Peneflix MOVIE REVIEWS BY PENEFLIX

“SPIRAL” (2005-2021) (Amazon Prime) Thumping at the pinnacle of my “Must Watch” list is this gritty, compulsively addictive, detective series; a Paris, rarely seen by tourists: dirty dens of iniquity, gory, egregiously stunning scenarios, no topic is sacrosanct, unbiased demographically, whether victim or perpetrator your proclivities are splayed, vivisected, informed by reality; justice meted in tandem with the crime. Brilliantly ... Read More »

Two ambitious films excavating the lives of women, justifiably, “on the verge of a nervous breakdown”. “HERSELF” directed by Phyllida Lloyd, starring writer and actor Clare Dunn, focuses on abused wife/mother “Sandra”; she is destitute, living on state benefits, residing in a hotel with her two young daughters (enchanting depictions by Molly McCann and Ruby Rose O’Hara), eking out a ... Read More »

Two fascinating series based on serial killers; “13 COMMANDMENTS” focuses on a fictional avenger, vigilante “Moses” who justifies his acts by eliminating the Sodom Gomorrah milieu where the commandments are egregiously ignored, violated by those who transgress at the mortal sin measure. The avenger “Moses” tries the patience of police detectives “Peter Devriendt” (Dirk Van Dijic) and “Vicky Degraeve” (Marie ... Read More »

“THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7”  (NETFLIX) Director Aaron Sorkin once again uses his magical might in creating a pristine reminiscence of a bleak period in American history; 1968, Democratic National Convention disrupted by factions against the Vietnam War: Abbie Hoffman (Sacha Baron Cohen, physical facsimile); Tom Hayden (Eddie Redmayne); Mark Rylance and Frank Langella are expert renditions of William Kunstler and ... Read More »

“MANGROVE”            AMAZON PRIMEDirector/writer/ artist Steve McQueen perpetually stuns with his historical films, based on egregious tales of injustice; Mangrove, a restaurant in west London and the trial of nine black activists in 1971 is blatantly honest, radiantly performed with a prescient message more vibrant today than yesteryear. FOUR & ½ STARS!!!! “NOCTURNAL ANIMALS” (2016)  NETFLIX Jake Gyllenhaal’s performance is enormous; paired with Amy Adams and stunning contemporary art, acutely satisfying. ... Read More »

Traditionally, Christmas Day is movie mania, in my household; redundancy accomplished, at home, in pajamas with leftovers and my adult pacifier, the remote. “Wonder Woman 1984” was a wonderous flop, “unsalvageable” by Gal Gadot, Chris Pine; Kristin Wiig as the scatterbrained sycophant, “Barbara/Cheetah” phenomenally miscast (perpetually locked in “Bridesmaids” mode) served as comic relief,  guffawing, fawning until her “wish” is ... Read More »

I have an innate prejudice when it comes to dystopian, apocalyptic films; acknowledging their technological wizardry, the aftermath leaves me in a queasy, dissatisfied, jetlagged fug: “The Road”, “Total Recall”, “Mad Max”, “Oblivion”, “Children of Men” and in particular “The Lobster”, were so systemically oppressive, depressive; no matter the ills of the twenty-first century, it is a “far better world” than these futurist prognoses; ... Read More »

A Covid Cure for 2020 and beyond; joy unexperienced since the world closed it doors, windows; shrinkage of entertainment venues and the intimacy of darkened halls, resurrected by  “American Utopia” a visionary reminder of what once was and will rise again; palpable hope oozes from its prognostic pores; visionary David Byrne, a stylistic revivalist, an Elmer Gantry, preaching his code ... Read More »

Chadwick Boseman’s (1976-2020) electrifying, meteoric, candescent depiction of “Levee”, a high strung, volatile trumpet player in August Wilson’s (1945-2005) award winning “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”, is pragmatically the “Virtuoso” of male performances this year; his physical diminishment, resulting in the magnification of a role, regardless of his health, written in the stars; crushingly grand is his every sentence, lithesome movements; ... Read More »

Bollywood by “Peneflix” has been shamefully neglected since the commencement of the pandemic; if you suffer to the conclusion of this most recent selection, there are more than worthy, India productions, to sink one’s temporal lobes into. The sport of cricket has been featured in a myriad of Bollywood films, my favorites include: “Lagaan” (2001), “Iqual” (2005), “Patiala House” (2011), ... Read More »