you might find in a Pixar movie. Loved the range of emotions this story has.

  • You know where the third act is going, and you’re not going to care, because you will appreciate the movie’s conclusion.

  • If the theme and goal for this film is to show us that stand-up comics are human too, and need your love as well, then it thoroughly succeeds.

  • If the theme and goal for this film is to show us that you probably should not pursue a career as a stand-up comic, then it also thoroughly succeeds.

NEGATIVES…

  • There are jokes that will just not land. Subjective. Sure. Unfunny is unfunny though.

  • That second act. Ouch. I hope you can put up with all that cringe.

  • Debby Ryan’s character felt like she exists just to be a plot convenience, and didn’t really do too much for the movie.

  • A couple of expected plot cliches here and there.

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The Opening Act - watch it on VIDEO ON DEMAND

Nobody sleeps in the woods tonight

POSITIVES…

  • Appreciated this Polish Horror movies' attempts of being self-aware that it itself is a horror movie.

  • I love the fact that in the spirit of old horror thrillers when help isn't just a phone call or internet away, they actually put it in the plot to get rid of phones and technology.

  • Cast of actors do a good job playing their expected roles in your typical horror flick.

  • Liked the geeky pop culture references.

  • Has some excellent practical visual tricks for special effects.

  • Solid death scenes, and bloody gore.

  • If you're in the mood for a comfortably familiar “monster in the woods” premise of a movie, then why not check this out.

NEGATIVES…

  • It can be argued that this Polish movie pays homage to monster flicks, or you can just say that it's cliche and filled with familiar plot tropes.

  • Not a shock, but some stupid things happen.

  • The pacing could probably move faster than it does.

  • Some of the characters are just so underwritten.

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Nobody Sleeps In The Woods Tonight - watch it on NETFLIX