The Courier 2020 release date in the US 3/21/2021

     Cold War spy Greville Wynne from Britain and his Russian source Merab Ninidze try to put an end to the Cuban Missile Crisis.  The setting of this film is in the shadow of the Cold War between America and Russia.  A letter is sent by Oleg Penkovsky and he is working for an agency of the Soviet Union.  The letter is received by MI6 states the concerns Penkovsky has about world safety.  He is very anxious about a possible nuclear war.  Emily Donovan is a CIA Agent and she reaches out to MI6 Agent Dickie Franks.  British salesman Greville Wynne has been recruited to be their spy.  Spying at this time is very dangerous because a spy can be arrested at any time or any moment if their cover is blown.  Their personal circumstances will degrade every minute from torture to possible death.

      It is very stressful and there is a lot of tension after the US establishes a missile base on the island of Cuba.  Missiles will not reach Russia from America so this is defensive plan to retaliate if Russia fires a missile heading to America.  It is also an effort to combat and prevent nuclear war between the two countries.

      This is a fact-based British spy thriller set during the Cuban Missile Crisis.  It has torture scenes, strong language and smoking throughout. But it also celebrates the immense courage of two men -- Greville Wynne and Oleg Penkovsky.  They work tirelessly and risk their lives to save the world from nuclear war.  Set in 1962, the movie depicts some sexist and misogynistic behavior.  Men leer over their female colleagues and wives are expected to cook and host when guests come over.  They also care for their children while their husbands are at work.  They are never told about the secrets!!  5 1/2* (I really liked this movie) 

112 min, Drama directed by Dominic Cooke, written by Tom O’Connor with Benedict Cumberbatch, Merab Nindze, Rachel Brosnahan, Vladimir Chuprikov, James Schofield, Fred Haig, Emma Penzina, Mariya Mironova, Anton Lesser, Angus Wright, David Bark-Jones, Miles Richardson, Keir Hill, Jess Buckley, Zeljko Ivanek, Kirill Pirogov, Petr Klimes.

Note:  Imdb 7.1* out of 10* with 29K reviews, Rotten Tomatoes 86% with 197 reviews, 95% with 1,000+ audience scores, Metacritic 65 out of 100 with 37 critic reviews 7 out of 10 with 55 user scores, Roger Ebert 3* Odie Henderson, Washington Post Ann Hornaday 3* out of 4*, Common Sense Media Stefan Pape, age 13+, 2* out of 5* sex, 3* positive role models and language, drinking, drugs and smoking, 4* positive messages and violence.

Special Note:  Greville Wynne wrote an autobiography that was first published in 1967.  It was titled 'The Man From Moscow: The Story of Wynne and Penkovsky'.  Screenwriter Tom O'Connor was aware that the reliability of this book had been questioned.  O'Connor said: "I read what a few people said who did a point-by-point discrediting of the things that Wynne claimed happened arguing that they couldn't possibly be real?”

Mistake:  In a panoramic shot of Moscow, Wynne walks along the embankment opposite the building of the Ministry of Defense.  Although it was built in 1951, a late 2014 annex with two-headed eagles on the friezes is visible.  In Soviet times, two-headed eagles were a symbol of czarism and under no circumstances could they appear on an official building in the center of Moscow.

Trivia:  $6,613,432 gross US & Canada, opening weekend $1,885,829, gross worldwide $21,205,358.  

Modern Love Season 2: Episode 1 The Night Girl Finds a Day Boy

    “I’m a vampire, basically, the girl tells the guy that she goes to bed around 8 or 9am and wakes around 4 or 5 pm.  First dates usually go OK because they’re in the evening but complications quickly arise.” 

     A couple meets and they start to really like each other and things are going smoothly.  Then they begin to hit a bump in the road.  The guy wants to girl to meet his mother in New York.  His mother will only be in New York for a short time and they agree to meet up at a cafe.  The girl is late, she doesn’t set her alarm??  The guy is hurt because she missed seeing his mother.  Is there any way the the night girl can coexist with the day guy??  5* (I really liked this episode)

 

Directors John Carney, Jesse Peretz, Marta Cunningham, Celine Held, Logan George.  Supporting actors Zoe Chao, Lucy Boynton, Kit Harington, Jack Reynor, Miranda Richardson.  Producers John Carney, Todd Hoffman, Trish Hofmann, Anthony Bregman.

Note:  readysteadycut.com 3* out of 5*, Imdb 7.2* out of 10* with 725 reviews, leisurebyte.com 3.5* out of 5*.

Frankie Drake Mysteries Season 1 Episode 3 Summer in the City aired 11/20/17

      After the discovery of a very dead body in Eric Morrison’s luggage, Frankie and Trudy team up with a reporter to clear the young man's name.  The body is the son of Frankie’s former Signal Corps commander.  Although Trudy has been more than a little suspicious of Eric, they take the case.  But, soon they discover the young man isn’t as innocent as he’d like them to believe he is.  

     From a scrappy tent city to the lavish summer homes of the Toronto elite, the investigation illuminates a city in transition.  The murderous lengths are discovered that people will go to in order to play a part in building the city of the future.

  

     Directed by Norma Bailey, executive producer Christina Jennings, Scott Garvie, Cal Coons, producer Jonathan Hackett, Julie Lacey, written by Carol Hay and Michelle Ricci with Lauren Lee Smith Chantel Riley, Rebecca Liddiard, Sharron Mathews, Emmanuel Kabongo, Carol Hay.  5 1/2* (I rally like this series) 

Note:  Episode 43 min, Amazon 100% with 6 critic ratings, 41% audience score with 20 user ratings, telltaletv.com 4* out of 5*, Imdb 7.3* out of 10* with 129 ratings, play.google.com 3* out of 4*.

One Mississippi 2016 tv series Episode 1 out of 6 episodes Pilot aired 9/8/2016

     This is a semi-autobiographical dark comedy loosely inspired by Tig Notaro’s life.  It follows Tig as she navigates a re-entry into her childhood hometown in Mississippi.  She has left her home in Los Angeles because her mother Caroline has unexpectedly gone to the hospital.  When she arrives, her mother’s ventilator tube has been removed and it is only a matter of time before she dies.  Tig has also had a cancer scare and she has recently had surgery to remove the cancer.

     Tig is struggling with being back in Mississippi since it brings back hurtful childhood memories.  She is staying with her stepfather Bill and he is a very severe man with many rules for living his home.  Her brother Remy is also living there in an attic room.  Both Bill and Remy don’t have the skills to deal with family trauma.

     Tig has been an LA-based radio host and she has found a station in her  hometown of Bay St. Lucille that will air her program.  This series aired for two seasons on Amazon Prime.  The star of the series was glad when it was not renewed.

Drama, each episode 25-27 min, comedy starring Tig Notaro, Noah Harpster, John Rothman, directed by Ken Kwapis, Nicole Holofcener and Shira Priven.  3 1/2* (I liked this episode)   

Note:  Amazon 4 1/2* out of 5* with 3,649 reviews, Imdb 7.4 out of 10 with 3K ratings, Rotten Tomatoes 93% with 45 critic ratings 87% with 174 user ratings, Common Sense Media Joyce Slaton 4* out of 5*, age 14+, 1* violence, 2* positive role models and sex, 3* language, indiewire.com Grade A.

Special Note:  Amazon cancelled this series in 2018 because Louis C.K. was involved as a producer and five women accused him of sexual misconduct.  Tig Notaro was relieved when the series was cancelled.

Modern Love Season 2: Episode 1: On a Serpentine Road with the Top Down aired 8/12/2021

          This TV series is based on the New York Times’ column that explores relationships, love and the human connection.  35 min Episode 1 aired 8/12/2021.

     Love breaks all the rules.  Each episode of this anthology series brings to life different stories of relationships, connections, betrayals and revelations, all inspired by true events.

     Driving with the top down, I am reminded that I can shift gears, face risk, handle inconveniences in my own life.  I can even survive tragedy.  My partner says, ‘You love that car, you don’t have to sell it if you can’t seem to part with it.’  Your husband died but he was an extraordinary man and it’s OK to try to keep him near you.  As your partner, I don’t need to be jealous!!  5* (I really liked this episode)

Comedy, drama, romance starring Minnie Driver, Tom Burke and Gbenga Akinnagbe.

    

Amazon 3* out of 5* with 316 reviews, readysteadycut.com 3* out of 4*, The Guardian 3* out of 5*, decider.com 41.9% stream it, 31.6% skip it, Metacritic 61 out of 100 with 8 critic reviews.

Modern Love Season 2 episode 1 2021

           This TV series is based on the New York Times’ column that explores relationships, love and the human connection.  35 min Episode 1 aired 8/12/2021.

     Love breaks all the rules.  Each episode of the anthology series brings to life different stories of relationships, connections, betrayals and revelations, all inspired by true events.

     Stephanie Curran is a very busy doctor.  She has a daughter in college and one in elementary school.  Stephanie and her husband Niall are trying to figure out their finances and how they can up their savings.

     Driving with the top down in a vintage car, I am reminded that I can shift gears, face risk, handle inconveniences in my own life.  I can even survive tragedy.  My partner says, ‘You love that car, you don’t have to sell it if you can’t seem to part with it.’  Your husband died but he was an extraordinary man and it’s OK to try to keep him near you.  As your partner, I don’t need to be jealous!!  5* (I really liked this episode)

Comedy, drama, romance starring Minnie Driver, Tom Burke and Gbenga Akinnagbe.

Note:  The Guardian 3* out of 4*, Metacritic 61 out of 100 with 8 critic reviews, Amazon 3* out of 5* with 326 reviews 

Goliath Season 2 Episode 3 Fresh Flowers 2018

      This episode begins with a flashback from the events of three weeks ago.  Julio is on the steps of his house talking about the future with his girlfriend.  Oscar finds his older sons, Pedro and Martin dead on the sidewalk.  Julio finds a gun on Pedro’s body and puts it in his waistband.  In the next scenes we see Billy is woken up by JT and he thinks he has found the real killer based on Julio’s description.  It is a man named Tito Garcia.

      Billy meets with the judge, Martha Wallace and prosecutor Hakeem Rashad.  He tells them about Tito Garcia.  Billy wants to take Garcia’s testimony before the trial begins.  The prosecutor pushes back hard!!  Patty explains that they think Garcia is a flight risk.  He is an illegal alien and he could just cross over the border and go back to Mexico?

Directed by Dennie Gordon and written by Jennifer Ames, Steve Turner, Marisa Wegrzyn with Billy Bob Thornton, Nina Arianda, Ana de la Reguera, Tania Raymonde, Diana Hopper, Matthew Del Negro, Mark Duplass, Morris Chestnut, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Diego Josef, Paul Williams, Dominic Fumusa, Julie Brister, Alexandra Billings, Annika Marks.

Note:  Episode 50 min, Imdb 7.8* out of 10* with 765 reviews, Amazon 2 1/2* with 6,713 reviews, indiewire.com Grade B-, moviestreamgonline.com7.6* out of 10*, tv-recaps-reviews.com.

Let Me Call You Sweetheart 2018

      Kerry McGrath is a prosecutor and a mother.  Her daughter's face is cut in a car accident!!  Kerry is relieved that the plastic surgeon who treats her is the eminent Dr. Charles Smith.  Then, Kerry begins to notice something unusual?  Two of Smith's patients resemblance Suzanne Reardon?  She is a young woman killed eleven years earlier.  Why would Dr. Smith create faces that look like a murder victim?  This is a chilling tale of obsession by America's reigning queen of suspense, Mary Higgins Clark.

     It’s a minor accident that brings Kerry McGrath to the plastic surgeon’s office with her beloved daughter, Robin.  The doctor assures Kerry that her daughter’s scars will heal and she is very relieved. Kerry has an intense flash of recognition!  Suzanne Reardon was called the “Sweetheart Murder” victim. 

     As Kerry throws herself into a fresh investigation, each new piece of evidence she unearths reveals a disturbing set of questions.  Not only does everyone involved want to keep the case closed, it’s clear somebody will stop at nothing to keep it sealed forever?  3* (I liked this movie) 

92 min, mystery directed by Bill Corcoran and written by Mary Higgins Clark with Meredith Baxter, Victor Garber, Nick Mancuso, Joe Lisi, Colin Fox, Elizabeth Shepherd, Art Hindle, Louis Del Grande, James Purcell, Claire Cellucci, Karen Glave, Sophie Lang, Tony Lo Bianco, David Eisner.

Note:  Goodreads 3.87* out of 5* with 21,404 ratings and 442 reviews, Amazon 4.6* out of 5* with 328 ratings, Imdb 4.8* out of 10* with 142 reviews.

Frankie Drake Mysteries Season 1 Episode 2

     This episode it titled Ladies in Red.  Aired 11/13/2017.  Frankie receives an anonymous phone call that lures her to the Conroyd factory.  When she arrives, she becomes a victim of an explosion. A man's body found in the rubble is identified as the Conroyd bookkeeper Henry Logan.  Frankie has never met Mr. Logan and she never ever even heard him speak.  Later she announces that it was Henry Logan who phoned her.  However, she “thought” it was Logan who phoned her in order to meet her at the factory?  It is vaguely historically accurate that there was communist activity in the early 1920’s!!  There was initial widespread panic about this issue in the immediate aftermath of Russia’s Bolshevik revolution in 1917.

     This episode is more about labor equality, fair working conditions and sexism.  Frankie and a virtual army of women workers appear outside of the factory to confront their bosses, rescue Trudy and demand fair wages and working conditions!!!  This might not be realistic but it is sure a LOT of fun for the women!!!  There are many concerns facing families and people of color during this time period.  Frankie’s brother is torn between getting an education or leaving school and getting a job?  Frankie’s mother has to ask Trudy for rent money??  

     Mary Shaw’s character is something of a feminist statement.  She was raised in a law enforcement family and is currently employed as a Morality Office.  This means she’s reprimanding women for wearing skirts that are too short and giving local shops tickets for conduction of business on Sunday.  5* (I really like this series)

43 min, directed by Ruba Nadda witten by Carol Hay, Michelle Ricci, executive producer Christina Jennings, Cal Coons, Scott Garvie, producers Jonathan Hackett and Julie Lacey with Lauren Lee Smith, Chantel Riley, Rebecca Liddiar, Sharron Matthews, Emmanuel Kabongo, Grace Lynnn Kung.Note:  Season 1 Imdb 100% with 6 critic ratings 41% with 20 user ratings, telltaletv.com 3 1/2* out of 5* with 3 user ratings, Season 1 Amazon 4* out of 5* with 466 reviews.

A Stranger is Watching 1982

      This movie is based on a novel written by Mary Higgins Clark.  Julie the 11-year old daughter and also the girlfriend of a man whose wife had been raped and killed in front of his daughter three years earlier are kidnapped by the same killer.  They are held captive in a bunker below Grand Central Station, the two captives plot their escape while the police try to track the kidnapper.

     Beneath New York’s Grand Central Station, a killer can hide, victims can disappear and a million witnesses will never know it happened!!  Ronald Thompson knows he is not guilty of the murder for which he is about to be executed.  There are only two days left to unmask the real villain.  This person is a terrifying psychopath who has killed before and has unfinished business with his victim's family.

     The killer is the psychotic Artie Taggart.  He has imprisoned his captives below Grand Central Station.  He throws police into a race against time to save the girlfriend and daughter.  Plus, the police want desperately to catch the killer.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

92 min Crime directed by Sean S. Cunningham, written by Clark and Earl Mac Rauch and Victor Miller with Kate Mulgrew, Rip Torn, James Naughton, Shawn von Schreiber, Barbara Baxley, Stephen Joyce, James Russo, Frank Hamilton, Maggie Task, Roy Poole, Maurice Copeland.

Note:  Imdb 5.2* out of 10* with 637 reviews, Goodreads gives the book 4* out of 5*, 20,254 ratings, 466 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes 24% with 2,500+ ratings, Letterboxd 2,8* out of 5*.  

Goliath Season 2 Episode 3 Fresh Flowers 2018

      This episode begins with a flashback from the events of three weeks ago.  Julio is on the steps of his house talking about the future with his girlfriend.  Oscar finds his older sons, Pedro and Martin dead on the sidewalk.  Julio finds a gun on Pedro’s body and puts it in his waistband.

     In the next scenes we see Billy is woken up by JT and he thinks he has found the real killer based on Julio’s description.  It is a man named Tito Garcia.  Billy meets with the judge, Martha Wallace and prosecutor Hakeem Rashad.  He tells them about Tito Garcia.  Billy wants to take Garcia’s testimony before the trial begins.  The prosecutor pushes back hard!!  Patty explains that they think Garcia is a flight risk.  He is an illegal alien and he could just cross over the border and go back to Mexico?

Directed by Dennie Gordon and written by Jennifer Ames, Steve Turner, Marisa Wegrzyn with Billy Bob Thornton, Nina Arianda, Ana de la Reguera, Tania Raymonde, Diana Hopper, Matthew Del Negro, Mark Duplass, Morris Chestnut, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Diego Josef, Paul Williams, Dominic Fumusa, Julie Brister, Alexandra Billings, Annika Marks.

Note:  Episode 50 min, Imdb 7.8* out of 10* with 765 reviews, Amazon 2 1/2* with 6,713 reviews, indiewire.com Grade B-, moviestreamonline.com7.6* out of 10*, tv-recaps-reviews.com.

Little House on the Prairie (Bless All The Dear Children) Christmas Episode 1984

     In the second sequel of the popular TV series Laura and Almanzo are forced to go looking for Rose because she was kidnapped!!  A young orphan is looking for a home.  Jason Carter's wish to give his mother a happy Christmas are also parts of this story.

     I really like the little house on the prairie films but this movie is too far fetched?  I know Charles explains it as being an unusually warm winter but you hear loud crickets on the night they are looking for Sam.  He is the young orphaned boy.  He is with them while they are looking for Rose.  There would not be winter crickets?  Also the family acts like they must find the boy because soon because it will get colder that night.  A steaming hot thermos is shown in Edwards hand and you can see the exhaling of their breath when they find the boy.  But you still hear the crickets and then the rest of the scenes there is no more breath being seen.  

     Another flaw is that before they found out the boy was with them, they camped out one night and you can see the boy sleeping near Edward??  Then the next day, Edward find's the boy stowed away in the wagon.  During the whole movie one of the adults had to be in the back of the wagon because three do not fit on the seat?  They would have known he was with them on the first day.

Special Note:  "Bless All the Dear Children" includes the only instance in which Laura refers to Mr. Edwards by his first name.  

   

Mistake:  In the beginning, Charles Ingalls (Michael Landon) starts the narration stating that is is the winter of 1896.  Rose Wilder (Laura and Almanzo's daughter) is around 2 years old in this movie.  The real Rose Wilder was born in 1886 and she would be 10 years old.

    

90 min TV movie directed by Victor French, written by Chris Abbott, Laura Ingalls Wilder with Melissa Gilbert, Dean Butler, Richard Bull, Victor French, Kevin Hagen, Allison Balson, Stan Ivar, Pamela Roylance, Lindsay Kennedy, David Friedman, Shannon Doherty, Leslie Landon, Robert Casper.  

Note:  Imdb 7.6* out of 10* with 661 reviews, Amazon 5* with 437 reviews, vudu.com 4 1/2* with 1478 reviews, moviechat.org 7.6*  out of 10*, 

Letterboxed 3.4* out of 5*, google play 3*, https://18cinemalane.com 7.4* out of 10*.

Frankie Drake Mysteries Episode 1 2017-2021

      There are 41 episodes of this series and 4 seasons.  The original release was November 6, 2017 to March 8, 2021.  Frankie Drake is a female private detective operating her agency in Toronto in the 1920’s.  Frankie is Toronto's only female private detective in the 1920s.  She takes on the cases the police don't want or can't handle.  Along with her partner Trudy, Frankie and the Drake Detective Agency take on cases of all shapes and sizes.  She only hires women at her Agency.  From airplanes and booze running to American G-men, Communists and union busters are some of her cases.  Frankie's fearless sense of adventure gets her into all kinds of trouble but she always manages to find her way out. 

     In this episode titled Mother of Pearl, Frankie becomes a suspect in a jewelry heist.  In order to solve this case Frankie is forced to partner with an unlikely ally.  This series doesn't seem old-fashioned except for the cars and the clothing.  It is definitely the age of jazz!!  I really like the cars of this period and Frankie also has a motorcycle.  I think it is very interesting.  5 1/2* (I really like this series)

Note:  Directed by Ruba Nadda and developed for television by Carol Hay, Michelle Ricci and Cal Coons with Lauren Lee Smith, Chantel Riley, Rebecca Liddiard, Sharron Matthews, Wendy Crewson, Grace Lynn Kung, Anthony Lemke Johnathan Sousa, Romaine Waite, Karen Robinson, Emmanuel Kabongo, John Koensgen.   

Note:  Imdb 6.8* out of 10* with 1.9K ratings, Rotten Tomatoes 100% with 6 critic ratings 41% user ratings 41% out of 20 reviews, Amazon 4.5* out of 5* for Season 1, indiewire.com Grade B, telltaletv.com 3 1/2* out of 5* Lucy Baugher.

 

Special Note:  Each episode is 44 min.  Release date June 15, 2019 in the US, production companies Shaftesbury Films, Cana Media Fund, Independent Production Fund.

Sound of Metal 2019

      Keeping at bay his inner demons by devoting himself to art, heavy metal drummer Ruben has been living for the moment for the past four years.  He is a former drug addict but he’s trying to stay clean.  Unexpectedly, while on tour with his lead-singer/girlfriend Lou, Ruben realizes that his hearing is rapidly deteriorating.  How will he be able to continue in his profession if he is deaf? 

    This sudden hearing loss turns Ruben's world upside down and numbing fear paired with angry denial take over.  Ruben reluctantly joins a small deaf community overseen by Joe.  Joe is a compassionate Vietnam War veteran.  Ruben will need to find some solid ground.  He also needs to understand that being deaf is not a handicap.  Deafness isn't something to fix but something to overcome.  Is Ruben willing to accept his new life and learn how to be deaf?  Other complications are that Ruben is low on money and his partner Lou has left him.  She doesn’t understand the deaf world that Ruben has joined??  5 1/2* (I really liked this movie) 

Note:  Imdb 7/8* out of 10* with 101 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes 97% with 274 reviews 90% with 1000+ audience scores, Metacritic 82 out of 100 with 37 critic reviews 7.9 out of 10 with 183 ratings, Roger Ebert 3 1/2* Brian Tallerico, The Guardian 5* Mark Kermonde, indiewire.com A- Eric Kohn.

Special Note:  Paul Raci plays Joe and he is the founder of the deaf rehab facility.  He isn't actually deaf but both his parents were deaf.  He is a prominent figure in the deaf community as a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) and a member of Hands of Doom, a band that performs in ASL.  Ruben gets simultaneous bilateral cochlear implants and he is sent on his way.  Actually, he would first be evaluated for suitability, including his commitment to learning how to process the new sounds.  He would be expected to begin the work after activation and he would be informed of the differences between his past hearing and his new experience up front.  None of this is Ruben's version of getting the implants?    

120 min, directed and written by Darius Marder also written by Abraham Marder, story by Derek Cianfrance with Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci, Lauren Ridloff, Mathieu Amalric, Chelsea Lee, Chris Perfetti, Bill Thorpe, Michael Tow, Lauren Ridloff, Domenico Toledo, Shaheem Sanchez, Bill Thorpe, Tom Kemp, Elan Sicroff, Ezra Marder. 

When We Last Spoke 2019

      This movie is based on a book written by Marci Henna.  It has the heart and humor of Fannie Flagg’s Fried Green Tomatoes and Rebecca Wells’s Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood.  Author Marci Henna introduces you to the Cranbourne family.  The setting is 1967 in the small town of Fireside.  They are a mostly lovable and undoubtedly nutty family who’ve had more than their fair share of hard times.  Sisters Juliet and Evangeline are abandoned by their mother when she leaves them at their grandparents country home.  She has gone back to New York to resume her singing career and the small town where they were living is too dull for her.  Their father has gone to fight in the war in Vietnam and it is unknown when he will be home again.  

     This film is about two sisters that grow up with their grandparents.  They are very fortunate that their grandparents are loving people and they represent good values.  It is about the things they learned, the love they felt and how it influenced their lives when the went out on their own.  This nostalgic American family drama spans decades, touches on Europe of the early 20th century, the Vietnam War, rural vs. urban life, death, grief, growing up without your parents and how much they are missed in the lives of children.  

     The characters are charming enough to draw in both kids and grownups.  It offers the uplifting message that in challenging times it's good to forgive and do one's best.  Adultery is mentioned, a mother abandons her children.  Language includes "hell."  Kids vandalize a front yard with toilet paper, they fight and throw dirt in someone's eye.  5 1/2* (I really liked this movie)

107 min, directed by Joanne Hock, with Cloris Leachman, Corbin Bernsen, Melissa Gilbert, Darby and Lucy Camp, Chandler Head, Alicia Fusting, Johanna Jowett, Julia Denton, Donny Boaz, Jayden Fontaine, Braxton Bjerken, Hope Ivers.

 

Note:  Imdb 8* out of 10*, Rotten Tomatoes 78% with less than 50 ratings, Amazon 4 1/2* with 2662 reviews, goodreads.com 4.16* out of 5* with 96 ratings and 31 reviews, commonsensemedia.com 1* sex and Language, 2* violence, 3* positive messages and positive role models & representations. 

Goliath Season 2 Episode 2 Politics 2018

      After a brutal court loss, Billy decides to formally take on Julio Suarez’s defense. But before he can go back to court, he has to get his team back together.    

     Billy has taken the case concerning Oscar’s son Julio.  Billy is going to present an alibi for Julio.  Oscar walks out of Billy’s hostel room to go to the hearing and a car pulls up.  A man shoots Oscar twice in the chest and he dies with Billy holding him.

 

     Billy doesn’t want to work another murder case but he has no choice after what has happed to Oscar and his son Julio.  Brittany is back working with Billy and this is unexpected because it was thought she would need to mend their relationship first?  Billy tells Patty that the only thing that is unforgivable is murder.  Billy starts getting his team back together.  He is also still seeing mayoral candidate Marisol Silva.  It is probably not a good idea for Billy to be seeing Marisol??  It can compromise the case and also possibly her campaign?  3* (This episode is OK)

Note:  Imdb 7.7* out of 10* with 795 reviews, indie wire.com Grade B, movies

streamonline.com7.6 B, out of 10*, Amazon 2.5* out of 5*, tv-recaps-reviews.com B-, tv-recaps-reviews.com B-.

Special Note:  The Ocean Lodge Motel was originally opened 1958 by Walt Disney’s personal accountant, Arthur Gregory.  

51 min episode directed by Lawrence Trilling, written by Noelle Valdivia, Tony Saltzman and David E. Kelley with Billy Bob Thornton, Nina Arianda, Ana de la Reguera, Tania Raymonde, Diana Hopper, Matthew Del Negro, Mark Duplass, Morris Chestnut, David Cross, Diego Josef, Paul Williams, Dominic Fumusa, Julie Brister, Alexandra Billings, Toni Torres.

Loves Music, Loves to Dance 2001

      The best friend of talk-show producer Darcy Scott is murdered while preparing a report about internet dating.  Darcy sets out to discover who the killer is and she is convinced it's one of the men her friend met online.  When Shona is talking to Darcy about topics for the show, as she walks away she says (to the group of men she is going to talk to) "Mr. Grosso! Mr. Jacobson!” and those are the names of the actual producers of this movie.  

     Loves Music, Loves to Dance is another Sonny Grosso-produced TV movie based on a Mary Higgins Clark novel.  There are some familiar Canadian actors, Cynthia Preston, Dean McDermott and Alan Hall.  It also stars Patsy Kensit, she is in the role of Darcy Scott, the producer of a trash-talk TV show.  Her friend Erin (Cynthia Preston) is doing a story for her on Internet dating.  When Erin is found murdered, Darcy is convinced the murder is committed by one of the men she dated and she sets out to find the killer!!  

     These Mary Higgins Clark TV movies are like seeing accidents, you can't help but look.  You determine to watch all of them, even though some are not very good.  This one is full of holes, especially the first scene when a woman is murdered a few feet away from a big party and she didn't scream her guts out?  It moves a little faster than some of the past adaptations.  Kensit does a good job and Preston playing Faith Roscoe on General Hospital, is lively.  Justin Louis plays the police detective assigned to the case.  Mary Higgins Clark's agent (I’m assuming) could have sold these books to anyone but the Grosso-Jacobsen group was chosen?

95 min with Patsy Kensit, Cynthia Preston, Dean McDermott Frank Pellegrino, Yannick Bisson, Louis Ferreira, Taborah Johnson, Michael Rhodes, Eugene Clark, Allan Royal, Lawrence Bayne, Robert Morelli.

Note:  Goodreads gives the book 3.92 avg rating, 26,444 ratings, published 1991,92 editions, Imdb 5* out of 10* with 338 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes 45% with 50+ audience scores, Letterboxd 1* (5%), 4 1/2* (19%), 2* 8 (32%), 3 2 1/2* (14%), 3* 4 (19%, 1 4* (5%), Amazon 3.3* out of 5* with 21 ratings, The Movie Scene 2* out of 5*. 

Goliath Season 2 Episode 1 La Mano 2018

      Billy McBride is reluctantly pulled back into criminal defense when his friend's 16- year-old son is arrested for a double murder.  It has been almost two years since Billy won his case against Borns Tech.   A successful Los Angeles developer wants to give the city a distinct skyline.  He is also a major contributor to mayoral candidate Marisol Silva’s campaign.  Her campaign platform is the removal of drugs from Los Angeles.  Billy is also involved with Gabriel and he is a cartel kingpin.  Gabriel has asked Billy to help cover up the murders that Billy is trying to expose in court.  

     Marisol Silva is a new companion for Billy and they start hanging out together.  Billy seems to have spent a LOT of time after his big win at the bottom of a bottle?  He is still out at his regular bar and he still lives in the seedy motel.  He does have a new case when Oscar tells him that his youngest son has been arrested for a double homicide.  The police are the only ones that actually believe 16 year old Julio committed the murders.  It is suspected that the murders were retaliation for the deaths of Julio’s older brothers.  There is a lot of brutality and strangeness in this episode and season!!!  3* (this episode is OK)

Episode 50 min directed by Lawrence Trilling and written by Ben Myer, David E. Kelley, Jonathan Shapiro with Billy Bob Thornton, Ana De la Reguera, Tania Raymonde, Diana Hopper, Matthew Del Negro, Mark Duplass, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Lou Diamond Phillips, Diego Josef. Dominic Fumusa, Julie Brister, Zachary James Rukavina, Toni Torres.

Note:  Imdb 7.9* out of 10* with 945 reviews, IndieWire Grade B-, Amazon 2.5* out of 5*, tv-recaps-reviews.com B-, moviestreamonline.com 7.6* out of 10*, Amazon 2.5* out of 5*.

Where are the Children? 1986

     Nancy Harmon has long ago fled the heartbreak of her first marriage and the deaths of her two small children.  She has also forced aside the hostile front-page newspaper stories and the shocking charges against her.  She changed her name, dyed her red hair sable brown and left California for the wind-swept comforts of Cape Cod.  She is now remarried, she has two more beloved children and the terrible pain she has felt has begun to heal.  That is until the morning when she looks in the backyard for her little boy and girl and finds only one red mitten!!  She knows that the same nightmare she faced before is beginning again!!  It is easy to get wrapped up in this film because the storyline is very gripping.  You can’t help but want to know more about what happened and what will happen.

     In this movie, the viewer isn't trying to guess who committed the crime?  You know who the kidnapper is from the beginning.  A good portion of the movie is from his pint of view.  The reason you would want to watch this movie are basically two-fold.  To learn why there was a kidnapping and to find out if they will be saved before the crimes mentioned in the beginning reoccur.

     This movie is gripping and suspenseful and you just HAVE TO see what what happens to the children.  It doesn't mean the movie is perfect.  I couldn't help feeling at times that the plot and all the happenstance meetings felt contrived.  I think some of this is due to how the movie is laid out with popping back and forth between previous events during suspenseful moments.  The movie also never really gives a reason why the 'bad-guy' was actually at that location.  Why did he want to torment Nancy?  I also have a complaint about the 'why' she lost her first set of children but it is a major spoiler!!   3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

97 min directed by Bruce Malmuth, written by Mary Higgins Clark and Jack Shoulder with jIll Clayburgh, Max Gail, Harley Cross, Elisabeth Harnois, Elizabeth Wilson, Barnard Hughes, Frederic Forrest, James Purcell, Clifton James, Eriq La Salle, Joseph Hindy, Devin Ratray.

Note:  Goodreads gives the book 4.02* out of 5* avg rating, 46,400 ratings, published 1975, 111 editions, Amazon 4.7* out of 5* with 917 ratings, Rotten Tomatoes 33% with 6 Tomatometer reviews 62% audience score with 50 ratings, Imdb 5.7* out of 10* with 250 reviews. 

I’ll Be Seeing You 2004

      A woman is murdered and when she is found the police assume she's Patricia Collins.  But, when they call her home to tell her mother, Collins answers so they ask her to come see the woman.  She is shocked to see she looks exactly like her!!  And, it appears she was on her way to see Patricia.  Patricia learns that the woman is her half sister and she was coming to see her about their father who disappeared some time ago.  She thinks that the person who was responsible for her father's disappearance was the one who killed her half sister to keep her from telling Patricia what she knows.

     Movies based on novels by Mary Higgins Clark have a lot of mystery and that can keep you involved.  They can also be very cheesy and less than subtle with  annoying added in??  There is also another problem for this family because Patricia and her mother have been renovating a dude ranch.  The insurance company won't pay after the death of Patricia's father.  His body was never found after a bridge accident.  3 1/2* (I liked this movie)

96 min, mystery written by Mary Higgins Clark, directed by Will Dixon, written by Jeffrey Cohen and john Benjamin Martin with Alison Eastwood, Iris Quinn, Bo Svenson, Derwin Jordan, Richy Muller, Mark Humphrey, Margot Kidder, Matthew Walker, Amy Matysio, Jennifer Miles, Rob Roy.

Special Note:  There is a film with the same title from 1944.

Note:  Imdb 5.2* out of 10* with 280 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes 75% with 250+ ratings, The Movie Scene 2* out of 5*, vudu.com 3* out of 5* with 28 ratings, Netflix.com 3* out of 5*.

Red Rock Season 1 Episode 4 2015

     A decomposed body is uncovered near where a foot was found.  Dunne is horrified to learn it is Donna Burke.  Dunne oversteps the mark while interviewing Tony Doyle.  Callaghan berates Dunne for worrying about calling off Donna Burke's search.  Dunne's aghast at Callaghan's attitude.  Ash explains she didn't say anything about Dunne as she didn't want people thinking he'd give her an easy time.  Paudge is miffed that Sharon didn’t tell him she'd applied to the SDU.  Upset and also drunk, he bothers Linda.  Sharon learns that Jim was at a funeral/wake on the day that Robbie was killed.  He could not have killed Donna like he has claimed? After being beaten up in prison, Jim dies.

     There is a LOT going on in this episode.  Donna Burke was a prostitute but she didn’t deserve to die.  Her daughter is brought in to be questioned to see if she knows anything about the murder of her mother?  This is a tough inquiry!!  It’s possible that Callaghan knows more about Donna Burke than he lets on??

 

TV Series, crime, each episode 22 min, created by Peter McKenna with Patrick Bergin, Andrea Irvine, David Crowley, Nic Furlong, Jane McGrath David McMahon, Leah Minto, Conor Mullen, Chris Newman, Barry O’Connor, Roisin O’Donovan, Michael O’Kelly, Rebecca O’Mara.