Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to brush your teeth. Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the anarchy of “Minions & Monsters,” the relationship woes of “The Invite” and the music bio “Peter Asher: Everywhere Man.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I join “CTV News Toronto at Five” with anchor Zuraigah Alman to talk about the anarchy of “Minions & Monsters,” the relationship woes of “The Invite” and the music bio “Peter Asher: Everywhere Man.”
Watch the whole thing HERE! (Starts at 12:20)
I join CTV Atlantic’s Stephanie Tsicos to talk about anarchy of “Minions & Monsters,” the relationship woes of “The Invite” and the music bio “Peter Asher: Everywhere Man.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I join CTV NewsChannel anchor Akshay Tandon to talk about the new releases in theatres, including The anarchy of “Minions & Monsters,” the relationship woes of “The Invite” and the music bio “Peter Asher: Everywhere Man.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I join “CP24 Breakfast” hosts Nick Dixon and Jennifer Hsiung to talk about the anarchy of “Minions & Monsters,” the animated adventures of Disney+’s “X-Men ’97” and the Prime Video “Legally Blonde” prequel “Elle.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: The documentary “Peter Asher: Everywhere Man” details musician, manager and producer Asher’s impact on popular culture from the 1960s to today.
CAST: Peter Asher, Paul McCartney, James Taylor, Carole King, Steve Martin, John Lennon, Eric Idle, Twiggy, Pattie Boyd, Yoko Ono. Directed by Daniel Geller and Dayna Goldfine.
REVIEW: Dripping with nostalgia, “Peter Asher: Everywhere Man” is an appealing time capsule of twentieth century popular music, from the point of view of one of the people who shaped era defining sounds.
Fans of British Invasion period act Peter & Gordon and folks who read album liner notes will likely be familiar with Peter Asher. Others, less so. An influential but shadowy character, the documentary shines a light on his lifetime of success.
Son of a doctor and music professor, brother to actress Jane Asher (who dated Paul McCartney as Beatlemania took hold), child actor, pop star whose song “A World Without Love” went to number one around the world, head of Apple Studio’s A&R department and producer of singer-songwriters like James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt and Bonnie Raitt, his impact on pop culture is undeniable.
His life hasn’t been as documented as his famous friends, like Paul McCartney (who wrote four Peter & Gordon chart toppers), James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt, so this guided tour through his Zelig-like life offers up much previously unearthed material.
Hung around the framework of one of Asher’s live storytelling and music shows, directors Daniel Geller and Dayna Goldfine intercut the new material and interviews with rare archival footage to create an entertaining but buy by-the-numbers biography.
We learn that McCartney gave “A World Without Love” to Peter & Gordon because John Lennon didn’t think it was strong enough for The Beatles. That his father was the doctor who identified and named Munchausen syndrome, and how he owned the gallery where John Lennon first met Yoko Ono. He introduced Marianne Faithfull to Mick Jagger and signed the unknown James Taylor to Apple Records.
He was at the spearhead of the British Invasion, and later, massaged and shaped the LA singer-songwriter sound through a mix of determination, great timing and an ability to grab opportunities as they presented themselves.
The show biz stories are fun and filled with bold-faced names, but the film skims the surface of its subject, content to let his cultural legacy stand front and center. A bit more insight as to why things happened rather than a chronological list of how they happened would have deepened the story and the appreciation for Asher’s accomplishments. Still, as a tribute film, it’s a snappy, if superficial, look at a remarkable career.
Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to scream seven times. Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the return of Sidney Prescott in “Scream 7,” the northern noir of “In Cold Light” and the music doc “Paul McCartney: Man on the Run.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: “Paul McCartney: Man on the Run,” a feature length documentary now streaming on Prime Video, covers the years 1970 to 1981 as the former Beatle reinvented himself for a new era.
CAST: Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr (archival footage), John Lennon (archival footage), George Harrison (archival footage), Linda McCartney (archival footage), Wings (archival footage). Directed by Morgan Neville.
REVIEW: For music fans of a certain vintage, 2026 is already a gold star year. “EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert” strips the kitsch away from the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s Vegas years in exhilarating fashion and now comes “Paul McCartney: Man on the Run” an up-close-and-personal look at a rarely documented and often misunderstood chapter in the career of the former Beatle.
By the time 1970 rolled around Paul McCartney had spent most of his life playing with John, George and Ringo. With the eyes of the world on him, the twenty-seven-year-old, one of the most famous people on the planet, had to shoulder the perception that he broke up the band, and find a way to move forward personally and professionally.
Millions of gallons of ink have been spilled documenting the legendary band, there have been movies and even a West End play, but relatively little time has been afforded the beginnings of McCartney’s transition from The Beatles to Wings and beyond.
As the title suggests, “Man on the Run” paints a portrait of McCartney, a restless musician in motion, searching for a new creative outlet. It’s here that director Morgan Neville digs deep, capturing the pressure that threatened to crush McCartney’s creativity as animosity regarding the Beates’ demise swirled around him, exacerbated by an ongoing business dispute with ruthless manager Allen Klein, whose dealings further estranged McCartney from Lennon.
As Lennon marshalled the counterculture in New York, McCartney, wife Linda and kids, decamped to a farm in remote Scotland, where he hid from the world, releasing albums like “Ram” that failed to satisfy fans and critics. (Although it should be said, those records have been critically reassessed in the years since then.)
Worried he wouldn’t be able to top his Beatles era work and trading musical jabs with Lennon, McCartney put together Wings, longing for the excitement of being in a band.
The altruistic blending friends and family fed McCartney’s need to feel part of a group, but, as the doc makes clear, several members complained of feeling like underpaid hired hands. McCartney, who is an executive producer on the film and is quoted throughout, responds by saying he wasn’t in charge of the accounts and didn’t realize his bandmates didn’t share his enthusiasm.
It’s a rare disingenuous moment. McCartney may well have been oblivious to the power dynamic within Wings, but his response comes across as a cop out. It’s one of the few moments that feels like a missed opportunity to shed a bright light on the band’s inner workings.
Also strange is the absence of “Give Ireland Back to the Irish” and “Hi Hi Hi,” two controversial singles banned for their political and sexual lyrics.
Still, the doc is a treasure trove of never-before-seen footage (with some cool added animation effects), musical performances and insight from McCartney and those close to him that paints a picture of a vulnerable risk taker, an artist who spent the 70s outrunning his previous work. In the film’s final moments, the musician sums up his Wings journey succinctly. “We made what seemed like an impossible dream come true.”
SYNOPSIS: “Spinal Tap II: The End Continues,” a new mockumentary now rockin’ in theatres, sees the estranged members of metal legends Spinal Tap thrown together for one last gig. Times have changed, but have they?
CAST: Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Rob Reiner, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Fran Drescher, Questlove, Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Kerry Godliman and Paul Shaffer. Directed by Rob Reiner.
REVIEW: “Spinal Tap II: The End Continues,” the legacy sequel to the forty-one-year-old classic mock rock doc, captures the spirit of the original, but does not turn the volume of laughs up to 11.
Following a fifteen-year break, the estranged members of heavy metal band Spinal Tap— David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tufnel, and Derek Smalls (Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer)—are forced to reunite for a one-off show in New Orleans.
Their acrimonious split sent them in different directions. Guitarist Tufnel has a shop called Nigel’s Cheese & Guitars, where he trades cheese for musical instruments. Singer/guitarist McKean writes scores for b-horror movies like the retirement home horror “Night of the Assisted Living Dead”, and bassist Smalls runs a glue museum called Stick to It.
Reluctantly reunited, they are once again under the scrutiny of documentarian Marty Di Bergi (Rob Reiner) who captures the backstage drama, ego trips and the search for a drummer.
The original film was groundbreaking, a masterful mock doc that set the template for everything from “Bob Roberts” and “Borat” to “The Office” and “A Mighty Wind.” The new film, however, feels like nostalgia. We’re used to the form, and while it’s nostalgic fun to spend time with silly-but-sweet rockers, our familiarity with the original blunts the impact of the new one.
There are some laugh out loud moments in “Spinal Tap II: The End Continues,” but the satire doesn’t land in quite the same way it did forty-one years ago. British comedian Chris Addison’s portrayal of the music hating concert promoter is bang on. He’s the embodiment of the ruthless music executive who, with a straight face, suggests it would secure the band’s legacy if, “during the gig at least one, but ideally no more than two of you were to die.” When he’s on screen the spoof is sharpened to a fine point.
It’s when the film gets awkwardly reflective with a mix of satire and emotion that it hits a flat note. As old wounds are opened and an air of mortality hangs over the band, the jokes become fewer and further between. A new song, “Rockin’ in the Urn,” is a reflection on aging, but it hits the expected tone, self-serious, over the top and metal as hell. That scene hits the right chord, managing laughs with the band’s reflections on refusing to stop rockin’ in the face of their own impermanence.
“Spinal Tap II: The End Continues” is a cover version of a fan favorite. Guest, McKean, Shearer and Reiner, who directs as well as appears as Marty Di Bergi, are game, but the looming specter of the original casts a long shadow over the proceedings.
