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Truly Miss Marple: The Curious Case of Margaret Rutherford (2012)

The true life story of Margaret Rutherford (1892-1972) is in fact much more eccentric than the most famous fictional role she ever played: Miss Jane Marple, Agatha Christie's amateur sleuth. Rutherford's version was the very first appearance of Miss Marple on the big screen and it was far removed though from the petite, upper middle-class lady in the detective novels.

Unembellishments If you just come to this without the Christie context, you will be appalled. If you come understanding Christie, you will be doubly appalled. Here we have a quirky actress who plays a single quirky character. The character has some appeal in most of the...


Published February 22, 2023
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Oblivion (2013)

Appropriated Appropriateness One measure of a science fiction movie is whether the science and fiction are coherent. I’ve been following the Hunger Games saga and this is driving me crazy. Some technology is advanced, some adopted from the sixties. In good hands, like with Nolan’s Interstellar,...


Published February 19, 2023
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Seven Psychopaths (2012)
They Won't Take Any Shih Tzu.
Filmmaker(s): Martin McDonagh

A struggling screenwriter inadvertently becomes entangled in the Los Angeles criminal underworld after his oddball friends kidnap a gangster's beloved Shih Tzu.

Counted Only Two I guess this was inevitable. I haven’t yet seen the latest Tarantino faux western, but chose to see this instead. Roughly speaking, it is what used to be called a spoof, before referencing, extending and adding a meta level became permissible. What impresses me...


Published February 18, 2023
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Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)

Intelligent Agency I was impressed by a few features of the first one. Most notably, it was a risk for them to adopt and extend a certain cinematic technique in such a high risk project. I wrote about the effect: having battle scenes with only a...


Published February 18, 2023
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Top End Wedding (2019)
When you're feeling lost, family will guide you home.
Filmmaker(s): Wayne Blair

Lauren and Ned are engaged, they are in love, and they have just ten days to find Lauren’s mother who has gone AWOL somewhere in the remote far north of Australia, reunite her parents and pull off their dream wedding.

Companion as Place Why does this earn a special space in my heart? It is a romantic comedy after all, deliberately designed to be discarded. The genre is defined by the attractiveness of a superficial love; the easy way problems are resolved and the balance of...


Published February 18, 2023
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Sherlock Holmes and the Shadow Watchers (2021)
Filmmaker(s): Anthony D.P. Mann

The sensational details of a gruesome murder in The Daily Gazette have London in a panic, as a blood-thirsty madman - more vicious than Jack the Ripper - preys upon the city. Of greater concern to Scotland Yard, however, is that the account of the murder was published nearly two hours prior to the crime having been committed! Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson - the Great Detective and his faithful assistant and chronicler - find themselves challenged with one of their most baffling cases - "The Case of the Woman Who Was Murdered Tomorrow"! Will an innocent man be sent to the gallows? How much blood will be shed before a scarred fiend is brought to justice? ...And who are the mysterious Shadow Watchers, a coven of ominous figures who orchestrate terror from within the darkness? Starring Anthony D.P. Mann as Holmes and Terry Wade as Dr. Watson, "Sherlock Holmes and the Shadow Watchers" is a horrifying new adventure, produced with the kind permission of the Conan Doyle Estate*.

Fiddling Around When you get something like this, you have to give allowances. No money was spent; friends did the acting. Production is brusque. What you have to look for is the intent of the writer/director/main actor. If he could have, would he have delivered a...


Published February 18, 2023
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Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015)
Every generation has a story.
Filmmaker(s): J.J. Abrams

Thirty years after defeating the Galactic Empire, Han Solo and his allies face a new threat from the evil Kylo Ren and his army of Stormtroopers.

Han Shoots Last Movies can do a lot of different things for us, from giving us 90 minutes away from stress to providing a skeleton on which we build lives. The films that matter to me are these latter ones. Much of what we think of...


Published February 16, 2023
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Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Dead over Heels (2017)
Filmmaker(s): Terry Ingram

Librarian and real crime buff Aurora “Roe” Teagarden never liked Detective Sergeant Jack Burns, but she also never wanted to see him dead. When his body is found outside of Aurora’s home, she then becomes the main suspect. Determined to find the killer and clear her name, Aurora can't help but to get involved once again.

Manipulating Evidence I came to this as a mystery that would be safe to watch with my 10 year old. He had done well with some others like Poirot, Holmes. I’ve taught him to be alert in narrative engagement, so he was primed to be challenged...


Published February 12, 2023
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Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
The future belongs to the mad.
Filmmaker(s): George Miller

An apocalyptic story set in the furthest reaches of our planet, in a stark desert landscape where humanity is broken, and most everyone is crazed fighting for the necessities of life. Within this world exist two rebels on the run who just might be able to restore order.

Some Dusty Pig The first Mad Max had a few strong attractions. It was overtly Australian in a few dimensions which hit a niche of the familiar exotic. It was pure science fiction in that it abstracted our world into a future where only the tiniest...


Published January 18, 2023
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The A-Team (2010)
There is no plan B.
Filmmaker(s): Joe Carnahan

A group of Iraq War veterans goes on the run from U.S. military forces while they try to clear their names after being framed for a crime they didn't commit. Along the way, Col. Hannibal Smith, Capt. H.M. ‘Howling Mad’ Murdock , Sgt. Bosco ‘B.A.’ Baracus, and Lt. Templeton ‘Faceman’ Peck help out various people they encounter.

Architectural Plans I’m not going to denigrate what are usually called mindless summer movies, because I think there is something important here. Sure, the usual fears apply. Most people take the characters and world dynamics seriously. Yes, I know, but they would be doing that anyway. And...


Published December 26, 2022
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