2024 NFL Power Rankings: Week 10

 ()=Previous Ranking

1.(1) Kansas City Chiefs (8-0) Week 10 opponent: Denver Broncos

2.(2) Detroit Lions (7-1) Week 10 opponent: Houston Texans

3.(3) Buffalo Bills (7-2) Week 10 opponent: Indianapolis Colts 

4.(5) Baltimore Ravens (6-3) Week 10 opponent: Cincinnati Bengals 

5.(6) Minnesota Vikings (6-2) Week 10 opponent: Jacksonville Jaguars 

6.(4) Green Bay Packers (6-3) Week 10 opponent: Bye

7.(9) Washington Commanders (7-2) Week 10 opponent: Pittsburgh Steelers

8.(8) Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2) Week 10 opponent: Washington Commanders 

9.(10) Atlanta Falcons (6-3) Week 10 opponent: New Orleans Saints 

10.(11) Philadelphia Eagles (6-2) Week 10 opponent: Dallas Cowboys

11.(7) Houston Texans (6-3) Week 10 opponent: Detroit Lions

12.(12) San Francisco 49ers (4-4) Week 10 opponent: Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

13.(14) Los Angeles Chargers (5-3) Week 10 opponent: Tennessee Titans

14.(16) Arizona Cardinals (5-4) Week 10 opponent: New York Jets

15.(13) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-5) Week 10 opponent: San Francisco 49ers

16.(18) Los Angeles Rams (4-4) Week 10 opponent: Miami Dolphins

17.(22) Cincinnati Bengals (4-5) Week 10 opponent: Baltimore Ravens

18.(17) Denver Broncos (5-4) Week 10 opponent: Kansas City Chiefs

19.(15) Chicago Bears (4-4) Week 10 opponent: New England Patriots 

20.(19) Seattle Seahawks (4-5) Week 10 opponent: Bye 

21.(21) Indianapolis Colts (4-5) Week 10 opponent: Buffalo Bills

22.(20) Dallas Cowboys (3-5) Week 10 opponent: Philadelphia Eagles 

23.(24) New York Jets (3-6) Week 10 opponent: Arizona Cardinals

24.(26) Miami Dolphins (2-6) Week 10 opponent: Los Angeles Rams

25.(25) Jacksonville Jaguars (2-7) Week 10 opponent: Minnesota Vikings

26.(23) Cleveland Browns (2-7) Week 10 opponent: Bye

27.(31) Tennessee Titans (2-6) Week 10 opponent: Los Angeles Chargers

28.(28) New York Giants (2-7) Week 10 opponent: Carolina Panthers

29.(27) Las Vegas Raiders (2-7) Week 10 opponent: Bye

30.(30) New England Patriots (2-7) Week 10 opponent: Chicago Bears

31.(32) Carolina Panthers (2-7) Week 10 opponent: New York Giants

32.(29) New Orleans Saints (2-7) Week 10 opponent: Atlanta Falcons

Week 9 Fantasy Football Winners and Losers: 2024 Edition

Quarterback

MVP: Joe Burrow (Bengals) 

Burrow has been terrific in nearly every game this season but hasn't put up too many monster lines. That wasn't the case this week however as he threw for 251 YDS and 5 TD's against the reeling Raiders at home. He'll have another chance to stuff the stat sheet this week against a Ravens team that he absolutely lit up (392 YDS/5 TD's) in Week 5.  

Honorable Mentions: Jalen Hurts (Eagles), Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs), Lamar Jackson (Ravens)

LVP: Kyler Murray (Cardinals) 

About the only thing Bears did well on Sunday against the Cardinals was contain Murray. The Cardinals signalcaller was held to 154 scoreless YDS through the air and just 6 YDS on the ground while also losing a fumble in the 2nd quarter. Murray should have a good chance of returning to his reliable QB1 level in a Week 10 showdown with the Jets.  

Dishonorable Mentions: Jared Goff (Lions), C.J. Stroud (Texans), Jordan Love (Packers)

Running Back

MVP: Saquon Barkley (Eagles) 

Barkley's dominant 2024 reached one of its highest heights thus far on Sunday afternoon/evening against the Jaguars. The veteran back was the engine of the Eagles offense in this surprising shootout against their former coach Doug Pederson's squad, registering 199 scrimmage YDS and 2 TD's on 30 touches (27 carries, 3 receptions). A lost fumble was the only thing preventing this from being a perfect performance. Pray for the 30th ranked Cowboys run D as they prepare to take on this unstoppable force in 5 days' time.   

Honorable Mentions: De'Von Achane (Dolphins), Derrick Henry (Ravens), Alvin Kamara (Saints)

LVP: Nick Chubb (Browns)

Chubb's bumpy return to action continued this week as he struggled to contribute (15 CAR/39 YDS, 1 REC/-4 YDS) against the Chargers stout defensive front in a blowout home loss for the Browns. He's been baptized in fire over the past 3 weeks with the Bengals/Ravens/Chargers matchups and his post-bye schedule doesn't soften up too much overall despite being bookended by dates with the Saints and Dolphins-which tentatively sets him up to be a questionable FLEX/RB3 option the rest out of the way. 

Dishonorable Mentions: Bucky Irving (Buccaneers), Tank Bigsby (Jaguars), Travis Etienne (Jaguars)

Wide Receiver

MVP: Zay Flowers (Ravens)

Flowers owners who were looking for his inexplicable TD drought to end got their wish as the Ravens WR1 found the endzone twice against the Broncos #1 pass D. Those endzone trips were the cherry on top of a monster afternoon for Flowers, who has now cleared 100+ YDS in 4 of the last 5 games after posting 127 YDS on just 5 receptions. While the presence of Diontae Johnson could hurt his target share once the ex-Panther gets acclimated to Todd Monken's system, Flowers should remain the clear cut WR1 in Baltimore-which would preserve his current surprising WR1 status in the fantasy realm.     

Honorable Mentions: Garrett Wilson (Jets), DeAndre Hopkins (Chiefs), Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Seahawks)

LVP: Michael Pittman Jr. (Colts)

The return of his pal Joe Flacco did nothing to help Pittman Jr. break out of his slump as caught just 1-of-4 targets for 14 YDS against a burnable Vikings secondary. He has a brutal draw with the Bills strong secondary in Week 10, which makes him a really shaky start in any league that has less than 14 teams. 

Dishonorable Mentions: Marvin Harrison Jr. (Cardinals), Puka Nacua (Rams), Xavier Worthy (Chiefs)

Tight End

MVP: Cade Otton (Buccaneers)

Jalen McMillan's absence after tweaking his hamstring in last Friday's practice only upped the stranglehold Otton has on the Bucs passing attack at the moment. The 3rd year tight end saw a season-high 11 targets, which he turned into 8 receptions for 77 YDS and a score in an OT loss versus the still undefeated Chiefs. Otton will look to keep rolling this Sunday against a 49ers defense that has allowed the 9th fewest points to tight ends this season. 

Honorable Mentions: Travis Kelce (Chiefs), Brock Bowers (Raiders), Trey McBride (Cardinals)

LVP: Kyle Pitts (Falcons)

The unicorn that was a Kyle Pitts hot streak has met its demise after 4 games as the Falcons TE fell back to earth versus the Cowboys, catching his lone target for 11 YDS. Pitts would likely be among the top beneficiaries from a potential Drake London absence-who left Sunday's game early with a hip pointer-so keep an eye on the injury reports this week as they gear up to play the Saints.  

Dishonorable Mentions: Sam LaPorta (Lions), Cole Kmet (Bears), Mark Andrews (Ravens)

Defense/Special Teams

MVP: Chargers

After avoiding disaster in his first start, Jameis Winston put up a vintage Jameis Winston performance against the Chargers. The league's top ranked scoring defense baited Winston into embracing the worst of his gunslinger tendencies by pressuring the shit out of him-which resulted in him taking 6 sacks and throwing 3 picks. The S/T also chipped in for this fantasy feast with a blocked FG in their 27-10 victory. They have another juicy matchup on the docket this week when they take on the turnover-happy, pass block-challenged Titans.  

Honorable Mentions: Jets, Vikings, Ravens

LVP: Broncos

Is there talent on the Broncos defense? No question. Have their defensive metrics to start this season been inflated on account of their extremely soft schedule? Absolutely. This was backed up by the absolute trashing they took at the hands of the elite Ravens offense, who hung a whopping 41 points on them while they logged 0 takeaways and just 1 sack. While it probably won't look this bad again, this week's matchup with the Chiefs probably won't be a picnic either.    

Dishonorable Mentions: Chiefs, Bills, Saints  

Judy Greer Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Judy Greer-whose latest project "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" releases in theaters on Thursday. 

Judy Greer's Filmography Ranked:

26.Tommorowland (D-)

25.Adaptation (D-)

24.The 15:17 to Paris (D+)

23.The Village (D+)

22.Jeff, Who Lives at Home (C-)

21.War for the Planet of the Apes (C-)

20.The Wedding Planner (C)

19.The Hebrew Hammer (C+)

18.Wilson (C+)

17.Where'd You Go, Bernadette (B-)

16.13 Going on 30 (B-)

15.Love & Other Drugs (B-)

14.Uncle Frank (B)

13.Ant-Man and the Wasp (B)

12.Entourage (B)

11.Buffaloed (B)

10.Ant-Man (B)

9.Halloween Kills (B)

8.Jurassic World (B)

7.Grandma (B)

6.Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (B)

5.Our Souls at Night (B+)

4.Halloween (B+)

3.Three Kings (B+)

2.Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 (A)

1.The Descendants (A)

Top Dog: The Descendants (2011)

While The Descendants has kind of been relegated to minor status in the acclaimed filmography of Alexander Payne, it'll always be one of my favorites of his. The way that it goes about handling the collection of conflicting strong emotions that come with finding out a damaging secret about a loved one in the aftermath of a tragedy (in this case, the husband and two daughters of a woman in a coma following a boating accident discover that she's been having an affair) is really mature and honest, Payne knows when to play into the emotional elements of the family drama and when to add levity with a comedic moment and the deeply vulnerable performances from George Clooney and Shailene Woodley remain among the strongest they've ever committed to screen.     

Bottom Feeder: Tomorrowland (2015)

Even after the phenomenal success of Pirates of the Carribean: The Curse of the Black Pearl 21 years ago, the bar for Disney films based on attractions from their amusement parks remains pretty low. There's just no universe where movie adaptations inspired by rides aimed to provide children with a few minutes of fleeting fun are shooting for the stars. Wherever the bar for these films is currently set at, Tomorrowland lands well below it. How modern animation legend Brad Bird went from making one of the standout entries in the Mission-Impossible entries in Ghost Protocol on his first foray into live action filmmaking to crashing and burning in spectacular fashion with this comically convoluted snoozer on his second go-round is the kind of head-scratcher that just doesn't compute no matter hard you try to make sense of it. Tomorrowland was such a failure creatively and finically that Bird may've even permanently retreated back to the world of animation (Incredibles 2 is the only film he's put out since and he's currently working on his longtime passion project Ray Gunn with Skydance), which would be a shame since he flashed a great feel for blockbuster filmmaking on Ghost Protocol and almost certainly would've made some cool stuff in the future.           

Most Underrated: Our Souls at Night (2017)

This lovely film about two elderly widowed neighbors (Robert Redford, Jane Fonda) who agree to spend time with each other to combat their loneliness is one of the earliest cases of a Netflix original getting promptly buried by their stupid fucking algorithm before it was able to find an audience. It's a really moving drama that is powered by the beautiful work longtime collaborators Redford and Fonda do together to sell the tenderness and healing power of their unique relationship. 

Most Overrated: Adaptation (2002)

Not even Nicolas Cage going beast mode in a dual role can do anything to help remove Adaptation's head from the deepest crevasses of its own ass. The movie's entire conceit of telling a story that's highbrow to start and lowbrow to finish is one of the smuggest creative choices I've ever seen a movie make and that alone is enough to make Adaptation an absolutely insufferable watch.       

Stanley Tucci Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a filmography or franchise from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Stanley Tucci-whose latest project "Conclave" is in theaters now.  

Stanley Tucci's Filmography Ranked:

24.Jolt (D+)

23.Transformers: The Last Knight (D+)

22.Beethoven (C-)

21.Transformers: Age of Extinction (C-)

20.Big Trouble (C-)

19.Maid in Manhattan (C)

18.Robots (C)

17.Julie & Julia (C)

16.Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (C+)

15.Captain America: The First Avenger (C+)

14.Wild Card (C+)

13.The Daytrippers (B-)

12.The Devil Wears Prada (B-)

11.The King's Man (B)

10.The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 1 (B)

9.The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 2 (B)

8.Lucky Number Slevin (B)

7.Conclave (B)

6.The Terminal (B)

5.The Hunger Games (B)

4.Easy A (B)

3.Spotlight (B+)

2.Road to Perdition (B+)

1.The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (A)

Top Dog: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)

While I've enjoyed every entry in The Hunger Games franchise, Catching Fire remains my pick for the best installment by a huge margin. The tension and urgency levels in this one are cranked up to a really impactful degree and it makes the entire 2.5 hour runtime fly by. Not to mention, it also happens to be Jennifer Lawrence's finest hour as Katniss Everdeen (that scene with Lenny Kravitz's Sinna right before she enters the arena is just devastating).   

Bottom Feeder: Jolt (2021)

As game as Kate Beckinsale is to return to her action star roots, Jolt remains a major dud. Indie comedy filmmaker Tanya Wexler (Buffaloed) completely flubs her transition to the genre film space with this boring, convoluted riff on Crank (Beckinsale plays a bouncer who uses an electroshock vest to try and deal with her intermittent rage disorder who gives into her violent impulses after a man she's recently gotten romantically involved with turns up murdered under mysterious circumstances) that features a slew of incomprehensible fight scenes along with some really terrible supporting performances from the likes of Tucci, David Bradley and Jai Courtney.   

Most Underrated: Road to Perdition (2002)

Despite a pretty decent domestic run at the box office ($104.5 mil, which made it the 24th highest grossing film of 2002), Road to Perdition has managed to get lost in the shuffle of gangster movies. Tom Hanks is terrific as a Chicago-based mob enforcer forced to go on the run with his son (Tyler Hoechlin) after his boss' (Paul Newman in his final role) wild card son (Daniel Craig) murders the rest of his family, the themes of perpetual violence and the role father/son relationships can have in continuing or breaking the cycle is explored with great care and the ending, while slightly corny, is moving nonetheless. One of Sam Mendes' finest works without a doubt. 

Most Overrated: Julie & Julia (2009)

There's nothing horribly wrong with Julie & Julia from a filmmaking perspective, I just never really got on board with its parallel intertwined narratives despite the solid performances from Meryl Streep as Julia Child and Amy Adams as Julie Powell-a call center employee who decides to start a blog where she cooks her way through every recipe in Child's iconic 1961 cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking and found it to the lack the humor and heart of the late Nora Ephron's finer works. 

2024 NFL Power Rankings: Week 9

 ()=Previous Ranking

1.(1) Kansas City Chiefs (7-0) Week 9 opponent: Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

2.(2) Detroit Lions (6-1) Week 9 opponent: Green Bay Packers 

3.(6) Buffalo Bills (6-2) Week 9 opponent: Miami Dolphins

4.(5) Green Bay Packers (6-2) Week 9 opponent: Detroit Lions

5.(3) Baltimore Ravens (5-3) Week 9 opponent: Denver Broncos

6.(4) Minnesota Vikings (5-2) Week 9 opponent: Indianapolis Colts

7.(7) Houston Texans (6-2) Week 9 opponent: New York Jets

8.(8) Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2) Week 9 opponent: Bye

9.(9) Washington Commanders (5-2) Week 9 opponent: New York Giants

10.(10). Atlanta Falcons (5-3) Week 9 opponent: Dallas Cowboys

11.(13) Philadelphia Eagles (5-2) Week 9 opponent: Jacksonville Jaguars 

12.(16) San Francisco 49ers (4-4) Week 9 opponent: Bye

13.(11) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-4) Week 9 opponent: Kansas City Chiefs 

14.(17) Los Angeles Chargers (4-3) Week 9 opponent: Cleveland Browns

15.(14) Chicago Bears (4-3) Week 9 opponent: Arizona Cardinals

16.(20) Arizona Cardinals (4-4) Week 9 opponent: Chicago Bears

17.(19) Denver Broncos (5-3) Week 9 opponent: Baltimore Ravens

18.(22) Los Angeles Rams (3-4) Week 9 opponent: Seattle Seahawks

19.(12) Seattle Seahawks (4-4) Week 9 opponent: Los Angeles Rams 

20.(15) Dallas Cowboys (3-4) Week 9 opponent: Atlanta Falcons

21.(21) Indianapolis Colts (4-4) Week 9 opponent: Minnesota Vikings

22.(18) Cincinnati Bengals (3-5) Week 9 opponent: Las Vegas Raiders

23.(30) Cleveland Browns (2-6) Week 9 opponent: Los Angeles Chargers

24.(23) New York Jets (2-6) Week 9 opponent: Houston Texans

25.(24) Jacksonville Jaguars (2-6) Week 9 opponent: Philadelphia Eagles

26.(26) Miami Dolphins (2-5) Week 9 opponent: Buffalo Bills

27.(27) Las Vegas Raiders (2-6) Week 9 opponent: Cincinnati Bengals

28.(25) New York Giants (2-6) Week 9 opponent: Washington Commanders 

29.(28) New Orleans Saints (2-6) Week 9 opponent: Carolina Panthers

30.(32) New England Patriots (2-6) Week 9 opponent: Tennessee Titans 

31.(29) Tennessee Titans (1-6) Week 9 opponent: New England Patriots

32.(31) Carolina Panthers (1-7) Week 9 opponent: New Orleans Saints 

Week 8 Fantasy Football Winners and Losers: 2024 Edition

Quarterback

MVP: Jalen Hurts (Eagles)

Hurts was able to find the endzone on the ground (3 TD's-his 2nd straight multi-rushing score performance) and through the air (1) against the Bengals on Sunday afternoon, which considerably elevated his good but hardly eye-popping yardage total (273). Overall, this was probably the best Hurts has looked all season, and his owners will be crossing their fingers that this will be a springboard for a huge 2nd half for the Eagles signalcaller. 

Honorable Mentions: Kirk Cousins (Falcons), Brock Purdy (49ers), Baker Mayfield (Buccaneers)

LVP: C.J. Stroud (Texans)

A botched snap that resulted in a -10 YD rushing attempt, lost fumble and a single TD throw banished an otherwise pretty good bounceback performance from Stroud (25/37, 285 YDS) versus the Colts after his career-worst outing in Green Bay to the fantasy cellar. He has the reeling Jets on a short week in Week 9, but the just confirmed ACL tear for Stefon Diggs paired with the continued absence of Nico Collins could very well extend the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year's fantasy misfire streak to 3.  

Dishonorable Mentions: Caleb Williams (Bears), Anthony Richardson (Colts), Joe Burrow (Bengals)

Running Back

MVP: James Cook (Bills)

Everything was easy for the Bills offense in Seattle in Week 8, but things looked particularly effortless for Cook as he scooped up 133 scrimmage YDS and ran for 2 scores on 20 touches (17 carries, 3 receptions) in another blowout victory for the runaway AFC East leaders. Cook has a meeting with the Dolphins squad he scored 3 TD's against earlier this season in Week 9.  

Honorable Mentions: Josh Jacobs (Packers), De'Von Achane (Dolphins), Rhamondre Stevenson (Patriots)

LVP: Nick Chubb (Browns)

Chubb's second game after returning from an ACL tear wasn't much better than the first as he turned his 16 carries against the Ravens elite run D into 52 YDS. It should be tough sledding for Chubb once again this week when the Chargers and their 11th ranked run defense head to Cleveland. 

Dishonorable Mentions: Kenneth Walker III (Seahawks), Zack Moss (Bengals), Austin Ekeler (Commanders)

Wide Receiver

MVP: CeeDee Lamb (Cowboys)

The explosion Lamb owners have been waiting all season for finally happened on Sunday night as the Cowboys star WR had no trouble getting open all game long versus the 49ers and ended up with a ridiculous 13/146/2 line in a game that the Cowboys made surprisingly competitive late after a dismal start. Lamb has another plus matchup with the Falcons below average secondary on deck.  

Honorable Mentions: Ladd McConkey (Chargers), Marvin Harrison Jr. (Cardinals), DeVonta Smith (Eagles)

LVP: Amari Cooper (Bills)

After a storybook start to his Bills career, Cooper immediately faded into the background in his 2nd game with the team. As somebody who watched the bulk of this game live, I can tell you that the play where he slipped on a route that led to Josh Allen throwing his 1st pick of the season was the only time I even noticed he was on the field. The box score reflects that as well as he caught just 1 pass for 3 YDS and was only targeted one other time the whole game. This was a particularly discouraging performance from Cooper as Keon Coleman and Khalil Shakir played lights out and Dalton Kincaid scored his first TD in a month against a Seahawks defense that looked lost in coverage damn near every time Allen dropped back to pass. Cooper will look to return to form against the Dolphins on Sunday.  

Dishonorable Mentions: Michael Pittman Jr. (Colts), D.J. Moore (Bears), Drake London (Falcons)

Tight End

MVP: Cade Otton (Buccaneers)

While some in the fantasy world were debating whether Jalen McMillian or Sterling Shepard was going to emerge as the Bucs top receiving option in the absence of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, Otton wasted no time proving that they were ignoring the clear leader in the clubhouse all along. Baker Mayfield has loved throwing to Otton since he got to Tampa last season and their connection was on full display as the 3rd year TE caught 9-of-10 targets for 81 YDS and 2 TD's in another painful shootout loss to the Falcons. If for some reason Otton is available in your league and you need an upgrade at TE, make him a top wire target this week. His target share is going to be absurdly high the rest of the way even when Evans presumably comes back in Week 12 or 13 and his consistency level from around Week 10 of last season through now has been quietly impressive.   

Honorable Mentions: Kyle Pitts (Falcons), George Kittle (49ers), Travis Kelce (Chiefs)

LVP: Pat Freiermuth (Steelers)

A week after having his 2nd best game of the season, Freiermuth was back to TE purgatory with a quiet 2/19 performance against the Giants last night. Boom-or-bust has been the nature of Freiermuth since he came in the league and it's unlikely that Russell Wilson's insertion into the starting lineup is going to do anything to change that. 

Dishonorable Mentions: Cole Kmet (Bears), Jake Ferguson (Cowboys), Dalton Schultz (Texans)

Defense/Special Teams

MVP: Lions

This hasn't been said much during the Dan Campbell-era in Detroit, but the defense and special teams powered the Lions stellar performance this past week by securing a sack, 4 takeaways (2 INT's, 2 FUM REC's) and a punt return TD from Kalif Raymond in a 51-14 victory over the Titans. With noted gunslinger Jordan Love potentially being on the shelf after being forced out of last week's game with the Jaguars with a groin strain, they probably won't have much value for this week's pivotal divisional clash with the Packers.   

Honorable Mentions: Steelers, Chargers, Texans

LVP: Vikings 

Fully loaded for the first time in weeks with the return of both Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp, the Rams offense ran through the Vikings stout defense for 4 straight quarters in a 30-20 loss for the Vikes. They were able to get a pick on Matthew Stafford, but that's where the highlights ended as their vaunted pass rush failed to get a single sack for the first time all season and they extended their single takeaway streak to 2 after getting multiple in each of their first 5 games. A date with the now Joe Flacco-led Colts awaits them in Week 9.   

Dishonorable Mentions: Jets, Ravens, Bears

Quick Movie Reviews: Woman of the Hour, Brothers, Conclave, Venom: The Last Dance

Woman of the Hour: Anna Kendrick becomes the latest actor to dazzle with their directorial debut with the excellent true crime thriller Woman of the Hour. Told primarily in a non-linear fashion, the film focuses on how the paths of struggling Los Angeles-based actor Sheryl Bradshaw (Kendrick), prolific serial killer/rapist Rodney Alcala (Daniel Zovatto) and a woman named Laura (Nicolette Robinson) converged at a taping of an episode of The Dating Game in 1978 where Alcala-who was one of the three bachelors-was selected to go on a date with Bradshaw. While the frequent timeline shifts and script could've been a bit tighter, Kendrick is a total pro at promptly flipping the mood from playful to terrifying, the performances-particularly from an alternately charming and bone-chilling Zovatto-are terrific and the film makes potent points about the rampant misogyny woman face as they go through the world and how that ties into threats of or sometimes, actual violence against them. Woman of the Hour is easily in the upper echelon of films I've seen this year, and I can't wait to see where Kendrick goes as a filmmaker from here.  

Grade: B+

Brothers: A large collection of gifted actors (Peter Dinklage, Josh Brolin, Glenn Close, Taylour Paige, Brendan Fraser, Marisa Tomei, the late M. Emmet Walsh) gathering together to star in a shitty R-rated comedy that's well beneath their talents? Welcome back to the early aughts everybody! Fraser and Tomei are the only ones who can come out of this wretched thing with their heads held highs as they're responsible for about 98% of the laughs (Brolin represents the other 2%, and those come in one scene with Tomei) that exist in this unrelentingly hacky but fortunately very brief crime comedy that makes last year's Strays look like the sophisticated laugh riot of the century. Its lifetime sentence to the bowels of the Prime Video library is more than deserved.         

Grade: D+

Conclave: While I wasn't overly impressed by anything about Conclave other than the cinematography from Stephane Fontaine-which features some of the most natural-looking lighting choices I've seen in a movie in quite some time, it kind of rules that a catty, trashy Papal election thriller has a real chance of winning Best Picture this year. Conclave is full of the kind of non-stop ludicrous plot developments you'd find in a John Grisham paperback, but since they're presented in this elegant package by an Oscar-winning director in Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front) and a cast of proper thespians headed up by Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci and Sergio Castellitto, it's being viewed as a high-end, topical political thriller by many people who would typically be repulsed by the idea of consuming such low art. Just a really masterful Trojan Horse job by everyone involved. Now, let's get this same group to remake Saltburn so the film can magically go from polarizing to beloved among critics.            

Grade: B

Venom: The Last Dance: What makes Venom such a refreshing departure from every other modern superhero movie is its deep commitment to being zany and ridiculous. Even as trilogy ender The Last Dance flirts with setting up the Tom Hardy-less future of Sony's Spider-Man spin-off universe at times, it never loses sight of the shaggy, silly spirit that allowed it to find an engaged audience that the other SSMU entries mostly failed to. Hardy continues to have a total blast with the dual roles of Eddie Brock/Venom, the fugitive road trip plot gives way to some of the finest Venom hijinks of the franchise so far, and the film does the damn near impossible by making a big superhero CGI action clusterfuck finale a badass, heartfelt sendoff to its antihero/lovable doofus protagonist. The Last Dance comes awfully close to challenging Let There Be Carnage as my favorite Venom entry and it would be a slam dunk choice for the #1 slot if it didn't stumble out of the blocks a bit with its (necessary) set up of the Knull and Chiwetel Ejiofor/Juno Temple plotlines. It's a borderline miracle that something this uniquely silly got the opportunity to turn into a proper franchise and I can't thank Hardy and Kelly Marcel enough for making it happen.          

Grade: B