“Able to Do Anything Post-MCU, Robert Downey Jr. Chooses ‘Dolittle'”

What’s a man do to when he has all the money in the world plus a rehabilitated image as Marvel’s greatest hero? He does little. Very, very little. Continue reading →

“Films by Women: Four Movies to Watch in November”

This is maybe the first Films By Women spotlight I’ve done where I am guilty of not seeing one of the movies on the list, or, in the case of Kino Lorber’s Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers set, any of them; I didn’t have an “in” to score a review copy, so I had to review this more … Continue reading →

TV Review: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Episode 4.08, “Skyfire Cycle”

I say unto thee: “BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE!” If you haven’t seen this week’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine, this will have no special significance for you, but if you’re reading this you probably have, so go to Paste Magazine for my full thoughts on the matter of Captain Holt’s sex life.

TV Review: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Episode 4.07, “Mr. Santiago”

Ho-man! Can you think of a better guy to cast as Amy Santiago’s father than Jimmy freakin’ Smits? Forget how hard I laughed at Brooklyn Nine-Nine‘s turkey jokes this week, not the least because there’s a rafter of turkeys that’s staked out turf at the parking lot at my day job (and they stare you down … Continue reading →

TV Review: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Episode 4.06, “Monster in the Closet”

…oh, thank god Brooklyn Nine-Nine is back. This is a nail I hammer home often, but for the most part any Brooklyn Nine-Nine is good Brooklyn Nine-Nine, even the Brooklyn Nine-Nine that isn’t as good as the best Brooklyn Nine-Nine; it’s even better when Brooklyn Nine-Nine hasn’t been on the air for a while, whether because the season is over or … Continue reading →

TV Review: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Episode 4.04, “The Night Shift”

The best part of “The Night Shift,” last week’s episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, is that its crossover with New Girl didn’t totally sink it. It barely made a dent in it, in fact, but that’s because the crossover is minimal. (There’s more crossover in New Girl itself than in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, in point of fact.) But I still hated … Continue reading →

TV Review: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, 3.20, “Paranoia”

“We talk an awful lot about what kind of show Brooklyn Nine-Nine is, and how its genre, tone, and sensibility generally excuse it from having to be anything more than funny to succeed. This holds true for “Paranoia,” which is often uproarious, but the episode stresses that emotion is just as important a component to … Continue reading →

TV Review: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, 3.19, “Terry Kitties”

If you follow me on any kind of social media, you already know how I feel about this week’s episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine: it is valuable and wonderful simply because it demands that Terry Crews act like a complete asshole to cute kittens. This is why I watch Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Hell, it’s why I watch television. I’ll spare … Continue reading →

TV Review: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, 3.18, “Cheddar”

“Don’t let the incomprehensibly adorable little corgi who supplies “Cheddar” with its title fool you: this week, Brooklyn Nine-Nine is about something more substantial than cute puppies doing cute things, even though it is mostly about that. “Cheddar” is for the most part a fluff episode (no pun intended, though Cheddar is pretty fluffy), a … Continue reading →

TV Review: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, 3.17, “Adrian Pimento”

“Guest stars have been a thing for Brooklyn Nine-Nine since the very beginning, when Stacy Keach, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, and Patton Oswalt showed up for one-offs, and Craig Robinson, Marilu Henner, and Kyle Bornheimer each stepped into limited but recurring roles. (Remember: Doug Judy is still around!) But after season two took several paces back … Continue reading →