John Candy: I Like Me (2025)

A portrait on the late actor who starred in 43 films in his 43 short years. Still remembered fondly by fans and all who knew him, he was larger than life, but known for his kind heart and gentle nature. If you're looking for dirt, you won't find it here. No one has nary a bad word to say about him. His only demons were the ones he was battling in silence. A lot of his story is told in his own words, as well as through his SCTV castmates, and especially his collaboration with John Hughes. He resists being typecast as the fat man, while seeming very secure in who he is, which remains relevant 30 years after his death. Like John Belushi or Chris Farley, he appears to live on with each new generation.

3 smiles through the pain out of 5

Note: Hearing Catherine O'Hara give John's eulogy hits doubly hard now. R.I.P.

Nuremberg (2025)

"The only clue to what man can do is what man has done."

Following the end of World War II, Nazi war criminals are brought to justice. An American shrink (Rami Malek) is tasked with determining whether Hermann Göring (Hitler's right-hand man, played by Russell Crowe) is fit to stand trial. It's a very depressing story based on a very dark time in human history that the movies love to relitigate over and over again. Do we really need the constant reminder that we keep going back and repeating past mistakes?

3 magic tricks out of 5

Nobody 2 (2025)

Taking a break from the usual grind, Hutch (Bob Odenkirk) decides to revisit a childhood vacation spot where he gets mixed up in the riff-raff and ends up beefing with meatheads, including the local badge. I enjoyed it up to a certain point, but then it just becomes the first movie all over again, except set in an amusement park. It gave me Beverly Hills Cop 3 vibes, especially the ending. It's very similar to its predecessor, only not quite as consistently amusing.

2 plush badgers out of 5

Orion and the Dark (2024)

Inside Out, as scripted by Charlie Kaufman. Orion is a kid who is scared of everything. He's obsessed with death and has an existential fear of the unknown. He contemplates all of life's big questions: What happens after it all goes dark? This is Charlie Brown if he was distilled down to a pure anxiety disorder. Pretty heavy shit for a kid's movie.

After a total blackout, Orion encounters the embodiment of the Dark, who takes him out on a grand adventure (à la Little Nemo in Slumberland) and forces him to confront his fears. Also in tow are the other nighttime entities: Sleep, Quiet, Sweet Dreams, Insomnia, and Unexplained Noises. (What a bunch of assholes!) You can kind of tell where this is going, but there are actually layers that are gradually peeled back and offer varying narrative perspectives. It goes some interesting places that few children's films would ever dare to go, which means it might be too intense for the little ones (though it would have been perfect for me). Once the curtain is finally lifted, there is an additional story being told that can only be appreciated by grown ass adults. Unfortunately, you get the feeling Kaufman's original script has been watered down in some respects to make it more agreeable for general audiences. You can sense they're holding back and are beholden to a more optimistic, conventional approach. As such, it's not quite as good as it could have been, but you can see all the potential that was there on the page.

3½ gilded lilies out of 5

PARKLAND [2013]

Journalist Peter Landesman made his directorial debut with the dramatically effective, yet ultimately pointless, historical drama Parkland.
Set in the three days that immediately followed JFK's assassination, we follow an ensemble of ordinary folks who aren't well remembered names that played a big part in the events, such as the doctors, reporters, policeman, secret service men and relatives of the larger than life names.
It offers a unique perspective on the controversial subject matter but it runs off into too many directions to really allow the viewer to become emotionally attached to any of the characters being explored.  There's some excellent performances from the long list of who's who of indie-films, particularly the always wonderful Paul Giamatti, James Badge Dale and Jacki Weaver.  With an extra 45 minutes (yes, that much) I think it could have been a great film but instead it's nothing but a valiant but uncompelling effort.

3 of the world's most famous rolls of 8mm films out of 5

11:14 [2003]

5 different stories literally collide into each other which results in the darkly comedic 2003 thriller 11:14.  Each featured character is an idiot and every choice they make leads into bad, bad things for themselves and anybody that crosses their paths.  It's fast-paced and well acted with help from flashy dialogue and non-linear storytelling which all make for a jewel in the rough.  A "what you see is what you get" type of film but still bloody good fun.

3 gunfire n' church bells out of 5