Family Drama

‘Cobra Kai’ Season 4 (2021) goes down to the wire

Amid the drama of the All Valley Tournament that concludes “Cobra Kai” Season 4 (December, Netflix), Johnny (William Zabka) is told Miguel (Xolo Maridueña) left

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‘Shining’ (1977) makes bid as great American horror novel

Stephen King famously disliked the film version of “The Shining” (1980) because director/co-writer Stanley Kubrick made Jack Torrance unhinged from the start, and thus he

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Spider-Verse tastily envelops ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’

Awhile back, Disney and Sony were on the brink of ending their agreement of making “Spider-Man” movies together. (Sony owns the Spider-Man rights; Disney/Marvel rents

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John’s top 10 movies of 2021

Although the pandemic didn’t end, 2021 rebounded nicely from 2020, with a lot more movies – both big and small – released. Heck, a case

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John’s top 10 TV shows of 2021

I used to count the days before a new season of a favorite show, or a new series starring a favorite actor. Now, it’s like

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Party vibe makes ‘Dead Man’s Folly’ (1956) a fun read

“Dead Man’s Folly” (1956) is a page-turner with an evocative main setting of a carnival on a country mansion’s grounds, humorous interplay between Ariadne Oliver

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‘8-Bit Christmas’ joins pantheon of holiday classics

Television and streaming have produced so many Christmas movies in recent years – most of them mediocre at best — that one could be forgiven

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‘4:50 from Paddington’ (1957) a padded Christie whodunit

Agatha Christie’s “4:50 from Paddington” (1957, also published as “What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw!”) is outfitted with a lot of the tropes we enjoy. Miss Marple

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First of the ‘Lost’ clones: ‘Invasion’ (2005-06)

“Invasion” (2005-06, ABC) was the first of the post-“Lost” Event Series. And darn if it doesn’t still rank as one of the best, even as

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‘Crooked House’ (2017) captures novel’s chilliness

“Crooked House” (1949) is one of Agatha Christie’s best, but also coldest, novels. In that regard, the 2017 movie adaptation is thematically faithful. Set in

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