Netflix and Beyond

Fellow Movie Lovers SHERLOCK HOLMES This film is a sad and ridiculous example of the crucifixion of two fictional characters worthy of a better fate. And feted they have been throughout filmdom. Their have been fifty-nine actors, stage, screen and radio that have played Sherlock: John Barrymore, Michael Caine, Christopher Plummer, Peter O’ Toole, Roger Moore. But it is Basil …

Fellow Movie Lovers ME AND ORSON WELLES This film focuses on a small episode in the life of Orson Welles. Richard Linklater’s adaptation of Robert Kaplow’s novel should be seen by all devotees of Orson Welles, one of the most remarkable minds of the twentieth century; William Shakespeare, the undisputed titian of the written word and those who willingly shed …

Fellow Movie Lovers CRAZY HEART Through the years there have been many iconic movies made about alcohol addiction and the devastation left in its wake. A few come to mind: The Lost Weekend, Ray Milland I’ll Cry Tomorrow, Susan Hayward Days of Wine & Roses, Jack Lemmon & Lee Remick Who’s Afraid of Virginia, Richard Burton & Elizabeth Taylor Animal …

Fellow Movie Lovers Welcome to 2010! Thank you for your encouragement, comments and becoming followers of Peneflix. Now I realize that many of you are not movie lovers and may be tiring of my copious e-mails regarding my movie reviews (as I would feel about sport Blogs) so please let me know and I will erase you from my list; …

Fellow Move Lovers A SINGLE MAN Never has a broken heart been rendered as achingly beautiful as Colin Firth’s portrayal of Professor George Falconer in Tom Ford’s A Single man. Anyone who has suffered the loss of a loved one will empathize with the excruciating pain and realization that the absence, the void is eternal. George moves through his life, …

Fellow Movie Lovers “IT’S COMPLICATED” “It’s complicated”, a major ingredient of twenty-first century vernacular, is a euphuism for our inability to explain our ineptitudes, poor decisions or complications from personal or professional relationships gone awry. The situation we manufactured but no longer want ownership of, and are too mortified to confess to its creation and too embarrassed to seek help. …

Fellow Movie Lovers AVATAR In Hinduism the word avatar, derived from the Sanskrit, avatana (incarnation) is primarily associated with the god Vishnu, the preserver. To straighten out the foibles of man he appears in human form; the two most recognized avatars are Krishna starring in the Mahabharata and Rama the hero in the Ramayana epic. James Cameron’s (Titanic) Avatar is …

Fellow Movie Lovers THE YOUNG VICTORIA & BROKEN EMBRACES Never I have seen two movies in a twenty-four hour span that were so deliciously satiating; comparable to a titillating, palate- pampering dining experience, each exquisite swallow, gone but not forgotten. THE YOUNG VICTORIA The beguiling Emily Blount (The Devil Wears Prada) captures the innocence, grace and metal of the seventeen …

Fellow Movie Lovers Yes, I have returned from a warm and luscious hiatus. While relishing the only place in the continental United States that was bathed in sunshine I still managed to sit in a darkened and cool theatre to view: INVICTUS After a week of digesting this film, another jewel by Clint Eastwood (a man who never tires of …

Fellow Movie Lovers BROTHERS This is a well acted but not quite successful film. It is based on the 2004 movie Brodre by Danish director Susanne Bier (After the Wedding, Things We Lost in the Fire). The film’s success or failure rests with director Jim Sheridan. The subject matter, Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome and its victims is indeed timely and …