I have been watching a lot of comedies and action movies lately, so it was time to offset those with dramas containing mature content. A friend recommended Kids, about a group of teens (and younger) behaving poorly in New York and Caroline and Jackie included 2 actors from the tv show Grimm (which is a household favorite), and is about thirty-somethings behaving poorly on the night of a birthday party. Both films take place during one day in the life…
My wife and I both love watching animal and nature documentaries, and we were so happy to discover Disney (another household favorite) makes live action nature films with wonderful narration. We recently watched Bears (2014, narrated by John C. Reilly) and Monkey Kingdom (2015, narrated by Tina Fey) both having been released near Earth Day. Disney has produced live action animal films before as part of their True Life Adventure series (1948-1960) including winning 8 Oscars for their work. From…
Mel Brooks is a funny writer, director, and actor, he inspired a generation of comedic productions, and is an Oscar winner. I first saw Mel in Spaceballs (1987), a hilarious parody of science fiction films which especially picked on Star Wars (1977). He wrote, directed, produced, and played 2 roles in the film and assembled a talented comedic ensemble including Bill Pullman (in his 2nd feature), Rick Moranis (Little Shop of Horrors, 1986), John Candy (Planes, Trains, & Automobiles, 1987),…
I recently watched a favorite film of mine, The Fifth Element (1997), which was written and directed by Luc Besson and because he is releasing a new film next month, I wanted to see more of his work. Choosing one of his earliest hits, Léon: The Professional, and a more recent film he wrote and produced, District 13: Ultimatum, I was able to see two movies of his for the first time. He was more involved with Léon: The Professional,…
Two days ago I finished watching the Kids in the Hall mini-series Death Comes to Town (2010) and because it is Mark McKinney’s birthday, I still had a craving for more! Same Guys, New Dresses is a documentary directed by Dave Foley about the group’s 2000 tour across Canada showing scenes from their stage show but really showing more behind the scenes. Including portions of their rehearsals, traveling, eating, and talking about personal matters all throughout the film, which was…
Unforgiven is a well respected and highly awarded western starring Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, and Morgan Freeman released in 1992. Somehow this film was still on my cinematic bucket list but as I am in the middle of playing Red Dead Redemption (a well respected and highly awarded western video game, 2010) and it was Clint’s birthday recently (May 31st), I decided to head out west. The script had floated around for nearly 20 years before it was made, Gene…
The Kids in the Hall made a mini series after touring together, years after their show ended, and they have not forgotten how to push each other for the laughs. I started watching their original tv show (5 seasons, 1988-1994) when I was too young to understand all of the jokes and references, they have no doubt influenced my own sense of humor. It was probably the first show I really liked that my parents didn’t care for me watching,…
Meryl Streep is part of the definition of what acting is, versatile in any kind of role, and is the most Academy Award nominated actress of all time. I first saw Meryl in Death Becomes Her (1992 with Bruce Willis), a horror/comedy where she goes up against Goldie Hawn. She added credibility to a mostly silly fantasy film, got laughs while being quite serious, and helped elevate Goldie’s performance when they were at eat other’s throats. In 2008, Meryl was…
Chris Pratt is an actor with great comedic timing, an easy going demeanour, and is blossoming into a bankable leading man. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) was the first movie I took notice of Chris as he played the role of Peter Quill in the Marvel superhero film. Despite the saturation of superhero movies, lots of unrecognizable alien characters, and Chris being unproven in such a large budget, science fiction, action, adventure role, the film was a hit. A large…
Robert Rodriguez makes movies that are exciting, proud of his Mexican heritage, and have plenty of shocking visuals. Desperado (1995) was the first movie I saw of Robert’s and it instantly made me a big fan of his, Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Danny Trejo, and the director’s style of action, humor, and editing. Many of his films have guns on the poster which obviously hints at the gunslinging about to take place, especially by Antonio who was perfectly cast as…