Up first this week is Dark Winds: Season 3. I think it’s an underrated show and it continues strong into its third season. This season is 8 episodes and features a cameo from Executive Producers George R R Martin and Robert Redford which was neat. Season 3’s main story is about the death of a young Native boy and his missing friend. Leaphorn and Chee investigate the missing persons case which could be tied into an archeology site. The side story finds Bernadette Manuelito working with Border Patrol and a local town kingpin that might be running drugs out of his business. Both stories might have connections as well. What I love about the show is the setting and era. It takes place in the 1970s and the clothes and cars are awesome. They drive around in old trucks and cars and it really captures the era well. The acting is top-notch as well and if you are looking for something to fill the void left by Yellowstone and don’t watch Dark Winds, give it a try. I’ve never read the books the show is based on so I can’t tell you how accurate to the books the show is, but I enjoy the series and will continue to watch future seasons.
Second we have Clown in a Cornfield. I got the cool 4K Steelbook package. It’s a solid flick, but it’s not quite what I expected. It’s more of a horror-comedy than I thought it would be. It reminded me of It’s a Wonderful Knife which isn’t a bad thing because I did like that film, but I thought this would be more of a full blown slasher than what it is. I was interested in it because Kevin Durand and Will Sasso are in the cast and I like both of them a lot. It’s about a teenaged girl and her doctor dad who move to a small town because he’s becoming the town’s doctor. She quickly learns that the town is a bit off and a group of teens take her under their wings. She’s immediately in trouble and the kids seem to always find themselves getting caught by the cops or in trouble with their teacher. She learns of weird stuff that happened in the town and soon a celebratory night goes sideways and this is where there’s some great kills and gore. You can probably guess who’s involved, but I didn’t mind. There’s just enough there to hold your attention and the horror aspects are good. The Steelbook 4K is pretty sweet with a fun Steelbook packaging and magnets! I can see the film gaining more and more of a cult following through the years.
I’m a big fan of Bridesmaids. I think Spy is one of the most underrated comedies of the past ten years. The makers of Bride Hard clearly felt similar and decided to combine the two movies and replace Melissa McCarthy with Rebel Wilson. Wilson plays a spy whose best friend is getting married and she’s the Maid of Honor. When a mission interrupts the bachelorette party, she’s replaced by another friend and isn’t even expected to be at the wedding. She shows up and it’s a good thing she does because the rich family event is about to be taken over by bad guys and Rebel Wilson is there to save the day. On paper and with the right cast maybe it could work, but unfortunately the film falls flat. There are a couple of laughs, but you spend most of the time laughing AT the movie, not WITH it. It came and went at the box office and I can see why. Wilson does her best, but it needed someone like Melissa McCarthy, Rose Byrne or Kristen Wiig to do most of the heavy lifting.
Proof of the Man is a late 1970s Japanese film which sees a young black man from New York get killed in Japan outside a fashion show. When an accident kills a woman and a pocket watch is left behind as a clue to the killer, both cases get connected. The fashion designer sends her son to New York to escape his accident and soon the New York police is involved as well. The Japanese investigator flies to New York and teams up with George Kennedy and soon realizes the murdered black man has a secret past to Japan, Kennedy and the fashion designer. It’s a bit much, but it’s well made and definitely fits the 70s aesthetic. The clothing and cars are great for the time period and the story goes back decades in layers. I wasn’t familiar with the movie, but I thought it was a pretty solid crime drama and was surprised to see Kennedy in it. It comes with commentary, trailers, a new introduction and more.
Paw Patrol has a new set of episodes out this week on DVD, Paw Patrol: Fire Rescue. Obviously what a grown man thinks of this is irrelevant so I always go by what my nieces and nephews would think. My 7 year old great-nephew has outgrown the show/movies, but my 4 year old great-niece would still like it. It’s a little over 2 hours of family wholesomeness which I appreciate. I’ve seen enough of the show and movies to recognize some of the characters like Marshall. The show has been a solid hit for Nickelodeon since it first came out and I understand why. It’s genuinely family friendly and I like the fact that the fire fighter and police dogs give kids positive looks at first responders. As a childless adult it’s clearly not for me, but the target audience will eat it up and parents won’t hate watching it with their children.
Last we have NCIS The Twenty-Second Season. This might have come out last week and I may have screwed up the release date. It worked out for me because it gave me more time to watch it. At one point NCIS was my mom’s favorite show, but then most of the original cast left and to her it’s not the same. It’s always been a show I watched simply to review, but I understood why she enjoyed it especially when Mark Harmon was on it. She does like Gary Cole and Katrina Law, but she’s never been a fan of Wilmer Valderrama. Season 22 consists of 5 discs featuring 20 episodes. Season 22 had special guests that included Matthew Lawrence, LL Cool J, Melina Kanakaredes and Sara Paxton. Episodes include investigations into the murder of a forensic scientist, the murder of a bakery employee, a Venezuelan undercover agent is poisoned, a squatter is found dead in the home of a Navy SEAL, the murders of veterans in a motel room and more. At this point it is on tried & true autopilot storytelling mode and fans still watch it although it doesn’t quite get the ratings it did with Gibbs running things.
The Nerds Templar 