Jon Loder's Reviews
This is another "should have been a mini-series" crammed into 150 minutes.
The story of the 1966 24h-LeMans, and the events leading up to it, is legendary. They did a good job of rendering it down to the most significant points. This movie condensed a lot of information by tweaking the facts. The main points stand. The order for Miles to lift and wait for the teammates for a dramatic end is true. The attempt by Ford to buy Ferrari is mostly true. I would recommend enjoying this movie, and, if interested in the history, read about the true events. You'll see what I mean.
Matt Damon played a great Shelby. The character was whitewashed, but that's understandable. The real Shelby was a bit unsavory in his personal life.
The best part was, by far, Bales. He nailed it as Ken Miles. He spent some time at Bondurant's school of high performance driving in preparation for the role. Bob Bondurant was still alive and active then(Died in 2021). He was a driver with Shelby's Cobra project. He was good friends with Ken Miles.
There are so many stories about racing in this era. I hope this starts a trend. the next one probably should be about Penske or Smokey Yuneck.
Created: 02-05-2026
Very accurate telling of an interesting, true story.
I love football, and sports movies. I appreciate good acting and accuracy in biographical movies. This one is all that.
Zach and Anna played their parts to perfection. Direction and production are top tier.
As unlikely as it may seem, they didn't embellish or white-wash this story. Anna seemed kind of butch, but I remember seeing Brenda Warner in interviews. If anything, Anna didn't reach far enough into the she-Marine persona. The only inaccuracy, if you want to call it that, was Kurt's time in the European NFL Farm League during his first year with the Rams. They skipped that part and took him directly from the Arena Football League to his winning season with the Rams. If this was a mini-series instead of a 90 minute movie, they might have covered that part.
Since this is the true story of the Rams 1999, Super Bowl winning season, there's no spoiler in saying that the victory at the end was dramatic. The way they morphed into the real footage of Kurt's Super Bowl win followed by his celebration with his team and trophy was great cinema.
Created: 02-01-2026
One of the best sitcoms. No agenda other than presumptions.
The chemistry between actors is some of the best ever on TV. There is some raunch and innuendo. There's sexual overtones in pretty much every episode. As far as wokeness goes, I have watched every episode and can't think of any time that an agenda was being promoted. If I'm wrong about that, leave a comment.
The women are generally bossy and strong willed while the men are mostly spineless wimps. Sheldon's mother professes Christianity but is portrayed as a shallow-minded simpleton. She's only in a few episodes. Penny's ex-boyfriend shows up a couple of times. He's stereo-typically stupid. There's some wokeness, but for me, it's at a tolerable level.
Created: 01-31-2026
Worth watching. Not a must-see.
It's entertaining. I'm a fan of real (non-CGI) stunt driving. There's a little, but it's overshadowed by the split-second scenes. There are some Ken Block style maneuvers. I wish they would've shown full sequences without bouncing between cameras every 10th of a second. Jeremy Fry was the stunt driver for most of it. His work is great.
The story is pretty good. The acting is top notch. The bad guys are excellent. You love to hate them.
Created: 01-31-2026
No agenda. A little dark.
Woke: None. That is, unless you consider the existence of a privileged, female, corporate executive to be woke.
The "twist" was predictable. The acting was top-notch. Most of the characters were unlikable by design. That's good acting. Overall the movie just made me feel gloomy. That was also by design. That's good directing.
I didn't recognize Jesse Plemens at first. When I saw El Camino, I notice that he put on a lot of weight. In this movie, he lost all that and more.
As predictable as the twist was, it was still intense.
Created: 01-22-2026
Very enjoyable movie with a strong, history-revision, agenda
Atrocities were committed by Whites.
Atrocities were committed by Indians
Yes, I mean North American Indigenous people. My brother-in-law and good friend is full-blooded Indian. He actually gets upset when people use terms like Native-Americans, etc.
This movie strongly emphasizes one side, while ignoring or justifying the other. When one tribe fought another, the narration described it as a noble battle for survival.
Before the European migration, this was an extremely violent and dangerous land. War between tribes was constant. Women and children were often targeted while the men were on hunting or raiding parties. Torture was used to intimidate and destroy morale. The early settlers found that out the hard way. We cannot fully understand the brutality they lived with in those days. It was a lawless existence.
History is fascinating to study. Historical drama can be good and educational. It can also push an agenda. As enjoyable as this movie is, it has a very strong, biased agenda. It should be recognized as such.
Created: 01-19-2026
Good telling of a good story
The woke: Toward the end, it was revealed that the French, rival, number-running gang, is matriarchal. The boss is an attractive, black woman. I doubt that's realistic. It seems like maybe it's just checking the box for production. I think all MPAA rated movies need that. It's not too bothersome to enjoy the movie.
I'm a big fan of single scene movies. This one takes place entirely within the Cutter's shop. The acting and story line are showcased this way. Both are exceptional. There's obviously more to Leonard than meets the eye. When the story finally gets through all the layers, the ending is worth the wait.
I recommend watching.
Created: 01-19-2026
Not bad.
Wokeness: I didn't notice any agenda.
I love a good whodunit story. This one isn't too bad. The lead character, Benoit Blanc, seems to be a mashup of literary detectives, Poirot, Dupin, and maybe Holmes. The mystery is a play on a Dickson Carr story, The Hollow Man. That is, a locked room murder. They even reference the book in this movie. There are a few weaknesses in the basic plot, but, overall, it's worth the watch.
I will opine that this isn't Craig's best work.
Created: 12-29-2025
Rewatch after 40 years...(almost)
I saw this when it first came out. I remember liking it. It's definitely a '80's comedy. That is, cheesy, predictable, and kind of gimmicky: "That's not a knife. This... is a knife." I love fish-out-of-water stories. This was a pretty good one. There was a transsexual character that was the subject of ridicule, so, no woke there. Paul Hogan wrote and starred in it. He played heavily on the culture shock between the Outback and the big city. It's a fun movie as long as you don't take it too seriously.
Created: 12-29-2025
Sort of a R-Rated Home Alone meets die Hard
I didn't think I would like this. I was wrong. The interesting back-story on St. Nick was good. The powerful matriarch was portrayed as greedy, self-centered and thieving. The mixed race marriage was probably some form of DEI casting, but it was incidental in the story. There was a female commando kicking butt. The wise hero was a mixed-race little girl. there was no noticeable agenda in the woke elements. I gave it a half tick, rounded up for the wokeness meter.
Created: 12-20-2025
