Category: Culture watch

November 20, 2024

Joker: Folie à Deux: “A Clown with His Pants Falling Down”

by Ted Giese Imprisoned in Gotham’s dismal Arkham Asylum for the criminally insane, Arthur Fleck awaits trial for multiple counts of murder. There, in a music program in the minimum security wing, Fleck meets Harleen ‘Lee’ Quinzel. The disturbed Fleck and psychotic Quinzel fall into…

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August 8, 2024

In Review: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

by Ted Giese As advanced apes struggle to live together, an unexpected human, Mae, seeks access to an item she believes can give humankind a critical advantage against apes in a bid to regain control over the earth. The fourth film in the modern Planet…

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May 31, 2024

Civil War: A Measured Warning

by Ted Giese In the not-too-distant future, the states of California and Texas succeed from the union and wage a civil war against the United States government and a beleaguered America. This is the setting of the film Civil War.  No back story is provided…

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May 16, 2024

In Review: Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

by Ted Giese Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire picks up two years after Ghostbusters: Afterlife (the true sequel to the 1980s films, sidestepping the divisive 2016 reboot Ghostbusters: Answer the Call). The Spenglers have moved from the farm in rural Oklahoma and fully embraced ghostbusting. As the…

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April 4, 2024

In Review: Dune: Part Two

by Ted Giese Focusing on the second half of Frank Herbert’s 1965 science fiction novel, Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two chronicles the rise to power of a young prince thought dead. This occurs after the tragic extermination of his father and people by their sworn…

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December 28, 2023

In Review: Journey to Bethlehem

by Ted Giese Imagine the story of the Nativity of Jesus as a comedic live-action musical intended for a family audience. The plotline sprinkled with melodies covers the involvement of the Magi from the East, the interest of Herod the Great in the birth of…

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