John Hansen

Casino Royale

‘Casino Royale’ (2006) engagingly relaunches Bond

An outsider’s take on the James Bond saga (Movie review): Daniel Craig amiably fills 007’s shoes in this relaunch.

Brosnan Bonds limp to end with ‘Die Another Day’ (2002)

An outsider’s take on the James Bond saga (Movie review): Halle Berry guest stars as the four-film Pierce Brosnan series wraps up.

Nun Curse of La Llorona

‘Nun’ (2018), ‘Curse of La Llorona’ (2019) expand Conjuring-verse

Frightening Friday (Movie reviews): These two spinoffs give added weight – maybe too much – to the Conjuring Cinematic Universe.

‘Clueless’ (1995) meets at intersection of Austen, ’90s

Throwback Thursday (Movie review): Amy Heckerling’s film is one of the core ’90s teen movies, but its roots go much further back.

‘The World is Not Enough’ (1999) takes step backward

An outsider’s take on the James Bond saga (Movie review): Compared to the previous Brosnan entries, “The World” is indeed not enough.

Paranoia reigns in PKD’s ‘A Maze of Death’ (1970)

PKD flashback (Book review): Everybody is paranoid, but rightfully so, as Dick’s story of planetary settlers taps into several of his common themes.

‘Firefly’ starts with a Boom! in ‘Unification War’ (2018-19)

‘Firefly’ flashback (Comic book review): We look back at Boom! Studios Issues 1-12, collectively titled “The Unification War.”

Theme, sidekick propel ‘Tomorrow Never Dies’ (1997)

An outsider’s take on the James Bond saga (Movie review): Pierce Brosnan’s second Bond film tackles the power of mass media and features a cool sidekick.

‘Palm Springs’ gets by on charming chemistry

Movie review: “Palm Springs” is only mildly funny, but the chemistry between Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti make it easy to watch.

Brosnan ably takes Bond mantle in ‘GoldenEye’ (1995)

An outsider’s take on the James Bond saga (Movie review): TV action star Pierce Brosnan shows he still has secret-agent chops as he takes over as Bond.