Yes kids, what you've heard is true!  There was once a Fast & Furious sequel WITHOUT Vin Diesel, it featured the late, fondly remembered Paul Walker at his most endearing and Tyrese actually playing a charismatic anti-hero type Roman who is not the butt of the joke....and it was directed by the late, great John Singleton amidst a good run of action films he did in the early '00's.  And believe it or not, it was actually a lot of fun. :)  Just as the latest (Fast X) in this long-running saga is about to be released to theaters, let's revisit one which came out during simpler times.

Host: Geoff Gershon
 
 Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

Producer: Marlene Gershon

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Peter Dinklage has won multiple Emmy awards for playing the iconic character Tyrion Lannister on HBO's "Game of Thrones" in a role that helped him become an international superstar.  However roughly eight years before that show first went on the air, he had his first true breakout role playing the more unassuming Finbar McBride in this relatively unassuming comedy/drama directed by Tom McCarthy.  McCarthy would also go on to bigger things as he would eventually direct the Best Picture-winning Spotlight in 2015.  Together they collaborated here on a bittersweet story of a quiet loner who finds that despite his best efforts to keep to himself and JUST study and watch trains, he can't help but meet interesting new people.  Playing the various new people whom Finn befriends are Patricia Clarkson, Bobby Cannavale (in one of HIS early breakout roles), and Michelle Williams.  On the surface, this is very much a movie about trains but UNDER the surface?  Let's find out....

Host: Geoff Gershon
 
Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

Producer: Marlene Gershon

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Thirty seven years ago, one of the Greatest Sci-Fi Action Films and Best Sequels of All Time was released.   And now to celebrate Mother's Day, here is a newly remastered review with a few extra features. 

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!!!

THIS time, it’s WAR. Ripley returns to LV-426 to take on the chest-bursting monsters that haunt her nightmares, but this time she is bringing along the Colonial Marines!  James Cameron directed Sigourney Weaver in this rare genre performance to receive a Best Actress nomination at the Oscars.

Host: Geoff Gershon
 
Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

Producer: Marlene Gershon

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What happens when you take two up-and-coming stars (George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez), a talented director (Steven Soderbergh) eager to break out from smaller indie films at the time, a screenplay adapted from one of THE premiere crime novelists (Elmore Leonard) of our time, and have them collaborate with a top-flight cast filled with talent (Dennis Farina, Don Cheadle, Steve Zahn, among several others) along with some next-level talent behind the camera including the Oscar-winning editor (Anne Coates) of seminal classics like Lawrence of Arabia?  You get a smart, stylish, suspenseful, and sexy crime drama which is about to turn twenty-five and remains a career highpoint for several involved. 

Clooney plays Jack, a career bank-robber who has recently escaped from prison and his path crosses with Karen played by Lopez who is a Federal Marshall out to bring him and others in for their crimes....but they also happen to like each other. :o And from a story standpoint,  that's all you need to know - the rest is cinematic history. 

Host & Producer: Geoff Gershon
 
 Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

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Ten years ago, audiences were treated to what would be THE final stand-alone movie focused on the character of Tony Stark/Iron Man played by Robert Downey Jr.....and for his solo swan song, he helped bring over an old friend to direct, Shane Black.  Black had previously directed RDJ in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang eight years prior, a dark action comedy which is among several notable entries in the buddy cop drama written by Black including the original Lethal Weapon.  

Also returning for this "three-quel" are the previous Iron Man films are Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, and Jon Favreau.....now facing off a couple of new villains played by Guy Pearce and Sir Ben Kingsley.  The story focuses on a dangerous new technology developed by one of Stark's rivals which he must face head-on....often without the help of his Iron Man suit no less.  And what results is a superhero epic which is fast, funny, action-packed....and takes place during Christmas, go figure!

Host & Producer: Geoff Gershon
 
 Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

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Apparently May the Fourth has become an official holiday to celebrate all things Star Wars on an annual basis so what better way to honor THIS May 4 than to revisit what is likely the most grown-up and possibly CINEMATIC of this recent crop of streaming shows from that universe?  This Disney Plus series - which debuted last fall to critical acclaim and middling ratings - stars Diego Luna returning to play Cassian Andor, the lead character he also played in the recent Star Wars prequel, Rogue One.  As you would expect, the show takes place before the events of Rogue One and chronicles Cassian's first efforts towards joining and helping an ongoing Rebel Alliance which is partially lead by Stellan Skarsgard's Luthen Rael. 

We see Cassian embark on several adventures including a daring heist of an Imperial base with one group and and an even more daring attempted escape from an Imperial prison.  Also included in this extensive cast are Kyle Soller, Denise Gough, Adria Arjona, and Genevieve O'Reilly returning to play Mon Mothma who she also portrayed in Rogue One.  The show was created by and is currently run by the amazing Tony Gilroy who wrote the original Bourne trilogy while also writing and directing the Oscar-winning Michael Clayton. 

May the Fourth Be With You!

The retro-sounding introductory clip for this show is actually "Andor 1975 TV Intro" from the Aurulnauts YouTube channel linked below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9Pccq0DZVc

Host: Geoff Gershon
 
Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

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Forty years ago, we saw the release of this THIRD movie of the original Star Wars trilogy - this was the highly anticipated follow-up to what many (myself included) consider to be THE best Star Wars film ever, Empire Strikes Back.  It featured the return of several beloved characters and the resolution of a story which was last concluded with quite a surprising cliffhanger at the end of the previous episode.  So...did it live up to the hype....and how does it hold up?

Let's find out as we delve into this sequel directed by Richard Marquand and with the returning cast of Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, and several others....PLUS the introduction of Ian McDiarmid who plays Emperor Palpatine.  May the Force Be With You!

Host & Producer: Geoff Gershon
 
 Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

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Based upon true events, this recounts the incredible story of Stephen Glass (Hayden Christianson), a young reporter for the New Republic in the '90's who made quite a name for himself writing several high-profile stories for the magazine which garnered a lot of attention for just how entertaining and informative they were....and apparently several of them were entirely made up by Glass. :o What results is a scandal with a very troubled soul at the center of it - along the way, we get to know both editors (Hank Azaria, Pete Saarsgard) and fellow reporters (Chloe Sevigny, Steve Zahn) who were also affected by Glass' deception.  Billy Ray directs a journalistic docu-drama which has proven just as relevant today as it was when it was first released twenty years ago.....

Host & Producer: Geoff Gershon
 
 Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

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Twenty years ago, director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland helped revitalize the zombie subgenre with this seminal post-apocalyptic thriller produced on a shoe-string budget....even though the story isn't technically about zombies.  Nope this is the actually story of a fictional pandemic which strikes the UK known as the "Rage" virus.....society becomes gradually wiped out by those who are "infected" which can basically be described as FAST zombies who spew blood which spreads the infection.  And at the core of this story is an aimless bike messenger (Cillian Murphy) who was actually in a coma during the first 28 days of this pandemic and a resourceful survivor who he teams up with played by Naomie Harris.  Brendan Gleason and Chris Eccleston also co-star as fellow survivors of this outbreak.

Host & Producer: Geoff Gershon
 
 Editors: Geoff and Ella Gershon

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Legendary filmmaker and former playwright Martin Ritt directed this family drama set on a farm starring the late, great Paul Newman as the titular Hud who works with the ranch with his father (Melvyn Douglas) and younger brother (Brandon De Wilde) while also making their lives difficult.  You see Hud is a scoundrel who drinks too much and he's not making things any better for his family as they experience a looming crisis which could destroy their farm - this could very well be the most irredeemable character Newman ever played and it did earn him an Oscar nomination for Best Actor.  He didn't win that year but others in the cast did including Douglas and Patricia Neal for Best Actress.  This film received enormous acclaim upon release while also being a sizeable hit and.....it's about to turn 60. :) 

Host: Geoff Gershon
 
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