Stacy's Blog Has Got It Going On

 "Something's off about this place, Shawn.  People keep looking at me like I'm the first black man they've seen." -Gus This episode of Psych is an homage to Twin Peaks  and makes a ton of references to the show and has a bunch of Twin Peaks actors in guest starring roles.  If you're a Twin Peaks fan and haven't seen this episode, you should give it a watch. The episode follows a pair of crime consultants, Shawn Spencer (James Roday), who lies to convince people he is psychic by using his impressive observational skills and his eidetic memory, and his best friend and business partner, Gus (Dulé Hill).  Shawn and Gus get a mysterious invitation to a cinnamon festival in the small and isolated town of Dual Spires.  Soon after they arrive, a teenage girl, Paula Merral (Kiara LeBlanc), is found dead on a beach, wrapped in plastic.  Shawn and Gus decide to investigate her death and question all of the eccentric residents of Dual Spires in exchange for pie and ci

 "I protect the hive." -Adam Clay When Eloise Parker (Phylicia Rashad) loses all of her money in a phishing scam, her tenant, Adam Clay (Jason Statham), a beekeeper, sets out to get revenge on the scammers.  The perpetrators and the FBI agents investigating the case soon find out that beekeeper has a whole other violent meaning as Clay leaves a path of destruction in his wake. What Works: Bottom line, I like Jason Statham.  I always enjoy his performance no matter how bad the movie is.  Sure, he pretty much only plays the same character.  He can be a little goofier or a little more serious, but it's basically the same character.  I don't mind.  It's a character I enjoy.  He's fun in this movie and I like the way he dispenses justice.  He's an action star and he's good at what he does. The action is really fun.  This movie is rated R, so we get some creative, violent, and bloody kills.  Honestly, it's just fun watching Statham rampage on these villa

 "Marco?!" -Izzy Waller The Waller family moves into a new house with a pool after Ray Waller (Wyatt Russell) was forced to retire from baseball due to an illness.  Ray quickly discovers that the pool seems to be healing him, but the rest of the family becomes convinced that there is something terribly wrong with the pool. What Works: By far the best part of the movie is the visuals and cinematography.  They do a couple of really fun and interesting things.  For example, there is scene where Izzy is playing Marco Polo and when she doesn't get an answer, she opens her eyes slightly.  We get a POV shot from Izzy's perspective, but it looks like we're looking through eyelashes out at the pool.  It's a really cool and creative shot that makes the scene creepier because we don't get a clear view of what's in the pool, but we can see something.   Later on, the 3rd act of the movie gets pretty surreal as characters swim into the deep beyond the swimming pool.

 "I'm blank as a fart." -Jacques Renault The Twin Peaks movie follows two different storylines.  The first follows a pair of FBI agents investigating the murder of Teresa Banks (Pamela Gidley).  The second follows the last seven days in the life of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) as BOB (Frank Silva) closes in on her. What Works: As with all of the works of David Lynch that I've seen, I really like the surreal aspects.  His work often has a dreamlike feel and, in this case, it feels more like a nightmare.  The strange and otherworldly aspects of Twin Peaks are always interesting, even if I don't always know what they mean. I really like the first part of this movie with the two FBI agents investigating the murder of Teresa Banks.  I actually would have preferred if the whole movie had been about them.  Chris Isaak and Kiefer Sutherland play the agents and I really like both of them.  It's a little bit of the opposite of Twin Peaks .  When Agent Cooper (Kyle MacLachl

Normally, I do a 10 Worst Movies of the Year post, but I actually only saw 9 movies that I would consider bad enough to make this list.  So we'll do a 9 Worst Movies instead.  From Best to Worst, here is my list! #9. The Nun II I haven't liked any of The Conjuring spin-off movies and The Nun II is no exception.  This one has its moments with some good acting, fun kills, and an over-the-top 3rd act, but it doesn't save the movie from being mostly boring.  The story isn't very interesting, the characters are mostly thin, and the movie is overly reliant on jump scares.  It's not terrible, but mostly generic. #8. The Boogeyman Oh, look!  Another generic and unmemorable horror movie.  Again, the actors do a good job, I really like the opening sequence, and the cinematography and lighting are excellent.  The story this time is less boring and more hackneyed.  Just about everything in this movie I've seen before and seen it done better.  It's not a great adaptation

2023 is finally over and it's time for me to put my Top 10 list together.  2023 was definitely a weaker year for movies.  There were definitely some great movies, but there were also plenty of disappointing and bad movies as well.  I still managed to put together a great Top 10 with a couple of worthy contenders that just missed the cut.  Let's take a look! #10. They Cloned Tyrone They Cloned Tyrone is a wild and fun sci-fi tale that takes place in the hood.  A drug dealer, a pimp, and a prostitute discover a cloning conspiracy and the results are intelligent and hilarious.  This is a really smart and funny movie with some amazing performances across the board.  This was a movie that kept me guessing the whole way through.  What an absolute blast. #9. Renfield I'm guessing Renfield will be the most controversial entry on my list as I feel like I'm the only person who liked this movie.  I love the old Universal monster movies and the fact that we get a direct sequel, whi