‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III’ (1993) and the multiverse that might’ve been
Turtle Tuesday (Movie commentary): “TMNT” came tantalizingly close to creating a cross-media multiverse the likes of which hadn’t been seen before.
Teen Drama
‘TMNT II: The Secret of the Ooze’ (1991): Was Shredder almost Michael Myers?
Turtle Tuesday (Movie commentary): Eastman and Laird themselves made sure “TMNT” didn’t drift too close to “Halloween.”
‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ (1990) and the art of great dialog
Turtle Tuesday (Movie commentary): Little-known screenwriters Todd W. Langen and Bobby Herbeck hit the sweet spot of lines that kids can quote and adults can chuckle at.
‘It: Welcome to Derry’ expands from King’s work in King-y way
TV review: But there’s a reason why the author didn’t go this deep into the Pennywise mythology. It strains under its convolutions.
‘Go’ back to 1999 for a night of Xennial cool
Throwback Thursday (Movie review): Doug Liman shows “Swingers” was no fluke with another core piece of Nineties indie attitude and style.
‘Freakier Friday’: Some things don’t change with age
Movie review: The game cast and good gags make this sequel worth watching, but unfortunately it has no new insights.
‘House of Wax’ (2005) doesn’t melt under pressure to be a good romp
Frightening Friday (Movie review): Though the events are far from plausible, this remake serves up effective chills in the “weird small town” vein.
Character exploration takes a backseat in rompish ‘Chucky’ Season 2 (2022)
‘Child’s Play’ flashback (TV review): The show is filled with pop-culture riffs but isn’t interested in going deep into the soul of its many Chuckies and humans.
‘Chucky’ makes a killer move to prestige TV in Season 1 (2021)
‘Child’s Play’ flashback (TV review): Falling short of the writing and acting of influences like “Hannibal” and “Cobra Kai,” these eight episodes are nonetheless bizarrely watchable.
‘Bride of Chucky’ (1998) successfully hitches to post-‘Scream’ era
‘Child’s Play’ flashback (Movie review): Mancini and a game cast find the perfect horror-comedy balance in the saga’s fourth installment.