The Fantastic Four just can’t seem to pull it off on the big screen. This latest installment, directed by Josh Trank, is the fourth film and third reboot from Fox Studios in its ongoing effort to build a franchise around these characters. Unfortunately, the film falls far short of capturing the thrills, humor, and sense of adventure that has been the hallmark of Marvel’s First Family for more than 50 years.
A couple weeks back, I talked about my quest to find a summer TV fling. As you’ll recall, I was discouraged. The Whispers was too dumb to be enjoyable. Wayward Pines, while sufficiently ridiculous, failed to do anything interesting with all its weirdness. And the less said about this season of True Detective the better. Then I found Mr. Robot, an unexpected delight from the USA network of all places.
Sen. Bernie Sanders is not boring. That’s the thesis — and title — of a recent Funny or Die video starring comedian James Adomian. The two-minute video, released on the comedy website on June 22, has since gone viral, making Adomian the early front-runner for best Sanders impression of the 2016 election cycle.
Given the torturous history of its production. I was unsure what to expect going into Ant-Man, the latest installation in Marvel’s vast universe of films. In development for more than a decade, with multiple script rewrites and a very public change in directors, there was a lot to be nervous about. Sitting in the theater last Thursday, however, my fears were quickly allayed. Rest easy, true believers; Ant-Man is pretty darn good.
When Seinfeld premiered in July of 1989, critics and audiences didn’t quite know what to make of it. Everything about it ran counter to what traditional sitcoms looked like up to that point. The characters were self-absorbed and petty. The tone was often cold and mean spirited. Episodes featured mundane stories with low-stakes conflict. It was also funny and smarter than just about anything on TV at the time.
The Plaid Crew 