I have loved doing this Blind Spot series for a decade but I’ve loved it even more since I started doing the podcast with Manda 2 years ago. It is always a highlight of my month. Unfortunately that doesn’t mean I will always like the movie we are focusing on and such is the case this month. I was hoping Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas would be a wild trippy ride but instead it feels exhausting and uninspired.
The problem with the movie is one of perspective. In order for Hunter Thompson’s drug-fueled benders in Vegas to feel trippy and exciting the movie must show some contrast with that behavior. When it’s nothing but constant antics it gets old real fast. It’s also not funny so it can’t even entertain on that level. There are some interesting visuals but even on that level it doesn’t feel particularly original.
I can see why there is a bit of a cult following for this one because it is so drug-infused but as someone who has no interest in drugs it did not appeal to me in any way. In the end, I would skip Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and watch a more interesting movie about Vegas or drug use or anything else the movie touches upon.
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It’s amazing how time flies. 2026 marks my 10th year doing the Blind Spot project. It’s also the beginning of my 3rd year doing the podcast coverage for the series with my friend Manda. As much as I enjoyed writing my own thoughts on the movie I have enjoyed even more watching and talking about them with my friend. For this epic year of Blind Spot we have 12 movies picked out for 2026. It’s a diverse and fun list I hope you will all enjoy. Here goes:
January- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
February- Brown Sugar
March- Rambo: First Blood
April- Cleopatra
May- Sweet Charity
June- Housesitter
July- SubUrbia
August- Once Upon a Time in America
October- Single White Female
November- New York, New York
December- Black Christmas
So there you have it! All 12 picks for 2026. What do you think of this list? I hope once I get things finalized with my future with KSL Movie ShowI can figure out a new normal for written reviews as I know I have been woefully negligent in that department this year. Nevertheless, I hope you have a wonderful New Year and look forward to many positive experiences to come.
I think all movie fans (including critics) have directors and writers that while excellent at their crafts just aren’t on our wavelengths or taste. These filmmakers make movies that aren’t bad but will rarely be listed amongst our favorites due to themes and stylistic choices they like to embody. One of these directors for me is writer/director Shane Black.
These feelings about Black’s work is perhaps surprising because he always sets his films at Christmas so you’d think I’d be drawn to him but his aggressively quirky style and mixture of violence and comedy rarely works for me. Such is the case with his early hit Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. This is by no means a bad movie but it’s just not my taste.
In the film Robert Downey Jr plays a burglar turned actor who gets involved with a series of crimes in seedy LA by trying to help his childhood friend named Harmony (Michelle Monaghan.) We also see Val Kilmer playing a gay detective named Perry and Corbin Bernsen as the mob boss Harlan Dexter.
The best part of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is the editing and action. It is constantly moving from one set-piece to the next. The performances are also a lot of fun throughout with a star-making turn from RDJ.
I guess where the movie loses me is in the aggressively self-conscious script that prefers more about flashy dialogue over authentic characters. It’s distracting when the screenwriter is drawing more attention t themselves rather than the story or characters.
Speaking of the story it’s kind of a mess. Characters are introduced out of nowhere (like the pink haired girl) and then never addressed again. The narrative is all-over-the-place and I’m not sure who the protagonist actually is. One wants to say it is RDJ but we learn more about Harmony and at times it seems like her movie. It’s one of those movies one has to enjoy in the moment because the overall story is muddled.
All that said Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a confident debut feature from Black. It may not be my cup of tea stylistically but at least he has a style and I can see why it was viewed as a promising start for him and his work.
My patrons keep me honest and able to see and review as much as I do. Make sure you check out the patreon for perks, exclusive reviews and to be part of our monthly events and watch alongs. If you value honest criticism check it out. Find out more here.
Hi everyone! I hope you are enjoying a wonderful November. I actually posted our Blind Spotepisode a couple of weeks ago but forgot to post it here on the blog. We made a last minute change to the schedule when I realized I had a major blind spot in the original Predator movie from 1987.
I am perhaps one of the few people who saw Predator Badlandsbefore seeing the original film. This is particularly unique for that film as Badlands subverts the franchise by telling the story of a predator creature instead of the normal human POV. I really enjoyed Badlands as a stand alone entry but even without seeing the other films admire it’s attempt to try something new (we are getting a Moanaremake just to remind you how rare such an attempt actually is.)
The biggest surprise watching the original Predator film is how much of a monster movie it is. It is not the scifi movie of something like the Alien films but more similar to something like Jurassic Park. I was also surprised how much of an ensemble film it is. Honestly Carl Weathers is as much the star of the film as Arnold Schwarzenegger.
It’s also more of a war movie than I expected with many scenes reminding me of Apocalypse Nowor other 80s era war films. The director John McTiernan is in love with the visual effects of the 80s including making the predator be clear or invisible. It is a very bloody film but at under 2 hours doesn’t feel bloated like many action movies do today.
If you haven’t seen Predator it is definitely worth a watch, as is Predator Badlands. It’s the kind of franchise filmmaking we should be encouraging from Hollywood (and Disney) instead of the soulless entries they so often offer.
My patrons keep me honest and able to see and review as much as I do. Make sure you check out the patreon for perks, exclusive reviews and to be part of our monthly events and watch alongs. If you value honest criticism check it out. Find out more here.
Hi friends! I hope you are doing well. Sorry I’ve been so MIA but I’ve been completely engrossed in my podcasting and work on KSL Movie Show. I’ve been subbing in for Steve Salles and the entire experience has been a dream come true. I hope that you listen each Friday or on the podcast version. Through an error, however, we missed talking about a new release this week. It is from Amazon and it’s called Sarah’s Oil. This is a wonderful based on a true story drama that the whole family can benefit from. Since we didn’t review it on the show I figured I’d do an old fashioned written review (we will probably cover it next week so tune in!)
Sarah’s Oil tells the story of Sarah Rector a real life young Black girl who inherits oil rich land in Oklahoma in the 1910s. In real life she really did sell her land to Rockefeller and was a millionaire by the time she turned 18. It’s a fascinating story well-told with dramatic license of course by director Cyrus Nowrasteh. I am sure a lot of kids will be inspired to see a strong-willed determined child like Sarah and her story on the big screen.
In the film Sarah is played by Naya Desir-Johnson and she has a terrific screen presence and her and Zachary Levi have nice chemistry together. The screenplay perhaps spends too much time on his character named Bert Smith (who is an invention for the film) but it was still a pleasant friendship to see unfold on screen. I also loved Sonequa Martin-Green as Sarah’s mother Rose (she’s always great even in Star Trek Discovery.)
For a small budgeted film the movie looks great with some impressive setpieces involving the oil rig. It all feels historically accurate and is easy to get immersed in the story. Naturally some of the harsher elements of the story involving antagonists against Sarah are kept family friendly but they make the point they need to make without being too traumatizing.
If families are looking for a night at the movies that will inspire their kids Sarah’s Oil is a great choice. It’s playing at theaters right now so check it out
My patrons keep me honest and able to see and review as much as I do. Make sure you check out the patreon for perks, exclusive reviews and to be part of our monthly events and watch alongs. If you value honest criticism check it out. Find out more here.
Hi friends! I hope you are doing well. I know I have basically been abandoning written reviews lately because of my work on KSL Movie Show but I am still reviewing movies. Make sure you check out the show each Friday as it has really been a dream come true for me. I don’t know how much longer it will last but I’m going to enjoy it for as long as I can. I am still writing reviews for theatre so you will want to be sure and follow me on my theatre site.
One of the fun parts of working at the show is it has forced me out of my comfort zone to watch films I might not have normally seen. This has been a net positive and I’ve discovered really good films like the first 2 Conjuring movies and a neat little horror movie from this year called Bone Lake.
With Halloween coming up Manda and I decided to continue this embrace of horror for our Blind Spotentry in October, and we watched the classic Poltergeist for the first time. I think this might be our best episode that we’ve recorded together yet because not only did we both really enjoy the film, but we had a lot of fun talking about the production controversy- mainly did Steven Spielberg actually direct the movie or was it the credited Tobe Hooper. It’s a good listen I would love if you check it out.
As far as the movie, Poltergeist is a horror I would recommend watching as an approachable gateway to the genre. It builds tension well with creepy scenes like when the chairs are all levitating or the silverware is bending. That’s effective and fun. Plus, it does creepy kid better than almost any other horror film I’ve seen. It involves supernatural elements but nothing too upsetting or disturbing and features a kick-butt mother in Diane who will literally dive into an abyss for her daughter so that’s cool.
If you can handle something like The Sixth Senseyou can handle Poltergeist. It’s a ton of fun and we had a great time watching and talking about it.
Let me know what you have been watching lately and again sorry for skipping written reviews. Make sure you are checking out Hallmarkies Podcast as we are diving into the Christmas movie season already and everything else I have going on. Happy Halloween!
My patrons keep me honest and able to see and review as much as I do. Make sure you check out the patreon for perks, exclusive reviews and to be part of our monthly events and watch alongs. If you value honest criticism check it out. Find out more here.
Another month has come and gone and that means another blind spot. I’m super sorry I’ve been so neglectful of my written reviews but it’s just been the result of being so busy with my podcasts and KSL Movie Show. The support I have received on the show has been amazing and I’m beyond grateful for it. I am still writing my regular theatre reviews so make sure to take a look at that site.
This month the blind spot was the 1939 classic adaptation of Wuthering Heights. I have seen other adaptations but as I’m not the biggest fan of the book I hadn’t seen this one, and I’m glad I checked it off of my blind spot list. It’s still not my favorite story because Catherine and Heatcliff are both so unlikable but I do appreciate the melodrama in the script as well as the clear animosity between the actors.
This is certainly a beautifully made movie with one of the most memorable scores in a drama in film. Merle Oberon and Laurence Olivier evidently hated each other which is just the dynamic you need for Catherine and Heathcliff. The more hate the better! It’s going to be interesting to see how Emerald Fennell’s version turns out next year. It looks like it is going to be a lose adaptation (unlike this one aside from the ending) but will a new interpretation work?
It was interesting to learn in preparation for the podcast about director William Wyler and what he put the actors through. One scene he asked Olivier for 72 takes with little to no feedback of what he needed to do differently. I can’t imagine what that would have been like but that exasperated emotion probably helped Olivier capture Heathcliff’s frustrations and anger so well in the film.
I personally prefer Olivier in Pride and Prejudice the next year but that comes down to story preference more than anything else. What about you? What do you think of Wuthering Heights and this version from 1939? Check out the podcast! I think you’ll really enjoy it.
My patrons keep me honest and able to see and review as much as I do. Make sure you check out the patreon for perks, exclusive reviews and to be part of our monthly events and watch alongs. If you value honest criticism check it out. Find out more here.
Hi friends! I would just like to apologize for the lack of attention my written reviews have been getting lately. With working at KSL Movie Show reviews in other formats have been monopolizing all of my time. I have still been doing written reviews for theatre which you should check out but it just hasn’t been possible to write and make all the other content I need to make lately. But we do have blind spot and it was a fun pick for August. Manda had seen David Fincher’s Fight Club but I never had so we watched it and talked about it together.
This, of course, is one of those movies one hears about but for whatever reason I just hadn’t seen it. Given it was made in 1999 the year I started college I probably would have loved it if I had seen it back then. It’s fascinating how many movies were made during those late 90s years about work both dramatic and comedic in tone. It is definitely something that was on the mind at that time.
The thing about Fight Club is I don’t know if I needed it to have the added meta layer of Tyler Durden and the multiple personalities. If it had just been a fight club as a rebellion against office slavery it might have been enough? What do you think?
Still, I really enjoyed the movie and it was a lot of fun to talk about with Manda. It’s very well-made and acted and speaks to anyone who has been unhappy with the life they’ve been given. I mentioned on the pod that Fight Club really isn’t that different in themes and ideas from Office Space (a film I adore) which makes sense as they were both released the same year.
It’s also a great looking film and tightly edited making it not drag the way some of Fincher films can. Overall it’s a good and entertaining film with an intriguing premise that invites debate and discussion. It’s certainly one I’m glad to have checked off my blind spot list. (I like it much better than Gone Girl...)
My patrons keep me honest and able to see and review as much as I do. Make sure you check out the patreon for perks, exclusive reviews and to be part of our monthly events and watch alongs. If you value honest criticism check it out. Find out more here.
First thing I want to apologize for not posting this in July. Lately I’ve been so focused on the podcast and being on KSL Movie Show that I admit to letting my written work fall to the wayside. I guess on the plus this episode of the Blind Spot Project did very well which makes me happy. Thanks to any who listened/watched
July’s entry in the series is the supernatural rom-com from 1958 Bell, Book and Candle. What intrigued me about this film is on the Hallmark show Good WitchCassie’s store is called the Bell, Book and Candle. It’s also interesting that its stars Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak also starred in Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo that same year. They even both have superstitious elements but one is played for romance and laughs and one for thrills.
As far as Bell, Book and Candle it’s a cute romantic comedy. I am sure that Practical Magic was heavily influenced by it as well as other films that merge spooky aesthetics with romance. The plot centers around Novak’s character who is a witch and witches in this world lose their power when they fall in love. Thinking she has control over her feelings she puts a hex on Stewart so he falls in love with her because she hates his fiancé played by Janice Rule. This does bring in some modern questions about agency but the movie doesn’t totally ignore them either and Novak pays a cost for her wrong actions.
Still, it’s a fun light-hearted film that I enjoyed watching. Novak and Stewart have good chemistry and Jack Lemmon and Hermione Gingold as fellow witches trying to help Novak make her decision about love and witchcraft. This is also a film that looks great with a cool 1950s style to it.
If you haven’t seen Bell, Book and Candle I recommend it and it is free to watch on Tubi.
My patrons keep me honest and able to see and review as much as I do. Make sure you check out the patreon for perks, exclusive reviews and to be part of our monthly events and watch alongs. If you value honest criticism check it out. Find out more here.
