Matt's Musings

The long President’s Day weekend brought us the first blockbuster of 2025 and some other new releases. Let’s dive in and see what we got. You can keep up with everything I’m watching by following me on Letterboxd @knighthawk7734. Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (Peacock) Starring: Renee Zellweger, Hugh Grant, Leo Woodall, Emma Thompson, and Chiwetel Ejofor Synopsis : It’s been nine years since our last Bridget Jones adventure, but Zellweger is still quite good in the part. This fourth installment comes straight to streaming and picks up a few years in the future where Bridget is a single mother to two small kids after Mark (Colin Firth) has passed away. She’s still single and closed off. Her friends, including Daniel (Grant) and her doctor (Thompson), encourage her to get on with her life. She goes back to work and eventually meets a handsome younger man (Woodall). Sparks fly, but it is it the right love connection? Zellweger is great here and the film hits a lot of familiar beats. B...

  We’re through President’s Day Weekend, and the flood of new shows currently sits at a trickle. But with the weather leaving you feeling more indoorsy, you might be wondering what’s worth checking out. Let this weekly post be your guide as I review the pilot and second episode of new scripted series this Winter. Don’t see a new show listed below? Check previous weeks. Mondays: The Hunting Party, Mondays at 10 p.m. on NBC (Premiered January 19) About: It’s usually not advisable to premier a show and wait three weeks for it to return. And yet, that’s what we got a couple times this week. The first is The Hunting Party, which got a debut behind a playoff football game in January and returned to its regular weekly timeslot on February 10. The series follows a secret, supermax prison where those sent to be housed are already believed to be dead. When an explosion sets them free, it becomes urgent to get them back in custody. A team is assembled, including a troubled FBI Profiler (Meli...

  The 97th Academy Awards take place on Sunday, March 2. The nominations were announced on January 23. In the run up to this year's awards, I'm looking at different races. Today, it's the race for actress. Best Actress Nominees: Cynthia Erivo, Wicked Karla Sophia Gascon, Emilia Perez Mikey Madison, Anora Demi Moore, The Substance Fernanda Torres, I'm Still Here About : Gascon has basically eliminated herself with the comments that came out. Despite her film leading the nominations, she has no shot. Erivo was great, but she is little more than a dark horse candidate here. The same is true of Torres, though she feels like a more realistic dark horse candidate. Still, those three feel like longshots (or no shots). But, the race comes down to Madison and Moore. Both were great and both have their fans. A tidal wave for Anora could put Madison on top. But I think it's Moore's year. She's won a number of awards leading up and she makes for a wonderful story. I...

We've made it to 2025, which means that films released in 2010 are now turning 15 years old. It's hard to believe how time flies, and it's even harder to believe some of the films on the list are now 15 years old.  The year 2010 marked the end of the first decade of a new Century. It was a year full of some engaging, iconic, and memorable films. As I look back at the year, I'm highlighting some films that have always stood out to me. I was surprised by the list, but it's five films that I couldn't move on without talking about. For each of the films that I'll highlight from the year, I'll be including a quote from the film, an image, and a bit of the reason it makes the list. It's always fun to look at these cinematic time capsules to remember the films we've gotten and to remember favorites we might not have seen for a while. So, check back each Sunday through March 23 for a film from 2010. Then keep coming back as I continue to look at annivers...

Throughout 2025 I'm turning my focus to Directors. They help craft the vision on screen that makes a movie work. This year I'm looking at five favorite films from 18 directors I admire and 10 films directed by different women that I have enjoyed. Join me Fridays and Saturdays throughout 2025 as we take this journey. Wonder Woman (2017) Starring : Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Connie Nielsen, and David Thewlis Director: Patty Jenkins About: I've been going through five films from 18 of my favorite directors, but interspersed will be 10 films from female directors. This is the second of those films, and one of the better superhero films of the last decade. This was part of the old DCEU, the origin story for Wonder Woman as played by Gadot, who first appeared in the Batman v Superman film. Gadot is great in this role and I really enjoyed the origin story here. Wonder Woman is a hero for which we haven't often seen the origin story, so this felt fresh. Wright and ...

  Throughout 2025 I'm turning my focus to Directors. They help craft the vision on screen that makes a movie work. This year I'm looking at five favorite films from 18 directors I admire and 10 films directed by different women that I have enjoyed. Join me Fridays and Saturdays throughout 2025 as we take this journey. Goodfellas (1990) Starring : Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco, and Paul Sorvino Director: Martin Scorsese About: Scorsese is a varied and prolific director. He continues today, but his roots go back to the 1960s. He's delivered a number of fascinating films. So, narrowing it down can be tricky. But for the final film in my Top 5, I had to go with one of his classics in Goodfellas . This is a quintessential mobster film and it's really well crafted. I love the drama and the way it's put together. The performances are strong, too, and there are some iconic moments. Liotta does some of his best work here as Henry Hill, the main cha...