Jackie R. Jacobson Getting Ready to Ride the Next Wave by Kayla Marra Having grown up in Los Angeles, it’s no big surprise that it was always Jackie Jacobson’s dream to become an actress. Watching the Disney Channel, Jackie had her heart set on acting from a very young age. She set out early to break into the biz, and now at eighteen she is something of a veteran. From an early appearance on Criminal Minds in 2012, to Speechless in 2018, and many roles in between, Jacobson is

THE LOVEBIRDS (2020) Starring Kumail Nanjiani, Issa Rae, Paul Sparks, Anna Camp, Nicholas X. Parsons, Kyle Bornheimer, Barry Rothbart, Catherine Cohen, Andrene Ward-Hammond, Robert Larriviere, Lisha Wheeler, Shannon Nicole, Moses Storm, Nelson Rafael Cepeda, Casey Hendershot, Aaron Abrams, Joe Chrest, Blaine Kern and Briana Liu. Screenplay by Aaron Abrams & Brendan Gall. Directed by Michael Showalter. Distributed by Netflix. 87 minutes. Rated R. Last year when I interviewed K

Bombshell BOMBSHELL (2019) Starring Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie, John Lithgow, Kate McKinnon, Connie Britton, Liv Hewson, Brigette Lundy-Paine, Mark Duplass, Rob Delaney, Malcolm McDowell, Allison Janney, Alice Eve, Stephen Root, Richard Kind, Robin Weigert, Amy Landecker, Mark Moses, D’Arcy Carden, Kevin Dorff, Anne Ramsay, Tricia Helfer and Jennifer Morrison. Screenplay by Charles Randolph. Directed by Jay Roach. Distributed by Lionsgate. 108 minutes. Rate

Sword of Trust SWORD OF TRUST (2019) Starring Marc Maron, Jillian Bell, Michaela Watkins, Jon Bass, Tim Paul, Whitmer Thomas, Toby Huss, Dan Bakkedahl, Lynn Shelton, Al Elliott, Tilcia Furman, Benjamin Keepers, Robert Longstreet, Elise Mayfield, T’Darius Murphy, Chris Steele, Elisha Williams and John Winscher. Screenplay by Lynn Shelton and Michael Patrick O’Brien. Directed by Lynn Shelton. Distributed by IFC Films. 88 minutes. Rated R. As you can perhaps guess by its inscrut

Shaft SHAFT (2019) Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Jessie T. Usher, Regina Hall, Alexandra Shipp, Richard Roundtree, Avan Jogia, Clifford “Method Man” Smith, Matt Lauria, Robbie Jones, Callan Mulvey, Lauren Vélez, Isaach De Bankolé, Tashiana Washington, Chivonne Michelle, Ian Casselberry, Sylvia Jefferies, Jessica Medina, Athena Akers, Adrienne C. Moore, Jalyn Hall, Amato D’Apolito and Almeera Jiwa. Screenplay by Kenya Barris & Alex Barnow. Directed by Tim Story. Distributed by W

Booksmart BOOKSMART (2019) Starring Kaitlyn Dever, Beanie Feldstein, Billie Lourd, Jessica Williams, Jason Sudeikis, Will Forte, Lisa Kudrow, Austin Crute, Victoria Ruesga, Eduardo Franco, Noah Galvin, Skyler Gisondo, Mason Gooding, Molly Gordon, Nico Hiraga, Diana Silvers, Mike O’Brien, Stephanie Styles, Deb Hiett, Bluesy Burke, Christopher Avila and the voice of Maya Rudolph. Screenplay by Katie Silberman, Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins and Susanna Fogel. Directed by Olivia W

Downsizing DOWNSIZING (2017) Starring Matt Damon, Christoph Waltz, Hong Chau, Kristen Wiig, Udo Kier, Rolf Lassgård, Ingjerd Egeberg, James Van Der Beek, Jason Sudeikis, Neil Patrick Harris, Laura Dern, Niecy Nash, Kerry Kenney, Maribeth Monroe, Don Lake, Margo Martindale, Brigitte Lundy-Paine, Joaquim de Almeida, Phil Reeves, Ana Marie Cox, Roland Martin, Don Lake and Mary Kay Place. Screenplay by Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor. Directed by Alexander Payne. Distributed by Para

Snatched SNATCHED (2017) Starring Amy Schumer, Goldie Hawn, Wanda Sykes, Joan Cusack, Ike Barinholtz, Tom Bateman, Oscar Jaenada, Bashir Salahuddin, Christopher Meloni, Randall Park, Daniel Bess, Kim Caramele, Damion Scandrick, Andre Derizans, Sergio Sanchez, Moani Hara, Raven Goodwin, Katie Dippold, Fidel Salcido, Modesto Cordero and Al Madrigal. Screenplay by Katie Dippold. Directed by Jonathan Levine. Distributed by 20th Century Fox. 90 minutes. Rated R. Snatched is not ne

Julie Benz in “Havenhurst.” Julie Benz Can Check Out Any Time She Likes, But She Can Never Leave by Jay S. Jacobs Life must be a little scary for Julie Benz.  In an acting career that has lasted over two decades, Benz is still probably best known as the ill-fated wife of the titular serial killer in the popular series Dexter.  However, that is far from the only role that Benz has played that experienced thrills, chills, and things that go bump in the night. She also had a rec

Michael Moore in TrumpLand MICHAEL MOORE IN TRUMPLAND (2016) Featuring Michael Moore. Written by Michael Moore. Directed by Michael Moore. Distributed by IMG Films.  71 minutes.  Not Rated. It’s been twelve years since Michael Moore last dipped his toes in electoral waters with Fahrenheit 9/11 (wow, has it really been that long?).  In the years since, while the reliably lefty director has inevitably made his political viewpoints very well-known in his humorous documentary fil

Keanu KEANU (2016) Starring Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, Tiffany Haddish, Method Man, Jason Mitchell, Luis Guzman, Nia Long, Will Forte, Darrell Britt-Gibson, Jamar Malachi Neighbors, Rob Huebel, Madison Wolfe, Jordyn A. Davis, Brittany Seymour, Benedict Cumberbatch, Anna Faris and the voice of Keanu Reeves. Screenplay by Jordan Peele & Alex Rubens. Directed by Peter Atencio. Distributed by Warner Bros.  98 minutes.  Rated R. Keanu lets out one of the biggest secrets of

Where to Invade Next WHERE TO INVADE NEXT (2016) Featuring Michael Moore, Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, Krista Kiuru, Tim Walker. Amel Smaoui, Jenny Tumas, Pasi Sahlberg, Halla Tomasdottir and Borut Pahor. Written by Michael Moore. Directed by Michael Moore. Distributed by Dog Eat Dog Films.  110 minutes.  Rated R. With politics in a weird state of flux, with some people feeling the Bern and others feeling the Trump and the people on all sides screaming for blood from the political

GIRLFRIENDS’ GUIDE TO DIVORCE — Season:2 — Pictured: Necar Zadegan as Delia — (Photo by: Andrew Eccles/Bravo) Necar Zadegan Girlfriend’s Guide to TV Stardom by Landyn Gerace The drama is back in Bravo’s first scripted series, Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce. The show returns for its second season Tuesday, December 1 and the leading ladies aren’t holding back. With four female leads (Lisa Edelstein, Beau Garrett, Necar Zadegan and Alanna Ubach), the writer of the series being a

The D Train THE D TRAIN (2015) Starring Jack Black, James Marsden, Kathryn Hahn, Jeffrey Tambor, Russell Posner, Mike White, Kyle Bornheimer, Han Soto, J.T. Rowland, Henry Zebrowski, Nicole Barré, Adria Tennor, Donna Duplantier, Denise Williamson and Dermot Mulroney. Screenplay by Jarrad Paul & Andrew Mogel. Directed by Jarrad Paul & Andrew Mogel. Distributed by Paramount Pictures.  97 minutes.  Rated R. I gotta give The D Train this, they certainly take the quickly-becoming-

Trainwreck TRAINWRECK (2015) Starring Amy Schumer, Bill Hader, Brie Larson, Colin Quinn, John Cena, Tilda Swinton, Vanessa Bayer, Mike Birbiglia, Ezra Miller, LeBron James, Brie Larson, Randall Park, Amar’e Stoudemire, Norman Lloyd, Cliff “Method Man” Smith, Dave Attell, Bridget Everett, Nikki Glaser, Matthew Broderick, Chris Evert, Marv Albert, Tony Romo, Kyle Dunnigan, Kevin Kane, Tim Meadows, Jim Florentine, Bobby Kelly, Ryan Farrell, Robert E. Torres, Devin Fabry, Carla O

Dumb and Dumber To DUMB AND DUMBER TO (2015) Starring Jim Carrey, Jeff Daniels, Kathleen Turner, Rob Riggle, Laurie Holden, Rachel Melvin, Steve Tom, Tembi Locke, Paul Blackthorne, Michael Yama, Nancy Yee, Grant James, Taylor St. Clair, Don Lake, Patricia French, Lindsay Ayliffe, Eddie Shin, Atkins Estimond, Billy Snider, Brady Bluhm, Cam Neely, June Shannon, Kasseem “Swizz Beatz” Dean and Bill Murray. Screenplay by Sean Anders & John Morris, and Bobby Farrelly & Peter Farrel

The Voices THE VOICES (2015) Starring Ryan Reynolds, Gemma Arterton, Anna Kendrick, Jacki Weaver, Adi Shankar, Ella Smith, Paul Chahidi, Stanley Townsend, Sam Spruell, Valerie Koch, Gulliver McGrath, Paul Brightwell, Alessa Kordeck, Michael Pink, Ricardia Bramley, Alex Tondowski, Harvey Friedman and Stephanie Vogt. Screenplay by Michael R. Perry. Directed by Marjane Satrapi. Distributed by Lionsgate.  103 minutes.  Rated R. No one can say that Iranian-by-way-of-Paris director

Horrible Bosses 2 HORRIBLE BOSSES 2 (2014) Starring Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx, Chris Pine, Christoph Waltz, Kevin Spacey, Jonathan Banks, Keegan-Michael Key, Kelly Stables, Suzy Nakamura, Brendan Hunt and Lindsey Sloane. Screenplay by Sean Anders and John Morris. Directed by Sean Anders. Distributed by Warner Bros.  108 minutes.  Rated R. I’m not sure that anyone in the world has really been waiting around for a sequel to Horribl

Life After Beth LIFE AFTER BETH (2014) Starring Dane DeHaan, Aubrey Plaza, Anna Kendrick, John C. Reilly, Molly Shannon, Cheryl Hines, Paul Reiser, Matthew Gray Gubler, Eva La Dare, Thomas McDonell, Alia Shawkat, Allan McLeod, Paul Weitz, Michelle Azar, Jim O’Heir and Garry Marshall. Screenplay by Jeff Baena. Directed by Jeff Baena. Distributed by American Zoetrope Pictures.  87 minutes.  Rated R. Life After Beth posits an intriguing question.  What is harder to deal with?  A

Neighbors NEIGHBORS (2014) Starring Zac Efron, Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, Dave Franco, Ike Barinholtz, Carla Gallo, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Jerrod Carmichael, Craig Roberts, Lisa Kudrow, Elise Vargas, Zoey Vargas, Jake Johnson, Halston Sage, Jerrod Carmichael, Craig Roberts, Ali Cobrin, Kira Sternbach, Jason Mantzoukas, Liz Cackowski, Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone and Andy Samberg. Screenplay by Andrew Jay Cohen and Brendan O'Brien. Directed by Nicholas Stoller. Distributed by