Once you get past the exaggerated praise (that feels more about what’s happening outside the theater than anything shown in the movie), it’s a solid superhero movie that’s at least as good as anything Marvel (or DC) has put out since “The Dark Knight” trilogy ended. What Works: Most critics have somewhat-myopically focused on “Wonder Woman”…
Category: Mindless Mondays
Movie Review: Captain Underpants
The title of “Captain Underpants: The First Epic Adventure” is either a hopeful promise of sequels or a threat of more early Nickeldeon-esque inanity depending on how much you liked this first installment. Like the titular hero (the brainwashed alter ego of a joyless, so-miserable-he’s-angry principal), I was somewhat divided watching it: I enjoyed long…
Movie Review: Hunter Gatherer, The Discovery, Monster Trucks
Sometimes movies slip through the cracks, and then it’s time to throw the unlikeliest of films together for a mixed-salad of reviews… Hunter Gatherer…A classic example of how a bad ending can really ruin an otherwise solid film. The Wire’s Andre Royo has been so good at livening up stale material (he brought energy to…
Reviewing Every Episode of “The Leftovers,” and Ranking the Seasons
Note: I’m only reviewing each individual episode in the third and final season, but I’ll have reviews of Season 1 (not so great) and Season 2 (a masterpiece). I chose not to write reviews of each episode in those seasons because it would be tedious, episode quality is more uniform in those seasons, and to be brutally honest,…
In Defense of Real Time: Bill Maher is Awesome
Let’s not be Republican pawns and turn on THE toughest, most consistent anti-Trump voice in The Resistance. Here a “Real Time” superfan who’s seen every episode defends one of the best voices on TV for criminal justice reform, freedom from religion, and especially the environment. [People may have missed that Bill’s interview with Ben…
Movie Reviews: “War Machine” and “The Wizard of Lies”
Sadly, people are debating about whether to release any movie smaller than “Transformers”-size in a theater at all. Some argue that small and mid-size movies will be seen by a wider audience if they just stream on various platforms or Video-On Demand, but to me that would basically symbolize the death of independent cinema and…
How “The Americans” Became My Unexpected “Hate Watch”
I usually think of the term “hate watching” as applying to a show you hate yourself for watching usually involving the words “Housewives,” “Naked,” or “featuring [blank] Kardashian.” I’ve never really thought of the term applying to a series that is supposedly great quality and has a reputation for being underrated, yet you can’t help but hate what it’s become. Which…
Movie Review: Why “Alien: Covenant” is a Step Backward for the Franchise
Even before “Alien: Covenant” opened to softer-than-expected box office, I was dubious it would really offer the creative goods. That’s why I placed it in the “I’m not so sure about” section of my summer movie preview, and watching the film didn’t really change anything. I still wish they had made a more direct sequel…
Movie Review: King Arthur
“King Arthur” holds the dubious distinction of being “Summer 2017’s First Big Flop.” Uhhh…congratulations? To celebrate, what do you get the movie who has nothing, including dismal reviews, bad box office, and its franchise hopes dashed? How about a mild Alabama Liberal review that points out what the movie does right? I’m just kidding, this…
TV Review: A “Twin Peaks” Newbie Tries to Make Sense of the First Four Episodes
As a millennial TV critic, I was about four years old when “Twin Peaks” first exploded onto the scene during its original ABC run, and needless to say I wasn’t much following it at the time, instead engrossed in a different bizarre world called “Sesame Street.” Still, I’ve heard more times than I can count…
TV Reviews: Silicon Valley and Veep
Just yesterday, I pointed out that the Best Dramas on TV are struggling to reach the heights of “Best Dramas” of yester-year, but that doesn’t appear to be the case for TV’s Best Comedies. 2016 was the first year in Alabama Liberal history I chose a comedy (Veep) for Best Series, and “Silicon Valley” is…
TV Reviews: Better Call Saul, The Americans, Fargo, Homeland
All of the Best Dramas on TV are back after some alarmingly long hiatuses (both “Homeland” and “Fargo”) skipped 2016, something most people wish they had the option to do. Sure, you may ask about more popular behemoths like “Game of Thrones” or “The Walking Dead” or something else in the fantasy, horror, sci-fi genre…
Why Simone Biles Didn’t Win “Dancing With the Stars” Even Though She Should’ve
People are funny. They are “shocked” Simone Biles didn’t make the “Dancing with the Stars” Finale over lesser dancers like David Ross. The judges “couldn’t believe it” after they had judged her harshly. The host couldn’t believe it after he had told her to smile more just last week. And the media write-ups keep using…