Obsession

My View: Obsession  (2025)   R  In Obsession, Bear (Michael Johnston), a record store employee, has a longtime crush on his childhood friend Nikki (Inde Navarrette), who has no interest in Bear as anything more than a friend. Bear impulsively buys a supernatural toy, and on it, wishes for Nikki to fall in love with him. Sometimes wishes come true, and we are sorry that they do. Obsession is the best horror film we have seen this year, with an incredible storyline and a groundbreaking performance by Inde Navarrette that has to be seen to be believed. Based on the old phrase “You get what you wish for”, Obsession tells the story of a man who is in love with a fellow worker, but she sees him only as a good friend, the kind that you call to complain about your life or a bad boyfriend. Bear is given a chance to tell Nikki how he feels, but he blows it, saying nothing. Instead, he takes an item he bought at a crystal store, a strange stick called One Wish Willow, that promises that it will make your wish come true. So Bear makes a wish, and at the start, it's everything he ever wanted, until it isn’t. This is an incredibly wild, scary, and violent film that, as soon as the wish is granted, becomes increasingly creepy, then goes beyond creepy to horrific, as Bear’s life becomes a curse he can’t get rid of. Inde Navarrette is jaw-droppingly great as Nikki, the young woman who, through a wish, becomes totally devoted to Bear. Unfortunately, things go bad almost from the start, and I don’t want to ruin this film, but let’s just say things go from lovey-dovey to crazy in the matter of just a few hours. What is interesting in this film is that the hero of the story isn’t Bear. In fact, the longer the story goes, the more you come to hate him and feel for Nikki. Obsession is full of surprises that are both funny and shocking. This is one of those films that, when something happens, you go, “What did I just see?” Obsession is a hard-hitting horror film, full of incredibly scary situations that carry a ton of complex feelings, making you talk about this film for a long time. Remember, many a tale has been told about asking for a wish that has consequences. So maybe don’t throw that coin in the fountain or make a wish on a wishbone. We see in this film how that can turn out, and it’s not good.  My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again  Obsession Website  Now playing in theaters

My View:  In the Grey  (2026) R In the Grey is about a covert team of elite operatives who live in the shadows. This team, led by Sophia (Eiza González), is called in when mistakes are made and you need insurance. A ruthless despot has stolen a billion dollars, and the team is sent in to do the impossible: recover the money. This is a film that wants to be cool like Ocean’s Eleven, but takes too long for the action to happen to keep you interested. It’s a lot of setup for the last third that delivers a few thrills but no surprises. Jake Gyllenhaal and Henry Cavill have some cool little exchanges, but Gonzalez is left to do the heavy lifting of the plot, and it just gets a little too complicated to keep up with. Carlos Bardem doesn’t do a lot as the bad guy, but chews a lot of scenery, and Fisher Stevens plays his lawyer, whom I kept waiting to die; he was so inept. I thought there would be more to the plot, but it’s here: the villain, we trick him into revealing everything, and we get out of dodge. There’s a bit more to the plot than that, but the other problem is that the film goes into so much detail on all the escape routes that we know what is going to happen, even when the bad guys throw a few wrenches into the chase. Given the cast, I expected more and got a film that could have easily been called In The Jet Black instead.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  In the Grey Website   Now playing in theaters 

My View:  Marty, Life is Short  (2026)  Marty, Life is Sort is a documentary about legendary funnyman Martin Short, who has blazed a hilarious path across television, film, and theater. If you are a fan of Martin Short, you will love this film that gives us an inside look at the hilarious man who has had a lengthy career without ever really being a star. If you aren’t a fan, you will be by the end because not only is Marty a very funny, quick-witted man, but he is a wonderful person, a loving husband who had a perfect marriage and a family that adores him. We get to know Marty, from his childhood to his early performing days to his films (some of which weren’t hits), to his stage work and his work on TV. The film is filled with home movies, some of which contain some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, because everyone wants to be around Marty. As his great friend Steve Martin says, “You're going to host a dinner party, and you invite Marty. And then it turns out Marty can’t come. You cancel the party.” Well, you don’t have to cancel the party with this film because Marty is in it, an energizer bunny that doesn’t stop making us laugh.  My Rating: Full Price  Marty Life is Short Website  Now playing on the Netflix platform

Indiefest:  Is God Is  (2026)  R  Is God Is follows twin sisters Racine (Kara Young) and Ana (Mallori Johnson), who were badly disfigured by burn scars when they were children. When they learn their long-lost mother is alive but bedridden, they visit her. On her deathbed, she gives them a final, urgent task: avenge her by killing their abusive father, the man responsible for burning them all. When I first watched this film, I had a hard time with the tonal shift it makes about halfway through, from comedy to revenge film. It’s an abrupt change that hits you over the head with violence, very different from the first half of the film, which is filled with absurdist comedy. However, thinking more about this film, I realize that is the point. We take two characters, who have had a rough life but are full of life, and then are given a quest that they feel they are chosen and maybe even destined to complete, and they won’t let anyone or anything get in their way to complete the job that they were entrusted to do. Kara Young and Mallori Johnson are brilliant as the twin sisters who can communicate without speaking aloud. What makes this film work is that the two characters are vastly different in their approach to life and to the job they have been given, but both are driven to keep going, even when things get rough. These are passionate characters who feel everything that they experience and are willing to be fiery, menacing, and do the dirty work. It’s a film that will make you laugh, maybe shed a tear or two, and shock you with certain events you will not see coming. The sisters will mesmerize you and will root for them to win in the end.  My Rating: Full Price  Is God Is Website  Now playing in theaters

Indiefest:  Steal This Story, Please!  (2025)  Steal This Story, Please! is a documentary on the life and career of investigative journalist/activist Amy Goodman, whose award-winning work continues on the news program Democracy Now!. This film is a joy to watch because Amy is such a dynamic personality who believes in democracy and in the press's ability to show us what works and what doesn’t. Amy has been doing this for a long time, and we get to see her in the early years and then, up close and in detail, the work she does for Democracy Now! There is an amazing and funny section where, at a conference, she doggedly follows a Trump administration official for over 3 minutes as he tries to dodge her and her questions, until he finally finds a place to hide behind a locked door. The film shows us how hard Amy has worked to get the story and how many times she has faced danger without backing down. Amy never loses sight of the fact that the most important part of democracy is the people it helps and protects, all the while she tirelessly fights the good fight to show just how easy it is to let it slip through our fingers. Amy is someone to celebrate and support as she fights for everyone. My Rating: Full Price  Steal This Story, Please! Website  Now playing in select theaters

Indiefest:  The Wizard of the Kremlin  (2025)  R  In The Wizard of the Kremlin, a young Russian TV producer, Vadim Baranov (Paul Dano), becomes an unlikely advisor to the new President, Vladimir Putin (Jude Law). Between the two of them, they will create a persona that has ambitions beyond anyone’s dreams. A film that drags every time Jude Law isn’t on the screen, this is an overly long film that follows the ascension of Vadim Baranov, from college student to TV producer to the man who guided Putin to the presidency and took Russia from a democracy to a country run by one man with a plan to make Russia great again. The film is dull and lifeless, with a sleepwalking performance by Paul Dano. The film is somewhat saved by Jude Law as Putin, who perfectly depicts a man whose lust for power and information merge to control a nation. Law creates tension on the screen, seemingly just by breathing, as Putin is a cobra always ready to strike his enemies or anyone who doesn’t believe in his values. The Wizard of the Kremlin is a film that just keeps going, making it feel as if it is much longer than its 2-hour and 15-minute runtime. The problem is Dano, who is on-screen the whole time and seems to be slowly reading his dialogue while about to fall asleep. We don’t care about Baranov from the start and only care about what Putin is going to do next. Too bad, the film is about the wrong man.   My Rating: Cable   The Wizard of the Kremlin Website Now playing in theaters

Indiefest:  Blue Heron  (2025)  An immigrant family of six moves into a home on Vancouver Island. There are two young boys, a young girl, and a much older teen. As the family moves in, the two young boys are boisterous and playing together. The young girl, Sasha (Elul Guven), is curious about where everyone will have their bedrooms, but the tall teen boy, Jeremy (Edit Beddoes), is aloof and doesn’t interact with the others. Our first clue that something is wrong with the family's dynamics is when the Mom (Iringó Réti) and the children are going off to explore the island, while the dad stays behind and works on his computer. The rest of the family is waiting in the car, and Jeremy is bouncing a ball against the outside wall (Dad (Ádám Tompa) can hear it where he is working). Jeremy ignores the mom's pleas to join them, keeping the ball bouncing on the wall until the last minute, when the car starts to pull away, and he joins the family. This is our first sign that Jeremy does not fit in with the rest of the family, and we are now on alert that he could be trouble. This is a brilliant look at a family that tries to do everything they can to help Jeremy, but the social system has continually failed them, and his constant getting into trouble is disrupting the family to its core. The family is being held hostage by Jeremy, but he never helps the situation or seems to know how badly he is affecting the family. There is a constant building of tension, and you keep waiting for something horrible to happen. I will not ruin the film, but there is a point in Blue Heron at which it becomes something completely different, setting it apart from other troubled teen films. It’s a scintillating shift that takes you completely out of what you have established as real in the first half of the film. It allows us to see through the eyes of one of the other children how Jeremy’s actions affected them. Blue Heron is a mesmerizing piece of cinema from filmmaker Sophy Romvari that has to be seen to be believed. This is an extraordinary film that forces you to experience the storyline in a way that is both vast and incredibly moving.  My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again  Blue Heron Website  Now playing in select theaters 

Forgotten Film:  The Accountant (2001)  An amazing bit of filmmaking, worthy of its Short Narrative Academy Award in 2002. Star/writer/director Ray McKinnon is brilliant as an accountant who is brought in to save a family ranch. The PBR-drinking man isn’t afraid to guide the farmer into setting his farm on fire, killing his livestock, and even more. And this accountant is on a mission to save one farm at a time from the government and corporations. This film is funny from start to finish with incredible performances by McKinnon, Walter Goggins and Eddie King. I wish all short films were this creative and funny.   My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again   The Accountant Info  The film is available for rent on Amazon Prime and Tubi.

Weird Credits:  From the credits of The Wizard of the Kremlin:  Company Sparks

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You:  Supergirl (2026)  PG-13 Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock) aka Supergirl, is a jaded young woman whose only friend is Krypton, known as Superdog. She was sent to Earth by her parents to be raised by her cousin Kal-El, known as Superman. Supergirl is about to go on an adventure that will test everything she believes in and she is out for vengeance when her loved ones are threatened. James Gunn, Co-Chairman and Co-CEO of DC Studios, has decided that Supergirl will be grittier than Superman.  Supergirl Website In theaters on Friday, June 26, 2026

Until Next Time!

The Accountant

My View:  The Accountant  (2016)  R  Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) is a math savant who gets along better with numbers than people. He works as a freelance accountant for some of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations. As the Treasury Department closes in on Christian, he takes on a legitimate client, only to discover that the company is cooking the books. I thought this film was highly entertaining with its unique and unlikely hero, an accountant who probably has Asperger’s Syndrome and is a highly trained killer.  What surprised me was how funny the film is. The film uses Wolff’s quirkiness and his bluntness to great comedic effect. Affleck makes the action sequences seem effortless and believable. My only problem with the movie is that the director tried to pack too much into the plot, giving us almost an overload of information, especially about Wolff’s troubled childhood.  Overall this film is an action film with one of the most unique heroes in the history of cinema.    My Rating:  Full Price    The Accountant Website

My View:  Kevin Hart: What Now?  (2016)  R  Comedian Kevin Hart performs in front of a crowd of 50,000 people at Philadelphia’s outdoor stadium, Lincoln Financial Field. I enjoyed this film, but I never had that moment that you want in standup comedy; the laugh so hard you run out of breath moment. The film has a lively and entertaining opening where Kevin Hart goes all “James Bond” on us.  Even the opening titles seem like a “Bond” film. There is a hilarious bit with Halle Berry playing herself.  The most fun part of the Bond section is when Don Cheadle appears in the film. Once the standup starts (about 15 minutes into the movie) the material is funny, but I just don’t know if you will remember much of his act after the film. I did love the set, with the backdrop changing into whatever setting Hart was talking about. It’s a funny standup, but I don’t think it will go down in the history books like Eddie Murphy: Raw (1987) or Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip (1982). Note that after a short bit of credits, there is a bonus scene before the main credit sequence starts.    My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Kevin Hart: What Now? Website

Indiefest:  American Honey  (2016)  R  Star (Sasha Lane) is living in a bad situation and is looking for a way out.  When she meets a traveling magazine seller (Shia LeBeouf), she hooks up with his group and is about to go on an adventure of a lifetime. I am usually not a fan of movies where everyone in the film is unlikable, and that holds true for this film. The film is too long, goes almost nowhere and has characters that you wouldn’t want to let into your home, much less go on a road trip with. I wasn’t impressed with Shia LeBeouf’s performance, as I have a feeling that this character is much like LeBeouf in real life. The film has a look and a feel that it is set in the 80s but is actually set in the present time. I did like Sasha Lane’s breathtaking performance, and the cinematography is just stunning, capturing the landscape of America in all its vastness.  Overall it wasn’t worth spending 162 minutes with these characters, where the only thing that changes are the members of the group.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee   American Honey Website

Indiefest: Command and Control  (2016) During the 60’s and 70’s, the arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union was growing at a phenomenal pace. Nuclear missiles were placed in silos all across the world, including right here in the U. S.. Robert Kenner, who in 2010 brought us the Oscar-nominated documentary “Food, Inc.,” brings us a new scary and sobering documentary, “Command and Control.”  The film takes place at a United States Air Force missile launch facility just outside Damascus, Arkansas (50 miles from Little Rock) in September of 1980. Using reenactments, actual footage from the event and modern day interviews with the participants, the film looks at how a simple accident almost caused the detonation of a nuclear warhead on top of the largest missile in the US. Arsenal, the Titan II, an explosion that probably would have wiped out most of the Arkansas’s population.  There is more tension in this film than most Hollywood thrillers, and you will wonder how this could ever happen. It’s a chilling look at an accident that was waiting to happen. What I took away from this film is respect and admiration for the very young men who risked their lives to protect ours.  My Rating:  I Would Pay to See it Again   Command and Control Website

Forgotten Film:  Hopscotch  (1980) R A CIA agent (Walter Matthau) bungles an assignment and is given a desk job. He decides to write a tell-all book and then go on the lam. This is a thriller/comedy that works because the cast, especially Walter Matthau, is that darn good. By this time in his career, Matthau had perfected portraying the haggard, world beaten down hero, and he is extraordinary in this film. While not a great movie, it’s a blast watching Matthau work on the screen.  My Rating:  Bargain Matinee   Hopscotch Info

Weird Credits:  From the credits of The Accountant:  Life Casting Assistant

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  Certain Women  (2016)  R The lives of three women (Michelle Williams, Kristen Stewart, Laura Dern) from Montana intersect and change all of their lives. I don’t always like director/writer Kelly Reichardt’s films, but they always make me think.   Certain Women Info

Until Next Time!