HBO debuted two very different series this past Sunday that both show promise, while FX’s “Legion” may already be slightly overrated… Legion…Blame it on Marvel, but even top TV talent like Noah Hawley (“Fargo”) has been snapped up to adapt their decades-old second-tier characters. The title character is supposedly a powerful mutant in the X-Men…
Category: Mindless Mondays
Movie Reviews: La La Land, Rogue One, Silence, The Founder, Patriot’s Day
Some of my favorite 2016 are all in one article. It feels like a shame not to give each one their due, but “La La Land” and “Rogue One” have already been semi-reviewed in my end of the year movie countdown, and sadly “Silence” never quite caught-on with audiences or awards voters. I still hope…
Movie Reviews: Nocturnal Animals, Manchester By the Sea, Hidden Figures, Fences, Jackie
Five big Oscar contenders that are all worth watching for different reasons… Nocturnal Animals…Tom Ford’s follow-up to “A Single Man” (still a great movie and all-time best performance from Colin Firth, if you haven’t seen it) isn’t as deep and doesn’t stay with you as long, but it’s still a fun head-game in the moment….
Movie Reviews: War Dogs, Snowden, Our Kind of Traitor
Three very different (but quality) 2016 films about espionage or the military industrial complex… Our Kind of Traitor…If you’ve ever read a John Le Carre novel (and this book is based on one of his most recent ones) then you know his spy tales will be more about slowly untangling suspense than wham-blam action set…
Movie Reviews: Pete’s Dragon, The Secret life of Pets, Sully
Three 2016 films that are family-appropriate (except “Sully” may bore some kids and may scare younger children during the plane crash sequences)… Sully…Listed as one of my “Best Films of 2016,” it’s so old-fashioned it’s practically new-school. Tom Hanks continues his winning streak, and even though some of the scenes suffer from Eastwood’s trademark stodginess,…
Movie Reviews: Miles Ahead, Anthropoid, Mechanic Resurrection, Jack Reacher 2
Today’s the end of the road of 2016 movies I never reviewed earlier… Miles Ahead…Don Cheadle used Kickstarter to get his labor-of-love film financed (something people apparently do even when they can afford to finance it themselves), and I wish this Miles Davis biopic had done a better job of explaining why Miles was such a jazz…
Why “Weiner” is the Best Film of 2016 (and “Hacksaw Ridge” the Worst)
Following up on my “Best of 2016” rankings, I didn’t post proper reviews of “Weiner” or “Hacksaw Ridge” before the listings in order to keep things a surprise. I thought I would expand a little bit on both… Hacksaw Ridge: It’s true that I may stand alone among critics in listing this as one of…
Oscar Predictions: Who Will Be Nominated…AND Win
Note: I can usually predict about 4 out of 5 nominees and 2/3rds of winners, for whatever that’s worth in your Oscar betting pool. The rankings are how sure I am they’ll be nominated (so the 4th or 5th placers may very well not make the cut) and the top choice is who I think will…
The Reason White Racists Love FX’s “Atlanta”
Opening Defense: I know the pushback I’ll most likely receive is “but wait–black people love ‘Atlanta’ too.” Sure, but this year saw a variety of black-starring and created TV shows from “Loosely Exactly Nicole” to “Insecure” to “Luke Cage” to “Queen Sugar” and none of them received the universal adoration from white critics that “Atlanta” did….
Every 2016 Movie From Worst to Best
It’s a proud Alabama Liberal tradition to rank all of a completed year’s movies from worst to best—beat that paid-critics with your limited “Top 10” lists—and as always there’s just a few qualifiers: 1. Just because movies share the same letter grade (like a C grade) doesn’t mean they’re equal, and the rankings reflect which movies of…
The 10 Best TV Shows of 2016
You’ve seen the Best (and Worst) Characters, and the Best Scenes or Episodes, but still, there can be only one true list of the year’s 10 Best TV Shows… Honorable Mention: “Real Time with Bill Maher” is about to become the most important voice for “The Resistance.” Let’s quit kidding ourselves that Trumpers will ever listen to…
The Best TV Scenes or Episodes of 2016
Note: This is a combination of TV episodes, scenes, moments, shots, or whatever you want to call it. This is not to be confused with “The Best TV series of 2016” which ranks an entire season, and will be posted shortly… Honorable Mention: “The Good Wife” Iowa episode…”The Good Wife” gave us a lot of good…
The BEST TV Characters of 2016
People Vs. OJ…Veep…Westworld…The Night Of… Best Self: Campbell Scott as himself in “Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll”…Having a celebrity play themselves rarely leads to anything other than smiles or a soft chuckle, but “Sex” gave Scott his most interesting role since “Roger Dodger,” as a manipulative, hilarious genius trying to stage a Hamilton-rip-off. He has only…