Movie/TV Reviews

Susan Granger’s review of “Blink Twice” (Amazon/M.G.M.)

Taking full advantage of her ‘nepo baby’ status, Zoe Kravitz – daughter of singer/songwriter/music producer Lenny Kravitz and actress Lisa Bonet – makes her directing debut with “Blink Twice,” delving into sexploitation/horror.

Her story begins as fun-loving Frida (Naomi Ackie) and her roommate Jess (Alia Shawkat) leave their dingy digs to report to work as ‘invisible’ cater/waiters, serving champagne and canapes at a posh party hosted by billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum), a discredited tech mogul.

Later, after slipping into slinky gowns, they manage to ‘crash’ the party, eager to be accepted by the rich-and-famous crowd. Sure enough, they wangle an invitation to board seductive Slater’s private jet for a vacation on his secluded tropical island.

Upon arrival, they’re forced to surrender their iPhones to Slater’s aloof personal assistant/sister, Stacy (Geena Davis), before being escorted to their comfy quarters, replete with an exotic perfume, identical white bikinis and fetching resort garb.

Giggling with delight, Frida and Jess join the other guys (Christian Slater, Hayley Joel Osment, Simon Rex, Levon Hawke) and gals (Adria Arjona, Liz Caribel, Trew Mullett), frolicking around the pool.

Drinking and designer drugs are their primary amusements, and their excessive indulgence induces some kind of psychedelic stupor. Eagerly swept up in the bacchanalia, they lose track of what time and what day it is.

Jess is the first to realize that something’s wrong, although she can’t figure out what. And when she goes missing, no one, except Frida, can remember she was even there.

(If this seems more than a bit reminiscent of Jeffrey Epstein’s ‘Pedophile Island” in the Caribbean, it’s obviously no coincidence. Only Frida and Jess aren’t underage; they’re adults who willingly consent to constant partying.)

Scripted by Kravitz and E.T. Feigenbaum, sexual politics is the name of the sinister game as Frida wreaks feminist #MeToo revenge. The original title was “Pussy Island,” but that was understandably rejected for marketing reasons.

Problem is: Neither Kravitz’s concept nor her characters are never fully developed, so the satirical cynicism and graphic brutality seems inexplicably gratuitous. And the ominous presence of Slater’s therapist Rich (Kyle MacLachlan) is never explained.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Blink Twice” is a pretentious 3, streaming on Amazon Prime.

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Susan Granger’s review of “Wolfs” (Sony/Apple TV+)

In “Wolfs,” George Clooney and Brad Pitt play rival underworld ‘fixers’ who must reluctantly work together to clean up a crime scene at a posh New York City hotel. This buddy/action dramedy was originally supposed to have a major theatrical release but plans obviously changed.

Written and directed by Jon Watts (“Spider-Man: No Way Home”), it’s certainly not a thriller and not exactly a comedy, although Clooney and Pitt obviously find it somewhat amusing.

Like most police procedurals, the plot begins with a body sprawled on the floor surrounded by blobs of blood. A local district attorney (Amy Ryan) booked a hotel room to frolic with a younger man who may or may not have been a prostitute. Somehow he fell off the bed, cracked his head on a glass table and, apparently, died.

Desperate, she finds a number on her iPhone and when it’s answered says, “I was told if I ever need serious help to call this number,” adding, “There is only one man in the city who can do what you do.”

Soon a discreet ‘fixer’ (Clooney) arrives on the scene and gets to work with garbage bags and duct tape. He’s interrupted by the arrival of another ‘fixer’ (Pitt) summoned by the proprietor worried that scandal could taint the hotel’s reputation.

These two unnamed ‘fixers’ eye each other suspiciously, bickering and bantering  before actually removing the body and attempting to dispose of it, along with a stash of drugs tucked in a backpack behind a sofa.

Complications mount as the supposed corpse revives. He’s a curious kid (Austin Abrams) who may or may not have been involved with an Albanian cartel. Lacking a cohesive plot, there are too many chases, including a tediously tiresome one that begins in neon-lit Chinatown and ends near the Brooklyn Bridge.

The New York Times reported that Clooney and Pitt banked $35 million each for their participation but Clooney dismissed that figure at a Venice Film Festival press conference although the Times sticks by its reporting.

On the Granger Gauge of 1to 10, “Wolfs” is a frustrating, forgettable 5, streaming on Apple TV+.

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Susan Granger’s review of “Rebel Ridge” (Netflix/Bonneville Pictures)

“Rebel Ridge” begins as Terry Richmond (Aaron Pierre) is riding his bicycle on a deserted stretch of Louisiana highway, intently listening to Iron Maiden’s “The Number of the Beast.”

With music blocking the sound of a police car behind him, Terry’s rear-ended and left sprawled on the concrete. Determined to search the backpack that Terry is wearing, the cop summons backup.

Politely explaining that he’s on his way to nearby Shelby Springs, toting $36,000 to post bail for his incarcerated cousin and then to buy a truck, Terry is persistently harassed and his cash confiscated under suspicion of a drug connection.

That’s illegal. Terry knows it but the cops (David Danman, Emory Cohen) don’t care. After all, he’s a Black man and they’re obviously accustomed not only to racial profiling but also to acting with impunity in this backwoods town.

Quietly simmering with anger, Terry tries to defuse the conflict with diplomatic Southern civility, verbally sparring with bullying Police Chief Burnne (Don Johnson), only to discover widespread corruption throughout the precinct.

(Meanwhile, a police search on Wikipedia  reveals that Terry’s not only an ex-Marine but that he ran the Marine Corps Martial Arts Program, meaning he’s a self-defense expert.)

Determined to file the paperwork necessary to free his cousin from jail before he’s transferred to a state prison where his life is endangered, Terry is befriended by Summer McBride (AnnaSophia Robb)

Summer works for the county clerk; she was previously cowed by the town’s power players and is desperately trying to regain custody of her child.  She understands all about police entitlement and ‘asset forfeiture,’ which makes her increasingly vulnerable to the avarice-prone men around her.

Writer/director Jeremy Saulnier (“Green Room”) keeps the tension taut, basing the title of the film on the field where the final confrontation occurs. Problem is: the ‘survivalist’ protagonist and action/thriller plot are all too familiar, harking back to Tom Laughlin’s “Billy Jack” (1971) and Ted Kotcheff’s “First Blood” (1982), introducing Sylvester Stallone’s John Rambo.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Rebel Ridge” is a slow-burning yet satisfying 6, streaming on Netflix.

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Susan Granger’s review of “Megalopolis” (Lionsgate/American Zoetrope)

Francis Ford Coppola’s passion project “Megalopolis” is a futuristic fable about the downfall of the American Empire.

The 85 year-old auteur envisioned the dystopian concept 40 years ago, writing, revising and re-casting it, spending $120 million to make it, using funds he’d made from “Apocalypse Now,”  “The Godfather,” etc. and his California wine business.

Adam Driver stars as Cesar Catilina, a visionary architect who dreams of utilizing a miraculous material called Megalon to build an experimental Utopia from the ruins of New Rome (obviously allegorical New York City, since the familiar Chrysler Building is an Art Deco centerpiece).

But Cesar must convince corrupt Mayor Franklin Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito) whose rebellious daughter Julia (Nathalie Emmanuel) he’s dating. And face ‘concrete’ opposition from Nush Berman (Dustin Hoffman) – as explained by narrator Fundi Romaine (Laurence Fisbburne).

Inexplicably, Cesar has the ability to freeze everything and everyone in place by ordering: “Stop, time!” But that’s the limit of his supernatural powers.

According to Coppola, who consulted with “S.P.Q.R: A History of Ancient Rome” historian Mary Beard, Cesar’s turbulent coup can be traced back to Rome’s Catilinarian conspiracy of 63 B.C.

Lecherous old Hamilton Crassus III (Jon Voight) represents greed, while his duplicitous grandson Clodio (Shia LaBoeuf) epitomizes ambition – as the inherent debauchery is caustically chronicled by financial reporter Wow Platinum (Aubrey Plaza) on her “Money Bunny” TV show.

Archaic references to the fall of Rome are everywhere, along with Shakespearean dialogue, peppered with quotes from Greek/Roman/Sapphic poets. Driver even delivers Hamlet’s famous “To be or not to be…” soliloquy in its entirety.

Filmed in Atlanta, whatever credit there is goes to cinematographer Mihai Malaimare, Jr., who creates some indelible CGI imagery.

The film is dedicated to his wife, documentarian Eleanor Coppola, who died in April, 2024, and indulgently features several other Coppola family members, including his sister, Talia Shire, and nephews Jason Schwartzman and Roman Coppola. Only Nicolas Cage escaped.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Megalopolis” is an illogical, incoherent 2 – playing in theaters.

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Susan Granger’s review of “Elsbeth” (CBS/Paramount+)

“Elsbeth” ranks as the second most watched newcomer on CBS this year, averaging 11 million viewers on CBS, Paramount+ and CBS TV apps – with its second season launching on CBS on Thursday, October 17 and available the next day streaming on Paramount+.

A spinoff of “The Good Wife” and “The Good Fight,” “Elsbeth” stars Carrie Preston as scene-stealing Elsbeth Tascioni, an astute but decidedly unconventional lawyer-turned-investigator who makes oddball observations – like Peter Falk’s “Columbo” – and corners elusive criminals.

Transferred to Manhattan from Chicago, Elsbeth was assigned by a federal prosecutor to monitor the activities of New York officers under legal scrutiny for corruption.

Bizarrely dressed as a tourist with a foam Statue of Liberty crown, giddily sunny Elsbeth arrives on the job, relying on her disarmingly naïve demeanor to disguise her legal acumen. Skeptically greeted by Capt. C.W. Wagner (Wendell Pierce), she’s befriended by NYPD officer Kaya Blanke (Carra Patterson) and soon proves her worth in this police procedural.

As envisioned by mischievous creators Robert and Michelle King, quirky Elsbeth always wears contrasting patterns, playfully carrying numerous tote bags – an outlandish look that renders her both hard to miss and easy to overlook.

Previewing the premiere episode of Season 2, a womanizing finance executive is stabbed to death after a night at the opera. Because of a ringing cell phone, Elsbeth suspects obsessed music lover Philip Cross (Nathan Lane).

In the 2024-2025 season, showrunner Jonathan Tollins revealed than Pamela Adlon will play one of America’s most revered chefs/owner of New York’s hottest restaurant.  Despite anger management training, her rage turns deadly when a staff member’s side hustle causes havoc in the dining room, blowing a major deal.

After that, Vanessa Williams is a chic, ultra-wealthy VIP at an exclusive Fifth Avenue jewelry store who takes her passion for gems to the next level. Then Rob Riggle is a billionaire whose colleague dies in a freak accident while training for a frivolous space mission. And Brittany O’Grady is a former child star-turned-scandalous party girl defining her career’s next chapter.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Elsbeth” is a spunky, slyly shrewd 7. Right now, its entire 1^st season is streaming on Paramount+.

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Susan Granger’s review of “Matlock” (CBS/Paramount+)

 

I usually wait until I’ve seen an entire series before reviewing but “Matlock” is an exception. This legal drama starring Kathy Bates – which shares a surname and basic premise with the 1986-96 series starring Andy Griffith – looks too good to wait.

According to Nielsen ratings data, 7.7 million people watched the first episode, garnering the largest audience for a non-Super Bowl CBS premiere since “The Code” debuted in April, 2019.

Similar to her predecessor, Madeline ‘Matty’ Matlock (Bates) is a disarmingly genial attorney with a brilliant legal mind. Like many septuagenarians, she feels that her age has rendered her invisible. That’s what character-centric showrunner Jennie Snyder Urman (“Jane the Virgin”) capitalizes on: how older women are underestimated and overlooked.

After the tragic death of her daughter from a drug overdose, widowed Matty is raising her 12 year-old grandson, Alfie Kingston (Aaron D. Harris). Declaring she’s in debt yet still skilled, Matty cleverly manages to land a job at the prestigious Jacobson Moore law firm, headed by Senior (Beau Bridges), his son Julian (Jason Ritter) and primary partner Elijah Walker (Eve Ikwuakor).

Matty is assigned to outspoken Olympia Lawrence (Skye P. Marshall), who takes on challenging cases that no one else in the firm views as profitable. To complicate matters, she’s currently custody-battling her ex-husband Julian.

Reluctant to have someone on her team who hasn’t practiced law since 1991 but desperately needing the help, Olympia partners Matty with her two ambitious junior associates: Sarah (Leah Lewis) and Billy (David Del Rio).

As more about her intuitive character is revealed in a surprisingly topical twist at the conclusion of the pilot, it becomes obvious that “Matty” is a savvy pseudonym for a woman using her work as a conduit for personal grief, along with a desire to rectify wrongs of the past, as she pursues a path towards right.

Oscar winner for “Misery”/Emmy winner for “American Horror Story,” Kathy Bates is charismatic and compelling, working with a strong supporting cast.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Matlock” is an intriguing 8. Its premiere is on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.

Susan Granger’s review of “The Substance” (Working Title Films/MBUI)

 

‘Tis the season for horror movies, specifically body horror as Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley occupy the same body in “The Substance.”

It’s been many years since Elizabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) got her coveted Star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame. She’s now an aging actress who has built an empire on her TV aerobics videos: “Sparkle with Elizabeth.”

But then a smarmy, misogynistic executive, aptly named Harvey (Dennis Quaid), decides she’s too old, no longer attractive, and should be replaced by a perkier, prettier younger version. “After 50, it stops,” he tells her – in no uncertain terms.

Elizabeth is so devastated that she crashes her car, only to emerge unscathed but in possession of a ‘thumb drive’ temping her to try a mysteriously futuristic treatment called The Substance., which comes in compartmentalized boxes filled with phosphorescent green liquid, tubing and syringes.

The Substance promises enhancement – “a better version of yourself” – which it delivers. After enduring a gory, grisly, grotesque transformation, naked Elizabeth emerges as a sexy, shiny young doppelganger (Margaret Qualley), who auditions as her nubile replacement and becomes celebrated as Sue, hosting the high-octane “Pump It Up.”

The creepy ‘catch’ is that – while cloned Sue’s lithe gyrations captivate lecherous men of all ages – the following week, elder Elizabeth is back, gazing forlornly in the mirror and facing constant rejection. Somethin’ has gotta give, right?

Obviously channeling Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond in “Sunset Boulevard,” still-stunning 61 year-old Demi Moore (“Ghost”) has a renewed shot at stardom, making her ‘comeback,’ as French writer/director Coralie Fargeat (“Revenge”) satirically traces Elizabeth’s stylized journey from desperate to damaged to deranged, detailing The It Girl becoming The Gollum.

At the recent Cannes Film Festival, subversively feminist Fargeat won Best Screenplay and received a 13-minute standing ovation.

FYI:  if you’re still intrigued by this cautionary-yet-campy, youth-obsessed concept, “Death Becomes Her” opens on Broadway this Fall…and Margaret Qualley is real-life Andie MacDowell’ daughter; back in 1985, Demi Moore & Andie MacDowell worked together in “St. Elmo’s Fire.”

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “The Substance” is a” sleazy, stomach-churning, self-loathing 6, playing in theaters.

Susan Granger’s review of “Uglies” (Netflix)

When “Uglies” debuted as No. 2 on Netflix, I was naturally curious about the screen adaptation of Scott Westerfield’s popular 2005 young adult novel; apparently, it was watched 20.8 million times in its first three days.

Unfortunately, it’s an abysmal disappointment.

Set in a dystopian world where beautifying cosmetic surgery is a requirement for every resident at the age of 16, it’s all about turning “uglies” into “pretties.”

That’s a ritual that 15 year-old Tally Youngblood (Joey King) eagerly anticipates: “All my life I wanted to be pretty. I thought it would change everything,” she says.

Since her bestie Peris (Chase Stokes) is a couple of months older, he undergoes the transformation first and promptly ‘forgets’ his promise to meet Tally on a specific night. When she pursues him into Pretty City, he’s flawless yet mindless and obviously no longer comfortable in her company.

Then her new hover-boarding pal Shay (Brianne Tju) openly refuses surgery, running away to link up with an elusive rebel group known as the “Smoke.”

Confused, Tally seriously considers joining free-spirited Shay but is confronted by sinister Dr. Cable (Laverne Cox) and convinced to join the anarchists on an undercover mission to betray her friends.

The Smoke turns out to resemble an old-fashioned, off-the-grid nature commune, led by mysterious David (Keith Powers), who dutifully explains the why and how of its existence.

Superficially scripted by Jacob Forman, Vanessa Taylor and Whit Anderson, the CGI is overdone and the outcome is utterly predictable.

Despite McG’s fast-paced direction, Joey King is 25 years old and no longer believable as a teenager. And the familiar sci-fi plotline in which ‘free thought is eliminated’ has become hackneyed and outdated.

Casting Laverne Cox as the villain is a curious choice.  Cox became the first openly transgender person to appear on the cover of Time magazine and the first transgender person to have a wax figure of herself at Madam Tussaud’s.

And since 61 year-old author Scott Westerfield served as executive producer, he’s hardly in a position to defend its vapidity; on-screen, he made a quick cameo as the Wheelbarrow Smokie, nodding to the camera.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Uglies” is a fake-looking, fantasy 4, streaming on Netflix.

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Susan Granger’s review of “Child Star” (Hulu)

Internationally famous as children and, perhaps, has-beens as young adults, talented youngsters can earn enormous salaries that shrivel their parents’ egos with much of their money spent as quickly as it was made. That’s all part of Demi Lovato’s new documentary “Child Star.”

In the opening sequence, Lovato reveals that – as a kid – she decided to be “the next child star,” thinking if Shirley Temple could do it, so could she. Encouraged by her mother, Dianna De la Garza, she began as a performer in beauty pageants.

Despite extreme bullying from her peers at school, she had a determined drive, working on “Barney & Friends” at age six and then landing a plum part on the Disney Channel Original Movie “Camp Rock,” starring the Jonas Brothers.

“We called it Disney High,” she recalls. “We were all about the same age, dating each other. None of us were in high school, so that was our experience of it.”

That’s also when/where she developed a serious eating disorder and suffered extreme exhaustion, juggling personal appearances, a music career, TV show and other projects – which led to a stint in rehab. She shares that stress with Disney co-stars Raven-Symone and Alyson Stoner.

“I looked at my success as my self-worth,” Lovato admits. “I had a really hard time differentiating the two, and I dealt with a lot of need for external validation.”

Asking, “Is the price of fame worth your childhood?” Demi Lovato interviews Drew Barrymore, who starred in “E.T.: The Extraterrestrial” when she was seven, and Christina Ricci, who found being in “Casper” & “The Addams Family” a welcome escape from her dysfunctional home life, referring to her physically violent father as “a failed cult leader.”

Plus there’s former Nickelodeon star Kenan Thompson – who went “from rags to riches and back to rags” – and JoJo Siwa, a tween phenom on “Dance Moms,” who posts roughly 250-300 times a day on social media.

Lovato has made other documentaries, detailing her experience with addiction, body image, self-harm, and other mental health issues, including “Stay Strong” (2012), “Simply Complicated” (2017) and “Dancing With the Devil” (2021).

If this topic intrigues you, find the book  “Twinkle, Twinkle , Little Star (but don’t have sex or take the car)” (1984) ,written by former child star Dickie Moore, in which he interviews Jackie Coogan, Shirley Temple, Mickey Rooney, Natalie Wood, Jane Powell, among others.

On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Child Star” is a cautionary, cathartic 6, streaming on Hulu.

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Susan Granger’s review of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” (Warner Bros.)

Ghoulish nostalgia dominates “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice” as director Tim Burton riffs on his 1988 high-camp comedic ghost story.
In picturesque Winter River, Connecticut, widowed Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder) – easily identifiable with the same jagged black bangs she wore as Goth Girl – is now a psychic mediator, communicating with the spirit world, hosting an exploitative paranormal TV reality show called “Ghost House” produced by her sleazy, opportunistic boyfriend Rory (Justin Theroux).
Lydia’s husband Richard was killed on an Amazon trek. Their skeptical teenage daughter Astrid (Jenny Ortega) loathes her mother’s morbid preoccupation with the occult.
Lydia’s narcissistic artist stepmother Delia (Catherine O’Hara) is still around but her father/Delia’s husband, Charles Deetz (originally played by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Jones), is eliminated in a blood-soaked Claymation sequence.
It’s Charles’ wake/funeral that brings the dysfunctional family back home, as Delia wraps their hillside farmhouse in Christo-style black gauze. That’s when Rory proposes to Lydia, who accepts – infuriating Astrid, who takes off into town where she meets Jeremy (Arthur Conti) and they plan a date for Halloween night when her mother’s upcoming “Witching Hour” wedding is scheduled.
Which brings us to the manic, malevolent, centuries-old demon Betelgeuse (Michael Keaton) who can be summoned from the Afterlife by saying his name three times in quick succession.
In his Netherworld lurks the corpse of Delores (Monica Bellucci), who is determined to reclaim trickster Betelgeuse as her husband. Plus there’s ghost detective Wolf Jackson (Willem Dafoe), who was once and still is – a hammy actor.
Unfortunately, Barbara and Adam Maitland (Geena Davis, Alec Baldwin), the farmhouse’s former occupants who originally hired Betelgeuse to scare off the Deetzes, have moved on.
Scripted by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar – sharing story credit with Seth Grahame-Smith – it’s familiar, belabored and even more weirdly bizarre than the original horror fantasy.
FYI: Tim Burton’s real-life partner Monica Bellucci told Elle France: “I love this dream world where monsters are kind, like we can turn our darker aspects into something bright, forgiving. Tim Burton’s films talk about that a lot.”
On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10 “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice” is a sentimentally macabre 6, playing in theaters.

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