Movie #3614 ........................."Exes of Christmas Past " (Netflix)

Movie #3614 "Exes of Christmas Past" (Netflix)  We watched this because we knew the little girl in the cast, and she was fun to watch.  Otherwise, this was a step below Hallmark because the script/actors weren't all up to par.  The stage business was boring with typical xmas stuff which has been done over and over and over... nothing new here.  Except it was fun to watch someone in the film whom we knew,  and we are looking forward to more work from her in better films.   I'd give it a 3 out of 5, just okay.

"EXES OF CHRISTMAS PAST"  Netflix    2025     1 hour and 26 minutes

An ambitious hotel manager returns to her family's B&B for Christmas to find all three of her high school exes staying there.  

Director:  Jake Jarvi

Writers:  Jake Jarvi, Eliza Toser

Actors:  Brittany Underwooid, Alex Trumble, Debo Balogun, and our friend Genevieve Jane

Movie #3613 ........................."Nuremberg" (Netflix)

Movie #3613 "Nuremberg" (Netflix)  I saw this film a while ago, but I still remember it.  I wondered why it wasn't up for any oscar nominations  because it really was well done.  I am not a fan of Russell Crowe, but I think he did a very convincing job of portraying this monster  Goring.  And I felt Rami Malek held his own in the scenes with him.  This was a very talkie movie that demanded attention to every word, and I was fascinated by the whole story. I would give it a 4 out of 5 --- not as good as "Judgement at Nuremberg" but still an important story to be told from a different viewpoint

"NUREMBERG"     2025  PG-13       2 hours and 28 minutes    Netflix

A WWII psychiatrist evaluates Nazi leaders before the Nuremberg trials, growing increasingly obsessed with understanding evil as he forms a disturbing bond with Hermann Goring.

Director:  James Vanderbilt

Writers:  James Vanderbilt, Jack El-Hai

Actors:  Rami Malek, Russell Crowe, Michael Shannon 

Movie #3612 ........................."Normal" (Phoenix Film Festival)

 Movie #3612 "Normal" (Phoenix Film Festival)  This was the last film we saw art the Phoenix Film Festival last night, and boy is it a doozy.  I do not have the stomach to watch a lot of violence , and this one put me to the test.  I think someone should have said something in the packet about the extreme body count and amount of blood this film used in the last 45 minutes.  Up until then, there was a mystery about this town that just experienced the death of their sheriff, and Odenkirk now comes in as the interim sheriff to this place called Normal, but is anything but "normal."  Example: the restaurant owner has loaded guns displaying on all of his walls --- the town just finished collecting millions of dollars to revamp a building --- in this small town?  And then the movie started with a very bloody scene....how is it connected to this town?  Seriously, I would have walked out of the film about 45 minutes into it when I started to watch things (and people) blow up.  But I felt I would have disrupted the movie, and Dave wasn't sitting next to me, so I just sat there, sometimes with my head down.   I got that the violence is so overblown that it is supposed to be laughable, but ....not for me.  I loved the humor (that was about anything not violent or death-related) --- I got the humor --- I applaud the guts this film has --- it probably will do well at the box-office (which will almost do anything these days to get people to come into the theaters) but I am so tired of fighting and guns and blood and the push for revenge and violence without peaceful ways to solve problems that i don't need to see it in films any more.  I don't need to see what a head looks up blown up --- I just don't have the stomach for it, and I'm searching for a different direction to get people into the seats.  But that's just me.  I think a lot of people will "enjoy" this movie, and for all i've said about wanting to walk out, I give this movie a 4 for being out there, different, and trying so hard to entertain.  Just not my type of entertainment.

"NORMAL"      2025       strong R      1 hour and 30 mins

Centers on a temporary small-town sheriff who uncovers dark mysteries after a local bank robbery.

Director;  Ben Wheatley

Writers:  Derek Kolstad, Bob Odenkirk

Actors:  Bob Odenkirk, Ryan Allen, Bill MacLellan, Henry Winkler

Movie #3611 ........................."On A String" (Phoenix Film Festival)

 Movie #3611 "On A String" (Phoenix Film Festival)  This was the third film we saw last Saturday, and I enjoyed this one a lot.  It was full of interesting people doing a nice acting job with their small, supporting parts.  And the lead girl was fun to watch as she searches for her purpose in life --- she's good at playing her viola, and we discover through the film just what her life is like  when  using that talent and being part of the art world --- lots of mini concerts, funerals, clubs, bar mitzvahs, teaching, trying out for the philharmonic, playing in a backup band for a very bad singer.... etc.  And  we also get to watch how lonely it can be   when ultimately it is you and your musical instrument going from one job after another.  I loved all the music that was played so passionately --- I loved the humor as she moved through her life with her quirky family and uptight, no-nonsense friends.  I'd give this a 4 --- and a wished the ending was a little clearer, but Dave and i had quite a discussion afterwards in the car on what we thought about the ending --- and doesn't that make for a good film ultimately?  

"ON A STRING"    2025    R    1 hour and 18 minutes    Phoenix Film Festival

A juilliard-trained violist navigates the New York City freelance classical musician scene, playing gigs that often draw her into the personal lives of strangers, all while living in her odd family's NYC apartment.

Director;  Isabel Hagen

Writer:  Isabel Hagen

Actors:  Isabel Hagen, Oliver Hagen

Movie #3610 ........................."Flowers Beyond the Dark" (Phoenix Film Festival)

 Movie #3610 "Flowers Beyond the Dark" (Phoenix Film Festival)  Well, this was the second film we saw, a documentary on Ukrainian/Russia war.  I thought it would give more information to me than what I just got on the news, but no such luck.  The main thrust is that war crimes have been committed here by the Russians, hitting civilians, hitting hospitals, schools, high rise buildings that house working people, etc.  There were a few people followed, but the problem is that the film doesn't let us get attached to them.  So it ends up to be a very quiet documentary, lacking dialogue in many places where there should be dialogue.  It was boring.  I am not a huge fan of documentaries anyway, so the approach used in this film wasn't helpful to me at all.  I don't recommend it, and I would give it a 2 out of 5, for some pretty photography, but that's it.

"FLOWERS BEYOND THE DARK"    Phoenix Film festival    2025     1 hour and 18 mins

Amid the chaos of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Natalia and Serhly, a coupe of  artists separated by occupation, quickly lose any contact.  They feel paralyzed, drowning in helplessness and uncertainty.  At the same time, the soldiers Vitaliy and Serhiy, building unity and finding courage guarding "the road of life" evacuation route for civilians .  (that wasn't clear in this film)

Director:  Iryna Pravylo

1Movie #3609 ........................."Crystal Cross" (Phoenix Film Festival)

 Movie #3609 "Crystal Cross" (Phoenix Film Festival)  This was the first film we saw on Saturday at thePhoenix Film Festival, and I thought it was a mixture of  rom-com and  road trip --- a formula that I've seen quite a bit, being a big fan of rom-coms my whole life.  This was a film searching for a through-line, full of lots of montages, which in a Q and A with the director afterwards, he explained that the film (90 mins when we saw it) ran 4 hours when they first put it together --- so they took scenes out and made them montages.  Really the saving grace of the film was the actress who played Dotty--- she ran the film with her bubbly, overly Jesus-loving way of seeing the world --- and her maxims she delivered quite confidently whenever the guy seemed to need advice.  I say "seem to' because he was overly quiet to the point of being non-communicative, and like Harold in "Harold and Maude"  he was trying to commit suicide and felt a failure because he couldn't do that right either.  I know, sounds strange, and it was a quirky indie, indeed, and I'm not sure if it will ever be released to bigger audiences, but if it is, it might be a film some people find interesting.  I liked the humor,  Dotty, the ending and the song she wrote about her suicidal jesus boyfriend.  I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5.

"CRYSTAL CROSS"       Phoenix Film Festival    1 hr and 28 mins. 2025      R

Dotty, a Christian singer chasing fame, hitches a ride with James, a grieving father bent on ending his life.  On the road, their twisted love story unfolds as two desperate souls find faith, music and truth on the way to life and death.

Director:  Richie James Follin

Writer:  Richie james Follin

Actors:  Rubyrose Hill, Richie James Follin

Movie #3608 ........................."The Beast in Me" (series, amazon prime)

 Movie #3608 "The Beast in Me" (series, amazon prime)   I found this show to have a very smart script, even though it had lots of blood, esp. the last couple of episodes, and a lot of awkward tics and stuttering on Claire Dane's part -- That slowed the progress of the slow down, but they helped to establish her character and to get cross the theme that there are dark sides of all of us.l  The acting was really good, and the story was long, but easy to follow, but not to guess where the plot was taking us next.  I'd give it 4.5 out of 5 and recommend it.  I especially. liked that it focussed on a writer.  

"THE BEAST IN  ME"  tv miniseries    2025      8 episodes, 50 mins each   amazon prime

Author Aggie Wiggs, grieving the loss of her son, finds new purpose unraveling the mystery behind neighbor Nile Jarvis' vanished wife and his suspicious dealings.

Creator    :  Gabe Rotter

Actors:  Claire Danes, Matthew Rhys, Brittany Snow