Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Director: Olivia Newman 8/10 Not positive how this film came to my attention. Friend of a friend of….. Something like that. It’s an excellent film blending coming of age with murder mystery and moving from events in 1953 to 1968 and back. Kya Clark in 1953 is a ten-year-old girl Read More …
Reviewed by Brian M Downing Director: Shoojit Sarcar 10/10 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10280296/ This expertly crafted and visually impressive film centers on the 1919 Amritsar Massacre by British forces in India and the assassination 21 years later of the man who ordered it, Michael O’Dwyer. The title comes from one of the names Read More …
Get Back (2021) – a review by Brian M Downing Director: Peter Jackson 10/10 The Beatles continue to fascinate us. Fifty years after the band’s breakup their music is everywhere, books about them come out regularly, and their birthdays make the news. Director Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings) has Read More …
A book you can’t refuse: Mark Seal, Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli: The Epic Story of the Making of The Godfather (New York: Gallery Books, 2021) Reviewed by Brian M Downing The Godfather is part of the American mind and we’re the better for it. Phrases and situations Read More …
Reviewed by Brian M Downing Directed by Martin Ritt and written by Elmore Leonard. 10/10 I had not seen this in fifty years until the other night. Memorable though it was in my youth, I wondered if it would hold up. It certainly does. Paul Newman plays John Russell, a Read More …
Director: J Blakeson Starring: Rosamunde Pike, Peter Dinklage, Eiza González, Dianne Wiest 7/10 Though labeled a dark comedy, the humor is so low-key and intermittent that the film’s more of a psychological thriller and action film. Marla Grayson is a lawyer who’s built a lucrative business out of placing people Read More …
Director: Chloé Zhao Starring: Frances McDormand, David Strathairn 9/10 Well made semi-documentary of a woman from a small Nevada town that’s disappearing after a mine closing. The USPS has dropped its Zip Code. She lives in her van and travels to places where she does short term work. One such Read More …
A review by Brian M Downing 7/10 Sinclair Lewis’s 1927 book is deeply satirical and loads of fun. It’s dedicated to the caustic HL Mencken, who loathed fundamentalism. The film isn’t satirical, though some scenes of revival meetings might seem that way – a howling sinner, a deaf man who Read More …
Brian M Downing Director: Alex Winter Superbly made documentary of the eccentric musician using footage of his youth, professional work, family life, political activity, and illness and death. It gives a well-crafted and intriguing look at Zappa’s eccentricities, creativity, abrasiveness, and devotion to making music his way. Zappa comes across Read More …
A review by Brian M Downing Ford vs Ferrari (2019) 8/10 Director: James Mangold Stars: Matt Damon, Christian Bale The film tells the story of Texas maverick Carrol Shelby’s collaboration with the suits of Ford Motors to compete in the World Sportscar Championship races, which included Sebring. Daytona, and Le Read More …