A Very Merry Toy Store

"If I'm so bad at poker, how come everybody in town wants to play with me?"

Connie Forrester (Hart) and Will DiNova (Lopez) are rival toy store owners, with stores a block apart. Connie is a widow with a son T.J. (Mann), who works with her brother Randy (Amboyer), and lives with her widowed mother Pam (Broderick). She is struggling to pay back a loan to save the business. Will is divorced and trying to buy back his family home. He needs a good month to make the deposit.

Their rivalry is set aside when Roy's Toys, a toy megastore, opens a new location nearby. The more time they spend together, sparks begin to fly. Meanwhile, the diner owner Joe (Dennehy) asks Pam for piano lessons. T.J. is focused on the upcoming bobsled race at the winter carnival. Can they out maneuver Roy Barnes (Gardell), save their stores, and take a chance at love?

This is a Lifetime Original Christmas movie. This is Melissa Joan Hart's 4th (of 8, so far) made-for-TV Christmas film, following: Holiday in Handcuffs (2007, ABC Family), The Santa Con (2014, Lifetime), Broadcasting Christmas (2016, Hallmark). Followed by A Very Nutty Christmas (2018, Lifetime), Christmas Reservations (2019, Lifetime), Dear Christmas (2020, Lifetime, and Mistletoe in Montana (2021).

The Good:

Melissa Joan Hart and Mario Lopez have good chemistry. They previously worked together in another Christmas film, Holiday in Handcuffs.

The Bad:

Too many subplots: Joe's piano lessons, Francine's romantic pursuit, the bobsled race, etc.

Other Comments:

-Hart and Beth Broderick previously worked together in the 1996 TV show Sabrina the Teenaged Witch.

-The director, Paula Hart, is star Melissa Joan Hart's mother.

-Tara Strong is a well-known voice actress. She doesn't have much to do here, other than chasing after Randy.

-Not bad, but also not memorable. 

A Very Merry Toy Store (2017) 90 minutes
Director: Paula Hart
Starring: Melissa Joan Hart as Connie Forrester
Mario Lopez as Will DiNova
Dan Amboyer as Randy Forrester

Cameron Mann as T.J.
Beth Broderick as Pam Forrester
Brian Dennehy as Joe Haggarty
Tara Strong as Francine

Billy Gardell as Roy Barnes

Mario Cantone as Mayor Stevens

Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

"What's that sound?"

"It's the wind. It's speaking to us."

"What's it saying?"

"I don't know. I don't speak wind."

Changes are coming to the herd. Mammoths Manny (Romano) and Ellie (Latifah) are expecting a baby. Manny is overprotective and wants everything to be safe, while Ellie just wants a healthy baby. The rest of the herd has mixed feelings about what will happen once the baby is born. Diego (Leary) wants adventure and plans to leave the herd. Sid (Leguizamo) wants to start his own family. One day he falls into an ice cave in the ground and finds 3 eggs, that he decides to adopt.

The next day the eggs hatch and reveal baby dinosaurs, who believe Sid is their mom. He is overjoyed, until Momma T-rex arrives. She picks up Sid and the babies and heads back to the ice cave. The rest of the herd, including Ellie's possum brothers Crash (Scott) and Eddie (Peck), set out to rescue Sid.

Through the ice cave they stumble into a another world, filled with dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures. They are rescued by a one-eyed weasel named Buck (Pegg). Can they find Sid, stay away from the fearsome beast Rudy, and get home again before the baby is born.

This film is the third film in the Ice Age franchise, following Ice Age (2002) and Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006), and followed by Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012) and Ice Age: Collision Course (2016).

The Good:

The original cast returns for another adventure. The story still highlights the differences between the herd members and how they come together to be a family. 

Simon Pegg is a fun addition to the cast as Buck. 

Dinosaurs. They came up with a interesting way to being dinosaurs into the world, without keeping them around or changing the time frame.

The Bad:

Rudy might be too scary for young audiences. It feels weird to say, but Scrat's love story is too much. Scrat and Scratte's rivalry is entertaining, but the relationship slows down the reat of the film.

Other Comments:

-This is my favorite film on the franchise.

-Buck's story with Rudy is similar to "Moby Dick".

-Legendary voice actors Frank Welker voices the dinosaurs: Momma and Rudy, in a uncredited part.

-Buck was given a spin-off film in 2022 The Ice Age Addventures of Buck Wild.

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009) 94 minutes

Director: Carlos Saldanha 

Starring: Ray Romano as Manny

John Leguizamo as Sid

Denis Leary as Diego

Simon Pegg as Buck

Queen Latifah as Ellie

Seann William Scott as Crash

Josh Peck as Eddie

Chris Wedge as Scrat

Ice Age 2: The Meltdown

"So, you think she's the girl for me?"

"Oh, yeah, she's tons of fun, and you're no fun at all. She "completes" you."

Manny (Romano) the mammoth, Sid (Leguizamo) the sloth, and Diego (Leary) the sabertooth tiger are an odd herd. When they learn that the ice is melting and the valley they live in will flood, the join the rest of the animals to find safety. The Lone Gunslinger Vulture (Arnett) tells them of a boat on the other side of the valley that will save them, if they can get there in 3 days.

Most of the animals believe Manny is the last mammoth. He is skeptical, but also fears they are right. Then they stumble onto Ellie (Latifah) a mammoth who thinks and acts like a possum. Sid invites Ellie and her mischievous possum brothers Crash (Scott) and Eddie (Peck) to join their group. Will the herd survive the trip and convince Ellie that she is a mammoth?

This film is the sequel to 2002 Ice Age film. The main characters from that film (Manny, Sid, Diego, and Scrat) return, with the same cast. They also appear in all of the subsequent films in the franchise: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009), Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012), and Ice Age: Collision Course (2016).

The Good:

The voice cast is great. Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, and Dennis Leary are great as the unlikely herd. The new characters are welcome additions: Queen Latifah's Ellie is a new foil/contrast for the reluctant Manny and Sean William Scott and Josh Peck add some more humor as Crash and Eddie. 

The vultures add the dark humor. Will Arnett takes the lead, in a charismatic and menacing way. The actual villains of the film are nature and the silent prehistoric creatures. 

The Bad:

Lacks the emotional impact of the previous film.

Other Comments:

-The vultures rendition of "Food, Glorious Food" from the musical "Oliver" is an unexpected joy and makes me laugh every time. 

-Produced by Blue Sky Studios.

-Not my favorite animated franchise, but still enjoyable.

Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006) 91 minutes

Director: Carlos Saldanha

Starring: Ray Romano as Manny

John Leguizamo as Sid

Denis Leary as Diego

Queen Latifah as Ellie

Seann William Scott as Crash

Josh Peck as Eddie

Will Arnett as Lone Gunslinger Vulture

Jay Leno as Fast Tony

Chris Wedge as Scrat

Fate of the Furious

"Why are they shooting at me?"

"I don't know. Maybe because you're in an orange Lamborghini!"

Dominic Toretto (Diesel) and his team are living normal lives. One day he is approached by a hacker named Cipher (Theron), who forces him to turn against his team and work for her.

Meanwhile, DSS agent Luke Hobbs (Johnson) is given an off-the-books assignment. If he fails, he will go to prison. He needs to put together a team that he trusts, so he calls Dom for help. Dom, Letty (Rodriguez), Roman (Gibson), Tej (Bridges), and Ramsey (Emmanuel) go to Berlin for the heist. They are shocked and devastated when Dom betrays them.

Mr. Nobody (Russell) and his junior agent, Little Nobody (Eadtwood) break Hobbs and Deckhard Shaw (Statham) out of prison. They reluctantly team up to find Dom and Cipher. Can the team take down one of their own?

This is the eighth film in the Fast and Furious franchise, following: The Fast and the Furious (2001), 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003), The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006), Fast and Furious (2009), Fast Five (2011), Fast and Furious 6 (2013), and Furious 7 (2015). To date there are 2 subsequent films: F9 (2021) and Fast X (2023).

The Good:

This is director F. Gary Gray's first (and, to date, only) entry in the Fast and Furious franchise. Chris Morgan returned as the writer.

Jason Statham on the plane with the baby. Any interaction between Statham and Dwayne Johnson is great, good chemistry and the fights feel evenly matched.

Helen Mirren. Mirren wanted to be a part of the franchise, in any. And she makes an impact with her limited screen time. 

The Bad:

I know I shouldn't expect realism here, but the zombie cars and the submarine/torpedoes were ridiculous. Memorable, but ridiculous.

Other Comments:

-The stakes feel bigger with this film. Once again it is about fast cars and crazy stunts, but the villain isn't messing around. Charlize is a stone-cold villain that is easy to hate.

-Includes brief cameos from previous characters from the franchise 

-The ice race was memorable. 

-Audiences liked the teamup of Johnson's Hobbs and Stratham's Shaw, and they were given a spin-off film.

The Fate of the Furious (2017) 136 minutes

Rating: PG-13 for prolonged sequences of violence and destruction, suggestive content, and language

Director: F. Gary Gray

Starring: Vin Diesel as Dominic Toretto

Dwayne Johnson as Luke Hobbs

Jason Statham as Deckard Shaw

Michelle Rodriguez as Letty Ortiz

Tyrese Gibson as Roman Pearce

Chris "Ludacris" Bridges as Tej Parker

Scott Eastwood as Little Nobody

Nathalie Emmanuel as Ramsey

Elsa Pataky as Elena Neves

Kurt Russell as Mr. Nobody

Charlize Theron as Cipher

Kristofer Hivju as Connor Rhodes