Grantchester (2014) s09e01 “Episode 1” [2024] D: Katherine Churcher. S: Robson Green, Tom Brittney, Al Weaver, Tessa Peake-Jones, Kacey Ainsworth, Charlotte Ritchie, Bradley Hall. GRANTCHESTER makes no bones about the vicar change of the season. Brittney goes from not wanting a new job to everything in the latest case trying into an analogy. It must be fate. Or contracts. Green oscillates between seeming upset about change to obvious about it. It’s all well enough done, they’re just dragging out a lame duck.

Grantchester (2014) s09e02 “Episode 2” [2024] D: . S: Robson Green, Al Weaver, Tessa Peake-Jones, Kacey Ainsworth. Exit Brittney, who outlasted the lead he replaced. GRANTCHESTER just can’t have a married vicar as lead, which the episode unintentionally showcases. There’s so much history with Brittney’s character and the rest of the cast, the episode has to pick and choose who gets a proper farewell. There’s also a murder to keep things busier. It’s solid; Green’s fantastic.

Grantchester (2014) s09e03 “Episode 3” [2024] D: . S: Robson Green, Al Weaver, Tessa Peake-Jones, Kacey Ainsworth. Hot new vicar Nair comes to town and causes an immediate stir due to his skin color and Imperial origin. In other words, he’s of Indian descent and they’re all bigots. Ish. Meanwhile, Green is in need of a new vicar Watson and has to convince the new guy. It’s a pretty good intro, giving Nair a bunch too.

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (2014) s11e22 “September 8, 2024: School Lunch Programs” [2024] D: . S: John Oliver. Funny “news of the week” segments–Trump and Vance are such good punchlines (for now)–and then a great feature on universal school lunches. Oliver gets some real big applause for the controversial position of not letting kids go hungry. But then the dessert’s just forced (Halloween-related) blah. Also: they ought to make the talking Reagan action figure.

Only Murders in the Building (2021) s04e03 “Two for the Road” [2024] D: Chris Koch. S: Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Zach Galifianakis, Eugene Levy, Eva Longoria. Excellent episode has the trio splitting up to hang out with their movie star counterparts. Longoria’s annoying Gomez, Levy’s fawning over Martin, and Galifinksnis can’t stand Short. They all go investigating together to some very, very funny results. Often involving the other guest stars, but the slightly off chemistry between the pairings is the key. Superb acting throughout.

Slow Horses (2022) s04e02 “A Stranger Comes to Town” [2024] D: Adam Randall. S: Gary Oldman, Jack Lowden, Kristin Scott Thomas. It’s a particularly great episode for Scott Thomas and a decent or better one for everyone else. Oldman’s still early in the first act; Scott Thomas and Lowden are finishing it up. HORSES isn’t wasting any time tying the big arcs–they’re fused. And involve a big name guest star. Real good overall, if overly deliberate.

Tulsa King (2022) s02e01 “Back in the Saddle” [2024] D: Craig Zisk. S: Sylvester Stallone, Martin Starr, Jay Will, Max Casella, Domenick Lombardozzi, Garrett Hedlund, Dana Delany. The show immediately cops out of the cliffhanger with Stallone spending a night in jail before getting bail. He then spends the rest of the episode planning on going even more legit than he has been in the era of legal weed. It’s a middling episode and a bad season premiere. Some solid acting throughout; all very professional.

Beverly Hills Cop III (1994) D: John Landis. S: Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, Hector Elizondo, Timothy Carhart, John Saxon, Theresa Randle, Stephen McHattie. Dismal sequel has Murphy returning to Beverly Hills in pursuit of another killer–Carhart, who’s atrocious–this time at a theme park. Murphy teams up with Reinhold again (John Ashton wisely sat this one out, with Elizondo filling in). Truly terrible direction from Landis would sink it even without the lousy Steven E. DeSouza script and many bad performances.

Blondes at Work (1938) D: Frank McDonald. S: Glenda Farrell, Barton MacLane, Tom Kennedy, Rosella Towne, Donald Briggs, John Ridgely, Thomas E. Jackson. For their latest case, reporter Farrell and her copper boyfriend MacLane are working apart. Police captain Frank Shannon wants Farrell off the crime beat and is forcing MacLane to comply. So MacLane investigates with sidekick Jackson while Farrell snoops and sneaks. While the setup’s messy and the second act’s slow, it mostly works. The racism and bullying stink, though.

The Count of Monte Cristo (2002) D: Kevin Reynolds. S: Jim Caviezel, Guy Pearce, Richard Harris, James Frain, Dagmara Dominczyk, Michael Wincott, Luis Guzmán. Well-mounted, poorly written misfire of a Dumas adaptation has an international cast playing French to cover hero Caviezel’s non-accent. He’s a good-hearted lad imprisoned because of his bad best friend, Pearce. Caviezel breaks bad, learns swords, and avenges himself. Caviezel ranges from woefully miscast to quite good (albeit as Dracula). Pearce stinks; so does Reynold’s swashbuckling.

Torchy Blane in Chinatown (1939) D: William Beaudine. S: Glenda Farrell, Barton MacLane, Tom Kennedy, Henry O’Neill, Patric Knowles, James Stephenson, Anderson Lawler. Profound racism abounds, but at least Farrell doesn’t hang out in CHINATOWN. And the racism is part of the story? Subtlety. MacLane’s tasked with protecting American graverobber Lawler from Chinese threats (they’re mad he’s looting jade); somehow, it will also involve senator O’Neill. Strong mystery, with good moments for Kennedy in particular, but ick. Also, they’re back in NYC?

Torchy Blane in Panama (1938) D: William Clemens. S: Lola Lane, Paul Kelly, Tom Kennedy, Anthony Averill, Larry Williams, Betty Compson, Hugh O’Connell. Lacking outing has Lane and Kelly taking over the lead roles as TORCHY and her copper boyfriend, respectively. They don’t have any chemistry; in fact, Kelly spends most of the movie lecturing Lane about her outfit and general lack of usefulness (sexist much?). Suspect Averill’s solid, Williams is lousy as a rival reporter, and Kennedy’s stuck holding it all together.

Torchy Gets Her Man (1938) D: William Beaudine. S: Glenda Farrell, Barton MacLane, Tom Kennedy, Willard Robertson, Thomas E. Jackson, George Guhl, Frank Reicher. Farrell and MacLane return after their bewildering recast. When they get a moment, they have chemistry. They have few moments. Most of the time is either master counterfeiter Robertson outwitting the cops or Farrell trying to crack the case. Lots of familiar faces playing different characters. And for some reason they’re in San Francisco now (previously NYC). Good enough.

Torchy Runs for Mayor (1939) D: Ray McCarey. S: Glenda Farrell, Barton MacLane, Tom Kennedy, John Miljan, Frank Shannon, Joe Cunningham, George Guhl. In their final outing (but not the last TORCHY), Farrell and MacLane find themselves at opposite ends of an issue. Farrell’s out to reveal political boss Miljan, while MacLane’s a cog in the machine. It’s a very slight story, without much drama or mystery. Milan’s a fine villain; Farrell and MacLsne just don’t get enough to do.

My Lady Jane (2024) s01e05 “I’m Gonna Change the World” D: Stefan Schwartz. S: Emily Bader, Edward Bluemel, Anna Chancellor, Rob Brydon, Kate O’Flynn, Henry Ashton, Oliver Chris. Bader finds an unexpected connection with Brydon when she discovers how intellectually stimulating the game of thrones can be to play. And downright fun. Bader and Bluemel are also getting hotter and heavier, what with mortal danger thrown into the mix. There’s a lot going on–particularly O’Flynn getting nimble in her plotting–and the show’s keeping pace.

My Lady Jane (2024) s01e06 “I Feel Free” D: Stefan Schwartz. S: Emily Bader, Edward Bluemel, Anna Chancellor, Rob Brydon, Kate O’Flynn, Henry Ashton, Oliver Chris. Bluemel has abandoned Bader to find a cure for his were-horse curse. O’Flynn is on the run and putting together an army to return for the crown. So Bader plays a round of the game of thrones and can’t always keep up. Busy, full, and building towards the series’s first consequential cliffhanger. Rather good stuff.

My Lady Jane (2024) s01e07 “Another Girl, Another Planet” D: Stefan Schwartz. S: Emily Bader, Edward Bluemel, Anna Chancellor, Rob Brydon, Kate O’Flynn, Henry Ashton, Oliver Chris. Bluemel has abandoned Bader to find a cure for his were-horse curse. O’Flynn is on the run and putting together an army to return for the crown. So Bader plays a round of the game of thrones and can’t always keep up. Busy, full, and building towards the series’s first consequential cliffhanger. Rather good stuff.

My Lady Jane (2024) s01e08 “God Save the Queen” D: Jamie Babbit. S: Emily Bader, Edward Bluemel, Anna Chancellor, Rob Brydon, Kate O’Flynn, Henry Ashton, Oliver Chris. Dynamite (better be) season finale with the show running head first into history. Except since the audience isn’t just Tudor nerds, they build all this other tension. It gets almost too much, as Bader’s attempts to save herself or at least Bluemel keep failing. And O’Flynn’s finally into her own as a villain. Killer action finale too. More please.

Only Murders in the Building (2021) s04e02 “Gates of Heaven” [2024] D: John Hoffman. S: Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez, Michael Cyril Creighton, Amy Ryan, Jane Lynch, Da’Vine Joy Randolph. Back home and fairly certain they’ve figured out the crime, the trio splits up to investigate. Gomez and Short go check out the strange riff-raff in the apartment side of the building, while Martin imagines (or does he) visits from Lynch and Ryan. Another beautifully paced episode. The “other part” of the BUILDING proves rather engaging.

Only Murders in the Building (2021) s04e01 “Once Upon a Time in the West” [2024] D: John Hoffman. S: Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez, Michael Cyril Creighton, Teddy Coluca, Meryl Streep, Molly Shannon. Interestingly plotted direct sequel to last season’s finale, except the dead body is gone and the trio have no idea what they’re missing. Then Hollywood comes a-knocking–more like pounding–on a rights deal for a film adaptation, and they’re LA-bound. By the end, the season’s set up. It’s a fabulously well-executed premiere.

Slow Horses (2022) s04e01 “Identity Theft” [2024] D: Adam Randall. S: Gary Oldman, Jack Lowden, Kristin Scott Thomas, Christopher Chung, Rosalind Eleazar, Aimee-Ffion Edwards, Kadiff Kirwan. The season kicks off with two (undoubtedly eventually connected) storylines. A terror attack in London occupies Scott Thomas and the main MI-5 contingent. But then Jonathan Pryce shoots Lowden (Pryce is suffering from dementia and thinks he’s being watched), which Oldman investigates. And barely informs the rest of the team about. But all is not what it seems.

American Gothic (1995) s01e18 “Echo of Your Last Goodbye” [1998] D: Oz Scott. S: Gary Cole, Lucas Black, Paige Turco, Brenda Bakke, Sarah Paulson, Nick Searcy, John Mese. Ghost Paulson starts haunting deputy Searcy, hoping he’ll turn against boss Cole. Meanwhile, Cole’s got his corrupting hooks into lover Turco and is using that relationship to further turn Black towards the dark side. And Mese and Bakke have romance troubles. Weird episode, but some great acting from Paulson and Searcy throughout. Albeit with iffy special effects.

Evil (2019) s04e14 “Fear of the End” [2024] D: Robert King. S: Katja Herbers, Mike Colter, Aasif Mandvi, Michael Emerson, Andrea Martin, Kurt Fuller, John Carroll Lynch. The show takes the interesting choice to mostly setup a sequel rather than wrap up the (admittedly thin) plot strands from the last four seasons. Colter gets a little with the Vatican, Martin gets a little with the Vatican, Herbers’s kids get the main plot. Emerson gets the most resolution, while Mandvi signals his readiness to be done.

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (2014) s11e21 “August 18, 2024: Hospice Care” [2024] D: Paul Pennolino. S: John Oliver. Oliver takes a look at hospice companies, specifically the ones ripping people off or ripping off Medicare. It’s a good feature, but there seems to be frustratingly little going on to stop them, even as awareness of how these companies are behaving grows. And, of course, it’s mostly terrible white guys doing the crimes (and getting away with them).

My Lady Jane (2024) s01e01 “Who’ll Be the Next in Line?” D: Jamie Babbit. S: Emily Bader, Edward Bluemel, Anna Chancellor, Rob Brydon, Kate O’Flynn, Henry Ashton, Oliver Chris. Delightful, fantasy alternate history of Jane of the Nine Days (Bader). In this universe an intelligent, independent woman in a world unwelcome to those qualities. Also there’s magic transforming fairy people. Bader’s mom, Chancellor, is determined to marry her off to maintain her station. Fun, frustrating, and so funny. Bader’s a great lead, Chancellor’s awesome. Such good writing.

My Lady Jane (2024) s01e02 “Wild Thing” D: Jamie Babbit. S: Emily Bader, Edward Bluemel, Anna Chancellor, Rob Brydon, Kate O’Flynn, Henry Ashton, Oliver Chris. Oodles of chemistry between newlyweds Bader and Bluemel as they deny their mutual attraction to pout about their arranged marriage. Except fate has a big surprise in store for them, and it adds a whole new layer to JANE. Plus palace intrigue with Peters, Brydon, and Cooper (who’s enjoying the silliness). It’s handily fulfilling its promise.

My Lady Jane (2024) s01e03 “With a Girl Like You” D: Jamie Babbit. S: Emily Bader, Edward Bluemel, Anna Chancellor, Rob Brydon, Kate O’Flynn, Henry Ashton, Oliver Chris. (Unconsummated, don’t be gross) newlyweds Bader and Bluemel find their new normal–she spends all her time trying to save him from his were-horse curse–while the royal machinations grind on. Brydon’s imprisoned (falsely accused), and Chancellor has to find a way to get rich without Bader being able to provide it. No big reveals, just delightful turns.

My Lady Jane (2024) s01e04 “Bluebird Is Dead” D: Jamie Babbit. S: Emily Bader, Edward Bluemel, Anna Chancellor, Rob Brydon, Kate O’Flynn, Henry Ashton, Oliver Chris. The show doesn’t waste time–Bader and Bluemel get to the castle for her to be crowned (not coronated yet), Bader sniffs out Jordan Peters’s murder, gets into it with Dominic Cooper and O’Flynn (separate from them being the murderers even). Plus Brydon’s still imprisoned and Bluemel’s worried there’s not enough time spent on curing him. Packed and fantastic.

The Adventurous Blonde (1937) D: Frank McDonald. S: Glenda Farrell, Barton MacLane, Anne Nagel, Tom Kennedy, George E. Stone, Natalie Moorhead, William Hopper. Hot on the heels of their last outing, reporter Farrell and her copper boyfriend, MacLane, are finally about to tie the knot. Except her jealous, misogynist competitors decide to stage a fake murder to foil the nuptials. Except then the murder’s real. After a slow start, Farrell’s unravelling of the crime’s fantastic. Great chemistry between the leads, too.

After Yang (2022) D: Kogonada. S: Justin H. Min, Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja, Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, Haley Lu Richardson, Sarita Choudhury, Clifton Collins Jr.. Sometime in an obscure but thoughtful future, sad dad (but not sad for dad reasons) Farrell tries to get the family’s android “big brother” (Min) repaired. It’s best when it’s a character study (Farrell’s phenomenal), but then it turns out Min’s the story… only Min doesn’t get to be in it. Well done (minus the CG), but just okay.

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004) Unrated version D: Adam McKay. S: Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, David Koechner, Fred Willard, Chris Parnell. Hilarious performances and sometimes incredibly strong seventies homage vibes carry this tale of Ferrell’s insipid (and incredibly popular) anchorman. Ferrell falls for Applegate, who then betrays him by… also wanting to be a news broadcaster and being better at the job than him. Some moldy jokes. Ferrell’s exceptional, Rudd’s good, everyone else at least funny. The script’s just thin.

Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) D: Tony Scott. S: Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Jürgen Prochnow, Ronny Cox, Brigitte Nielsen, Paul Reiser. Motormouth undercover Detroit cop Murphy heads back to Beverly Hills when now good friend Cox is shot by some eighties Eurotrash villains. Murphy’s great–though director Scott unsurprisingly doesn’t know when to tone it down–and everything is else fine, it just gets old fast. The finale’s particularly lackluster. And the misogyny and objectification don’t help either.

Dog Day Afternoon (1975) D: Sidney Lumet. S: Al Pacino, John Cazale, Charles Durning, Chris Sarandon, James Broderick, William Bogert, Penelope Allen. Sublime recounting of a real life Brooklyn bank robbery, where the robbers stand off with the police becomes a local event. Superb performances from everyone: Cazale, Allen, Durning, and Sarandon are standouts. But Pacino’s the whole show, with Lumet structuring the whole thing around where Pacino takes the performance. Beautifully paced, outstanding technicals, and a devastating conclusion.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) D: George Miller. S: Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke, Alyla Browne, George Shevtsov, Lachy Hulme, John Howard. Director Miller returns to the MAX well, giving Theron’s character from FURY ROAD a prequel. Except Taylor-Joy plays the part. Though maybe younger Browne a little more. Don’t count Theron out–she noticeably dubs Taylor-Joy. Story’s all about how Hemsworth and Burke are the more interesting men. Hemsworth (in a fake nose) is great. Movie’s terrible.

Klute (1971) D: Alan J. Pakula. S: Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland, Charles Cioffi, Roy Scheider, Dorothy Tristan, Rita Gam, Nathan George. Small-town ex-cop Sutherland heads to dirty old New York trying to find his missing best friend, who’s apparently been harassing call girl Fonda. Starts a mystery, quickly becomes a romantic thriller plus character study of Fonda. Gorgeous direction from Pakula, jawdropping photography from Gordon Willis, and a phenomenal Michael Small score. Fonda’s singular. Just a great picture. The first in Pakula’s unofficial “Paranoia Trilogy,” followed by THE PARALLAX VIEW.

Trap (2024) D: M. Night Shyamalan. S: Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka, Alison Pill, Hayley Mills, Jonathan Langdon, Mark Bacolcol. Outstanding Hitchcock riff about regular dad Hartnett being a serial killer who’s trapped at the pop concert where he’s taken daughter Donoghue. Shyamalan’s starts very REVERSE DIE HARD AT A ROCK CONCERT but has some surprising developments along the way. Maybe one too many in the weaker third act. But Hartnett’s great and so’s Shyamalan’s direction. Plus Hayley Mills!