News and Quick Comments

News and Quick Comments

Jewison was a master of all genres

There are plenty of movie directors who have mastered a genre.
Then there was Norman Jewison, who died Jan. 20 at 97. He mastered them all.
He directed two powerful racial dramas, “In the Heat of the Night” (shown here) and “A Soldier’s Story.” He made two musicals, one Christian (“Jesus Christ Superstar”), the other Jewish (“Fiddler on the Roof”). His comedies ranged from the light fun of two Doris Day films to the satire of “The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming.”
Jewison never won a competitive Academy Award, but one of his films won best-picture and four others were nominated. The winner, and then the nominees, were: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 27, 2024
News and Quick Comments

Jodie Foster: After a half-century, it’s still her time

Jodie Foster was talking about life’s phases, about sometimes stepping back.
The important thing, she said, is “being able to recognize that it’s not my time. It’s someone else’s.”
That’s a fine concept for many 61-year-old actors. But right now actually IS her time. She’s just received an Academy Award nomination (for “Nyad,” shown here), while she’s starring in an acclaimed cable series (“True Detective,” 9 p.m. Sundays on HBO and then on Max).
All of this arrives 32 and 35 years after she won best-actress Oscars for “The Silence of the Lambs” and “The Accused.” This nomination is for best-supporting actress … just like the oe she got (for “Taxi Driver”), 47 years ago. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 25, 2024
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Oscar nominees? Several stream now or soon

For some fans of at-home movies, the Oscar nominations were neatly timed.
“Killers of the Flower Moon” reached Apple TV+ on Jan. 12. Eleven days later, it got 10 Academy Award nominations, including best picture.
Others best-picture nominees arrive soon. “Past Lives” reaches Paramount+ on Feb. 2; “Oppenheimer” (shown here) – the leader, with 13 nominations – is on Peacock two weeks later.
And some have been streaming for a while. It’s “Barbie” on Max, “Maestro” on Netflix, “The Holdovers” on Peacock. Netflix also has films with nominations for actors (“Nyad,” “Rustin”) and original script (“May December”). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 23, 2024
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From Abe to Golda: Film titles promise too much

There’s a movie mini-trend that’s worth grumbling about.
It can be summed up as: Promise a pound (via the title); deliver a couple ounces.
Mind you, we can’t grumble too loudly. This has been used by the world’s greatest director (Steven Spielberg) and has spawned two Academy Award-winning performances; but it’s also been used for small and rather disappointing films.
That comes to mind now as Showtime has the 2023 “Golda” (shown here), at 8:15 p.m. Thursday (Jan. 25). It’s a worthy little film, but a mere fraction of what we might expect. And it’s part of a long trend, for good or bad: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 21, 2024
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Forget the Globes: Emmys prove awards can be fun

So it turns out that an awards show can be fun. We don’t know what the Golden Globes’ excuse is.
The Emmy telecast Monday (Jan. 15),shown here with winner Quinta Brunson and Carol Burnett, was mostly enjoyable, despite the obstacles.
Those were the 27 awards that had to be handed out and 24 acceptance speeches that had to be endured. (We’re eternally grateful to the winners who were absent.) Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 16, 2024
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Netflix gives us a lift (sort of)

There is a place in life for films like “Lift.”
That place, of course, is a movie theater – big screen, comfy seat, tasty popcorn, forces conspiring to create a suspension of disbelief.
But “Lift” (shown here) alas, has just debuted on Netflix. In our living room, it’s kind of fun if we remember not to think about it too much. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 13, 2024
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The best movie? Globes and Choice differ (a little)

The next couple Sundays will be award-show days.
It will be the Golden Globes (8-11 p.m. ET, CBS) on Jan. 7 and Critics Choice (7-10 p.m., CW) on Jan. 14. We’ll end up hearing a lot aboug “Barbie” (shown here); we’ll also get an idea of movies to catch up on.
The shows do have other things to offer: There’s humor from the hosts – Jo Koy for the Globes, Chelsea Handler for the Critics Choice. The Globes also have a full set of TV categories. Still, the important thing may be telling us which movies to look for, pror to the Academy Award nominations (Jan. 23) and ceremony (March 10). Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 5, 2024
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Want new dramas? Here’s a sorta-strong Sunday

For TV, this is the post-strike time when dramas gradually return.
A few arrive soon; NBC has “La Brea” on Jan. 9 and the Chicago shows on Jan. 17. Others will be much later — “Grey’s Anatomy,” March 14;“9-1-1: Lone Star” next fall.
But for viewers in a real hurry, there’s PBS. In one burst Sunday (Jan. 7), it has two season-openers (“Miss Scarlet and the Duke” and “All Creatures Great and Small”) and a series debut (“Funny Woman,” shown here).
As it happens, all three improve as their six-Sunday season advances. “Miss Scarlet” starts quite poorly, then rights itself. “Funny Woman” goes from OK to quite good. “All Creatures” starts at very good … then gets even better. Let’s look: Read more…

By Mike Hughes / January 4, 2024