Year: 2021

With the arrival of the holidays, it’s time to get ready for a Christmas stocking chock full of new movies, both in theaters and online. So what are the best selections in Santa’s big bag of cinema? Find out on a special holiday edition of The Good Media Network’s Frankiesense & More video podcast with yours truly and special guest host Danielle Findlay. Tune in Thursday December 23 at 2 pm ET on Facebook Live, available by clicking here, for a lively discussion of new releases worth seeing. And, as always, you can always catch the show on demand! ...

Reviews of “Belfast,” “House of Gucci” and “The Last Right,” along with podcast and magazine article previews, are all in the latest Movies with Meaning post on the web site of The Good Media Network, available by clicking here ...

“The Last Right” (2019 production, 2021 release). Cast: Michiel Huisman, Niamh Algar, Samuel Bottomley, Brian Cox, Colm Meaney, Michael McElhatton, Eleanor O’Brien, Jim Norton, Julie Sharkey, Catherine Byrne, Aidan O’Hare, Donough Deeney, Shashi Rami, Siobhan Owens. Director: Aoife Crehan. Screenplay: Aoife Crehan. Web site. Trailer. When it comes to doing right by someone in need, it generally should be fairly easy to determine what to do. Showing compassion and lending a helping hand are practices that come naturally to many of us. But how far should we go with this? What if we’re presented with a sizable request for assistance, one that could easily place quite a burden on us in our attempt at being a Good Samaritan? What’s more, what do we do when we’re faced with having to juggle several such scenarios simultaneously? Such are the circumstances unexpectedly thrust upon a would-be caring benefactor who suddenly finds himself overwhelmed by the pleas placed upon him, as seen in the endearing Irish comedy-drama, “The Last Right.” Irish-born lawyer Daniel Murphy (Michiel Huisman) has been steadily building a successful career in the US for years. In fact, he’s become so settled across the pond that America seems more like home ...

“Belfast” (2021). Cast: Jude Hill, Caitríona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Judi Dench, Ciarán Hinds, Lewis McAskie, Lara McDonnell, Josie Walker, Colin Morgan, Conor MacNeill, Olive Tennant, Vanessa Ifediora, Turlough Convery. Director: Kenneth Branagh. Screenplay: Kenneth Branagh. Web site. Trailer. Navigating the ways of the world during our youth can be quite a challenge. When surrounded by the unfamiliar and new, virtually everything can present an opportunity for learning, a process that is sometimes confusing and bewildering. But it can also be a time of wondrous eye-opening revelation, and it can be made easier when we’re in the company of loving and supportive family and friends, as seen in the heartwarming new semi-autobiographical memoir, “Belfast.” Such are the circumstances of nine-year-old Buddy (Jude Hill), the younger of two sons born to working class parents (Caitríona Balfe, Jamie Dornan) in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Buddy lives in a tight-knit neighborhood that’s home to his extended family and assorted friends. Everyone gets along just fine, despite whatever differences might distinguish them, making for a harmonious and happy environment, an ideal setting for nurturing little ones as they grow up. But suddenly and quite unexpectedly, that sense of peace is shattered, irrevocably changing the nature of ...

Tune in for the latest Cinema Scribe segment on Bring Me 2 Life Radio, Tuesday, December 14, at 2 pm ET, by clicking here. And, if you don’t hear the show live, catch it later on demand on Spreaker, Spotify, Apple, iHeartRadio, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Deezer, Podchaser and Jiosaavn ...

Want to help promote book reading in your neighborhood? Here’s a thought — check out if there’s a Little Free Library in your neighborhood! The program offers participants an opportunity to borrow or contribute books for free from little fencepost-mounted stands that hold a small but diverse inventory of titles on a wide array of subjects. I did my part by contributing a copy of the first edition of my debut book, Get the Picture?!: Conscious Creation Goes to the Movies, in my Lincoln Park neighborhood Little Free Library. Join the world’s largest free book sharing movement! Thanks to my partner Trevor Laster for snapping the photos ...