Doc’s Advice to Marty at the Start of Back to the Future Part II Was Prescient

Posted on August 31, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

It’s funny how life imitates art. A couple weeks ago, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told her country’s residents something that sounded oddly familiar. In reference to new COVID-19 lockdowns, she said:

“Stay local, and do not congregate. Don’t talk to your neighbors. Please keep to your bubbles. It comes down again to those very simple principles. We know from overseas cases of the Delta variant that it can be spread by people simply walking past one another. So, keep those movements outside to the bare minimum, wear a mask, and make sure you keep up that physical distancing.” Continue reading →

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10 Spectacular Action Sequences That Have Little or No Music

Posted on August 24, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

Music is ubiquitous in film. If a filmmaker wants to punch up a scene, they often rely on a great soundtrack. This creates many memorable moments. But sometimes it works best to switch off the music for a period of time, even during an action sequence. Here are 10 spectacular action sequences that have little or no music in them. Continue reading →

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My Permanent Scar and What It Represents

Posted on August 17, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

Monday, June 7, 2021 started like any other workday. Or, at least, it started like I used to consider normal for a workday. I got up at my usual ridiculously early time to get in a good workout before putting everything I’d need into my backpack and beginning my bike ride to work. I like to bike to work when the weather permits in order to leave the car for my wife if she needs to go anywhere.

The trouble was that it had been more than a year since I’d biked to the office, so I was a little out of practice. That led to a rather nasty situation in which, about a mile from my house, I got cut off by a driver (not maliciously, but still unexpectedly), and I had to swerve to avoid him. My chain came off the cassette, causing my pedals to swing wildly around and making me lose my footing on them. The left pedal connected violently with my leg and dug a deep hole into it that quickly began to gush blood. I considered my options for a few seconds before deciding to simply put the chain back on, roll up my sock as high as it would go to soak up most of the blood, and then soldier on the last two miles or so to the office.

Here’s what it looked like when I got to the office and pulled the sock down: Continue reading →

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I Struggle to Sit Through Frustrating Film Scenes Like These

Posted on August 10, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

I finally watched My Cousin Vinny a few weeks ago, and I have some things to say about it. I had heard for years that it’s a great movie, and I was missing out by not watching it. But for some reason or another I never felt compelled to see it for myself. What changed to shake me out of my stupor? A YouTuber I respect named Matt Christiansen wrote a glowing review of the film that piqued my curiosity.

So I sat through it. My wife can vouch for me that I made it to the end. And it hurt. I like a lot of things about it, and I acknowledge that it built up to a satisfying conclusion. The characters are all interesting and funny in their own unique ways. I especially like the prosecutor who I first knew as Perry White in Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, but I’ve seen him appear in lots of films since then, such as Red Dawn (1984). There are a lot of culture-shock undertones to the film, and I like the subtext of romantic relationships and finding peace in a chaotic world.

Now comes the big but. But I found several scenes almost unbearably painful to sit through. I was this close to failing in my quest to make it through. Thankfully, I held on because the climax of My Cousin Vinny is among the best I’ve ever seen. What were the scenes I almost couldn’t endure? Let’s talk about them. Continue reading →

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A Powerful Tool for Overcoming Temptation

Posted on August 3, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

I’ve been teaching my kids all the Bible stories in order, and we just finished with King David. His story starts so well, but he had one fatal flaw that basically wrecked his life. He gave into temptation, lusting for a beautiful woman who was another man’s wife, and after he got her pregnant, he then had her husband killed rather than admit his sin. Continue reading →

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An Example of Seemingly Random Things Happening for a Reason

Posted on July 27, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

“There are no accidents,” said a wise turtle named Oogway. I believe that to be a true statement. It might seem like a random series of events produced everything we see around us, from life to civilizations, but I don’t buy that. I think things happen for a reason. Here’s a small sequence of events that occurred recently in my own personal life that helped me see the structure that seemingly unrelated events produce. Continue reading →

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A Book That Makes Me Cry on Every Page

Posted on July 20, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

Few pieces of entertainment have the power to make me cry. For example, the scenes in Beauty and the Beast (1991) where the Beast releases Belle and she returns just in time to watch him die always draw tears from my eyes. So does the flashback of Po’s mother in Kung Fu Panda 2. I recently found something new that has a powerful influence over my tear ducts. Continue reading →

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21 Incredibly Rewarding Moments in The Fugitive (Part 3)

Posted on July 13, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

We’re in the home stretch. In Part 1 and Part 2 of this article, we went through the first 14 immensely rewarding moments in The Fugitive that make it endlessly rewatchable. But the movie isn’t out of tricks yet. It’s got seven more perfect moments that solidify it as one of the best action movies ever made. Let’s get right into them. Continue reading →

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21 Incredibly Rewarding Moments in The Fugitive (Part 2)

Posted on July 6, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

Let’s not waste any time on introductions. If you read Part 1, you know we’re talking about the 21 most satisfying moments in The Fugitive. We ended at #7 last time, and we’ll pick right up with #8. Continue reading →

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21 Incredibly Rewarding Moments in The Fugitive (Part 1)

Posted on June 29, 2021 by Robert Lockard, the Deja Reviewer

The Fugitive is one of my favorite movies of all time. It’s a flawless film, which is incredible given that it started principal photography with an unfinished script. I recently realized that the reason the movie is so great to watch is because it’s constantly rewarding the audience in big and small ways. It rewards us for paying close attention to details. All of those details lead us to root for both Dr. Richard Kimble and Deputy Samuel Gerard to succeed in their goals, even though they seem irreconcilable at first. Plus, we get to marvel at the film’s brilliance as we also enjoy the ride. Here are 21 incredibly rewarding moments in The Fugitive that help to make it a great film. Continue reading →

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