Nominees for the 2025 Critics Choice TV Awards — Are Your Favorites on the List?
Lisa Johnson Mandell reveals the year’s best TV series and performances, as reflected in the nominations for the annual Critics Choice TV Awards. Help her cast her votes! At last! Some of you may be wondering where I’ve been for the past several weeks—a thousand apologies if I forgot your birthday, anniversary, open house or…
Top 10 Holiday Movies — Some May Surprise You
In addition to the Top 10 Holiday Movies, we have info on why these titles top the holiday comfort films list, what’s the European favorite, and the most popular new Christmas movies of 2025. As families gather for celebration, cheer, and tradition, many Americans are also returning to their most beloved holiday comfort films. Sitting…
Iconic Architect Frank Gehry, 96, Leaves an Incomparable Legacy
Take a look at the life and legacy of legendary architect Frank Gehry, who redefined the art of the profession. Iconic architect Frank Gehry, who passed away December 5 2025 at age 96, leaves behind a legacy that fundamentally transformed how we think about buildings and public spaces. Although he was not known for designing…
HAMNET Review, BUGONIA Review — 2 Top 5 Favorites
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Hamnet review and Bugonia review reveal two of the films in her Top 5 List of 2025. Their mastery and originality are staggering. Hamnet review There’s one word that I hear most often in descriptions, reviews or conversations about the film Hamnet, and that would be ‘tears,’ followed by ‘cry.’ That’s saying…
NOW YOU SEE ME 3 Review — aka Now You See Me: Now You Don’t
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Now You See Me 3 review says this third chapter in the franchise has run out of magic thanks to magic-free CGI. By the time a franchise reaches its third outing, you’d hope a decade of experience might refine its craft. Unfortunately, Now You See Me 3 is an all-too common threequel…
WICKED FOR GOOD Review—2nd Time is Even More of a Charm
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Wicked for Good review and reveals that the second half is even more splendified than the first, with epicaliferous cinematic artistry defying traditional sequel gravity. It’s never easy for a director to make lightening strike twice—especially with a sequel. Jon M Chu’s Wicked hadn’t really lost its cinematic zeitgeist status yet—the streets…
TAPAWINGO REVIEW: Jon Heder’s Back, and He’s Still Laidback
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Tapawingo review says Jon Heder hasn’t lost a comedic step since Napoleon Dynamite. Okay, so remember when we all collectively lost our minds over Napoleon Dynamite back in 2004? Well, Jon Heder just rolled up in a tricked-out dune buggy to remind us why we fell for his particular brand of weird in…
Rob Lowe Stars as the No. 1 Hollywood Dog Dad Thanks to Ultimate Pet Nutrition
Rob Lowe has inadvertently made a name for himself as the ultimate Hollywood Dog Dad by promoting Ultimate Pet Nutrition, a brand he truly believes in, and my dogs love. On the surface, it might look like just another celebrity cashing a check, but Rob Lowe’s partnership with Ultimate Pet Nutrition has a surprisingly specific…
The Girlfriend Review — 2 Critics Share 1 Strong Opinion
Critics Tandy Culpepper and Lisa Johnson Mandell actually agree in their The Girlfriend review—see what they think on Tandy’s podcast, The Hollywood Beat. In The Girlfriend, Robin Wright steps in front of and behind the camera, shaping a drama that begins as polished domestic perfection and unravels into psychological warfare. She plays Laura Sanderson, a…
FRANKENSTEIN Review — A Powerful and Poignant Masterpiece
Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Frankenstein reviews says that director Guillermo del Toro’s latest work is monstrously brilliant. Of all the countless renditions of Mary Shelley’s classic Gothic tale of the manmade monster, this may be the most lavish, poignant and profoundly beautiful work yet, said she who normally eschews reboots, remakes, re-imaginings and retellings. Director Guillermo…
