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Only Hollywood could think that this is funny and great and award-worthy. In fact, it's none of the aforementioned. It's tedious. Dull. Pretentious. Unfunny. It must have been a laugh riot in the writers room.

The music is great: best part of the entire series. The cast is very interesting. The writing is horrendously bad. The directing is network sitcom caliber. The characters are very annoying.

The nudity, sex and f-bombs are gratuitous and condescending.

Ignore the hype. Disregard the awards. Do not believe the positive reviews: both critical and viewers. This series is a hot mess. Avoid. Don't snog. Don't marry.

This film started out so smart, with a brilliant depiction of how internet scammers operate. It also had a great moment between Phylicia Rashad and Jason Statham. Then, it was all downhill from there. Director David Ayer and writer Kurt Wimmer, unleashed a bevy of outlandishly stereotypical characters and found lousy actors to play them. I hope never again to see Emmy Raver-Lampman, with her ridiculous 1970's Pam Grier Blaxploitation fright wig. Ditto for the dull-as-dishwater Josh Hutcherson. Jeremy Irons must have badly needed a payday!

This might be the dumbest film Jason Statham has ever made. God help us all if there is a sequel!

'Godfather of Harlem' is a compelling story for two seasons, but then begins to lose its focus in Season Three. Forrest Whitaker is fantastic, as Ellsworth 'Bumpy' Johnson, as is Vincent D'Onofrio, as Vincent 'The Chin' Gigante. When the story focuses on these two characters, as it does in Seasons 1 & 2, the story is compelling.

But, in Season 3, we lose D'Onofrio, and that's a huge loss. We also lose the excellent Nigel Thatch, as Malcom X, who is replaced by actor Jason Alan Carvell, who is merely adequate. We also lose Rafi Gavron (Ernie Nunzi) and that is a big loss.

The two biggest problems, with the series though, are Stella Gigante (Lucy Fry), and the music. Stella didn't exist, and most of the music didn't either. Having a fictional character feature so prominently, in the Season 3 storyline, is problematic. As for the music, there were great songs in the late 50's and early 60's, and we get some of this music, but mostly as background. When the music plays an impact in a scene, we get rap and hip-hop that wasn't even created until years later. It's jarringly inappropriate and unnecessary. This is clearly the fault of Swizz Beatz!

I know the excellent Director, Alexander Payne, (Nebraska, The Descendants, Election, Sideways, and About Schmidt) does not want his film characterized as a "Holiday Classic," but: 'It's A Wonderful Life,' Home Alone,' and 'Love Actually' are not terrible company to keep!

This is a heartwarming, entertaining, and well-acted film that takes place over the Christmas-New Years break at a boys boarding school in Massachusetts, in 1971. The brilliantly-versatile Paul Giamatti is terrific, as is newcomer Dominic Sessa. Da'Vine Joey Randolph also portrays a character with depth of layers.

This film is multi-nominated for the Oscars, including: Best Picture, Best Actor (Giamatti), Best Supporting Actress (Joy), Original Screenplay (David Hemingson). I guess the film directed itself, as Payne is not nominated.

This film is gaining steam at the right time and might overtake the favorite-the overly-long and boring 'Oppenheimer.' Giamatti also has an upset shot over Cillian Murphy.

I put off watching this film because I didn't think it would appeal to me, according to the blurbs. Boy was I wrong! This is a fantastic film that has been egregiously overlooked by the Oscars in favor of the overly-long and boring 'Oppenheimer;' the incredibly pretentious and bad 'Maestro;' and the absurd' Barbie.'

This film deserved Best Picture, Director (Emerald Fennell), Original Screenplay (Emerald Fennell), Best Actor (Barry Keoghan), and Best Supporting Actor (Jacob Elordi) nominations.

Emerald Fennell has written and directed one of the most original and surprising films in many years. It's a crime that Oscar couldn't see that!

I gave the original Bosch series a 9, and I don't give out 9's like Kojak gives out lollipops. I've only rated 3 series as 10's, and only a handful with 9's. But, unfortunately, I cannot give Bosch: Legacy that same rating and so I deducted one star. Why? In short: Maddie Bosch. I didn't like her character in the original series, but with a few exceptions, she was kept in check. In 'Legacy' she shares screen time with Harry, brilliantly played by Titus Welliver. The other big problem for me is that I also dislike the actress who plays Maddie: Madison Lintz. So it's double trouble!

We do get a heavy helping of Honey Chandler (Mimi Rogers) and she's a terrific character and actress, as is newcomer Mo Bassi , skillfully played by Stephen Chang, because the quirky nature of his character is not broadly played, but rather subtly, with multiple notes.

What 'Legacy' misses is much more J. Edgar (Jamie Hector) and Crate & Barrel (Gregory Scott Cummins) and (Troy Evans) respectively. We also miss Lt. Grace Billets (Amy Aquino). Of course, we very much miss the brilliant, late, Lance Reddick, who died suddenly in March of '23.

I look forward to Season 3, but I also look forward to less Maddie!

I was late arriving at this series because I only recently added Amazon Prime, but I had previously read most of Michael Connelly's Bosch books. So, like a great book, once begun, I could not put this series down. It ranks right up there with the best: The Wire; Breaking Bad; Dexter; Better Call Saul; Ray Donovan; Boardwalk Empire; Deadwood; Lilyhammer; Fauda; and just behind, The Sopranos, which is still the G. O. A. T.

But, unlike all the others listed: except for Fauda, and the short-runs of Deadwood and Lilyhammer, and, of course, The Sopranos, Bosch ran the board for SEVEN full seasons. There was not a bad season, and most importantly, the final season was great and the finale was brilliant.

The cast, led by Titus Welliver, was simply outstanding; with special mention for Jamie Hector, Amy Aquino, Lance Reddick, Troy Evans and Paul Calderon. The creator, Eric Ellis Overmyer, and writer Michael Connelly, kept the show true to the character of Harry, as depicted in the novels. Director Alex Zakrzewski, 16 episodes, allowed for great character development, but never let the pacing drag.

Now, I look forward to diving into Bosch: Legacy!

Whatever this hot mess is, it's not True Detective. It's silly-woke, anti-male, hocus-pocus, jibber jabber. I'm one episode and done for this Season.

I place the blame for this debacle squarely on Director Issa López and Nic Pizzolatto. One of the myriad brilliant aspects of the still greatest series ever, The Sopranos, was the continuity of style and substance. Creator and Producer, David Chase, would not allow a new director to come in and put his or her 'spin' on the show. The director had to conform with the Sopranos style, look and traditions. In fact, an excellent director, Mike Leigh, was invited in and he decided to use a lot of hand-held camera shots, unusual frame freezes, and employed an atypical ending shot. Leigh was never invited back. Clearly, True Detective has no guiding force that insists the seasons be true to any core standards. More's the pity for its fans.

This is the best of the three Equalizer film's. The setting is spectacular! In fact, the tourism board of Atrani, Italy, on the Amalfi Coast, should send Director Antoine Fuqua a huge dish of Gnocchi alla Sorrentina!

This is also the most violent and bloody of the three films. There are homage's paid to 'The Godfather,' 'Godfather: Part II' and 'Scarface' (in one scene). It also has the best storyline of the 3 films. That credit goes to writer Richard Wenk. Denzel is almost too old for this role, but he might have one more in him. Of course, as always, he's too cool for school!

Frankly, this was the most entertaining film of 2023 I have seen, and that includes: 'Barbie,' 'Oppenheimer,' 'Maestro,' and 'Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning,' although I haven't seen 'Killers of the Flower Moon,' yet. Let's face it, it was not a very good year for feature films!

There is only one person to blame for this very bad film and that is the writer, director and star: Bradley Cooper! This is an ego project, and it oozes Bradley Cooper, not Leonard Bernstein, from every, single frame. This is not a story of how great Lenny Bernstein was, but rather, how great Bradley Cooper thinks Bradley Cooper is.

The make-up, prosthetic's, and Cooper's comically inept attempt at Bernstein's accent, are all ludicrous. The opening sequence, of an aged Bernstein, looks like George Hamilton OD'd on spray tan! Then, the switch to B&W and the younger Bernstein, and Cooper unveils the schnozzola that must have been left over from 'The Jimmy Durante Story.'

This is 'Ishtar,' the musical!

Sarah Lancashire embodies Julia Child. She's not doing an impression, although she is pitch perfect, but rather, she captures Julia's every nuance, and the iconic voice simply becomes a part of the character rather than constantly front and center. It's just there.

The writing is very good, and very adult, and they weave in the '60's backdrop in which it all takes place. Sometimes it borders on being a little too preachy, but it manages to get back onsides before drawing a flag. The colors, costuming, and the set, capture the look and feel of the 1960's.

Co-stars David Hyde Pierce (Paul Child) and Bebe Neuwirth (Avis) and both 'Frasier' alums, bring their estimable chops to the table, so it's not a one-woman show.

The supporting cast support and there aren't any glaring weaknesses or annoying characters.

This film is, at least, 30 minutes too long and suffers from a Writer/Director who is in love with his project so he can't bear to get out the pinking shears. But, unfortunately, a shorter film could not save this one. Structurally it is a mess, with its flashback, within flashbacks, within flashbacks, like a Russian Matryoshka doll!

The most interesting aspect was the films' throwback to those films of the 1960's that had huge casts of top British, German and American actors. In that regard, let's take a look at the cast: Cillian Murphy is outstanding and perfectly suited to the role. I kept thinking that, if this were a different era, this role would be played Montgomery Clift, of whom Murphy reminded me. Matt Damon: ever since Damon became a 'star,' I have found him to be highly overrated. His early work was much better. It was good to see Robert Downey, Jr. Out of those silly Super Hero movies and doing interesting work again. It was good to see Josh Hartnett back in a big movie. Kenneth Branagh is always good and always interesting. Casey Affleck is a good actor who is always better when he is playing sarcastic, or slightly sinister. Also, good to see James Remar ('Dexter'), Tom Conti, Greg Jbara (away from 'Blue Bloods'), Trond Fausa (who was so good in 'Lilyhammer') and Gary Oldman, who nailed Winston Churchill, and now nails Harry Truman.

Someday, someone, may have the courage to make a film that doesn't toe the tired, thread-bare, diktat that the post-war Communist threat was just the fantasy of some right-wing kooks. The post-war Communist threat was very real indeed. Ask Great Britain, France, Italy and Germany. It remains sheer folly to think the USA was not also endangered.

And so ends the reign of 'The Crown.'

In a previous review for the Series, through Season 5, I rated this very highly: 8 stars. I was very impressed with the consistently good writing, directing, and the superb acting. I continued to feel the same for the first half (4 Episodes) of Season 6. The portrayal of the events leading up to, and including the death of Diana, were superb.

Then came the second half of Season 6, and it was as if the producers said: 'Enough. We're tired of this. Let's end it and move on.' So, of the final 6 episodes, they devoted one entire episode to William at University, and one entire episode to the declining, and ultimately dying, Margaret; leaving a scant 4 episodes to bring the story from Diana's death to the marriage of Charles and Camilla to a conclusion.

The series should have continued on and ended with the coronation of Charles, thus covering the deaths of both Phillip and the Queen. Shame on the producers!

As I previously noted (in my review of the first 5 Seasons), the multiple castings of the main characters, as they aged, was near-note perfect. I thought they made only 3 major casting errors: John Lithgow, as Churchill; Bertie Carvel, as Tony Blair; and in the final half, Luther Ford, as Harry. The actor is good, but he looked nothing like Harry, other than the Ginger hair. But, Ford and the writers, did a great job of portraying Harry as the petulant, spoiled, jealous, self-absorbed, vindictive, sniveling, backstabbing, disloyal weakling that he is indeed!

There was a very nice touch, in the finale, bringing back all three of the actresses who portrayed QEII, in the form of internal monologues. Brilliant!

'Marlowe' is not a bad film, but unfortunately, it is also not a good film. The first half drags badly, but the second half is quite tidy and the film comes alive. The fault for this must lie with Director and Co-Writer, Neil Jordan.

However, Jordan has made a quite stylish and handsome film, which is not really noir, more like new noir. Liam Neeson is fine as Marlowe, as are Diane Kruger and Jessica Lange. Cameo spots by François Arnaud, Ian Hart, Danny Houston, Colm Meany and Alan Cumming are also successful outings.

Possibly the most intriguing plot aspect is that, although the names have been changed, the underlying story is about Joseph P. Kennedy (The Ambassador) and his affair with both Hollywood and Gloria Swanson (Jessica Lange).

Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One, is bad! It flopped at the domestic box office, falling more than $100M short of budget and accounting for only 1/3 of its overall box office. And, you can't lay all the blame on 'Barbie.' The foreign box office saved it from being a loser, but it fell far short of expectations.

The plot is absurd, that's one of the 'key' problems. The dialogue insults the intelligence of the viewer, opting to use that maddening technique employed with TV ensemble drama's wherein a lot of dialogue is spoken and each person takes turns, with no interruptions, overlap, or thought as to what they are going to say. It's wooden, unnatural and it's stupid!

Cruise is aging. Henry Czerny is aging very well. Ving Rhames takes a time out from his Arby voiceovers to make a return appearance, whilst everyone else does and says what they always do. This outing is tired, and portends very badly for Part Two.

Suburra is back after a 3 year hiatus and the news is not good. The original season was outstanding. 'Blood on Rome' was less so, but still good. Everything about this Season is subdued. The action is less, the plot is not as interesting, it's not as violent, or as sexy. Spadino (Giacomo Ferrara) has lost his spark and dresses in black. This season also misses Aureliano (Alessandro Borghi).

The result is a bit like a funeral march to it's inevitable conclusion. The fun is gone. The excitement missing. It's hum-drum and by the numbers. You could see the ending coming from a mile away.

This should be the end of Suburra. RIP!

Let's run down the problems from the top:

Casting: Javier Bardem is a fine actor, but has none of Desi's charm or good looks. He's 20 years too old for the part, and he can't sing.

Nicole Kidman, is a fine actress, but she's 20 years too old for the part, and she's not funny.

Nina Arianda isn't even close to being either Vivian Vance or Ethel.

The script: Aaron Sorkin can write political satire, sarcasm, clever, dramatic, but he can't write funny. How can a movie about one of the funniest shows in the history of television, and the incendiary off-screen relationship between Lucy and Desi, be boring and unfunny. Well, you'll have to ask Sorkin.

J. K. Simmons steals the movie as William Frawley, aka Fred Mertz.

A 47 minute finale after seven years. That's the producers and writers saying: 'we're done with this and we're out of here. We don't give a damn what you think!' Wags said it: "Endings are tough. Someone always ends up unsatisfied."

Well count me in as unsatisfied! That's why I gave it a two-star rating, to express my feelings about a once-great show destroyed by lazy writing and bored producers. As I wrote before, this series should have ended at the end of Season 5, with Axe jetting-off to Switzerland.

The producers/writers chose to go Agatha Christie, with flashbacks giving us information, that was withheld, that we needed in order to solve the mystery.

And so, Billions, goes the way of so many long-running great series' that stayed too long at the fair!

When I heard this movie was being made, I wanted to see it. But, I missed it at the theaters. To say I was disappointed would be an extreme understatement, as my 4 star rating attests. Actually, it's a generous 4.

I could understand the B Western performances on the film sets, but I didn't expect the B film performances in the actual movie. How DiCaprio and Pitt were nominated is a mystery. How Pitt beat a masterful performance by Al Pacino, or even Joe Pesci, both in 'The Irishman,' is a crime!

Then, there is the absurd, surreal, Tarantino-signature ending!

Did I like anything about it? Yes, I liked the attention to detail of the period: the music, the clothes, hairstyles, TV shows, movie marquee's, and the cars. That's it!

The writers and producers have clearly decided to bet it all on the finale. Hence, any real momentum built over the last couple of episodes dissipated in this episode like the air going out of a balloon. The penultimate episode was very anticlimactic.

This episode was tediously told via flashbacks. It produced no real excitement, tension, nor surprises. It was storytelling via box ticking. It was predictable and boring! Clearly, the goal was to set the all-is-lost narrative so that the finale will be chockablock with surprises and twisty-turns. And, maybe it will be. Unfortunately, we had to endure the reality of this episode to get to that possibility.

I am surprised that no one yet has thrown 'Ari Spyros' (Stephen Kunken) out the sealed-glass window!

The brilliance of 'The Sopranos' (still the greatest series ever) is that it makes you care about brutal murderers. 'Gomorrah' does no such thing. There is no one to root for. No one to care about. No one to take an interest in. You want every single character to die, and the sooner the better.

'The Sopranos' was also one of the funniest shows in history. There is zero humor in 'Gomorrah.' It is relentlessly darkness. It is nonstop brutality, betrayal, psychopathy, and dysfunction. The tone never changes. It is dark, upon bleak, piled on despicable, unredeemable characters.

So, I cannot imagine enduring 5 seasons of this one-note series. I'm out after Season 1!

This episode backslid, from last week, and dragged for 54 minutes, then a little magic happened: Damian Lewis went toe-to-toe with Corey Stoll and ate him alive-reminding us why 'Billions' was once great. Do not misunderstand me, I did not say Axe went toe-to-toe with Mike Prince, though, of course, they did, I mean Damian Lewis took Corey Stoll to acting school and wiped Lincoln Center with him! Of course, it took 54 minutes to get us there!

Otherwise, the cultural references have threatened to become the script. Chuck Rhoades, Sr. (Jeffrey DeMunn) always makes me laugh. And Taylor Mason (Asia Kate Dillon) is finally growing on me.

Two episodes left and the stage is set. If we go out with a bang it will be the best we could have hoped for-after the entire season 6, and 8 episodes of 7, full of dreck!

Let's tackle the elephant in the room first: John Mahoney, David Hyde-Pierce, Jane Leeves and Peri Gilpin can't be replaced. That classic Frasier is gone, but available in reruns.

The good news is, this new Frasier is pretty good. Kelsey Grammar is in top form, and the writing doesn't let him, or us, down. Nicholas Lyndhurst (of 'Only Fools and Horses' fame) is on board as a comedic foil. Jack Cutmore-Scott, another Brit, plays Frasier's son and is also meant to be the new Martin Crane. Whilst nephew, David Crane (Anders Keith), is meant to fill the role of Niles. Eve (Jess Salgueiro) is sort of Roz. The weak link in this cast is Olivia, played by Toks Olagundoye.

We have a new bar/hangout, with a cast of interesting characters, and Frasier has a new job teaching at Harvard, which will be the new radio station.

I was very trepidatious that what I was about to watch would pale in comparison to one of the greatest comedy series' of all time, but I was happily wrong. I now have a new series to look forward to every week.

If the writers and producers had run this episode six episodes ago, and then followed with episodes that built from this base, we might have had a much different final season. Oh, the all-to-frequent and highly annoying cultural references would have still been firing on all cylinders, and the insufferably smug and arrogant characters of Mike Prince (Cory Stoll), Kate Sacker (Dola Rashad), 'Scooter' (Daniel Breaker) and Philip (Toney Goins), would still be just as unbearable, but plot-wise, we would have engaged the battle much sooner, instead of all the pointless and boring stand alone episodes!

This wasn't a return to the greatness of 'Billions' past-that's gone-but it was the best episode of the season, thus far. Unfortunately, it's too little, too late. But, perhaps, the final three episodes will be satisfying.

This series should have ended when Axe (Damian Lewis) got on the jet, and escaped to Switzerland, at the end of Season 5. The stupid, arcane, cultural references, which used to be sparingly clever, now torment and taunt us in every other sentence. The smug, self-righteous: I'm-so-clever-and-so-much-smarter-than-you takes, make you want to padlock the writers room! If you wanted to deliberately destroy this series, you could not do a better job than the writers and producers have done this Season 7!

And, I'm not even going to touch the repulsive storyline with Wags! (David Costabile)

To paraphrase Burt Lancaster, as J. J. Hunsecker, in something truly great, The Sweet Smell of Success: "You're dead Billions get yourself buried!"