Greetings again from the darkness. Real life doesn’t offer too many opportunities for ‘do-overs’. Fortunately, movies do. Dallas born-and-raised (now Los Angeles-based) Adam Saunders wears many hats for this film that was inspired by his own life. Mr. Saunders wrote the story, directed and produced the film, and takes the lead role.
Jimmy Bauer (Saunders) is what one might call a loser (although that description has been expanded so much in recent time that it’s probably not the right one to use here). Jimmy is 42 years old. He lives in a shed behind his dad’s (Tony Danza) struggling memorabilia shop where he works since he never finished high school. Use whatever descriptive label you prefer, but realize that none of that is his biggest personal flaw. Instead, that would be Jimmy’s hang-up that his life’s turning point was losing the Senior year Class President election to Manish Singh (Rizwan Manji).
Manish not only won that election, he also became Governor of Texas and married Jimmy’s dream girl. See, Jimmy thinks Manish stole the life that he was meant for … and rigged 8-ball giveaways were a key. Now, 25 years later, he sees a do-over is possible by going back to high school and running (again) for Class President. His overly supportive sister Shawna (Patty Gugenheim) happens to be the school Principal. Jimmy is shocked with just how out-of-touch he is with today’s high schoolers. He knows very little about social media, technology, or gender-neutral bathrooms. In fact, he thinks throwing “a kegger” is a good idea to win voters.
Jimmy does find support from Noa (Bex Taylor-Klaus), a brilliant non-binary student, and Ama (Nathalie Kelly), a teacher and former classmate of Jimmy’s. She remembers him as being very kind to her. The whole campaign is quite a spectacle, and as you can imagine, Jimmy goes through some serious growing pains. As a psychological study, it’s interesting to note that ‘coming of age’ stories once revolved around teens and twenty-somethings. These days, it’s about a 42-year-old learning what it means to be an adult and a decent human being. There is a terrific message here about life and politics. Selflessness and service to others is what matters, and living with regrets is not a path to happiness. A famous Thoreau quote is used a couple of times during the film and is even on a poster in Stan’s shop. “What a man thinks of himself, that it is which determines, or rather indicates his fate.” Saunders’ film is a brisk 84 minutes of comedy and life lessons.
Posted by David Ferguson 
Greetings again from the darkness. I’m not sure if pumpkins get short-changed with most of their attention coming only during one season, or if perhaps they receive more attention than deserved during that season. Either way, pumpkins are rarely at the center of a cinematic event … despite having their moments during animated TV specials like “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” and “Spookley, the Square Pumpkin”. Director John McPhail (the excellent ANNA AND THE APOCALYPSE, 2017) sets out to change that with a screenplay by a trio of writers: Nick Guthrie (MINI’S FIRST TIME, 2006), Ruth Fletcher (“Hawaii Five-O”), and Ruth’s husband and writing partner, Christos N. Gage.
Greetings again from the darkness. Co-directors Philip Delaquis and Barbara Miller opt against an on-camera Q&A session with the Dalai Lama and instead allow His Holiness (the 14th Dalai Lama) to speak directly to the camera on topics pertinent to what’s happening in the 21st century. This approach allows the film and his words to wash over us like a meditative event … calm and soothing. His words not only guide us on ways to chill out, but also inspire us to pay close attention to the current situation.
Greetings again from the darkness. We all love a thrilling whodunit murder mystery. The best ones offer a magical blend of creative story, interesting setting, and fascinating characters. Writer-director Simon Stone (THE DIG, 2021) has delivered a film adapted from the best-selling 2016 novel by Ruth Ware. Frequent writing partners (SEBERG,2019) Joe Schrapnel and Anna Waterhouse collaborated with Stone to adapt the novel into a movie that looks great, and for the most part, fulfills the above listed requirements.
Greetings again from the darkness. You know those days when it feels like you are being pulled in all directions, and nothing seems to go right? Welcome to 24 hours in the life of Steve, the headteacher at Stanton Wood, a reform boarding college for troubled/challenging young men. This is one of those days that feels like a week. Even before he walks through the front door, he’s already getting pulled this way and that – a minute here, a quick decision there, a request for a sidebar, a need to run something by him. It’s a relentless job, heightened by the presence of a BBC documentary crew.
Greetings again from the darkness. Every one of us wants to look good and feel good. But how far will we go? What if our livelihood depended on looking young? There is no denying that societal pressures favor those who are pleasing to the eye, and of course, Hollywood is the poster child for rewarding beauty and youth … and penalizing, or at least ignoring, the other end of the spectrum. The second film from director Max Minghella (his first was TEEN SPIRIT, 2018) features a screenplay from Jack Stanley (THE PASSENGER, 2023), and it likely pays a price for coming on the heels of last year’s THE SUBSTANCE (2024), a body horror film with a similar theme, but one that was far more extreme.
Greetings again from the darkness. When we first meet Mr. Blake, he’s tidily packing a small suitcase and informing an anxious phone caller that he will not be attending the ‘Man of the Year’ award ceremony, even as he’s being introduced as the guest of honor in the background. We realize Blake is leaving London because he takes one last forlorn glance at his long-time apartment before heading “back to where it began.” It’s rare for the author of the source novel to adapt and direct a film, but that’s the situation here with Gilles Legardinier and his 2012 book, “Complètement cramé !” Co-writer Christel Henon helped with the screenplay.
Greetings again from the darkness. Marc Maron is the rare comedian who can make you laugh and make you think, while also making you feel beat down … and often sad for him. Maron has done stand-up comedy. He’s acted in TV series (“GLOW”) and even had his own series (2013-16). You might have seen him acting in movies (THE ORDER, 2024) or perhaps heard his voice acting (THE BAD GUYS franchise). And beyond that, he may be best known as a trailblazer in the world of podcasts – his “WTF” launched in 2009 at a time when few even knew what a podcast was.
Writing a book about a beloved movie is a tricky undertaking. Viewers who love the movie typically have their own memories and perspectives regarding what they saw on the big screen … why the film had such an emotional impact. On the other hand, anyone who hasn’t bothered to watch a movie that was released more than seventy years ago either has no interest in it, or isn’t likely to take the time to read a book to determine if they should watch it now. So, while the market for potential readers may not be massive, author Jennifer O’Callaghan is surely very aware that anyone reading her new “Rear Window” book is likely a raving fan of the movie and excited to learn as many ‘behind-the-scenes’ details as possible.
Greetings again from the darkness. This plays like a spin on the old Verizon commercials: Do you love me now? Writer-director William Bridges and co-writer/ lead actor Brett Goldstein deliver one of the more frustrating and cringey romantic movies I’ve seen in a while. There are a couple of character references to situations feeling too “adult”, and I kept thinking, why don’t any of these grown-ups act like an adult?
Movie Reviews from the Dark 