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From the Couch Hole: Best of the Rest 2023 – You Can Burn The Midnight Oil With Me

From 2005-2013 and 2014-2022, I punctuated each year with an ever increasingly complex Best of List. In 2021 I returned ...
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From the Couch Hole: Best of TV/Streaming 2023 – Every Day Here Is the Freakin’ Super Bowl

From 2005-2013 and 2017-2020, I punctuated each year with an ever increasingly complex Best Of List. In 2021, I returned ...
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From the Couch Hole: Best of Film 2023 – I Still Don’t Understand What the Play Is About

From 2005 through 2013 and then, after a hiatus, from 2017-2021, I have punctuated each year with an ever increasingly ...
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From the Couch Hole: How Long It’s Been Since Yesterday

Previously on FTCH, Priscilla told a horse's tale about the bling ring. The lullaby was a cure and it was ...
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Cinema Sentries 2023 Holiday Gift Guide

Gift buying for others is not always so easy. That's why we here at Cinema Sentries have compiled a holiday ...
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My 2023 TCM Classic Film Festival Schedule

The 2023 TCM Classic Film Festival is right around the corner, and it is time to start planning my schedule. ...
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Stranger Things 2016, Drama, 4 seasons cover image

From the Couch Hole: Best of TV/Streaming 2022 – Let Justice Be Done Though the Heavens Fall

From 2005-2013 and 2017-2020, I punctuated each year with an ever increasingly complex Best Of List. In 2021, I returned ...
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Universal Classic Monsters Icons Of Horror Collection Poster

The Cinema Sentries 2022 Gift Guide

Holiday shopping gets a big push this time of year. In response, the Sentries offer gift-idea suggestions as you shop ...
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The hostess scary cakes, a packet view

From the Couch Hole: Why Worry When It’s Warm Over Here

Previously on FTCH, Michael was back for Halloween, Ben returned, and Jet Screamer made an appearance. The Hocus Pocus were fruity, ...
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Poster of west side Story, movie

From the Couch Hole: Got My Good Side On

Previously on FTCH, we had pebbles that were fruity and pretzels that were beer cheese. We had a skeleton crew, four ...
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The poster of a film the man with an image

From the Couch Hole: And Talking Is the Only Way, Then Rap On

Previously on FTCH, we pumped it up with cinnafuego and a fruit mix-up. There was a prince, a pauper, and uncut ...
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View of two baby black dogs are sitting

From the Couch Hole: Until You Can Feel It

Previously on FTCH, we were cheeto cheese and peach cobbler. We were pulp and mash in dream world and the dark ...
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Comic-Con International: San Diego 2022 Friday Program Highlights

Friday's programming schedule has been released. I have less conflicts than yesterday, but looks like the day is going to ...
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Comic-Con International: San Diego 2022 Thursday Program Highlights

Previously when going over convention schedules to create articles like this, my intention is to attend most, if not all, ...
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From the Couch Hole Special Edition: Best of 2006 Redux (You’re Gonna Walk with Me and Talk with Me)

I'm taking a break on the First Anniversary of FTCH. I love my usual format because it allows me to ...
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A Striped cat laying on the bed

From the Couch Hole: And Nobody Knows Like Me

Previously on FTCH, it was a COVID-delayed episode that featured purple thunder and a machine that can create rainstorms. There were ...
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Cheetos flaming hot sweet, Carolina rapper in a plate

From the Couch Hole: I Have a Picture Pinned to My Wall

Previously on FTCH, it was a flamin' hot episode with old bay seasoning. There was lawn mowing and fire starting and ...
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KitKat blueberry muffin in a plate on table

From the Couch Hole: I’ll Be the Ticket If You’re My Collector

Previously on FTCH, there was a striptease with a divorce at a funeral. We mixed cinnamon toast with charms and for ...
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Portrait of domestic short haired cat

From The Couch Hole: Under Blue Moon, I Saw You

Previously on FTCH, Tom Sawyer was abroad and everything was everywhere. At the same time, the city was on fire, ...
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Old El Paso Takis Fuego Stand N Stuff Taco poster

From the Couch Hole: Inside You the Time Moves

Previously on FTCH, we had a week dedicated to the Nineties. There were Langoliers and Violent Femmes. There was Armageddon ...
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My (Tentative) 2022 TCM Classic Film Festival Schedule

The COVID pandemic resulted in the cancellation of many activities. One that I have missed the most is the TCM ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: I Can’t Wait to See You

Previously on FTCH, there were thin Kit Kats and Twinkies in your creamer. We visited Berlin, French Connection, and Batwoman ...
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From the Couch Hole: Just Afloat On The Sea

Previously on FTCH, there was a Stargirl and a Sugar Free Space cola. I included an hombre, a prophet, and ...
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From the Couch Hole: The Sky Above Won’t Fall Down

Previously on FTCH, there was Coke from Space and no one Leggo'd our Pop-Tarts. There was soft skin, ghosts, and ...
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From the Couch Hole: Gold and Silver Shine

Previously on FTCH, there was cheese in the crackers, rabbits on the run, and a death on the Nile. We ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Seven Horses Seem to Be on the Mark

Previously on FTCH, there was a Fantastic Planet, fantastic birthday cookies, and two fantastic detectives. We asked you to hold ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Turn All the Lights up to Ten

Previously on FTCH, we had a flamin' hot time with Yellowstone, chocolate Oreos and we adored Prince at his best. ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: I’m Just Trying to Say

Previously on FTCH, we welcomed some clusters of the Reese's and Oreo Toffee variety. There was a ride along with ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: When the Little Things You’re Doing Don’t Turn Out Right

Previously on FTCH, we started the new season with King, Mountain Dew (your constant writer's weaknesses) and we spiced up ...
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A black colored dog staring at the camera

From the Couch Hole: It’s Only a Heartbeat Away

Previously on FTCH, your last regular episode featured a doggy named Bobby and cookies with a doggy named Snoopy on ...
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The view of the another year has come and gone poster

From the Couch Hole: Best of the Rest 2021 – No Need to Worry, No Need to Cry

From 2005 through 2013, my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog punctuated each year with an ever increasingly complex Best Of List. ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Best of TV/Streaming 2021 – Like a Rainbow Crafted by a Drunken Leprechaun

From 2005 through 2013, my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog punctuated each year with an ever increasingly complex Best Of List. ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Best of Film 2021: Don’t Cry in My Office

From 2005 through 2013, my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog punctuated each year with an ever increasingly complex Best Of List. ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Keep On Keeping On

Previously on FTCH, we walked with Hendrix, Who, and Woo. There were hot almonds, sour corns, and gingerbread candy bars. ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: So Now You’ve Caught On

Previously on FTCH, we dove into sad ads with Apple and cheesy wings at Applebee's. With King, we went through ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Put a Smile on Your Face

Previously on FTCH, we pursued amusement parks, big drivers, and presidential assassinations with Stephen King, and along the way sampled ...
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Cinema Sentries

From The Couch Hole: Try and Think of the Right Words to Say

Previously on FTCH, we we waltzed to the pumpkin patch with Linus, thought about life with Ray Bradbury, and looked ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: When the Stars Start Falling

Previously on FTCH, we went under the dome, shrieked about Skittles, and mused on murders in the building. This week, ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Feel Sunshine Sparkle Pink and Blue

Previously on FTCH, we talked twins, made a bargain, and wondered how Wendy's fit a spicy chicken into a Pringle. ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: We’ve Seen the Rain and the Sunshine Together

Previously on FTCW, we solved mysteries with the Drew Crew but we couldn't solve the Case of the Grey Skittles. ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Life Is Filled with Confusion

Previously on FTCH we mused upon summer jobs, we caught some blues with the Allman Brothers and the signature potato chip ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Fell in Love by the Soda Machine

Season One, Episode One was well received. We're moving on to Episode Two and I'm starting to get more into ...
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Cinema Sentries

From the Couch Hole: Maybe We Can Stay in Touch

There was once a blog named "Sunday Morning Tuneage".  From 2006 - 2013 on MySpace, I wrote a weekly dispatch ...
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Cinema Sentries

Best of 2020 (Pandemic Edition): Best of the Rest

2020 BY THE NUMBERS 4,872,686 steps taken this year (2361 miles, 64 less than 2019)365 Days walking over 5 miles ...
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Cinema Sentries

Best of 2020 (Pandemic Edition): The TV/Streaming Lists

From 2005 through 2012 I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
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Best of 2020 (Pandemic Edition): The Film Lists

From 2005 through 2012 I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
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Five Cool Things and Dune (2020)

I think I speak for nearly everyone on the planet when I say that this year has not gone as ...
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Five Cool Things and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: The Complete Fifth Season

I started this month with the intention of watching a lot of science fiction films set in space. As I ...
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Five Cool Things and Two Jules Dassin Films Get the Criterion Treatment

Last week, I noted that for the month of September I was going to try to watch space-based science fiction ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and No Time to Die Trailer

It has been a while since I did a theme month for the movies I'm watching. I think I got ...
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Five Cool Things and Chadwick Boseman

School finally started around these parts. My daughter has been out of school, or at least not physically attending school ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and The Suicide Squad

My apologies for taking a couple of weeks off. One of our subcontractors told us a few weeks ago that ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and the New Mutants

It was an eclectic week for old Mat Brewster and his consumption of cool things. We've got new horror movies, ...
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Five Cool Things and a Bookstore Haul

I got out of the house today. I get out of the house most days, actually. Work takes me to ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Possessor

For nearly four months now, my family and I have gotten up on Saturday mornings, piddled around, watched TV, and ...
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Five Cool Things and Gillian Welch’s All the Good Times Are Past and Gone

Hamilton I finally got to see the show everyone has been talking about for five years. When Hamilton first became ...
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Five Cool Things and the Fourth of July

It is a holiday weekend and I'm making the most of it. So let's get right into this week's cool ...
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Five Cool Things and Pearl Jam Uncensored

I'm a huge fan of Letterboxd, the social networking site for film nerds. It is a great way to track ...
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Five Cool Things and Ian Holm

I was realizing today that we've been on lockdown since mid-March. That's a little over three months in which my ...
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Five Cool Things and Bill & Ted Face the Music

Our house has two stories but only one HVAC unit. This means that the upstairs (where my bedroom is) always ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Lovecraft Country

Over the last few years, I've really upped my movie-watching game. I've gone from watching around 10 movies per week ...
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Five Cool Things and Perry Mason

I started this month planning to watch a bunch of movies from the late, great, Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune. I ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Tenet

Every week, I tell myself that as soon as I watch or read or listen to something cool I am ...
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Five Cool Things and Fred Willard

I recently received, watched, and reviewed a boxed set of three films from Kino Lorber entitled Film Noir: The Dark ...
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Five Cool Things and I Know This Much Is True

This long lock-down, shut-in has created some interesting situations, not all of them bad. Don't get me wrong, I hate ...
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Five Cool 1930s Movies and a Sixth

For the month of April, I decided that my theme should be movies made in the 1930s. Actually, my original ...
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A blu - ray cover for gory park.

Five Cool Things and the Lemonheads

I mowed and weed-eated my yard today. A small accomplishment I know, but one that felt good. Our house is ...
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Five Cool Things and Punky Brewster

Last weekend, I went for a walk around the neighborhood with my wife and young daughter. Along the way, she ...
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Five Cool Things and a Salute to John Prine

Tomorrow is Easter. Due to social distancing, we won't be attending church, nor will we be having our traditional dinner ...
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Five Cool Things and John Prine

Many years ago, back when I was writing for another site, I requested to watch and review a new DVD ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and a Murder Most Foul

This month's theme was movies in which one character or multiple characters were going mad. I called it March Movie ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: A Good Opinion Is Hard to Find

It's been a minute since we put forth some of our Grade A, doctor-recommended, mother-approved opinions on pop culture and ...
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Poster of the movie Parasite directed by Bong Joon Ho

Five Cool Things and Another Five Things

It has been a weird week. My wife's mother just had hip replacement surgery and the original plan was that ...
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Five Cool Things and Candyman (2020)

I watched 23 films in the month of February. That's not quite one film a day but it isn't bad ...
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Five Cool Things and Run

Last month, I watched, on average, over one movie per day. I knew going into February I would not keep ...
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Five Cool Things and The French Dispatch

Last week, I talked about how the themes of this month were going to be foreign films and films made ...
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Five Cool Things and The Jesus Rolls

After a very successful January in which I watched many films from director Jean-Pierre Melville, I couldn't decide on a ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and A Quiet Place Part II

I officially watched 34 movies in the month of January. That's more than one movie per day. That's a record ...
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Five Cool Things and the Year of the Rat

I watched a lot less Jean-Pierre Melville films this week than I did last week. In fact, I only watched ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Neil Peart

For the last two years, I have spent the months of October and November viewing movies through a theme. In ...
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Five Cool Things and Another New Cat

Last month, I finally broke down and subscribed to Disney+. With The Rise of Skywalker coming out, I knew we'd ...
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Five Cool Things and Hunters

I hope everyone had a great holiday season.  I had a great time with mine and my wife’s family.  I ...
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Best of 2019 Assorted Lists

From 2005 through 2012, I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
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Best of 2019 TV / Streaming Lists

From 2005 through 2012, I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
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Best of 2019 Film Lists

From 2005 through 2012, I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
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Five Cool Things and Wonder Woman 1984

It is, as the song says, beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Around here anyway. The tree is up, ...
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Five Cool Things and No Time to Die

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I enjoyed some time with my family (who I don't see that often ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Honey Boy

This week, I saw consumed some new things, but mostly revisited older ones. I also found and rediscovered things I ...
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Five Cool Things and Knives Out

Disney+ launched this week and it seems to be all anyone can talk about. When it was initially announced, I ...
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Five Cool Things and Martin Scorsese Takes on the MCU

We are right smack in the middle of Noirvember and it has been super fun reading everybody's discussions on the ...
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Five Cool Things and The Witcher

My apologies for missing last week. My wife and I both came down with some nasty cold/allergy/flu thing and I ...
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Five Cool Things and The Laundromat

My wife's folks are in town for the weekend and my daughter is dying for us to take her to ...
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Five Cool Things and Robert Forster

It is finally starting to feel like Autumn around here. After an unseasonably hot September, October has come and with ...
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Five Cool Things and 1917

My brother spent this week in Japan with his son, my sister, and her husband. The sister told the nephew ...
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Five Cool Things and El Camino

It's the weekend. Let's get to it. The MCU's Captain America If you've read my writings in these pages over ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Ric Ocasek

I went to a late showing of It Chapter Two last night. It was not good. It was not cool. ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Friday the 13th

This getting older thing is kind of a bummer.  The other day I was bemoaning how old I'm getting and ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and JoJo Rabbit

It has been a weird summer. June was filled with torrential rains, flooding most of the area for weeks on ...
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Five Cool Things and Terminator: Dark Fate

School is back in full swing, which always messes with my media consumption. The lazy summer, full of long days ...
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Five Cool Things and The Mandalorian

Welcome back to Five Cool Things, the weekly article where I discuss all the interesting, really good, and very cool ...
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Five Cool Things and Bob Dylan Turns 78

It has been a wild few days around these parts. We've had major storms all week - big thunderstorms, lots ...
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Five Cool Things and Doris Day

It has been a crazy week for me work-wise. I have been busy, busy, busy, most of which kept me ...
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Five Cool Things and It Chapter Two

I follow a lot of entertainment writers on social media. Usually, this is great as I enjoy reading all the ...
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Five Cool Things and Peter Mayhew

My wife and I become first-time homeowners about three years ago. Our little house isn't perfect but it meets our ...
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Five Cool Things and Notre Dame

For most of our married life, my wife and I have intentionally not had a television in our bedroom. This ...
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Five Cool Things and Alice in Wonderland

My daughter celebrated her eighth year of life this week. That seems an incredibly long time and yet it seems ...
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Invasion of the Body Snatchers DVD Cover

Five Cool Things and The Rise of Skywalker

For reasons I won't get into here, I've decided to shut my little music blog down. Probably permanently. There are ...
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Five Cool Things and The Dead Don’t Die

It has been one rough week. My professional and personal life have been filled with much stress. I don't want ...
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Five Cool Things and Another Birthday

I turned 43 on Monday. I took my kid ice skating on Saturday and took myself to the big used-book ...
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Five Cool Things and Pride & Prejudice

As someone who pretends to be an entertainment writer, I can tell you there are weeks when there just isn't ...
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Five Cool Things and Midsommar

I went to see a special showing of Tom Baker's last story as the Doctor in the theater this week. ...
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Five Cool Things and Good Omens

It has been a weird week. Last weekend, it snowed. Monday the temperature dropped to nearly zero degrees Fahrenheit. Tomorrow, ...
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Five Cool Things and Detective Pikachu

We moved back to Oklahoma a few years ago, but no matter how long I am here, I will never ...
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Five Cool Things and The Twilight Zone (2019)

Last October, I watched a bunch of horror movies because, well, Halloween. I had a lot of fun watching things ...
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Five Cool Things and Frozen 2

We had some friends over tonight to watch a movie (more on that in a minute), which means I'm sitting ...
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Five Cool Things and Albert Finney

It has been cold here in Oklahoma. Like really cold. Like, well, not as cold as it's been in places ...
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Five Cool Things and Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile

The sickness is finally starting to abate here in the Brewster household. I'm still coughing a bit but the head ...
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Five Cool Things and American Gods: Season Two

One of the problems with having so many great television series airing on so many different services is that it's ...
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Five Cool Things and I Am the Night

I canceled Britbox this week, not because they are a bad service but because I like switching my streaming services ...
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Five Cool Things and Jordan Peele’s Us

It was back-to-school week for my daughter, which means some adjustments for everybody. Baths need to be taken every night ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and The ABC Murders

A great big pile of appreciation to my fellow Sentries who helped me out while I was on vacation. I'm ...
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Best of 2018 Assorted Lists

From 2005 through 2012, I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
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Best of 2018 TV Lists

From 2005 through 2012, I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
Read More

Best of 2018 Film Lists

From 2005 through 2012, I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
Read More

Five Cool Things and Holiday Guests

After a week of fighting off a nasty viral infection I'm now out of town visiting the in-laws. I'm still ...
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Five Cool Things and “The Revelator”

I have been battling a nasty viral infection all week. My head has felt like its been hit with a ...
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Five Cool Things and Brightburn

I've pretty much given up on my whole Christmas theme for this month. I'll probably watch another movie or two ...
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Five Cool Things and Avengers: Endgame

It turns out I'm not really a fan of Christmas movies. In October, I watched a bunch of horror movies, ...
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Five Cool Things and The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part

It is the last day of Noirvember. All told, I watched 12 film noirs (7 classic, 5 neo-noirs), which is ...
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Five Cool Things and Toy Story 4

My apologies for missing last week's Cool Things. My kid got sick and then I wasn't feeling well and I ...
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Five Cool Things and a Breaking Bad Movie

As mentioned last week, November is henceforth dubbed "Noirvember" and as that nomenclature implies, I'll be trying to watch as ...
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Cinema Sentries

I’d Like to Save the City, but I’m Awfully Sad Right Now

Written by Chris Smits Are you on the edge of your seat in anticipation for The Bourne Depression? Did you ...
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Five Cool Things and Thriller

I watched 27 movies in the month of October, 20 of which one could reasonably count as horror. That's not ...
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Five Cool Things and Vox Lux

My in-laws were in town for part of last week and a chunk of this one which put a bit ...
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Black sabbath on blu - ray.

Five Cool Things and The Curse of La Llorona

My horror marathon continued this week. I made it through all the classic Universal Frankenstein films and moved on to ...
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Five Cool Things and a New Pet Sematary

Another week in October, another week of horror.  I never quite manage a full 31 days of Horror, but this ...
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Five Cool Things and the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Though the temperatures in Oklahoma have remained in the 90s all week, it is technically Autumn and it is technically ...
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Five Cool Things and Dark Phoenix

I tend to stay up too late on work nights. I put the kid to bed, play on the Internet, ...
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Five Cool Things and Captain Marvel

Several years ago, before we moved, the wife and I had a regular foreign-film night.  Every second Saturday of the ...
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Five Cool Things and Halloween (2018)

The county fair is tonight in my fair land. I personally find it rather obnoxious what with its filthy smells, ...
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Five Cool Things and Burt Reynolds

This was a good week, all in all. I saw some classic films, caught one in the theater for the ...
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My (Current) 2018 Toronto International Film Festival Schedule

This year, I am fortunate enough to be attending another Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), a mix of films trying ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Operation Finale

For the first time in a while, I feel back in the swing of things. I've been relatively healthy. Our ...
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Five Cool Things and a Suspiria Remake

School is back. which should mean that I'm watching a lot more cool stuff as I'm putting my daughter to ...
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Five Cool Things and Aretha Franklin

I've been binge-watching both Masters of Sex and The Terror all week, which I thought would mean I'd have nothing ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Kidding

I have really lousy allergies. I've never gotten any specific testing done on my body but whenever I'm around freshly ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Making It

My wife made an observation last night that I tend to have more energy on Thursdays than any other day ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and 16 Years

As a reviewer, I find that it's much easier to talk about things that I either love or really dislike. ...
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Five Cool Things and Glass

For the first time in several years, I've managed to get poison ivy. I'm really quite allergic to it and ...
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Five Cool Things and Ant-Man and the Wasp

It has been another crazy hot week here in Oklahoma. This week I've not been able to just stay inside ...
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Saturday Program Highlights for San Diego Comic Con 2018

Written by Staff Here are a few highlights where you might find three Sentries who will be attending. Shawn Bourdo: ...
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Friday Program Highlights for San Diego Comic Con 2018

Written by Staff Here are a few panels where you might find three Sentries who will be attending. Todd Karella: ...
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Thursday Program Highlights for San Diego Comic Con 2018

Written by Staff The modern-day equivalent of getting the new Sears catalog before Christmas is the debut of the Comic-Con ...
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Five Cool Things and Paul McCartney’s Carpool Karaoke

Another week, another five cool things. Conversations with Scorsese Film critic and historian Richard Schickel sat down with Martin Scorsese ...
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Cinema Sentries

Our Favorite Movies of 2018 So Far

Written by Staff While there's still half of the summer roster to go and a slew of films that are ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Juliet, Naked

It is officially summer here in Oklahoma, which means it is hot. Damn hot. Too hot to do anything but ...
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Five Cool Things and Welcome to Marwen

This is what I like to call "recovery week." After vacation, I always come home to a large stack of ...
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Five Cool Things and the Grand Tetons

A big thanks to Gordon and Shawn for filling in for me last week. As noted, I spent the week ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Anthony Bourdain

As Mat stated last week, he's currently off in Wyoming celebrating his in-laws' 50th anniversary. But that doesn't mean people ...
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Five Cool Things and Florence + the Machine

My in-laws came to town again this week. Diligent readers will remember they were here not very long ago and ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Christopher Robin

I gave up Filmstruck to order Hulu so that I could watch the new season of The Handmaid's Tale. I ...
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Five Cool Things and Deadpool 2

For a long time, I stopped going to the movies. It was too expensive, I didn't live close to any ...
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Five Cool Things and This Is America

I keep track of all the movies I watch every month and have various mental goals to keep up with. ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and U2

In order to watch the new season of The Handmaid's Tale, I once again ordered a subscription to Hulu. They ...
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Five Cool Things and 2001: A Space Odyssey

Sorry I'm a little late with the Five Cool Things this week. I have plenty of stuff to talk about, ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Nothing Compares 2 U

As mentioned last week, my in-laws were in town this week, also as mentioned they put a damper on my ...
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Cinema Sentries

My (Tentative) 2018 TCM Classic Film Festival Schedule

Although I am fortunate enough to attend both events, I am disappointed that CinemaCon and TCM Classic Film Festival (TCMFF) ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Ocean’s 8

Last week, I noted that I had started several things and not finished them. My hope was to talk about ...
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Five Cool Things and Eels’ “Bone Dry”

Last weekend, we went to Tennessee to visit some old friends for Easter. This week, Oklahoma teachers staged a walk-out ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and The House with a Clock in Its Walls

My birthday was last Sunday. My wife made me a nice breakfast, we went to a couple of books stores, ...
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Five Cool Things and Mr. Rogers

It is the start of my birthday weekend (I turn 42 on Sunday). My mother just picked up my daughter ...
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Five Cool Things and Isle of Dogs

After a long, dreary winter, spring is finally here. Our backyard tree is blooming, the temperatures are warming up, and ...
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Five Cool Things and The Handmaid’s Tale: Season Two

I have a tendency to be watching, reading and listening to multiple things at once. My wife laughs and scoffs ...
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Five Cool Things and a Yellowstone TV Series

In my continual playing of roulette with the many streaming services one can subscribe to, I landed on HBO this ...
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Five Cool Things and Izzy Gets the F-ck Across Town

I shouldn't write these things on Friday. It seems like every week I'm saying how long and exhausting the week ...
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Five Cool Things and The Girl Without Hands

Sickness has come to house Brewster again. My wife caught a nasty cold late last week and it's stayed with ...
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Five Cool Things and Venom

The Super Bowl aired this last Sunday. I didn't watch a single second of it. Not even for the commercials ...
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Five Cool Things and Duncan Jones’ Mute

I'm always late to the party when it comes to awards season. I simply don't make it to the theaters ...
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Five Cool Things and Landscape with Snow

It's always a challenge for me to balance between the movies I want to see and the television shows I ...
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Five Cool Things and a New Heathers

I try to write little pieces of this article as I watch, read, and listen to cool things throughout the ...
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Five Cool Things and Fahrenheit 451

Mat was felled by a stomach bug before he could finish writing his article, which is not a cool thing, ...
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Five Cool Things and the Grateful Dead

As noted in last week's entry, I spent the week between Christmas and New Year's at my in-laws spending time ...
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Cinema Sentries

Best of 2017 Assorted Lists

From 2005 through 2012, I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
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Best of 2017 TV Lists

We live in a very high-quality TV-show era now. Maybe the top end isn't as strong as a decade ago ...
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Best of 2017 Film Lists

From 2005 through 2012, I pretty consistently wrote my Sunday Morning Tuneage blog. It continued inconsistently through 2013 before being ...
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Five Cool Things and Goodbye, 12; Hello, 13

Hope everybody had an excellent Christmas. I kind of hope it was a little dull pop-culturewise or I'm about to ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and a Merry Christmas

Apologies for the absence of Five Cool Things last week. I usually try to write them on Thursday night and ...
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Yojimbo lobby card on display of the website

Five Cool Things and Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom

Winter is no longer coming, but is here, and with a vengeance. I woke up to temperatures in the teens ...
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Five Cool Things and the Avengers: Infinity War Trailer

I cut the cord many years ago. Netflix and my DVD collection do me just fine, thank you very much. ...
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Five Cool Things and an Incredibles Sequel

Thursday was Thanksgiving here in the United States. It has always been one of my favorite days of the year. ...
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Casablanca 4K Film Poster Image

Five Cool Things and Dragon’s Lair

Last week, I feared I was going to get sick like the rest of my family, which put me to ...
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Five Cool Things and R.E.M’s Automatic for the People

Sickness has been passing through my family. Both my parents got crazy sick a couple of weeks ago. Then my ...
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Five Cool Things and The Disaster Artist

My wife and I are not party people. We are much more comfortable sitting at home, watching movies, playing games, ...
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Five Cool Things and The Square (2017)

Last week, I noted that I somehow managed to watch quite a few movies even though my in-laws were in ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract Take on TV 2017 

In which Shawn and Kim take a breath before The Walking Dead starts up again to look at what is ...
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Five Cool Things and the Tragically Hip

My in-laws came in for a visit this week. They are lovely people and I always enjoy their time here, ...
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Five Cool Things and The Last Jedi Trailer

Hi, remember me? I'm your local writer who talks about new releases and cool things each week. Except for the ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Tom Petty

I am taking over the reigns this week, the start of which was pretty brutal with the tragic loss of ...
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Five Cool Things and Annihilation

My wife had a birthday this week. I don't want to complain that my wife's birthday screws up my ability ...
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A Steven Spielberg Film ET The Extra Terrestrial Poster

Five Cool Things and Joan Crawford

I don't know about you but I spend inordinate amounts of time searching for something to watch. You will regularly ...
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Five Cool Things and The Shape of Water

I watched one movie every day in the month of August. This is quite unusual for me as I usually ...
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Five Cool Things and Don Williams

Just jumping right in... Close Encounters of the Third Time There is a scene relatively early in Close Encounters where ...
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Five Cool Things and Hurricane Harvey

As a semi-professional movie reviewer (meaning I get some free perks, but not an actual pay check), I try to ...
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Five Cool Things and a Solar Eclipse

Another week, another five cool things. The eclipse dominated the headlines this week. I didn't have any special glasses but ...
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Five Cool Things and Crimetown

After a long day of work, I typically want to do nothing but lay on the couch, watch a movie, ...
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Five Cool Things and a New Cat

My wife took my daughter to Kentucky to visit her family this week. As anyone who has been in a ...
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Five Cool Things and Glacier National Park

A big thanks to Gordon for handling some of my duties while I was gone. The family and I took ...
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San Diego Comic-Con 2017: Taking a Step Back for a Look 

What if I said that the San Diego Comic-Con International has nothing to do with comics? For anyone that has ...
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Five Cool Things and San Diego Comic-Con 2017

Mat, the normal curator for this column, and his family have gone on vacation, but with San Diego Comic-Con having ...
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Five Cool Things and Ready Player One

As I'm desperately searching for cool things to write about each week, I've come to realize that while I'm discovering ...
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Five Cool Things and Edgar Wright

Edgar Wright's Baby Driver came out last week. I made plans with my cousin to see it on Tuesday afternoon. ...
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Five Cool Things and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

Another week, another five cool things. GLOW I spoke a couple of weeks back about the trailer to the new ...
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Five Cool Things and Game of Thrones: Season 7

I work from home which has all kinds of advantages. One being that I don't have a boss with prying ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Anita Pallenberg

Summer has come to Oklahoma which means it's hot. Damn hot. Too hot to do anything but sit inside and ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Wonder Woman Getting Spanked

I spent much of last week catching up on all the DC films to prepare myself for the release of ...
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Cinema Sentries

Five Cool Things and Foo Fighters

I try to go into movies cold, knowing as little as possible about them.  I might watch a trailer and ...
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Five Cool Things and The Gifted

Its been a tough week around here. Last weekend, the cat we've had for 12 years went into kidney failure, ...
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Five Cool Things and Chris Cornell

It was a good week for movies in the Brewster house. I watched a couple of things I've been wanting ...
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Five Cool Things and Blade Runner 2049

My wife came down with something nasty last week. I'm sure I've complained in these pages about the numerous times ...
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Five Cool Things and Jonathan Demme

Let's just get to it, shall we? Here's five cool things I discovered this week. Fargo: Season 3 I've not ...
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Five Cool Things and Earth from Saturn

If I spent most of last week preparing for my daughter's birthday and the visitation of her grandparents, then this ...
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Five Cool Things and Good Friday

This week I spent a lot of time preparing for both my daughter's birthday and the arrival of my in-laws ...
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Five Cool Things and the New Pornographers

Last week, I had a lot of fun with my new Amazon Fire TV, streaming shows I'd previously not been ...
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My Most Anticipated at the 2017 TCM Classic Film Festival 

One of the things I look forward to most every year is the TCM Classic Film Festival. It is a ...
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Five Cool Things and Christopher Walken

For my birthday last week, my wife bought me an Amazon Fire TV. We've had an Apple TV for several ...
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The poster of the movie Cinema Paradiso

Five Cool Things and My Birthday

I'm running out of interesting things to say in the intro to these things so lets just get to it. ...
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Five Cool Things and St. Patrick’s Day

It seems like every time I write one of these I'm making excuses. Someone in my family was sick, or ...
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Five Cool Things and Robert Osborne

I've been writing this column for a little while now so I'm getting pretty good at making little lists of ...
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Five Cool Things and Logan

It's been a busy week in the Brewster home. Work has been absolutely insane. keeping my days mostly pop-culture free. ...
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Five Cool Things and an Early Spring

I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but once again sickness found its way into the Brewster house this ...
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Five Cool Things and George “The Animal” Steele

A great big thanks to Gordon and Shawn for helping out last week. A couple of weeks ago I noted ...
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Five Cool Things and Greta Anderson

As Mat mentioned in the previous installment of Five Cool Things and..., "For the last couple of months, my wife ...
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Five Cool Things and Frederick Douglass

For the last couple of months, my wife and I have been passing The Crud back and forth between each ...
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Five Cool Things and Mary Tyler Moore

It has been a long, weird week in the Mat Brewster home, culturally speaking. Work has been busy, keeping me ...
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Five Cool Things and Moe Howard

To let you in on a little behind-the-scenes action here at Cinema Sentries, me and boss-man Gordon spent some time ...
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Five Cool Things and a Larch

It is universally acknowledged that 2016 sucked. The world of entertainment and art lost an unimaginable number of talented creators. ...
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Best Comic Releases of 2016

Written by Katelyn Powers It felt like a dumpster fire kind of year, but let me tell you - it ...
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The Best TV Shows of 2016

In which Shawn and Kim take a look back at the brilliant storytelling shows from 2016. Shawn: If T&A is ...
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Cinema Sentries

Artists Overlooked by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2016 Edition)

Last week, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced their nominees for their 2017 induction ceremony, which will be ...
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Top 10 TV Shows That Deserve More Attention

Rolling Stone just conducted a major poll involving actors, writers, producers, critics, and showrunners to come up with the 100 ...
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Gene Wilder’s Other Films

It would be too easy to pick my five favorite Gene Wilder films. It would include the favorites like Willy ...
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Top 10 Films of the 21st Century (so far)

The editors of BBC Culture "decided to commission a poll of critics to determine the 100 greatest films of the ...
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Maron Ended and My Dad Died, but Not in That Order

Three years ago today​, my family and friends gathered at my parent's house to celebrate the life of my father ...
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Ghostbusters Reboot: Why We’re Cautiously Optimistic

Written by Elizabeth Eckhart The past few years have been met with constant reboots and remakes of old classics, such ...
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Cinema Sentries

Thoughtful & Abstract: DC TV

In which Shawn and Kim discuss the weekly DC Comics-based shows and shirtless heroes. Shawn: I've caught up on most ...
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My Favorite David Bowie Songs

David Bowie was a genius, a rebel, a god, and a musical innovator who had no equal. He was brilliant, ...
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David Bowie, The Heart’s Filthy Lesson, Se7en, and Me

David Fincher led me to David Bowie. I doubt that was a typical path to the Thin White Duke, but ...
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Remembering David Bowie and “Under Pressure”

Being an only child, but having some hip uncles who were more like older brothers, I got exposed to a ...
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David Bowie’s “Life on Mars?” Signified the Arrival of an Innovator

Against a blindingly white background, a man stands alone. Clad in a sky-blue suit and sporting technicolor makeup, the figure ...
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T&A Take on TV 2015

In which Shawn and Kim reflect on their favorite television programs and the disappointments. Shawn: We've had a few opportunities ...
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Holiday Gift Guide 2015

Before heading out to brave the sales-hunting crowds or shopping from the comfort of the Internet, some of us thought ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: The Bastard Executioner

The following entries were written simultaneously by Shawn and Kim as a summary of the one and only season of ...
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Why We Watch: Looking at Our TV Choices

Written by Scott Blitstein Even with DVR and on-Demand viewing to allow maximum scheduling opportunities, the amount of tv content ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Fear The Walking Dead: “Cobalt”

In which Kim has questions and Episode 5 (Shawn) has answers. Kim: Episode 5, I kind of liked you. You ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Fear the Walking Dead: “Not Fade Away”

In which Shawn and Kim are grateful there are only two episodes left. Shawn: Well, I got what I asked ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Fear the Walking Dead: “The Dog”

In which Kim and Shawn search for something positive to say about Fear the Walking Dead. Kim: Maddie! Travis! Liza! ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Fear the Walking Dead: “So Close, Yet So Far”

In which Shawn and Kim (and some fictional characters) offer advice to the gang from Fear the Walking Dead. Shawn: ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Fear the Walking Dead: “Pilot”

In which Kim and Shawn offer their initial thoughts on the first episode of the Fear the Walking Dead. Kim: ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Looking at The Walking Dead’s Glenn Rhee

Steven Yeun as Glenn Rhee - The Walking Dead _ Season 6, Episode 7 - Photo Credit: Gene Page/AMC In ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Catching up on the Current TV Season

In which Shawn (@genx13) and Kim (@kimfreakinb) riff on some recent TV thingies... Shawn: It's been far too long since ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Looking at The Walking Dead’s Dr. Eugene Porter

In which Kim (@kimfreakinb) and Shawn (@genx13) step back to look at one of their favorite characters. "The smartest man ...
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Remembering Leonard Nimoy (1931-2015) 

Leonard Nimoy died on February 27 due to complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which he claimed was due ...
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Remembering Bruce Sinofsky and How He Changed My Life

Part of the reason I tend to review a lot of documentaries for Cinema Sentries because I know, on a ...
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Favorite Films of 2014

When the Academy Award nominations are revealed in just a few hours, the final stage of marketing/recognizing films and filmmakers ...
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Adam Blair’s 2014 Movie Roundup

I saw about 30 movies in theaters in 2014. Some are getting tons of attention during awards season, and rightfully ...
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These Are a Few of My Favorite Saturday Morning Shows

September 27, 2014 was the last airing of the CW's Saturday morning cartoon line-up, known in its final iteration as ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Sons of Anarchy: Season One: Ain’t Your Father’s MC

In which Shawn (@genx13) and Kim (@kimfreakinb) reminisce about Season One of Sons of Anarchy. Shawn just started watching the ...
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Battling the Bear: Reflections on Robin Williams (1951-2014)

“Sometimes you eat the bear and sometimes the bear eats you” - Preacher Roe That quote is what has been ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: The Killing: Season Four Gets Sent Off

This conversation takes place between Kim (@kimfreakinB) who watched The Killing as it aired and Shawn (@genx13) who watched every ...
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Favorite Robin Williams Performances

As news of Robin Williams' death at the age of 63 broke across the media landscape, there was a slow ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: An Awesome Mix of Ideas about Guardians of the Galaxy

In which Shawn (@genx13) and Kim (@KimFreakinB) consider Guardians of the Galaxy and other Marvel Comics movies: Shawn: I am Groot! Spoiler alert - I ...
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Thoughtful & Abstract: Changes at Marvel Comics Fail to Impress

In which Shawn and Kim consider the news about changes coing to a couple Marvel Comics characters: Shawn: This past ...
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Favorite Tom Cruise Movies

Over the past 30 years, few actors have been as big a movie star as Tom Cruise has. With his ...
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Favorite Time-travel Movies

This weekend the X-Men franchise returns to theaters with Days of Future Past, which finds Wolverine being sent back in ...
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Cinema Sentries

Favorite Monster Movies

With Gareth Edwards' Godzilla roaring into theaters this weekend, it seemed as good a time as any to reveal our ...
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Reservoir Dogs Film Poster Image

Songs Ruined by Movies

Even before the advent of sound, movies had live accompaniment as they played in theaters. That's because music's intrinsic ability ...
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Most Anticipated Movies of Summer 2014

While the calendar says different, movie-goers know the first weekend of May is when summer begins. Over four months, Hollywood ...
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Cinema Sentries

My Top Picks for the 2014 TCM Classic Film Festival

Each year when the schedule for the TCM Classic Film Festival is posted, I feel equal levels of excitement and ...
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Cinema Sentries

The Best and Worst of Summer 2013

Although summer officially ends on September 21, for movie fans, summer ends Labor Day. Hollywood blockbusters fade from the multiplex ...
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The Sentries Select Their Favorite Film of 2012

Joining in the award-season festivities, we here at the site wanted to mention a few of our favorites from 2012.  ...
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Cinema Sentries

Our Favorite Christmas Movies

As a gift to our faithful readers, Cinema Sentries offers up a few of our favorite Christmas movies. Christmas in ...
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Pulp Fiction: The Five Things I Love About It

Written by Kristen Lopez What can be said about Pulp Fiction that hasn't been written since the film's release in ...
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Cinema Sentries

Reflections on Paul McCartney’s ‘Live and Let Die’

James Bond films are known for many things, especially the gadgets, the girls, and the music.  John Barry's "James Bond ...
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Don’t Go See A Movie This Weekend

I know that seems an odd statement coming from a website that revels in movies, but that was my immediate ...
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Cinema Summary: My Summer Movies of 2012

The season opened solidly on May 4th with the debut of the much anticipated Avengers.  Directed by Joss Whedon, The ...
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Cinema Sentries

Iconic Movie Scenes from the ’80s

You never know where inspiration is going to come from. Earlier in the month before he began contributing to the ...
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Classic Films Made After 1991

Written by Staff Sentry Greg Barbrick reviewed the book Reel Culture where author Mimi O’Connor chose “50 films you should ...
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Cinema Sentries

Cinema Sentries Select the Best of 2011

With the Oscars just hours away from honoring the best of 2011, a few Sentries have gathered to name their ...
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So This Guy and a Girl Went to Sundance

Written by Amanda Salazar Max Naylor: Hi everybody.  I’d like you to meet Amanda.  She’s a programmer from an independent ...
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Cinema Sentries

Most Anticipated Films of 2012

With a new year upon us, it's the perfect time to start marking the calendar with release dates. What follows ...
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Cinema Sentries

My Last Movie Before the Rapture

While I don’t understand it myself, a number of people in the media have apparently decided to stop paying attention ...
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Best Movies and Trailers of 2010

Each year I predict what my favorite movies for the upcoming year will be.  I'm usually so far off that ...
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