Nerd in the 'Noke

Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018), PG-13, 2h 15min - Of all of the Star Wars films to date (of which this is the tenth overall, and second anthology entry), this was easily the one that I was the least excited about (yes, that includes the prequel trilogy when they first hit theaters). I liked the premise: a Han Solo origin story, but the film encountered a number of obstacles during production (including a director change) and I wasn't terribly thrilled with the casting of Alden Ehrenreich as the younger version of the iconic character (I didn't feel like he could carry a film based on what little I had seen of him previously). On the other hand, I felt like Donald Glover was born to play a young Lando Calrissian, and after seeing the likes of Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, and Paul Bettany in the trailer I was cautiously optimistic. But even then I just didn't have the excitement and urgency that I usually do leading up to a new Star Wars film. That's the long wa...

The Martian (2015), PG-13, 141 minutes - I had originally hoped to see this film back in October when it first hit theaters, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, I didn't have the opportunity until its recent blu-ray release.  So after having to wait (not so patiently) for that to happen, my wife (who has read the book) and I sat down this past week to see if The Martian was as good as everyone said it was. If you've read Andy Weir's book that was the source material for this film, then you already have a bit of an idea of what to expect (although my wife informs me that there are plenty of differences).  According to her, some plot points are more heavily focused on than others but fear not, the basics of the story remain intact!  If you're like me and were excited by the trailer but were too lazy to read the book first, it goes a little something like this: Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is part of the Ares III crew that comprises the first manned mission to Mars....