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Darryl Jones: In the Blood DVD Review: The Man in the Stones’ Shadow

While not a well-known name, Darryl Jones is an integral component of the “Greatest Rock ’n’ Roll Band in the ...
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Invaders from Mars (1953) Blu-ray Review: A Standout in the ’50s Sci-fi Genre

William Cameron Menzies's penultimate movie as director, Invaders from Mars (1953), tells the story of an alien invasion seen through ...
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Black Adam Blu-ray Review: Legend, Vengeance, and the Kahndaqian Way

Black Adam is the 11th film in the DC Extended Universe franchise.The character first appeared in rival Fawcett Comics' Marvel ...
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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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El Vampiro Negro (1953) Blu-ray Review: An Argentinian “M”

Film noir as a genre is rather over-subscribed. It existed for a relatively brief period in the ‘40s and ‘50s ...
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Cinema’s First Nasty Women Blu-ray Set Review: Thoughtfully Highlights Unknown Performers from Different Walks of Life

When Donald Trump called opponent Hilary Clinton a "nasty woman" at a 2016 televised debate, the term came back to ...
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Twilight (1998) Blu-ray Review: Mystery and Noir Fans Should Enjoy It

After adapting Richard Russo's Nobody's Fool (1994), starring Paul Newman, its screenwriter/director Robert Benton teamed with Russo to write the ...
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The Banshees of Inisherin Movie Review: Simply Lovely

What could be better than watching two under-appreciated actors give it their all? It’s watching two under-appreciated actors give it ...
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Little Nicholas: Happy as Can Be Movie Review: Adventures in Real and Imagined Past

This thoroughly charming French animated feature takes a unique approach in its storytelling. Rather than solely recounting the fictional adventures ...
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Halloween Ends Blu-ray Review: Rights Many of the Wrongs Committed by Halloween Kills

2018's Halloween was basic but effective because it erased the bad taste left by many of the original franchise's questionable ...
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From the Couch Hole: Best of Film 2022 – Movies Are Dreams, Doll, That You Never Forget

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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Broker Movie Review: The Korean Shoplifters

Japanese writer/director Hirokazu Kore-eda continues his cinematic explorations outside his native land and language with this dysfunctional relationship drama set ...
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Nobody’s Fool Blu-ray Review: At the Center of the Film’s Charm Is Paul Newman’s Performance

It takes a lot of confidence to make a movie in which nothing really happens. It does help to have ...
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The Girl on a Motorcycle Blu-ray Review: Spins Its Stylish Wheels

This 1968 UK/France co-production boasts star turns from Alain Delon and Marianne Faithfull in their prime, automatically making it an ...
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EO Movie Review: One of the Very Best Films of the Year

We as humans have continued to take for granted the role that animals play in the world. They can do ...
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Maigret (1960): Season 1 Blu-ray Review: Scores Big for Solid Entertainment Value

Maigret, the French detective created by Belgian writer Georges Simenon, is one of my all-time fictional detectives. Second only, perhaps, ...
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Unity Temple: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Modern Masterpiece DVD Review: The Restoration and Reopening of a Historic and Beautiful Landmark

Many people know Frank Lloyd Wright for his incredible home designs such as Cedar Rock and the Hollyhock House. However, ...
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Silent Running 4K UHD: Sci-Fi Hippy Dreams Dying

One of the things that made Star Wars such a huge hit was the state of '70s cinematic sci-fi. Because ...
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From the Couch Hole: In Our Hearts We’ll Understand

Previously on FTCH, on a Wednesday at four past midnight the lady is waiting. There was a son of flubber and ...
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Cooley High Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review: A Coming-of-Age Gem Authentically Told from a Black Perspective

Usually, when you think of Black-oriented films from the 1970s, you mind automatically gears toward the Blaxploitation genre, which usually ...
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South Park: Post Covid Blu-ray Review: An Entertaining Mix of Goofy and Serious

The South Park: Post Covid Blu-ray presents two extended episodes that debuted on Paramount+ in the Fall of 2021: “Post ...
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The Woman King Blu-ray Review: Delivers a Mighty Roar

When the majority of PG-13-rated action films being released today have a Marvel or DC label attached to them, one ...
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Walk Proud Blu-ray Review: A Gang Epic, It’s Not. Cult Classic? Maybe…

From its tagline “He was tough enough for the streets…was he tough enough to leave them?” Walk Proud (1979) starring ...
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Bloom Up: A Swinger Couple Story DVD Review: A Film That’s Not for Everyone

The old saying goes that we don't know what goes on behind closed doors. But what happens when we are ...
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5-25-77 Blu-ray Review: A Long Time Ago in a Town Far, Far Away

For sci-fi starved ‘70s youth, the arrival of Star Wars was a watershed moment forever etched in our collective memories. ...
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From the Couch Hole: Sharing My Secrets and Wishing My Wishes

Previously on FTCH, we celebrated a love story, a birthday song, and a Christmas list. There were fairy tales and fable ...
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Blood & Diamonds Blu-ray Review: Dull & Boring

Our man Guido (Claudio Cassinelli) can't catch a break. Someone snitches on him and his partner Marco (Carmelo Reale) during ...
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Book Review: TCM Underground: 50 Must-See Films from the World of Classic Cult and Late-Night Cinema by Millie De Chirico & Quatoyiah Murry

Since October 27, 2006, TCM Underground, as stated on the book's jacket, has been a “Turner Classic Movies series that ...
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Pulp Fiction 4K UHD Review: Jukeboxer

Joy to the world: Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction—a gritty crime romp set in mid-1990s L.A.—is now out in 4K Ultra ...
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The Night of the Iguana Blu-ray Review: A Long Night’s Journey into the Soul

They say Tennessee Williams was none too pleased with John Huston's adaptation of his play The Night of the Iguana. ...
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Alma’s Rainbow Blu-ray Review: A Reason Why Diverse Storytelling Is Essential

I have seen so many films about the coming-of age experience and the complications of being young in an increasingly ...
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From the Couch Hole: Some Things Are Not Spoken of

Previously on FTCH, we celebrated a perfect day with brownie batter, sriracha chips, and trust. The legend of lobo and the ...
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Attack of the 50 Foot Woman Blu-ray Review: Maybe If She Were a Little Taller This Would Be Good

The 1950s were an incredibly fertile period for science fiction at the cinema. The invention of the atomic bomb and ...
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Let There Be Drums! DVD Review: And There Was Drums and Drummers!

Promotional materials for director Justin Kreutzmann's Let There Be Drums! state “The world’s greatest drummers reflect on the art of ...
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National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation 4K UHD Review: Calamitous Christmas Classic

Clark Griswold, the epitome of the American Middle-Class male, is on a slow burn. He has a vision of perfection. ...
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The Polar Express 4K UHD Review: Dead-eyed and Dreaming

The Polar Express (2004; dir. Robert Zemeckis; rated G) is a weird, dark flick that should be darker. A motion-capture ...
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Entre Nous Blu-ray Review: Sisters Are Doing It for Themselves

Writer/director Diane Kurys borrowed from her own family history to craft this story about two women finding their way in ...
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A Christmas Story 4K UHD Review: You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out!

A Christmas Story (1983; dir. Bob Clark) is a charmer—a sweet and funny yuletide gem that’s never too cute for ...
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From the Couch Hole: When It Gets Dark, We Go Home

Previously on FTCH, there was a fruit quake, hot honey, and a rainbow connection. We had hearts in Atlantis, banshees in ...
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Mercury Studios Presents Marvin Gaye Greatest Hits Live in ‘76 on January 27, 2023

The music of Marvin Gaye transcends time in ways that can’t be described. From relatable songs about romance and heartbreak ...
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Hold Me Tight Blu-ray Review: An Engrossing Multi-character Piece

When I first saw Vicky Krieps in Paul Thomas Anderson's Phantom Thread, really holding her own against the likes of ...
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Planes, Trains and Automobiles 4K UHD Review: Thanksgiving’s Annual Lesson

Neal Page is not a bad guy. He's tightly wound, a little too serious, but the most important thing to ...
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Contraband (1980) Blu-ray Review: Explosively Violent Crime Action

Contraband comes in like a cool stylish Italian crime thriller and goes out like a Lucio Fulci gore fest. Being ...
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Elf (2003) 4K UHD Review: Farrell and Favreau Hit

Elf is a strange premise, anchored on a strange performance. Will Ferrell plays the grown-up version of a baby from ...
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From the Couch Hole: And What’s on the Other Side

Previously on FTCH, we had a web of fear because of mayo and chutney. There were two running men, a black ...
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Three Thousand Years of Longing Blu-ray Review: George Miller’s Genie

Writer/director George Miller enables his whimsical side in between Mad Max movies in this modern riff on the Aladdin myth. ...
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Book Review: Five Decembers by James Kestrel 

Joe McGrady has been a beat cop in Hawaii since he left the Army five years ago. But it’s the ...
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The Nun and the Devil Blu-ray Review: Which Mother Will Prove Superior?

Despite the title, the Devil does not make a physical appearance in the Italian The Nun and The Devil (1973). ...
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Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman Collection Blu-ray Review: Essential Viewing

As I may have mentioned in previous reviews, documentaries (more than anything in film) have the power to move, enrage, ...
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Blue Hawaii 4K UHD Limited Edition Review: Death by Half-baked Clambake

When did Elvis Presley’s decline start?  From the cradle. I’m no Elvis scholar (I’ve listened to dozens of his albums ...
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