Summer/Fall Mini-Review Roundup 2026

 Hello, Dear Reader.

The beginning of the academic year is usually an incredibly busy time for me, but moreso this year than any year previously.  Not only am I spending more time in the early days of the classes that I teach, but my Diaconate Formation classes have been eating up a great deal of my time along with my parish assignment.  Many nights I am not home until after 9pm.  I am not complaining, but I am trying to explain why my blogging has slowed down to 1-2 posts per week.

As a result, I have fallen behind on my film reviews.  In fact, looking back I have seven film flashes this year without reviews attached (I also have 3 streaming movie reviews that I will be adding)

Previously, in order to catch up I did a mini-review roundup for all of the movies that I had been missing.  With apologies, Dear Reader, I will do the same now.

Enjoy!

Solo Mio

I am a big fan of Kevin James and gives his full commitment to this movie about an American school teacher jilted at the altar while in Rome who decides to experience his non-refundable honeymoon package.  The supporting cast including familiar faces like Allyson Hannigan and Jontahan Roumie is endearing and charming.  The movie doesn't have as many big laughs as I would like, but it earns enough good will so that you will be smiling through most of it.

Power Ballad

Paul Rudd plays Rick, an American ex-pat living in Ireland who is making a living with a wedding band.  At one wedding he happens to meet Danny (Nick Jonas), an ex-boyband member who is trying to make a serious solo career.  The two get intoxicated and Rick plays Danny one of his songs, "How to Write a Song Without You."  When Danny goes home, he passes the song off as his own and it becomes a gigantic hit.  Rick becomes obsessed with proving to everyone that the song is his, even if he has no proof.

The movie starts enjoyable, but then takes a bit of a darker turn as Rick becomes more obsessed.  This causes a gigantic strain on his wife and teenage daughter in a way that is unpleasent to watch.  However, to my surprise, the movie turned on its head with one line.  When Rick finally confronts Danny, he says that he knows Danny couldn't have written it. When Danny asks him why he says, "Because you think it's a love song!"  What follows is an interesting character turn that moves the film to a much more satisfying conclusion than I was expecting.

Minions and Monsters

I have never been a big fan of the Minions series.  I don't have anything against it, but it always seemed like disposable fun nonsense, which is fine.  The same could be said about this one, but what I liked about it was that it was a real love letter to old Hollywood.  I teach a little bit of the history of film and I loved all the homages throughout to Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplain, and the like.  I also like the humorous incorporation of a Lovecraftian villain.  Someone asked me about the supposed satanic imagery.  There is one scene with an evil wizard that could be interpreted that way, but I saw it more like an evil Gandalf.

Young Washington

The first act of this film feels like a made-for-TV movie.  They do a lot of heavy-handed dialogue moments where they do set-up and pay-off only minutes apart.  But once you get past the first act, the movie really picks up.  The performances are very good and you get a strong sense of Washington's character, both in his ambition and his determination.  You feel all of his horrible mistakes that he makes along the way, which is why you root for him when he steps up and tries to make up for them.

Voicemails For Isabelle (Netflix)

Zoey Deutch plays Jill,  a struggling chef in San Francisco who copes with life by leaving voicemails to her dead sister on her old number.  She does not realize that the number has been reassigned to a young real estate agent in Austin, TX named Wes, who unwittingly falls in love with her through her messages.  Wes decides to enter into her life and start a relationship with her, all the while struggling with the secret of how he knows her.

This is traditional rom-com stuff and the movie handles it decently.  But there are too many b-stories that really don't go anywhere and the movie lacks a lot of heart and charm.  It is unnecessarily sexual in ways that you find in Netflix productions that only serve to distract from the story.

The Dink (AppleTV+)

The movie is trying to be Happy Gilmore for pickleball and it only works sporadically.  Jake Johnson is funny as the lead, but his character is so unlikeable that he never really pulls you in.  He has great chemistry with Mary Steenburgen as his pickleball partner, but for some reason the movie kills off any growth in their relationship.  You also have a funny turn by Ed Harris as Dustin's father, but other than that, there isn't much to write home about here.

Mayday (AppleTV+)

This is one that I wish was in the theater.  Ryan Reynolds plays a Navy pilot who gets shot down behind Soviet lines in the 1980's.  He is found in the wilderness by a former KGB agent played by Kenneth Branagh, who is willing to help him if he can defect.  The two then go on a comedic and action-packed ride through Cold War Russia.

The movie was incredibly charming.  Directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, who also made the criminally underated Game Night as well as the most recent Dungeons and Dragons, know who to film an action set piece and they know how to use the camera for laughs.  I laughed more in the movie than most comedies in the theater.  The directors have the confidence to know when to just let a visual gag sit without having to do an MCU-style quip.  There is one sequence in particularl when Reynolds and Branagh are hiding in a closet that is particularly memorable.  Reynolds and Branagh have great chemistry and I cannot believe how believably Branagh plays an action hero.  The movie occasionally cannot help itself to make some kind of ham-fisted social commentary, but that is the only part of the movie that feels flat

Coyote vs. Acme

This is a very clever movie.  It stays true to the spirit of the Coyote and Roadrunner characters in a way that was pleasently unexpected.  The use of Foghorn Leghorn as the villanous corporate shill was a very insightful choice.  It isn't as smart as Who Framed Roger Rabbit or even Chip 'N Dale Rescue Rangers.  The human elements are the least interesting part, except for John Cena who seems very at home in the Looney Tunes Universe.

By Any Means

This movie could have been a lot better.  Set in 1966, it focuses on FBI agent Wayne Strider (Yaha Abdul-Mateen II) who is investigating a murder led by the KKK, but Strider is hampered because of all the racism he encounters in his investigation, even from local law enforcement.  So his boss partners him with Greg Scarpa (Mark Wahlberg), a sociopathic mafia hitman to break their way into this underworld.

The movie does a great job at showing us Strider's struggles, both interior and exterior.  And unlike most movies of this nature, he and Scarpa don't form a kind a unlikely friendship where they learn from each other.  Scarpa is a violent monster who has been set loose on even worse monsters.  That was an interesting take.  However, the main problem with the movie is that just when Strider starts really enter into challenging moral territory where his character is stretched, the movie just ends.  It feels like there is no strong resolution to the good set up.  So you will leave the theater a bit unsatisfied.

Runner

This is a simple, straightforward buddy-action film that feels like a lot of the mid-budget movies you would get in the 80s and 90s.  Alan Ritchson plays a recovering alcoholic courior with a military background who ends up escorting Owen Wilson who is transporitng a liver to a dying girl in a hospital.  But a very powerful drug cartel is out to get organ with the clock ticking on the liver's viability and the little girl's life.

The action sequences are very compentantly shot and actually very enjoyable.  Ritchson and Wilson have surprisingly good chemistry.  The only time that the movie loses steam is when the character stop pushing their forward momentum for some comedic dialogue or some heartfelt backstory.  These moments take the wind out of the sails, which is a shame because if they were able to keep up the intensity consistently, it would rank a notch above.

Sunday Best: Best TV Shows of the 21st Century (so far)

 Recently, the New York Times posted their list of the greatest TV shows of this century so far.  You can google their choices.

These are shows that began in the 2000's, so Friends and That 70's show are not on there.  Also, they included mini-series as well.  

Of the 100 shows on that list, I would say I have seen only 35 of them, and many of them only a few episodes.  However, there are many on there that should not be on there and many that have been overlooked.  

I decided to make my own list.  I have also decided to divide them between dramas and sitcoms.  The NYT list did not do this, but I think when you compare the two, it is often apples to oranges.

So here is my list of 100 best shows of this century.  I've divided them into REALITY, SITCOM, and DRAMA.

Because the list is so large, there will not be any commentary as to the rationale.  Feel free to follow up later.

REALITY

6. The Floor is Lava

5. Welcome to Wrexham

4. Shark Tank

3. Dancing with the Stars

2. Survivor

1. The Amazing Race

SITCOMS

35. Georgie and Mandy's First Marriage

34. DMV

33. Truth Seekers

32. Animal Control

31. Malcolm in the Middle

30. Modern Family

29. Andy Barker PI

28. Son of Zorn

27. Undeclared

26. The Paper

25. The New Girl

24. Brooklyn 99

23. Bless this Mess

22. Ghosts

21. Schooled

20. The Goldbergs

19. Single Parents

18. Clerks

17. A Man on the Inside

16. Only Murders in the Building

15. Ted Lasso

14. Mythic Quest

13. The Middle

12. Frasier (Reboot)

11. Raising Hope

10. How I Met Your Mother

9. Roseanne (Reboot)

8. The Good Place

7 The Office (UK)

6 Scrubs

5. Parks and Recreation

4. Arrested Development

3. The Big Bang Theory

2. The Office (US)

1. Community

DRAMAS

59. Suits

58. Chuck

57. Cobra Kai

56. Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency

55. Stargirl

54. Locke and Key

53. Obi-Wan Kenobi

52. Will Trent

51. Paradise

50. The Rookie

49. Castle

48. Jessica Jones

47. Agents of SHIELD

46. The Amazing Digital Circus

45. Justice League

44. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles

43. The Hollow Crown

42. High Potential

41. One Piece

40. The Fall of the House of Usher

39. Bad Monkey

38. The Penguin

37. Death by Lightning

36. Smallville 

35. Presumed Innocent

34. The Pitt

33. Stranger Things

32. Andor

31. Game of the Thrones

30. The Flash

29. 24

28. Daredevil

27. Broadchurch

26. Sherlock

25. The Orville

24. Picard (because of season 3)

23. The Mandalorian

22. Alias

21. Severance

20. Firefly

19. Dopesick

18. Blackbird

17. Arrow

16. This is Us

15. Doctor Who

14. Gilmore Girls

13. Veronica Mars

12. The Walking Dead

11.  Superman and Lois

10. Chernobyl

9. Band of Brothers

8. John Adams

7. Fargo

6. Freaks and Geeks

5. Battlestar Galactica

4. Buffy the Vampire Slayer

3. Breaking Bad

2. Lost

1. The Chosen

Thoughts?

New Evangelizers Post: Follow Me

                                           

I have a new article up at NewEvangelizers.com.  

Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves me.
(John 12:24-25)

Follow me.

Two simple words that Jesus said to all of His disciples. Two simple words that we find in today’s Gospel. Two simple words that all of us have heard in our hearts.

Christ used the image of the seed to represent change. I would imagine for most of us, seeds of change were planted in our hearts not just from one single source, but from all the many gentle nudges of the Holy Spirit through those we encountered. That question, “Have you thought about this ministry?” or that comment, “You would be good at that ministry,” were moments when Our Lord was planting the seed of change in you.

But in order for that seed to grow, there is one thing that we must do: follow Him.

In her book Forming Intentional Disciples, Sherry Weddell speaks about the apathy that is found in many of us Catholics, where many make religion a mindless habit. In this way, we compartmentalize our hearts and separate God from our daily lives. I’m sure that doesn’t apply to most of you who are reading this. But I must confess that in my first year of Diaconate formation, I looked at my classes and my assignments as things that needed to get done; they were boxes that had to be checked off in order to work my way to ordination. By God’s grace, I have come to understand that while this is a time of work, it is more importantly a time of formation. CS Lewis wrote, “we might think that God wanted simply obedience to a set of rules: whereas He really wants people of a particular sort.” In other words, this is a time for God to change me.

And that is why following Him can be a little scary because it is a kind of death because it is a transformation. God is calling us out of our comfort zone to become something else. This means we have to let go of our old selves. Following will cost you, just as it did the many of the saints; just as it did all of the 12.

Following is an act of faith because we don’t know what it will cost us. I think of Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings who decided to follow his friend Frodo into the fires of Mordor. Sam gave up so much to follow him. But in the book, one of the things that made Sam the saddest was having to throw out his cookware. It seems like such a silly thing to be upset about. And yet, how many of us have those little indulgences of life and the Lord says that we follow Him, we have to let it go?

We are transformed by following Him. And we follow Him because He redeemed us.

The first movie I ever saw in the theater as a kid was Flash Gordon. It is a silly sci-fi film, but in the movie Flash and one of his enemies are forced to fight to the death. When his enemy is most vulnerable, Flash saves his life. To express his gratitude and change of heart, all his enemy can say to Flash is: “Where you go: I follow.”

Today is the feast of St. Matthew. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus comes to him when he is a tax collector and he simply says: "Follow me."

On the show The Chosen, one of my absolute favorite moments comes from an interaction that the Apostle Matthew has with his old bodyguard Gaius. The roman is worried about so many important things with his family and his responsibilities. Matthew looks at Gaius and says, "I have only one thing to do today: follow Him. The rest takes care of itself."

You can read the whole article here.

Sunday Best: Emmy Winners 2026

  

Perhaps I am getting older or more mature or perhaps my tastes are changing, but I don't have the same excitement that I used to for award shows.  I used to look forward to the Golden Globes, the Emmys, and most especially the Oscars.  But now they seem like an afterthought.  I still consume a great deal of media (perhaps too much).  But my desire to see the industry award itself is waning.

My biggest takeaway from watching the Emmys didn't have to do with any of the actual awards.  I didn't think that Marishka Hartigay was a terrible host, but she wasn't very good either.  And as with the proliferation of streaming networks, most of the shows that were nominated were ones that I did not watch.

BIG WINNERS: Widow's Bay

This is a show I do not watch, but it cleaned up that night.  It won a total of 13 wins.  The lead actor Matthew Rhys not only won for this show but for a limited series that night as well.  While I can't speak to how good the show is, I was happy to see Stephen Root win an Emmy.  I'm old enough to remember when he was doing guest spots on the original Night Court and he has been working regularly in television since.  I especially like how he referenced Harrison Ford.  It also like Katie Dipold (the showrunner) is now out of Hollywood jail after writing the 2016 Ghostbusters movie

MICHAEL J. FOX'S SPEECH

As a child of the 1980's I was very moved by seeing Michael J. Fox accept his award.  I loved how he began his speech by acknoledging the award's namesake Bob Hope and ending his speech thanking him.  

TOM PELPHREY'S SPEECH

I do not know this actor, but I was moved by how he began by thanking God for his life and his sobriety.  His speech had the tone of true gratitude, especially when he turned his attention to his family saying they were the crown jewel of his life.  I especially loved how he spoke to his unborn child growing inside of his wife.  It was a very pro-life moment.

HUMOR?

I always wonder who writes the jokes for these shows and how they almost always come to the unfunniest punchlines.  The only standout was John Mulaney who probably wrote his own material.

IN MEMORIAM

I don't know how these awards shows keep screwing up the In Memoriam part of the evening.  Sometimes they leave off names they shouldn't.  Sometimes they choose the wrong song/singer.  But this time, it was the fact that Chuck Norris was left off of the list.  Not only was he a cultural icon, but his show Walker, Texas Ranger was a huge hit that ran for several years on CBS.  

Thoughts?

Film Flash: Runner (2026)

 

15 words or less film review (full review to follow soon)

Simple-concept, low-budget action film executed well.  Actors have great chemistry.  A fun watch.

Film Flash: By Any Mean

 

 

15 words or less film review (full review to follow soon)

An intriguing movie with good performances that just sort of ends out of nowhere.

Sunday Best: 50 Most Beautiful Moments in Cinema - #5-#1

     

This is a continuation of this series started here and continued here and here and here and here.

You can go there to see numbers 50-31.  You can also check it out to remember the ground rules and criteria for choosing.  A brief recap:

1. A moment can be only about 2 minutes (unless it is an unbroken shot).  

2. Only one moment per movie.

3. All the context matters.

4. The subjective element of beauty is real.

5. Beauty only.

So, with those in mind, I will now share #5-#1 of the most beautiful moments in cinema.

I will provide Youtube links to the videos rather than embed them here.  I would imagine that because this is critical commentary it qualifies for fair use, but I'd rather not take that chance.

You can click any of the links below to see the clips (most of them should be timestamped to begin at the moment referred.

SPOILERS FOR ALL THE MOVIES BELOW

5. The Wizard of Oz - "Munchkin Land"

There are many reasons why The Wizard of Oz has endured as one of the most beloved movies of all time.  But I don't think people talk enough about the fact that it creates cinematic magic.  We see a lot spectacle in movies, but there are not as many that fill you with a true sense of wonder and awe.  And this moment is one of those rare occasions where the world opens up.

We've spent the entire movie in the black-and-white world of Kansas.  As with any monochrome movie, eventually you forget that the world is plain and drab.  But then Dorothy opens up that door and the most vivid, dazzling colors pour in and overwhelm you.  Every child who sees this for the first time feels absolutely transported to another world.  It is a moment of cinematic magic, where we feel as though the plainness of our own world could give way to a hidden magic just around the corner.  The music rises slowly like a dream as even Dorothy herself is transformed, releasing the magic inside of her.  It is a truly masterful shot that never ceases to create a sense of wonder.

4. Casablanca - "Last Shot"

Most of this movie plays out a lot like a film noir.  The use of light and shadow, even with the romantic elements, hit at dark overtones.  Rick's morally ambiguous character leads us to believe that this movie is going to have a dark and tragic end.  But his utter selflessness makes the ending feel earned.  Rick sacrificed romantic love in favor of agape, the highest form of sacrificial love.  He's ready for Louis to turn him in for eventual execution.  But Rick's heroism awakens the patriotism of the venal but charming Louis.  As the two walk off, we hear the patriotic French theme rise.  We then have (to paraphrase When Harry Met Sally) one of the greatest last lines of any movie: "Louis, I think this is the beginning a beautiful friendship."  It is a deceptively simple line, but it does a lot in that one sentence.  It is telling the audience that this is not a sad ending, but a happy beginning.  It is reminding us that there are still beautiful things in this world besides romantic love.  And that these two are about forge a friendship by fighting against evil together.

And as they walk the damp runway, the lights reflect on the ground as they walk into the mist.  Our heroes are walking off into the stars themselves.  They are mythic heroes stepping out of the darkness of Casablanca and into the stuff of legends.  It is a call to bravery and heroism.  It is a call to also be a friend of Rick and join back into the fight.

3. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - "You Bow To No One"

I love movies.  But as much as I love them, there are few moments that truly take my breath away.  And Peter Jackson was able to do that with this moment.

People often complain that the ending to Return of the King is too long.  I disagree.  I think when you spend so much time with these characters, you need to give them the proper goodbye.  This is the final scene with Aragorn, Arwen, Legolas, and Gimli.  In particular, we just watched Aragorn fulfill his destiny as king and have his emotional reunion with Arwen.  We take our last look at Eomer, Faramir, and Eowyn.  But then we come to the hobbits.

The moment is set up as you would expect.  The four hobbits are seen from a high angle: small folk in the larger world, the humans hovering over them.  But with a look of utter compassion and love Aragorn delivers that unforgettable line, "My friends... you bow to no one."  And as the camera descends with him, we as the audience also genuflect.  Then we get the swelling of the Shire theme just as we see the entire people take a knee.  And then the camera floats from a high angle to a low angle close up of Frodo.  The people of Middle Earth will never be able to repay him for the sacrifice that will eventually cause him to leave forever.  But this moment is a moment of acknowledgment and reverence.  When we honor the heroes who gave everything for us, we know that we can never pay them back.  What we have to give is poor recompense.  Frodo will never be fully healed in this world.  But what we can give is our honor.  

I have never seen a movie that captures this sentiment like I do here.

2. The Sound of Music - "Opening Shots"

If you said to me that The Sound of Music is the most beautifully filmed movie of all time, then I don't think that I can argue with you.  I don't think I have ever seen anything quite like this.  There are several musical films, many of them great.  But few take permanent residence in the minds and hearts of people as this movie.  One of the reasons is that director Robert Wise made a film that was so gorgeous to look at that it felt it was casting a spell on you.

I recently watched the movie again with my wife and I kept pointing out the fantastic use of color, framing, depth, motion... almost every frame of this movie is like a painting.

But the most beautiful shot is that opening shot of Maria.  The wide arial shot fills you with the open, majestic grandeur of the mountains.  But by themselves, they are lacking because there is no one in that space to appreciate it.  And as the camera pulls in on Maria, we see her spin around as if taking in every beautiful vista around her as the music swells and then she hits you with that declaration "The hills are alive with the sound of music!"  In the stage play, you have to feel that life through the enthusiasm of the character.  But here we have not only Maria's ecstasy, but Wise envelops you with the beauty of those mountains and hills.  You feel everything about this moment.  When she sings that she wants to "laugh like a brook as it trips and falls over stones on its way..." Wise shows you the beauty of that little brook and how it calls to you its laughter.  I don't think I've ever seen a movie that better embodies the Canticle from Daniel 3 where all of nature blesses the Lord!

The moment not only shows you the beautiful, it immerses you the beauty of God's creation.

1. Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope - "Tatooine Sunset"

It is 35 seconds long.

And yet it is the most beautiful moment in all of cinema.

It actually amazes me that this moment is in the movie.  George Lucas is notorious for cutting scenes that are powerful but don't push the narrative forward.  And if you watch the original Star Wars, you could cut this moment and not lose anything in the story.  But Lucas understood the utter importance of this moment.  It is so important that the endings of the Prequel and Sequel Trilogies are direct homages to this moment.

And it is also strikingly simple.  It is made up of only 3 very simple camera angles: a wide on the Lars Homestead, a medium on Luke, and a reverse on the twin suns setting.

So why would this be the most beautiful moment in cinema?

First of all, look at the composition.  When Luke walks out of the hut, he's moving out of darkness and he heads towards the light.  The bottom half of the screen is washed-out sand, but the top half is full of red, yellow, and purple.  And he is walking away from the only home he has ever known.  He looks out with his eyes to the horizon, the limitless future.  As he stands there, Luke is bathed in light.  His call to adventure is a bright light illuminating him.  The shot of the twin suns is one of the most beautiful in all of Star Wars.  There are a lot of flashy special effects in the saga.  But Lucas uses a simple camera trick to make the twin suns look like they were naturally photographed.  To that original audience, Lucas pulls off an amazing magic trick: he makes something otherworldly and extraordinary like twin suns look natural, almost mundane.  But at the same time, he makes that which is mundane feel extraordinary.  In other words, this fantastic world feels real in a way that you don't feel in other movies.

We must also talk about the music.  The use of the John Williams score is perfect.  It starts as a small voice of discontent that we feel in Luke.  But then as he looks out, it swells to a powerful and painful longing.  CS Lewis talked about "joy," as a deep, painful ache that happens inside of the person when they experience something truly beautiful.  It is because the beautiful thing makes you desire the eternal, otherworldly beauty of the transcendent God.  When Luke looks out, he feels something like joy and the score makes the audience feel it too.

But above all, these 35 seconds convey the universal feeling of all human beings.  When we are young, there comes a a time when the wide world calls to us.  It can be scary, but it still calls.  Luke looks out at the larger universe and he hears the call.  It is something all of us have felt when looking at a sunset or the ocean or the wide planes or rolling hills.  It isn't just a moment of admiration: it is a call for us to become.  Become what?  That is the adventure.

And all of that is communicated without words in those 35 seconds.  I'm not even sure most people would put it into those words.  But some of the deepest lived truths are things that we experience rather than articulate.  And that is what Lucas has done with this moment.  He wanted pull back the curtain on this world and have us touch not a world of fiction, but a world of truth, a world of myth.