Jordan Brady Jordan Brady Is Director Comic by Jay S. Jacobs If you think it’s a tough life being a road comic, imagine when the road is in Afghanistan and Iraq. Yet, every year hundreds of entertainers fly out into war zones, entering dangerous areas, staying in less than luxurious quarters, not getting paid for their time and their craft. And they do it all for the troops. Happily. It is a tradition that goes back to Bob Hope and the USO. American entertainers celebrate the

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT (2016) Starring Tina Fey, Margot Robbie, Martin Freeman, Alfred Molina, Christopher Abbott, Billy Bob Thornton, Nicholas Braun, Stephen Peacocke, Sheila Vand, Evan Jonigkeit, Fahim Anwar, Josh Charles, Cherry Jones, Scott Takeda, Eli Goodman and Soledad O’Brien. Screenplay by Robert Carlock. Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa. Distributed by Paramount Pictures.  111 minutes.  Rated R. Tina Fey and Robert Carlock have had a ver

Bokeem Woodbine, Jesse Plemons, Jean Smart, Jeffrey Donovan, Kirsten Dunst, Noah Hawley and Cristin Milioti at the PaleyFest NY celebration of “Fargo” on October 16, 2105. Photo copyright Jay S. Jacobs. Kirsten Dunst, Jeffrey Donovan, Bokeem Woodbine, Jean Smart, Cristin Milioti and Warren Littlefield Goin’ Back to Fargo by Jay S. Jacobs Whatcha sayin’?  Fargo’s comin’ back? Oh, ya.  The second season is startin’ out real good. There are few stories in history that seemed les

21 Years – Richard Linklater 21 YEARS – RICHARD LINKLATER (2014) Featuring Ethan Hawke, Matthew McConaughey, Jack Black, Billy Bob Thornton, Keanu Reeves, Julie Delpy, Parker Posey, Zac Efron, Michael McKean, Nicky Katt, Joey Lauren Adams, Marissa Ribisi, Miranda Cosgrove, Anthony Rapp, Steven Chester Prince, Kevin Smith, Jason Reitman, Jay Duplass, Mark Duplass and Louis Black. Written by Michael Dunaway and Tara Wood. Directed by Michael Dunaway and Tara Wood. Distributed b

The Judge THE JUDGE (2014) Starring Robert Downey Jr., Robert Duvall, Vera Farmiga, Vincent D’Onofrio, Jeremy Strong, Emma Tremblay, Billy Bob Thornton, Leighton Meester, Dax Shepard, Ken Howard, Balthazar Getty, David Krumholtz, Grace Zabriskie, Denis O’Hare, Lenny Clarke and Sarah Lancaster. Screenplay by Nick Schenk and Bill Dubuque. Directed by David Dobkin. Distributed by Warner Bros.  141 minutes.  Rated R. I’m quite certain that the makers of The Judge feel that they h

Joey King in New York City. Photo © 2014 Mark Doyle. All rights reserved. Joey King Wish She Was Here by Jay S. Jacobs It seems almost like a cliché to say that Joey King has grown up before our eyes, but literally that is true.  The young actress, who will be turning 15 next month, has been in front of the cameras since she was only six, when appearances on commercials led to her first TV role in a couple of episodes of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. And what an action-packe

Fargo FARGO (1996) Starring Frances McDormand, William H. Macy, Steve Buscemi, Harve Presnell, Peter Stormare, Kristin Rudrüd, Tony Denman, John Carroll Lynch, Larissa Kokernot, Melissa Peterman, Steven Reevis, James Gaulke, Steve Park, Bruce Campbell and Jose Feliciano. Screenplay by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen. Directed by Joel Coen. Distributed by Fox Home Entertainment. 98 minutes. Rated R. In the opening of Fargo there is one of those title cards that informs you that “This i

The Ice Harvest THE ICE HARVEST (2005) Starring John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Connie Nielsen, Randy Quaid, Oliver Platt, Ned Bellamy, Matthew Campobasso, Diane Francis Fisher, Lori Ann Gerdisch, Shana Goodsell, Megahn Maureen McDonough, Lara Phillips, Michael Stailey, Mike Starr, Jenny Wade and Rick Touhy. Screenplay by Richard Russo and Robert Benton. Directed by Harold Ramis. Distributed by Focus Features.  88 minutes.  Rated R. If you go into The Ice Harvest expecting a

Billy Bob Thornton in “The Bad News Bears.” Billy Bob Thornton Gets on Base with Bad News Bears By Brad Balfour Lately actor/director Billy Bob Thorton has been grabbing the spotlight for films that aren’t obviously styled as the mature dramatic hits he starred in before—films such as the hard-hitting and provocative (and award-winning) Monster’s Ball and Sling Blade (for which he won a screenwriting Oscar). Yet, having played the curmudgeonly crook in Bad Santa, the tough co

Intolerable Cruelty INTOLERABLE CRUELTY (2003) Starring George Clooney, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Geoffrey Rush, Cedric the Entertainer, Edward Herrmann, Paul Adelstein, Richard Jenkins, Billy Bob Thornton, Julia Duffy, Jonathan Hadary, Tom Aldredge, Stacey Travis, Jack Kyle, Irwin Keyes, Judith Drake, Royce Applegate, George Ives, Booth Coleman and Kristin Dattilo. Screenplay by Robert Ramsey & Matthew Stone and Ethan Coen & Joel Coen. Directed by Joel Coen. Distributed by Unive

Love Actually LOVE ACTUALLY (2003) Starring Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Martine McCutcheon, Bill Nighy, Rowan Atkinson, Gregor Fisher, Rory McGregor, Lucia Muniz, Sienna Guillory, Kris Marshall, Heike Makatsch, Martin Freeman, Billy Bob Thornton, Ivana Milicevic, January Jones, Elisha Cuthbert, Shannon Elizabeth, Denise Richards and Claudia Schiffer. Screenplay by Richard Curtis. Directed by Richard Curtis.