Big Little Lies: The Complete Second Season Big Little Lies The Complete Second Season (2019) (Warner Bros.-2020) When Big Little Lies debuted on HBO in 2017, it was proof positive – if more was needed – that television drama had surpassed film as the go-to destination for Hollywood’s creative community. Created by longtime television icon David E. Kelley (Ally McBeal, The Practice), based on a hit novel by Liane Moriarty (who also contributed to the writing of the series) an

The Price of Everything THE PRICE OF EVERYTHING (2018) Featuring Amy Cappellazzo, Stefan Edlis, Gael Neeson, Gerhard Richter, Jeff Koons, Larry Poons, George Condo, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Margaret Lee, Marylin Minter, Robert Rauschenberg, Jerry Saltz, Alexander Nemerov and Mary Boone. Directed by Nathaniel Kahn. Distributed by HBO Documentary Films. 98 minutes. Not Rated. Screened at the 2018 Philadelphia Film Festival. I’ve watched a number of different documentaries on th

Halloween HALLOWEEN (2018) Starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, Will Patton, Virginia Gardner, Nick Castle, James Jude Courtney, Jefferson Hall, Rhian Rees, Toby Huss, Haluk Bilginer, Dylan Arnold, Miles Robbins, Drew Scheid, Jibrail Nantambu, Michael Harrity, William Matthew Anderson, Diva Tyler, Brien Gregorie, Vince Mattis, Omar Dorsey and PJ Soles. Screenplay by Jeff Fradley & Danny McBride & David Gordon Green. Directed by David Gordon Green. Distributed

The Deuce – The Complete First Season The Deuce The Complete First Season (HBO Home Entertainment – 2018) New York City in the 70s was dirty, sleazy, violent and wild, but it also had a certain throbbing energy that the current Disney-ification of the city has pretty much defanged. Long before sky-high rents and massive chain stores turned the city into the world’s largest mega-mall, New York was America’s dangerous heartbeat; a throbbing, passionate netherworld of crime, mus

Permanent PERMANENT (2017) Starring Patricia Arquette, Rainn Wilson, Kira Mclean, Jane McNeill, Aidan Fiske, Kaleigh Keller, Michael Greene, Abby Wathen, Sean Ramey, Jenna Brister, Brian Bremer, Kim Cheek, Paul D’Elia, Chelsea Laren, Mark Scarboro, Molly Nugent, Kassidy Slaughter and Robert Shepherd. Screenplay by Colette Burson. Directed by Colette Burson. Distributed by Magnolia Pictures. 93 minutes. Rated PG-13. Everyone has bad hair days, but they seem to be matters of li

Troy Garity and Jason Donovan at the Philadelphia premiere of Ballers. Hanging with the Ballers Professional Football isn’t all that meets the eye. There is a whole different game behind the scenes: from lying and cheating to using drugs and partying. The hit HBO show Ballers explores exactly that. In the first season of the series Spencer Strasmore, played by Dwayne Johnson, is struggling to find what to do with his life now that he has retired from the NFL. Currently he is

Violett Beane – Photo by Lilja Macki © 2016. Courtesy of MLC PR. All rights reserved. Violett Beane Quick As a Flash by Jay S. Jacobs There’s a new speedster coming to Central City. And she’s been hiding right under our noses. Jesse Wells, played by young actress Violett Beane, is the daughter of parallel dimension Earth-2’s Dr. Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanagh). Beane was added to the cast of the popular series in the second season and has quickly fit into the universe. Much of

Spike Lee Spike Lee Knows What It Means to Miss New Orleans by Jay S. Jacobs Spike Lee has experienced many things in the twenty years since he exploded out of NYU with She’s Gotta Have It and Do the Right Thing. His films have looked unflinchingly at some of the most polarizing subjects of modern life; race relations, drug abuse, inner city violence, religion, war profiteering, politics, prison, the sex trade, organized crime – the list goes on and on. However, nothing could

Joshua Malina in “The West Wing.” Joshua Malina Hail to the Chief by Jay S. Jacobs There are lots of ways that people go about trying to get their first big break in acting.  Some people kill themselves working a minimum wage job while floating from audition to audition.  Some try other arts, like music or modeling, as an entrance. Some people sit on a stool in a Hollywood soda fountain and wait to get discovered.  Some eat something gross on national television. Joshua Malin