“Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” – I’ll try not to geek out too much on you. With the release of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, we can officially say the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has really begun. Yes, I know Loki and WandaVision and Falcon…

For those who do not know, the 11:30 spot on KNXT (CBS here in the LA market back in the 60s) was filled with old movies five nights of the week. I saw many of the greats from the 40s and 50s on this, The Late Show. I watched the Maltese Falcon, The Big Sleep,…

Is it just me or do assassin movies seem to be really hit or miss? Yep, an assassin pun right of the gates. It’s a serious question though. Leon: The Professional is pretty much the gold standard. The first three Bourne movies were pretty solid, but the last two were not. The Hitman and its…

This piece began life as an inquiry as to why who’s in charge in Hollywood, whomever that might be, seldom if ever employ real science fiction writers to write the story for science fiction movies. Then I happened to see a movie from a couple of years ago titled, AD ASTRA (Latin for: Is this trip necessary?) After seeing it I…

Let’s try plan B. It’s pretty clear by now that the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) is essentially toast. Or, it’s a giant mess of barely connected movies that nobody has bothered to plan out, but really, it’s both. And that is how we got a sequel to Suicide Squad that is actually a remake, but,…

The Jungle Cruise ride at Disneyland is one of the original attractions from when the park opened. It is filled with animatronic animals and shows every bit of its sixty-six years. Yet, inexplicably, it always has a long wait time because, well, I’ll have to get back to you on that one. For lack of…

A copycat of Copycat. And Hitchcock.

Pig is almost certainly not the movie you’re expecting it to be. I know it wasn’t the one I was expecting. On paper it sounds like yet another of the winking, high-concept Nicolas Cage Vehicles™ that have made up the majority of his 21st century output, the story of a reclusive former chef hunting down…