One year after Wes Craven changed the horror genre (again) with the introduction of the dream stalker, Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund), New Line Cinema delivered the first follow-up sequel. All of the Nightmare sequels can be hit or miss, with the third one arguably the best of the bunch. And while the film was successful…
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1980) – Ardala Returns, and Twiki is Missing
Princess Ardala (Pamela Hensley) is back in Ardala Returns. Written by Chris Bunch, this episode first debuted on 24 January, 1980. Ardala and Kane (Yay Michael Ansara!) are having issues with the new Draconian Ratchet fighters, since Kane updated them, none of the pilots are good enough to handle them. So a plan is concocted,…
Mission: Impossible (1971) – The Field, and Blast
The IMF team, led by Jim Phelps (Peter Graves) has a tough assignment this time with The Field. Written by Wesley Lau from a story by Lau and Judy Burns, it first aired on 23 January, 1971. An enemy nation has control of an island in the Adriatic, and they have turned it into a…
Diablo Mesa (2022) – Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
Grand Central Publishing was kind enough to send me the latest Preston & Child thriller, Diablo Mesa, which came out in February. It had been a long time since I dug into a Preston & Child book, but back in 2014, I was plowing through their Pendergast series until my pile of To Be Read…
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1980) – Happy Birthday, Buck, and A Blast For Buck
Buck’s (Gil Gerard) birthday is coming up, and it’s his 34th or 534th, depending on how he feels about it. And he definitely feels the latter, as he’s moping around and just bummed that Earth is just a little too neat; the weather is always perfect, the architecture is just so, and there seem to…
Spiritwalker (2020) – Yoon Jae-keun
Hitting digital, DVD and Blu-Ray today from Well Go USA Entertainment is this Korean bare-knuckle action flick with some sci-fi undertones that keeps things moving right until the last frame. The film gives a new spin on familiar territory, and features solidly constructed, and executed action and fight sequences. Ian (Yoon Kyesang) isn’t who he…
Scream 3 (2000) – Wes Craven
Wes Craven delivered a third entry into the Scream franchise in 2000, and while it’s interesting to see how characters have changed (or not) since the second film, the film itself lacks the self-referential meta nature that made the first to so enjoyable. Even by transposing the bulk of the story to the making of…
The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021) – Michael Rianda and Jeff Rowe
Netflix delivered a fantastic animated feature with The Mitchells vs. the Machines. I’ll be honest, when I first heard about it, I wasn’t sure. It looked a little too goofy, or too silly, but settling in for it, you actually realize it has a lot to say about family, technology, and life in general, and…
M*A*S*H (1981) – No Sweat, Depressing News, and No Laughing Matter
The heat is getting to everybody in No Sweat. Written by John Rappaport, we join the 4077th for a sweltering night. First airing on 2 February, 1981, we find various members of the camp unable to sleep because of the heat, and the things they are doing to occupy their time instead. B.J. (Mike Farrell)…
The Nice Guys (2016) – Shane Black
With the exception of The Predator, I love me some Shane Black. From the moment I first saw Lethal Weapon, I knew I had found a writer (and later a director) that I would enjoy following. Keeping in the vein of his other film, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, The Nice Guys plays with the detective…
The Mind Reels 