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4/5
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Candy Cane Lane
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Okay, maybe I dipped into the holiday grogg, but I found this breezy, light and fun ... low key Eddie Murphy notwithstanding (actually funny). It's a screwy comedy with a holiday heart and doesn't take itself too seriously. Wise guy whimsy. Oh delicious.
Posted Dec 01, 2023
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5/5
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Maxine's Baby: The Tyler Perry Story
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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In this era of fear and a desire to separate us, this film is an example of how a life force like Tyler Perry can come along and heal his audience, his family and most importantly, himself. That personal salvation built the rest of it, a real life lesson.
Posted Nov 19, 2023
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4/5
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All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Raven Jackson is creatively contemplative, and is able to create those meditations as visual truth. Although a slow walk, the characters wash over their lives with authentic emotions, including interconnections with the nature around them. W/interview.
Posted Nov 10, 2023
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4/5
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Reporting for Christmas
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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The film is smart, funny and breezy, and connects the big city gal with the small town hunk in organic and story-progressing ways. As a contemporary Yuletide romance story, this film fills the seasonal stocking. W/interview of director Jack C. Newell.
Posted Nov 09, 2023
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4.5/5
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Ghosts of the Void
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Both symbolic & bump-in-the-night edgy, taking on mental health, financial distress & what "stable" means in America. Director/writer Miller is one to watch, within a horror evolution that is about waking up to another ugly American day. w/interview.
Posted Nov 03, 2023
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4.5/5
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Waiting for the Light to Change
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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Life transitions are filtered through the Asian American experience, with its own surface challenges and outside-looking-in circumstances. The is an human film about becoming a adult, as fluid & pliable now as any point in social history. With interview.
Posted Oct 19, 2023
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4/5
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The Road Dog
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Doug Stanhope is a stand out in this on-the-road story, as he projects all the weariness of his “hanging around too long” stand-up comic, and newcomer Des Mulrooney stands toe to toe as son David against his reluctant curmudgeon father. W/photo slideshow.
Posted Oct 05, 2023
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4/5
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Miranda's Victim
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Fascinating hidden history within the origin of the "Miranda Warning." Stellar performances from Abigail Breslin, as well as Ryan Phillippe & Luke Wilson (as legal opponents). Director Michelle Danner has a sure storytelling touch. W/a Danner interview.
Posted Oct 04, 2023
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4/5
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The Creator
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Despite a weak & seen-it-before story, the film is valuable in it's epic palette & use of science fiction as viewed through the lens of a supernatural & quasi-religious state that generates evolution. The name Joshua means "God is Deliverance." Nuff said.
Posted Sep 29, 2023
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4/5
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Unfriending
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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This black comedy is a sharp satire on cancel culture and the 20something "me generation" in particular. Highly comic, highly weird and a pointed meditation on the meaning of survival amidst a digital world that is increasingly judgmental. W/interview.
Posted Sep 08, 2023
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5/5
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Fremont
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Lyrical, symbolic & an empathy generator, this reflective story is what either everyone has gone through or what our ancestors went through when they took the risk to run away from or towards something in another strange land. A triumph for Babak Jalili.
Posted Sep 08, 2023
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4/5
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Ernest & Celestine: A Trip to Gibberitia
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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The word DELIGHTFUL was invented for animation like this ... unpretentious, kind and fun. The impressionistic render is a massive highlight, along with a fun sense of humor and of course symbolism for the adults. Music can set you free, stick with E&C.
Posted Sep 04, 2023
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3/5
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Bottoms
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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I'm not as enamored as some ... I don't connect to the somewhat mean spirit of it. BUT it is outrageous in what it is doing, and the fluidity/female empowerment is an energy into the now. I loved SHIVA BABY and this is a worthy step into the evolution!
Posted Aug 30, 2023
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4/5
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Gran Turismo: Based on a True Story
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Too much racing for non race fans but when it was great, it was sizzling. David Harbour steals the show as the I-can't-believe-we're-doing-this instructor and I loved Archie Madekwe as the main videogame-turned-real racer Jann. If you can dream it, be it!
Posted Aug 26, 2023
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3.5/5
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Perpetrator
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Writer/director Jennifer Reeder emerges anew, and her films are more than on the surface, with a woman’s feminist quest for strength, safety & freedom in this very cruel world ... thru a horror film that involves missing girls. W/a Jennifer Reeder talk.
Posted Aug 23, 2023
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3.5/5
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birth/rebirth
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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What is fascinating is how the women control the procedures, with dual obsessions and an inside track that keeps the increasingly creepy science going, & the breakdown of Ireland's Rose mirrors the process breakdown that is occurring. Laura Moss rules!
Posted Aug 22, 2023
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5/5
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Landscape with Invisible Hand
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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This is a genius film, with many layers and textures, and all the performances … including the production design of the space aliens and the way they communicate … are extraordinary. A must see towards where we’re at and where we are going. ET go home!
Posted Aug 20, 2023
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3.5/5
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Heart of Stone
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Whew ... it's like folks have never seen an action film before. Standard & redundant after the latest Mission Impossible film, but has legs due to Gadot and Dornan's charms. The action events are decent, yet as always … who is funding these rogue spies?
Posted Aug 17, 2023
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4.5/5
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Whatta year for animation! Big screen fabulous, freaking hilarious & it combines it all as a grand adventure with action fight scenes, epic confrontations & a slew of celeb voices. Plus it's perfect Gen X nostalgia, a cartoon hero joy party. Cowabunga!
Posted Aug 02, 2023
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4/5
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Talk to Me
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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This is a true grip-the-sides-of-your-theater-seat horror epic, dealing with death, regret and of course, gore. It’s deeply scary and psychologically scarring, everything that a person loves about a horror film, & attaches to the dark places of the soul.
Posted Jul 26, 2023
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4/5
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Earth Mama
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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The performances, especially Tia Nomore as Gia, are grounded and unsentimental in a way that produces a more compelling narrative. There was a nice emphasis on others willing to reach out and help, which generated hope in a seemingly no-hope scenario.
Posted Jul 22, 2023
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3.5/5
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Joke Man
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Jackie Martling is living history, having gone thru the heights of the 1970s stand up era & the Howard Stern Show b/f satellite. The doc does a decent job breaking it all down, up to and including JM's insights on why he was "laid off" from the HS show.
Posted Jul 19, 2023
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5/5
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Barbie
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Film as Soul Revolution, that is what Greta Gerwig has accomplished. There are many surprises and perfect casting, as well as song, dance and laughs. And it becomes a celebration … yes of BARBIE … and how accepting who we are is magic power. Barbie rules!
Posted Jul 19, 2023
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4.5
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The YouTube Effect
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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Whodathunk that Alex "Bill of Bill & Ted" Winter would sound the clarion call of our current/future YouTube dread. The "effect"is YouTube/Google's ongoing convenient ignoring of false narrative, fascist, election denying channels. W/Alex Winter interview.
Posted Jul 15, 2023
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3.5/5
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The League
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Director Sam Pollard is an impressive filmmaker who knows how to bring together a true story with comprehension & connection. The Negro Leagues were chaotic, but the heroes of it were the stuff of legends. W/flashback Sam Pollard interview & review link.
Posted Jul 15, 2023
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2.5/5
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Joy Ride
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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No joy here. Awkwardly structured, so that five explanations have to be given to get to one payoff, which usually doesn’t pay off. The BTS thing was fun, better than anything before or after. Ya know, funny is funny, & this film ain't it for me. #NotGenZ
Posted Jul 03, 2023
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4/5
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The Boys in the Band
(2020)
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Patrick McDonald
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It's interesting to compare this to the 1968/1970 stage play & film, because both casts reprise their roles from the stage ... the modern cast are out gay men as opposed to their closeted forebears, thus the pain & angst performed is more exposed. Pride!
Posted Jun 22, 2023
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4/5
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Stan Lee
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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I had the privilege of meeting Stan, at a modest 1980s comic book gathering. The next time I saw him he had ten men around him at Comic Con. What a journey, and it's all revealed in this great doc, about a mensch with a mustache. Excelsior true believers!
Posted Jun 21, 2023
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4.5/5
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It Ain't Over
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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Kind of a magical story, & how a guy with a love for a game made it on the right team at the right time, & contributed to the point of superstardom, but in a baseball era where that term didn't exist. To quote, “You can observe a lot just by watching.”
Posted Jun 21, 2023
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4/5
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The Blackening
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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An imaginative concept ... a horror hilarity film in the "cabin in the woods" with a black history element on Juneteenth weekend. The comedy sharpens everything, plus the can-they-survive story that is part of the laughs and thrills. Happy Juneteenth!
Posted Jun 19, 2023
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4/5
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Maggie Moore(s)
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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A throwback ... it's an the adult story/mystery/thriller/romance with a dash of Coen Brother's style darkness. Jon Hamm and Tina Fey play against their usual types and turn in complete characters. Dir. Slattery shows a sure storytelling hand. MAD FRIENDS!
Posted Jun 19, 2023
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4.5/5
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Lynch/Oz
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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Besides the title comparatives, the six film essayists provide a wider variety of U.S. and international directors who reference that place over the rainbow in their films ... get out your notebooks, we're going home in our fever dreams. Film geeks unite!
Posted Jun 15, 2023
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4/5
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All Man: The International Male Story
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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The catalog caught a wave, the deeper expression in men’s fashions in the 1970s & ‘80s that eventually the male fashion world got to, & the doc lays in out in a "male order" delivery. Innovation and timing, the stuff of the American Dream. HAPPY PRIDE!
Posted Jun 08, 2023
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4.5/5
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You Hurt My Feelings
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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It’s rare that marriage is authentically portrayed on screen, and this marriage story keeps it real. Julia Louis-Dreyfus knows exactly what gear to shift when it comes to her character, and combines a writer's angst with a touch of narcissism. Stellar!
Posted May 28, 2023
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3.5/5
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Kandahar
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Dir. Waugh has a way with action sequences, and given that the mission of Butler's character is to infiltrate nuclear secrets and build ups, there is some tension to what’s at stake. At what point does loss equal futility? The defines war in Afghanistan.
Posted May 28, 2023
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5/5
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Being Mary Tyler Moore
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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What I loved about this doc was the traits of what drove MTM & how she was revealed as a risk taker to break away from her somewhat goody-goody TV image. If you love that image of her, you'll love her even "moore" as a real person. Love is all around.
Posted May 27, 2023
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4/5
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L'immensità
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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Like a bolt of lightning, the family dynamics portrayed in this film strikes right on the hot button U.S. legislative issues of right now. & creates a sensitivity that gets close to a breaking point without abandoning the love of mother to her child.
Posted May 20, 2023
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5/5
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The Starling Girl
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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Remarkable, for filmmaker Laurel Parmet is symbolically using the Christian community for the wider world of patriarchy, female body shaming and dismissal of women’s desires. Must see for anyone wondering about the world around them … which is everyone.
Posted May 19, 2023
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4.5/5
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Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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What was particular effective is when director Guggenheim, with his editor Michael Harte, intercut the clip history to create the MJF man in motion. This creative approach gives Fox the story and recognition that he deserves. With director interview.
Posted May 13, 2023
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4.5/5
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Beau Is Afraid
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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With the Ari Aster touch, the carnival of Beau’s journey adds a deeper layer, a cinematically farcical & necessary art to the whole Freudian battle. The casting reminded me of 1990s SPIN CITY – Nathan Lane! Richard Kind! Patti Lupone! Another Ari Wowsa!
Posted Apr 22, 2023
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4/5
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Somewhere in Queens
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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This film is about being unsure ... the main Russo family deftly practices this form of non-communication. And it’s about being scared, as each character has to break through some barrier to understand their truth. Ray Romano aptly writes what he knows.
Posted Apr 22, 2023
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5/5
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The Lost Weekend: A Love Story
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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Fresh John Lennon revelations and a unique perspective of The Beatles, right after the break up, is wrapped up in the love affair of May Pang and Lennon ... a true insider’s story with archival authenticity. A must see for fans of real love ... all of us.
Posted Apr 20, 2023
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4.5/5
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Out of the Loop
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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I loved the Chicago stand up era described in this film, so called me biased, big deal. There is a nice twist in this talking head doc, different than I thought it would be, but very necessary in any look at Chicago history. Star Packed & City Gritty!
Posted Apr 14, 2023
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4/5
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Showing Up
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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This story is simply fascinating, with each character fully developed & with their own mystery. Kelly Reichardt is one of America’s most important directors, with films that have soul and depth and expression, a window into her own essential perspective
Posted Apr 08, 2023
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4/5
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Smoking Causes Coughing
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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This existential farce … would you expect anything else out of France? … skewers the superhero world so effectively that you might gasp between laughs. Could equal the playing field for anyone dealing with a superhero-genre-loving movie going mate. Ennui!
Posted Apr 04, 2023
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3.5/5
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Spinning Gold
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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It's Jeremy Jordan who steals this show, the Broadway hoofer sings, dances and yes, cons his ways into a music adventure as the great Neil Bogart that could only happen in the 1970s! Add the rumored origin of LOVE TO LOVE YOU BABY & the film scores, baby!
Posted Apr 03, 2023
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3.5/5
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Jacir
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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A vital story of tolerance and, a counter to stereotyping. As John F. Kennedy once said …”our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future. And we are all mortal.”
Posted Mar 26, 2023
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4/5
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Inside
(2023)
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Patrick McDonald
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A bold literal art film, & the story is never boring, even though it’s just one guy & an apartment. It’s also highly metaphorical as to how we ascend to the next level through the cruel life we first have to live. A tour de force for the talents of Dafoe.
Posted Mar 24, 2023
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3.5/5
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Moving On
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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Fonda and Tomlin fit together like a hand in glove, their timing and wit deliver the dark comedy. This is an unusual story calling out how the past can haunt a person well to near the end of their lives and it's a testament to two legendary performers.
Posted Mar 23, 2023
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4.5/5
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Linoleum
(2022)
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Patrick McDonald
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Intriguingly philosophical, with a breakout performance by Jim Gaffigan & stellar supporting roles. Writer/director Colin West weaves a thoughtful & necessary meditation on the ways that life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans. Floored!
Posted Feb 26, 2023
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