Magnum P.I. (2021) – Cry Murder, and Whispers of Death

Peter Weller returns to the director’s chair for Cry Murder. Written by series showrunners Peter M. Lenkov and Eric Guggenheim from a story by Emily Singer, it first aired on 9 April, 2021. Magnum (Jay Hernandez) and Higgins (Perdita Weeks) take a case helping an insurance company in their recovery of a harvest of white…

The Andromeda Strain (1969) – Micheal Crichton

I’ve read lots of horror novels, and enjoy Stephen King’s stories but nothing I’ve read in the genre has ever gotten under my skin and unnerve me. Michael Crichton’s The Andromeda Strain got me. I think the story got wrapped up too quickly, but the essence of the story really got to me, and seemed…

Star Trek: Picard (2023) – The Next Generation, and Disengage

Terry Matalas takes over as showrunner for season three of Picard and his season opener is a gorgeous blend of easter eggs, characters, stories, familiar music cues, and a bold new adventure. The first episode of the final season, The Next Generation, first aired on 16 February, 2023. Picard (Patrick Stewart) receives a coded message…

TIFF’23: Knox Goes Away

I’ve said it before, and I know I’ll say it again. I love a good noir, and Knox Goes Away directed by and starring, Micheal Keaton may be one of my new favourites. making fantastic use of his framing, lighting, score and production, Knox Goes Away, despite its modern trappings, feels like a throwback to…

Mission: Impossible (1969) – Submarine, and Mastermind

Donald James pens an exceptional episode of Mission: Impossible, Submarine, which was first broadcast on 16 November, 1969. Phelps (Peter Graves) and his IMF team are working with a ticking clock. They have to kidnap former SS officer, Kruger Schetlman (Stephen McNally), and learn the location stolen Nazi funds, before the local military police track…

Mission: Impossible (1969) – The Code, and The Numbers Game

Season Four of Mission: Impossible got underway on 28 September, 1969 with The Code, written by Ken Pettus. Right away, there are changes going on with the series, and the IMF team, there’s a more swinging score, and a new member has joined the team, master of disguise, Paris (Leonard Nimoy, fresh off his three…

Mission: Impossible (1969) – Illusion, and The Interrogator

Phelps (Peter Graves) and his IMF team go undercover in an Eastern European country, that looks like it gets its uniforms from the Nazis, in Illusion. Written by Laurence Heath, this episode first aired on 13 April, 1969. The team are seeking to remove two political officers, who are scheming against each other for control…

Star Trek: Discovery (2019) – Such Sweet Sorrow Part 1 & 2

Captain’s log: stardate 1050.8 Time is running out as Leland (Alan van Sprang) as Control, and his fleet of Section 31 ships are closing in on the Discovery and the Enterprise, in this, the first part of the season two finale of Star Trek; Discovery. Written by Michelle Paradise, Jenny Lumet and Alex Kurtzman, Such Sweet…

Spy Game (2001) – Tony Scott

This week’s spy thriller is a fantastic film from Tony Scott and starring Robert Redford and Brad Pitt. I remember being blown away the first time I saw this one, though I’ve always been a fan of Scott’s work, and the score by Harry Gregson-Williams felt perfectly suited for a techno-thriller, though admittedly this is…