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17 Sep

What We Do in the Shadows Season 3 Episode 4 Review: The Casino

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This What We Do in the Shadows review contains spoilers. What We Do in the Shadows Season 3 Episode 4 A coastal resort destination like Atlantic City might not seem the wisest place for a vampire to vacation, but it pays off in “The Casino.” The Staten Island vampires may be shirking their duties on the Vampiric Council, but What We Do in the Shadows  season 3 episode 4 benefits from the change in scenery. This is especially shattering for Nandor (Kayvan Novak), who learns during this episode that the world is not only round, but also not held up…
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15 Sep

What If…? Episode 6 Review: Killmonger to the Rescue

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This review contains spoilers for Marvel’s What If…? episode 6. Episode 6 of Marvel’s What If…?, entitled “What If… Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?”, might be the flattest episode to come out of the series so far, but it at least works in the way the other Disney+ Marvel shows work. It takes a character from the Marvel Cinematic Universe who didn’t get quite enough time in the spotlight and gives us more. In this case, it’s the charismatic Black Panther villain Erik “Killmonger” Stevens. As he was only relevant to the Black Panther movie, we get to see the character…
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13 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 10 Review: Partners ‘Til the End

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 10 “I’m an angel, remember? I’ll see you on the other side.” There are endless avenues the Lucifer writing team could have taken with the series finale “Partners ‘Til the End,” but fans of the Netflix fantasy show are treated to an emotionally charged ride that finally places the characters exactly where they need to be whether in Heaven, Hell, or here on earth. Though the episode clearly centers on the circumstances behind Lucifer’s disappearance and the impact it eventually has on Chloe and Rory, all the characters receive wonderful, albeit…
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13 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 9 Review: Goodbye, Lucifer

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 9 “Where’s a goddamn celestial when you need one.” In its series’ penultimate episode, “Goodbye, Lucifer,” Lucifer presents a powerful examination of the fate vs free will debate as Lucifer does his best to avoid abandoning Chloe and their unborn daughter Rory. Time travel, time loops, body jumping, end-of-the-world apocalypse – it’s all here as the series eschews its traditional witty one-liners for some resolute reflection in a moment of existential crisis. It doesn’t get much better than this. There’s a certain irony in the fact that Lucifer is more concerned…
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13 Sep

The Walking Dead Season 11 Episode 4 Review: Rendition

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This The Walking Dead review contains spoilers. The Walking Dead Season 11 Episode 4 Has anyone on The Walking Dead been through as much as Daryl Dixon? He’s been tortured several times at this point, including the most insidious torture method ever devised by Negan. He’s been injured in pretty much every possible way someone can be injured. His motorcycles have long since stopped running. His friends won’t let him retreat into the woods like the smelly hermit he longs to be. The only love affair he’s had on the show has ended in ambivalent tragedy. To be fair, he’s…
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13 Sep

The Eyes of Tammy Faye Review: Jessica Chastain Buries a Soul Somewhere in There

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The Bible says eyes are a window to the soul, and the scripture ain’t lying when it comes to The Eyes of Tammy Faye. If you can look past all the clutter and myriad distractions, there is a resilient and even boisterous spirit radiating from Jessica Chastain every time you meet her gaze. Yet it’s sometimes hard to notice—and not because of all the makeup and prosthetics they add to the actress’ face as the movie goes along. Rather what traps this richly textured performance is the glossy and fairly shallow biopic in which it’s situated. Here is a Hollywood…
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12 Sep

Endeavour Series 8 Episode 1 Review: the Inspector Morse Transition Begins

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Endeavour Series 8 Episode 1 Review: ‘Striker’ Warning: this Endeavour review contains spoilers. It’s 1971, and Oxford’s finest are, as ever, dealing with all of humanity’s worst impulses. Endeavour Morse (Shaun Evans) wakes up late from a hangover, leaving DI Thursday (Roger Allam) waiting in vain for his usual morning lift to work from his Detective Sergeant. It’s not behaviour we’d expect from our Morse…except, of course, it is, when you think about it.  John Thaw’s Inspector was a man who suffered silently, and it’s that version of the character that the sensitive, easily hurt young man we met back…
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12 Sep

Vigil Episode 4 Review: Who’s Been Russian Around Committing Sa-boat-age?!

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Warning: this review contains Vigil spoilers. The Russians! We’ve been expecting you. After all, where would a Second Cold War submarine thriller be without a Piotr or a Fyodor? Sunk, probably. Forget the blackmail and bad blood theories: new intelligence suggests that Jade and Craig were murdered by Soviets because they’d stumbled onto Russia’s top secret plan for HMS Vigil.  What plan, you ask? Judging by the spies’ interest in Vigil’s ventilation system, it’s either to subtly undermine Western democracy by messing with the boat’s air-con settings, or to suffocate the crew in a tragic ‘accident’ that pushes the UK into voting…
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12 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 8 Review: Save the Devil, Save the World

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 8 “This is the worst idea the doctor has ever had.” It’s the rare episode of Lucifer that moves outside its comfort zone of dead bodies, shady suspects, and puzzling evidence, but “Save the Devil, Save the World” does just that as it hones in on a much bigger problem. The end of the world appears nigh, and no one knows why.  While the introspective offering ventures into clip-show territory, the past scenes never feel obtrusive, nor do they stand in the way of fresh, new material. It’s fascinating to learn…
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12 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 7 Review: My Best Fiend’s Wedding

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 7 “The God thing is on hold for right now.” Toxic masculinity, police misconduct, same sex wedding. As Adam says, “wokeness is hard,” but it’s also fair to say that Lucifer risks going a bit overboard as a social justice warrior in its final days. But any perceived heavy handedness floats away when Eve walks down the aisle toward her beautiful, black gowned partner Mazikeen, and “My Best Fiend’s Wedding” reminds us what makes this series so special. It’s the power of love amidst the vagaries of the human condition, and…
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12 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 6 Review: A Lot Dirtier Than That

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 6 “You may have just met me, but I’ve known you my whole life.” Some might say that “A Lot Dirtier Than That” comes across far too heavy handed in making its arguments about racial injustices involving the police, but sometimes it takes a sledge hammer to get people’s attention. Lucifer rarely engages in social commentary, but here it’s Amenadiel’s second brush with a bigoted detective that forces the angel to reevaluate his role as a black man working in law enforcement and puts on open display the challenges facing both…
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11 Sep

Last Night in Soho Review: Edgar Wright Horror Movie Haunted with ’60s Style

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The incredible trailer for Last Night in Soho dropped in the middle of the pandemic like an oasis in a desert for cinema-starved folks longing for bold, original films. Looking back, it seemed impossible that Edgar Wright’s latest creation would be able to live up to the impossibly high standards set for it. But Last Night in Soho manages to be part charming and part chilling in its exploration of a very specific 1960s, giallo-inspired aesthetic. It’s a kaleidoscopic flurry of colors and images, and even as it perhaps loses the thread when it’s asked to make sense of itself,…
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11 Sep

My Hero Academia Season 5 Episode 23 Review: Tenko Shimura: Origin

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This My Hero Academia review contains spoilers for Season 5, Episode 23. “You’re right. I just want to destroy.” There’s an inherent risk of ruining the magic that surrounds certain characters by answering all of the questions that contextualize them—especially when it comes to villains—but My Hero Academia has not only avoided this particular story struggle, but excelled in the territory and turned the challenge into some of the show’s most powerful episodes. They’re the perfect amount of dark and haunting without feeling exploitative or off the mark from what the series should represent.  There is no shortage of villains…
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11 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 5 Review: The Murder of Lucifer Morningstar

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 5 “I think it’s time for Detective Decker to make a comeback.” It’s difficult to say which of the narrative reveals found in “The Murder of Lucifer Morningstar” will produce the most dramatic results as Lucifer reaches the halfway point of its final season. Nevertheless, Lucifer’s ascension to God’s throne seems to be on hold as his obsession with learning the truth about his disappearance from his daughter’s life moves to the front of the story line. And then there’s time travel. Given the nature of Aurora’s tale of abandonment and…
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11 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 4 Review: Pin the Tail on the Daddy

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 4 “Why does everyone think beaming up is a thing?” There are narrative bombshells, and then there are nuclear warheads. “Pin the Tail on the Daddy” takes Lucifer explosively into a totally unexpected sphere, but it’s one that should facilitate his ascension and the beginning of his tenure as God. Still, nothing’s ever that easy, is it? Though Lucifer repeatedly contends angels can’t father children, his brother Amenadiel stands as proof that things, at least on Earth, have obviously changed. Little Charlie’s timeline makes perfect chronological sense, but the newly arrived…
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10 Sep

Kate Review: Mary Elizabeth Winstead Kicks Ass in Netflix’s Latest Thriller

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Style over substance doesn’t even begin to cover the flashy but empty thrills of Kate, a Netflix original action film which plays a lot like a video game. Mary Elizabeth Winstead is Kate, a highly skilled assassin working in Japan with her long-time handler and best mate Varrick (Woody Harrelson). The two have a rule: no kids. So when an assignment in Osaka sees Kate take out a mark in front of his young daughter, she is wracked with guilt. It’s a decision that will come back to haunt her in unexpected ways. This is the second feature from director…
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10 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 3 Review: Yabba Dabba Do Me

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 3 “How do you help somebody who’s in Hell?” Unlike the series’ titular character, Lucifer showrunner Joe Henderson clearly embraces taking risks with his Netflix fantasy series. Having successfully navigated the potential pitfalls of a musical episode, Henderson brilliantly adds animation to the show’s resume with the delightful, yet insightful “Yabba Dabba Do Me.” However, it’s the episode’s bombshell conclusion that promises to take Lucifer on an emotional journey he did not expect to have to confront. The opening camera shot reveals Linda’s in progress manuscript, Sympathy for the Devil: My…
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10 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 2 Review: Buckets of Baggage

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 2 “The world needs a God.”  What the hell has happened to Chloe Decker? Has the time she’s spent with Lucifer Morningstar over the past five years changed her so irrevocably that she’s willing to break the law to solve a low-level mystery that only indirectly involves the LAPD? The final season’s second episode, “Buckets of Baggage,” offers up an enjoyable romp that awkwardly mixes the world of drag queens with the budding relationship between Ella and Carol. Still an enjoyable story but not Lucifer at its best. But this is…
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10 Sep

Malignant Review: James Wan Returns To Horror

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Director, writer and producer James Wan is perhaps the most commercially successful and influential voice in horror filmmaking in the 21st century. His relatively small output of moderately priced yet undeniably effective movies, such as Saw, Insidious, and The Conjuring, have launched or reinvigorated subgenres of their own, with the latter even spawning an entire cinematic universe. So fans can be excused for bemoaning his absence from the genre (even though he continued to produce films) for the past few years while he toiled on the Fast and Furious and Aquaman franchises. Now Wan has returned to his roots with…
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10 Sep

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 1 Review: Nothing Ever Changes Around Here

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This Lucifer review contains spoilers. Lucifer Season 6 Episode 1 “Who wants to be tickled by Satan’s whiskers?” Six weeks have passed, and Lucifer prepares to ascend into Heaven and begin his dream job – master of the universe. But the Devil’s having second thoughts about taking on God’s responsibilities, and “Nothing Ever Changes Around Here” cleverly sets up Lucifer’s sixth and final season to potentially explore the often unspoken desires that drive each character.  Though it was well documented that the season six episodes were completed and ready to air, conventional wisdom expected Netflix to wait much longer before…
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DVD Guide reviews current dvd releases of movies and TV shows. The reviews of these dvd releases are my thoughts and understandings of the movie, dvd releases or TV show and not be taken as fact.

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