Reviews

Jim and I don’t usually do anything fancy for Valentine’s Day. We never have. He usually sends me roses, but we’ve been married a long time, so there’s no need for grand gestures. He knows I’m not going anywhere and I know the same. For some reason this year, we did some planning. I said…

When is a debate not a debate? As part of the Jefferson Educational Society’s Global Summit, in Erie, Pennsylvania, Howard Dean, retired Democratic politician, and Elise Jordan, Republican political analyst participated in a debate on Tuesday, November 13, 2018, at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. The event was moderated by Steve Scully, C-SPAN political editor,…

I barely remember the first time I saw The Room, that quirky film from 2003 that people love-to-hate-to-love. According to my DVD Netflix history, I received it in September of 2015, and I gave it only one star. When I watched The Room last weekend, I hardly remembered it. It’s possible that the first time around, I packed it up and sent…

Each year when the Oscar nominees come out, it’s fun to review the list and add the ones that look interesting to my DVD Netflix queue. This year’s movies are just starting to arrive in my mailbox, and the gem we watched over the weekend was best-picture nominee, Call Me by Your Name. This film won the 2018…

It seems that Tommy Wiseau has had the last laugh. Fifteen years ago, he spent $6 million to make The Room and grossed only $1,900 on its first release. Now, it’s become a cult phenomenon, and even though I’ve already seen the movie, I want to see it again. It’s so popular though, that my Netflix DVD queue says…

A spouse’s passing devastates. A Widow’s Story, by Joyce Carol Oates, illustrates the first year after her husband, Raymond J. Smith, died on February 18, 2008. Oates was fortunate to have many devoted friends, but she still felt isolated and often overwhelmed by the weight of the estate and legacy of her beloved. Just two weeks…

This year marks the 30th anniversary of Beetlejuice, the 1988 horror comedy starring Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Michael Keaton, and Winona Ryder. Because it seemed that I was the only person on earth who hadn’t see it, last month, I added the movie to my DVD Netflix queue and gave it a watch. Here are seven things I liked…

I stood in the lobby of the 1891 Fredonia Opera House, in upstate New York, passing the time by looking at my phone while my husband sought out our will-call tickets. We were there to see Pat Donohue, Grammy-winning guitarist. Pat Donohue is well known for the almost-two decades he spent as a guitarist for the…

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…