Category: movies

Wake Up Dead Man (2025 film)

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Wake Up Dead Man is the third film in the Knives Out series:

  1. Knives Out (2019)
  2. Glass Onion (2022)
  3. Wake Up Dead Man (2025)

Each is an ensemble cast, classic whodunnit, with Benoit Blanc (played by Daniel Craig) being the only recurring character.

Wake Up Dead Man is far different than the first two — though still very watchable.

It’s more Agatha Christie. A semi-locked room mystery in a Church.

I didn’t recognize Daniel Craig when he walked on to screen.

Critical Consensus

Reviewers frequently highlight the film’s gothic atmosphere and its shift toward a darker, more serious tone compared to the campier previous instalments. 

  • Josh O’Connor’s Standout Performance: Almost every review singles out O’Connor (playing Father Jud) as the film’s MVP, with some calling it his best work to date.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

The Devil Wears Prada 2

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GREAT movie.

I’m surprised.

With zero interest in the fashion industry, I never saw the original.

The Devil Wears Prada 2 sequel reunites the core creative team and original lead cast to follow the characters navigating the modern, digital-first media landscape twenty years after the events of the original 2006 film.

Cast is fantastic.

Stanley Tucci as Stanley Tucci is always great.

But it was Justin Theroux playing a rich idiot that surprised me the most.

Gaga was hiliarous.

The dozens of celebrities doing cameos must have had a lot of fun.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Even if you hate high fashion and mourn the victims that pay for that overpriced crap, see this film.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

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Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is a 2022 funny whodunit film.

The second installment in the Knives Out series, featuring Daniel Craig reprising his role as the master detective Benoit Blanc.

The sequel is a much weaker murder mystery. And not nearly as funny.

Derol, played by Noah Segan, the doper, slacker houseguest was an excellent touch, however.

The cast is excellent.

The shattering glass scene at the end is unforgettable, as well.

I wonder what that cost? 😀

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Hanna (TV series) – season 3

On By Rick McIn movies, TVLeave a comment

Quite good. Better than season 2.

LOTS of action.

But I still like season 1 and the original film (2011) best.

The 3rd and final season of Hanna finds Hanna secretly working from within the sinister Utrax organization to destroy it and secure her freedom.

She forms an alliance with her former nemesis, ex-CIA agent Marissa Wiegler, to bring down the program. Their mission involves: 

Personal Stakes: Hanna’s attempts to lead a normal life are complicated by a romantic subplot with an activist named Abbas, whose safety becomes a primary concern as the operation reaches its climax.

Internal Sabotage: Coercing high-ranking agent John Carmichael to aid their cause.

New Threats: Facing Gordon Evans (played by Ray Liotta), a powerful former military man who oversees the Utrax “Pioneer” agenda.

80% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes sounds about right to me. Worth watching if you like (silly) thrillers.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Michael (2026 film)

On By Rick McIn movies, musicLeave a comment

I was only briefly a big fan of Michael Jackson. Like almost everyone, I bought Thriller in 1982 — listening to the CD in my car hundred of times.

He and are about the same age, so I could relate to the radio sensation becoming a superstar.

The movie is worth seeing — but you could wait until it gets on streaming. No rush. It’s not nearly as good as Bohemian Rhapsody, by comparison.

Michael is a biographical drama about the life of Michael Jackson that was released in theatres and IMAX on April 24, 2026. The film has become a massive commercial success, setting the record for the biggest worldwide opening weekend ever for a biopic.

… the film spans Jackson’s life from his early days with the Jackson 5 in the 1960s to the peak of his solo career during the Bad tour in 1988. …

While the film has been a “megahit” with audiences, it has faced mixed to negative reviews from critics.

“Sanitized” Narrative: Critics have widely panned the film for being overly “safe” and avoiding the more controversial aspects of Jackson’s life.

Many of the family were involved in the movie. But Janet declined to be included. Michael’s daughter, Paris Jackson, has publicly criticized the film for its inaccuracies.

Jackson is portrayed by his nephew Jaafar Jackson and as a child by Juliano Krue Valdi, both in their film debuts. Both fantastic.

I checked to be sure father Joe Jackson was no longer alive to see his portrayal in this film. Joe died in 2018.

Google to see all the historical inaccuracies. For example, the movie suggests Michael’s first solo project was Off the Wall (1979), completely ignoring the four solo albums he had already released with Motown in the early 1970s.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Knives Out – 2019 Film

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After yet another recommendation, I finally watched the hit comedy Knives Out.

Excellent.

Whose idea was it to have Daniel Craig with a Southern accent? Absurd, but funny.

Entertaining and a decent murder mystery.

Inspired by the works of Agatha Christie, the series is known for its “whodunnit” puzzles, star-studded ensemble casts, and social satire.

Detective Blanc investigates the death of wealthy crime novelist Harlan Thrombey at his eccentric family estate.

The cast is great.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Hanna (TV series) – season 2

On By Rick McIn movies, TVLeave a comment

Skillfully done, but a bit slow for me in the earlier episodes.

I liked the movie and season 1 better.

I watch this show for the ACTION.

It did end well.

That said, the acting is strong. Esme Creed-Miles as Hanna is fascinating.

Mireille Enos as Marissa Wiegler, the CIA operative put in charge of the UTRAX program, who turns from a foe to an ally and mother figure to Hanna should win awards for this performance.

Hanna season 2 received significantly stronger reviews than its first season, with many critics praising its ability to move beyond the source material of the original 2011 film. It holds a critical approval rating of 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, compared to 67% for Season 1. 

I’m hoping season 3 will be ALL action.

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Hail Mary ➙ Entertaining

On By Rick McIn books, moviesLeave a comment

The book Project Hail Mary (2021) by Andy Weir was almost as good as his first ➙ The Martian.

Project Hail Mary (2026) the film is perhaps even better than the excellent film adaptation of Martian.

Certainly the charm of Ryan Gosling makes the movie.

The film follows Ryland Grace, a man who awakens on an interstellar spacecraft with no memory of how he got there. ..

Initially erratic with retrograde amnesia, Grace learns that he is the sole survivor of the three-person crew, in a distant solar system light-years from Earth. …

Project Hail Mary is an international effort to send a crew to Tau Ceti is a suicide mission hoping to find a solution to stars dimming throughout the universe.

… as Grace approaches Tau Ceti, he sees an alien spacecraft. …

The ship’s pilot is a rock-like, five-legged alien …

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.





The Wedding People by Alison Espach

On By Rick McIn books, moviesLeave a comment

The Wedding People (2004) is funny. But a black comedy, dealing with suicide.

Unsurprisingly, it ends up life affirming.

Phoebe Stone, a newly divorced literature professor who checks into a luxury Newport, RI, hotel intending to take her own life.

Mistaken for a wedding guest, she becomes unexpectedly close to the bride, Lila, ultimately finding a reason to live through new connections, honest conversations, and a chaotic, week-long wedding party. 

If you like making fun of rich people, this book’s for you. 😀


Premise: Phoebe arrives at the Cornwall Inn with no luggage, reeling from a failed marriage, IVF, and her cat’s death, intending to die in a place she once hoped to visit with her ex-husband.

The Unlikely Bond: Lila, the bride, discovers Phoebe’s intent and, desperate to keep her perfect wedding from being ruined, gets involved with her. Their candid conversations, filled with unexpected humor and emotional depth, bring them together.

The Wedding Transformation: Phoebe is drawn into the wedding festivities, eventually acting as a sort of reluctant confidante and maid of honour to Lila, who is facing her own anxieties about her marriage to a man named Gary.

Themes: The novel balances the dark themes of grief, suicide, and loss with the light, chaotic energy of a destination wedding, focusing on themes of resilience, self-discovery, and second chances.

TriStar Pictures is adapting Alison Espach’s bestselling 2024 novel, The Wedding People, into a feature film.

Young Sherlock (British TV 2026)

On By Rick McIn movies, TVLeave a comment

Benedict Cumberbatch IS Sherlock Holmes.

But the 2nd best Sherlock Holmes is Robert Downey Jr. in movie hits Sherlock Holmes and its sequel, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, directed by Guy Ritchie.

When I heard Richie was doing another Holmes project ➙ Young Sherlock on Amazon Prime, I couldn’t wait.

As a 19-year-old at Oxford University, Sherlock Holmes is not yet the master detective he grows up to be. He is raw and unfiltered, and he lacks discipline.

A murder at Oxford puts Holmes’s freedom at risk, and he sets out to solve his first murder mystery that leads him to a global-level conspiracy.

Not nearly as good. But worth watching.

Dónal Finn as James Moriarty, Sherlock’s (friend?) is excellent.

Colin Firth as Sir Bucephalus Hodge, hilarious.

Zine Tseng as Princess Gulun Shou’an / Xiao Wei, a young Chinese princess, scholar, and martial artist steals many of the scenes.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.