December 31, 2022
Another big ole batch... Apologies for only working on movie reviews at this given time. I'm pretty adamant (at the moment) to rewatch and rewrite everything...
Rewrites:
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2004) A (was A-)
Midnight Cowboy (1969) A (was A+)
Roger & Me (1989) A (was B+)
Alphaville (1965) A- (no change)
Heat (1995) A- (was B-)
What's Up Doc? (1971) A- (was B+)
Barefoot in the Park (1967) B+ (was C+)
Mermaids (1990) B+ (no change)
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) B+ (was B)
The Usual Suspects (1995) B+ (was A)
Blue Crush (2002) B (no change)
Family Man (2000) B- (was B+)
F/X (1986) B- (was B)
Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) B- (was B+)
The Pallbearer (1996) C+ (was B+)
Sidekicks (1993) C+ (was B)
F/X 2 (1991) C (was C-)
Encino Man (1992) C (was B-)
Maid in Manhattan (2002) C (was C+)
Bedazzled (2000) C- (was C+)
Pearl Harbor (2001) C- (was C+)
Spies Like Us (1985) D+ (was C-)
Staying Alive (1983) D+ (was C-)
Teaching Mrs. Tingle (1999) D+ (no change)
The Hot Chick (2002) D (was C-)
Problem Child (1990) D- (was D)
New Reviews:
Cinema Paradiso (1988) A+
The Mummy (1999) B+
A Star is Born (1954) B+
Ford v Ferrari (2019) B
Hell House LLC (2015) B
Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) B
Meet Joe Black (1998) B-
Mouse Hunt (1997) B-
Age of Summer (2018) C
December 10, 2022
Another batch of movie reviews... Lagging about six months behind now. As much as it doesn't make sense, I prioritize writing the first drafts of reviews I'd seen recently rather than re-editing them and uploading them . . . whether or not that's a good thing to do, I don't know. Then of course I lose interest for long periods of time. Anyway, this particular batch mainly came from a period when I wasn't rewatching movies just so that I could re-evaluate them. Getting all those reviews rewritten is still something I'm going to try to get completed within the next year or two. (As much as it's a blast to rewatch movies that I'd last seen when I rented them from VHS when I was in high school . . . I'm looking forward to getting that completed.)
Rewrites:
The Last Picture Show (1971) A+ (no change)
Heaven Can Wait (1978) A (no change)
Housekeeping (1987) A- (was B+)
Cold Turkey (1971) B+ (was A-)
Freddy Got Fingered (2001) B+ (was C+)
Meet the Parents (2000) B- (was B+)
The Air Up There (1993) C+ (was B)
Junior (1994) C+ (no change)
The Beverly Hillbillies (1993) C (was B-)
Bye Bye Love (1995) C- (was D)
Cocoon: The Return (1988) C- (was B-)
Meet the Fockers (2004) C- (was C)
New Reviews:
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1967) A
The Northman (2022) A
West Side Story (2021) A
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) A-
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) A-
Salome's Last Dance (1988) A-
Hustle (2022) B+
Mr. Freedom (1968) B+
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970) B
Bill & Ted Face the Music (2020) B
Bio-Dome (1996) B
The Devils (1971) B
Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022) B
House of Gucci (2021) B
The Imposter (2012) B
Our Father (2022) B
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) B-
There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane (2011) B-
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021) B-
Ernest Saves Christmas (1988) C+
Death on the Nile (2022) C
Carpool (1996) C-
The Lost City (2022) C-
Marry Me (2022) C-
The Flatliners (2017) D+
Little Fockers (2010) D
Blithe Spirit (2020) D
November 27, 2022
Rewrites:
Paper Moon (1973) A (no change)
Jerry Maguire (1996) A- (was A)
Ordinary People (1980) A- (no change)
Cast Away (2000) B+ (no change)
Private Benjamin (1981) B+ (was A-)
Smokey and the Bandit (1977) B+ (was B-)
Stripes (1981) B+ (no change)
Corpse Bride (2005) B (was B+)
Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) B (was B-)
National Lampoon's Vacation (1983) B (was B+)
Can't Buy Me Love (1987) C- (was B-)
National Lampoon's Vacation (1985) C- (was C)
Monster-in-Law (2005) D+ (was C)
Wild Wild West (1999) D (was C-)
New Reviews:
The Lobster (2015) A+
The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) A-
One Million Years B.C. (1940) B
Schizoid (1980) C+
Grumpier Old Men (1995) C
The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker (1959) C
Smokey and the Bandit 2 (1980) D-
Smokey and the Bandit Part 3 (1983) D-
November 25, 2022
Sainthood (2009) 13/15
For some reason, this was a tough review for me to write...but I took it slowly. Up next ... not sure!
--M.L.
November 1, 2022
Killing Me Softly (1973) 12/15
Sorry as always for the sporadic reviewing. I guess I always have to wait for the itch to strike me again. Going to see how I feel about continuing to upload movie reviews and the capsule reviews.
--M.L.
July 23, 2022
Rewrites:
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) A+ (no change)
Strictly Ballroom (1992) A (no change)
My Brilliant Career (1979) A- (was A+)
The Ring (2002) A- (was B+)
After Hours (1985) B+ (was A)
King Kong (2005) B (was B+)
Rush Hour (1998) B (was B+)
The Center of the World (2001) B- (was F)
Grumpy Old Men (1993) B- (was B)
My Dog Skip (2000) B- (was C)
Along Came Polly (2004) C+ (was D+)
Rush Hour 2 (2001) C+ (was B)
The Forgotten (2004) C- (was C+)
Abandon (2002) D+ (was D)
New Reviews:
Paris, Texas (1984) A+
Inherit the Wind (1960) A
The Blair Witch Project (1999) A-
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) A-
Straight Time (1978) A-
Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002) B+
Butley (1974) B+
The Missouri Breaks (1976) B
High Society (1956) B-
Rembrandt (1936) B-
Scissors (1991) B-
Gabriel Over the White House (1933) C+
Rush Hour 3 (2007) D+
July 17, 2022
Rewrites:
Citizen Kane (1941) A+ (no change)
Arthur (1981) A (no change)
Lawrence of Arabia (1962) A (was A+)
Napoleon Dynamite (2004) A (was A-)
Gunga Din (1939) A- (was A)
School of Rock (2003) B+ (no change)
Scrooged (1988) B+ (was B)
Sin City (2005) B+ (was A)
Forrest Gump (1994) B (was A+)
Meatballs (1999) B (was C+)
Miss Congeniality (2000) B- (was B)
So I Married an Axe Murderer (1993) C (was B-)
The Out-of-Towners (1999) C- (was C)
Miss Congeniality: Armed and Fabulous (2005) D (was D-)
The Wedding Date (2005) D (was D-)
New Reviews:
Good Will Hunting (1998) A-
The Green Years (1946) B+
Pretty Woman (1990) B+
Woman of the Year (1942) B+
In This Our Life (1942) B
Bird Box (2018) B-
The Jazz Singer (1927) B-
The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane (1976) B-
Kidco (1984) C
The Out-of-Towners (1970) C
Valley Girl (1983) C
Land of the Lost (2009) C-
Ma (2019) C-
The Couch Trip (1988) D
July 9, 2022
Rewrites:
Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) A (was B+)
Shakespeare in Love (1998) A- (was A)
The Fortune Cookie (1966) B+ (was A-)
The Gods Must Be Crazy (1981) B+ (no change)
Real Genius (1984) B+ (no change)
American Pie (1999) B (was C)
Guys and Dolls (1955) B- (was C+)
Garbo Talks (1984) C (was B+)
New Reviews:
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) A-
Bridesmaids (2011) A-
Everything Is Illuminated (2005) B+
The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T (1953) B+
The Kindergarten Teacher (2014) B+
On Moonlight Bay (1951) B+
Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) B
Jesus Camp (2006) B
Major Payne (1995) B
Guru, the Mad Monk (1970) C+
Hero and the Terror (1988) C
July 6, 2022
Still making a "dent" in my backlog, but I'm also writing new reviews in the background ... At some point I'll catch up. I've also been working a bit on the capsule music reviews as well but only a little bit. Hoping to be consistent at this hobby over the next decade at least. (As I am approaching my 40th birthday!)
Rewrites:
Sweet Smell of Success (1957) A+ (was A-)
Forget Paris (1995) B (no change)
Happy Feet (2006) B (no change)
The Upside of Anger (2005) B (was A-)
A Perfect Murder (1998) B- (was C+)
The Witches of Eastwick (1987) C+ (was B+)
Doc Hollywood (1991) C (was B-)
The Chronicles of Riddick (2004) C- (was D+)
Swordfish (2001) C- (was B+)
New Reviews:
Kirikou and the Sorceress (1998) A
Gandhi (1982) A-
Mighty Joe Young (1949) A-
Mallrats (1995) B-
Kong: Skull Island (2017) C+
Godzilla: King of Monsters (2019) C-
July 1, 2022
Rewrites:
Hatari! (1962) B+ (no change)
Animal Crackers (1930) B (was B+)
Dr. No (1962) B (was B+)
Home Alone (1990) B (no change)
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) B (no change)
Deathstalker II (1987) B- (was B)
Addicted to Love (1997) C- (was B)
Grown Ups (2010) D (no change)
New Reviews:
So Evil, So Young (1961) B-
Tormented (1960) B-
The Gumball Rally (1976) C+
Tony Rome (1967) C+
Asylum (2008) C-
Act of Love (1980) D+
Grown Ups 2 (2013) F
June 25, 2022
Rewrites:
Some Like It Hot (1959) A+ (no change)
The Ugly Daschund (1966) B (no change)
Absolute Beginners (1985) B- (was A-)
The Cutting Edge (1992) B- (no change)
New Reviews:
The Children's Hour (1961) A-
The Monster (2016) B+
Hercules, Samson & Ulysses (1963) B
The King and I (1956) B
The Bad Seed (1956) B-
The Curse of La Llarona (2019) C-
I Wonder Who's Killing Her Now? (1975) C-
Saw (2004) B-
Saw II (2005) B
Saw III (2006) C
Saw IV (2007) D
Saw V (2008) D
Saw VI (2009) C+
June 22, 2022
Rewrites:
M*A*S*H (1970) A (no change)
Dirty Dancing (1987) A- (was B)
The Attack of the 50-foot Woman (1958) B (was D+)
Barton Fink (1991) B (was B+)
New Reviews:
Won't You Be My Neighbor (2018) A
Hairspray (1988) A-
Footloose (1984) B-
Motorama (1992) C+
The Avengers (1998) D+
June 20, 2022
Doing these a little more gradually... I have about 200 to upload but they need some heavy editing.
Also, follow me on Letterboxd!
https://letterboxd.com/donignacio2015/films/reviews/
Rewrites:
All the President's Men (1976) A (was A+)
Maverick (1994) B+ (was A-)
New Reviews:
Death Becomes Her (1992) A-
Top Gun: Maverick (2022) B+
The Ghost of Peter Sellers (2018) B
June 19, 2022
Rewrites:
Frankenstein (1931) A (was A-)
Stuart Little (1999) B (was B-)
New Reviews:
Stuart Little 2 (2002) B+
Emma. (2020) C+
An American Pickle (2020) C
Kid Colter (1985) C
The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962) C
Carrie (2002) C-
Robo Vampire (1988) C-
Mortal Kombat (2021) D+
June 16, 2022
I come and go mysteriously... Still have a bunch more movie reviews to upload, but they're so poorly written right now that I have some work ahead of me.
I also have more music reviews to upload...but one thing at a time.
Rewrites:
The Producers (1968) A+ (no change)
Spider-Man 2 (2002) A- (no change)
Driving Miss Daisy (1989) A- (was A)
There's Something About Mary (1998) A- (no change)
The Unforgiven (1992) A- (no change)
Bloodwork (2002) B (no change)
The Cocoanuts (1929) B (no change)
Look Who's Talking (1989) B (no change)
Midnight Lace (1960) B (no change)
Old School (2003) B (was B-)
Revenge of the Nerds (1984) B (no change)
Snakes on a Plane (2006) B (was C)
Spider-Man (2002) B (no change)
The Wind and the Lion (1975) B (was A+)
UHF (1989) B (no change)
Slumber Party Massacre II (1987) B- (was B)
Space Cowboys (2000) B- (was B+)
Porky's (1981) C+ (was B-)
Some Kind of Wonderful (1986) C+ (was B+)
Spider-Man 3 (2007) C+ (no change)
Adventures in Babysitting (1987) C (was B)
Bruce Almighty (2003) C (was B)
California Dreaming (2007) C (no change)
Look Who's Talking Too (1990) C (was C-)
Masters of the Universe (1987) C (no change)
Sweet Jesus, Preacherman (1973) C (no change)
Paint Your Wagon (1969) C (was B+)
Invasion U.S.A. (1985) C- (no change)
Porky's II: The Next Day (1983) C- (was B-)
Slumber Party Massacre (1982) C- (was C)
Deathstalker (1983) D+ (no change)
Firewalker (1986) D+ (no change)
Space Jam (1996) D+ (no change)
Volcano (1997) D+ (no change)
Porky's Revenge (1985) D (no change)
New Reviews:
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) A+
Finian's Rainbow (1968) A-
Kramer Vs. Kramer (1979) A-
Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933) A-
On Borrowed Time (1939) A-
Around the World in 80 Days (1956) B+
Cocoon (1985) B+
The Conjuring (2013) B+
Meet the Feebles (1989) B+
Panic Room (2002) B+
Tom Thumb (1958) B+
Swiss Army Man (2016) B+
X: The Man With X-Ray Eyes (1963) B+
Bring It On (2000) B+
The Conjuring 2 (2016) B
The Earth Dies Screaming (1964) B
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959) B
Shadow in the Cloud (2020) B
Annabelle: Creation (2016) B-
Coyote Ugly (2000) B-
Mary of Scotland (1936) B-
Woman in the Window (2021) B-
Annabelle (2014) C+
The House Where Evil Dwells (1982) C+
Bring It On: All or Nothing (2006) C
Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008) C+
Bring It On Again (2004) C-
Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) C-
Bring It On: In It to Win It (2007) D
Bring It On: Fight to the Finish (2009) D
The New Guy (2002) D
Those Who Wish Me Dead (2021) D
Llamageddon (2015) D-
Slender Man (2018) D-
April 11, 2021
I'm continuing to have fun... My focus starts to be really rewriting older movie reviews.
Rewrites:
12 Angry Men (1957) A+ (no change)
Sideways (2004) A (no change)
Dazed and Confused (1993) A- (was B-)
Father of the Bride (1950) A- (was A+)
Spider-Man 2 (2004) A- (was A)
Thelma and Louise (1991) A- (was B+)
California Suite (1978) B+ (was C-)
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) B+ (was C+)
The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957) B+ (was B)
Mean Girls (2004) B+ (was A-)
Neighbors (1981) B+ (no change)
Sleepless in Seattle (1993) B+ (no change)
Three Amigos (1986) B (was B-)
Eurotrip (2004) B+
To Sir With Love (1967) B+ (was C+)
Murder By Death (1976) B+ (no change)
Lolita (1962) B (was A-)
The Terminal (2004) B (no change
Twins (1988) B (no change)
Guarding Tess (1994) C+ (was B)
Accepted (2006) C (was B)
Bachelor Party (1984) C (was C-)
Van Helsing (2004) C (was B)
Boomerang (1992) C- (was C)
Down to Earth (2001) C- (no change)
Harlem Nights (1989) C- (was D+)
The 6th Day (2000) C- (was C)
Men at Work (1990) D (no change)
Ladybugs (1992) D- (was D)
New Reviews:
Blue Velvet (1986) A+
East of Eden (1955) A+
Scarface (1983) A+
The Awful Truth (1937) A-
Palm Springs (2020) A-
Black Sabbath (1963) B+
Coffy (1973) B+
Gone With the Wind (1939) B+
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013) B+
Moxie (2021) B+
Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) B+
Paris, je t'aime (2006) B+
Promising Young Woman (2020) B+
Riot in Cell Block 11 (1954) B+
Coming To America (1988) B
Only Two Can Play (1962) B
Spider-Man (2002) B
We Need To Talk About Kevin (2011) B
Bad Words (2013) B-
The Courier (2020) B-
Godzilla (2014) B-
Humoresque (1946) B-
When Tomorrow Comes (1939) B-
Spider-Man 3 (2007) C+
Antebellum (2020) C
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) C
Coming 2 America (2021) C
Lord Jim (1965) C
Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal (2021) C
The Star (1952) C
To Sir With Love II (1996) C
Chaos Walking (2021) C-
The Dunwich Horror (1970) C-
Suburbicon (2017) C-
The United States Vs. Billie Holiday (2021) D+
Fast Forward (1985) D+
The Glass Slipper (1955) D+
Heart and Souls (1993) D+
Sparkle (1976) D+
Laws of Attraction (2004) D
March 28, 2021
Lots of updates today.
Rewrites:
Being John Malkovich (1999) A+ (was A-)
The House of Games (1987) A (no change)
Indiscreet (1958) A- (was B-)
Cat Ballou (1965) B (was A-)
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) B- (was D+)
Blue Streak (1999) B- (no change)
Bell Book and Candle (1958) C (no change)
North (1994) C- (was C+)
New Reviews:
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) A+
Marty (1955) A+
I'm No Angel (1933) A
Leadbelly (1976) A
Nomadland (2020) A
Shape of Water (2017) A
The Shawshank Redemption (1994) A
Bisbee '17 (2018) A-
The Prison in Twelve Landscapes (2016) A-
The Way We Were (1973) A-
Zootopia (2016) A-
The Age of Innocence (1993) B+
Caddyshack (1980) B+
Christine (2016) B+
The Lodge (2019) B+
Sunday in New York (1963) B+
A Tale of Two Sisters (2003) B+
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970) B+
Zama (2017) B+
Judy (2019) B
Leprechaun (1993) B
My Little Chickadee (1940) B
Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark (2019) B
She Done Him Wrong (1933) B
Skin Game (1971) B
Unsane (2018) B
Vagabond Lady (1935) B
Every Day's a Holiday (1937) B-
Leprechaun 3 (1995) B-
Now, Voyager (1942) B-
Party Girl (1958) B-
Belle of the Nineties (1934) C+
Girl Most Likely (2013) C+
Hollywood Canteen (1944) C+
Leprechaun 2 (1994) C+
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) C
Fright Night (2011) C
Goin' To Town (1935) C
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1966) C
A Man Called Adam (1966) C
Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) C
I Care a Lot (2020) C-
Klondike Annie (1935) C-
Leprechaun in the Hood (2000) C-
Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962) C-
Portrait of a Lady (1996) C-
Fantasy Island (2020) D+
The VelociPastor (2017) D+
Howard the Duck (1986) D
Leprechaun 4: In Space (1997) D
Stoned Age (1994) D
Unfit: The Psychology of Donald Trump (2020) D
March 17, 2021
I am having the time of my life right now doing this. I feel like I'm in an infinite film festival.
Movie Reviews Uploaded:
Rewrites:
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) A+ (no change)
A Dog Day Afternoon (1975) A+ (was A)
Avalon (1990) A (was B+)
The Talk of the Town (1942) B+ (was A+)
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) B- (was B)
The Legend of Zorro (2005) C- (was D-)
New Reviews:
Bringing Up Baby (1938) A+
Natural Born Killers (1994) A
The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) A
Atlantic City (1980) A-
Elmer Gantry (1960) A-
The Bellboy (1960) B+
Klute (1971) B+
A Zed & Two Noughts (1985) B+
Anna and the Apocalypse (2017) B
Cadillac Records (2008) B
Lone Wolf McQuade (1983) B
The Tenant (1976) B
The Haunting (1999) B-
Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019) C+
Needful Things (1993) C
Physical Evidence (1989) C
The Purge (2013) C
Sparkle (2012) C
Seeking a Friend For the End of the World (1989) C
The Big Cube (1969) D+
The Emoji Movie (2017) D
Zombie High (1987) D
March 12, 2021
I will have to admit... my heart is into movies at the moment, but I am still listening to the rock music.
--M.L.
Movie Reviews Uploaded:
Rewrites:
Road to Perdition (2002) A (was B-)
Videodrome (1982) A (no change)
Saturday Night Fever (1977) A- (was C-)
Excalibur (1981) A- (no change)
Barbarella (1968) B+ (was B)
Chaplin (1992) B (was B+)
Overboard (1987) B (was B-)
Rat Race (2001) B- (was B)
New Reviews:
Almost Famous (2000) A+
The King and the Mockingbird (1980) A
Libeled Lady (1936) A
My Fair Lady (1964) A
Plague Dogs (1982) A
The Year of Living Dangerously (1982) A
The Last of the Mohicans (1992) A-
Lenny (1974) B+
Swallows and Amazons (1974) B+
St. Elmo's Fire (1985) B
Seabiscuit (2003) B
The Patsy (1964) B-
The Christmas Chronicles (2018) C
Jagged Edge (1985) C
The Christmas Chronicles 2 (2020) C-
Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) C-
Friendsgiving (2020) C-
The Great Outdoors (1988) C-
Mulan (2020) D+
March 7, 2021
It finally happened, I have the Paula Abdul and Wye Oak reviews completed! Now I'll work on a-ha and Weyes Blood. (I'm deciding on the "modern band" at the last minute... keeps things exciting.) In the meantime I still have lots of movie reviews to upload...and I'm watching new ones all the time.
Music Reviews Uploaded:
Paula Abdul
Wye Oak
Movie Reviews Uploaded:
Rewrites:
Support Your Local Sheriff (1969) A- [no change]
Evolution (2001) C- [from B-]
New Reviews:
Alice (1988) A+
Blues Brothers (1980) A-
MacGruber (2010) B+
The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020) B+
Shampoo (1975) B-
She (1984) B-
Octaman (1971) C+
Road To Bali (1952) C
March 6, 2021
One thing I noticed is that writing movie reviews is a lot easier than music reviews. I also cringe at some of my old movie reviews...but I'll rewatch them whenever I can. I'm also mostly done with the two bands I was working on, so that should be coming shortly. (I do wish I did that quicker...but it is what it is...)
Rewrite:
Elf (2003) A-
New Reviews:
The Fog (1980) B+
The Arena (1974) B
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019) B
Saturday the 14th (1981) B
Deep in the Valley (2009) C-
The Vanished (2020) C-
Vicious Lips (1986) D-
March 2, 2021
I managed to get a fair bit of movie capsules published. I would have gotten more, but I wasn't too happy with the way my review of Elf read. In the meantime, I just have 2 more Wye Oak albums to go through, then we'll see how the capsule page will start looking.
Rewrite:
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) A+
New Reviews:
My Bloody Valentine (1981) B
Slumber Party Massacre II (1987) B
Wet Hot American Summer (2001) B
The Grinch (2018) B-
Muscle Beach Party (1964) B-
Pirates (1986) B-
Ski Party (1965) C
Slumber Party Massacre (1982) C
Green Ice (1981) C-
Virtual Combat (1995) D
February 27, 2021
Music reviews still in work. I'm revising the Paula Abdul ones--just cause she's first on the list--and then reviewing Wye Oak, which is taking awhile. I decided to do a revision + a modern band I like. Modern bands I like are somehow tougher to review than the straight pop ones. Maybe I'm just missing a certain confidence! I also still have a LOT of movie reviews still to upload, but there's only so many I'm willing to upload in just one sitting. I'm taking my time. Trying to keep moving with this without letting my brain overheat. (My career-life right now is pretty nuts.)
New Movie Reviews:
Journey to the Seventh Planet (1961) B
Voyage of the Rock Aliens (1984) B
Moving Target (1988) C
Ghost Writer (1989) C-
Journey to the Center of Time (1967) C-
Musketeers Forever (1998) D
February 23, 2021
Bear with me. . . real music reviews are coming. I decided to wait until I had full discographies ready, hence it's taking awhile.
New Movie Reviews:
Final Exam (1981) B
The House That Dripped Blood (1971) B
The Skull (1965) B
Circus of Fear (1966) B-
Chopping Mall (1986) C
Do or Die (1991) D
Guns (1990) D-
February 21, 2021
To some extent, I'm rethinking of revamping the music review capsule page I already have set up, because I'm somewhat unhappy about the style of reviews I've been writing. I'll to be getting that going I hope in the next few days or week, but of course I am notoriously flakey.
In the meantime, I still have a lot of movie reviews to upload.
Movie Review Rewrites:
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989) B+
New Reviews:
Life With Father (1947) A-
Love & Mercy (2014) B+
Deathstalker II (1987) B
The Star (2017) B
Delta Force (1985) C+
Delta Force II: The Colombian Connection (1990) C
Nothing But the Night (1973) C-
Santa Jaws (2018) D
Screwballs (1983) D
February 20, 2021
Admittedly, I have a bad habit of writing content and not publishing it. I am working on reviving the capsule site--I had decided that brevity would be a better fit for this point of my life. For whatever reason, I feel the need to express myself through writing these things. I'm working on setting that up right now.
I also had been regretting I'd abandoned my capsule movie review site, so I decided to revive that as well. Although I tend to watch a lot of trash nowadays. (There will be a slightly more respectable batch of movies uploaded...I think.)
Movie Review Rewrites:
Home Alone (1990) B
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) B
The Santa Clause (1994) B-
New Reviews:
Deathstalker (1983) D+
Firewalker (1986) D+
Forbidden World (1982) B-
Invasion USA (1985) C-
Masters of the Universe (1987) C
Porky's (1981) B-
Porky's II: The Next Day (1983) B-
Porky's Revenge (1985) D
The Santa Clause 2 (2002) C-
Zapped (1982) C
September 3, 2020
Joan (1967) 11/15
I finally got around to creating a new message board.
https://mb.boardhost.com/donignacio/
This link only works on the front page right now. I'll get to work changing the link on all the other pages too.
I did make a decision to concentrate more of my efforts on the capsule reviews. I have a dream of amassing a large collection of those (say...20,000) and then self-publishing a book. Of course that's going to be a lot of work. Not only listening to a buttload of albums and formulating coherent thoughts about them, but...er, putting a little polish into the verbiage.
Of course I'm still going to publish them online. It might be a few weeks or a month before they start showing up. I'm still trying to find a way to automate the creation/organization of those pages. I'm also leaning towards the idea of only publishing the reviews after I finish reviewing an artist's discography...just so I can be sure that I stay consistent, factual, and don't repeat myself too much.
--M.L.
August 26, 2020
The Con (2007) 13/15
That Tegan and Sara album was difficult to review.
OK, I took a survey of all the capsule reviews I've written. ...525! The majority of them are unpublished. I just went through a few manic phases where I wrote a lot of them. I'm in the process of compiling them on my phone and editing/rewriting them for its prose/readability. I'm also writing some new ones. (Trying more to complete artists I've started instead of keeping on starting new ones. Huh, sounds like what I always do.)
--M.L.
August 21, 2020
Noel (1966) 10/15
I also had a dream once of creating my own review encyclopedia for pretty much every album ever made. (The capsule reviews.) I should continue working on that.
--M.L.
August 18, 2020
Farewell, Angelina (1965) 12/15
I haven't really worked on the site redesigned...but I did write a new Baez review.
--M.L.
August 13, 2020
So Jealous (2004) 12/15
OK, maybe I'll write other reviews and not just Joan Baez. The site redesign is coming slowly...In fact, it'll probably be a gradual type thing similar to what I did the last time I redesigned the site, except I won't strive to rewrite everything! I also hope nobody minds if I put ads on the site...I won't use pop-ups or make them intrusive; however, I do have a mortgage and a household budget. (I also don't really have principles anymore. I mean, I'm living in a capitalist/consumer driven economy through no fault of my own...hahaha.)
I also realized I forgot to include a link to the movie review site my wife & I are doing.
Keeping Up with the Movies
--M.L.
August 8, 2020
Joan Baez/5 (1964) 12/15
Thank you to Charly Saenz who showed me how to deal with those funny characters popping up lately in my reviews! Here is another update. I'm slowly trying to conceive of a redesign to the site. My wife tells me I should review Taylor Swift instead of Joan Baez. Maybe I'll modern-up the artists I cover! (I still have to finish the Baez reviews, at least until her '70s output. I have to absolve myself of those cringey review I'd written before.)
By the way, in case anyone is interested--and probably one of the reasons I got the reviewing bug back. I have a new reviewing project I'm doing with my wife where we're reviewing movies. Yes, I dragged her into the reviewing biz.
Here's what I'm thinking for my new logo:
--M.L.
August 7, 2020
Joan Baez in Concert, Part 2 (1963) 12/15
Where has everyone been?
As you might notice, I'm having some formatting issues on the page I just updated. All those "smart" quotes and whatnot aren't getting recognized by the editor I have traditionally used. Well...I've learned to become a coder at work, and I'm going to apply that to this site. Manually updating these reviews by hand is one of those things I never liked! For now, I'll probably just update Joan Baez reviews as I work to convert this site into a new format.
--M.L.
December 26, 2017
Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway: Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway (1972) 8/15
I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! Here is a dull soft-pop duets album to remind everyone out there there's only 364 shopping days till Christmas.
--M.L.
December 24, 2017
The Civil Wars: The Civil Wars (2013) 11/15
I probably won't update tomorrow, so Merry Christmas everyone!
--M.L.
December 22, 2017
Tegan and Sara: If It Was You (2002) 13/15
Capsule Review: Eurythmics: Be Yourself Tonight (1985) 4/5
Today marks the start of my Christmas holiday, my annual week-long break where I traditionally sit around and do nothing. Though there are a few actual things I am planning to do this week, I'm hoping to get a lot of time in working on this blog. (I've also been going through what's been published so far on the Capsule Reviews page and editing a bit.)
--M.L.
December 20, 2017
Journey: Raised on Radio (1986) 7/15
So I found my cache of unpublished capsule reviews, which I hadn't worked on since late 2013. (I have a crazy amount of them.) Weirdly, it seems, I stopped mid-word in the middle of an Elvis review. Then I remembered what happened: I had completed that review and then a small handful of other reviews when for some reason the file didn't save, and I lost all the work. I became so frustrated, I quit working on the project altogether.
Anyway, I think it might be good if I continued that work...and not to mention actually publish them.
--M.L.
December 19, 2017
Joan Baez: Joan Baez in Concert, Part 1 (1962) 12/15
It occurred to me I should also continue to update the page of capsule reviews. I have a whole bunch of those written, but I never published them. (I'll probably want to re-listen to it all, though, so I can revise the write-ups as necessary.) I am intending for the main focus to be on the full reviews, though.
--M.L.
December 17, 2017
Roberta Flack: Quiet Fire (1971) 11/15
I had a rather busy week, but I managed to provide an update!
--M.L.
December 10, 2017
The Civil Wars: Barton Hollow (2011) 13/15
To those who were paying attention, it took me more than five years to write this review. In that span of time: The Civil Wars released a follow-up album. They broke up. They separately released two solo projects. I remember the reason I started that page in 2012 was so that I would get familiar with popular new acts at the time that I might one day want to see in concert. I went to a ton of concerts in this span of five years, but never them. Anyway, I finally reviewed their debut album. (I suppose I'll finish out their page as well...I should maybe add a fifth track on my review cycle: finishing out discographies.)
--M.L.
December 9, 2017
Alvvays: Antisocialites (2017) 14/15
Alvvays managed to come out with a follow-up album I love almost as much as their first. So if I overrated their debut, I shall gladly overrate this follow-up!
--M.L.
December 8, 2017
Tegan and Sara: This Business of Art (2000) 10/15
I gotta review those difficult early albums (those that are not terrible but don't have any songs on it I can gush about) before I get to the more fun, later albums!
--M.L.
December 7, 2017
Journey (Steve Perry Solo): Street Talk (1984) 9/15
It's fun to be writing for this site again! I was thinking quite a lot about how I'm planning on structuring the updates (that is, unless this review spurt is only temporary and I go back into a months-long coma, like I'm Robert De Niro from Awakenings).
I was doing a lot of thinking ahead to what I'd like to do within the next year. (Again, if I do anything at all.) ((The bands I'm listing as 'Up Next' are subject to change.))
There are four pages I'd update at the 'same time':
1 - The Classic Rock Titans (Classic artists that sites like mine will typically review).
Currently reviewing: Journey
Up Next: The Who, Fleetwood Mac
2 - Less Covered Classic Rock Titans (Classic artists sites like mine will not typically review)
Currently reviewing: Roberta Flack
Up next: ...Elvis???
3 - Current Bands that I Like (Artists that started as early as the '90s that I tend to enjoy listening to. I'll try to avoid artists I don't like much...as fun as it would be to review Justin Bieber.)
Currently reviewing: Tegan and Sara
Up next: The New Pornographers, Sia
4 - Rewrites for Currently Written Pages (These are pages on my site I would like to rewrite.)
Currently rewriting: Joan Baez
Up next: Nancy Sinatra, Eurythmics
I do have the latest Alvvays album in my queue (since I like that band so much), but other than that I think I'm going to go with this regimen.
I also made the decision to tone it down with the solo albums. I still want to cover those, but I don't need to go scouring the internet for obscure albums. I'll only review the ones that are easily accessible. (And I'm going to skip all of Neal Schon's solo albums he released into the '90s and beyond...I just don't care that much.)
--M.L.
December 5, 2017
Joan Baez: Joan Baez, Vol. 2 (1961) 11/15
I believe my original score of this album was a 6/15. Grade inflation!
It was a funny experience listening to that album. I hadn't really heard it since I reviewed it back in 2007, but I could still remember the moments that irritated me back then. All I can say is they just don't irritate me anymore. (I'm getting old.)
--M.L.
December 4, 2017
Roberta Flack: Chapter Two (1970) 10/15
*Tries to forget it's been nearly a year since I updated this site*.
(The big news that happened to me over the last year is that I got married in September.) Through this time, I still haven't forgotten my love for listening to and reviewing music--and that is even though my "big return" (the Roberta Flack sophomore album) didn't warrant a whole lot of enthusiasm out of me.
But truth be told, I'd been trying to write that review for months (since December last year, as a matter of fact), so it's nice to finally finish it!
--M.L.
See the previous journal entries! |