FRIDAY FAMILY FILM NIGHT

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing THE BATMAN (2022), currently streaming on HBO Max.  The film, directed by Matt Reeves, follows Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson) who's trying to solve the mystery of all these high ranking officials being taken out throughout Gotham City.  With help from an inside contact, Jim Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) and a young woman named, Selina (Zoë...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing STEEL MAGNOLIAS (1989), from writer/playwright Robert Harling and directed by Herbert Ross.  The film follows the story of a group of Southern women friends as they navigate their lives and relationships.  The star studded cast includes Sally Field (M'Lynn), Dolly Parton (Truvy), Shirley MacLaine (Ouiser), Olympia Dukakis (Clairee), Daryl Hannah...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing BETTER NATE THAN EVER (2022), currently streaming on Disney+.  The film follows Nate (Rueby Wood) who's biggest goal in life is to go to Broadway and be a star, following in the footsteps of his Aunt Heidi (Lisa Kudrow).  His BFF Libby (Aria Brooks) puts him onto the NY casting for a new Broadway show based on LILO AND STITCH. &n...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing THE PIANO (1993), from writer/director Jane Campion.  The film follows the story of Ada (Holly Hunter - Best Oscar Actress winner) and her daughter, Flora (Anna Paquin - Best Supporting Actress winner), who travel to New Zealand to come and live with Ada's new husband (Sam Neill).  Her husband gives her prized possession, a piano, to George Baine...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing MONSTER TRUCKS (2016), currently streaming on Prime and Paramount+, as well as for rent on other platforms.  The film follows Tripp (Lucas Till) who discovers Creech, a creature he finds in the local junkyard he works at.  The two instantly bond and form a friendship that is threatened by large corporations that are trying to capture...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing THE EXORCIST (1973), which is currently streaming on Netflix.  Written for the screen, from his novel of the same name, William Peter Blatty's story is one of faith and sacrifice.  Exquisitely directed by William Friedkin, this film was the first horror movie to be nominated at the Oscars and won awards in the Adapted Screenplay and Sou...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing THE ADAM PROJECT (2022), currently streaming on Netflix.  The film tells the story of Adam Reed in 2050 (Ryan Reynolds) who time jumps to the past and accidentally finds himself in 2022 where he meets 12 year old Adam Reed (Walker Scobell), a young man who is still grieving the loss of his father.  From here we get swept up in somethi...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing DRIVE MY CAR (2021), which is currently streaming on HBO Max.  Written and directed by Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, with additional writing credits to Takamasa Oe and based on the short story by Haruki Murakami, this film tells the story of a man learning to carry on after the death of his wife.  Yûsuke Kafuku (played by Hidetoshi Nishijima) is a...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing FLEE (2021), currently streaming on Hulu.  The film tells the story of Amin Nawabi who recounts his time as a young child in Afghanistan and how his family soon finds themselves in danger and begin an exodus out of the country.  The wind up in Moscow where their situation goes from bad to worse and in order to survive the family must...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing CODA (2021), which is currently streaming on Apple TV.  Written and directed by Siân Heder, this film is a remake of La Famille Bélier from 2014.  In this incarnation of the story, Ruby, (exceptionally played by Emilia Jones) is the only hearing member of the Rossi family - both parents Frank and Jackie (also exceptionally played by Troy Kotsur a...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing Pixar's TURNING RED (2022), currently streaming on Disney+.  The film tells the story of 13 year old Meilin (voiced by Rosalie Chiang), who's going through some things as a young teen but has the love and support of her besties Miriam (Ava Morse), Abby (Hyein Park) and Priya (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan).  One day an old family "curse" befa...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing FRESH (2022), which is currently streaming on Hulu.  Directed by Mimi Cave, with writing credits to Lauryn Kahn, the film follows Noa (Daisy Edgar-Jones), a young woman who's just trying to make a connection as she navigates the treacherous world of dating.  After a particularly disastrous date, she heads over to do some late night supermarket sh...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing THE HOUSE (2022), currently streaming on Netflix.  The film, told in three parts but focusing around a house is directed by Emma De Swaef and Marc James Roels (segment "I: And Heard Within a Lie Is Spun"); Niki Lindroth von Bahr (segment "II: Then Lost Is Truth That Can't Be Won") and Paloma Baeza (segment "III: Listen Again and Seek the S...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing WEST SIDE STORY (2021), which is currently streaming on HBO Max and Disney+.  Directed by Steven Spielberg, with writing credits to Tony Kushner, the film is a remake of the 1957 musical WEST SIDE STORY by Jerome Robbins, Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim and Arthur Laurents (playwright).  The film tells the story of 1950s NYC and the rivalry o...

As we start women's history month, the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE (2017), currently streaming on Prime.  The film, directed and written by Lynne Ramsay, from a novel by Jonathan Ames, tells the story of a man (Joaquin Phoenix) haunted by past traumas who finds his life shattered when his rescue of a young girl (Ekaterina Samsonov) from traffickers...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing FAST COLOR (2018), which is currently streaming on Hulu.  Directed by Julia Hart, with writing credits to Julia Hart and Jordan Horowitz, the film follows Ruth (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), a woman with superhuman abilities who's been on the run for years, chased by people trying to use her and her powers to repair the planet.  With nowhere to go, she goes...

As we close out Black History Month, the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT (1967), currently streaming on HBO Max.  The film has a screenplay written by Stirling Silliphant, from a novel by James Ball, and directed by Norman Jewison.  The film tells the story of how Virgil Tibbs (the late, great Sidney Poitier) who finds himself being wrongly accused...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing KIMI (2022), which is currently streaming on HBO Max.  Written by David Koepp and directed by Steven Soderbergh, the film follows Angela (Zoë Kravitz), an agoraphobic, work from home, tech worker who discovers something disturbing while reviewing audio snippets.  She digs deeper and soon realizes that what she has is concrete audio evidence of a...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing RED NOTICE (2021), currently streaming on Netflix.  Written and directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber, the film tells the story of Nolan Booth (Ryan Reynolds) who is being pursued for having the dubious honor of being one of the world's greatest art thieves.  John Hartley (Dwayne Johnson) an American government agent is hot on his heels...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing NIGHTMARE ALLEY (2021), which is currently streaming on HBO Max and based on the book by William Lindsay Gresham that follows the story of Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper), a man making his way in the world who becomes part of a traveling sideshow and falls in love with one of the performers (Rooney Mara).  They leave to make their own way and the st...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE (2021), based on 1984's GHOSTBUSTERS from Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd.  This film has a screenplay by Jason Reitman and Gil Kenan and is directed by Jason Reitman.  The film tells the story of single mom, Callie (Carrie Coon) who uproots her kids, Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) and Trevor (Finn Wolfhard) to the middle...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing THE LAST DUEL (2021), which is currently streaming on HBO Max and based on the book by Eric Jager that follows the story of the last trial by combat in the Middle Ages.  With screenplay credits to Nicole Holofcener, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon and directed by Ridley Scott; the film follows the true events that transpired betwee...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing IN THIS CORNER OF THE WORLD (2016), which we watched on Netflix.  From a manga by Fumiyo Kono with screenplay credits to Sunao Katabuchi and Chie Uratani, and directed by Sunao Katabuchi; the film follows the life of Suzu, a young girl from Hiroshima in the 1900s who is growing up right before WW2.  The film follows her from a young g...

In which the Mister joins me in reviewing THE POWER OF THE DOG (2021), which is currently streaming on Netflix.  Written and directed by Jane Campion and based on the novel by Thomas Savage; the film follows two brothers, Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) and George (Jesse Plemons) who in 1925, own a very successful cattle ranch.  They are the two most opposites of people - Phil is highly inte...

In which the Mister and Monsters join me in reviewing RON'S GONE WRONG (2021), which we watched on Disney+. Directed by Sarah Smith, Jean-Philippe Vine and Octavio E. Rodriguez; with screenplay credit to Peter Baynham and Sarah Smith, the film follows a lonely boy named Barney (Jack Dylan Grazer) longs to fit in with his classmates and their robots by getting one of his own. Unable to afford one f...