Screens and Streams

Forming a new friendship with someone in your 40s is challenging enough; try doing it if you’re an introvert. Writer/director Andrew DeYoung’s comedy “Friendship” is a hilariously dark look at male bonding with a leading performance from Tim Robinson that audiences won’t soon forget.  Where to begin with this movie? I guess, for starters, a…

‘Presence’ is available to stream on-demand After director Steven Soderbergh’s planned 2013 theatrical film, “Behind the Candelabra,” ran into funding difficulties and eventually landed on HBO for a cable release, the prolific director announced his retirement. In what is, perhaps, the shortest retirement in filmmaking history, Soderbergh was back with his short-lived, though compelling, two-season…

By Ellie Trinkle It has long been suggested that the power of food transcends beyond simply “tasting good”; it can heal, invite, and inspire. Stephen Chbosky’s new Netflix film “Nonnas” depicts this multitude of food in a heartwarming and tender way. The film follows middle-aged Joe Scaravella, played by Vince Vaughn, whose mother’s recent tragic…

Director Jeremy Workman’s documentary, “Secret Mall Apartment,” spins a crazy yarn about a group of Rhode Island street artists who, in a brazen and ingenious-level piece of establishment corporate defiance, fooled the Providence Place security for four years by building a secret apartment within a hidden nook of the mall structure. Artist Michael Townsend is…

Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg, the writers, directors, and executive producers of the new series "The Studio," now streaming on Apple+, have cultivated their long tenure within the Hollywood system to create a comedic gem of a show where every episode seems wildly outlandish yet is more than likely based on truth.  Making a show…

It’s proving ever more challenging to drag a group of people into a movie theater to see a film that isn’t either a children’s movie translation of a video game, a Disney reboot of an animated classic that was better off the first time around, or the latest Marvel retread. But if there was a…

Val Kilmer (December 31, 1959- April 1, 2025) is gone. While celebrities pass on, as do we all, sometimes a loss hits home harder than others. Why? It’s difficult to say. But for this filmgoer of a certain age, Kilmer was a part of that '80s experience. He left an impression, and although his health…

By Ellie Trinkle Warning: This review may contain spoilers of the show “White Lotus” for those have not seen the series, or its most recent season. HBO’s hit series “White Lotus” has captured the attention of audiences worldwide with its stunning visuals, class commentary, and dynamic soundtrack. Season 3, whose finale premiered this past Sunday,…

A friend of mine once said that shows like “Reacher” are "Doritos shows." You know, junk food that you can’t help but keep digging into the bag, even though you know you’re full, and all you’re eating is empty calories. Amazon Prime’s hit series “Reacher” resembles a bag of Doritos. Unfortunately, as Season 3 of…

If you haven’t watched either season of AppleTV+’s “Severance,” this review probably isn’t for you. Let this serve as a warning and opportunity: If you haven’t yet watched “Severance,” why on earth would you want to read on and spoil the fun? If you haven’t dipped into the wild world of “Severance,” with its second…

“One of Them Days” is the first theatrical R-rated female-driven Black comedy since 2017’s “Girls Trip,” and that is a shocking statistic. Released in theaters in mid-January of this year, “One of Them Days” was a modest hit, making $49 million off a budget of $14 million. The movie’s high-concept premise, two friends/roommates have just…

Those whose familiarity with director Bong Joon Ho starts and stops with his Oscar-winning “Parasite,” his follow-up film to that 2019 breakout hit may be confused. Those with a more profound knowledge of Joon Ho’s filmography will recognize the same over-the-top sensibilities that mark his work in the sci-fi genre with movies like “Snowpiercer” and…

If you’ve seen one possessed toy horror movie, you’ve seen them all. And if you are still seeking these films out, and judging from the scores of fans of films like “Annabelle” and “Child’s Play,” there is a market. If you like your horror kills doled out with gobs of gore and twisty Rube Goldberg…

In this day and age of endless film awards shows and scores of internet Oscar prognosticators, the winners are all but a foregone conclusion by the time the Academy Awards ceremony takes place; if you even watch the show anymore, all you can hope for is perhaps one surprise win and some years that doesn’t…

Director Greg Kwedar’s film finds the humanity living within the souls of men who society has locked away If you’ve heard of the film “Sing Sing,” it’s likely due to the critical attention placed on its two lead performances, Colman Domingo, playing the real-life "Divine G," and Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, portraying a version of…