Amazon’s GOOD OMENS are Multiplied
Amazon’s GOOD OMENS, starring Michael Sheen and David Tennant and based on Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s international best-selling novel, gets a six-episode second season. More great TV news! Amazon’s Good Omens, one of my favorite series based on one of my favorite books by one of my favorite authors, has received the green light for a second season.…
SUMMER OF SOUL Review — THE BOSS BABY: FAMILY BUSINESS Review
Check out Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Summer of Soul review and Boss Baby: Family Business review, both opening July 2. One deserves a salute, the other a spanking. Summer of Soul Review — So Much More Than a Concert Doc Few remember, or even knew about, 1969’s Harlem Cultural Festival in Mount Morris Park, where, over…
F9 Review — Has the Crew Finally Gone Too Far?
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s F9 review wonders if the Toretto family and friends have finally jumped the shark. At one point in F9, the ninth big screen episode of the Fast and Furious saga, two characters are in such a ludicrous car—satellite chase scene you begin to think, “Okay, after all the impossible chase/race scenes the…
FX Orders UNDER THE BANNER OF HEAVEN
Starring Andrew Garfield, adapted by Dustin Lance Black, produced by Brian Grazer and Ron Howard and based on riveting bestseller Under the Banner of Heaven is a really big deal. Under the Banner of Heaven is a seminal novel about Mormons, murder, polygamists and faith, or loss thereof. We can’t wait until it comes out. We’ll…
THE HITMAN’S WIFE’S BODYGUARD review— Unfortunately Misses Its Mark
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard review says that even an engaging cast can’t save this disjointed action flick. I found the original The Hitman’s Bodyguard cheeky and amusing, if not consummately memorable, so I was primed to enjoy the sequel, especially with the additions of Salma Hayek and Antonio Banderas. Stars Ryan Reynolds and…
IN THE HEIGHTS Review — Bound to Be the Hit of the Summer
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s In the Heights review says the colorful and creative, New York-based romance will take its place among the best musicals of the decade. Dazzling — if there’s one word to describe Lin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes’s new big screen adaptation of his Broadway hit, In the Heights, that would be it. The…
CRUELLA Review — Fabulous Fashionable Fun
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Cruella review says Disney’s new origin story of the legendary villainess is a fiendish delight and just what we need right now. You could stay home and pay the $29.99 Premiere Access fee to watch Cruella on Disney+, but the madness, the wildness the decadence and the spectacle of this Disney villainess…
A Quiet Place 2 Review — John Krasinski Does It Again!
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s A Quiet Place 2 review says it’s even better the second time around, and we already can’t wait for the third. No one saw (or heard) A Quiet Place coming. John Krasinski was beloved as Jim Halpert on The Office, but as a writer and director of a major motion picture? We…
North Hollywood Review — A Skater Asks Which Way to Turn
In her North Hollywood review, Lisa Johnson Mandell notes the skater coming of age film has a cuttingly creative edge. It’s perfect timing for the release a movie about a recently graduated high school senior attempting to decide what his next move will be. This unapologetic indie with a cuttingly creative edge will ring poignantly…
Wrath of Man Review — Thrills, Kills and Spills
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Wrath of Man review says the breakneck pacing and suspense, plus Jason Statham at his steely best, overcome the film’s minor flaws. Banks? Jewels? Drugs? Art? Heist movies and TV shows on those topics have been done ad nauseam, so it’s exciting to come across a heist pic that doesn’t focus on…
