Matchbox The Movie Review

 
This week I watched Matchbox the Movie on Apple TV that premiered last week on the streaming service on October 9, 2026. It stars John Cena as Sean, Jessica Biel as Aimee, Arturo Castro as Ted, Sam Richardson as Crosby and Teyonah Parris as Charmaine as grown up versions of the kids that start at the story’s beginning. While growing up in a small town of Cartersville, Sean, Aimee, Ted, Crosby and Charmaine form a club as friends called the Matchbox club. They loved playing with all types of Matchbox cars and vehicles. This movie even tells of the fact of how the term Matchbox was coined many years prior by old man Smalley that ran a garage to fix cars and a great place for the kids to hang out after school. 

    Sean, as we find out early in the film, has a crush on Aimee and finds out she really loves one particular 1969 Chevy Camaro SS die cast. She also drops hints about it. Sean, as a boy, gets cold feet twice when he was trying to give her that die cast car he purchased for her.  When his dad tells him they have to move, his opportunity ended. Will he ever see her again?  Fast forward to an unknown point in the future. We see John Cena on screen and determine he is Sean and he is working on some kind of international mission or case. We find out soon that Sean Walker is an undercover spy and is unfortunately reunited with his childhood friends and they have to work together to save the world.

The special effects and camera work in this movie are very well done. There were a few mistakes I found at various points but it did not ruin the flow of the story and the writing for this blockbuster movie just made for Apple TV. John Cena does an excellent job leading this good cast and the surprising performances of Jessica Biel and Teyonah Parris showing woman power. Finally, the director of this movie Sam Hargrave, has a history being known as a stuntman and actor working alongside the Russo Brothers on many of their projects. I know he has directed in the past but Matchbox the Movie will stand out for me as a very good family movie with no a lot of bad language which is a very important point for this movie. This film is not a 10 out of 10 and a stand out as one of the greatest of all time, but it is really good for your collection to watch one day and maybe a few more times for things you might miss watching the first time. 

 My rating is a 8 out of 10. It is worth watching with a family or a date. I would say kids 12 years and up can see this Matchbox film. Sorry I did not get a review out last week but with the Hurricane in the Southeast I wanted to double up this week. Look for another over the next couple of days.

The Ghostwriter Book Review

 

     Before I start discussing this novel by A. R. Torre or Alessandra Torre as some version of The Ghostwriter was published under, there are several very sensitive topics and scenes written that might not be read, discussed or have thoughts about as clearly as this manuscript. This review needs an asterisk and warning ahead. I hope that you will continue with my take on this suspense / psychological thriller story. Also you need to know that I listened to the audiobook version and have not read a word so comments you might have should be taken through that set of lenses.

While the story starts out with the main character of Helena Ross a very successful New York bestsellers romance novelist, finding out that she has been diagnosed with Stage 4 Brain Cancer. Helena had a husband and daughter in her past and now that she is faced with the thought of dying, she wants to write one more final manuscript to be published with a ghostwriter’s help. This novel is unlike anything she has written before because this is her story that needs to be told. This story will be a suspense and not a romance like all her others.

The pacing of this book is very slow at first and then the speed picks up for about half of the novel. After that, the pacing changes with some of it necessary. For example, Helena has to explain why her daughter is not around. Another is the first time Helena meets her nemesis Marka Vantly that she has despised but realizes that she still needs her to write the last great book for her legacy to be completely finalized, releasing her for the afterlife. Marka is brilliant in her storytelling she believes. When the reality of everything starts setting in and Helena can’t be the OCD controlling mean witch, this is when she has mysteries unveiled to her which is a foreshadowing of all the plots, lies and mysteries that she herself will unload as she writes alongside Marka Vantly who really is a man named Mark.

The subjects discussed through the narrative first person by Helena on why the past is actually really horrible with crimes committed by several people. The more you read the book or listen in my case, I could not stop and wanted to know what bad things her husband did to people in his past. The consequences for actions by people to people and against people is clearly discussed. Does the old adage “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words they can not hurt me” really apply and mean something? Torre addresses that along with other sensitive topics of death and smoke and mirrors through Helena. Helena shows throughout this shocking unwound story she writes with Mark’s help how decisions impact lives lost. The final takeaway I get from this whole novel is to make the most of your life. Always tell the truth even if it is stranger than fiction. The Ghostwriter is a contemporary fiction or psychological fiction. I give it a 4.5 out of 5 stars. I would be cautious about reading this story if you get triggered by death, murder or abuse in any form or trying to make your life seem all right even if you are wrong in your approach.

The Brink of War Movie Review

    In my continuation of the theme of 250th Anniversary of the United States of America this year, I will discuss the movie The Brink of War starring Jeff Daniels as President Ronald Reagan, Jared Harris as Mikhail Gorbachev and J K Simmons as George Schultz the Secretary of State under Ronald Reagan. It was a thorough account of the famous negotiated talks between the two biggest leaders of power in the world at the time. This movie originally came out into theaters on August 14, 2026. It was later made available on streaming services on September 1 of this year to Amazon Prime, Fandango and other services. This movie was released by Angel Studios. Angel has their own streaming service and this was the platform I chose to watch the movie last night.

The Brink of War was directed by Michael Russell Gunn who is known for being a producer in Hollywood. Mr. Gunn has also produced and helped write the acclaimed tv series Designed Survivor that premiered on ABC starring Kiefer Sutherland showing the behind the scenes of what happens in the United States government during the President’s State of the Union speeches and what could happen in what if scenarios. Finally, he has also worked as a producer on the TV show Billions on Showtime and has had many years of experience in Hollywood. 

His just released directorial debut film that discusses the 1986 Cold War, The Brink of War was his first time behind a feature film as a director and producer for the big screen in his directorial debut that discusses about the 1986 Cold War Reykjavik Summit between the 2 world leaders. Because of his extensive work dealing with Presidential historical moments, I believe Mr. Gunn did a good job bringing the famous story most historians know about the famous Cold War negotiations between the United States President Reagan and General Secretary for the Soviet Union Gorbachev in Reykjavik, Iceland. A historical fact is the movie was really played out in the actual house used by those famous leaders. I would assume the actors and film crews there must have had goosebumps knowing they were filming at the actual spot and in the very house used back in the 1980s.

The acting in this movie was very good. It was written, directed and the cinematography was well captured and made me feel like I was actually there in that most historical set of days for the talks on Human Rights, Nuclear disarmament, the famous Star Wars or strategic arms and ABM treaty.

J K Simmons as George Schultz was surprisingly strong and well portrayed and I felt Schultz was just as intelligent and powerful as the two mighty leaders of Reagan and Gorbachev and his foreign minister counterpart.

My only negative take away by the Angel Studios film was the unnecessary bad language for a faith based and family film company. I was happy to see that Angel has offered a version of the movie that has removed the bad language for the family to watch and not be concerned of the language and adult topics if a younger audience that is watching alongside their parents.

This movie takes us through all the various levels of talk and how we were at the brink of war. This summit was not long after Reagan’s assassination attempt back in 1981. The subplot characters of Nancy Reagan played by Hope Davis and Raisa Gorbachev the wife of Mikhail Gorbachev were described in an interesting way. I was not aware of their places in these important talks. I was only 14 years old when all of this transpired and a little young to remember all of this was going on back then.

My take on The Brink of War is that it is a good movie that people should watch at least one time. It might not be a movie that is 100% accurate but it is at least 95% in the storytelling. The fact they were able to use the actual location for the filming of this very important and historic event should tell you how they were trying to get it right and be accurate as possible. I give this movie a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Transformers 40th Anniversary Review

  

On Friday September 18, 2026 was the 40th Anniversary of the introduction of the Transformers universe to be introduced to us humans. The introduction came in the animated movie that first aired on television. The same movie made its big screen debut 40 years later in the theaters on the very day Friday. While I could do a review of that movie, I believe many of you that read my reviews probably would not try to find and watch that first movie. So instead, I am going to give you a review of a movie of the live action Transformers that was made with CGI effects on the big screen on July 3, 2007 starring Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Jon Voight and John Turturro.

I am not sure where you can find the animated film after Friday since it is a one day celebration in the theaters. The live action Transformers or Transformers 1 and subsequent films can be found on Amazon Prime Video, Paramount+ and Fandango to name a few streaming services. I personally own a few of these movies on Blu Ray. 

What can I say about Transformers universe? When I was a kid, I remember the television show and the toys that came out by Hasbro. I used to have a couple of them but they were lost as I have moved many times in my life. The first time I felt they made an indelible mark in many people’s minds was when the first live action Transformers movie came out directed by Michael Bay on July 3, 2007. It is crazy to think that this movie is almost 20 years old and the special effects that were used along with an epic movie soundtrack made the movie stand out. 

I remember the first time I watched the original one and when I first heard the beginning of  “What I’ve Done” song by Linkin Park at the beginning under the scenes with Sam Witwicky driving around the first time in his Camaro unknowing the importance of the car and the power it held before its unveiling as the famous Bumblebee. This movie had the most famous Autobots and Decepticons. I must confess that I am a Peter Cullen fan and hearing his first words in the movie as Optimus Prime sent goosebumps through my body knowing who it was and the first time on the big screen. Optimus is the leader of the Autobots. Fast forward to Friday while watching it for maybe the fifth time I had those same thoughts and emotions.

When I was a kid, the animated changes from a car, truck to the Autobots or Decepticons, never realized or made as much of an impression for the transformations like in this live action feature film. The special effects for the transforming was very good. I would give it an A- because I have seen some other movies do better but at the time when the movie was released was the best for a movie like it of its genre at that time in my opinion.

Transformers first foray on the big screen is the best of the series of movies that Michael Bay has been involved with to date. The cast of characters and actors were a good ensemble and it made it hard to find all of the bad guys and want to be bad guys. The heroes were the Autobots and Sam Witwicky which is fitting since his grandfather started this archeological exhibition of aliens and tried to fight a Decepticon that he found given the name Iceman. He left all of his clues to his son a unhip wannabe and the grandson that is a pivotal dealer to keep himself out of trouble.

The voice of the Transformers are legends in the voice world and in front of the camera as well. As stated, the leader of them all is Peter Cullen the voice of Optimus Prime. Cullen has been known as Optimus all the way until his unfortunate death last month. He is also known as the voice of Eeyore in the Winnie the Pooh films. Cullen has been doing voice work for 50 years with over 40 of it just for the Transformers projects alone. The voice of the evil Deception leader Megatron for the movie was Hugo Weaving known for acting in front of the camera. The other voices were Mark Ryan as Bumblebee, Robert Foxworth as Ratchet and Jess Harnell as Ironhide and other Transformer characters. 

Transformers, the original in 2007, is definitely worth a watch and has a good easy to follow storyline and revelations are timed just right. I think this movie deserves a 9 out 10 stars.  I have seen many of the other movies in this universe and feel most of them are deserving a watch at least one time. Congratulations to all those associated with the Transformers universe!  R.I.P. Peter Cullen and Autobots roll out.

Ghosts of Honolulu Book Review

 
   

As I have written in previous blog posts, I stated that I will be discussing about various media dealings with American History since this is the 250th birthday year of the United States. I will talk about movies I think deal with that history or Americana as some people call it. I also said that I will try to find books that go into important historical significances of what has made America great, ways it can learn from its mistakes and the foundational structure from the government to the military and the business of how we have gone about existing as a great and most important Nation of all the world in my opinion.

Before I go into the review of Ghosts of Honolulu written by Mark Harmon and Leon Carroll Jr.,  I want to say that if you watch “NCIS” t.v. shows where Leroy Jethro Gibbs played by Mark Harmon or a military / police drama show watchers then this book is not that fast. This book is not wrapped up in a bow and given a final conclusion in one hour. Leon Carroll Jr. not to be confused with Rocky Carroll that played Leon Vance on the NCIS t.v. show is actually a real retired NCIS agent and consultant. Also, I have personally been to Honolulu and more of Hawaii on multiple occasions. I have had the honor of going to Pearl Harbor and seeing the incredibly moving and impressive historical pieces and heard people tell the story that happened on December 7, 1941. “A date which will live in infamy” President Franklin D Roosevelt said after the attack. It is also moving to see the watery grave of the USS Arizona. When you go over it and know that sailors are buried in his sunken ship, it is a powerful solemn moment.

What can I now say about the Ghosts of Honolulu book? I was not sure what I was going to read. A history book used for a college classroom? A novel type approach to the stories you would find for your favorite fiction or historical fiction book? A diary unveiling like Gibbs does on the spinoff show “NCIS Origins?” Well, I believe its got a lot of all three except this is all true. It is a book that fillets open all of the known historical facts and stories known about the untold story of Pearl Harbor. It tells about Japanese spies and the beginnings of the Naval Criminal Intelligence Service and how the US Government and all the military branches dealings before, during and after the horrific attack on Pearl Harbor. The islands of Hawaii were not yet a state of the United States. It was a territory not unlike Puerto Rico today. Honolulu was a big place that America had their ships and planes stationed in the Pacific. Honolulu had a big Japanese population back in the 1930s and 1940s.

I took the seriousness of the book and the subject matter to really digest the information introduced and discussed very thoroughly. It’s detailed accounts of the Japanese spies like Douglas Wada and tells about the important places and events that unfolded to trick, deceive and manipulate both sides of Japan and the USA. This leads to all that is discussed in this deeply powerful and well written telling of this whole event. I thought I knew everything about it from studying it in school, watching movies like Pearl Harbor that came out in 2001 starring Ben Affleck and Josh Harnett and interviews and documentaries. I have to say that this book is the most detailed account I have ever read about the events and the deceptions of the spies to steal all the important information and catch America off guard to make it the deadliest attack on the American military at that time.

This book is very well done and a definite MUST read for the history buffs and those wanting to understand better of what happened from successes to failures. I was also impressed that the authors put the whole speech, word for word, after the attack on Pearl Harbor in the book. It fits to what they were presenting about it to give a clear complete picture of the aftermath even years later. I would give this book a 5 out of 5 stars. Very well done and loved all the pictures included and all the prologues and epilogue to this American history event.

Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning Movie Review

 

When you watch a movie, do you care if it is a prequel, sequel or ending of a series of films when watching it? Is it important to watch a previous film or films if it is a continuation and a previous story? In the case of the eighth installment in the Mission Impossible universe, I believe it to be the final installment of the Mission Impossible nine part saga. I would say yes you definitely need to see the previous movie called The Dead Reckoning that came out in 2023 to fully understand the conclusions and plots for this film. This movie made its screen debut on May 23, 2025 in the theaters to a moderate level of success in the United States. A few months later in December 2025, it made its streaming debut. So why has it taken me so long to finally see this movie you might ask? While I am not a fan of Tom Cruise, I do appreciate the movies that he acts in and also that he performs his own stunts. I watched the first movie called Mission Impossible in the theaters in May 1996. The date of the first movie release was May 22, 1996. There is an important moment using that date for The Final Reckoning. With the movie theaters not providing a lot of consistent good options to watch and streaming prices going up and up, I am finding more and more great quality movies I can watch on whatever streaming service I subscribe to with movie theater quality using Dolby Atmos, IMAX, 4K, all of them in my house. For this week’s pick of The Final Reckoning is on most streaming services. I have Prime Video and Paramount+ and through it I decided I wanted to see the conclusion to this saga. I am really glad that I finally have watched it and really liked it. The film is just under 3 hours at 2:50. The story is dealing with Ethan Hunt and his team who yet again save the world literally. The villain this time is believed to be A.I. also called “The Entity”. 

 A.I. is discussed a whole lot these days from movies, novels, news and other outlets. I felt this movie and my last movie review of Mercy gives us all a good look as to why we should never consider AI in the future to dictate our lives. It can be a poison pill in the wrong hands.

While the film felt a little long, I didn’t feel it was necessary to wrap up the two part film and overall saga’s epic quicker. There were flashbacks to the first film and other movies in this series. To help with explaining the plots throughout there were several foreshadowing moments to help the audience along with flash images and videos of the future and how it could all play out. I was happy to see all of the same beloved cast reappear in both The Dead Reckoning and The Final Reckoning. I will miss seeing Benji, Luther, Kittredge and of course Ethan Hunt in the future but this was a good sentimental sendoff to the series. What is my rating for this final installment? A 8.5 out of 10 stars. It was a satisfying conclusion and happy that I finally saw this and maybe you can as well if you have not taken the time. If you have seen it, what are your thoughts on this movie? Leave them in the comments or what you thought of my review to this one.

Mercy Movie Review starring Chris Pratt

 

Mercy is a film that is set not very far in the future. It is a glimpse into what it would be like if the court system was run by an A.I. judicial program designed to make the defendants that appear before the AI judges to be guilty unless they can prove their innocence in 90 minutes or less. Chris Pratt plays a police detective Chris Raven that was a part of the group helping create this new AI system called Mercy.

As the film opens up, we find Raven strapped to a seat ready for a potential execution if he can not prove his innocence having being charged with the murder of his wife Nicole Raven played by Annabelle Wallis. The A.I. judge is portrayed by Rebecca Ferguson. She has no feelings or emotions but only logical infer and determines all crimes on a fact driven basis.

Chris Raven spends the next 90 minutes using a wide range of sources from his and other cell phone data and videos to whatever is necessary to show the not guilty evidence. Yes, a phone a friend option is used so to speak.

We find out the crime happened on one day, with the trial occurring on the next since there are no humans used for the judiciary and humans defendants. Chris Raven is essentially both his own attorney and defendant at the same time and always on the “stand” until the clock’s ticking completes with a final verdict. Raven’s daughter, Britt, played by Kylie Rogers is an essential part to the story plots and the actress played her well.

The movie’s plot lines are 100% believable and the concept ideas are scary imaginative scenarios that can be a reality in our U.S. court systems one day. At the time of this review there are a lot of discussions about the building of data centers and expansions to the use of A.I. in the near future as a reality. Can we as a humanity really put our heads in the sand and not believe anything like this is possible?

In the movie industry’s past we have had movies like Back to the Future that have discussed life events that have jumped off the screens becoming realities as recently as in the last few years. I realize that movies are fictional accounts and escape from our current reality but we cannot live our lives in fear nor 100% accepted things discussed as facts. We all need to be aware of everything we do and fight for humanity to always stand up and win over computers and technologies. Yes even A.I. as one example.

What do I rate the Mercy movie? I give it an 8 out of a 10 stars. Good stories and plot lines.

There were CGI glitches in a few places throughout but felt the overall movie was good from the beginning to a satisfying and surprising end. I didn’t see the movie’s conclusion coming at all. The way it was written and filmed by the director made this a very well done performance by all cast and crew members. I probably will watch this film again in the future.

Movie Review for Enola Holmes 3

 

For this week’s movie review I chose Enola Holmes 3 that can be found on Netflix. While this is the 3rd movie in the series for Enola Holmes, I felt while watching it, I could do so without knowing anything about the previous two movies. The entertainment and excitement with the fast paced mysteries that are unveiled in Sherlock Holmes movies of the past or other movies that have sneaky clues throughout the story presented is present for this one. The way all great mystery movies we have watched will give us an ability to solve the film’s plot and storyline with the big reveals at the end is extremely important. While I watched this third movie and second sequel, I believe the Millie Bobby Brown (Enola Holmes) led project was definitely a home run this time. Brown is also one of the movie’s producers.

Enola Holmes 3 starts out with the idea of Enola trying to get to an impending wedding with Tewksberry played by Louis Partridge who was also in the previous film playing her rich heir husband to be is in this film. Not long into this movie we find out that Sherlock Holmes played by Henry Cavill who was also in the two previous movies is kidnapped. Just like Sherlock, Enola has the same gifts to be able to solve / decipher clues and puzzles to find the killer or whatever the mystery needs in the cases.

Without giving away the plot lines of this project, this story like all of the Sherlock Holmes series of adventures and mysteries has the same characters showing up in this series of Enola Holmes movies like those. If you are a Sherlock Holmes fan, have seen the previous Enola Holmes movies, read any of the books for either character, then you need to see this potential finale film of the series.

Do you need to have seen Enola Holmes 1 or 2? No, but if you know nothing of Sherlock or more importantly Enola Holmes and their characters you definitely need to binge watch the first two movies to understand the nuances and cadences of each character and the way the various plot lines work and flow. Enola Holmes has 10 books in the series for readers to choose from and likely producers and writers could decide one day to come back to Enola and spin another web of story lines and uncover more clues for another mystery in the future.

What would I give this movie?  4 out of 5 stars. The setting was excellent. The content was excellent. Characters were good and especially rememberable for the most part but the ending was very hurried I felt, this was to make it under 2 hours, long a Netflix requirement for most movies on their platform. I also thought the summarization of who the guilty were and the parts they played in the schemes was also rushed. All in all Enola Holmes 3 is a great family film. I hope there will be future sequels yet to come that are also original.