what I've learned is that life is too short and movies are too long

Well! This list includes The Worst Movie I Have Ever Seen. If that's not a reason to read the blog, what would be?!

Another Woman (1994) - "After a brutal attack leaves Lisa Temple without her memory, her husband declares that she is another woman. She begins to find out just what that means when she begins to try to recover that lost memory. The life that emerges is one of a bitter and depressed woman who who has apparently alienated everyone, including her husband. He has already filed for divorce. This new woman that she has become though, convinces him to put his plans on hold. As she rebuilds her life Lisa and husband fall in love again. There is danger lurking however, and one last angry memory waiting to surface. Will their love survive?"
I watched it because: it's in the Peter Outerbridge filmography
story: 2/5
visuals: 3/5
acting: 2.5/5--standout: Amy Stewart (Bonnie Temple)
intangibles: 2/5
overall: 2.375/5

Sneakers (1992) - "A security pro finds his past coming back to haunt him, when he and his unique team are tasked with retrieving a particularly important item."
I watched it because: it appeared in my Amazon recommendations when I was looking for comedies. With a cast like this, I thought it would be a safe bet.
story: 3/5
visuals: 3/5
acting: 4/5--standouts: Dan Aykroyd ("Mother") makes an appealing and believable paranoid techie; Ben Kingsley (Cosmo) is always, always spectacular
intangibles: 3/5
overall: 3.25/5

Hidden Figures (2016) - "The story of a team of female African-American mathematicians who served a vital role in NASA during the early years of the U.S. space program."
I watched it because: the person who knows me better than anyone else on the planet watched the movie and--while he did so--told me that I absolutely had to see it. He was right.
story: 4.5/5
visuals: 5/5
acting: 5/5--standouts: Janelle Monáe (Mary Jackson) and of course I loved Kevin Costner (Al Harrison)
intangibles: 4/5--there were times when the science got a little thick, for a non-science person
Academy Award nominee:
• Best Picture
• Best Actress--Octavia Spencer
• Best Adapted Screenplay
overall: 4.625/5

At Middleton (2013) - "Two parents fall in love over the course of a single day while playing hooky from their children's college tour."
I watched it because: it was recommended on Amazon Prime, and I really like Andy Garcia's acting 
story: 3/5--was this released straight to video?? The budget was around $2.5MM, while the film's cumulative worldwide gross was $82,993. That's VERY bad.
visuals: 4/5--pretty people acting pretty in an undeniably pretty place. It was filmed around Washington state, including Gonzaga University in Spokane.
acting: 3/5--standout: Garcia was awkward, very touching, and sort of adorable as aging brain surgeon (seriously...) George Hartman
intangibles: 2/5--Vera Farmiga is becoming one of those "ugh" actors for me. I don't know if it's just that she takes roles that are unlikable or if it's the way that she acts, but I am really, really not a fan.
overall: 3/5

Dinner for Schmucks (2010) - "When he finds out that his work superiors host a dinner celebrating the idiocy of their guests, a rising executive questions it when he's invited, just as he befriends a man who would be the perfect guest."
I watched it because: it was recommended on Amazon Prime, and I was in the mood for a "reliable" comedy. I enjoy Paul Rudd's work, and Steve Carell--while not one of my favorites--is a talented actor. I thought it would be a fine diversion.
story: stupid and mean
visuals: I really didn't notice
acting: awful. On a par with the worst of the Will Farrell or Chris Farley movies. This isn't acting, but just vomiting on film in hopes of raking in cash based on famous names.
intangibles: there are no words.
overall: legitimately the worst movie I have ever seen. I hated it. Whatever respect I have ever had for the principals is gone thanks to this hideous waste of time and money. Someone ought to do nonstop penance for the rest of their natural life to atone.

True Confessions (1981) - "A worldly ambitious monsignor clashes with his older brother, a cynical Los Angeles homicide detective who is investigating the brutal murder of a young prostitute."
I watched it because: it's been on my Amazon Prime watchlist for some time. After the last one, I was leery....
story: 4.5/5--brilliant. Very well done.
visuals: 3.5/5
acting: 4.5/5--standouts: Robert De Niro (Des Spillacy) and Robert Duvall (Tom Spellacy) are hard to beat anywhere, but they were extraordinary in this film. They even look like brothers. And Burgess Meredith was wonderful as Father Seamus Fargo.
intangibles: 4/5
overall: 4.125/5

[the title quotation is by Denis Leary]