Boldly Going Beyond: “Star Trek Beyond” Review

Star Trek Beyond premiered on July 22nd. It’s the third movie in the “Kelvin Timeline,” as Paramount is now calling the films produced by J.J. Abrams. I saw it in 2D on a Thursday night, then again in 3D on Saturday. I haven’t seen a movie more than once in theaters in a long time, perhaps not since Star Trek Into Darkness. When it was revealed that Simon Pegg was co-writing  and Justin Lin was directing, I breathed a sigh of relief. Star Trek Into Darkness was a movie that appeared to be a good film initially, but that the fandom later trashed. With a change in writing and direction, I was ready to enjoy Star Trek Beyond and I was not disappointed.

Captain Kirk (Chris Pine)

In Memoriam: Anton Yelchin

When celebrities die, some feel a sense of loss because the individual in question was an icon. But there are a few individuals that evoke something more than that, as if they were almost family. That is the category I would have put Anton Yelchin in, who tragically died today at the age of 27 from a car accident.

Resoundingly Okay: “Odd Thomas” a Review

Netflix is kind of a way of life at this point.  I, and more than a couple of friends and coworkers, have described our weekend plans as being horizontal and Netflixing; see, Netflix is now more than just a noun.  This weekend, while I was spending more than an appropriate amount of time playing hermit with my dog, I came across Odd Thomas on Netflix.  Netflix informed me that Anton Yelchin starred in it, so I thought it might be worth watching, because, well, I like Anton Yelchin as an actor, and there are probably far worse things to waste time watching.  At the end of a couple hours I was neutral, leaning toward positive.  I guess that’s not a resounding endorsement, but for a movie that got no theatrical release that I heard of, it’s completely watchable, when it’s for free.  Also, Willem Dafoe is in it and I can watch him almost anytime because even when a movie’s bad, he’s still Willem Dafoe.  *This contains spoilers.*