Hooper (1978) – Hal Needham

Coming off of Smokey and the Bandit, Hal Needham, Burt Reynolds and Sally Field paired up again for Hooper, a love letter to the stuntmen (and women) of Hollywood – who still aren’t recognized for their contributions with an Academy Award. Reynolds is Hooper an aging stuntman who pals around with Cully (James Best) and…

Northern Exposure (1993) – Duets, and Grosse Pointe, 48230

Ed (Darren E. Burrows) is delighted when his spirit guide, One-Who-Waits (Floyd ‘Red Crow’ Westerman) returns, and reveals that he has finally found Ed’s father! Duets was written by Geoffrey Neigher this episode was first broadcast on 18 January, 1993. One-Who-Waits leads Ed to Pete (Gordon Tootoosis) who works construction and Ed signs up as…

Lake Michigan Monster (2018) – Ryland Brickson Cole Tews

I loved Hundreds of Beavers so I was eager to check out an earlier film from the creative duo behind it, Lake Michigan Monster. Sharing some of the film’s creative styles, it’s shot in black and white, made to look like a throwback to yesteryear, and has a goofy sense of humor that slides from…

Pitch Perfect 3 (2017) – Trish Sie

There’s, arguably, a good film and story in Pitch Perfect 3, something about the family we’re from and the family we find, but from the opening sequence, which involves an exploding yacht, I knew this one was going to be a mess. There’s some wonderful ideas, casting John Lithgow in the role of Fat Amy’s…

No Escape (1994) – Martin Campbell

I don’t know what is about Martin Campbell movies. Outside of his entries in the James Bond franchise, they kind of just fizzle for me. They generally have solid casts, and at least the potential for a good story, and he knows how to orchestrate a shot and stage a sequence, but they never really…

The Invention of Hugo Cabret (2007) – Brian Selznick

I remember being completely enchanted when I realized the movie, Hugo, was not only about a boy who lived in a train station, but about Georges Melies, the famed French director, and his wonderful collection of films. It absolutely swept me up in it’s narrative. But I had never read Brian Selznick’s original book, which…

Stargate SG-1 (1999) – Past and Present, and Jolinar’s Memories

Jackson (Michael Shanks) seems to be bouncing back pretty quick after the death of his wife last week. He seems to have a connection, and shared attraction between Ke’ra (Megan Leitch) when he and SG-1 arrive on an industrial age planet where there are no children, no old people, and those who live there have…

Stargate SG-1 (1998) – The Tok’ra Part 1, and Part 2

Using story threads laid down in the episode In the Line of Duty and Secrets, The Tok’ra expands the Stargate universe once again, and introduces new characters, allies and threats? The Tok’ra Part 1 was written by one of the showrunners, Jonathan Glassner, and it debuted on 2 October, 1998. When Captain Carter (Amanda Tapping)…

Stargate SG-1 (1998) – Secrets, and Bane

While Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping) and O’Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) head off to Washington to meet with the President, and track down a leak in Stargate Command, Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks) and Teal’c (Christopher Judge) return to Abydos as Daniel agreed to one year after the events of Children of the Gods. Written by Terry…

The Wild Geese (1978) – Andrew V. McLaglen

The Wild Geese has a horrible title song, but then as I watched the credits I saw that it had production design by Syd Cain, and its opening title sequence was done by Maurice Binder. It also has a very impressive leading cast, Richard Burton, Richard Harris and Roger Moore. Not bad. And while the…