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Summer TV Roundup, Week 4

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 We’re making our way through June which means a trickle compared to the normal flow of new series. But what of these new shows we’re getting is worth your time to check out? Let this weekly post be your guide as I review the pilot and second episode of new series this Summer. Don’t see a new show listed below? Check previous weeks. Thursdays: Surviving Earth, Thursdays at 8 p.m. on NBC (Premiered June 11) About: This new nature documentary looks at the history of Earth, its creatures, and the climate crisis of the past that impacted life on the planet. If you like documentaries and learning more about ancient creates, this will be in your wheel house. It’s entertaining enough with good re-creations. It feels like a piece of family-friendly, scientific and educational programming for the summer. Perhaps not the typical series you’d think of this time of year, but it works well enough for what it is. Pilot Grade : C+ Second Episode: C+ Fridays: The Listeners, Streaming Fridays on S...
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Trek at 60: Star Trek: First Contact

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This year Star Trek turns 60. For decades, it has enthralled and entertained audiences. Part of that legacy is 13 feature films. Over the next few weeks, I'll be looking back on each of the feature films in the franchise, including where I place them in my personal rankings! Captain Jean-Luc Picard : I will not sacrifice the Enterprise. We've made too many compromises already; too many retreats. They invade our space and we fall back. They assimilate entire worlds and we fall back. Not again. The line must be drawn here! This far, no further! And *I* will make them pay for what they've done! Star Trek: First Contact (1996) Franchise Ranking : 4 Starring : Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton, Brent Spiner, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, Michael Dorn, Alfre Woodard, James Cromwell, and Alice Krige Director : Jonathan Frakes About : I loved Star Trek: The Next Generation . It was a fun and engaging series over its seven-year run. But when it came to making feature f...
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2001 Rewind: Ocean's Eleven

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It's hard to believe, but 2001 was 25 years ago. Over the next few weeks I'm going to be looking at some stand out films from 2001 that are turning 25 in 2026. Today, it's a stylish re-make. Rusty : You look down, they know you're lying and up, they know you don't know the truth. Don't use seven words when four will do. Don't shift your weight, look always at your mark but don't stare, be specific but not memorable, be funny but don't make him laugh. He's got to like you then forget you the moment you've left his side. And for God's sake, whatever you do, don't, under any circumstances... Ocean's Eleven Starring : George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, and Julia Roberts Director : Steven Soderberg About : There's few films I can remember seeing that felt as stylish and cool as this re-make. And if you're going to re-make a film from The Rat Pack, you probably need that feeling of stylish and cool. I love the C...
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AFI 100 Years, 100 Movies: No. 54

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Back in 1998, the American Film Institute unveiled its list of the 100 greatest films as voted on by members of the cinematic community. The year, I'm looking at the films on that list, re-ranked according to my preference. Check back Fridays and Saturdays throughout the year as we walk through this list of classic films. Rufus T. Firefly : Gentlemen, Chicolini here may talk like an idiot, and look like an idiot, but don't let that fool you: he really is an idiot. I implore you, send him back to his father and brothers, who are waiting for him with open arms in the penitentiary. I suggest that we give him ten years in Leavenworth, or eleven years in Twelveworth. Duck Soup (1933) Original List Position : 85 Starring : Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx, Chico Marx, and Zeppo Marx Director : Leo McCarey About : It feels like no list of films that impacted American history would be complete without an entry from the Marx Brothers. Duck Soup is a fun and quirky film that fits the bill well. ...
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AFI 100 Years, 100 Movies: No. 55

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Back in 1998, the American Film Institute unveiled its list of the 100 greatest films as voted on by members of the cinematic community. The year, I'm looking at the films on that list, re-ranked according to my preference. Check back Fridays and Saturdays throughout the year as we walk through this list of classic films. Tracy Lord : The time to make up your mind about people is never. The Philadelphia Story (1940) Original List Position : 51 Starring: Katherine Hepburn, James Stewart, and Cary Grant Director: George Cukor About: This film lands at nearly the same spot on my list as on the original list. It actually moved up a bit, to 44, 10 years later. It's a classic screwball comedy and a good one. It earned an Academy Award for the script and for Stewart's performance. It's amazing to see three iconic actors of the time--Hepburn, Stewart, and Grant--all in the same film. It's a fun and engaging story, and the performances are solid, too. It makes for a good ...
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2026 Broncos' Season, Tight Ends

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The off-season is in full swing. We've seen free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft. Now, it's time to take stock of the roster and begin figuring out who will be the final 53 players to suit up for the Broncos during the 2026 NFL Season. Over the next few weeks, we'll be looking at each unit for the Broncos. Today, that continues with the tight ends. On the Roster : Evan Engram, Adam Trautman, Lucas Krull, Justin Joly, Nate Adkins, Dallen Bentley, and Caleb Lohner About : The tight end position is a big toss up at this point. Engram was a prize free agent signed last off-season to boost the offense. But it never really materialized. The Broncos brought back Trautman, a great blocker, and Krull, then added Joly and Bentley in the draft. They also have a development prospect in Lohner and a blocking specialist in Adkins. I don't think this team can keep more than four, and even that might be a stretch. Some could end up on the Practice Squad, but the big question is how Joly ...
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Now Playing

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 This week we had the new film from Steven Spielberg, as well as a few smaller releases. Below is my take on the new films I saw this week. You can keep up with everything I’m watching by following me on Letterboxd @knighthawk7734. Disclosure Day (Theaters) Starring : Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor, Eve Hewson, Colman Domingo, and Colin Firth Synopsis : Back in the 1990s, on the X-Files, the tagline was, “I Want to Believe.” I’d assume that concept resonates with Steven Spielberg. Dating back to his early work in the 1970s, extra-terrestrials have been a part of his cinematic landscape. One of his earliest hits, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, featured a man coming face-to-face with beings from another planet. He followed in the 1980s with ET, and later with a new version of War of the Worlds. This summer, he’s again returning to visitors from outer space with Disclosure Day. And it’s a vision of the subject and the world that is among his best films. We begin with Daniel (O’Connor...
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