Friday, July 10, 2026

Enola Holmes 3

In this 3rd installment, Enola is getting married to Tewksberry in Malta. Once there, Sherlock is kidnapped and the detecting begins. It is Enola coming into her own as a detective with the full confidence of everyone around her. Moriarty returns, as does Mom Holmes (the always excellent Helena Bonham Carter) and Dr. Watson. So while this is a relatively entertaining detective storyline, I will say that I don't remember quite so much breaking of the 3rd wall in prior movies. Enola spends 20% of her time talking directly to the camera to "bring the audience up to speed". I guess it is a different way to do voice over, but I found it either annoying or not in character enough to feel seamless. Too bad since I like the Enola Holmes concept, but liked this one less than the prior. 

2 stars (out of 5)

Thursday, July 9, 2026

Renoir (serial)

Season 1-10

French police procedural with Candice Renoir as the protagonist. She is a detective in the crime division and has been recently been appoint Commander and team leader in Sete. She is taking the job after 10 years away from the force to raise a family and follow her husband in his job. She finds the team was promised to Antoine, so tension is high from the start. And Candice is a eccentric detective, so her methods are effective yet strange. 

This is a 10 year series, and as the team evolves and develops chemistry, it is an absolute pleasure to partake. A combination of her investigative brilliance, her ongoing imposter syndrome in life and the struggles of everyone with personal and professional stress. I love that the stressors are real feeling, and not hyper exaggerated for dramatic effect. Makes the whole thing hold together. And since the series went off the air as planned, it has a really well done wrap up. Highly recommend.

5 stars (out of 5) 

Saturday, July 4, 2026

The Last Woodsmen (serial)

Season 3

Logging outfit owner Jared has made a deal to buy a "forever claim", but needs to earn $2 million before the end of the season. This provides the dramatic pressure around which to tell the story. Opening up other claims to earn extra money, getting the mechanic to flip a tug for quick cash, etc. Just fun to watch the variety of events...

My biggest disappointment is that in the end, after the claim is purchases, the tag line for next season is something like "What do we need to do next to expand the empire". Why, after buying a forever claim, can you not just log the claim forever, giving jobs to the crew. Why does expansion need to be the goal?

4 stars (out of 5)

Mother's Day

A story of several friends who are mom's of different varieties. Jennifer Anniston leads the group as a single mom, who finds her husband marries a much younger woman, and has to come to terms for the kids sake. The friends are all dealing with some other "culturally sensitive relationship". High message movie that plays as a rom-com. So ... meh...

2 stars (out of 5)

Thursday, July 2, 2026

Office Romance

JLo is the CEO of the airline that her father (still on the board) founded. Roy Kent is the new company lawyer. She doesn't need any help, especially from men. He just wants to do his job and be near his incarcerated sister. Company crisis + trip to caribbean island + trope + trope + chemistry. Can you guess if they fall in love? In actuality, not bad chemistry and I love Roy Kent :)

3 stars (out of 5)