“To die would be a great adventure!” Peter Pan, Hook
Women Centered
Lou
Action, Relationships, Woman Centered, Crime Thriller
2022 release. I like Allison Janney (West Wing), so was good to watch her being a badass. In this, a little girl gets kidnapped, and the landlord next door helps out, and is more than she appears. I liked the way the story ended, though I feel the gal’s son is not the best actor for the role… they should have chosen better.
TRIVIA– The mother in this movie (Jurnee Smollett) started as a child actor, along with ALL her five siblings. They started in diaper commercials and fluff TV shows like Full House.
Politics
One Battle After Another
Action, Comedy, Relationships, Revolution, Loosely Based on a Book
2025 movie with a TON of awards and nominations. I almost didn’t want this because, going by the cover, I thought it was a western hahaha
I saw this in the theater, then immediately when I got home to show my husband. DON’T GET WEIRDED OUT ABOUT THE FIRST SCENE WITH SEAN PENN! It’s brief and sets up the tension. Though this is a drama, I found myself laughing out loud a couple of times.
The film touches on modern government surveillance with ICE enforcement. It starts out when Leonardo DiCaprio is younger, with high ideals, then his life changes drastically when he has a kid, and some of their group gets caught. Sixteen years later, his cover gets blown and he has to find his daughter who has gone underground.
TRIVIA– Actress Regina Hall worked mainly in comedies (the Scary Movie franchise), so was great seeing her in a serious part where she did great!
This movie was also a loose adaptation of Vineland.
Transportation
Top Gun
Action, Adventure, Romance
1986- the original! One of husband’s favorites! I wanted to rewatch this FIRST before the new one, but hubby said no… but afterwards I couldn’t help myself. Still such a great movie (reallllly wish Tom Cruise didn’t bother me).
TRIVIA– The love interest Kelly Ann McGillis had her breakout film with Witness (with Harrison Ford) just a year before TG. After that she worked numerous movies, but nothing that good. I did recently see her in the light horror The Innkeepers (2011), so was fun to recognize her.
Top Gun Maverick
Action, Adventure, War, Romance
Out 2022 (delayed due to Covid). We were going to see this in a 4D theater, but then Covid hit and we didn’t make it back. If you haven’t watched it yet, it’s 30 years after the OG. Maverick is still a douche, but is able to redeem himself in other’s eyes. Nice to see Val Kilmer in his last role… being the better man for closure (can you tell I cannot STAND Tom Cruise?). Did like them coming back to story in the OG about a previous love Maverick had.
TRIVIA– The cast got to choose their own call signs, and three of the six new actors threw up every day of filming in the jets.
The Ice Road
Action, Thriller, Crime, Relationships
Just what I was looking for in my search of “snowed in” books! Didn’t end how I guessed. Recommend this 2021 release for a light watch!
The Ice Road is about a collapsed diamond mine in northern Canada, and only a few ice truck drivers, and the load they are carrying, can save the trapped workers. Will they get there in time? Who DOESN’T want them to succeed?
TRIVIA– This movie was based on Wages of Fear – a French film from 1953.
The Ice Road 2
Action, Terrorists
At 73, in this 2025 release, Liam is still fun to watch, but not sure how long he can carry these storylines- especially with a younger co-star (in her 40s).
For part two, to fulfill a promise, he travels to Nepal so hires a guide. On the way there, somebody tries to kidnap one of the young men on their tour bus, which leads our hero, and a couple other passengers, rallying to protect him.
TRIVIA– A town in Australia was styled to look like Nepal, with local landmarks like the Star Hotel and surrounding buildings painted in vivid colors and dressed with prayer flags.
Western
Unholy Trinity
Action, Western, Time Period
2024 release about a 1870s/1880s Montana town where a young man returns home to reclaim his legacy. He’s caught between a law-abiding sheriff and a destructive stranger as old secrets lead to violence.
This movie was just ok- you probably would like it better if you like westerns. Plus, Samuel Jackson is always a joy to watch!
TRIVIA– Pierce Brosnan (James Bond) got to work with his two sons in this film: Dylan and Paris who star as a pastor and the son of one of Pierce’s character’s rivals. Also, Pierce adopted two of his previous wife’s kids after she had died. Those kids’ uncle was Richard Harris- the famous actor who was the King in the musical Camelot.
Comedy
Anaconda
Comedy, Friendships, Action
2025 remake (kinda) of the 1997 original. Old childhood friends decide to fulfill their dream of making a movie, by going to the AMAZON, and remaking the OG Anaconda.
This had funny moments, with of course a lot of cheese. I’m a big fan of Steve Zahn so was nice to see him, and the actor cameo made near the end. This was fine to watch through, but have no interest in seeing again.Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Family
1988 movie directed by one of my favorites (Ron Howard).
The Wrecking Crew
Action, Comedy, Relationships, Crime
2026 movie. Knew this would be kinda cheesy due to the cast, and was right. It was OK but I’d never watch again.
It’s about estranged brothers whose father’s died, and they get caught up in figuring out a crime.
TRIVIA– This was the final movie for actor David Hekili Kenui Bell, who had only done the live action version of Lilo & Stitch, and was in Magnum P.I. in ’18. He died June ’25 mainly from acute respiratory failure, hypertensive and atherosclerotic heart disease, sepsis, and morbid obesity. It was said he complained of difficulty breathing before he died