Hooray for Baldywood!

Baldywood: Ranking "The Odyssey" among Nolan's films // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 10:16:10 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

Maybe I’m naive, but I was not prepared for - or even really aware of - the rote and tiresome “woke” controversy surrounding “The Odyssey.” Apparently some people were so upset at the casting of minor characters that they went so far as to predict commercial disaster for the film, which of course went on to …

Baldywood: RIP Sam Neill // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 10:50:50 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

Veteran actor Sam Neill died this week in Australia at the age of 78. Neill, who was born in Northern Ireland and raised in New Zealand, is best known for his role in the “Jurassic Park” films. But as you’ll see in “What should I stream tonight?” below, Neill was a versatile actor with other great films.

On t…

Baldywood: PROTEST! // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 10:19:09 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

It’s a long story, but I somehow ended up on the mailing list for some religious ~~weirdos~~ folks. Their emails, which arrive multiple times per week, breathlessly urge their subscribers to PROTEST some relatively-minor transgression.

I typically delete these without a second thought, but the other day, one cau…

Baldywood: In theaters now: "Toy Story 5" // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 26 Jun 2026 10:06:26 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

Thanks in no small part to “Toy Story 5’s” $165 million opening weekend, Hollywood is having its biggest Summer since before the Covid pandemic, the Wall Street Journal reports. And that’s before behemoths like “Spider-Man” and “The Odyssey” inevitably explode later this summer.

The New York Times writes tha…

Baldywood: A Father's Day edition of "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 19 Jun 2026 10:38:25 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

This week, I’m featuring some of my best streaming picks that would be perfect to watch with your dad on Father’s Day. Obviously, I don’t know YOUR dad, but these are all great movies to watch with A dad - comedies, thrillers, action, documentaries and more, dating as far back as the 1940s. Enjoy!

On to this …

Baldywood: Father's Day Gift Guide // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 12 Jun 2026 10:03:08 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

We lost a legend of Hollywood music last week: Peabo Bryson, singer of Disney classics “Beauty and the Beast” and “A Whole New World,” died at the age of 75. Bryson will be long remembered for his timeless Disney hits - understandably; they’re enduring classics - but don’t sleep on the man’s Tool Tunes, like…

Baldywood: A fun new documentary for "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 05 Jun 2026 10:21:51 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

You guys! The outpouring of support and encouragement from my health update in my last issue is honestly heart-melting. So many of you sent and posted really kind comments that it reminded me of the overwhelming goodwill we received upon my initial diagnosis in 2009, when I would turn to my then-fiancee Chri…

Baldywood: A very special episode of Baldywood // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 29 May 2026 10:53:05 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

Apologies for skipping last week’s newsletter. I’ve been dealing with some health challenges lately, and it all became too much last week. On that note, I wanted to share some good news and bad news with you all:

The bad news is that my inoperable brain tumor is growing again and requires treatment.

The good n…

Baldywood: A great and fun movie for the whole family in theaters now // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 15 May 2026 10:11:19 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

It’s another quiet(ish) week for new theatrical releases (unless you’re excited for the horror movie “Obsession” or Guy Ritchie’s latest, “In the Grey,” in which case, let me know what you thought). But, thankfully, recent gems “Project Hail Mary” and “The Drama” - both reviewed and recommended glowingly in …

Baldywood: "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 08 May 2026 10:43:01 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

It’s an interesting week for new releases, as the family-friendly “The Sheep Detectives” and the video game adaptation/sequel “Mortal Kombat 2” his theaters. I’ll be seeing both of them on Friday, so my thoughts will have to wait. But both are getting good early reviews, particularly “The Sheep Detectives,” …

Baldywood: The funniest movie I've seen in years in "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 01 May 2026 10:10:49 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

Last week, I told you that “Michael,” the (quite sanitized) Michael Jackson biopic was projected to earn upwards of $65 million at the US box office. Well, the movie smashed expectations, earning a surprising $97 million in the US alone. Overseas, it earned an additional $120 million for an eye-popping up $2…

Baldywood: In theaters now: “Michael” // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 10:03:22 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

It’s a soft opening to the Summer Movie Season this week, as the Michael Jackson biopic “Michael” hits nearly 4,000 screens this weekend. “Soft” in terms of quality, not receipts; “Michael” is projected to earn upwards of $65 million at the US box office. No telling how well it will do overseas, where Jackso…

Baldywood: In theaters now: “The Drama” // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Thu, 16 Apr 2026 10:08:39 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

“The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” just crossed $300 million at the domestic box office, and “Project Hail Mary” isn’t far behind, likely crossing the $300 million threshold this weekend. Their success has helped fuel a theatergoing resurgence, as 2026 first-quarter box office totals were up 23% over the same pe…

Baldywood: We're Back! // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 10:22:43 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

We’re back after a one-week break, ostensibly for my daughter’s Spring Break, but practically because I was in the hospital for a week. Don’t worry, it’s nothing serious (like a brain tumor or anything) - and yes, I know how absurd it sounds to say a weeklong hospital stay was for “nothing serious.” Thanks f…

Baldywood: OMG We won! // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 10:33:13 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

Ok, ok, I get it. You’re probably sick of reading about MY movie by now. “Give us some movies we can actually see, baldy!” Fair enough! Thanks for indulging me as I documented my journey through our World Premiere at the Cinequest film festival. I thought I had closed the book on that chapter of our movie… b…

Baldywood: In theaters now: "Project Hail Mary" // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 20 Mar 2026 10:17:11 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

Thank you all for indulging me these last few weeks as I promoted the world premiere of my own movie, “Growth,” at the Cinequest Film Festival this past weekend. The premiere went great! It was an incredible week overall; we even got our first “official” review - legendary film publication Film Threat called…

Baldywood: Dominate your Oscar ballot with these locks // In theaters now: Pixar's "Hoppers" // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 13 Mar 2026 10:11:09 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

Greetings from Cinequest! My movie, “Growth,” premieres on Sunday, March 15, at the Alamo Drafthouse in Mountain View, CA, with a second screening the next day. It’s been great meeting the festival organizers and fellow filmmakers (I never thought I’d say that).

To promote the film’s premiere, I was lucky en…

Baldywood: The first review of my movie! // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 11:25:42 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

The first review for my movie “Growth” is in! And let me tell you, after many years of sharing my thoughts and opinions on movies, it is surreal and bizarre to have an actual film journalist share their thoughts on my movie.

, formerly with Gold Derby and currently with Awards Heaven, invited me to join him…

Baldywood: In theaters now: "Goat" // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 27 Feb 2026 11:17:37 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood” - year two! Thanks so much to everyone who sent such kind words and thoughts after last week’s one-year anniversary edition. It’s so much fun doing this newsletter, and I always love getting feedback from readers.

On to this week’s newsletter…

Baldywood: Happy 1-year anniversary to Baldywood! // RIP Robert Duvall // One year of "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

Fri, 20 Feb 2026 11:51:24 GMT

Hello! And welcome to “Hooray for Baldywood.”

This issue marks the one-year anniversary of the Baldywood newsletter! A genuine THANK YOU to all of you; I love writing about and recommending movies, and I especially love it when you let me know which of my picks you’ve watched and enjoyed. Here is a link to the very first edition of the newsletter so you…