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Reviews
Cash Out (2024)
What's Not To Like?
I simply cannot understand the inexplicably bad rating (currently 4.8 on IMDB) or the hateful reviews for Cash Out. I thought it was an engaging story all the way through. Granted, it's not often that a story will have you rooting for the "bad" guys but then again, Cash Out leads us to a very important question: Just WHO are the REAL bad guys in our world today?
Caution: possible spoilers ahead -
So who exactly ARE the REAL criminals and bad guys in our world today?
The government? Check.
The rich string pullers? Check.
The misfit common criminals and thieves? Again, Check.... BUT the common criminals and thieves can often pale in comparison to the biggest, most immoral, unethical, ruthless and despicable "bad" guys (and gals) of all.
Sentinel (2024)
Oh my gosh this was awful!
I don't even know where to begin reviewing this dreck. There's really no story here, just a bunch of illogical, poorly written, poorly acted disjointed scenes filled with gibberish dialog. If I didn't know better, I would wager this was written by some sixth graders as a joint class assignment. This film was literally all over the place. It's like it couldn't even decide what genre of filmmaking to which it wanted to belong. It's part sci-fi, part zombie apocalypse, part horror, part drama, part action flick and part comedy (although the comical parts I sure weren't written to be funny) and sadly, it FAILS miserably in every category. I really tried to give it a chance but after suffering through almost exactly half of this train wreck I just had to turn it off.
Reacher: The Man Goes Through (2024)
Poorest Episode of Season 2
I have been really enjoying (most of) the Reacher series but I really didn't care much for this particular episode. The extended flashback was too long and didn't add much (if any) to the story. The rest of this episode seemed to drag on without much happening. And of course, there's a "cliffhanger" ending to Season 2 Episode 7 The Man Goes Through but that didn't help me to appreciate it either. It smacked of a poor writer's desperation at keeping us interested. The most irritating aspect of this episode for me though was the horrible rap music toward the end. I literally found it annoying as H**L. I hope the next episode (Season's 2 closing) is better.
Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise (2015)
At first, I thought it was the husband
Interesting final episode of the Jesse Stone series. I knew as soon as Jesse told Dr. Dix "I lost my conscience" that Reggie had died. As a huge animal lover, that made me truly sad. So, in just a few scenes later when we see Reggie's tombstone by the oceanside bench I wasn't surprised; just saddened once again. Therefore, later when Jesse took in Steve, I was both relieved and glad.
I found Lost In Paradise quite good but I was missing Stephen McHattie as Captain Healy and Saul Rubinek as Hasty Hathaway. Their absence detracted from an otherwise good story which also could have used a little more of the unique banter between Jesse and Gino Fish (played by the great William Sadler). The one thing I truly disliked about Lost In Paradise is it is the last episode of the wonderful Jesse Stone movies we will probably ever see. I have all nine of them in my collection but I do wish there were more.
Reacher: New York's Finest (2024)
More REALISM please!
I love this show but this episode has some glaring inaccuracies that causes the entire series to lose credibility. The ridiculous gun fight with the car chasing Detective Russo and the little girl Jane make it hard to watch. The writers either don't know beans about weapons and automobiles or they think the audience is too stupid to notice.
I have a clue for you - a 9mm (or even more powerful) handgun bullet fired into a car door will not only penetrate through the entire door but it will also travel all the way through the door on the opposite side. So, when Det. Russo's Ford Taurus stops and is sitting perpendicular to the bad guys, their shooting into the sides of the car would go all the way through.... killing Jane AND Russo. This glaring error made the whole episode ludicrous.
Now for the spoiler. The ending was sad too. Russo, even with all his rough edges was a cool character and it's hard to lose him.
Let's hope the writers do a better job with the rest of the series.
Silent Night (2023)
A Swing and A Miss
The relationship and love of the father and son are beautifully depicted in this awful film. Unfortunately, that's ALL that's good, wholesome, right, meaningful or even believable in this bloody, violent, waste of film. Totally EVERYTHING else is complete crap.
According to.the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, the primary meaning of the word "gratuitous" is:
"1 : not called for by the circumstances : not necessary, appropriate, or justified : UNWARRANTED"
The ridiculous car scenes, gunfight scenes and gang-war scenes in this 104 minute dreck lend a whole new meaning to the phrase "gratuitous violence". More like TOTALLY not called for, COMPLETELY not necessary, VERY inappropriate and ABSOLUTELY unjustified. Blood, gore and violence merely for the sake of blood, gore and violence and not the least bit entertaining..
It's a darn shame because the main theme of the movie (a father's revenge against his sons killers) coulda, woulda and shoulda made a great film. Unfortunately, in THIS incidence, it didn't.
Muzzle (2023)
What a disappointment!
How on God's Earth can a movie with stars like Aaron Eckhart, Nick Searcy and Stephen Lang in it be so atrociously awful? I've been a huge fan of Eckhart, Searcy and Lang (Lang all the way back to the 80's and Searcy all the way back to the 90's) and I can't believe they would appear in such a dreadful film as this. The writing is all over the place and doesn't come close to achieving the impact intended (whatever that might be.... I still haven't figured it out). The evil woman controlling his dog is nonsensical and detracts horribly from the movie. It didn't make sense at all. The ending is puzzling, nonsensical and just nauseating. I'm glad he winds up with the woman AND the dog but why is the dog missing a leg? Ridiculous!
The story woulda, coulda and shoulda been a terrific one - following a human K9 Officer working the streets with a fabulous K9 partner who gets killed in the line-of-duty and struggling to overcome the loss. Then finally coming to terms with it, acquiring a new dog albeit one with as many or more physical, mental and emotional injuries as himself. In the hands of a competent, highly skilled writer, director and editor this could have been one of the finest films of the year. Instead, regretfully, it turns out to be one of the worst.
Baa Baa Black Sheep: Last One for Hutch (1977)
One of the BEST episodes in the series
I watched the entire series way back in the 70's when it was on TV and as a young man I loved it!
I was able to watch this episode "Last One for Hutch" again recently. As my review title says, this is one of the very best episodes in the entire series. Seldom did the Black Sheep really and truly tug at your heartstrings but this one did.
Hutch was one of those supporting characters in a television series that everyone just had to like. He was always a true friend to everyone else, reliable, trustworthy, dependable and solid. To watch him get killed off was a shocker! And just as the previous reviewer mentioned "people died in WW2...this is a fact...but there is still that moment when you want to hope for the best." I felt that way too.
Sorry to see Hutch go. I just wonder WHY this character was killed off! Did the actor (Joey Aresco) just decide to leave? Was he forced out? Or did the writers simply want to show how war IS Hell and people DO die, even the ones we may care about or love?
Jack Ryan: Persona Non Grata (2019)
NOT happy with this episode
I have enjoyed the Jack Ryan series season one and most of season two (so far) but man, I really hated this episode. Last week's episode wasn't very stellar but this week was just crappola. WHY did the writers have to kill off Matice? Seriously, he was my most favorite character in the entire series. Now he's gone. So, I guess I'll stick around and see what's next but I'm not very hopeful with this being the final episode containing my favorite character of the series. Good job John Hoogenakker! I Hope to see you in more and more exciting action films in the future. You did a GREAT job in this one.
The Mandalorian: Chapter 16: The Rescue (2020)
Worthy of the Star Wars franchise
Wow! What can I say? I'm 67 years old so I'm probably far from the target audience for the entire The Mandalorian Saga but I am loving it so far. I saw the original Star Wars movie the week it was released back in 1977 and loved it as well as The Empire Strikes Back in 1980 and then Return of the Jedi in 1983. The last few Star Wars movies I haven't really cared for very much. But now there's The Mandalorian. Every one of the 15 chapters in the first two seasons has been great and here we are at
Chapter 15 which is the best so far. I rated it 10 stars but I ALMOST deducted 1 star for the tears it brought to my eyes at the end. Kudos to the writers, directors and the entire cast for a job well done!
The Old Way (2023)
The Old Way - A good name for a Bad movie
Whomever wrote this dreadful movie has forgotten the number one most important necessity in story writing - there HAS to be at least one character in the story to really care about. At least one sympathetic character to root for. THAT is what is so sorely lacking in The Old Way. There is not one single character in this film to root for. The closest I could find would be Colton's wife but she's dead before the movie hardly even begins. The only other just might be the Marshall. The main character, Colton Briggs portrayed by Nick Cage is little more than a caricature of a total psychopath. He has no redeeming values whatsoever. His daughter COULD have been the one sympathetic character we were looking for but she too is a cold, robotic sociopathic oddball. The "bad" gang is made up of all nutcases despite the gang leader being the closest thing we can find any understanding for. After all, he did witness Colton murdering his father fight in front of his very eyes at a very young impressionable age. But the fact that he turned out to be nothing more than a sick, sadistic perpetual criminal takes away any potential sympathy anyone might find for him. Basically, all-in-all, The Old Way is just NOT a good movie in any regard. In fact, it IS a Bad film.
The Banshees of Inisherin (2022)
In a single word, this film is: AWFUL
I absolutely cannot even begin to understand the overly high ratings on this movie here on IMDB. I wager most of them must come from the writer, director, cast and crew.
Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson are two immensely talented and accomplished actors, but this is one terribly stupid, nonsensical, pointless and illogical film. To add to the weakness and irrationality of the story the accents are so thick I actually had to use the close captioning to understand about half the dialog. I love watching Farrell and Gleason together and hope they will appear in another better, more interesting, useful and intelligent offering in the near future. But The Banshees of Inisherin is abysmal trash.
The Streets of San Francisco: Superstar (1976)
Lt. Stone RUINED this episode
I wanted to like the Superstar episode so much, but the writers had Lt. Stone being such a jerk I wound up hating it. Paul Sorvino absolutely turned in a Superstar performance portraying New York cop Bert D'Angelo. Smooth, smart, sly-like-a-fox and ready, willing and able to do whatever it takes to take down the person or persons responsible for murdering his partner. This COULD have and SHOULD have been one of the very best episodes in the entire series but Lt. Stone (and Inspector Keller too at times) just totally ruined it. Instead of 10 stars I give it 3 (10 for D'Angelo and -7 for Stone).
Emergency!: Zero (1973)
My how times have changed!
I am writing this review in the Spring of 2022. Oh my how times have changed in the past five decades! Poor little Tommy. In this episode, we find a young boy named Tommy Mannering who is the victim of parental child abuse, abuse so severe he even attempts suicide. In this episode, the doctors merely advise the parents to seek group counseling and that was pretty much as far as things went 50 years ago. We are not informed of any other action(s) taken on Tommy's behalf or the final outcome of his situation. Today, the LAW REQUIRES medical staff to REPORT child abuse to the legal authorities; even SUSPECTED child abuse. If this were to occur now, Vera Mannering, the mother in this episode (portrayed by Mariette Hartley) would most likely be arrested (possibly before even leaving the hospital).
Lockdown (2022)
Simply Dreadful
Oh dear God, I had never heard of Massimiliano Cerchi who is credited with being both (co)writer and director of this dreadful dreck or seen any of his other work and I sure hope never to again. He must have been without sleep for several days and nights and high on mind-altering illegal substances to pound out such pitiful garbage. I honestly believe an average middle school drama class could write, direct and perform a much higher quality film than this. The dialog was not only unbelievable but simply ridiculous. The lighting in many scenes was poor. The so-called "actors" and "actresses" in this lousy production better have day jobs or they're going to starve. Try as I might, I simply cannot find one redeeming quality in this entire 89 minute pukefest.
Don't Breathe (2016)
What a bummer of an ending
I was so wanting to like this movie and rate it highly. I've been a big fan of Stephen Lang all the way back to his multiple episode appearances in Crime Story. Don't Breathe starts out running and keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole way but then it hits you with such a pathetic ending. The movie is excellently acted by all the cast. Stephen really passes of blindness as if he truly were blind. Money as played by Daniel Zovatto is the epitome of a scuzzbag pos and I actually cheered when he got killed. You can almost sympathize with Alex portrayed by Dylan Minnette but he too deserves what he gets. Jane Levy does a great job as Rocky but the script lets us all down with that character. According to one of the Trivia items, the original ending was a MUCH, much better one, but they changed it and (for me at least) totally ruined the entire show. If Rocky had gotten her just due just as Money and Alex did, then I would have rated this film a 9. But since she not only gets away but also gets the money, then that totally ruined the entire story for me. So, a 4 I give it. On to Don't Breathe 2. I sure hope it's better.
Tour of Duty: Gray-Brown Odyssey (1988)
Not believable
Overly dramatic, totally implausible plot of this episode marks it as one of the worst in the series. The blatant anti-war theme was preponderously unsubtle. Illogical and incomprehensible actions occur throughout starting with the discharge of the fire extinguisher into Lt. Goldman's face and eyes. Did nobody even think about flushing his eyes out when he revealed the chemicals blinded him? That would be step one in any first aid scenario. And then, while left alone with an enemy combatant, Goldman removes her gag, even after she had previously screamed and yelled? Too many unrealistic scenes in this episode for me and far below the usual high standards for this series.
Police Story: Spanish Class (1976)
In the Barrio
Spanish Class is a great mid-3rd Season episode partnering the charismatic rookie Officer Taylor (Desi Arnez, Jr.) with the salty old veteran Officer Fernandez (Joe Santos). In following them through Fernandez teaching Taylor about the barrios of LA, and showing him the ropes in dealing with the Latino/Hispanic culture there we witness them dealing with drunks, young toughs, rowdy bar patrons and Mexican Mafia types. A truly engaging episode but with one major flaw in continuity - the black & white patrol car they are operating out of keeps changing between a Chevrolet Impala and a Ford Torino several times, once even in the middle of a pursuit! Very distracting but besides that flub in continuity, a very interesting and entertaining episode which can be found on Disc 4 of the Police Story Season Three DVD collection.
The Ray Bradbury Theater: The Veldt (1989)
One of Bradbury's Best Stories - But a Lousy Production of it
My review title pretty much says it all: One of Bradbury's Best Stories - But a Lousy Production of it.
To see this story play out in much, much better fashion see it as portrayed in one of three Bradbury short stories in the 1969 movie "The Illustrated Man" (also by Ray Bradbury). Rod Steiger plays the father perfectly and it is a much more believable screenplay adaptation of one of Bradbury's best.
Condor: Exile Is a Dream (2020)
Boring!
Oh my God! Season 2 Episode 1 is so boring I almost didn't even finish it. I just kept looking at the clock wondering 'WHEN is this thing going to end?'
Jack Ryan (2018)
Enjoying the show! Looking for Season 3 to start
Well, got through Season 1 liking the action then highly anticipated Season 2. Contrary to many of the negative comments, I actually liked both seasons. Sure, could have used a few tweaks here and there but all in all I'm a fan! But really, Season 2 would have ended MUCH better if the best character in the whole show didn't get killed off - yeah, I'm talking about Matice!
Looking forward to season 3 but will be missing Matice for sure. Having him killed off was sort of like losing "Tex" on the series The Last Ship.
Midway (2019)
Not Great, not even good
Melodramatic acting and CGI crap. Stick to the 1976 version.
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)
Horrible, Putrid, Stinking Garbage
I am almost at a loss for words in attempting to describe what a disgusting piece of filth and trash this so-called "movie" is. As a previous reviewer honestly noted: there's not one redeeming value in this entire 2 hours of wasted film.
For all those who rated this trash highly, I feel sorry for you. Get a life. And get some moral values too, because they are sadly lacking in your character.
Six: Danger Close (2018)
Can I say I Hate the Ending?
Okay. I HATE the ending. Despite its MANY faults (which I won't go in to here) I would like for the show to continue another season (or more, maybe MANY more). Also, I hate the way the series ended. No spoilers given here. I just would have liked to see you-know-who killed (the traitor scum) and I didn't like that a couple of the "good" characters WERE killed. But all-in-all: congratulations and adios to a good series.
Repeaters (2010)
Horrible
This is a stupid, horrible movie about stupid, horrible people. I am almost at a loss for words to describe how senseless,, depressing and disgusting this film is. If you enjoy wasting your life away watching soul-less, foolish idiots run amuck then this is your film. But if you prefer quality, redeeming entertainment (with or without a moral or meaning) then please do yourself a favor and watch something, ANYTHING else.