Author Archives
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Licorice Pizza, Flee, West Side Story, and Try Harder Video Reviews
CJ’s video reviews feature lovers, Hollywood, refugees, and students This week’s video reviews consist of Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Licorice Pizza,” starring Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, and Sean Penn, the animated documentary “Flee,” Steven Spielberg’s take on “West Side Story,” and… Read More ›
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West Side Story (2021)
Spielberg’s vision of the classic play is more than Okay By Me in America When word got out that lyricist Stephen Sondheim passed away, it broke everyone’s hearts, because of how he helped shaped the legendary songs in “West Side… Read More ›
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Citizen Ashe
This well-meaning doc should have done more with Arthur Ashe’s story. It used to be white people playing tennis, until an African-American named Arthur Ashe (1943-1993) changed that perspective. Despite all the racial slurs and discriminations, these players were all… Read More ›
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8-Bit Christmas
Like “A Christmas Story,” but with Nintendo. I wasn’t really interested in seeing “8-Bit Christmas,” made for HBO Max, because I felt like it was going to be a tedious version of “A Christmas Story, because the kid in the… Read More ›
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The Sleeping Negro
What the world of racism does to a man. “The Sleeping Negro” is a short movie that runs for an hour and 12 minutes, but it still wisely tackles on one African-American man’s hated for the past and present when… Read More ›
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The Hand of God
Newcomer Filippo Scotti carries Paolo Sorrentino’s next movie. I’m told Paolo Sorrentino’s “The Hand of God” is a personal film for this acclaimed Italian filmmaker and based in the story on his own childhood experiences. That’s twice this fall I’ve… Read More ›
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Try Harder
#StopAsianHate, you racist educational systems! Lowell High has been ranked the #1 public school in San Francisco with a Majority Asian-American student body. However, over the past 15 years, acceptance rates for the best colleges (Stanford, UCLA, etc.) have been… Read More ›
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Flee
An gloriously animated doc about a refuge with a hard childhood. We meet Amin, a refugee from Kabul, Afghanistan, who is interviewed about his life. He talks about family, politics, and his homosexuality. His moderator-writer/director Jonas Poher Rasmussen-has him lying… Read More ›
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Licorice Pizza
Paul Thomas Anderson’s next masterpiece marvels thanks to him and two new leads. “Boogie Nights,” “Magnolia,” “Punch Drunk Love,” “There Will Be Blood,” and “Phantom Thread” are among the best films from writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson. Yes, I love the… Read More ›
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Bruised, Tick, Tick…Boom, Drive My Car, Encanto, House of Gucci, and Sing 2 Video Reviews
CJ’s video reviews feature singing, dancing, acting, punching, and killing. This week’s video reviews consist of Halle Berry’s directorial debut of “Bruised,” Lin-Manuel Miranda’s directorial debut of “Tick, Tick…Boom” with Andrew Garfield, the Japanese drama “Drive My Car,” Disney’s 60th… Read More ›