Twin Cities Real Estate Blog

Movie Review - 'Darkest Hour' Rests Comfortably on Gary Oldman's Performance

Hitler and the Nazis are at the gates again. Like dominoes, Europe is falling to Germany’s invasion and it seems like only a matter of time before France falls, too. Meanwhile, England is in crisis as they seek to find a new Prime Minister after Neville Chamberlain. The only person who can potentially create a large coalition of government is Winston Churchill, a man loved by some and loathed by many others. Within this pressure point, Darkest Hour excels, esteeming a man rising from the ashes with conflict meeting him at all sides. But, it’s Gary Oldman’s committed portrayal of the curmudgeon Churchill that deepens the experience and creates a much-needed lynchpin in the process. ...

After Long Last -- Jack Morris is a Hall of Famer

It was announced on Sunday that Jack Morris had been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Modern Baseball Era Committee. Morris, who had 254 career wins in an 18-season career, received 14 votes from the 16 member committee that consisted of Hall Of Fame members, Major league executives and veteran historians. Morris, who was elected along with his fellow Detroit Tigers teammate, Alan Trammelll, is best remembered by Minnesota Twins fans for pitching a ten inning, complete game 1-0 shutout in game seven to win the 1991 World Series over the Atlanta Braves. ...

Movie Review - 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Heightens the Franchise but Its Villains are Lacking

After the epic cliffhanger of The Force Awakens, eager anticipation has been building the past few years to see a continuation of the story. Fan theories abounded about Rey’s parentage, what her vision meant, and what Luke had been doing on the island of Ahch-to. What was Luke going to say? Did he turn to the Dark Side? Is he a grey Jedi? All of these questions have answers in Star Wars: The Last Jedi. But do they really matter? In the end, it’s the story, the characters, and the overall storytelling that we should care about. Thankfully, Star Wars: The Last Jedi excels at all of that. The story is crisp,...

Move Over Big Bang Theory. The Yule Log Program Is Roaring Back for Its 15th Year

Amid the languor and afterglow of a large Thanksgiving meal and a Vikings win, the nieces and nephews were scattered about the living room like throw pillows. My nephew Chase was fiddling around with his Roku monitor and then an air of satisfaction when he was able to project a live aquarium screen saver. Not to be outdone, my 12-year-old niece Lexi exclaimed: “We have a yule log on our TV!”
Move over Big Bang Theory. Shuffle step back Dancing With The Stars. For the fifteenth consecutive year, Hubbard KSTC (45TV) will broadcast its popular Yule...

'Sorcerer' is the Movie We Need Right Now, Not 'Star Wars'

I, like many Millennials, was not alive in 1977. I grew up in the age of Star Wars, the age of the big blockbuster film that left everyone leaving the theater feeling generally happy, positive, and optimistic. Escapism isn’t new to Hollywood. It is Hollywood. During The Great Depression, people flocked to the theater to escape their awful, poverty-stricken life.  Somewhere along the line, though, when the depression had long been over, auteurs like William Friedkin and Francis Ford Coppola made extremely nihilistic and existential films, forcing people to face the mirror. This era of cinema called The New Hollywood movement, many believe, met its decisive end with Star Wars. ...