Movie Reviews and Other Writings

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is about Lloyd Vogel, a cynical, misanthropic magazine writer, who is assigned to profile Fred Rogers, the creator and star of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Lloyd is also grappling with the reemergence of his absent father and through his conversations with Mr. Rogers, learns to cope with his anger and all of his feelings surrounding his childhood. The film stars Matthew Rhys, Tom Hanks, Susan Kelechi Watson, Maryann Plunkett, Enrico Colanto

Knives Out is a murder mystery in which the patriarch of a family is found dead from an apparent suicide after the night of his 85th birthday party. A detective is called in to investigate the death as there is more than a reasonable doubt that the suicide is actually a murder. Everyone of the family who was at the party is a suspect. All of them have motive to want the old man's fortune for themselves. The film stars Ana de Armas, Daniel Craig, LaKeith Stanfield, Chris Evans

The Irishman is the story of Frank Sheeran who from the 1960s on was a middleman between the Italian mob and union leader Jimmy Hoffa. In that time he was an enforcer, a union chapter president, father, and bodyguard. The film stars Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Al Pacino. It is directed by Martin Scorsese. All my life I've waited to see a three hour plus movie that could hold my attention the entire time. That's a paraphrase of the first line from Goodfellas, but you get th

Ford v. Ferrari is about the Ford Motor Company's attempt to make a car that could beat Ferrari's car in The 24-hours at Le Mans road race. They enlist maverick designer Carroll Shelby and hot-headed driver Ken Miles to get the job done. It stars Matt Damon, Christian Bale, Jon Bernthal, Josh Lucas, Ray Mckinnon, Caitriona Balfe, Noah Jupe, and Tracy Letts. It is directed by James Mangold. With films like Ford v. Ferrari, genuine story or pathos can be buried deep beneath the

The Laundromat is in the grand scheme of things about the Panama Papers, which revealed many incredibly wealthy people were using shell companies and off shore accounts as tax havens. In the smaller sense it is about a middle class retiree attempting to understand how her husband's death is passed from shell to shell to shell, until no real company comes forward to claim the full responsibility. It stars Meryl Streep, Antonio Banderas, Gary Oldman, and a whole host of others

The King is about the ascendancy of King Henry V of England. Henry wishes to bring an end to his father's constant war and to unite his entire kingdom, but acts of war from France sidetrack his plans and send him on a quest to claim his honor by invading France and forcing a surrender of their lands. It stars Timothee Chalamet, Sean Harris, Joel Edgerton, Robert Pattinson and Ben Mendelsohn. It is co-written and directed by David Michod. The diplomat in me has an answer when

Jojo Rabbit is a satirical film about a German boy enamored with the Hitler Youth and Nazism in the waning days of World War II. He dreams of being in Hitler's personal guard and even has a version of Hitler as his imaginary friend to help steer him in the "right" direction. The film stars Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie, Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell, Rebel Wilson, Alfie Allen, Stephen Merchant and Taika Waititi. The film is written and directed by Taika Waititi. I

Harriet is a film about Harriet Tubman, a slave who freed herself and became one of the most important and prolific conductors on the Underground Railroad and an important commander in the Union Army during the Civil War. The film stars Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom, Jr., Omar Dorsey, Clarke Peters, Vanessa Bell Calloway, and Joe Alwyn. It is co-written and directed by Kasi Lemmons. In a film like this, there is often a trope used to give more credit to the white people that may