The new year is here and awards season is underway. So far, I’ve only seen a few of the frontrunners that are winning and are likely to become Oscar contenders!
I saw one movie in the theaters this past year and the refreshments were a disappointment. Pre-pandemic, AMC Theaters gave a bucket for a large popcorn and this time it was a small bag!
I hope the attendant was confused. I’ll give it another try in 2023.
There were two movies I wanted to see in 2022, but I haven’t yet. “Spoiler Alert” didn’t play in my city and I didn’t get around to seeing “Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody”. So, maybe they’ll be on next year’s list if they’re good!
Before we begin this year’s countdown, this was my favorite movie I saw in 2021. I’ve now watched “Promising Young Woman” three times!
The least favorite movie I saw in 2022 was “Licorice Pizza”. After the first hour, I was bored to death and stopped watching.
Here are the movies that just missed out on my countdown: #26 “Death on the Nile”; #25 “Umma”; #24 “Nightmare Alley”; #23 “Belfast”; #22 “Honk For Jesus: Save Your Soul”; and #21 “They/Them”.
Now let’s begin the Top Twenty countdown!
Oh, one final note: Jessica Chastain is in three of my favorite movies I saw in 2022!
“THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE”
BOX OFFICE: $2.7 MILLION
“GOOD LUCK TO YOU, LEO GRANDE”
BOX OFFICE: $6.4 MILLION
“NOPE”
BOX OFFICE: $171.3 MILLION
“SHE SAID”
BOX OFFICE: $12.4 MILLION
“THE 355”
BOX OFFICE: $27.8 MILLION
“LAST NIGHT IN SOHO”
BOX OFFICE: $23 MILLION
“THE GOOD NURSE”
“TICKET TO PARADISE”
BOX OFFICE: $172.2 MILLION
“KING RICHARD”
BOX OFFICE: $39.4 MILLION
“HALLOWEEN ENDS”
BOX OFFICE: $105 MILLION
“FIRE ISLAND”
“RED ROCKET”
BOX OFFICE: $2.3 MILLION
“TOP GUN: MAVERICK”
BOX OFFICE: $1.489 BILLION!!!
“ELVIS”
BOX OFFICE: $287.3 MILLION
“EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE”
BOX OFFICE: $104.1 MILLION
“THE BLACK PHONE”
BOX OFFICE: $161.4 MILLION
“GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY”
BOX OFFICE: $15 MILLION
“RRR”
BOX OFFICE: $147.9 MILLION
“BROS”
BOX OFFICE: $14.8 MILLION
And, before we get to my favorite movie I watched in 2022, here’s an extra!
A tribute to Olivia Newton-John, who passed away in August 2022, at the age of 73, after a lengthy cancer fight.
Yes, the movie, “Xanadu”, is a little out there, but it’s now a cult favorite. And, this song is one my all-time favorites!
“HOUSE OF GUCCI”
BOX OFFICE: $153.3 MILLION
Yes, Gaga was robbed of not getting an Oscar nomination for this!
Halloween is just weeks away and it’s looking and feeling a little spooky and creepy out there.
Enjoy your fall weekend and thank you for checking out my random thoughts.
ONE STEP FORWARD, TWO STEPS BACK!
I appreciate all of my friends! Your color, gender, social class, who you sleep with or don’t sleep with, and so on and so on doesn’t matter to me. You treat me with respect and I’ll do the same.
We live in a world where progress is being made each day with regards to racism, sexism, homophobia, and all of the other -isms and -phobias. Yet, with progress comes backlash and hate.
I know there are more good people than bad in this country and the world, but it’s the bad ones that make more noise.
I am who I am and I know most of you like me or love me just the way I am. I know there are those that don’t.
A lifetime ago when I got married, a friend that still keeps in touch with me basically told me she likes me, but she didn’t approve of marriage because it was to a man. Oh well!
Guess what, that’s your problem, not mine.
But, not all attacks for people like me are physical or with hateful words.
SADLY, “BROS” IS A BOX OFFICE BOMB!
Sometimes, actions speak louder than words or inflicted pain that heals over time.
“Bros”, the first gay romantic comedy from a major studio with a wide theatrical release featuring an almost entirely LGBTQ principal cast, bombed at the box office last weekend!
The $22 million dollar movie made a paltry $4.8 million opening weekend and finished in fourth place! (It’s now up to $6.4 million.)
Was it homophobia? Lack of diversity? People aren’t ready for a Billy Eichner-led movie?
Those were some of the social media reasons given for “Bros” poor opening.
I saw the movie and it’s definitely homophobia — America, sadly, still doesn’t want to see two men kiss, fall in love, have sex, and be happy!
Here are some of the opening weekend stats: 60% of the audience were men; 63% were between the ages of 25-44; Diversity demos — 61% Caucasian, 19% Latino and Hispanic, 6% Black, and 14% Asian/other.
“Bros” played well in the big cities (New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco), but performed poorly in the Midwest and the South!
The best response to the poor box office returns for the movie with a CinemaScore grade of “A” and a 90%+ rating on Rotten Tomatoes is from “Bros” star Dot-Marie Jones.
At a recent charity benefit, she told “Variety”, “There’s so much heart and so many wonderful good laughs… I don’t know if it’s because it’s, you know, LGBTQ. It’s not contagious – fuckin’ go see a movie, you know what I mean? It’s crazy.”
“BROS”
My sister, Tammy, and I saw the movie this week and it was funny as hell and I’m not a comedy movie fan. I’d much rather see a drama.
I laughed out loud several times, smiled many other times, and rooted for the abrasive Bobby (Eichner) and quiet Aaron (Luke Macfarlane) to actually fall for each other and stay together.
I loved that the movie showed an aging gay man (at 40, Good Lord) and how difficult it is to fall for someone after being alone so long, being tired of empty apps hookups, and taking a chance of falling in love and having your heart broken again.
And, heaven forbid, there were sex scenes — all sexy, awkward, and funny. Yes, sex can be sexy and awkward — gay, straight, or somewhere else on the Kinsey scale.
There were guest appearances in “Bros” and my favorite was Debra Messing! Her reaction to Bobby when her first met her was priceless!
GRADE: B
MY BIGGEST COMPLAINT
Seeing “Bros” was the first time I’ve been to a theater since early-2020, pre-pandemic.
AMC Theaters, what the heck is up with this little bag of popcorn you call a “large”? It’s nothing more than a glorified “medium”.
I want my large bucket again!
I don’t mind paying $9 for it and getting my free refill, but please on those little bags you call “large”!
“QUEEN OF COUNTRY MUSIC” DIES
Loretta Lynn, one of the original queens of country music and a Kentucky-born legend, passed away earlier this week at the age of 90.
After touring for almost sixty years, she stopped after suffering a stroke in May 2017 and breaking a hip on New Year’s Day in 2018.
I never saw Loretta in concert. However, as a kid, I heard her perform. The Purchase District Fairgrounds was located just down the road from our apartment in Mayfield, Kentucky, and I could hear her singing.
Loretta scored her first Billboard Country hit in 1960 with “I’m A Honky Tonk Girl”. It peaked at #14.
She ruled the charts in the mid-1960s through the 1970s as both a solo artist and in duets with Conway Twitty.
As a solo artist, Loretta scored 55 country hits. Of those, 39 reached the Top Ten and 11 of them reached #1.
All 12 of her duets with Conway Twitty reached the Top 10 and the first five made it to #1.
Later on, I’ll share my five favorite Loretta Lynn songs!
“QUEEN OF OUR TIMES”
Last week, I highlighted Tina Brown’s 2022 book, “The Palace Papers”. It’s great, but it equally covers Camilla, Catherine (Kate), and Meghan.
Just before Queen Elizabeth II died in early September, I checked out the 625-page new book by Robert Hardman, “Queen of Our Times”.
This is an excellent read.
A few things I learned:
Hardman is not a fan of “The Crown” and the creative liberties it takes with the Queen.
Her Majesty’s favorite presidents were likely Barack Obama, George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush, and Ronald Reagan.
My idol, President Jimmy Carter, got one mention in the book and it wasn’t a good one: He broke protocol at the Queen’s 1977 reception for NATO leaders. William Shawcross says President Carter greeted the Queen Mother with a kiss on the lips! She later recalled, “I took a sharp step backwards. Not far enough.”
If you want to read a very well researched and written book just on the life of the longest-reigning British monarch, this is the book! However, where Brown is a little jaded toward the monarchy, Hardman sugarcoats a little too much.
TWO AWESOME QUEEN ELIZABETH II QUOTES
Queen Elizabeth II was rather witty and here are two quotes I loved from Hardman’s book:
(Upon learning her father, King George VI, had died, while she was in Kenya, she was asked what name she would go by as Queen): “My own name, of course. What else?”
(Once Prince Elizabeth became Her Majesty, she would to have to pay some of the Queen Mother’s bills because of her overspending habits. Queen Elizabeth II jokingly said, “I’ll be quite a wealthy woman when my mother dies”.
“SPOILER ALERT” MOVIE
A few weeks ago, I shared my random fall thoughts and the movies that excited me.
This one stars Jim Parsons, Sally Field, and new to me, sexy English actor Ben Aldridge. The trailer dropped late last week.
If you’re unfamiliar, it’s Michael Ausiello’s beautiful, funny, and heartbreaking 2017 memoir, “Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies”.
I’m reading it again NOW!
Here’s what I wrote about the book then:
“By page eight, I was ready to date and fall in love in again. By page 26, I had tears streaming down my cheeks and I was happy no one was close enough to me as I was reading and walking by Lake Decatur to see me crying!
The book is amazing. While it’s a heartbreaking story of finding love, fighting for love, and then losing that love in a painful, year-long death sentence, it’s a beautiful love story!
Many will never experience the love that Michael and Kit did.
Ausiello knew just when to drop a funny line, a pop culture reference, or a naughty memory to bring a smile to my face alongside the tears.
One of the “other four-letter words” could be my favorite word (think “F”).Another is one I absolutely love, but I can’t use it without offending someone! (I won’t even give you a hint on that one, but if you’re busy this weekend and on Monday, I’ll see you next Tuesday!)
Also, after reading this beautiful book, “olive oil” takes on a whole new meaning and I hope to get to use it one day!
While the movie opens in limited release earlier, a wide release is set for December 16, 2022.
Sadly, after “Bros” bombed at the box office, I’m not holding high expectations for this one.
As I stated earlier, Middle America (and mainly the South) is still not ready for two men to fall in love on screen! (And, especially two white men!)
“THEY/THEM”
This Peacock original (pronounced “They Slash Them”) was much better than I expected.
The slasher film takes place at a LGBTQ conversion therapy camp for teenagers out in the woods led by a husband and wife team played Kevin Bacon and Carrie Preston (“Claws”).
It also stars Emmy-nominated actress Anna Chlumsky (“VEEP”) and non-binary actor Theo Germaine from downstate Illinois!
After a murder on a scary road in the woods at the start, the movie forgot it was a slasher film until late in the feature.
But, the psychological creepiness of Bacon and Preston’s characters offering the kids an “inclusive safe place” was there all along.
GRADE: B-
MY FIVE FAVORITE LORETTA LYNN SONGS
Loretta Lynn scored an amazing 67 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Country charts. Of those, 51 reached the Top 10, and 16 topped the chart.
She was very honest and would say whatever was on her mind. That often got her into trouble and she even courted controversy in song.
“The Pill”, in 1975, about birth control, was considered very risqué and several country stations banned the song and it stalled at #5 in the U.S. on the country chart. However, it reached #1 in Canada.
It’s my sixth favorite Loretta song. Here are my five favorites!
“YOU AIN’T WOMAN ENOUGH (TO TAKE MY MAN)” (#2, 1966)
“DON’T COME HOME A DRINKIN’ (WITH LOVIN’ ON YOUR MIND)” (#1, 1966)
“SILVER THREADS AND GOLDEN NEEDLES (WITH DOLLY PARTON & TAMMY WYNETTE)” (#68, 1993)
“ONE’S ON THE WAY” (#1, 1971)
“LOUISIANA WOMAN, MISSISSIPPI MAN (WITH CONWAY TWITTY)” (#1, 1973)
This #1 duet from 1973 is not only my favorite Loretta Lynn song, but it’s also one of my favorite songs of all-time.
In the fall of 2020, I put together a list of the 13 biggest events of the first 35 years of my life (1964-1999), along with my 101 favorite songs from that era.
And, this song, was #81.
“I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY”
The trailer for the December 21, 2022, Whitney Houston biopic, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” came out a couple of weeks ago.
I’m excited about it and the song is still my favorite Whitney song.
I’m posting the video to the two-week #1 hit from 1987 again to get the stench of the worst cover of the song I’ve ever heard!
WORST COVER EVER!
I’m not familiar with the new crop of country singers today.
After the sexist and ageist genre stopped playing new music from some of my favorites (Reba McEntire, Patty Loveless, Pam Tillis, Lorrie Morgan, Dolly Parton, and the late greats Loretta Lynn, and Tammy Wynette to name a few), I decided it was time move on and quit listening to country.
Despite scoring nine Billboard Top Ten country hits over the past decade, I came across Jon Pardi’s “CMT Campfire Sessions” cover of Whitney and got excited.
It would be been a great instrumental cover, but wow, that was painful!
Your thoughts?
THAT’S IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
Fall officially begins next week, but many people consider Labor Day the “unofficial” end of summer.
It should come as no surprise to you if you regularly check out my thoughts that I’m ready for fall and what comes after it — the holiday season and winter!
Today, my random thoughts are dedicated to fall (and more).
DECORATED VERY EARLY THIS YEAR
All of my pumpkins and scary decorations are out and have been since July! (There’s a reason for the madness and I’ll share it later this year.)
These two metal decorations are my favorites and are hanging on the wine rack! I love the vintage look!
While I love wine and booze (boos), I don’t want to miss out on my candy corn, too, especially “Harvest Mix”!
“BROS”
I’m ready to see a movie in a theater again!
The last time I saw one on the big screen was in early 2020, pre-pandemic lockdown.
I plan on enjoying my large popcorn and large Coke Zero (and free refills) with “Bros”.
It’s “the first gay romantic comedy from a major studio featuring an almost entirely LGBTQ principal cast”! It’s hard to believe it’s 2022 and this is the first!
Hotties Billy Eichner (who co-wrote the movie, along with director Nicholas Stoller) and Luke Macfarlane (“Brothers & Sisters” and “Single All The Way”) are the leads.
The movie is co-produced by comedy giant Judd Apatow, which adds great visibility to the LGBTQ movie. And, what’s really cool is that Apatow retweeted my tweet about the movie!
When I saw the first trailer, I thought, “cute”. When I saw the second trailer, I was totally sold!
“Bros” hits theaters September 30th!
MY AFTER-BIRTHDAY BIG TRIP
In the past, I’ve celebrated my birthdays in Athens, Greece (2021), Morocco (2018), Paris, France (2014), and in Las Vegas (2012) with Madonna and Elton John (the night before) on stage, of course.
This year, I’ll be going to bed early on my birthday to get up at 2:30 a.m. for work the next day!
However, I have a big trip planned to a secret location before my passport expires!
WISHING I WAS IN CANADA THIS FALL
While I’ve never been to Toronto or Montreal (I’ve been to Ottawa), I’d still like to visit. However, the reason I wish I was there this fall is for a Frosty!
Yes, a Wendy’s Frosty. I last had one — chocolate-vanilla swirl — almost seven years ago.
This fall, in Canada, and for a limited time only, Wendy’s is replacing the vanilla Frosty with “Caramel Apple”!
It’s described as a “classic vanilla base, infused with apple syrup. On top is a healthy drizzle of caramel syrup.”
Yes, please! Bring these to the U.S. next fall!
“HALLOWEEN ENDS”
I’m definitely excited for my birthday to get here. It’s not because I’ll be traveling or turning 39 (again and again), but because Michael Myers returns to theaters (and Peacock) the next day, October 14th, with his latest (and hopefully greatest) killing frenzy.
This is the 13th movie in the “Halloween” franchise that started in 1978. It’s the third and final movie in the latest installment from Blumhouse Productions.
This latest trilogy is 50-50 with me. I loved “Halloween” (2018) and was less than thrilled with “Halloween Kills” (2021). Here’s the short of my reviews.
“HALLOWEEN” (2018)
“It was very entertaining and I loved the winks back to all of the other movies in the franchise that this one pretended didn’t exist.
Iloved that the movie was very violent (Michael Myers as a practicing dentist!). It could be because he’s psychotic and has been locked up and drugged for 40 years!
While the movie was great, it didn’t scare me since nothing can compare to the 1978 original!”
GRADE: B
&“HALLOWEEN KILLS” (2021)
In my review last year…
“After a year delay because of the pandemic, I was excited to see “Halloween Kills”. After seeing it, I’m glad I watched it for free on Peacock instead of paying to see it in the theater.
The next to the last kill in the movie was phenomenal and the moment of death is classic. Also, the final kill was surprising and shocking!
Now what I didn’t like about it!
For starters, the lack of a storyline for Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode! After seeing this movie, I get it that they’re saving her for the “finale” (yeah, right) of the franchise.
The whole mob scene at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital went on way too long.
While I enjoyed the movie as a whole, I’ll never watch it again!
Final thoughts: The trailer is better than the movie, you see many of the kills, you saved money by not going to see it, and you didn’t waste almost two hours!”
GRADE: C
Here’s the trailer if you haven’t seen “Halloween” (2018).
“THE CROWN”
I absolutely love Netflix’s “The Crown” about Queen Elizabeth II’s monarchy since 1952.
The fifth season, which is expected in November, will cover the early-to-mid 1990s, and should focus on the crumbling marriage of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, his relationship with Camilla, and Diana’s relationship with Dodi Fayed.
Season six will likely focus on the death of Princess Diana in 1997 and the aftermath of that tragedy.
It’ll be interesting how much of the past 25 years will be covered in the final season — the marriages of Prince Charles, Prince William, and Prince Harry, the death of Prince Philip, and now the recent death of Her Majesty!
I need the team behind “The Crown” series to consider this for the final scene of the series: “We have breaking news this evening… we can now confirm that Her Majesty, the Queen has died. Repeating, Queen Elizabeth II has passed away. We go live outside Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.” (FADE TO BLACK AND CREDITS!)
“SPOILER ALERT: THE HERO DIES”
I can’t believe that I didn’t know Michael Ausiello’s beautiful, funny, and heartbreaking 2017 memoir, “Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies”, is being made into a movie!!!
Jim Parsons and Sally Field are the top-billed stars and it’ll introduce me to sexy English actor Ben Aldridge.
I finally got around to reading the book in November 2020 and here’s what I shared:
“I’ve been wanting to read it since it came out, but real life and my own drama (D-I-V-O-R-C-E) got in the way.
By page eight, I was ready to date and fall in love in again. By page 26, I had tears streaming down my cheeks and I was happy no one was close enough to me as I was reading and walking by Lake Decatur to see me crying!
The book is amazing. While it’s a heartbreaking story of finding love, fighting for love, and then losing that love in a painful, year-long death sentence, it’s a beautiful love story!
Many will never experience the love that Michael and Kit did.
Ausiello knew just when to drop a funny line, a pop culture reference, or a naughty memory to bring a smile to my face alongside the tears.
One of the “other four-letter words” could be my favorite word (think “F”).Another is one I absolutely love, but I can’t use it without offending someone! (I won’t even give you a hint on that one, but if you’re busy this weekend and on Monday, I’ll see you next Tuesday!)
Also, after reading this beautiful book, “olive juice” takes on a whole new meaning and I hope to get to use it one day!
While the movie opens in limited release earlier, a wide release is set for December 16, 2022.
AND, WHILE TECHNICALLY NOT FALL…
“I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY”
And, on December 21, 2022, the big screen biopic about Whitney Houston hits theaters.
Naomi Ackie stars as Whitney and the always sensational Stanley Tucci plays Clive Davis, the legendary music maker that discovered Houston.
And, my week was made Thursday when the official trailer finally dropped!
While thrilling and beautiful, it didn’t give much away about her personal life with Bobby Brown or Robyn Crawford, except maybe when Whitney exclaims, “My dream, sing what I want to sing, be how I want to be”.
“I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY (WHO LOVES ME)”
So, go away summer, I’m ready for fall and the holidays!
HAPPY FALL!
Here is a photo I took at Scovill Zoo last fall, in Decatur, Illinois.
THAT’S IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
What's Peeps Thinking About Now? It's Probably Random! 