December 2024 Mini-Reviews – Sherlock Holmes Faces Death to 8 1/2

January has vanished into puff of non-snow (mostly). Somehow it’s February, and I still haven’t posted December 2024s reviews.  🙁  But hey, I only missed January by one day, at least!

What did I do in December besides the usual overwhelming load of holiday stuff?  Glad you asked.  I watched more Midsomer Murders, thanks to a digital sale did the complete G.I. Joe series of films, started at least one new detective/mystery series, enjoyed the Sister Boniface Christmas 2024 show, and watched a whole bunch of holiday-themed stuff, including a Christmas film I haven’t seen since near when it came out 20+ years ago, but have now added to my “watch every year” list.  What film?  Read on and find out!

Here’s the usual ratings system:

* – This film is not good. Avoid it unless you tolerate dreck well.
** – A flawed film. You may enjoy it if you like this genre or the folks in it.
*** – A good solid film. If you like this genre, you’ll probably like this film.
**** – A superior film within its genre. Thoroughly enjoyable.
***** – An outstanding film on many levels. A great example of its genre.

Note that some shows I’ve given a parenthetical star rating, usually adding (occasionally subtracting) stars, depending on how your amusement may differ from mine. I’ve explained the meaning in the reviews themselves. Mostly.

Sherlock Holmes Faces Death (1942) **** Rathbone’s Holmes & Bruce’s Watson must solve a series of murders connected to the Musgrave Ritual — a mysterious puzzle that may lead to great treasure — as Universal shifts from WWII Holmes tales to more traditional ones. This was one of my faves as a kid & influenced my future works, especially mystery writing.
Midsomer Murders 23-3 A Grain of Truth **** Antipathy between a town’s existing businesses & the new, all-organic mill & eatery result in another of Midsomer’s famously gruesome murders, leaving John Barnaby & Winter another series of puzzling motives (& more murders) to figure out. Excellent.
Meaning of Monty Python, The (2013) **** The cast members of Monty Python’s the Meaning of Life reflect on the film, their work in it, & how it may actually reflect the meaning of real life. As Always, the Pythons are delightful in this frank & often funny discussion documentary.
The Mrs. Bradley Mysteries 1-1 Speedy Death **** Mrs. Bradley’s introduction is the funeral of her ex-husband, from which we gain the idea that, as played by Mystery! host Diana Rigg, is eccentric, to say the least. The rest of the story reveal her to be a brilliant & well regarded detective with a good aide-de-camp in her chauffeur, played by Neil Dudgeon (Midsomer Murders). Mrs. Bradley visits the family of an old suitor on the occasion of his daughter, who was paralyzed in a car accident, getting married. But when the prospective groom is found dead, surprising secrets are revealed, & Mrs. Bradley must sort through the conflicting clues & motives. A good pilot film for the one-season series.
Superman & Lois (S4 Last Season) **** This has generally been a good series, with some ups & downs, & the last season proves similar. It contains some of the best episodes of the series, dealing with death & family & loss & friendship, but also has some annoying lapses in plotting — like not sending Luthor to jail for attempted murder, after he kicks Lois’ dad into a pit & has a henchman fill the pot with dirt from a bulldozer. Annoying legal lapses aside, there’s some good action & the cast & crew turn in great performances end-to-end.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1984) *** The Griswolds are back, as wacky & annoying as ever, but with a little less wit & charm than the original Vacation. The film stars out with fairly pedestrian ideas & jokes, but picks up in the middle & had me laughing out loud several times. Clark & the family’s want the best Christmas ever, a plot that’s foiled when Clark has trouble with his over-the-top Christmas lighting. And then their trashy relatives show up for an extended stay.
Bishop’s Wife, The (1947) ***** Carey Grant is an angel walking the earth, doing good deeds, when he is sent to help David Niven’s bishop, who’s struggling both to get a new cathedral built & with his marriage to Loretta Young. Much to Niven’s chagrin, the angel seems to be far more interested in his wife than the church — at least from the bishop’s point of view. This charming movie is one of my favorite Christmastime tales, but is suitable any time of the year where your belief in faith & goodness needs a little boost. If I get to pick a profession in the afterlife, I would want to be the kind of angel Grant is. Perfect casting, though originally the male leads had been tapped to play the opposite characters.
Madam Satan (1930) **(*) When a woman gets tired of her husband’s philandering, she takes on the guise of Madam Satan to try to win him back at a party (almost like an orgy) being held by the upper classes on a zeppelin. Cecil B. DeMille’s over-the-top sell-’em-with-the-sin approach is on full display in this semi-comic battle of the sexes — which will almost certainly grate on modern audiences. The Zeppelin ball, though, is something that fans of spectacle, art deco, & over-the-top production will totally dig it. It makes the whole movie worthwhile for me. If you’re like me, give it that extra star.
Road to Ruin (1934) **(*) A young woman gets wrapped up in drink, marijuana, & sex in this pre-code exploitation melodrama in the vein of Refer Madness. This is maybe a little less amusing than that crazy “classic,” but it also goes further with more “taboo” subjects from the era, including a nude swimming party with more skin than I expected. Of course, the print I saw wasn’t super, so heaven only knows what it looked like — or what you could see or thought you saw, when it came out. If you like this kind of trash, give it that extra star.
Harry Wild (S1) **** Jayne Seymore plays Harry Wild, a former professor, reluctantly retired, who likes to sleep around & poke her nose into murder mysteries — much to the dismay of her son, who’s a police detective & his wife, who just doesn’t much like her mother-in-law. Nevertheless, Harry stays one step ahead of the cops & with her teen assistant, a juvenile delinquent (originally) named Fergus, she managed to both get into and out of trouble in this amusing mystery series.
Midsomer Murders 23-4 Dressed to Kill ***** When a drag show competes for space in a pub with a dominoes tournament, the result is… murder, of course! Another baffling & very witty mystery for John Barnaby & Winter to solve in this excellent series. With, naturally, some gruesome deaths to liven things up.
Comedy of Terrors, The (1963) **** Vincent Price & Peter Lorre run a broken down funeral service formerly owned by Boris Karloff, the father of prices beautiful wife who thinks she can sing (but can’t). To complicate matters, Lorre is in love with Price’s wife. And all that is just the setup, before the business tarts going bust & our protagonists decide to drum up their own business by killing people. With a great cast, Corman-style productions, & sound writing, this is one of my favorite horror comedies. Saw it as a kid & quoted portions of it for years. It still charms, especially for fans of the stars, who are all on their A game.
Last Action Hero, The (1993) *** I hated this when it first came out. Having just rewatched it, I think that maybe I didn’t get its style of crazy, over-the-top action comedy — which I now really enjoyed. Or it may be that the kid, the film’s other main character is super annoying for a lot of the picture. Either way, on recent viewing, I thought it was a lot of fun. Kid hangs out in a movie theater, worshiping every frame of film by his favorite actor, Schwarzenegger, rather than deal with real life. When kid gets magical movie ticket, he’s transported into the movie realm, where his hero hangs out with other movie cop characters, including a talking cat cop & other police that could only exist in fiction Things become even more complicated when a movie villain crosses into the real world & Schwarzenegger (& the kid) must follow.
Confidential Agent *** Charles Boyer is a Spanish (!) musician whose come to England to secure weapons for the republican forces in the Spanish civil war. He runs into Lauren Bacall aboard ship; she just happens to be the daughter of the man Boyer is to negotiate with. Boyer has brought a lot of money with him to seal the deal, but naturally things go very wrong & he & Bacall spend the film trying to get things set to right. Not a bad espionage thriller, but very by the book.
Vera 3-1 Castle in the Air ***** A woman & her friends are staying in a wilderness chalet near woods & fields. Hearing a disturbance, one of them steps outside & is promptly shot dead. This brings Vera & her crew in to investigate why she was killed & whether the victim was even the intended target. The case involves the designer of the chalet & his wife, local poachers/hunters, & a previous car accident. Another great show in the series.
Midsomer Murders 24-1 The Devil’s Work **** This is the first film-length episode in the latest Midsomer Murder series to date. And if you’ve been following along, you know this has become one of my favorite mystery shows of all time. John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon) & Winter return. When the rich patriarch of a family dies, his artist son intends to divide the estate’s lands up and sell them, much to the dismay of the other prospective heirs. There’s some question as to whether the patriarch may have been murdered, but things really go wrong when one of the artist’s current muse is found dead beneath a totem pole, which brings our heroes in to investigate. As usual with this series, there are plenty of motives, secrets, & twists & turns before the final solution.
Monk (S1) **** Adrian Monk is a brilliant detective but suffers from OCD & a variety of phobias. Off the force after the murder of his wife, he returns with the help of a plucky assistant to solve difficult murder mysteries the police have trouble with.in this serio-comic gem of a series. It takes a couple of episodes for the show to find its footing, but once it does, it’s a hell of a lot of fun, with Tony Shalhoub absolutely brilliant at making Monk both funny & tragic as well as believable as a super detective. I think most of us will find some Monk in our own personalities.
Scooby-Doo Where Are You (S2) **** The second season of Scooby features a new version of the theme song & more fake monster-based mysteries that you (and I) probably thought were part of season 1. If you liked that, you liked this. And unlike some later series, there are no actual supernatural menaces here. The animation remains cheap, but the character designs & personalities have become iconic. No wonder the Scooby Gang remain popular to this day & return in series after series.
Bomba on Panther Island (1950) *** When white folk come to build a plantation in Bomba’s jungle, they become possible prey for a rogue panther, who has also stalked Bomba’s monkey friend. Bomba is caught between hunting the panther for revenge & being distracted by the expeditions lovely girl. Naturally, the white folks make some shudder worthy choices along the way. In the end, like most Bomba entries, this is just another “programmer” meant to fill out a double bill. Amusing but predictable.
Murder in the Zoo (1933) **** This pre-code horror flick starts with our antagonist, Lionel Atwill, sewing a man’s lips shut in the jungle & then proceeds to some other gruesome crimes once he returns to civilization & starts working at a zoo. Things happen in this flick that still seem shocking today, so they must have been really over the top back in 1933. Add that to a little bit of mystery & suspense & some good women characters & this flick is a real delight for me — and maybe for you, too.
Horror Island *** A pair of lovable reprobates inherit an island reputed to have been owned by pirates & decide it to use it to cook up a “treasure hunt” tour — which they have concocted out of thin air. Of course, things go sideways when it turns out the island and old-dark-house atmosphere have both a real treasure & someone who will do anything to get it. Not much horror here, but some chills & comedy.
House of Horrors *** Rondo Hatton returns as the Creeper, pulled from a river by artist Martin Kosleck, who then proceeds to send his new “friend” out to kill the critics who haven’t been kind to Kosleck. A good cast including Hatton, Kosleck, & Virginia Grey help elevate this low-budget thriller & make it good late-Universal-style fun.
Red One (2024) *** Action comedy based on Dwayne Johnson as part of Santa’s security crew (Santa is Red One) & Chris Evans as a scam artist who has custody of his son for Christmas. There are some good sequences here, including one in the Court of Krampus & its heart is in the right place. Sadly, Johnson’s work feels pretty much by the book,& his part as an elf retiring from service could have been more compellingly written and played. J.K. Simmons is great as a very buff Santa, though, & the portrayal of the techno-magic machinery behind making Christmas happen from behind the scenes is fun.
Dalgliesh (S3) ***** The morose but brilliant — aren’t they all? — detective returns for another season of looking into the dark soul of humanity & bringing justice out of it. Dalgliesh remains compellingly & realistically played by Bertie Carvel. The mysteries remain good. And it’s nice to see some actual progress in the character(s) over the course of the season. Though dark, the series is often a delight.
Chelsea Detective, The 1-1 The Wages of Sin **** Set in London’s Chelsea district, this series of movie-length adventures follows DI Max Arnold & his partner/assistant DS Priya Shamsie as they solve murders. In this premiere outing, they try to discover whether a man jumped in front of a commuter train or whether he was pushed. Investigating, they discover that the devout man believed himself to be haunted by a spirit leaving him Biblical messages. Obviously, the messages are related to the death, but who’s behind them and why?
Chelsea Detective, The 1-2 Mrs. Romano **** When Mrs. Romano, social influencer & wife of a high-end restaurant owner, goes missing, the ceiling of her home covered in blood, DI Arnold & DS Shamsie investigate. It appears it must be murder, but then her wife gets an email from her… Despite this hopeful sign, you know that murder & appropriate red-herrings & tangled motives & lives will follow. A deaf Chief Forensic Officer, played by a deaf actress, makes an interesting addition to the ongoing cast.
Legend of Hell House, The **** A researcher brings a small group of sensitives — including Roddy McDowell & Pamela Franklin — to investigate a house reputed to be the most haunted place ever. Built by an evil miser, the mansion is appropriately creepy & plenty of strange & eerie things happen there. Similar to The Haunting (of Hill House) in some ways, writer Richard Matheson manages to put new and interesting twists on the creepy proceedings. One of an elite tier of haunted house classics.
Day the World Ended **** Corman’s low-budget end-of-the-world classic finds a group of nuclear holocaust survivors stumbling into a remote valley where a man and his daughter have made careful plans to survive the holocaust. Unfortunately, their plans were only for 3 people, and now they have more than twice that many here, waiting until it’s safe to return over the mountains, & praying rain won’t bring in deadly fallout. Worse, monstrous mutations are haunting the wasteland beyond & some are venturing nearer. Good cast, well acted & directed. Fun!
Sister Boniface Christmas Special 2024 (4-1) ***** It’s Christmastime in Great Slaughter again & the nuns are preparing for their Christmas feast when a fox (apparently) steals their Christmas Turkey! Oh, and the Christmas pantomime of Cinderella — featuring many of the local police characters, sucked into it by their chief — is being directed by an edgy director/playwright who has the locals in something of a tizzy. And of course, some of the panto players have been murdered, which Sister Boniface & her police allies must solve. Despite the murders, this is another cozy treat from one of the detective series with the most fun & a marvelous cast.
Midsomer Murders 24-2 Book of the Dead ***** A famous author has come to Midsomer in connection with his famous treasure-hunt book — SEEKER — in which the treasure has never been found. Now the author is announcing a new edition of the book with new clues & the books many theorists, followers, & treasure hunters have come to Midsomer for the Big Announcement. It will surprise nobody who has watched this show when the author then turns up dead & his new book page has gone missing. John Barnaby & Winter — who spent time trying to find the treasure himself — must sort out who killed the author & why, as well as whether the treasure actually exists. Followers of Josh Gates’ treasure hunting shows or THE SECRET or other literary treasure hunts will dig this. I certainly did.
Babes in Arms (1939) ***(*) Mickey Rooney is a songwriter & musician & Judy Garland is a singer. The two work together to try to further their careers & save Mickey’s family from the poorhouse. Opportunity knocks in the form of a rich blonde named Baby, who’ll fund their show if she gets to star in it. This puts Judy on the bench, until Baby’s father takes her out of the show, & Mickey must convince Judy to take on the part she’d lost. Highlights of this film include Rooney’s great impressions of Clark Gable, Lionel Barrymore, & FDR. Lowlights are the blackface minstrel show. It’s well produced, but… Take a star off if you cant put up with that crap.
Silent Night, Deadly Night **** A young boy’s family is killed by a murderous robber dressed as Santa, traumatizing him for life. Surviving into adulthood as a troubled young man, our anti-hero is set off by bullies & rejection & dons a Santa suit go to on a murderous rampage against, well, everyone. Darkly humorous & filled with memorable kills, including one with a wall trophy, this flick is worth a look if you don’t mind horror-comedies with a twisted bent.
Snowman, The (1982) ***** Delightful short, lushly animated film (based on a book) where a young boy creates a snowman who comes alive & then flies across the countryside with him, seeing sights & having adventures. I want to thank Steve Bissette for recommending this classic to me.
Strike Up the Band ***** Busby Berkeley directed this Mickey Rooney & Judy Garland vehicle in which the “kids” form a dance orchestra to raise money for their high school. The event is a success, which causes band leader Mickey to dream even bigger. He wants to enter the group in a best band contest in Chicago put on by (real) Big Band leader Paul Whiteman. The kids stage a comic melodrama to pay for the trip, but one of the players is injured during the production & Mickey must choose between getting him a needed operation or sending the group to Chicago. Though true to the standard model, this flick shows off its stars’ broad range of talents. And… Hey! No blackface numbers to ruin the mood!
Dalgliesh (S2) **** The second season of the morose, thoughtful, justice-minded detective beings with “Murder of an Expert Witness,” a book I just happened to be reading at the time I started the season. Interestingly, while the solution to the mysteries is the same, the book and the teleplay are arranged completely differently. (Dalgliesh doesn’t show up until 1/3rd of the way through the book.) It’s a good story & the rest of the season follows suit, making this a good series to continue following.
Phantom of the Opera (1943) *** Claude Rains is the titular character, a musician & composer who runs into a series of tough breaks, leading him to believe (perhaps wrongly) that his music has been stolen. This results in a rampage leading to his disfigurement by acid & retreat into the sewers below the opera house. Though filmed in beautiful color, this flick focuses way too much on the supporting characters, who are boring, & not enough on the horror elements. It’s not a patch on the original Chaney Sr. version.
Climax, The (1944) *** Phantom of the Opera-like film about a physician attending the opera, Boris Karloff, who murders a diva he’s infatuated with, gets away with it, & later becomes obsessed with another singer who reminds him of his lost love. An early full-color appearance by Karloff, this isn’t a match for the beauty of Universal’s Phantom of the previous year & though Karloff helps, its lower budget hinders it, & it’s slow. Though it does have a very memorable, fiery… climax.
Lucy Worsley’s Holmes vs. Doyle **** A British/PBS documentary series looking at the life of Arthur Conan Doyle & how that compared & contrasted with his work on Sherlock Holmes stories (& some other tales to some extent). Doyle’s desire to be famous for something other than Sherlock came into frequent conflict with him needing money for his upscale lifestyle. Even after he was knighted for some British nationalist writings, the conflict continued. Interesting, but I found myself wanting more on his non-Holmes works.
Christmas Horror Story ***** A superb set of short yuletide-based horror stories woven together with a framing story & radio narration provided by DJ William Shatner on Christmas eve. Among the terrors: a changeling, a haunted high school, Krampus, & undead elves at the North Pole. I like this enough that it’s become an annual tradition. One of my 2 favorite Christmas horror movies.
Krampus (2015) ***** The other of my favorite Christmas horror movies. A dysfunctional family gathering at Christmas is disrupted when a boy revokes his Christmas wishes, unwittingly turning the world into a nightmarish blizzard populated by evil Christmas goodies & their leader, Krampus the Christmas demon. If you like horror with a good dose of black comedy, you’ll dig this.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964) ***** The classic Rankin-Bass Christmas animation is 60 years old now & though the male-female roles are dated in many ways, the overall message that even misfits should be valued & can contribute in unexpected ways still rings very, very true. Rudolph & an elf named Hermie are treated like outcasts & leave Christmas town to strike on their own & be “inddependent together.” In the wilderness they meet other misfits & are chased by a huge Abominable Snowman before we reach the ending made famous in the Gene Autrey song. Great music. Strong characters & animation.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas ***** Another timeless Christmas classic, like Rudolph, Seuss’ anti-materialist Christmas message is as true as when he penned it & Chuck Jones & co. animated it. Boris Karloff is the perfect narrator & both the animation & music (singing by Thurl Ravenscroft) are top notch as well. The titular Grinch hates Christmas & decides to make it not happen by stealing all the presents in Whoville. Brilliant.
It’s a Wonderful Life (1947) ***** Jimmy Stewart’s George Bailey is a small-town boy with big dreams to see the world & make something of himself. Unfortunately, life events keep getting in his way & even when he’s grown up, he’s forced to stay in Bedford Falls to save his family business, the Building & Loan. Soon he’s saddled with kids & a wife & more responsibilities. So, when suddenly everything seems to be falling apart, he considers suicide. And that’s when the angel appears in this classic Frank Capra tale set around Christmastime. Both funny & surprisingly dark, this treat deserves repeated viewings.
Blythe Spirit (1945) *** A man & his new wife are haunted by his deceased wife in this adaptation of the Noel Coward play. The film is a black comedy with some very interesting spooky effects & makeups on the ghosts. I found it amusing if dated, of course, in its gender politics/roles.
Midsomer Murders 24-3 Claws Out **** John Barnaby & Winter are summoned to the scene of a crime when a “pet detective” — famous for locating missing animals — is found dead in a kennel near his workplace while on a case. A lot of pets have gone missing in the area lately, so perhaps there is a ransom scheme. Plus, the victim’s dogs were known to rip up a local garden & he wasn’t the saint some paint him as (of course). Another mystery with plenty of suspects & twists, as one expects in Midsomer Murders.
Crimson Pirate, The **** Blustery Burt Lancaster & small, silent Nick Cravat (who were circus performers together in real life) are the Crimson Pirate & his First Mate in this acrobatic, comedic swashbuckler about a pirate captain who captures a ship filled with weapons & decides to pretend to sell them to some rebels, only to turn those rebels over to the authorities. A fine plan, until he falls for the daughter of the rebel leader, which turns his crew against him, & the mix-ups keep coming. So does the action in this fun shot-on-location classic.
Babes on Broadway (1941) ***(*) Mickey & Judy team up again to put on a show for British children displaced by World War II, though Mickey wants to use it to further his own career as well. The two battle back & forth over motives & attraction. Eventually, they work their way to rehabbing a rundown theater & putting on the big show — which, unfortunately, includes a long & elaborate blackface minstrel sequence. If you can tolerate that, give this one an extra star.
She-Creature, The **** A hypnotist regresses a woman to her past lives & in doing so invokes a killer she-creature to drum up publicity & take care of a few enemies along the way. Soon, he’s making a fortune even though some think he’s a fraud & nobody’s connecting him to the supernatural goings-on. Another B-movie monster classic from the Corman studios, featuring one of the best Paul Blaisdell creations ever in the titular monster
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) ***(*) Deadpool needs Wolverine to help him save the multiverse. The first problem is that Wolverine is dead; the second is that they don’t like each other & Deadpool is unreliable & crazy. Naturally, there are fights. And more fights. And inside jokes. And violence, lots of violence — plus some cameos (at least one of them hilarious — and touching) & guest appearances. It’s probably way too tied into the Marvel Multiverse mess, but I still laughed a lot & really enjoyed it. If you can put up with too much of all that, you’ll enjoy it, too.
Blood of Dracula (Sven) **(*) Kind of an I Was a Teenage Werewolf, but with a girl at a girls’ boarding school who’s even therapist manages to turn her into a Jekyll & Hyde-like vampire type monster. It’s very much by the book, the monster doesn’t appear enough, & the ending feels rushed (though it is a little shocking). Yet, I liked it & if you like cheapo horror/monster films, you can give it that extra star, too.
King of the Kongo (1929) ***(*) Silent-Talkie crossover serial in a jungle adventure setting. Explorers are looking for a woman’s lost father who was following rumors of fabulous treasure in the Kongo (actually Angkor Wat). Unscrupulous other explorers, led by Boris Karloff in his first talking role, want to get the treasure first. Standing in all of their way is a vicious ape & an unpredictable “dinosaur” (lizard with add-ons). Long considered lost, this film has recently been restored by combining discovered elements & sound discs & re-dubbing some sound sequences where necessary. The results, while not up to later standards, look great. Karloff fans will want to give it that extra star, though some of his lines had to be re-created.
Monster & the Girl, The **** Weird shocker about an executed man whose brain is transplanted into the body of a gorilla. He then goes about avenging his wrongful death & protecting the woman he cared for. Yes, it’s as weird & slightly kinky as it sounds. I think it could use more of a soundtrack, but I can’t deny that it’s full ot atmosphere & Charlie Gemora in his ape suit is so good that he almost seems like the real thing..
Elf (2003) ***** I’m not a big fan of Wil Farrell, but he’s perfectly cast as a human raised by elves on the North Pole as one of their own, even though he’s twice their size. Learning the truth, he strikes out to the human world to find his still-living father. Heartfelt comedy with genuinely funny & touching moments ensue. Teh cast, including the incredibly lovely Zooey Deschanel, is great. The plot & script are well done, as is the production. Ed Asner makes a perfect Santa. This was my my first watching since right after it came out, but I think I’ll make it annual viewing (for the whole family).
Midsomer Murders 24-4 A Climate of Death **** A man killed by having a weathervane stuck through his chest leads John Barnaby & Winter to a model eco-community that not everyone in the village is happy about. For one thing, one of the residents is constantly spying on others & fining them if they’re not green enough. For another, the community has lost its lease (from Medieval times) & is apparently about to be bought ty a Texas Oilman. Was the (first) victim killed because of his anti-eco plans, because of the possible old deed to the land, or for some other reason? With this episode, I have caught up to the latest episodes of Midsomer Murders (all 24 seasons in around 2 years watching) & now anxiously wait with all the other fans for more. Hopefully, much more, to come & it can’t get here soon enough for me!
Postman Always Rings Twice, The (1946) **** John Garfield is a drifter looking for work who wanders into a café run by Lana Turner (at her loveliest) & her aging, alcoholic husband (Cecil Kellaway). Turner & Garfield are attracted to each other, but each time they try to resist, life seems to keep pushing them back together. Eventually, they plot to kill her husband, but when they back out of it and that goes wrong, it puts a cop on their tails (Hume Cronyn). Even when things go right for the couple, they seem to go wrong in this classic noir thriller.
Monty Python: Live at Aspen (1998) **** The surviving members of Monty Python (& the ashes of the late Graham Chapman) sit down to reminisce about their lives & work in Aspen with host Robert Klein. It’s an engaging evening, always amusing, occasionally hilarious, especially when the late Chapman gets “into the act.” Obviously, it helps to be a fan of the Pythons & their material, but there may be enough here for even newcomers to enjoy.
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) *** Cartoonish & overblown in a way that Stephen Sommers was the master of, this silly movie about the G.I. Joe team trying to stop the agents of Cobra from their world dominating schemes. The plot is silly & cliché-ridden & all the actors — many of them slumming A-listers — chew the scenery… Yet this bit, silly roller-coaster ride of a film is fun. Go figure!
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) *** This sequel lacks the charm of the original, adds the rock, & kills off (or doesn’t mention) some of the returning characters — thus, the retaliation — but somehow it still amuses, as the remnants of Cobra return in what almost feels like a tribute to The Empire Strikes Back. It’s not as good as the 1st film, but not bad enough to fall out of the 3-star “good” range, either. Since I don’t believe in half stars, it gets the same rating a the original.
Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins (2021) ***(*) I guess this is a reboot, as we get an altered origin. And I guess Snake Eyes must be a super-popular character, because the film focuses on him & his conflicts & enemies pretty exclusively. It’s your basic samurai-kung-fu-style origin story of 2 students once close friends fated to be bitter rivals. But the production values are good & the storytelling sincere & that actually makes it feel like a better movie than the two previous G.I. Joe movies. If you’re a fan of Asian cinema, you can give it that extra star.
8 1/2 ***** Federico Fellini’s off-kilter masterpiece about a director battling his associates, hangers on, his love life, & just about the whole world — as well as writer’s block — while trying to come up with his new “blockbuster” movie. Somehow, that film requires building a towering real-life gantry for an imaginary space ship for the as yet unwritten script. Tying to describe the film is difficult, but its characters are interesting & it’s extremely well made. It’s filled with memorable images, flashbacks, & fantasies. Its reputation as a great film is well deserved.

So, that’s it for December and the entire year 2024!

TOTAL films/programs/etc. for the month is a super-respectable 58, bringing the GRAND TOTAL for the year 2024 to:

599 Reviews!

Honestly, if I’d realized it was that close, I would have tried to squeeze in one more.  It’s the “Mr. Monk” in me.  But still, a very nice number.  You can check previous years to see how it compares.  Maybe I will, too… But right now, I have to get back to work!

NEXT MONTH: February 2025 is here already, and now that I’ve got December 2024 settled, I need to get January finished, too! All I’m gonna promise you is that I dive into the MURDER, SHE BAKED series, but –because of how they were run in January — I managed to watch the second series first and the first series second.  Plus, a TON of other stuff, too! See you next time!

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Let’s Make the World Safer for Everyone!

Remember, you can support this and all my other writing work, including Frost Harrow, Dr. Cushing’s Chamber of HorrorsMonster Shark on a Nude Beachand more, by joining my Patreon for a couple bucks a month, or by dropping me a tip on my Ko-Fi page.  Thanks!

 

About Steve Sullivan 440 Articles
Stephen D. Sullivan is an award-winning author, artist, and editor. Since 1980, he has worked on a wide variety of properties, including well-known licenses and original work. Some of his best know projects include Dungeons & Dragons, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Dragonlance, Iron Man, Legend of the Five Rings, Speed Racer, the Tolkien RPG, Disney Afternoons, Star Wars, The Twilight Empire (Robinson's War), Uncanny Radio, Martian Knights, Tournament of Death, and The Blue Kingdoms (with his friend Jean Rabe).

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