Comedy Tragedy Marriage

Ray Milland won an Oscar for his portrayal of an alcoholic writer on the edge of the abyss in Billy Wilder’s “The Lost Weekend.”

The finish line is in sight as Maude’s #MCU education continues with “Black Panther.”

The life of talented author, chef and world traveler Anthony Bourdain is examined using archival footage and interviews with co-workers, family, friends and lovers.

Maude gets her first taste of #MCU action in a theater as we watch and discuss Marvel’s “Black Widow.”

A family faces two tragedies and slowly disintegrates in the 1980 Academy Award winning film “Ordinary People.”

It’s a happy reunion when Peter Quill meets his dad, Ego the Living Planet, but it soon turns bittersweet in “Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol.2.”

The month Maude and Stan got married, the most popular movie in America was “Top Gun,” starring Tom Cruise, Kelly McGillis, Anthony Edwards and Val Kilmer.

The origin story of the Sorcerer Supreme is the subject of Maude’s continuing #MCU education in “Doctor Strange.”

Maude continues to live in the past, from her movie selection point of view, with 1947’s “It Happened on 5th Avenue.”

Maude and I continue their deep dive into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with “Captain America: Civil War.”

A marriage at its end is looked back on via the music highlighting significant events in 1941’s “Penny Serenade” starring Irene Dunne and Cary Grant.

The hubris of Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) leads to the near destruction of humanity in Marvel’s “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”

Elizabeth Taylor won an Oscar for her performance in the over cooked melodrama “BUtterfield 8.”

If you’re looking for a quick staycation, take a trip to outer space with the “Guardians of the Galaxy” as Maude continues her Marvel Cinematic Universe catch up.

Jimmy Stewart plays a wide-eyed idealist who is appointed to fill the term of a deceased senator in Frank Capra’s “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.”

Maude’s continuing MCU education continues with “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.”

The life and times of a Texas original, Ann Richards, is the subject of the Tony Award nominated play “Ann,” available to watch on the PBS streaming app.

When the world needs saving you call the only team that can get the job done, assuming they don’t kill each other first, “The Avengers.”

Anna Mae Bullock lived a life of abuse and abandonment before she met Ike Turner who changed her name, married her and began to physically abuse her. Despite this, she found the courage to strike out on her own and become the icon we all know as Tina Turner. Her life is the subject of the HBO Max documentary “Tina.”

Maude’s introduction to the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues with “Captain America: The First Avenger.”

While amazingly talented, Billie Holiday lived a tragically short life filled with pain, heartache, betrayal, drugs, booze and the music she filled with her soul.

He may be the God of Thunder, but he needs to learn he’s not the center of the universe in Thor, starring Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman and Tom Hiddleston.

Roger Ailes made Fox News incredibly popular and profitable while also making it his sexual hunting ground. His downfall is dramatized in the 2019 film “Bombshell.”

Frances McDormand lives the van life in the subtle, beautiful and devastating “Nomadland,” directed by Chloe Zhao and available to stream on Hulu.

Olson Welles famously considered “The Magnificent Ambersons” the biggest betrayal by Hollywood of his career as the final edit was taken away from him and much of his work was changed. Still, the film is considered among the greatest films of all time. But is it?