tgbldkam Reviews

Maya (II) (2023)

It's May or Maya?

[4/10 · 11 February 2024]

The movie is about a girl who meets guy on social media who turns her life into a nightmare.

The Good:

The message of the movie.

Rumer Willis's acting.

I give credit to the director for realistic and sensitive portrait of someone experiencing human trafficking and the aftermath.

One thing that always bothered me is how the media never talks about the dark reality of a person experiencing human trafficking.

The Bad:

The acting: It's bad except for Rumer Willis. She did good with what little screen time she had.

No chemistry between Maya and her friends.

The trailer for the movie. When I first saw the trailer I got the impression it was going to be a silly movie.

A lot of continuity errors. The worst one, at the beginning of the film she with her friends and it is daylight out. She says she has to get home and leaves. When she arrives home it's dark. So how long did it take her to get back home.

I know continuity errors does not make a movie bad. However, these errors were so bad, makes me think the director did not pay attention to the details or just didn't care.

Dumb character: Ray. I wish to nominated him for a razzie as The Dumbest Movie Pimp. After Maya returned home, he came back for her. Okay fine. One would think he would quickly get her out of town. However, he takes her to a house party that was only a few blocks away. Plus her mom was following him. Didn't he notice someone was trailing them. Furthermore, didn't he think her mom would call the cops!

The last ten minutes of the film turned into an action flick.

The ugly:

Stereotypes: The movie gives the impression kids from bad homes and or non Christian homes are at risk to be human trafficked. Nope. That is wrong. Kids from good homes and Christian homes can fall prey to the catfish, scammers and people with ill intent on social media.

Majority of the men in the film are creeps.

When Maya meets Ray's new girl and hears the girls repeat Ray's lies. In Maya's head, she hears voices of other characters who tried to talk sense in her. It is very off putting and silly.

Though this film reminded of other media I have seen, such as Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order and an episode of Facts of Life when one of the main characters came close of being trafficked.

However, there is another side of human trafficking: slave labor. (sadly, slavery never went away) I have seen two movies about it, however these films are old and forgotten. (Only one film I remember the name of is Black Girl, 1966) I wish someone makes a movie about that to raise awareness of people working against their will

Also, social media is harmful to adult too. I wish someone would make a movie about that too.

The Hawaiians (1970)

The movie that tried to be epic but failed.

[4/10 · 29 October 2023]

The Hawaiians based on a book written by James A. Michener (after watching the movie I am curious to read the book), tell story of the Whip Hoxworth (Charlton Heston) planting pineapples and plotting to overthrow the the Hawaiin monarch. Plus, he is married to a Pacific Islander (Geraldine Chaplin) It's also, follows Chinese labors Char Nyuk Tsin (Tina Chen) and Kee Mun Kee. They have a lot of children. Char prospers and Kee dies.

Here is a breakdown:

The Good: The Cinematography

Majority of the Chinese, Japanese , Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders characters were played by Chinese, Japanese, Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders....however (see ugly)

Interesting storyline however...(see bad)

The Bad:

Moments that should not have been funny but it was.

Whiplash time jumps. Movies like Gone with the Wind and the Godfather Part 1 take place over a many years. The movement of time flows smoothly and it makes sense. In this movie it does not.

Especially, regarding the birth of Char's children. Its happens at such a rapid pace but yet it seemed like not much time passed.

Execution of the storyline.

The acting.

Charlton Heston played Charlton Heston.

Tina Chen who was nominated for a Golden Globe, had moments where she shined with the lousy material she was given and then other moments I swore she was trying not to laugh at the ridiculous of it all.

Geraldine Chaplin, a talented actress was given a one dimension character and did nothing with it. Than again her character didn't do much. Her character disappears and is never heard from again.

The simplistic and historical inaccurate take on the annexation of Hawaii and the overthrow of the Queen.

When the buildings were being set on fire to kill the rats, only one rat ran out of the burning buildings. (I think it was the same rat )

Stereotypical language and speech by the Chinese and Japanese immigrants.

Stereotypical characters.

The Ugly:

Naomi Stevens , a white woman from New Jersey played Queen Liliuokalani in brown face.

Plus, Geraldine Chaplin (Irish-English decent) played a Pacific Islander however she was not in brown face. Unless the character was half Pacific Islander? At any rate, I find it interesting one actress was dressed up in brown face and another was not.

I nominate this film to be remade with a better director and a storyline that doesn't skim over the experience of the immigrants in Hawaii. Plus focus on the trails and tribulations of Queen Lilly.

Hidden Exposure (2023)

Left with Only Rain

[7/10 · 26 May 2023]

When I first heard the premise of the film, I thought it was another psycho ex girlfriend movie. I was wrong. It is about toxic relationships. How the toxicity can be harmful to all involved.

However this was not a perfect movie but yet it is one of those movies that draws the viewer in.

The plot: Sabina (Liana Liberato) is in a relationship with Ramsay (Jordan Rodrigues) who is a struggling "business man" and sponging off his girlfriend.

So he meets a wealthy business man whose rebuffs Ramsay's virus protection idea. However he meets the wealthy guys daughter, Alvy(Rumer Willis)

So he see's Alvy on the side and eventually dumps Sabina (after putting her down) and hooks up with Alvy. He get's Alvy pregnant.

In a little plot twist, he briefly cheats on Alvy with Sabina and ends up getting Sabina pregnant.

So.... Sabina goes to the town Alvy lives and owns a business. She befriends Alvy.

My breakdown:

The Good:

The acting. All involved were good.

A character focus movie.

The handling of the storyline. This type of story has been told countless times but I thought the actors and the director did a good job with it.

The Ending: It's an open ending. Alvy found the photos and knows Sabina is dead. The Inn Keeper delivery's Sabina's letter to Alvy's house . What did Sabina wrote? Will Alvy read it? What will Alvy do?

I don't mind open endings. Sometimes, its better to leave it up the viewer to decide what the out come is.

The Bad:

The dialogue: There were moments the dialogue was a little off.

The moment of convenience: the dog running up the fire pit as Alvy discovers the photos of Sabina and Ramsay in his jacket pocket. The dog digs a hole uncovering Sabina's body.

The Jacket: When visiting Alvy and Ramsey's home, Sabina takes his jacket. Ramsay never noticed it missing. When she brings it back near the end, he doesn't make a fuss that she took his jacket.

The Ugly:

The Inn Keeper: I think he was supposed to be comedy relief however he came across as creepy.

The name change. The original title was Left with Only Rain. I think the name was change to draw more viewers (click bait)

The movie is listed as a thriller/horror. It is not. This just a regular melodrama.

This reminds me of an early 1960's French art house film.

Overall: If you are tired of big budget blockbusters and CGI induced madness, this movie is for you.

The Cosmic Hoax: An Expose (2021)

E.T. and ALF left the building

[4/10 · 4 May 2023]

It's an interesting movie that did touch on some interesting points however....

The Good:

The alien kidnappings were done by the CIA. I would not put it pass the CIA. The Organization has done some shady things in the past.

The military has very advance air crafts

The overall media can be manipulative and critical thinking skill are important.

I have noticed in past few years, there has been a lot of stories about UFO,s our air space. What are the powers that be are trying to distract us from?

Pointing out the Military Industrial Complex is very powerful.

That there is a Shadow Government made up of Corporations and Political Actions Committees (I live in Michigan and there is a county called Ottawa where a small PAC called Ottawa Impacted were able to get their puppets elected to the county board. This should be frightening to any one on how so few can control things)

The Bad:

Cherry picking from speech's by Ronald Reagan and Dan Inouye.

No proof contact was made with Aliens.

It is impossible for the government to attempt a fake alien invasion.

Hinting 9/11 was a false flag (it was not)

The Ugly:

I cannot take anything a former Nazi scientist says seriously.

Too much of this documentary remained me of the Kurt Vonnegut novel, "The Sirens of Titan" where people were kidnapped or went on there own to Mars to be trained to attacked Earth.

And there was an old Outer Limits episode where a scientist allows himself to be turned into an alien The plan was to create a mini fake alien invasion. The scientist hoped the fear of an alien invasion would unite the world and bring about peace.

I wonder if the people in this doc read that book or saw the OL episode.

Claim to Fame (2022– )

Good Concept Poor Execution

[2/10 · 19 July 2022]

I could not keep my eyes open while watching this bore fest. It's a good idea but it is poorly execution. Why didn't the producers make it into a thirty minute game show where every day people try to guess who the person is related to and with better hosts. That would have been way more fun.

The first reviewer wrote that appears to be staged which I totally agree. The producers are not even trying to hide the fact.

I will probably just tune in at the end of the show to see what are the true identities of the contestants.

The Twilight Zone: The Masks (1964) Season 5, Episode 25

The Darkest and Disturbing Twilight Zone Episode

[6/10 · 10 June 2022]

I have been a fan of The Twilight Zone since I was kid. I would watch re runs of the series in the 80's on WGN. I saw this episode when I was twelve and the ending scared the living daylights out of me. (This episode and Halloween III caused my phobia of costume masks)

Years later, I caught the episode again during Sci Fi TZ marathon. After watching the episode as an adult I realized how dark and disturbing this episode is.

The main character Jason played by Robert Keith who did his best in trying to bring some sympathy to an otherwise miserable verbally abusive old fart, gathers his family together for Mardi Gras party. He has them wear bizarre mask which reflects there true personality.

His family is the not most stellar of characters. They are miserable, bored and selfish. And at the end they are forever wearing the mask.

It's a good storyline, good acting (I give actors credit for breathing life into rather dull characters) and good directing. All that saved this episode.

The problems with the episode are: Poor casting: Who thought it was a good idea to have a thirty something old man to play a teenager?

Bad dubbing of voices when the actors had the mask on.

Generational dysfunction: Jason was not a kind man to his daughter and she became an attention seeking hypochondriac. It turn, she passed down her misery to her kids.

The ending: I realized Jason's family is now forever imprisoned in the mansion and who is going take care of them? Jason's servants and his doctor. So...not only did he ruined his families lives but the three people who cared for him.

Did his family deserve their fate? Not really. He could have given his millions away to a charity. However if that happened there would not been a story.

The character Jason: He was not the good guy. Usually, in TZ episodes there is one good person or reasonable person. None here. He was verbally abusive and vindictive As the end of episode I realized he was no better than his family.

The moral to this story is: Revenge is not worth it. Everybody gets hurts. There are no winners.

Disclosure (1994)

A movie with an identity crises.

[2/10 · 22 May 2022]

The movie Disclosure based on the book of the same name by Michael Chrichton is about a male office drone being sexually harassed by his female boss. The premise sounds good however the film quickly falls apart and goes in different directions making me wonder what this film was suppose to be?

Is this movie a: 1. A legal drama shedding light on the fact sexual harassment is really about power and the gender of the person in power doesn't matter because power corrupts people. (It failed at making the point. The legal scenes were dull as dishwater)

2. Hostile corporate takeover thriller (The film should have stuck with that storyline)

3. A parable about corporate cultures dark side. (It failed there too.)

4. An erotic thriller. (There is nothing erotic about this film and believe me I have seen my share of erotic thrillers)

I grew up watching movies before the invention of CGI and some of the special effects back then aged well and some did not. In the case of Disclose the VR scene did not age well. It comes across as very silly.

The acting of Michael Douglas, Demi Moore and Donald Sutherland could not save this film.

Overall, don't waste your time on this film.

Mortal Thoughts (1991)

The not usual suspects

[8/10 · 22 May 2022]

Mortal Thoughts is a crime drama with an unreliable narrator. The film opens at a police station where Cynthia (Demi Moore) tells the police about her friend, Joyce (Glenne Headly) murdering her abusive husband (Bruce Willis).

The film unfolds in a series of flashbacks.

Here is a breakdown:

The Good:

Glenne Headly and Demi Moore's acting.

The premise and the storyline however....(see bad)

The story moved along at a nice pace.

The Bad:

The storyline was good but I wish Joyce told her side of the story (something like along the line of Rashomon)

Acting was a little over the top.

The Ugly.

Bruce Willi's mustache. In once scene it appeared to be falling off.

Overall, it's a good movie. If you enjoy crime drama's with unreliable narrators this film is for you.

Salem's Lot (1979)

The Vampires Are Here and Does Any One Care?

[6/10 · 15 May 2022]

Years ago, I read the book Salem's Lot. It was a good book. Recently I came across the mini series on TubiTV. It's was an okay movie. It had it moments then there were moments the film dragged. Plus it suffered from Pointless Character Syndrome.

I do suggest watching the three hour version.

Here is a breakdown:

Good:

The vampire kid floating outside his brothers window.

Barlow breaking into a family's home to confront the Priest however see bad...

James Mason as Straker. He played the character as it should be, suave and charming. He seemed to enjoy the role.

Good premise.

Bad:

David Soul's performance as Ben Mears. David wooden performance did not bring life to Ben. Ben was not interesting. He was kind of a thoughtless jerk. After killing the head vampire, he didn't run to his girlfriend's house and tell her mother to get out of town. Instead of he left her there to be turned into a vampire.

The characters in general were not very interesting expect for Straker. I wish the film was from his point of view.

Also, some characters were one dimensional.

The film left me with questions: What caused the Sheriff to get spooked that made him pack up his family and leave town. Did he have an interaction with a vampire? Did he learn something in his investigation about Straker and Barlow?

What did the lab find on Straker's suits?

Did the old school teacher die from the heart attack?

Why was the vampires chasing Ben and the kid? In the book the vampires didn't bother with them after they left town.

Some characters were spotlighted then dropped such as the Elisha Cooks character though it is later implied he was turned into a vampire.

Barlow confronting the Priest...we don't see what happened during and after the confrontation. In the book, Barlow taints the Priest causing the Priest to leave town in disgrace.

Plus the sheriff had Cook's character to spy on Ben. However that storyline was dropped.

The clumsy running around the house to get to the head vampire coffin. Granted they were in a rush and panicky however all that could have been avoided if Ben showed up earlier in the day to do away with Barlow.

The Ugly

Pointless Character Syndrome: the toxic married couple. I do believe in the book they were the early victims of the vampire plague. However, their story had no baring on the storyline. Before the vampire plague hit the town, they left and no one cared.

Finally, Barlow. I remember in the book he was in human form and had a personality. Not in this movie, he was a silly version of Nosferatu. In the book, he was the boss. In the movie, he came across as Straker's pet mutant rat.

The Quiet Earth (1985)

The last quiet man on earth

[8/10 · 26 February 2022]

It is a slow burn thoughtful film. It is old fashion sci fi film with no action that emphasis how people react to an extraordinary event.

In the modern age, movie goers are use to big budge action yarns that span across multi universes. If you like those type of films than this is not for you.

The breakdown:

The Good:

The fairly well executed premise.

The characterization.

Awesome ending.

The Bad:

A few minutes of the film drag however it picked up when the main character met another survivor.

The Ugly:

It appeared the film copied a little from "The World the Flesh and the Devil" (1959) and "Where Have All The People Gone?" (1974).

The Fabulous Allan Carr (2017)

Fabulous

[9/10 · 18 January 2022]

While searching through Tubi Tv I came across this documentary about the man behind Grease and the 1989 Oscars. The film traces Allan's incredible rise then his fall from grace due to the eleven minute opening 1989 Oscar number.

I do recommend the documentary for Grease fans and anyone who is interested in the wheeling and dealings of Hollywood.

War of the God Monsters (1985)

It's A Monster Mash!

[1/10 · 10 January 2022]

The acting was bad, the characters were unlikable and I didn't care what happened to them. Things happen that doesn't make sense such as when the reporter was on the beach and saw the monster. Out of nowhere a camera appears for her to take a picture of it.

Bad comedic moments.

The scientist in the film is the worlds worst movie dad.

Also, as I watching it, I kept wondering why some of the monsters scenes looked familiar. It turns out all the monster scenes were from Ultra-Man. Actually, in one scene was cut short because it was obvious Ultra Man was about to appear.

After all the destruction the monsters cause they miraculously go away with no resolution. Instead it ends on a romantic note. (By the way the romantic ending was forced and unbelievable)

As stated in a previous review this film is for Z movie fans.

America's Got Talent (2006– )

The show needs to be retooled.

[5/10 · 9 January 2022]

I started watching the show seven years ago, it was Howard Stern's last season. I thoroughly enjoyed it. So I decided to continue to watch the show.

I have noticed in the past seven years a decline.

During the auditions round, there is more filler than actual entertainment. I started to DVR the auditions round so I could fast forward through all the filler and actually watch the talent. However, in general there are too many cuts to the audience and judges during the performance. It 's more jarring during a live performance.

The producers are padding the acts: there are bad acts that somehow managed get thru the live rounds because it is to keep the favorite acts safe.

Favoritism: Sadly this happened in 2019 season. The winner of that year was overly hyped to the point I thought just declare him the winner all ready. There was no suspense on who was going to win. By the way, that season was the lowest rated in seven years.

Sob Stories: The show has been focusing on sob stories a lot instead of the talent. It seemed like the last few years who has the saddest story wins.

The biggest offender was 2021 winner Dustin Travell, (i.e the Bobby Bones of AGT) . He is a mediocre magician who would never have made it to the live round. He won by using his family story.

Simon Cowell is the boss of the show and what he says is the law which has put a damper on other wise fun show.

Edit: I want to add a few things. The Golden Buzzer is utterly pointless now. It always go to singers (who usually has a sad story) and to one dance group. Though I have heard rumors that the golden buzzer's are pre planned. After all the years I have been watching this show I believe it.

The ablism of AGT is utter ridiculous. As a disabled person I get annoyed by the judges telling the disable contestant they are an inspiration and courageous. Seriously, that's all they can say. The audience makes its worse. Back in 2019 season, the winner Kody Lee (Blind young man with a subtype of autism), was performing, the audience decided to encourage him by cheering as he is performing. The noise of the audience distraction him and briefly stopped singing. Thankfully the audience shut up and he was able to resume his performance.

Furthermore, this season current season (2023) there is a blind singer from Malaysia who got the golden buzzer. She has been compared to Kodi Lee because both are blind and non white. I am pretty sure the producers are going to be hyper her. I am very certain she is going to win.

Need for fresh acts, its the same old same old. I mean how many card magician are out there? Which lead to copy cat acts, there has been a lot of Shin Lim wanna be's and none have been good. In the current season (2023) a Darcy Lynne copy cat appeared! I am sure there are more to follow in future seasons.

The show either gets retooled or cancelled.

The Lost Daughter (2021)

Lost on Holiday

[8/10 · 5 January 2022]

The premise is a middle age woman, Leda, takes a holiday alone to a Greek island where she comes into a contact with a very boisterous family. One family member she notices is the young mother Nina and becomes a little fixated on her. Slowly Leda's relaxing holiday unravels.

This film I can say has a moral to the story. Actually two.

1. Some people are not meant to be parents.

2. Society is so fixated with woman being mothers that it forces a woman in a role she might not want or not mature enough to handle. Also, the ones who do resist are looked down upon.

My breakdown:

The Good: The acting by Olivia Coleman and Jesse Buckley.

The musical score.

The plot is cohesive (no sub plots or plot holes)

The Bad: The dialogue is a little clunky.

There were a few times I had turn up the volume to hear what the characters were saying.

A few times the film drags.

The Ugly: None here.

Overall it is a good movie. It's a good directorial debut by Maggie Gyllenhaal.

It's a slow burn movie with little to no action.

The ending is ambiguous

If you like thinking and character driven films this is for you.

Cruella (2021)

One of the better films of 2021

[10/10 · 12 October 2021]

The Good:

Emma Stone and Emma Thompson's performances. Seriously, both should be nominated for an Oscar.

I would be very surprised if this film does not win an Oscar for costume design. The costumes itself told a story and highlighted each character.

The storyline was solid and very well executed.

The run time of the film worked perfectly to tell the story of Cruella. The movie moved along at a nice even pace.

The Bad:

I loved the music however I thought it over used.

The Ugly: The CGI. I think all the money went into the fashion and nothing was left for the CGI department.

Overall, I highly recommend this movie.

Hostage (2005)

The Ultimate debate: Is the Book better than the movie.

[5/10 · 5 July 2021]

I read the book after I saw the film. I concluded the book was much better than the movie. The book explained a lot the characters motivations better.

Also, the bad guys (the ones who take Talley's family hostage) are part of the mob. In the movie, they were a one dimensional vague criminal organization.

In the book Talley was using his wits and experience as a hostage negotiator to get his family back. In this movie not so much.

The characters were flat in the film. Mars was just your average super slasher fiend. The book dives into his background and when his background is relieved it brings about more urgency to the situation.

One thing, I noticed, Talley in the movie did things that he would not have gotten away with. Such not taking Smith to the hospital and forcing EMT guy to wake Smith up.

A lot of characters didn't make to the movie. I understand there is only so much time but a few could have made an appearance to help the plot along.

The ending was a unbelievable. He flies in and manages to dispatch all the bad guys in one blow without getting injured

Thought for it's faults it was an enjoyable film. However I do recommend reading the book to get a better feel and idea of the characters and the storyline.

Songbird (II) (2020)

C+ for effort

[5/10 · 17 March 2021]

The director and producers made a mistake by filming the movie in lockdown. This resulted in storylines not being used or underused.

Storyline line not being used: the "Camps" that housed the sick or false positive people. It would have been interesting if the film makers focused on Sara as she navigated the harsh realities of the camps.

Under used: the Griffin family. Here is a a well to do family with a sick kid struggle in the new normal. It would have made a great human interest storyline.

Give it chance it is not that bad.

A Hologram for the King (2016)

The King and I

[3/10 · 19 December 2020]

I was surprised to learn this movie is a comedy. There is nothing funny about this film. Tom Hanks character, Alan, is a salesman on the verge of breakdown who is dealing with a bitter ex wife (why is she bitter it is never explained) and a clueless annoying boss who wants to get the deal done soon as possible.

Tom Hanks carried this movie, he made it interesting to watch. If it was another actor who did not have Hank's charm, the movie would have fallen flat.

It does have an interesting premise to it however it went nowhere. The car ride to his first day of work was longer than it should have been. His "team" were lackluster background characters. The party at the Denmark embassy was over the top ridiculous and unnecessary. On top of that, Alan was totally clueless regarding the culture and costumes' of Saudi Arabia. He made numerous social mistakes that I was amazed he was not thrown out of the country by the end of the film.

I did read the movie was based on a book. I am curious to read the book and see how the film holds up to it.

Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)

The worse of the sequel trilogy.

[2/10 · 11 December 2020]

The Last Jedi is the wrong title for the movie, it should be The Empire Strikes Back Again! The film was a poorly done rehash of the superior ESB. I am amazed the writers and the director could not come up something more original. There are a lot of Star Wars novels out there, why didn't they adapt one of those books instead of copying a classic.

Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker (2019)

Congrats Disney! You made the prequels look good.

[3/10 · 11 December 2020]

The prequels had consistent story telling, world building and good characters. And the titles for the prequels were true to form unlike the sequels. Rise of Skywalker should be retitled: The Fall Of The Skywalkers.

I was excited to see the sequels. Force Awakens was a good start then it all went down hill in the second movie. Rey was a Mary Sue from start to finish. Po and Finn both were good characters with potential in the Force Awakens became useless sidekicks in the third film. All three characters had no chemistry with each other.

Kylo Ren was a good character however after the two people in his life (his dad and uncle) who created an internal struggle within him died, so did his motivation. The final film, Kylo was just there, doing things because his internal conflict was gone. And that made him boring.

The kiss between Rey and Kylo was hilarious.

The film was disconnected and disjointed.

Lando did nothing to add to the plot. He was placed in the film for nostalgia.

The movie is a sad ending to a great film franchise.

G.I. Jane (1997)

Yo Jane!

[5/10 · 6 December 2020]

The movie is part of what I call, Demi Moore's bad movie trilogy (this includes Striptease and The Scarlet Letter). GI Jane is the worst of the three. The movie was a wanna be Top Gun with a political intrigue. By the way all three movies, Demi's characters all stood up to corrupt politicians. The movie was over the top, goofy (not in a good way) and Viggo Mortensen's Master Chief was creepy. Ann Bancroft was campy as the sleezy politician.

However, the movie came out in the wrong time. If it came out today, people would praise it as daring, brave and progressive and Mrs. Moore would have received all sorts of accolades. Should the film be remade? Yes with a director who focuses on the human story of a lone woman competing in a male dominate world.

Though in Demi Moore's defense she did not deserve all those Razzie Nominations. At that time, it was cool to dump on her because she starred in a string of stinkers and she demanded equal pay.

The Scarlet Letter (1995)

The Scarlet A's

[5/10 · 6 December 2020]

The movie is part of what I call Demi Moore's bad movie trilogy (this includes Striptease and GI Jane). The Scarlet Letter is a little better than GI Jane but not as good as Striptease.

I read the Scarlet Letter in high school and I didn't like the book. Parts of it I found boring and the actions of the men in the book frustrated me. The movie tried to make the good Rev. A little more sympathetic. Hester hubby, Roger, was turned into a very angry man. Robert Duvall (who played Roger) sleep walked through the movie.

Gary Oldman, Demi Moore and Joan Plowright tried their best.

One problem was with the film is pacing. The film started out slowly. Then when Hester got pregnant the pace picked up and near the end of the film it moved at an incredibly fast pace. I think the film would have worked better if it was a mini series and we would have gotten to know the characters better especially Joan Plowright's, Harriet. Also, it would helped the viewer better understand the world the characters in lived in.

It was nice Demi had her kids in the movie however it threw off the timeline. Did the film take place in a matter of months or years. She had her newborn daughter (Tallulah) as the baby Pearl. Shortly after the birth, there was either a time skip or the baby had a sudden unexplained growth spurt ala American Horror Story Apocalypse. Toddler Pearl was played by Demi's two year old daughter Scout. I guess no one wanted a continuity error so Scout ended up playing toddler Pearl because she looked liked her little sister.

The dialogue was a bit wonky and the accents were passable to the untrained ear.

The aftermath of the movie's climax was left literally in the dust.

Striptease (1996)

A fun goofy movie

[7/10 · 6 December 2020]

The movie is part of what I call Demi Moore's bad movie trilogy (It started with The Scarlet Letter and finished with GI Jane). Out of the three this was the best.

The movie moved along at a nice pace. The dialogue was good. The characters were interesting. The main character was likeable. Robert Patrick, Ving Rhames and Burt Reynolds performances stood out. All the actors in the film, expect for Ms. Moore, knew this was a silly movie. I think even Demi's kid knew it was a silly movie.

If you are looking for a mindless enjoyable film with no social redeeming value where you can forget about the world for brief moment this is it.

Ben (1972)

A story of friendship between a boy and a rat.

[5/10 · 6 December 2020]

After Willard's death, the rats are on their own fighting for survival in the city. They are being chased by a grizzled detective. In the meantime, Ben befriends a lonely sick boy(Danny). (I have to give kudos for the director and writer for creating a character with a Congenital Heart Defect)

The friendship between Ben and Danny is nice and enduring. Danny shows Ben there is a light in a dark world (a sharp contrast from Willard). Though Danny's blind faith in Ben was troubling.

This is a low budget movie which results in some of the special effects coming across as a little cartoony.

However, It's a good continuation of the Willard storyline.

Cats (2019)

Bad Kitty!

[2/10 · 5 December 2020]

What else can be said about this "movie" with the very bad CGI, no plot and forgettable songs. It's bad, its a stinker and maybe one day it will go down as a "it is oh so bad it's good" movie.

By the way this is isn't the worse movie of all time. I have seen the worse movie of all time and it is called, "The Ganzfeld Experiment."

I was surprise Judi Dench and Ian McKellen were dragged into this film. They should really fire their agents.

The only good thing about were the musical performances by Jennifer Hudson and Taylor Swift.

I read it was originally intended to be animated and should have stayed the course. It could have been another "Aristocrats" or at least a second cousin version of "Gay Purr-ee"(1962)