"Renfield"

Listed as a comedy, I expected something along the lines of "Reginald the Vampire" or even "What We Do in the Shadows" (both are truly fabulous, by the way).  What I got, instead, was a gorefest which made "Deadpool" look like kiddy fare.  Great actors (honestly, I would watch Awkwafina read a dictionary, not to mention the delightfully bereft Nicolas Hoult with his puppy dog expressions) can't save a film which is just ... graphic.  I mean, there's some dialog.  But nothing clever.  Nothing to grab and hold your attention.  Twenty minutes in, I was checking email and shopping online as the bodies piled up.  Oh well.  

Goodbye to "Good Trouble"

Disliking having to wait from week to week for the next episode (what happened to streaming???), I didn't take the time to binge the final episodes of "Good Trouble" until now.  It got to me ... more than I expected.  And it was perfect.  The drama (oh, so. much. drama) continued right up until the final scene.  As a gift to the viewers there was a nice wrap-up for each character, bringing them to a place of hope, of promise.  After five seasons, it was really nice to see this group of (mostly) young folk finally get the hang of adulting.  Started as a show about Callie and Mariana from "The Fosters" it quickly grew into an ensemble show ... and what an ensemble!  Every character, including the offbeat "Kelly" really added to something which became a very rich stew.  The angsty nature of their screw-ups and perpetually miserable love-lives was hard to take at times but I always came back.  I came to care about these characters, and rooted for them to find meaning and peace in their lives.  The reward for hanging in there was rewarded in the form of a finale with promise.  And I realized that between "The Fosters" and this show, I've been watching this storyline since 2013.  ELEVEN YEARS!  I can't even begin to list all the chapters I've lived in my own life in this period of time.  To the residents of the Coterie -- bonne chance!  And to these amazing actors ... thank you.  I hope to see you soon in other projects.

"Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story"

This documentary is older than I thought, but quite powerful.  I was drawn to it after being reminded, again, that this was a woman who was known for her movie star status, but sadly forgotten for her brilliant inventions.  It's well-done.  The interviews, clips, structure are all solid.  For a documentary it hits the right notes with information but doesn't bore.  The pacing is good, the viewpoint is as unbiased as is possible.  It's good.  Really shines a light on one of many women whose impactful life has been lost to the shadows of memory.  This production shines a light into the dark and reminds us of the importance of the foundation which came before.

"The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar"

The brilliance of this really surprised me.  Familiar with Roald Dahl, I had not read this particular book.  The production did a terrific job of capturing the kind of quirky, oddball style of Dahl's works.  A short film (40 minutes) with an amazing cast (start with Ben Kingsley, add in Benedict Cumberbatch, Dev Patel and more) and you have something very (very, very) watchable.  It has meaning, message, humor.  It is fresh.  It is surprising.  It is totally worthwhile (and it won an Oscar).  Watch it.  And then, maybe, watch it again ...

"All the Light We Cannot See"

This is one of those situations where I really wish I had read the book.  Anthony Doerr is a gifted author and I may have liked this better in book form???  Unlike "A Small Light", which I very much liked for its fresh qualities, this one hit a lot of familiar notes.  There is clear delineation between good and bad.  The Nazis come off like the ones from any given Indiana Jones film.  There are good actors here.  Each brings a lot more depth to roles which seem to be a bit two-dimensional, but it doesn't help.  It's sad but I felt a difficulty connecting.  The accents are distracting.  Most are British, some are vaguely European, and Mark Ruffalo, who has impressed with the wide variety of characters he has played (including identical twin brothers, where one is differently-abled), seems a little lost here.  His accent seems more like an affect than anything else.  Young Aria Mia Loberti is engaging but it is not enough.  There just isn't enough "something" to carry the story through.  Again, I have to wonder if Doerr's prose in print form would have been more engaging and would have drawn me in.  This production sadly didn't.  Maybe I'm ODing on all the Holocaust dramas out right now.  Who knows?  It's watchable.  It's just not "outstanding".  And, given the cast and the source material, I expected better.

"Wish"

It's okay.  Not bad, but not memorable.  The issue, much like "Damsel", seems to be a lack of plot.  Young Asha lives in a Utopia.  She thinks.  Early on, she discovers a dark secret, and spends the next hour and a half trying to make things right.  It's not enough to pin your hat on.  There is also a surprising flat quality to the animation.  Hands have no fingerprints.  Faces, with the exception of Asha's freckles, are uniformly smooth.  Like mannequins.  That being said, it's typical Disney fare.  There is a perky and beguiling young woman -- Asha (played by Ariana DeBose).  A notably unconflicted bad guy.  An upbeat group of friends.  A loving family.  A talking animal or two.  Quite a number of songs.  Unlike the last few Disney movies, the tunes seem to be catchier, and the lyrics worse.  They haven't found the right mix of late (in my humble opinion).  There are the messages.  A snap-back at immigration policy you might miss if you blink.  The importance of hopes and dreams, and not letting anything hold you back.  How we need community and connection.  Standard stuff.  It just didn't "stick".

"Spider-Man: No Way Home"

Time flies.  Three years after it debuted, I finally saw "Spider-Man:  No Way Home".  It's amazing.  It's devastating.  If not for the next movie in the series coming out, this would have been a perfect, if not very very sad, way to wrap things up.  Unfortunately, there is the almighty dollar to deal with.  So there will be a sequel.  A shame.  This one hit every right note.  Engaging, hysterical dialog.  Good pacing for a (really) long movie.  Terrific way of pulling the threads together (pun intended).  And the predictable but incredibly moving sacrifices the hero must always endure.  It's just lovely.  But keep the kleenex close.

"Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story"

I actually liked this so much more than "Bridgerton".  Kinda-sorta based on real history, this has more gravitas, more meat.  It's a significantly more serious tale than the marshmallow fluff which is the original series (that being said, the connections and back-story to the Bridgerton characters is quite delightful).  The cast, of course, is fabulous.  A huge shout-out to India Amartiefio, who plays the eponymous lead.  She hits the right note each and every time.  And there are a lot of notes.  It creates a symphony of struggle, of feminism, of the times, of love.  I tore through the six episodes quickly and my only regret is that it's a limited series and there will be no more.  And yes, for those who like the bedroom antics in Bridgerton, there are more here.  But they are, in my humble opinion, fairly secondary to the core issues.  It's powerful.  It's memorable.  It's worth the watch.

"Glamorous"

Oh.  Dear.  This had so much saccharine it makes me jittery.  It was like Disney meeting R-rated content.  Listed as a comedy-drama it was pretty much all broad comedy for the first six episodes.  Very, very broad.  Took me almost all of the first season to buy into these characters being anything beyond two-dimensional.  Scenes were bathed in light so bright, with so much pink and yellow, that I felt like I was having a Miami Beach hallucination.  The cast had potential.  Lead Marco Mejia is interesting and earnest.  Supporting player Jade Payton is charming.  Ayesha Harris brings needed groundedness.  But vets like Diana Maria Riva and Kim Cattrall seemed constrained.  And they are amazing ... usually.  The young folk were presented as hyper, teeny-tiny clothes wearing, very occasionally drug using drifters consumed with romances and drama over doing their jobs.  Just didn't appeal.  Took until episode seven (of ten) before it finally clicked in.  Too little, too late.  By the time they dropped some of the nonsense the train had left the station.  It was cancelled.  One season and done.  The sad thing is that it could have been so much more.

"Wonka"

Honestly, this is as close to perfect as a movie can get.  As a sequel (or prequel, more specifically) to a nearly perfect film, it's kind of a gift.  Somehow, beyond all expectations, they play homage and yet find new territory.  They wrap in beloved characters and songs but add something new, making it fresh.  There isn't a bad egg in the group (easter egg intended) and it didn't, in any way, disappoint.  Honestly wonderful.  Really should have gotten more attention around award time.  Why is it that stories which just make us feel good don't get the same attention as gut-wrenching epics?  Grab some chocolate (you really must), settle in, and enjoy.

"Damsel"

The quality of mercy is not "Damsel".  A terrific cast and high production values can't hide the fact that this is an out-and-out revenge tale.  It's also a bit thin from a storytelling persepective.  Which is to say that if you see the trailer you pretty much get what happens in the whole movie.  It's not bad.  An enjoyable way to spend an hour plus.  It's heavy-handed with the digital enhancements but again, a strong cast does make it watchable.  There just isn't a lot of there there.  We have a half hour of fairytale, an hour of retribution (think fairytale meets the upside down of "Stranger Things") and that's pretty much it.  Good and bad are pretty heavily delineated.  Characters don't have a lot of room to change and grow and make retribution.  This movie is about blood.  And squishy killing.  In other words, not a story for the kids.  I sense a sequel.  We'll see.

"Capote vs the Swans"

Tom Hollander is terrific as Capote but the production, as a whole, put me to sleep.  It's not a story about scandal.  It's just about the times.  The sixties.  Elegant women.  Cafe life.  But nothing really happens.  Not really.  Tons of atmosphere, lots of porn-like shots of food.  But the secrets?  The destruction Capote supposedly created on these superficially perfect lives?  We don't see it.  Not really.  The cameras linger.  The women are limpid and languid.  And exchangeable.  Big deal actors are left to do very little but sit and stare.  We do see a tiny and sanitized snapshot of Capote's life.  But the audience is never allowed to pull back the curtain and see the reasons behind the manipulations.  We don't see any of the big bad events Truman exposes.  They are simply talked about.  Whispered about, really, over roast duck en glace.  Even the rage, unlike in the previous season of Duel, is muted.  I'd watch Hollander again, but overall, this one left me with a big yawn.  If you are going to do a story of privilege, at least give us some real emotion.