Nightmares (1983)
Nightmares is a strange bird of a horror anthology. First of all, it was made in the wrong decade. Not many of these came out when Nightmares did. Then, it decided not to have a…
Universally Loved
Doctor Detroit (1983)
Dan Aykroyd was on the rise. He had left SNL four years earlier. John Belushi and he started the Blues Brothers band that also fronted one of the most expensive comedy films ever made. In…
Love Actually (2003)
Something you may not be aware of: Universal has made an awful lot of Christmas films. We’ve already reviewed Holiday Inn, Last Christmas, and It Happened One Christmas in this column before. Universal’s connection to…
It Happened One Christmas (1977)
In 1977, Universal/MCA decided it would be a great idea to remake It’s a Wonderful Life as a TV Special Movie event starring Marlo Thomas (“That Girl”) in the George Bailey-type role and Orson Welles…
Holiday Inn (1942)
When lazy Bing Crosby decides to leave show business for the easy life of running a Connecticut farm, things take a left turn when he decides that’s even more work. His solution is to open…
Last Christmas (2019)
Emelia Clark is probably best known by audiences as the Dragon Queen on Game of Thrones. It might seem odd to place her in the lead of a romantic comedy set at Christmas to some,…
Uncle Buck (1989)
What on EARTH took me so long to see this movie? A lot of the movies I review here are revisits of old friends or titles I have wanted to see and this was an…
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
Comedy and horror can be tricky. Comedy has to hit you as a surprise. Horror is often the result of surprise. Typically comedies and horror films have difficulty “holding up” over the years. Taste in…
Tremors: Shrieker Island (2020)
Halloween is a time for surprises and this one caught me by surprise. The seventh film in the Tremors series (and one shortlived TV show) was released and it is in fact real. Tremors: Shrieker…
Darkroom (1981 TV Series)
James Coburn goes DARK When the past comes calling, sometimes it is very disappointing. I was bracing myself for that experience when diving back into 1981’s Darkroom. I had fond memories of the show, but…