Downton Abbey

The Crawley family and staff continue life at Downton Abbey. It is now 1927 and the King and Queen are paying a visit...what could possibly go wrong?

This was a lovely epilogue that will thrill and delight the fans of the PBS television series.

**** MUST SEE (for all Downton fans)

Rated PG (for thematic elements) 

Hustlers

An unexpected tale about how the economical crash of 2018 impacted the "working girls" of Wall Street.

Based on a true story so I guess the history is what it is, but I wanted this to be better. I wanted the women to be smarter, and more superior at hustling than they were portrayed.

Not amazing but semi-entertaining.

** Rentable

Rated R (for sexual content, language and drug use)

The Peanut Butter Falcon

A young man, who is a ward of the state, runs away from his care center. Along the way he meets up with an outlaw who is determined to help him realize his dream of becoming a professional wrestler.

Although somewhat predictable, this slightly edgy dramady is very well done. The dialogue is fun, witty and fast - faintly Aaron Sorkin-esque.



Sweet and poignant, the story defines what "family" should mean.

***1/2 - Must See

Rated PG-13 (for thematic content, strong language and violence) 

The Biggest Little Farm

This documentary follows two Los Angelites out of the city and into a endeavor to build one of the most diverse farms in complete harmony with nature. As they attempt to rebuild a true ideal ecosystem they naively run into every problem imaginable.

This is possibly the best thing that came out of the Sundance Film Festival this year.




**** Oscar Worthy

Rated PG (for thematic elements) 

Blinded By The Light

A young teenager in 1987 Luton, England finds hope and validation when he is introduced to Bruce Springsteens' music and lyrics.

An exceptionally sweet story though slightly underdeveloped, seemed to be overrun by the soundtrack. Understandably the music and lyrics are what inspires our hero, that being said the movie is about 40 minutes too long because the narrative often stops to recognize the music instead of it being woven into the fabric of the storytelling.

Sweet and sentimental, slow and stretched.

**1/2 Rentable

Rated PG-13 (for language and thematic elements)

Good Boys

Three prepubescent tweens are determined to define themselves as "cool kids" now that they are in the sixth grade. When one of them gets invited to a "kissing" party, they go to extremes in every effort to make sure that they are prepared for the life altering event.

This was actually surprisingly sweet in spite of the vulgar language and suggestive material. It is truly a story told through the perspective of 11 year olds' as they try to navigate their way through the fine line that is their adolescent bubble and the real world.

Laugh out loud funny and so charming in its' childish innocence.

*** Must See

Rated R (for strong language throughout, sexual content and drug and alcohol use)  

Dora And The Lost City Of Gold

Dora the Explorer is now a teenager and must navigate her way through her newest adventure - high school.

For those that grew up watching the childrens' program there are several Easter eggs that will cause fans to laugh out loud and revel in nostalgia. For those of us that never watched the original cartoon - it is kind of like Romancing the Stone and Sesame Street had a baby.

It was tolerable.

** Rentable

Rated PG (for violence, scariness and rude humor)

The Kitchen

The Irish mafia runs a New York city neighborhood known as "Hell's Kitchen."  When the FBI sends three of their men to prison their respective wives take some drastic action.

This is a dark, gender swap on a genre and era that is typically dominated by men. The story is well developed and the characters are fantastically flawed.

Disheartening albeit edifying in it's portrayal of the time period and where women stood in society, it still manages to create a typical mobster flick feel that carries the audience to the very end.

*** Must See

Rated R (for violence, language and some sexual content)

Fast & Furious presents: Hobbs & Shaw

A spin-off of the Fast & Furious movies.

So this is great eye candy with some funny banter and a horrifically stupid plot.

No need to rush out and see it but its a fun summer B movie.


** Rentable

Rated PG-13 (for prolonged violence, suggestive material and language)

Once Upon A Time In...Hollywood

Rick Dalton and his long time stunt double Cliff Booth struggle to stay relevant in 1969's Hollywood scene.

I loved this movie - it was funny, it was clever, it was nostalgic and it was obnoxiously violent in traditional Tarantino fashion.

Oddly paced especially for a running time of two hours and forty-five minutes, nevertheless, the ending, believe it or not, is sweet and wistful.

The casting is spectacular - stay through the credits as it adds even more shrewd fun from the era.

***1/2 Must See

Rated R (for strong language, violence and drug use)