Jonathan Goldstein – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

MAYDAY – Review by Susan Granger

September 18, 2026September 20, 2026 Susan Granger Apple TV+, John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein, kenneth Branagh, Marien Dorocinski, Mayday, Ryan Reynolds

Mayday premiered on Apple TV earlier this month and has already become one of the ‘most watched’ action/buddy comedies of the season. Set in 1987, Ryan Reynolds stars as cocky U.S. Navy pilot Troy ‘Assassin’ Kelly who is forced to eject from his top-secret Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird spy plane to avoid a deadly collision over the Siberian forest during the last days of the Cold War. Wounded and stranded behind the Iron Curtain, he’s befriended by Kenneth Branagh, playing Nikolai ‘Nik’ Ustinov, an eccentric ex-KGB officer who is obsessed with American pop culture and dreams of defecting with his estranged daughter Anna (Maria Bakalova).

Reviews

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: HONOR AMONG THIEVES – Review by Susan Granger

April 10, 2023April 9, 2023 Susan Granger Chris Pine, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein, Michael Gilio, michelle rodriguez, paramount pictures

Confession: I’ve never played Dungeons & Dragons, so I had to learn a bit about the classic fantasy role-playing game before watching the movie. If you’re also a newbie, I’d advise you do the same. Scripted by co-directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, along with Michael Gilio, it’s based on the complex, immersive game created by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson in 1974, popularly known as D&D which – in turn – has influenced subsequent game systems involving ‘let’s pretend’ and improvisation. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is a silly, swaggering, swashbuckling adventure.

Reviews

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: HONOR AMONG THIEVES – Review by Valerie Kalfrin

March 31, 2023March 31, 2023 Valerie Kalfrin Chris Pine, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein, Michael Gilio, michelle rodriguez, paramount pictures

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves has ample dungeons, honor, and dragons, along with tremendous fun. From an ensemble cast playing characters with clear traits and motivations to a story filled with clever sequences and close escapes, it’s a rousing adventure that also scores points for unexpected heart. Based on the long-running fantasy tabletop game, it leans heavily on humor without dissolving into farce and is an enjoyable romp.