The Hunt for Red October (1984) – Tom Clancy

I haven’t read this book since the mid-80s when my schoolmate and friend, Michael Hay suggested I might like it. I dug into it, and for awhile there, birthdays or Christmases would bring me the latest Tom Clancy hardcover. I’ve been itching to kind of go back and see I still enjoy the stories, and…

Double or Die (2007) – Charlie Higson

Charlie Higson delivers another exciting Young James Bond story. But I have to say, his youth seemed pretty adventure-filled. So much so that you have to wonder if he was bored being 007. This one is a bit different, with more clues and intellect involved. The past two adventures saw young Bond going after baddies,…

The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) – David Zucker

What with the reboot/sequel bringing comedic laughs back to the theatre, I thought I would take a look at the original The Naked Gun, which followed on the oh-to-short Police Squad! series. Leslie Nielsen is back as Frank Drebin, and if you were worried this movie wouldn’t be funny almost forty years later, you can…

Stargate SG-1 (2005) – Citizen Joe, and Reckoning: Part 1

Dan Castellaneta, the voice of Homer Simpson, guest stars in Citizen Joe. Written by Damian Kindler from a story by Robert C. Cooper this episode debuted on 18 February, 2025. It’s a unique kind of clip show, with excerpts featuring the writing of Cooper, James Crocker, Peter DeLuise, Jonathan Glassner, Victoria James, Kindler, Joseph Mallozzi,…

Forever and a Day (2018) – Anthony Horowitz

Anthony Horowitz delivers another fast-paced 007 spy thriller with some material written by the series creator Ian Fleming. Set just before the events of the novel, Casino Royale, the story follows James Bond as he gets his two assigned kills to get his Double-O number, and throws him into a case that helps shape the…

Clue (1985) – Jonathan Lynn

This one is for my friend Lindsay. It’s been forever since I saw Clue. I’m pretty sure I brought it home one weekend on videotape. I know I enjoyed it, but watching it now, you realize this one is really something special. With a trio of different endings, the film guaranteed that it would be…

Trigger Mortis (2015) – Anthony Horowitz

Anthony Horowitz takes over the 007 mantle with his novel Trigger Mortis. Using some material written by Ian Fleming, Horowitz sets his novel two weeks after the events of Goldfinger, the book not the film, in 1957. James Bond has returned to the UK, accompanied by Pussy Galore, though that’s not going to turn out…

Devil May Care (2008) – Sebastian Faulks

Sebastian Faulks brings us the first post-Raymond Benson 007 novel. Picking up shortly after the final Ian Fleming novel, not short story collection, The Man with The Golden Gun finds James Bond on sabbatical in 1967. He’s not resting for long, as M calls him in to have him investigate Julius Gorner, who not only…

TIFF24: Heretic dir. Scott Beck and Bryan Woods

Scott Beck and Bryan Woods deliver a masterclass in anxiety-inducing tension with Heretic. Shot brilliantly with tight close-ups, Beck and Woods continually ratchet things up even as they present a theology lesson that is as conversation-starting as the film is unnerving. Sister Paxton (Chloe East) and Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) are young Mormons canvassing for…