A Dog’s Journey

— Young kids and cute canines. What more needs to be said about this follow-up to “A Dog’s Purpose”? It does what it does well, expertly manipulating viewers hearts and emotions for just a little longer than necessary. It’s fluff but I doubt anyone watching it is looking for more. [Netflix streaming.]

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[2010. 109 min. Directed by Gail Mancuso. Starring Josh Gad, Dennis Quaid, Kathryn Prescott, and Marg Helgenberger.]
https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/a-dogs-journey-2019

Love. Wedding. Repeat.

— A nicely casted, good looking romantic comedy/farce that just doesn’t make the grade. For the viewer, there’s a bit of embarrassment as situations you know are supposed to be worth a guffaw only bring a smirk or a shrug. Add to that one to many penis jokes, and you have something that just falls flat. [Netflix streaming.]

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[2020. 100 min. Directed by Dean Craig. Starring Sam Claflin, Olivia Munn, and Freida Pinto.]
https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/love-wedding-repeat-movie-review-2020

Unorthodox

— What a surprise! I remember when every educational film company was doing some kind of film on orthodox Judaism, probably around the time “Yentl” came out, and I previewed one too many of them. Then, a couple of years ago, the worth-seeing “Menashe” was in theaters. By then I thought I’d seen enough of such things and I shied away from Netflix’s “Unorthodox” thinking it was just another film focused on orthodox Judaism which, in a way, it is, but more importantly, it’s about an incredible act of rebellion. It’s the story of a Jewish girl who flees her arranged marriage to start a new life abroad, a daunting task for someone coming from so Orthodox a background. The production is meticulous and the details are fascinating. More importantly, the story transcends religion to become an heroic, coming of age story. [Netflix streaming.]

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[2020. 213 min., 4 episodes. Created by Anna Winger. Starring Shira Haas, Amit Rahav, and Jeff Wilbusch.]
https://www.rogerebert.com/streaming/netflixs-unorthodox-depicts-a-melancholic-escape

Tiger King

— For all the hubbub, this documentary/crime piece is pretty trashy and put together to trigger the same fascination we have with a 10-car pileup that leaves bodies by the side of the road. It’s a mixed genre series, a mishmash of true crime drama, reality TV, and biopic. I should have stopped during the first episode but, I confess, there is something weirdly fascinating about it and I watched the second episode before throwing in the towel. This really just isn’t worthwhile.[Netflix streaming.]

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[2020. 317 min., 8 episodes. Series directed by Rebecca Chaiklin and Eric Goode. With Joe Exotic, Carole Baskin, John Reinke, Kelci Saffery, John Finlay, Rick Kirkham, and Erik Cowie.]
https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/tiger-king-movie-review-2020