OVER THE RAINBOW BRIDGE

Perry Fanzo, star presenter on Channel 3's Pets on Parade...

...passed on last month, just a few weeks after our beloved Chihuahua Eddie...

...to whom Fanzo introduced us back in 2012. Here's my Phoenix Magazine online tribute to them both.

FOWL PLAY

Check out my reviews, online at Phoenix Magazine, of the great new Zambian film On Becoming a Guinea Fowl...

...and of dueling DeNiros in The Alto Knights...

PITCH SESSION

Check out my reviews, online at Phoenix Magazine, of Eephus...

...and Mickey 17...

...now in the multiplexes.

ANORA A DAY, AND THE OSCARS YOU'LL SLAY...

This morning Your Humble Narrator enjoyed conducting an "Oscar post-mortem" with Sam Dingman of The Show on KJZZ...

...you can listen to it here.

You can also check out my review of the PTSD drama My Dead Friend Zoe...

...online at Phoenix Magazine.

NO PAIN, NO DANE

Now streaming only on MUBI:

Grand Theft Hamlet--This one flew way under the radar during its very brief theatrical run here in the Valley. I'm glad that it's now available for streaming.

Directed by Pinny Grylls and Sam Crane, it's the story of how in 2021 two young British actors (Crane and Mark Oosterven), sidelined by the COVID lockdown, decided to audition, cast and stage a production of Hamlet within the confines of Grand Theft Auto Online. The film unfolds entirely in the virtual realm of that classic video game, a favorite of armchair criminals since 1997, and played online for more than a decade.

Except for a few arcade games when I was in high school and a simple game called Backyard Zombies that I had on my phone for a while, I essentially don't play video games at all. I was vaguely aware of the existence and popularity of Grand Theft Auto, but I had no idea what an expansive and immersive and visually alluring environment it is.

The online aspect, allowing for interaction, however indirect, with other human beings, adds to its intrigue. I remember being up late reading in my front room one night some years ago when my kid, who had been playing some combat game in her room, emerged tearful because she had lost track of a dude she had been playing online with and had no way to reconnect with him. So the creative and collaborative possibilities of modern videos games, and the potential for real emotional investment in them, seem to be broader than I would have guessed.

On the other hand, I am pretty familiar with Hamlet. That is one seriously good play, and this movie is a testament to the durability and adaptability of the masterpiece. In Jurassic Park, Jeff Goldblum insists that "life finds a way"; this movie is one of many examples supporting the assertion that "Shakespeare finds a way."

But Grand Theft Hamlet is also an amusing and sometimes touching ode to the vagaries of making theatre. Even in this controlled setting and these narrow circumstances, these guys are still afflicted with herding cats in rehearsal, actors apologetically quitting because they got a better gig, etc. Plus, in this production you never know when strangers are going to show up and shoot you.

RED ROCK FEST

Check out Phoenix Magazine online for my short preview of the 31st annual Sedona International Film Festival...

...and the Harkins "Tuesday Night Classics" showing of Singin' in the Rain.

SO SANE BEAR

Happy Valentine's Day (and Friday) everybody!

Check out my reviews, online at Phoenix Magazine, of Paddington in Peru...

...and Captain America: Brave New World...

...and a preview of this year's Greater Phoenix Jewish Film Festival.