amazon – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

FINAL VOWS – Review by Lynn Venhaus

April 9, 2025April 8, 2025 Lynn Venhaus amazon, catholicism, Cistercians, cloistered life, documentary, Final Vows, nuns, Rule of St. Benedictine, Santa Rita Abbe, Victoria Westover

One might think a cloistered life is a solitary one, but the documentary Final Vows portrays a Cistercians order of nuns whose livelihood derives from community. At the Santa Rita Abbey, a Catholic monastery in Sonoita, Arizona, a dozen nuns share their joys and struggles of devoting their lives to this community through prayer and work. Director Victoria Westover filmed over a four-year period and gained the nuns’ trust so they could be candid about the modern challenges a religious order faces. Most of the nuns are aging, and there aren’t as many young women answering the call.

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YOU’RE CORDIALLY INVITED – Review by Susan Granger

February 5, 2025February 5, 2025 Susan Granger amazon, Geraldine viswanathan, Nick Stoller, reese witherspoon, will ferrell, You’re Cordially Invited

For years, studio strategy included releasing a star-studded romantic comedy for Valetine’s Day weekend. But Amazon’s Will Ferrell/Reese Witherspoon You’re Cordially Invited is a dismal mess. Written and directed by Nick Stoller (Forgetting Sarah Marshall), it’s simply one of the world’s worst wedding comedies, despite memorable turns from some of the cast.

Reviews

MAYOR PETE – Review by Martha K Baker

November 19, 2021November 21, 2021 Martha K. Baker (Archived Contributor) amazon, documentaries, jesse moss, mayor pete, pete buttigieg, presidential campaign

Video-recording a modern campaign for President of the United States requires agility. The campaign itself, of necessity, demands consistency and, thus, repetition — not always the making of a vibrant documentary. The filmmaker and editor have to select reportage that engages. The same for the candidates themselves. Mayor Pete presents the candidate, Pete Buttigieg from beginning to end of that 2020 campaign. Instead of being the report of a man now in the White House, it is the biography of a political career in its adolescence, heading nicely toward greater success.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Awkwafina and Karen Gillan Reunite for SHELLY – Brandy McDonnell reports

September 18, 2020September 20, 2020 Brandy McDonnell 0 Comments amazon, awkwafina, Karen Gillan, rhe week in women, shelly, twiw

Jumanji: The Next Level co-stars Awkwafina (Crazy Rich Asians) and Karen Gillan (Guardians of the Galaxy) are set to reunite for the action-comedy Shelly, described as a high concept film that combines high school nostalgia, comedy and action, with a tone that is a mix of Mean Girls and Barry.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Amazon reboots A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN – Brandy McDonnell reports

August 25, 2020August 30, 2020 Brandy McDonnell 0 Comments a league of their own, abbi jacobson, amazon, geena davis, the week in women, twiw, will graham

Amazon has tossed out a series order for its reboot of A League of Their Own months after wrapping production on the pilot. Abbi Jacobson (Broad City) and Will Graham (The Onion News Network) created the series, which is billed as a reinterpretation of Penny Marshall’s 1992 feature film starring Geena Davis

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Viola Davis Develops FAST COLOR for Amazon Series – Brandy McDonnell reports

August 26, 2019August 28, 2019 Brandy McDonnell 0 Comments amazon, fast color, juvee productions, streaming, the week in women, twiw, viola davis

Viola Davis is developing Fast Color as a streaming series for Amazon Studios based onthe 2018 sci-fi film about three generations of black women with superhuman abilities.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Viola Davis Inks Deal with Amazon –Brandy McDonnell reports

December 21, 2018 Brandy McDonnell 0 Comments amazon, david tennon, jennifer salke, juvee productions, viola davis

Amazon Studios has signed an exclusive first look feature production deal with Viola Davis and Julius Tennon’s JuVee Productions. The deal puts the streaming service in business with one of the most acclaimed and honored actresses of her generation. Davis has been working with Amazon on the upcoming comedy Troupe Zero, which co-stars Allison Janney and Jim Gaffigan.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Julia Roberts talks BEN IS BACK, Motherhood and #MeToo – Brandy McDonnell reports

December 18, 2018 Brandy McDonnell 0 Comments amazon, ben is back, homecoming, julis roberts, the week in women, twiw

Julia Roberts, mother of three, is earning praise for two standout performances this fall in Ben is Back,now in theaters, and in her first foray into television in Amazon’s acclaimed conspiracy thriller Homecoming, where she stars as a government-sponsored caseworker counseling soldiers back into civilian life.