‘Carrie’ (1976) not scary, but nonetheless great
Stephen King flashback (Movie review): De Palma and Spacek turn King’s novel into a stylish take on the twin hells of high school and religion.
Family Drama
‘Carrie’ (1976) not scary, but nonetheless great
King’s career starts with bloody bang in ‘Carrie’ (1974)
Stephen King flashback (Book review): King’s novel-writing career starts with a timeless classic of the teen-outsider genre.
Kubrick’s ‘Shining’ (1980) both simple and complex
Stephen King flashback (Movie review): Stanley Kubrick’s controversial take on King’s novel can function as a scare flick or whatever you want it to be.
‘Cobra Kai’ Season 4 (2021) goes down to the wire
TV review: This latest batch of 10 episodes features many great characters, but it’s dinged slightly by not having one that stands out from the pack.
‘Shining’ (1977) makes bid as great American horror novel
Stephen King flashback (Book review): Mixing realism and metaphor, King taps into a family man’s descent into the hell of alcoholism.
Spider-Verse tastily envelops ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’
Movie review: The partnership between Sony and Marvel becomes a beautiful thing as the MCU embraces the multiverse with smarts and humor.
John’s top 10 movies of 2021
2021 movies: The pandemic is getting old, but you gotta admit getting new movies straight to our homes is a silver lining. Here are my 10 favorites of 2021.
John’s top 10 TV shows of 2021
2021 television: Mystery miniseries dominated 2021. But at least one reliable old standby cracks my list of the year’s 10 best TV shows.
Party vibe makes ‘Dead Man’s Folly’ (1956) a fun read
Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): As Ariadne Oliver and Poirot team up at a Fete gone awry, the mystery is compelling but the solution is hoary.
‘8-Bit Christmas’ joins pantheon of holiday classics
Movie review: “8-Bit Christmas” has nostalgia for 1988, but it remembers family and classmates as much as it remembers Trapper Keepers and Nintendos.