Send Help

My View: Send Help  (2026) R  Send Help follows Linda (Rachel McAdams), who has the boss from hell in Bradley (Dylan O’Brien), who tells her she has one last chance to impress him on an upcoming trip, or she will be fired. When their plane crashes and the two find themselves stranded on a deserted island, things have changed. Linda is now in charge, and Bradley is in danger of being fired or killed. Director Sam Raimi (Spiderman trilogy, The Evil Dead series, Drag Me to Hell) must have had a blast directing this film, which is off-the-wall fun, with lots of blood and two characters who play a game of who can, quoting Linda’s favorite TV show Survivor, “outwit, outplay, and outlast’ the other. Rachel McAdams is a delight as the put-upon office worker who is now stranded with the one person she hates, her boss, Bradley. This is a horror film with a sense of humor, plenty of scares and thrills, and a plot that will keep you guessing. I loved this film, and McAdams and O’Brien are a blast to watch as they match wits, with Linda having the skills and Bradley the overconfidence of a man who has always gotten his way. This is a bloody, sometimes look the other way, physical romp where two people try not only to survive on an island but also to survive each other. Send Help is a tale that you think might become one of those Hallmark rom-coms where two people who can’t get along realize that they are in love with each other, but instead is as if they are on Survivor, but with swords and lots of blood flowing.  My Rating: Full Price  Send Help Website  Now playing in theaters

My View:  Shelter  (2026)  R   In Shelter, Mason (Jason Statham) is living a solitary life in a remote area by the sea when he rescues a young girl, Jesse (Bodhi Rae Breathnach), from drowning. This act set off a chain reaction that soon brings violence his way, something Mason had hoped he had put behind him. Jason Statham is one of my favorite action stars. Like Keanu Reeves, he seems to know what works in his wheelhouse and then delivers exactly what you want and are expecting. That’s what you get in Shelter, a delightful tale of a man whose past has caught up with him, and he is going to do everything he can to ensure that the young girl he rescued will survive whatever the bad guys throw at them. What makes this such a fun ride is the chemistry between Statham, playing a man of few words, and Bodhi Rae Breathnach, who plays the headstrong young girl who has lost her last family member and now is all alone, unless she can convince Mason to take her along on his adventures. Breathnach is having a moment in cinema, in this role and in her role in the Academy Award-nominated Hamnet. She makes this film work because we understand how quickly Mason can develop feelings for Jessie through her performance. The action sequences are fun to watch, and Jason beats the crap out of a lot of bad guys. Adding to the fun, as the mastermind bad guy is the always enjoyable Bill Nighy, playing a man who is convinced he is the puppet master, but Mason has other ideas. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Shelter Website   Now playing in theaters

My View:  The Wrecking Crew  (2026)  R  The Wrecking Crew centers around two half-brothers, Jonny (Jason Momoa) and James (Dave Bautista), who have to work together to discover the reason for their father's murder in Hawaii. Long-buried secrets will be uncovered, which threaten to tear their family apart. I had a hard time with this film at the start, as we are thrown into the storyline without much backstory. However, because of the fun that Momoa and Bautista are having playing off each other as two brothers who can’t get along, the film is enjoyable to watch. There is even a very funny and thrilling chase sequence where even Morena Baccarin makes an appearance to have some fun. The film is a little too complicated for its own good, but watching Momoa play the brother who is always doing the wrong thing and Bautista, who is constantly judging Jonny, it’s an action film that works only because of the two leads.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  The Wrecking Crew Website  Now playing on Amazon Prime.

My View: Arco  (2025)  PG  Arco is a ten-year-old boy who lives in the year 2932. Arco’s parents time-travel without him, and he decides to go out on his own. Arco travels back to 2075, but on the way, his time-travel device breaks, leaving him with no way to get back to his family. This is a beautiful and thrilling story about a boy who wanted to be included in his family's adventures and goes out on his own, only to realize that he may never see them again. What he finds in this new world is friendship and hope for a world that is quickly devouring itself. The animation is almost magical in its look and feel, and the storyline will captivate both young and old, making Arco worthy of its Academy Award nomination.  My Rating: Full Price  Arco Website  Now playing in theaters

Indiefest: Iron Lung  (2026)  R   The Iron Lung takes place in the near future, where an event known as ‘The Quiet Rapture’ causes all known planets and stars in the universe to disappear. A convict has been sent on a suicide mission using a small submarine to explore a moon that has an ocean of blood. One of the most anticipated movies of January is based on a video game and features filmmaker Mark Fischbach, who has an incredible number of social media followers. Fischbach wrote (with the help of the video game creator David Szymanski), directed, and stars in the film. The film has garnered over 7 million dollars in presales. I wish the over 2-hour movie was worth all that attention, but it’s not. The movie and game revolve around a person alone in a submersible with no windows, guided by a map and pictures taken by a camera every few moments. If that sounds like fun to you, then go right ahead. I was bored out of my mind and kept looking at my watch (always a bad sign) to see when this film would end. Half the time, you have no idea what is going on, why he is down there, and if what we are seeing is real or a figment of his imagination, something that you will not get an answer to, even by the end of the film. This is a mess of a film and wouldn’t even be a fun watch at a midnight film festival platform. Man, I hope the video game is more fun than this film. I have no intention of finding out.  My Rating: You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again Iron Lung Website  Now playing in theaters

Indiefest:  A Private Life  (2025) R  A Private Life follows a renowned psychiatrist, Lilian Steiner (Jodie Foster), as she investigates the death of a patient of hers. While others believe Lilian did nothing to prevent the suicide, Lilian believes that her patient might have been murdered. A Private Life only works because of Jodie Foster, who commands the screen with her presence and blends in perfectly with her command of the French language to make a mystery better than it should be. The plot is shaky as it is more about Lilian discovering more about herself and her faults than it is about solving a possible murder. We learn more about Lilian and her relationships than we do about her patient’s life in Lilian’s quest to find out if her patient committed suicide. I loved the back-and-forth between Lilian and her ex-husband, as we see there is still an attraction and draw between them, no matter what happened in the past. By the end of the film, I was sorry the mystery was solved and wouldn’t mind if Lilian went on to solve more mysteries.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  A Private Life Website  Now playing in select theaters 

Indiefest: Mr. Nobody Against Putin (2025)   Pavel “Pasha” is a teacher and event organizer who always has a video camera in hand to record his students' activities. Pasha lives in a small Russian town that was once famous as the world's most polluted city (tourists from all over used to visit). Pasha is well-liked by teachers and students and cares about his students. He recognizes he is a little strange, and sometimes his frankness gets him into trouble, but his office at school is a gathering place for students who also feel like they don’t belong. Then Russia’s invasion of Ukraine begins, and Pasha sees his school turn almost overnight from a fun, happy place to one where the students are force-fed government propaganda. A place where school has become a place not to learn about the world, but only about how great Putin is and how the rest of the world is inferior to the Russian way of life. So, our strange little teacher documents everything that is going on at the school, recording hundreds of hours of footage while doing some subversive things on his own, including playing Lady Gaga singing the American national anthem over the school’s loudspeakers. I loved this film, and you too will fall in love with Pasha. At one point, he decides to resign because he can’t stand what his school has become, but then rescinds his resignation so he can create a documentary to show the world what has become of his beloved school. This is a shocking look at how quickly the propaganda forces work and how some teachers quickly take advantage of the situation for their own greed and power. Throughout the film, you worry about Pasha getting caught, and through his own narration, he realizes that his time is quickly running out. The film, with Pasha as our guide, is funny, thoughtful, courageous, and shows how powerful a documentary can be in revealing to the world how wrong a government can be. Mr. Nobody Against Putin is worthy of its Academy Award nomination and is a must-see for documentary lovers. If there were more Mr. Nobodies in the world, it would be a better place. My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again  Mr. Nobody Agains Putin Website   Now playing in select theaters and available to stream on the Kino Film Collection

Forgotten Film: The Anderson Tapes (1971) GP  Duke Anderson (Sean Connery) is a master thief and has just been released from jail after 10 years. His first stop is to see his girlfriend, Ingrid (Dyan Cannon), who lives in a posh apartment building courtesy of a sugar daddy. Duke realizes that Ingrid’s building is a gold mine full of rich people with lots of things to steal, so he contacts gangster Tommy(Alan King) to help plan the heist, and then puts together a crew to pull off the job, including an art expert (Martin Balsam) and a young safecracker (Christopher Walken). Connery is good in this post-007 role, but the fun of this film is the film debut of Christopher Walken, and it’s a blast to watch him perform on screen. Five-time Oscar-nominated Sidney Lumet directs the film, and you can see his steady hand throughout. The film falls apart a bit when the twist is revealed, but watching Walken on the screen makes up for it. My Rating: Bargain Matinee The Anderson Tapes Info Now available to rent on Amazon and Apple TV+.

Weird Credits: From the credits of Shelter: Chess Advisor

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: The Bride  (2026) R  This is a retelling of the story of the Bride of Frankenstein. In the 1930s, Frankenstein’s monster (Christian Bale) had traveled to Chicago to seek the aid of Dr. Eupronius (Annette Bening) in creating a companion. Together, they revive a murdered woman, creating The Bride (Jessie Buckley), who is far more than expected. This sparks a romance, police attention, and more. Maggie Gyllenhaal wrote and directed the film, and the cast includes Penelope Cruz, Julianne Hough, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Peter Sarsgaard.  The Bride Website  In theaters on Friday, March 6, 2026.

Until Next Time!

Long Shot

My View:  Long Shot  (2019) R  Fred (Seth Rogan) is a writer, Charlotte (Charlize Theron) is Secretary of State and is about to run for President. Fred and Charlotte used to know each other, and they have a chance meeting at a party. Charlotte decides to hire Fred to punch up her speeches.  Can love be far behind? I had so much fun watching this movie. It reminded me of the goofy romcoms of the 80s with the difference is that the man is the shy, goofball and the woman is that smart one that is in control. Rogan and Theron have a blast, and they have incredible chemistry right from the start, making their attraction seem real. You will have to leave your brain at the door for a couple of sequences (especially the final ending which we see in the credits) but that doesn’t detract that this film is funny, warm and surprisingly sweet. I could have done without the drug sequence but it’s a Seth Rogan production, so it’s kind of a given. As with any Rogan comedy, it gets a little raunchy but it fit into the storyline, so it works. Go see this winning comedy. By the way, I believe this is Charlize Theron’s first comedy, and she hits it out of the park. Let's hope she gets to do more like this one.  My Rating: Full Price    Long Shot Website

My View:  The Intruder  (2019)  PG=13  A young married couple (Meagan Good, Michael Ealy) buy an isolated house on several acres of land only to realize that the man that sold it (Dennis Quaid) does not want to give it up. First let me say that the audience that I saw this film with thoroughly enjoyed the film, reacting every time Quaid made an appearance in the shadows or when the main characters made bad decisions that we knew would cost them.  That being said, this is a horrible movie that doesn’t bring anything new to the bad guy is in your house genre. Dennis Quaid gives one of his worst performances as he goes so over the top that the audience, which wanted to believe him as a villain starting laughing at some of his antics. The film is incredibly predictable and follows all the genre’s rules, including the wife that just can’t see the possibility that she could be in danger until it’s too late. Unlike the audience I saw it with, I wasn't ever scared, just annoyed by how badly the film was written.   My Rating: Cable    The Intruder Website

FamilyFaire:  UglyDolls  (2019)  PG  The UglyDolls have been content to live in their little world until a group decides to go exploring. They encounter a world that seems to be perfect and where the UglyDolls don’t fit in. However, soon the UglyDolls learn that perfection isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. With a bunch of forgettable songs (that waste the talents of singers like Kelly Clarkson, Nick Jonas, and Janelle Monáe and a plot, while its heart is in the right place, just is boring and slow. Parents are going to be looking at their watch a lot (as I did) wondering when this film will stop, and kids are not going to be entertained by a bunch of characters that are badly thought out. Unless your kid is a big UglyDoll fan, just skip this film that doesn’t work on any level.   My Rating: Cable     UglyDolls Website

Indiefest:  Red Joan  (2018)  R  Joan is a young brilliant student at Cambridge in 1938. She meets the love of her life, Leo (Tom Hughes), the leader of the university Communist student group. When World War II breaks out, Joan is asked to work on a top-secret project, one that could change the world, but she will also be asked by her former lover to betray her country. The question is will she?  If you are going to see this film because Judi Dench (she plays Joan in 1990) is in this film, you will be disappointed. Dench is merely a supporting player, used to bring the flashbacks of Joan’s life in the 30s and 40s. Dench does a lot of staring off into the distance, as we then travel back to see the 1940s Joan trying to decide to betray her country. The story is hurt by the constant back and forth of 90s Joan and Joan in the past storylines, making the storyline progress in sprits instead of flowing along if they had just stayed with the more interesting plot. I got to the point in the film, where I didn’t care what happened with either Joan, both deserved whatever fate they got.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee     Red Joan Website

Indiefest:  Ask Dr. Ruth  (2019)  Documentary chronicling the amazing life of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a Holocaust survivor who overcame almost insurmountable odds to become the world’s most famous sex therapist.Brilliant documentary on the long and sometimes tragic life of a dynamo of a woman, Dr. Ruth. Dr. Ruth was orphaned at age ten, though she didn’t fully know what happened to her parents until she visits a Holocaust museum in Israel late in the film. Her childhood experiences are told through animation, which helps soften the blow of such a difficult childhood where basically by age 13 she was an indentured servant at an orphanage in Switzerland. Sr. Ruth constantly fought against the odds to get as much education as she could, whether it was being taught by an orphan boy at night or going to graduate school as a single parent, Dr. Ruth was on a constant drive to better herself and get as much information as she could absorb. I loved this film and we get to know Dr. Ruth, though you get the feeling that she is always holding back a bit about her troubled childhood. Go see this year's RBG, you are going to fall in love with this smart woman who fearlessly talks about sex, making us re-examine the way we see ourselves.    My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again     Aks Rr. Ruth Website

Forgotten Film: The Wrecking Crew  (1968)  PG  Super secret agent Matt Helm (Dean Martin) is set to see if he can stop a crime boss from cornering the world’s gold. Unfortunately, the British send in their own agent Freya (Sharon Tate) who just keeps making this worse for Matt. In the 60s, the secret agent craze hit movies and TV. Brought out mostly by the success of James Bond, not only were there serious attempts to dethrone Bond but also a number of films went the other route and made fun of the super slick agent that could bed any woman. At the top was the Matt Helm movies, which not only made fun of (in a cool way) the James Bond films but also made fun of Dean Martin’s reputation as a drinker and womanizer. The Austin Powers films took a lot from the Helm movies, all in good fun. This film is distinguished from the other two Matt Helm movies because of a brilliant performance by Sharon Tate. Her portrayal of the bumbling agent Freya is so good, you don’t want the movie to stop. These aren’t great films and are incredibly dated but they are still fun to watch.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee     The Wrecking Crew Info

Weird Credits:  From the credits of The Intruder:  16mm Film Projection

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  Tolkien  (2019)  PG-13  J.R.R. Tolkien (Nicholas Hoult) was an orphan who had to work hard to get anywhere. He falls in love with a fellow orphan, Edith (Lily Collins) and just when he finds his calling, language, he is swept away in the horrors of WW I. Tolkien has always been one of my favorite authors, so to see what influenced his “Middle Earth’ writings will be fascinating.    Tolkien Website

Until Next Time!

It Follows

My View:  It Follows  (2015)  R  For nineteen-year-old Jay (Maika Monroe), life should be all about school and boys. After having sex in what should have been an innocent sexual encounter, she finds herself having visions and the feeling that she is being followed.  This movie is a scary, inventive horror film that keeps building the suspense until the very end.  The film is very reminiscent of the classic 1978 John Carpenter film, Halloween, right down to a perfectly matched musical score.  I loved the performances of the very young cast including Maika Monroe. If you are a fan of horror or suspense films, you will want to see this one.   My Rating: Full Price   It Follows Website

Indiefest:  Merchants of Doubt  (2015)  PG-13  A documentary that explores the world of pundits-for-hire who present themselves to the media as experts on topics such as global warming and toxic chemicals. This is an interesting film about the how PR people try to change public opinion by misdirection of the facts.  The film looks at some of the great PR stunts of the last 50 years including that smoking isn't bad for you, global warming and use of toxic chemicals to make our furniture flame retardant. I enjoyed this film as it often takes a reverent look at the art of taking facts and shaping them to fit your argument, making the film a highly entertaining experience.   My Rating; Bargain Matinee    Merchants of Doubt Website

Indiefest:  The Wrecking Crew  (2014)  PG-13  A celebration of musicians you have never heard of but have loved their music.  The wrecking crew was a group of session musicians who backed up everyone from Frank Sinatra to The Beach Boys.  This is a documentary about a group of session musicians who recorded a number of hit songs from the 1960’s to the 1980’s. If you like a hit from the 60’s and 70’s and that album was recorded in L.A., more than likely the music on that album was from the artist on the front cover, and more than likely it was recorded by the Wrecking Crew. The film is a little too long and focuses too much on the filmmaker’s father, guitarist Tommy Tedesco, but it’s filled with impressive stories and some unique characters.  After seeing this film, you will wonder, is it really the artists listed on the album or is it the Wrecking Crew?    My Take: Bargain Matinee   The Wrecking Crew Website

Indiefest: Deli Man (2014)  PG-13 The deli has been the center of Jewish culture in America for over 100 years. One man, a third-generation deli man, Ziggy Gruber, is keeping the traditions and the delicacies alive in his Houston, Texas deli. His story, along with the great delis in America, such as the 2nd Avenue Deli, Nate 'n Al’s, the Carnegie and the Stage, are told in this documentary. I enjoyed this film and its lovable subject, Ziggy Gruber. Ziggy has a passion for the food and tradition of the deli, determined to preserve as many recipes as he can as traditional Jewish delis are disappearing out at an outstanding rate. It’s a film for foodies and be sure to go see it on a full stomach, or you will be looking for a hot pastrami sandwich right after the film.   My Rating: Full Price   Deli Man Website

Forgotten Film:  Housekeeping (1988) PG Two sisters are taken on a sudden trip by their mother to visit a relative.  The mother commits suicide, and the two sisters are passed between family members until they end up with their mother’s sister, Aunt Sylvie (Christine Lahti). Sylvie is a little strange, liking to take long walks at a moment’s notice and collecting tin cans. The sister’s lives are changed forever in the care of the Aunt Sylvie.  Lahti is stunning as the free spirit Sylvie. The film is about love and sometimes you can find it from uncongenial places.   My Rating: Full Price   Housekeeping Info  

Weird Credits:  From the credits of Cinderella:  Pumpkin Carriage Builder

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  Adult Beginners (2014)  A young businessman’s (Nick Kroll) company crashes after an unsuccessful launch.  He moves back to the suburbs to live with his sister (Rose Byrne) and her family.  Little does he know; he’s about to be their nanny.   Adult Beginners Info

Until Next Time!