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PSYCHOLOGICAL DRAMA. “The Dutchman.” / “The Card Counter.” / “We Have Always Lived in the Castle.” / “Surge.”

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“The Dutchman” (2025, Paramount+) psychological thriller , based on Amiri Baraka's 1964 stage play. A successful black businessman unravels during a tense, surreal night in New York after encountering a seductive and sinister white woman named Lula.         Andre Holland and Kate Mara delivered strong presence. I haven’t read the source material but this reworking of the stage play is an incoherent sermon of cliches. I get what the movie is trying to say but it is either too contrived and pretentious or simply a soul-less lecture of the same lecture. You know what I mean? 🎥💻📽 “The Card Counter” (2021, Peacock) crime drama , directed by Paul Schrader . A U.S. veteran and former gambler takes a young friend on the World Series of Poker tour.         It is difficult to ignore Paul Schrader. The genius who wrote the screenplay of “Taxi Driver" (1976) and co-wrote “ Raging Bull ” (1980). He directed “ Americ...
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CRIME COMEDY. “Mayday.” / “Greedy People.” / “See How They Run.” / “Middle Man.” / “Bad Grandmas.”

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“Mayday” (2026, Apple TV+) action comedy . An American pilot stranded behind enemy lines during the Cold War must team up with an eccentric former KGB agent. Stars Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh.         Kenneth Branagh has the clever one-liners (in Russian accent), while Ryan Reynolds has the Deadpool-styled humor. This is a Cold War genre cliche but never mind. The warhead ride was stylish, or the easy albeit supposedly high-wire action is cool enough. And it's funny, too. 🎥💻📽 “Greedy People” (2024, Hulu) crime comedy . The misadventures of several lives in a small coastal town that end up entangled by a web of lies, which creates a domino effect of retaliatory murders all around greed.          On initial attention, this movie felt like comedy. Then things got weird. People died, one at a time. A dog was also “accidentally” murdered. Suspense drama? Crime thriller? All throughout, Joseph Gordon-Le...
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COMEDY. “The Dink.” / “Deep Cover.” / “Tapawingo.” / “About My Father.” / “Masterminds.” / “Easy A.”

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“The Dink” (2026, Apple TV+) sports comedy. A washed-up former tennis prodigy reluctantly turns to pickleball to save his father's country club and finally earn his approval.         I don't like (lead star) Jake Johnson in Apple TV's “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed” and I don't like him in this movie, regardless of what critics say. Jake isn't funny as a comedian or effective as a dramatic actor either. Maybe he can try as a subordinate action performer, as long as the director doesn't give him many lines.         “The Dink” doesn't have any sports-movie excitement at all, and the premise is drained as a peanut butter leftover. The presence of bankable performers Ed Harris, Mary Steenburgen , and Ben Stiller + cameos by ex-tennis stars Andy Roddick and John McEnroe didn't help either. 🎥💻📽 “Deep Cover” (2025, Amazon Prime) action comedy. Bryce Dallas Howard , Orlando Bloom and Nick Mohammed as improv ...
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SAW THEM AGAIN. “Ghost World.” / “Run Lola Run.” / “Misery.” / “Conan the Barbarian” (1982 and 2011). / “Drunken Master.”

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“Ghost World" (2001, Roku) black comedy . Teenage outsiders Enid and Rebecca face a rift in their friendship as Enid takes an interest in an older man named Seymour, and becomes determined to help his romantic life.         I saw this fun movie 7 times already. This neo-classic, cult-level comedy isn't the riotous sort or irreverent Judd Apatow kind. But it's fun watching it. Not so trying-hard humor but with. enjoyable wit. Director Terry Zwigoff's “Crumb” (1995) is also a must-see.        The main attraction: Deadpan teen angst as effortlessly delivered by Thora Birch's Enid and Scarlett Johansson's Rebecca. Enid is a modern-day youth that we all, children of the not-so-long ago could relate with, female or male.         I thought Thora Birch would evolve into a full-pledged A-1 star after this movie. But it was Scarlett Johansson who became a superstar. Still, it's hard ...
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OLDBOY. South Korean original and Hollywood remake.

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“Oldboy” (2003, Plex) South Korean action thriller. A man is imprisoned for 15 years without knowing the identity of his captor or his captor's motives. When he is released, he finds himself trapped in a web of conspiracy and violence as he seeks revenge against his captor.         This movie received a flood of critical acclaim. A cult classic, they trumpet. The fight scenes, although ultra-violent, earned high-fives for their aesthetic choreography. And so on and so forth.        However, while I agree that this movie undoubtedly appeals to “unconventional” filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino or Ari Aster, I don’t think it is that superb. Just different, that's all. Meanwhile, a 2013 remake by Spike Lee , starring Josh Brolin, is a lopsided awful project. 🎥💻📽 “Oldboy” (2013, Roku) neo-noir action thriller ? directed by Spike Lee . A remake of the 2003 South Korean film of the same name , about a man who ...
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CRIME THRILLER. “The Whisper Man.” / “Wardriver.” / “Relay.” / “Nobody Wants to Shoot a Woman.” / “Alone.” / “Crown Vic.” / “The Good Neighbor.” / “Exposed.” / “Oxygen.”

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“The Whisper Man” (2026, Netflix) crime thriller. A widowed novelist and his young son move to the town of Garretton as police investigate a child abduction apparently connected to an infamous serial killer known as the Whisper Man.         With the exception of the no-brainer remarkable performance by Michael Keaton as jailed serial killer Frank Carter, and the expected focused work by Robert De Niro (as ex-cop Peter Willis), this movie is a minor letdown.         This is an obligatory procedural marred by a few plot holes or scenes that don't add up. Such as why would a police officer (Michelle Monaghan as Amanda Beck) visit a possible suspect's house, alone. No back-up cop outside in a car. Plus the climax or end game is a bit “convenient” or effortless. 🎥💻📽 “Wardriver” (2026, Apple TV+) crime thriller. A reclusive hacker steals from unsecured Wi-Fi networks from his car. He is blackmailed into a maj...
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