I was itching to explore the Dark Tower series again, and while I was listening to the KingCast, a fantastic podcast about Stephen King and films, and their guest was Bev Vincent, and they talked about his book, The Road to the Dark Tower. I hunted it down with a vengeance, and was delighted to…
Tag: magic
Good Boy (2025) – Ben Leonberg
Mr. Loenberg, you had me at a horror movie told from a dog’s perspective. What I didn’t epect was a proto-Spielbergian ghost story that hits all the feels with its unique storytelling. There is a lot to dissect and discuss for this wonderful film that is getting great word of mouth. In fact, talking about…
Now You See Me 2 (2016) – Jon M. Chu
The sequel to the magical heist film, Now You See Me, suffers from a lot of faults which directly impact its enjoyment. First up, Isla Fisher didn’t return due to her pregnancy, which required the introduction of a new character, Lula, played enjoyably by Lizzy Caplan. Caplan is solid, and brings a nice comedic element…
Now You See Me (2013) – Louis Leterrier
What happens when you take Ocean’s 11 heist vibe and throw some magic at it? Well, you could come back with something like Now You See Me. While it doesn’t have all the star power of the Soderbergh film, Now You See Me is fairly entertaining and has some solid casting. Mark Ruffalo plays FBI…
Northern Exposure (1993) – Love’s Labour Mislaid, and Northern Lights
Love seems to be not quite in the air, but definitely troubling a number of residents of Cicely in Love’s Labour Mislaid. Written by Jeff Melvoin, it first debuted on 22 February, 1993. Maggie (Janine Turner) seems to have no memory of having carnal relations with Joel (Rob Morrow) despite the fact that they stood…
Go West (1925) – Buster Keaton
Sometimes you just want to revel in the artistry and talent of cinema of yesteryear, so I decided to dig into a Buster Keaton film I hadn’t seen, Go West. It’s charming and Keaton who stars and directs knows how to make the magic work. His character, simply referred to as Friendless in the credits,…
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…
Northern Exposure (1991) – A Hunting We Will Go, and Get Real
To try to understand the concept, and what drives people to do it, Joel (Rob Morrow) joins Holling (John Cullum) and Chris (John Corbett) on their annual hunting trip. Holling no longer carries a gun, he shoots with a camera, but Chris and Joel, the New York doctor, are armed and ready to go. After…
TIFF24: The Wild Robot dir. Chris Sanders
I closed out my TIFF run this year, with the latest animated effort from Dreamworks. Based on the children’s book by Peter Brown, Sanders not only directed the film, but adapted the story as well, and it’s going to be a family classic to be sure. When a robot, Roz (Lupita Nyong’o) awakes from her…
TIFF24: The Life of Chuck dir. Mike Flanagan
Tears. Happy tears. When things just feel right, when something is translated so well from page to screen that it looks the way it did in your mind’s eye. The Life of Chuck moved me to happy tears. Mike Flanagan is at the top of his game. He has proven that he excels at adapting…
The Mind Reels 