This Week on The Movie Gourmet – new reviews of the surprising hypnotic documentary Architecton, the character-driven indie mystery To Kill a Wolf. Plus, my thoughts on the popular spoof The Naked Gun.
I enjoyed the raucous comedy The Naked Gun (and so did The Wife, although somewhat less than I did). I didn’t post a full review because this is not an overlooked movie, nor does anyone need me to deconstruct it. Liam Neeson ably deadpans his version of the clueless Leslie Nielsen-created character through dignity-sapping situations. Pamela Anderson, so good in The Last Showgirl, has fun, too. Danny Huston is all in as the bad guy – a Bond villain whose billions come from an electric car company. The jokes are stupid, which is the whole point.This ain’t a comedy for the ages, like Annie Hall, Sullivan’s Travels or even There’s Something About Mary, but it’s a fun 90-minute diversion for August 2025.
Watch for my upcoming recommendation of a totally unexpected reveal of the familiar, Sunday Best: The Untold Story of Ed Sullivan on Netflix.
CURRENT MOVIES
- Architecton: unexpectedly hypnotic. In arthouse theaters.
- Sunday Best: The Untold Story of Ed Sullivan: a courageous surprise hiding in celebrity. Netflix.
- Sorry, Baby: smart, funny and on the path to healing. In theaters (and on VOD, but expensive).
- To Kill a Wolf: mysteries revealed. In theaters, but hard to find.
- Oh, Hi!: romantic disappointment becomes absurdly unhinged. In theaters.
- Shoshana: two lovers amid a deepening conflict. In theaters.
- To a Land Unknown: no good choices. In arthouse theaters.
- Made in Ethiopia: it’s just like China used to be. PBS POV
- Diciannove: coming of age – his way. In arthouse theaters.
- Kill the Jockey: surrealism in the stables. In theaters.
- Sew Torn: a thriller like none you’ve seen before. Amazon, AppleTV, YouTube.
- Bonjour Tristesse: not the life lesson she was expecting. Amazon, AppleTV, YouTube, Fandango.
ON TV
The great film noir Act of Violence is on TCM late tonight, with its career-topping performances by Van Heflin and Mary Astor. You need to DVR it because it’s not available to stream.