Movies

The other night, at our local Cinemark, we purchased the biggest tub of popcorn they had and scrambled up the steps past rows of stadium seating to our favorite spot in the center of the top row. The movie was Insidious: The Last Key, and due to my poorly controlled, disruptive reactions to scene after scene, the…

As a purist fan of the Broadway play, Annie, I never quite warmed up to the movie version that came out in 1982. After all, Punjab, who played a major role in the movie, wasn’t in the play and neither were some of the songs, like “Dumb Dog” and “Let’s Go to the Movies.” Now there’s…

This post originally appeared on the DVD Netflix blog “Inside the Envelope.” That company folded in 2023, and the blog was shut down, but you might find some good stuff here. Summertime movies occupy an enduring place in my mind. I guess this is what filmmakers hope for, that their creations will live on and…

Disclaimer: I am a member of Netflix’s DVD.com Director’s program, which gives me free access to movies. If you sign up with my referral link, I may receive a referral reward. [2026 update: DVD Netflix is no more.] I love opening the red envelopes that appear in my mailbox from DVD.com. Oftentimes, they offer a fun activity…

While waiting in the grocery checkout a couple of years ago, I regarded a small display of movie DVDs, including Annie (2014). For some time, I had been considering purchasing the movie I had so loved in the theater, so I placed it on the conveyor belt. When I opened the case at home, I found it…

I’m a movie buff (junkie). I like to be transported into another time and place (escape). I like a darkened movie theater with Surround Sound for a total immersion experience, but there’s something to be said for watching movies in the comfort of your own living room, or home theater, if you have one. Here…

The other day, a movie called, The Guard, bubbled up to the top of my Netflix DVD queue. It stars American Don Cheadle and Irishman Brendan Gleeson as a by-the-book FBI agent and an unconventional Irish policeman, respectively, who team up to bust an international drug-smuggling ring. While watching the movie, I became curious about the signage on the squad cars, “GARDA.” I…

My Netflix DVD queue contains 47 movie titles. At a rate of about one viewing per week, it would take almost a year to get through my whole list, if I weren’t always growing it. Often, I’ll add a movie and shoot it directly to the top. The list remains roughly the same length, and…

Moms’ Night Out features a terrific car chase, an out-of-control taser, and a tattoo found on a most-unlikely subject. It also offers tons of excitement and hilarity, without reducing itself to the gratuitous violence and awkward sex scenes that seem to be standard today. If you want to see a movie that will make you laugh,…

Living near the Ritz-Carlton in Washington, DC, my son and daughter-in-law have encountered a number of celebrities at their neighborhood pharmacy. A year or so ago, the activity during one of our Skype sessions was a guessing game about their latest sighting. After our many failed tries, they finally revealed that they had seen Dame Judi Dench discussing the…