Finished Netflix's DEATH BY LIGHTNING. A really incredible true story with some truly titanic acting from the likes of Michael Shannon, Nick Offerman, Betty Gilpin, Shea Whigham, Bradley Whitford, and Matthew Macfadyen. . A lot to unpack here, and a lot of parallels that can be drawn to today.

The writer thing where you're like: "I've got this really great idea, it's super commercial too!" And then you start writing and you're like "yeah but what if I make this super WEIRD."

I tried pizza from Pizza Wagon of Brooklyn last night, due to your recommendation. And I agree - one of the best pizzas I've had in LA!

OSCARS THOUGHTS: Really enjoyed this year's Oscars. I only got only 13 of 24 picks correct on my ballot, but as I said in my predictions blog, I loved so many of this past year's movies - and so was really happy for all the winners.

Today is Long COVID Awareness Day. I’m glad we have this because there is still a real lack of awareness, even from people like doctors. Long COVID needs more research. We need better treatments urgently. But in the short term we need empathy, understanding, education, and accommodation.

“It’s so crucial to eliminate dissenting views. So there is no political split in our country. You love your motherland out of obligation. Like how you love your mother.” A teacher in Russia, to his elementary school students. Documented in the Oscar-nominated MR. NOBODY VS PUTIN. A must watch.

Amelia Dimoldenberg and Conan O'Brien - a hilarious combo. "You look like a sad Victorian child?" www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqdE...

As is tradition, I have written up my thoughts on and predictions for this year's Oscars. Click the link for the full blog post, and let me know who you think will come out on top in the 2026 Oscars! allnewallawesome.blogspot.com/2026/03/osca...

Pre-Oscars re-watch of SINNERS, on 4K disc. So much to love about this movie. I almost wonder if all the Oscar attention sort of clouds the fact that, at the end of the day, this is at its core a hell of an action-horror movie and a great vampire tale. Can’t wait to see what Coogler does next.

STARFLEET ACADEMY was much like the teenage characters it featured - sort of awkward and going through growing pains. But when it finally achieved its true potential and reached for the sky … it soared. What I’m saying is - the show absolutely knocked its first season finale out of the park!

Very scary situation today in Michigan. A reminder that antisemitism is real, it is spreading, and that hate or violence directed at Jewish people because they happen to be Jewish is never warranted.

Never forget. Denial is Trump's approach to everything.

At the grocery store they now have Doritos flavored like Lays potato chips (ex: cheddar and sour cream) and Lays chips flavored like Doritos (ex: cool ranch). It took literally every fiber of my being to not buy these. But if anyone does sample them, please report back how they were.

A good summation - from Senator Whitehouse - of the connections between Trump, Russia, and Epstein. This isn't conspiracy theory. This is reality. Trump is Russia's puppet because he is compromised by the Epstein Files.

Is there a BlueSky account with just Reggie Dinkins quotes yet ...? If not, there should be!

Picked up the THE WAR comic book TPB written by Garth Ennis. A fantastic but incredibly disturbing read, especially in light of current events. The book is a starkly grounded, realistic depiction of a modern-day nuclear war, told through the eyes of ordinary people living through it. Nightmare fuel.

MIDWINTER BREAK is a nice, smaller-scale movie about an older couple dealing with life, marriage, aging, religion, relationships, and still trying to change in one's 70's. Ciarán Hinds and Lesley Manville are excellent in it, and both excel at creating these lived-in, nuanced characters.

Me this weekend: I’m exhausted from the week. it’s daylight savings time … I should really go to sleep early. Also me this weekend: what if I dove into the 2010’s Tomb Raider games …?

Gorillaz played “Clint Eastwood” on SNL! Millennials desperately needed this.

THE BRIDE is a wild, fever dream of a movie that is elevated by an electric lead performance from the great Jessie Buckley. It’s a bit all over the map tonally, but the best moments really pop and I can appreciate the big swing. And Buckley’s unbridled, righteous rage felt cathartic in this moment.

The new Chris Fleming comedy special on HBO Max is one of the funniest stand-up specials I’ve seen in a long, long time. There are a lot of comics I really enjoy at the moment, but Fleming is such a burst of originality and delightful insanity. A must watch!

Really enjoyed HOPPERS a lot overall. It's got a fun, zany plot - but there's also some real thematic and emotional weight to the story. Also: while the animation isn't as overtly eye-popping as a Zootopia 2, the character details are really amazing. The kind of stuff that AI could never replicate.

Sociopaths are not morally equipped to lead us into war.

It felt like a lot of the pieces really fell into place in this week's STARFLEET ACADEMY, the penultimate S1 ep. This felt like the template of how to do a really strong episode of this series. I had a good feeling when I saw "directed by Jonathan Frakes" at the beginning, too.

Helped to launch another batch of new-to-digital films last week. Including: - The Ipcress File - The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid - Sometimes a Great Notion - The Seret War of Harry Frigg - Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here - The Frozen Ghost - Secret Ceremony - Mirage - Morocco - Shanghai Express

I was reading something about the PS3 game ENSLAVED: ODYSSEY TO THE WEST and how Alex Garland helped to write it and how it was sort of an overlooked cult classic. So I impulsively bought a copy, hooked up my PS3 ... and can confirm, it seriously rules.

It must be really hard working in a professional kitchen what with all the spies and secret agents in hot pursuit of bad guys constantly running through smashing up all your shit.

Slowly been catching up on THE BEAR, and wow, S4 Ep7 (the wedding episode) is a master class. Best of the series so far? The number of great performances in this episode is insane.

Oh man, finally caught up on the first few episodes of THE FALL AND RISE OF REGGIE DINKINS - starring Tracy Morgan and Daniel Radcliffe - and ... it's amazing! The jokes are 30 Rock levels of sharp and hilarious. I was laughing from start to finish and there is so much great, quotable writing here.

100%. 100%. 100%.

Also watched a movie I'd been curious about for a while - THE PALE BLUE EYE on Netflix, where Christian Bale plays an investigator in the 1830's who teams up with Edgar Allan Poe (Harry Melling) to solve an occult-ish crime. A great vibes movie, even if the mystery drags a bit. Fantastic cast too.

Watched the movie WICKER PARK for the first time. Does this movie have a cult following? It seems like it should? It's a huge swing that's sort of "what if Mulholland Drive, but soapy and YA adjacent?" The cast is excellent - Josh Hartnett, Rose Byrne, Diane Kruger. A sorta clunky but fun film.

Everything Trump does - even a war with Iran - must be viewed through the lens of his own desperate need for self-preservation. We need to understand that this entire effort was carried out under bad faith and false pretense. Hopefully some good at least comes out of it for the Iranian people.

I found SCREAM 7 to be a lot of fun, and it was supremely entertaining to watch with a packed audience. I missed Ortega and Barrera, but this one is a great showcase for the always-awesome Neve Campbell, who is an undeniable *star.* I have a few gripes, but this was a really good time at the movies.

My brain has so many concerns about the WB deal. My heart keeps coming back to one of them: I just want Superman to be in good hands, because we really need that right now.

The one thing I will say is that there is room for NEW media companies. Studios like A24 and Neon are growing. Mubi is doing cool stuff. Support these studios, see their movies in theaters, etc. We can speak with our dollars to fight monopolies.

We should all be very worried about what impact & influence Trump had on Paramount ultimately winning the bid to own WB. We've seen what's happened to CBS News and Colbert under the new Paramount leadership. What's next for CNN? This is potentially a very dark day for entertainment, media, and news.

Finally got around to starting DEATH BY LIGHTNING on Netflix. Wow, that first episode is an incredible hour of television. The great Michael Shannon at the absolute top of his game. Anyone with even a passing interest in American history … check it out!

Post: "Millennials, what's a movie, TV show, or game that you're conviced that only you remember?" Replies: "The absolute most popular pop-culture things from the 90's that were each consumed by literally millions and millions of people."

I Saw The TV Glow made me a fan of writer/director Jane Schoenbrun, and this looks like that but ratcheted up to 11. Lynch-ian weirdness, 80's/90's nostalgia, Gillian Anderson?! Sign me up! www.youtube.com/watch?v=MA5N...

Many of the people in Trump's orbit, from Melania to Marco Rubio, appear as if they are being held hostage at the State of the Union. They probably are.

Where we're at with Trump is now beyond the pale. For the sake of our country and its people, you can't help but hope for some sort of positive change or turnaround signalled by tonight's State of the Union. But it's not going to happen.

Good lord. We all know this man is guilty. This is the most blatant and obvious and right-there-in-front-of-our-faces cover-up in history. It's barely even a cover-up. There's literally no reason to give him the benefit of the doubt on anything (attn: Dems, media, Republican supporters, etc.).

Working on the business side of the entertainment industry has trained me that responses must be FAST. If I don't respond to an email within a few hours, let alone a day, it's bad form. And yet - communications in the creative side of my life are so, so SLOW. Days, weeks, months to get responses.

First time watch of Jane Campion's BRIGHT STAR. A unique film that is ostensibly a period piece romance, but is actually more sort of a period-piece hangout movie. Like A Complete Unknown but in the 1820's. The casting is also pretty interesting, with Ben Whishaw as leading man.

KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS … what a great first season. I wish it was longer - this feels like the kind of show that could support 20 eps per season and just have new standalone adventures each week. But, what we got was fantastic and I hope the wait for S2 isn’t too long.

Enjoyed HOW TO MAKE A KILLING. Played to Glen Powell's strengths, and made great use of Margaret Qualley as well. A lot of fun supporting turns too, from Ed Harris, Zach Woods, Topher Grace, Jessica Henwick, etc. Would have been interesting had it leaned more into the noir of it all. But very solid.

First time watch of Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN. A very raw, pull no punches coming-of-age film with a lot going on. Amazing how this launched the careers of Alfonso Cuaron and stars Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal. You can see why. It’s a statement movie that remains totally unique in vision and voice.

FB Memories reminded me that, 14 years ago, I saw The Darkness in concert at the (now sadly gone) House of Blues in Hollywood. The opener was an unknown-to-me band called FOXY SHAZAM, and they proceeded to blow my mind. Glad they got so much well-deserved attention this past year via Peacemaker!

RIP to the great Tom Noonan - one of my all-time favorite character actors, and a man who played the creepy villain better than almost anyone. I had probably seen him in a bunch of random roles before 2009's House of the Devil, but that movie is what solidified him, for me, as one of the greats.