Damian Lewis narrates text by George Orwell, as director Raoul Peck profoundly demonstrates that we as a society, and a planet, are living smack dab in the middle of Orwell’s 1984. Intercutting with the various adaptations of 1984 and Animal Farm, Peck includes documentary and news footage charting the new rise of fascism, authoritarianism, and…
Tag: facts
12 Angry Men (1957) – Sidney Lumet
Reginald Rose wrote the absolutely engaging and captivating script for Lumet’s 12 Angry Men from his own source material and received an Oscar nomination for it as well as a Best Picture nomination with his fellow producer Henry Fonda, both of whom deferred their salary to get the film made. The film was also nominated…
TIFF ’23: Sleep
Midnight Madness at TIFF is always a lot of fun, and some great genre films get scheduled that are designed to deliver to the late-night audience. Sleep hopes to do that this week. A Korean entry to the film festival from writer/director Jason Yu. It’s his first feature film, and Yu creates a tense, moody…
The Post (2017) – Steven Spielberg
Spielberg shows us the (much-needed) power of the free press with The Post. Documenting The Washington Post’s involvement in publishing the Pentagon Papers, the film is a captivating newspaper thriller with a top-notch cast. Tom Hanks takes on the role of Ben Bradlee, chief editor of the Post, and Meryl Streep is Kay Graham, the…
TIFF ’22: The Lost King
Director Stephen Frears guides Sally Hawkins’ quest for the burial place of Richard III. She takes on the real-life role of Philippa Langley, an amateur historian, who turned away from the established historical ‘facts’ of Richard III as a usurper and began a hunt for his final resting place. Based on Langley’s own book, which…
The X-Files (2018) – Rm9sbG93ZXJz, and Familiar
“We have to be better teachers.” For an episode that doesn’t have a lot of dialogue, this is an important message. It’s also important to remember how we treat those who can learn from us. In this episode written by Kristen Cloke, and Shannon Hamblin, Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson) learn that manners…
The Mysterious Mr. Quin (1930) – Agatha Christie
Long before DC introduced us to Harley Quinn, a variation of the traditional harlequin character, Agatha Christie created her own Harley Quin, and introduced him to the world in a collection of short stories first published in 1930. This Harley Quinn is a tall mysterious man who appears at prime opportunities in the story, and…
Star Wars: The Ride of Skywalker – The Galactic Guide (2019) – Matt Jones
The Skywalker Saga has come to an end. For those of us who have been there since 1977 it’s been an amazing, and emotional ride. But that doesn’t preclude the fact that it has an impact on younger viewers as well. Those new fans who discover Star Wars and take it into their hearts aren’t…
Star Trek: Voyager (1999) – The Voyager Conspiracy, and Pathfinder
Captain’s log: stardate 53329 Joe Menosky penned this Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) episode that delves into paranoia as she begins to suspect that the Voyager was intentionally transported to the Delta Quadrant. After augmenting her alcove to assimilate more data, her neural pathways are unable to handle it, and begin correlating facts into vast…
DK Canada at Fan Expo 2019
Every one who visits this site knows I’ve raved about the gorgeous collection of books that DK Canada has in their library, and I love that they are bringing their passionate love of pop culture with them with a wealth of boos to entertain all readers. There are a number of great books to be…
The Mind Reels 