Movie Reviews
Film and television reviewed the way I’d want to read them — with a rating that means something, an honest accounting of what works and what doesn’t, and craft notes for writers who want to understand how the machinery operates.
Each review includes a craft notes section for writers — specific observations about structure, character, world-building, and what the film does that you can actually use. Not theory. Technique you can steal.
Animation (7)
May 19, 2026A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Charlie Brown directs the Peanuts gang in a Nativity pageant after rejecting the commercialism of the season.
May 19, 2026Arthur Christmas (2011)
Santa's bumbling son Arthur must deliver a forgotten present before sunrise, using an antique sleigh and his grandfather's wisdom.
May 19, 2026How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)
Chuck Jones directs the animated Dr. Seuss special about a sour creature plotting to steal Christmas from the Whos in Whoville.
May 19, 2026Klaus (2019)
A spoiled postman exiled to a frigid island town befriends a reclusive toymaker, and they invent the Santa tradition together.
May 19, 2026Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
A young reindeer with a glowing red nose runs away with an elf who wants to be a dentist, and they find acceptance through the Island of Misfit Toys.
May 19, 2026The Polar Express (2004)
Robert Zemeckis directs the motion-capture adaptation of the picture book about a boy boarding a train to the North Pole on Christmas Eve.
May 19, 2026Tokyo Godfathers (2003)
Satoshi Kon directs the story of three homeless Tokyo residents who find an abandoned baby on Christmas Eve and search for the parents.