Hollywood

Unquestionably, Tom Hardy is the quintessential method actor in contemporary film, rivaling, at times resembling, Marlon Brando; from his 2001 debut in “Black Hawk Down”, “The Dark Night Rises”, “Mad Max”, “The Revenant” (Academy Award Nominee), “Dunkirk”, “Legend” and my most preferred “Locke”, a tour de force, rarely and exquisitely witnessed. In this revolting, scatological, rendition of Al Capone’s (1899-1947) …

Author Wally Lamb’s 1998, novel “I Know This Much is True” was so poetically profound that unlike most prominent best sellers, never becomes diaphanous, continues to resonate with the strength of a pen, perpetually pulsating with precociousness; distinctive, unrivaled characters, sear with extraordinary, painful authenticity; an unprecedented examination of the human condition; a soaring analysis, triumph of man’s capacity to …

“FORCE 2” is a limpid, crystalline, imitation of potent “Force One”; a second chance for hunky, handsome John Abraham to recreate his role of outlier, law enforcement officer, “Yash”, teamed with Captain KK (Sonakshi Sinha) to excavate a mole in India’s Budapest Embassy. Glorious glitz saves director Abhinay Deo’s film from placid anonymity; the action scenes fall into the “Kill …

 In its third season, falls into the “not” category; first season was creatively twisted to the point of guaranteeing a second scenario, but sunk precipitously into idiocy, and season three is worthy of assassination: “Eve” (Sandra Oh, Golden Globe Winner) a bored MI5 agent, and “Villanelle” kooky, inventive serial killer (Jodie Comer, Emmy Winner), are matched as pungently powerful protagonists …

Incredulous, that the Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution has yet to be ratified, after decades of crusaders pulverized opponents, attaining notoriety on an unprecedented scale: “Mrs. America” focuses on feminine forces, both yeas and nays, in this fascinating dissection of the female arena, framework of women grabbing control of their lives, thus enabling gratification to those who …

Dimensionless days, no longer defined by obligations, just “long day’s journey into night”; director Sam Hargraves “Extraction” piqued my interest solely because of the title; the universe has been “extracted” from the known, mundane, minutia, parameters that delineate Sunday’s from Friday’s; “Extraction” takes viewers into the crime-infested world of Bangladeshi drug lords and the kidnapping of “Ovi” (Rudraksh Jaiswal) the …

No matter your interest, macro or micro, in the sport’s arena, “The Last Dance” (ESPN, & Streaming devices) is worth every viewing second; parts 1, & 2 aired Sunday, April 19th continuing through Sunday, May 17th, 2020.  “The Last Dance” three words conjuring memories of prom nights, weddings, once in a lifetime celebratory events, reverberating with profound poignancy, lending a …

Days have lost delineation, season’s anticipations in limbo; monotony, intimidating, threatening benign ennui, Netflix to the rescue: “TIGER KING”: surprisingly compelling, the “catfighting” saga between  “polar” forces: Joe Exotic, Carole Baskin, Don Antle, all under the guise of animal protection, procreation; as an urbanite I found the intensity of the protagonists captivating; producer Rick Kirkman, fairly narrates all sides of …

Eric Lawson’s newest book, “The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family and Defiance During the Blitz”, and “The Red Lotus” a novel by Chris Bohjalian, disparate times, but astoundingly on point in today’s Dystopian reality; what London and its people withstood during traumatic WWII, in light of present realities, elicits strong comparisons; “The Red Lotus” clairvoyantly address …

Writer/director Eliza Hitman’s painfully insightful portrait of a teenager’s journey to terminate an unwelcome pregnancy resonates with the bleakness of director Cristian Mungiu’s 2007, “4 months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days”; “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” unveils the trauma, bullying of “Autumn” (presciently depicted by first time actor Sidney Flanigan), a pregnant small town Pennsylvania high schooler and her cousin “Skyler” …