Carole King & James Taylor: Just Call Out My Name

Frank Marshall is back with another brilliant music documentary, Carole King & James Taylor: Just Call Out My Name, to kick off 2022. The documentary opens with a montage featuring the late night hosts. This is before the film gets into the main focus: the 2010 Troubadour Reunion Tour featuring the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members (Taylor-2000, King-1990 and 2021). The Troubadour shows took place over a series of days in November 2007…

"Carole King & James Taylor: Just Call Out My Name"

The Proposal: Betty White Steals The Show

The Proposal plays to the familiar rom-com beats but next to Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock, the late Betty White steals the show. The irony of The Proposal is that Sandra Bullock is an American native while Ryan Reynolds is a Canadian native. In the film, Reynolds plays the American while Bullock is a Canadian with an expired visa. Margaret Tate (Sandra Bullock) is the executive editor-in-chief of a major publishing house. However, nobody likes…

"The Proposal: Betty White Steals The Show"

The Other Guys Is A Work Of Genius

Adam McKay’s The Other Guys, starring Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg, is a genius parody of the buddy cop action comedy genre. If you haven’t watched the film yet, there is a post-credits scene. After watching Don’t Look Up earlier this month, I’ve been in a mood to rewatch Adam McKay’s earlier work. The Other Guys is one of those films that serves as both a buddy cop action comedy and a commentary on the…

"The Other Guys Is A Work Of Genius"

Night at the Museum: Where History Comes Alive

When a new security guard takes the job at the American Museum of Natural History, he is in for a surprise in Night at the Museum. “Some men are born great, others have greatness thrust upon them.” — President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt. Larry Daley’s life is falling apart. He can’t keep a job and fears that his10-year-old son, Nick (Jake Cherry), will turn against him. Despite the unstable work history, Cecil Fredericks (Dick Van Dyke)…

"Night at the Museum: Where History Comes Alive"

What a Girl Wants: Born To Stand Out

An American girl dreams of meeting her father in What a Girl Wants and is born to stand out in this teen comedy starring Amanda Bynes. When you’re hanging around the Roy family for several hours at a time, you need a comedy to wind down from all the drama. The comedy of choice is What a Girl Wants (okay, actually two comedies). It’s been several years but it’s still a fun comedy to watch.…

"What a Girl Wants: Born To Stand Out"

Bambi, Walt Disney, and Antisemitism

Bambi might be a cute film about a deer and his friends but the source material was intended to serve as a warning for antisemitism. The film takes place through various portions of Bambi’s life: baby, young, adolescent, and young adult. The film is only 70 minutes long so I’m not going to rehash the plot in-depth. After Bambi’s mother is no longer there to look after them, the Great Prince of the Forest takes…

"Bambi, Walt Disney, and Antisemitism"

Sullivan’s Travels: The Best Hollywood Satire

Preston Sturges’s 1941 comedy, Sullivan’s Travels, doesn’t just satirize Hollywood but is the gold standard for satires about Hollywood. I was in a mood to watch a comedy last night but especially a satire. What I didn’t know until after the fact is that this week is the 80th anniversary of the film’s initial release. Eighty years later, this is a film that still makes us laugh. Sure, some elements have changed in the industry…

"Sullivan’s Travels: The Best Hollywood Satire"

War Horse: World War I Epic Marks 10 Years

Steven Spielberg’s World War I epic War Horse remains one of the best films to come out in 2011 as the film marks its tenth anniversary. First a book and then a stage play, Spielberg successfully translates the source material into a feature film. He’s no stranger to World War II but this marks his first time tackling the Great War. An interesting thing about this film is that Spielberg doesn’t consider it a war…

"War Horse: World War I Epic Marks 10 Years"

The Wolf of Wall Street: An Epic Masterpiece

The Wolf of Wall Street, starring Leonardio DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, and Margot Robbie, is an epic visual storytelling masterpiece from Martin Scorsese. Martin Scorsese and masterpiece are words that seem to go together every few years. Looking back on its 8th anniversary, this film is no exception. With the filmmaker supervising a new film transfer, the picture has never been more beautiful. Both Scorsese and DiCaprio have a history so there’s a shorthand in their…

"The Wolf of Wall Street: An Epic Masterpiece"

Encanto Arrives Friday On Digital and Disney+

Encanto has the honor of being the 60th movie from Walt Disney Animation Studios and arrives on Disney+ and Digital this week. In the Heights. Vivo. tick, tick…BOOM! Encanto. What do all four of these films have in common? They all feature Lin-Manuel Miranda is some sort of capacity. The Oscar still eludes the PEGT winner so we’ll see if this upcoming Oscars is the year. However, there’s certainly some tough competition for Best Original…

"Encanto Arrives Friday On Digital and Disney+"