Dune and Foundation and The Expanse. A Hit and a Miss and a Hit
I’m one of the few people who don’t think the previous version of Dune was awful. It wasn’t great but it did okay with the technology of the time and a massive story to condense. The new version, which is only half (I wouldn’t be surprised to suddenly find it becomes a trilogy; remember how […]
Bad Meme on Changing Voicemail Message In Emergency
There’s a meme going around that says if you are lost, car broken down, etc. and your phone is low on juice, you should change your voicemail message with the emergency info so people calling you after your phone dies will know what’s going. I thought about this and decide this makes no sense. Why? […]
Apple TV’s Invasion: A Whole Lot Of Worse Than Nothing
I watched Apple TV’s Invasion last night. In the interest of full disclosure, I watched the first episode, then fast-forwarded through the next two that are available. It was that fast-forward you do in the vain hope that something that is slow and boring and off-topic might actually veer back to what the title promises: […]
The Gift. A Suspense Movie with a superb cast.
How did I miss this 2000 movie? It stars Cate Blanchett who is excellent in everything. Then add in Keanu Reeves, Katie Holmes, Greg Kinnear, Hillary Swank and Giovanni Ribisi. Written by Billy Bob Thornton who is odd, but brilliant guy. It’s about a woman who has a psychic gift, a murder, and a lot […]
Creativity: The Positive and Negative of Deadlines
Every writer dreads a deadline, yet at the same time we crave them to give us direction and purpose. I’ve been writing for a living for 30 years and have always had a contract or pre-order deadline, I often had an internal one that pushed me to do better than the deadline because I know […]
The Night House—Very Scary without Gore and It Makes You Think
Watched The Night House last night and it was one of more scary movies recently; especially since it didn’t resort to a bunch of splatter and gore. The suspense came from uncertainty about what was going on and the situations the protagonist is in. It’s one of those movies where you have to think afterward […]
The Most Important Preparation Asset: Knowledge
When discussing preparation, a key element that is overlooked is knowledge. Knowledge is invaluable. We simply can’t be experts on everything from first aid to farming to animal husbandry to metalworking. Others can help show the way. A sustainment library should be both electronic and physical. An electronic library can be sustained given solar power […]
Atonement: A Writer’s Dream and Nightmare
This 2007 movie is called a “romantic war drama”, apparently by someone who has never seen it. Starring Keira Knightley and James McAvoy, this is a story within a story. I don’t want to do spoilers but there is more to this story than it appears as a “romantic war drama.” Fiction, it is said, […]
Dave Chappelle and The Closer; Funny, but it cuts deeper
Almost every review or comment I read about The Closer was negative. The reviewers attacked not the content as much as Chappelle. He’s always been controversial, especially on the topic of trans people. He also cuts deep into race relations. Thus, after reading the reviews, when I watched the show on Netflix, I was surprised. […]
M. Night Shyamalan is great at ideas; not so much story
We watched Old last night and, overall, really liked it. And, overall, the response of viewers and critics to the movie has been harsh and negative. As a writer, I approach movies and books somewhat differently. There’s entertainment value, which I think we all share. But I also search for the core idea in every […]
Romantic Comedy/Suspense. Banter is ping-pong where you want your shot returned.
It’s not just banter, but any narrative where characters who are on the same side are sparring. They may disagree, not even like each other, but they are aligned in their goals, even if they’re not sure what the goals are at the moment. In Agnes and the Hitman there was a kitchen scene where […]
Publication Great Disasters III and pre-order Shane and the Hitwoman
I’m very excited about my next book coming out in November. Did you enjoy Grosse Pointe Blanke? RED? More so, did you enjoy Agnes and the Hitman? Shane and the Hitwoman picks up eight months after Agnes and the Hitman. It will be published on all platforms. I’m already working on the follow on to […]
The Many Saints of Newark isn’t awful, but it’s bad
I watched the Sopranos episode by weekly episode as it came out. I’ve rewatched it at least twice since. All of it. I still marvel that Melfi only figured out Tony was a psychopath in the next to last episode. After the first viewing I’d thought it was much earlier. But the joke was on […]
Midnight Mass is awesome and thoughtful and terrifying, yet uplifting.
Just binged Midnight Mass. Actually, binged isn’t right. I had to spread the seven, hour-long episodes over 3 nights because it takes time to process what happens. Which actually, upon reflection, isn’t much. If you’re expecting the usual blood and guts and viscera horror, this isn’t it. It’s got plenty of scary moments, but it […]