Tag: film

The End of Oak Street (2026)

Post author By Mark A. Lester
Post date August 15, 2026
1 Comment on The End of Oak Street (2026)

Since I never got around to seeing the TV series Lost and only a few years ago finally got caught up with all the Mission: Impossible films, the first time I remember seeing J.J. Abrams was for the 2011, now nearly forgotten gem Super 8.

That film (starring upcoming future star Elle Fanning) was an original nostalgia trip into late 1970s sci-fi (a true precursor to Stranger Things). It was no surprise to me, then, when I found out Abrams was one of the main producers of The End of Oak Street (granted, it is in the early 80s, but that is not far off).

Tags Anne Hathaway, Christian Convery, Dinosaurs, Ewan McGregor, film, J.J. Abrams, Jurassic Park, Jurassic World, Movies, PG-13, Rated PG-13, The End of Oak Street

4 1/2 Stars

Disclosure Day (2026)

With his latest feature, I found out (thanks to the marvel that is Letterboxd) that I have seen 30 films helmed by Steven Spielberg, tying for the most I’ve seen by anyone (tied with the only person I consider superior, Alfred Hitchcock).

Why bring this up? As arguably the most well-known filmmaker of the last half-century, one might think that we would see some familiarities in Spielberg’s work by now. When his most recent film, Disclosure Day, started up, I knew nothing outside of what everyone else did: that it had to do with Aliens. Imagine my surprise when the first thing we see is…well, not at all what I could have had on my radar (and certainly nothing I can remember seeing in a Spielberg film before). My guy still knows how to surprise.

Tags 2026, David Koepp, Disclosure Day, Emily Blunt, film, Janusz Kaminski, John Williams, Josh O' Connor, Movies, PG-13, Rated PG-13, reviews, Sci-Fi, Science Fiction, Steven Spielberg

2 Stars

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu (2026)

Post author By Mark A. Lester
Post date May 23, 2026
2 Comments on Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu (2026)

Not too long a time ago, in a galaxy not far away, The Mandalorian TV show was to Disney+ what Stranger Things was to Netflix.

With both shows being part of the select few I have had time to watch over the years (I really need to get going on season two of Andor), these two shows did manage to have their first seasons be borderline brilliant, only to falter in their third. Various ingredients were added to each (including the superfluous Boba Fett series), but at least The Mandalorian ended its TV run after the third season. Well, until now.

Tags Disney, film, Movies, Pedro Pascal, PG-13, Rated PG-13, Star Wars, Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, The Mandalorian, The Mandalorian and Grogu

3 1/2 Stars

The Devil Wears Prada 2 (2026)

Post author By Mark A. Lester
Post date May 6, 2026
No Comments on The Devil Wears Prada 2 (2026)

When The Devil Wears Prada came out in 2006, I had just graduated from high school.

Looking back, the reason I never got around to seeing the film in the theater was a mixture of work (had to save up before college, obviously), still being under the spell of Roger Ebert (who did not like the original much), virtually no knowledge of fashion magazines, and other forgotten factors that led me to simply never seeing the films until…honestly, a few years ago.

Tags 2026, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, film, Meryl Streep, Movie Reviews, Movies, PG-13, Rated PG-13, Stanley Tucci, The Devil Wears Prada, The Devil Wears Prada 2

2 Stars

Michael (2026)

As Michael started, I found myself guessing I knew no more than approximately 20% about the King of Pop.

By the end, I would bump that up to roughly 25-30%.

Tags Colman Domingo, film, Jafaar, Jafaar Jackson, Michael, Michael Jackson, Movie Review, Movie Reviews, Movies, music biopic, PG-13, Rated PG-13, reviews

2 Stars

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026)

Post author By Mark A. Lester
Post date April 4, 2026
1 Comment on The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026)

“From the simplicity of sidescrolling and jumping to race karts and nearly every imaginable sport to galaxies and odysseys, Mario knows no bounds.”

This I said back in my review of the first film in 2023, and it still rings true today. One could say that the first film was a setup for this second film to be the payoff (T2: Judgment Day, The Dark Knight, etc.), but only in following the same formula as before: more fan service, less story structure.

Tags Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Chris Pratt, Donald Glover, film, Glen Powell, Jack Black, Mario, Movie Reviews, Movies, nintendo, PG, Rated PG, Super Mario Bros, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Video Games

Mark's 21st Century Movie Milestones

Number 9…

Months ago, my friends and I had a night where we had fun making power point presentations on anything we wanted.

I generated positive feedback for my presentation as I managed to dream cast our cohorts into Disney characters. While I did not do a slide for myself, I was asked at the end which character I would best associate with myself. As someone who does not do well socially all the time but is also a hopeless romantic who yearns for romance, I easily identified with the titular character of my favorite Disney/Pixar film to date, WALL-E.

Tags 2008, Animation, Disney, Disney/Pixar, film, Movie Milestones, Movies, Pixar, WALL E, WALL-E

1 1/2 Stars

Lilo & Stitch (2025)

While I never saw the full movie, I saw enough clips on YouTube to see why most people agree movie remakes don’t get as unnecessary (let alone bad) as 1998’s remake of the Hitchcock masterpiece Psycho.

Apparently, when asked why he did the (nearly) shot for shot remake in the first place, director Gus Van Sant responded “So no one else had to.” This mindset is the only silver lining I can think of for Disney with their live action remakes, whether good or bad, and the remake of Lilo & Stitch falls in the latter category.

3 Stars

Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning (2025)

Post author By Mark A. Lester
Post date May 24, 2025
No Comments on Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning (2025)

Recently, the married couple of my church went on a (much deserved) sabbatical. I also learned that their three sons (who are amazing) are fans of sorts of the Mission Impossible movies.

Well, by the time they come back from their sabbatical, I may finally be able to explain the plot of Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning.

Tags 2025, Action, Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, Esai Morales, film, Greg Tarzan Davis, Harold Lloyd, Hayley Atwell, Mission Impossible, Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning, Mission: Impossible, Movies, PG-13, Pom Klementieff, Rated PG-13, Simon Pegg, Tom Cruise, Ving Rhames

Movies

Mickey 17 (2025)

I never thought I would say this, but I am now steadily considering watching the Twilight series.

The casting of Robert Pattinson of Edward Cullen (as well as his relationship with co-star Kristen Stewart) was thankfully not the first I had seen or heard of him (he of course was Cedric Diggory in the Potterverse), but it was not until the last few years in films like The Lighthouse (2019), The Batman (2022), and (in voice over) The Boy and the Heron (2023), that I realized the obvious truth: he is a rather proficient actor.