Author: Jeff Mitchell

Collins Jr. takes ‘Jockey’ on an absorbing ride

Jeff Mitchell

“Jockey” – “It’s just wear and tear.” – Jackson Silva (Clifton Collins Jr.) Jackson is not referring to car brakes or a pair of jeans.  He races horses for a living, but he’s not speaking about a particular stallion or mare.   Jackson’s body is breaking down because he – in his 40s or 50s – has been a jockey for decades.  A veterinarian takes X-rays of Jackson, and after inspecting the troubling pictures, he recommends that this weathered athlete see a doctor.  Unfortunately, it’s not likely that Jackson has health…

‘Scream’: Nostalgia is a double-edged knife

Jeff Mitchell

“Scream” (2022) – In 1996, Wes Craven’s “Scream” changed the rules of slasher films because its characters actually state the rules of slasher films.  Remember Randy’s (Jamie Kennedy) three-part edict? “Number One, you can never have sex.  Sex equals death, okay?” “Number Two, you can never drink or do drugs.” “And Number Three, never, ever, ever under any circumstances say, ‘I’ll be right back.’”  There you have it!  Randy, a teenage cinephile, accurately recites warnings that anyone living through 80s and 90s horror films had observed for years. When on-screen…

Movie of the Week: ‘Whiplash’

Jeff Mitchell

“Whiplash” (2014) – J.K. Simmons has 217 acting credits, according to IMDb, which is a remarkable feat, since this 67-year-old started his movie career 28 years ago in “The Ref” (1994).  That’s almost 8 projects per year.  The man might be best known as J. Jonah Jameson, a Spider-Man nemesis, but J.K.’s crowning achievement is his work as Terence Fletcher, a tireless maniac of a jazz band instructor at NYC’s Shaffer Conservatory, the leading music college in the country.  Simmons won the 2015 Best Supporting Actor Oscar, and although you…