Trucker

Starring: Michelle Monaghan, Jimmy Bennett, Nathan Fillon, & Benjamin Bratt

Director: James Mottern - Rating: R - Score: 2 Stars

Diane Ford (Michelle Monaghan) lives a solitary life. She loves her job as big rig driver, alcohol, and one night stands with strangers. Her life is exactly how she wants it to be, until he ex gets sick and she's forced to take in her 12 year old son, Peter (Jimmy Bennett), a son she never wanted, and has no idea what to do with. Trucker comes across as an edgy lifetime movie, with the sick ex-husband, the angry woman with the scarred past, and the child who is going to force her to change. Unfortunately, I don't like Lifetime movies, because they are so predictable and one-sided. That is exactly what Trucker is aside from the indiscriminate sex and cursing. I found almost nothing interesting about this film, except for the chemistry between mother and son. Peter is the best part of the film, because he's this weird looking kid in heavy metal shirts, calling his mother out on all of her bull. The things he says to her are pretty shocking and quite funny, and that's the only thing I can really say I enjoyed about this movie. It's clear that the writers were going for this dark, mid-western dramatic thing, that I like to call modern dark noir, (as seen in films like Winter's Bone), but they fall well short. Trucker just doesn't have enough substance to compete with films like that and is predictable to a fault. If I were describe this film in one word, it would be boring, and that is never a good thing.

Southland

Starring: Michael Cudlitz, Shawn Hatosy, Regina King, Ben McKenzie, Kevin Alejandro, Arija Bareikis, Michael McGrady, Tom Everett Scott, & C. Thomas Howell

Seasons: 5 (2009-2013) - Network: NBC/TNT - Rating: 4 Stars

In 2009, the mind's behind ER, gave the network something they weren't prepared for. A police drama, that was so realistic and ahead of it's time, that the network didn't even know how to promote it. NBC would wind up cancelling it after just 8 episodes, but thankfully someone at TNT saw it's potential and gave us four more incredible seasons.

Southland is an in depth look at the LAPD, in a way that has never been done before or since. Each episode follows patrol units on the beat, gang detectives on the job, and homicide detectives on the case. More than that, it shows you the kind of situations they come in contact with on a daily basis, as well as the struggles they go through in their personal lives, as a result of what happens on the jobs. The show tackles issues of injury, addiction, family trouble, and even PTSD. Additionally the show was done in such a way that all the language and violence was kept in, only bleeped and blurred for television, something that has since been removed on DVD and streaming, adding to the grittiness and rawness of the series.

Every episode focuses on a different set of cops, but in every episode you will see rookie office, Ben Sherman (Ben McKenzie) and his training officer, John Cooper (Michael Cudlitz). The chemistry between these two is phenomenal and illustrates just how hard it is to become a cop. You witness all the mistakes, close calls, and shocking moments, up close and uncut, in a way that I've never seen done in a television series before. The detective scenes are equally as intriguing with the gang segments being very reminiscent of HBO's The Wire. Additionally, the homicide cases are well written, and the investigations are so detailed, not rushed the way you sometimes see in shows like Law & Order.

The cast is amazing, the writing is top notch, and the show is more real than anything I've ever seen on television, so why did it only last 43 episodes and get cancelled twice? As I said earlier, when it aired, the language was bleeped and the images were blurred, that's not conducive to keeping an audience happy, especially in today's market. Had this show come out 10 years later, they wouldn't have had to do that and things could have been different. Another flaw I find in the series, is the lack of story lines. Anything that happens in the show, rarely goes beyond two or three episodes. This is a bad thing, because there is nothing to keep you watching. With everything resolved so quickly, if a mildly interested viewer wants to stop watching, they can, because they already found out what happened.

The bottom line, if you enjoy police drama, than this is the show for you. It has a little bit of everything, it is by far the most realistic scripted portrayal of the police, that has ever been done on television, and it is loaded with stars. Every episode will have you on the edge of your seat, and if you're anything like me, you won't be able to stop after just one.

Flipped (2010)

Starring: Callan McAuliffe, Madeline Carroll, & Rebecca De Mornay

Director: Rob Reiner - Rating: PG - Score: 1 1/2 Stars

Critics have called Flipped, "A true gem", & "an instant classic", so I have to ask, what were they smoking when they watched this movie? The story follows Bryce Loski (Callan McAuliffe) who has just moved to a new neighborhood with his family. Before he's even gone into the house his new neighbor, Juli Baker (Madeline Carroll) has come over to say hi, and for her it's love at first sight. Bryce, being all of eight years old, finds Juli annoying, but that doesn't stop her from stalking him all the way to high school. Will Bryce always find her annoying or will he eventually feel the same way about her? Well, I think the title of the film is a huge spoiler in and of itself, but that's besides the point. The entire film follows their interactions together, first told from his point of view, and then again from her point of view, making the whole thing very repetitive. The film offers nothing else besides the interactions of these two kids, no side stories, no friends, and even limited family interactions, it's literally just one meeting between Bryce and Juli after another. This is a film by Rob Reiner, the Director of Stand By Me, The Princess Bride, Spinal Tap, and countless other great films! I realize that not everything is going to be a home run, but couldn't he see how boring this movie was? Flipped is slow, repetitive, and even the damn title is a spoiler. This is most definitely one you can skip.

Fern Hill

Starring: Daniel James, David James, Myles Bruce, & Mackenzie Harden

Director: Cole Claassen - Rating: NR - Score: 3 1/2 Stars

Fern Hill is one of those super independent, diamond in the rough films, that you'd be lucky to ever hear about. That's why I always recommend using features like IMDb Watchlist or rating what you watch on streaming sites! By doing so, you will receive suggestions for films you may never otherwise have known about, and that's how I found Fern Hill. The film follows Colin (David James), who's father's plane went down eight years ago. One night Colin has a dream that the answers to what happen to his father lie in a distant part of the Colorado wilderness known as Fern Hill. Along with his three best friends, Colin embarks on a mission, to go out into the wild, and find out what really happened to his father. Fern Hill is a very toned down version of Stand By Me, instead of bodies and guns you get haunted houses and strange loners living in the wilderness. It is most definitely a child friendly film, but at it's core, it's still a terrific coming of age story. All the kids have their own issues that bind them together and their own reasons for wanted to escape on this journey, leading to some terrific chemistry and character development. Perhaps the most impressive thing about this film however, is that all four boys are local children and were not in fact actors. Many of them haven't even done anything since this film, making for a very unique cast that feels more real than almost any other coming of age film you will ever see. I also enjoyed the way it was shot, as a low budget independent film, there is nothing flashy, fancy, or overly edited. Fern Hill is just an extremely real, enjoyable, feel good film, with scenes that will take you back to your own childhood.

Being Charlie

Starring: Nick Robinson, Morgan Saylor, Devon Bostick, & Common

Director: Rob Reiner - Rating: R - Score: 2 1/2 Stars

When legendary Director, Rob Reiner, decided to direct this independent film, it was supposed to be a unique, inside look at what young people face on the road to recovery. Charlie Mills (Nick Robinson) is a young drug addict, who is going into rehab for the first time. Like most young people, he thinks it's a joke, until he meets the other people are hears their stories. Ultimately Charlie decides to be strong for his new friends and love interest, but being Charlie isn't so easy when temptation is everywhere. You can see from the beginning of the film that this is supposed to be some kind of a wake up call to addicts, but as someone whose had very close people in his life who suffer from the disease, I can tell you that much of this film was inaccurate. Rehab is portrayed as this wonderful place, that looks like a hotel, and has people with hearts of gold. They all have their own sad stories, but they are all good people now, just looking to get better. This is far from the way it is. As the story progressed, it basically went from a story of addiction into a love story, with addiction being an after thought, until the very end. Nick Robinson stars and he's the reason I made it through the whole film. This kid is absolutely terrific, especially in these types of roles. Kings of Summer was his breakout performance and a tremendous film. Being Charlie was an equally great performance, however it was a film that's lacking direction and almost misses the point. I liked what they were going for in the film and the cast was top notch, but the problem was that it wasn't realistic enough and couldn't decide weather or not it wanted to be a film about recovery, a love story, or simply a deep look into Charlie's life. The bottom line, it was a great performance wasted in a slow moving, unrealistic story.

Sleeping Giant (2015)

Starring: Jackson Martin, Nick Serino, & Reece Moffett

Director: Andrew Cividino - Rating: NR - Score: 2 1/2 Stars

Coming-of-age films are amongst my favorite types of films, but they are often tricky to make. A good film, should give you feelings of nostalgia and form a bond between yourself and at least one of the characters, while a bad one can seem to be nothing more than an episode of Jackass. This film has a bit of both. Sleeping Giants is the story of three teenage boys, spending the summer with their families on Lake Superior and as you might expect, circumstances bring them together. There are some funny moments, trouble to be had, and of course a girl who gets in the middle of everything. What this film has going for it, is that the cast was actually teens, ones whom have very limited acting experience. That being said, it seems as though, the writers also have somewhat limited experience, as this film is your very standard, text book, run of the mill story. What you'd expect to happen in this situation is exactly what happens, and while I like the fact that the story features real teens and new faces, the truth is that nobody really stands up or shows anything more than just kids hanging out. That could honestly be the title of this film, kids hanging out. Sleeping Giants isn't bad in any way, but it's nothing special either, an all-around forgettable experience.

On The Inside (2011)

Starring: Nick Stahl, Olivia Wilde, Dash Mihok, & Pruitt Taylor Vince

Director: D.W. Brown - Rating: R - Score: 2 Stars

Allen Meneric (Nick Stahl) is sent to a hospital for the criminally insane, to be evaluated after he brutally murders his girlfriend’s alleged rapist. As he is introduced to his new surroundings, Allen quickly realizes this isn't a place where he belongs. This particular asylum is filled with evil psychologist, careless guards, and a whole variety of characters who are not as they seem. This was a strange film for me to rate and review, because of how up and down it was. The film, is itself very much like the characters portrayed in it. There are some parts that are absolutely phenomenal, while others very clearly should have been left on the cutting room floor. Going from one extreme to the other left the film, unbalanced, and certainly difficult to watch. Nick Stahl stars and to be honest, he's an actor I've never really cared much about. I've always found a lot of what he does and what he offers to be very bland. However, On The Inside he gives a great performance, and for what this film was, the whole cast was terrific. I imagine it would be challenging for anyone to play the kind of crazy these people were supposed to be. If I have one thing to say about this film, it's this. Had they taken the time to get feedback from the outside before the released it, they may have seen the flaws in it and corrected them. On The Inside had tremendous potential to really be something, but as it stands, it's just a metaphor for bipolarity.

Gotti (2018)

Starring: John Travolta, Kelly Preston, & Spencer LoFranco

Director: Kevin Connolly - Rating: R - Score: 1 1/2 Stars

Gotti, a highly anticipated new mafia movie centered around the Dapper Don, has been nominated for Worst Movie of the Year and unfortunately, I have to agree. For starters, this film was all over the place! Was this film about John Gotti or his son? ...and who really cares about his actual family, there was a shitty reality show about that, what we really care about is his other family, and not the business side either. For a mafia film about one of it's biggest names in history, there is a distinct lack of violence or for that matter anything substantive. Everyone wanted to see the story of the man, not the story behind the man, and especially in a format of flash-forwards and flashbacks. As for John Travolta, I really don't know what he was thinking with this film. The only thing he has in common with John Gotti is the same first name, and watching him try to play John Gotti was as bad as watching Ben Affleck try to play Batman. The bottom line here is that this film was boring, just a lot of talk in a really bad accent. If you're looking for a good film on the Dapper Don, I suggest you go with another film named Gotti, produced in the mid-90s, starring Armand Assante. That film was great and told the story we wanted to hear. This film is nothing more than an bad autobiography brought to the screen by a man, who thinks he can play any role he wants.

Bohemian Rhapsody

Starring: Rami Malek, Gwilym Lee, Lucy Boynton, & Ben Hardy

Director: Bryan Singer - Rating: PG-13 - Score: 4 Stars

I never really liked the rock band Queen, and as far as it's front-man, all I really knew was that he was the first superstar to die from AIDS. Knowing this, I feared that this film would be just another Philadelphia, and I was hesitant to see it. That is until the reviews of Rami Malek's career defining performance were released. To my surprise and delight this film wasn't just about Freddy Mercury's lifestyle nor was it about the way he tragically died. Bohemian Rhapsody is a film that not only parallels the life of Mercury, but it also shows everything that goes into making a successful band. From their humble beginnings to the process of how music is made, what it's inspirations are, what goes into making an album, and finally to the internal conflicts involved with the different personalities in a band. Bohemian Rhapsody illustrates better than any film I have ever seen, what it truly means to be part of a successful band. As for it's star, Mr. Robot's Rami Malek proves in one foul swoop that he is so much more than simply a TV drama star. His performance was far and away the best I've seen all year, and even though we're a long way away from Academy Award nominations, if Malek's name isn't at the top of that list, it will be an unmitigated outrage. Not only does Malek nail the performance, but he is Freddy Mercury right down to his mannerisms. To be honest, if Freddy Mercury were still alive and starred in this film, I don't think even he'd be as convincing as Malek was. The film is truly a performance that will be talked about for decades, but what about the film itself? Being that music is a huge part of my life, I found everything to be very interesting and informative, but others could see it as slow moving and somewhat boring. Some of the choices Bryan Singer made could be questioned, such as showing the entire Live Aid performance, all twenty minutes of it. Yes, it is an important part of the Queen story, but to show the whole thing in a feature film? Overall, I thought this film was terrific and even if you aren't into the music and aren't a fan of Queen, you need to see this film for nothing else than the performance of it's star. Performances like this one are what gives films the title of classic and are talked about and studied forever.

The Preppie Connection

Starring: Thomas Mann, Lucy Fry, Logan Huffman, & Sam Page

Director: Joseph Castelo - Rating: R - Score: 4 1/2 Stars

The Preppie Connection is a film based on the 1984 drug scandal at Choate Rosemary Hall, an elite private High School in Connecticut. Toby Hammel (Thomas Mann) is a good student who is awarded a scholarship to this elite private high school, but when he gets there, he discovers, as the poor kid, he doesn't quite fit in. In order to make friends, fit in with the popular kids, and get close to the girl his heart desires, Toby tells them that he can get them whatever drugs they desire. The truth is he has no idea how to do that, but someone as smart as he is was bound to figure it out. As with many of these films, some artistic license was taken, and not everything in the film is exactly what happened, however I find films like that make for the best dramas. Think about it for a second, some things in life happen that are just so strange and twisted that even the best writers couldn't make them up. These films play as more realistic, audiences tend to connect closer with the characters, and they even become invested in the story. I myself went searching Wikipedia afterwards to see what happened to everybody all these years later. The star of the film is Thomas Mann and other than his eerie resemblance to Sid in Lords of Dogtown, I knew nothing about him, but his performance was astonishing. Coming from a bunch of teen party movies to doing something like this was a huge step in the right direction and hopefully a big break for a talented young actor. V star Logan Huffman and newcomer Lucy Fry round out a stellar albeit unknown cast. IFC films are my favorite Independent films, stories based on real life events are my favorite kinds of drama, add to the mix a talented and relatively unknown young cast and you have the recipe for a film that does not disappoint. The Preppie Connection may not have the action or big name star that appeals to many fans, but by in large it is an unforgettable story of just what one person is capable of when properly motivated.

American Bully

Starring: Matthew O'Leary, Marshall Allman, & Jonathan Halyalkar

Director: Dave Rodriguez - Rating: R - Score: 1 Star

American Bully is one of those film that has a message to tell. What that message was is still a complete mystery to me. This entire film is based on a single act, which wouldn't be such a bad thing had they showed what led up to the act or what the results of the act were. The film is short to begin with, at just seventy-five minutes, but for the material presented, that was still too long. The entirety of this movie features a bunch of high school kids hanging out, getting drunk, and expressing racist views. After an hour of absolutely nothing going on, an opportunity presents itself, something finally happens, and the film is over. I thought with the subject material that this was a film that could have gone in a million different directions, but literally almost nothing happens! Matthew O'Leary stars, and while I consider him to be an underrated performer, it's roles like this one that are going to keep on the b-movie list. When actors are capable of so much more, why take a role like this? Clearly American Bully was a low budget, independent film, and without a payday or a strong leading role, there simply isn't a reason to take on a role of this nature. As I said the film has a message to tell and it seems pretty cut and dry until the end. The big left turn may have made the ending a bit more interesting, but calls into question the entire message the film had originally intended to portray. Overall I found the whole thing to be just a strange experience severely lacking in almost every category.

Good Kill

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Zoe Kravitz, Bruce Greenwood, & Jake Abel

Director: Andrew Niccol - Rating: R - Score: 3 Stars

Major Tom Egan (Ethan Hawke) is a decorated Air-force pilot, who after five deployments, has been assigned to a base in Las Vegas, where he conducts drones strikes over Afghanistan. He hates his job and feels like a coward, but things get a whole lot worse, when the CIA commissions his team to start doing questionable jobs. Egan starts to come apart and take it out on his co-workers and family, leading to an uncertain future. IFC films are right at the top of my list right now as the absolute best in independent film. Seldom have they disappointed me, and I wouldn't describe my feelings about Good Kill as disappointed, but rather indifferent. This film, based on a true story, was exceptionally written and features a fantastic director and an amazing cast, but it also moves at a snails pace and is extremely repetitive. It's just drone strike, reaction, intervention, repeat, over and over again, followed by an ending that wasn't all that surprising. Ethan Hawke gives a powerful performance, despite the fact that he lacks the kind of emotion this role sorely needed. I understand that having Egan be this stone cold guy on the outside is a major theme, but it also makes for a lot of seemingly endless conversations and interactions. Good Kill has a lot of elements I look for in a movie, it's well written, has a cast I really enjoy, a director I know very well, still, it's lacking in emotion and levity. The film is monotonous and much longer than it had to be, all in all, not bad, but not great.

Take Me To The River (2015)

Starring: Logan Miller, Robin Weigert, & Ursula Parker

Director: Matt Sobel - Rating: NR - Score: 1 1/2 Stars

The more things change, the more things stay the same. That is supposed to be the message of this unique Sundance Film Festival winner, however any message the film intended to share was lost by it's sheer disturbing nature. Ryder (Logan Miller) is a Gay California teenager who is going with his parents to a family reunion in Kansas. Knowing that her rural family will never understand, Ryder's mother has kept that little detail from the rest of the family, much to Ryder's chagrin. Ryder rebels in his own way by wearing an outrageous outfit and keeping to himself at the family outing, only spending time with his young cousin, Molly (Ursula Parker) who wants to play in the barn. When Molly comes running back from the barn with an unusual bloodstain, Ryder earns the ire of the rest of his family and wants to tell them he's gay, but apparently being thought of as something else is even better than that. If this film displays one thing, it's that homophobia is alive and well, and that should have been more the focus of this film. While I think everyone pretty much suspected Ryder was gay, the whole situation with Molly made them think he was something else too and the focus was on that. The families reaction to it was what was even more disturbing as it ranged from what you'd expect to sheer ridiculousness. I honestly can't believe some of the things that happened in this film, as they were both disturbing and seemingly without much of a purpose. Logan Miller stars and now that I've seen him in a few other things, I can honestly say that he's the kind of actor who has to fit the role. He has this kind of whiny, emo boy personality that just doesn't fit with everything. In a film like this, if anything I'd expect him to be more outraged, emotional to the point of being over the top but he really wasn't, it was as if he didn't grasp what he was being accused of. Take Me To The River focused on a single event and just didn't let go, everything else became irrelevant. The film was disturbing, the acting was sub-par, and a lot of what happened just didn't seem to make a whole lot of sense.

The Glades

Starring: Matt Passmore, Kiele Sanchez, Carlos Gomez, Jordan Wall, Michelle Hurd, & Uriah Shelton

Seasons: 4 (2010-2013) - Network: A&E - Score: 3 1/2 Stars

The story of The Glades is one of consistency, as the show was consistent to a fault. From the series premiere to it's finale, across four seasons, nothing ever changed. When the show went into re-runs, the only way you knew what season you were watching, was by seeing how big Uriah Shelton was, it had become that ridiculous. What could they have done with an episonic police drama that hadn't been done before, not much, but something would have better than nothing, as like most, near the end, I just completely lost interest.

Jim Longworth (Matt Passmore) is a homicide detective from Chicago, who doesn't like to play by the rules. He has his own way of doing things and it earned him a ticket out of town. He relocated to the Florida Everglades, expecting quiet days at work and weekends of golf in the sun, but murder happens everywhere. Each week Longworth finds unique homicides and ends up doing battle with everyone from deranged soccer moms to international drug smugglers, as he tries to keep the people of Florida safe.

One of the main focuses of the show is Jim's feelings for a nurse/medical student Callie (Kiele Sanchez), who often gets involved in his cases. Jim has become a mentor to her young son, Jeff (Uriah Shelton) and would love to be with Callie, but she can never seem to finalize her divorce or balance her life. It is a recurring theme throughout the series that never seems to get resolved and becomes unbelievably frustrating after 50 episodes of the same thing.

The show always starts with a crime, Jim investigates, jokes with the medical examiner and geeky forensic guy, and then works the case at the same time doing his back and fourth with Callie and Jeff, and that's it! There were never any recurring storylines, never any changes, nothing to keep people interested from season to season! How about a cliffhanger or a ballbuster of a new boss? Maybe someone should have gotten shot and their future left up in the air? Ever heard of a serial killer? There was never anything but the current case. The comedy was always there and at first the back and fourth with Jim and Callie was great, but when you're doing the same thing four years later, who cares already?

The bottom line, this was a show that had potential, I liked the characters, the setting was fairly unique, and there were a couple of really talented new faces associated with this show. However, The Glades was happy with the status quo and didn't take any risks of any kind. It quickly grew stale, the ratings dropped, and now it's just another failed forgotten cop show streaming on Netflix.

The Phenom

Starring: Johnny Simmons, Paul Giamatti, & Ethan Hawke

Director: Noah Buschel - Rating: NR - Score: 1 1/2 Stars

Hopper Gibson (Johnny Simmons) is in a position that every little boy dreams about. He is a star rookie pitcher in Major League Baseball. His numbers and talent are off the chart, when all of a sudden, he can't find the strike zone. There is nothing wrong with him physically, so the team sends him down to the minors and puts him to work with the top sports psychologist in the country. I really don't understand professional critics and what they look for when they rate a film. Take The Phenom for example, this film has got to be the slowest and most boring sports film I've ever seen, yet it has an 80 on Rotten Tomatoes. There was very little sports action in this film and the fast majority of it consisted of this guy sitting in a room talking to a shrink! Yes, the shrink was played by Paul Giamatti, who is an unbelievably talented actor, but why the hell would anyone want to watch some dudes therapy session? When he wasn't in therapy, he should be on the field, but no, he's dealing with his over barring father, who is fresh out of prison. Who plays this bad ass, bullying his pro-athlete son, who is in peak physical condition? A very old looking, very tattooed, Ethan Hawke and I really wasn't buying that for a second. There were some talented actors in this film, no doubt, but The Phenom was 88 minutes of talking and nothing more, what in the hell is so great about that? This film was as boring as movies get, so unless you're a die hard Paul Giamatti fan, I would absolutely let this one pass you by.

King Jack

Starring: Charlie Plummer, Cory Nichols, & Christian Madsen

Director: Felix Thompson - Rating: NR - Score: 2 Stars

Following the unexpected success of Winter's Bone in 2010, these dark, modern, noirish type films have been all the rage in Hollywood. In fact, these types of films have come to define the 2010 generation of film. Mostly set in rural areas, focusing on the lives of less fortunate people, these films tend to focus on some life defining moment. King Jack certaintly fits this model, and much like Winter's Bone, it is also a coming of age story. Jack (Charlie Plummer) is an angry fifteen year old, who has been bullied his whole life and acts out by getting in trouble. After a family issue, his younger cousin Ben (Cory Nichols) is forced to stay with Jack and his family. At first Jack is upset to be saddled with his naive younger relative, until he comes to realize they're in the same boat, and in Ben he may have found a potential ally. I understand that the premise of the movie is that Jack is a bullied kid, befriends another bullied kid, and all of a sudden their lives don't suck as much anymore, except that they do. Just because they found each other doesn't mean the bullies have gone or that their family situations will necessarily be any better, so what was the point? Watching this film, was simply watching a couple of teenagers hang out in a bad neighborhood, waiting for something substantial to happen. A few events happen here and there, but nothing life altering, and certainly nothing to base a film off of. To be honest, the whole thing was kind of boring. In general, I love this new style of film making, but when it came to King Jack, there were a couple of crude jokes, some anti-climatic scenes, and just a whole lot of nothing going on.

St. Vincent

Starring: Bill Murray, Jaeden Lieberher, & Melissa McCarthy

Director: Theodore Melfi - Rating: PG-13 - Score: 4 stars

Chemistry can make all the difference in a film, even when the story has been done before. St. Vincent wasn't a great film because the story was out of this world. In fact, it wasn't even all that original, but rather the fantastic chemistry between veteran Bill Murray, and newcomer Jaeden Lieberher made all the difference. After a bitter divorce, Maggie & Oliver have been forced to move to a new neighborhood, where they find their new neighbor is a bitter old drunk named Vincent (Murray). Vincent wants nothing to do with anyone, until happenstance throws him together with Oliver, who he reluctantly agrees to watch in exchange for a paycheck, but what does he know about taking care of a kid? Even though this movie could have been more raunchy, Bill Murray is always funny and paired together with this scrawny, innocent, overprotected kid, made for some of the best interplay I've seen in a very long time. Murray was at the top of his game, but he almost had the show stolen right out from under him by young Jaeden Lieberher. Four years later, we know this kid is a star, and after seeing this performance, it's easy to see how he landing huge roles in the movies It and The Book of Henry. Finally the cast is rounded out by Melissa McCarthy who I honestly can not stand anymore, but believe it or not, she was very reserved and laid back. I didn't know she was actually capable of doing that. St. Vincent won't win any awards for originality, some parts could be a bit slow, although there were a few surprises. As for me, I love the chemistry, I always enjoy seeing how young actors and actresses got their start, and the film stars Bill freaking Murray, need I say more?

Spotlight

Starring: Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, & Rachel McAdams

Director: Thomas McCarthy - Rating: R - Score: 5 Stars

The truth is always stranger than fiction and that's why it makes for the best movies. Spotlight is the 2016 Academy Award Winner for Best Picture and it was well deserved. This star studded cast comes together to tell the true story of how the Boston Globe was finally able to breakthrough the decades long wall of silence, and expose the Catholic Church's child molestation scandal. Michael Keaton headlines this all-star cast and shows that while he's been out of the spotlight (pun intended) for some time now, he hasn't lost a beat. As the enigmatic leader of the newspaper's Spotlight section, Walter Robinson (Keaton) will not give up the fight for the truth, no matter the personal cost. Even when his own bosses tell him the story is dead and to give up, he refuses to let it go and he shows that one man with a mission really can change the world. This film doesn't simply shine a light on the Catholic Church in a way it would rather nobody ever had, but it also gives views an in depth, inside look at all the intricacies that go into investigative journalism. With all the reports of fake news and all of us who simply get our news from staring at a screen, it's hard to think about all the effort that goes into getting that information from real life to print and I personally found the process fascinating. This film has a lot going for it, from an inside look at a long forgotten industry to the mysteries behind a long hidden secret. It features some terrific writing and more than one outstanding performance. You don't get six Oscar nominations by accident. This is a great film and a great addition to our list of can't miss movies!

Little Accidents (2014)

Starring: Elizabeth Banks, Josh Lucas, Boyd Holbrook, & Jacob Lofland

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

In a small mining town, an accident has killed several workers, leaving a lone survivor, Amos Jenkins (Boyd Holbrook). The townspeople are furious and blame the mines owner, the towns wealthiest resident, a cold, heartless man, who many suspect caused the accident with his shortcuts and cheap business practices. The town is out for blood, but only one of them, literally, as soon after the accident, the mine owners teenage son turns up dead. Little Accidents is yet another example of these dark modern noir type films, that have become so popular the past decade, and normally I am a huge fan of them. This film however, may have had the modern noir feeling, but actually had the old noir story line AKA slow, strange, and confusing. I chose this film because one of it's stars is Jacob Lofland, who at just 21 years old, has only been acting for 5 years, but he is a natural in every sense of the word. Every performance he has given has been better than the one before it. His talent has lead him to leading roles in the Maze Runner series, as well as the AMC show, The Son. Being as fond of his style as I am, I decide to go back and watch his filmography from the beginning, and that's where I found Little Accidents. While Lofland's part was minor, you are still able to see some of the skills that brought him to where he is today. Paired with Elizabeth Banks and Josh Lucas, this was one fantastic cast, featured in a terrific setting, and I was sure this film was a can't miss, but the story had other ideas. Little Accidents was all over the place, some of things that happened have nothing to do with the story, and make little sense. The Bottom Line, don't let a terrific cast fool you, this film is slow and all over the place. The mystery, isn't much of one and the story will leave you scratching your head.

Cult (TV Show)

Starring: Matthew Davis, Jessica Lucas, Alona Tal, Robert Knepper, Marie Avgeropoulos, Jeffrey Piece, Kadeem Hardison, James Pizzinato, Christian Michael Cooper, & Shauna Johannesne

Rating: 4 out 5 stars

In the age of streaming, DVRs, and On Demand, networks still aren't getting it! Even the best and most innovative TV show to come along in years isn't going to survive, if you debut it with minimal advertising in the middle of the summer! This is the reason why Cult didn't last and why it isn't currently the top rated show on the CW network. 

The wildly creative idea was the brainchild of Farscape's Rockne S. O'Bannon and took nearly a decade to come to television. Cult is a TV show within a TV show, that features a cult, within a cult, I will attempt to explain. The show Cult is centered around a fictitious show called Cult. That fictitious show is centered around an FBI agent (Alona Tal) who lived her whole life in a cult, only to escape and join the FBI, with the hopes of locking up her old family for the abuses she endured. In retaliation, the cult has abducted her sister, brother-in-law, and nephew, who she is attempted to rescue. Back to the "real" Cult, the fans of this fictitious show, claim to see hidden messages in the show, that lead them to commit crimes on behalf of the shows mysterious creator, a man no one has ever met. One such crime is to kidnap Nate Sefton (James Pizzinato), the younger brother of a reporter, Jeff (Matthew Davis). Jeff makes it his mission to investigate these followers of cult, to find his brother, and to figure out what their up to, but he needs help. Jeff recruits Skye Yarrow (Jessica Lucas), a researcher on the show, whose father, was also a reporter, who disappeared fifteen years ago, while attempting to investigate the same man who created this TV show. Every episode is a wild ride into an underworld that has existed for decades, that no one knew anything about, and as always is the case with shows like this, each episode is better than the one before it, as it builds up to an epic conclusion.

This is the kind of show that had so many original ideas and so much material it could have gone on for years. Cult would have appealed to main stream audiences across every demographic and (pun intended) would have garnered a huge cult following, if it wasn't for the CW. I remember when this show premiered, the CW literally started to advertise for it a week before it aired, and then rarely after that. Cult was on Tuesday nights in the middle of the summer, when lets face it, most people are out enjoying the nice weather. Since the show had no previous exposure, there was no reason for anyone to watch on demand or even DVR it, so it was cancelled. It just doesn't make sense to me, why even spend the money and make the show if you're not going to give it a real chance? If this show debuted on the fall line-up after Supernatural, the ratings would have been enormous, the show would still be on! 

You have a terrific young cast playing duel roles, an experienced creator, with a team that's already had success with Seaquest, Farscape, and Alien Nation, there was no reason to bury this show, but a las, Cult met it's fate after just thirteen episodes, which are currently streaming on Netflix. For all my followers who claim they have nothing to watch, here is 13 hours of some of the most imaginative and creative writing you will ever see on TV, add Cult to your queue and start watching tonight!!!