Revisiting Russell Crowe in 'Les Miserables'

Tenet isn't the only major movie getting a re-release this weekend: There's also the Oscar-winning Les Miserables, which co-starred Russell Crowe, who was widely mocked for his singing. Was that fair? I talk about it here.

What's the Funniest Movie to Win the Golden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy?

I offer my rankings over at Cracked.

My Interview With Larry Charles

He won an Emmy as a writer on Seinfeld. He directed Borat and Bruno (and also Masked and Anonymous). And now he's back with Dicks: The Musical. I spoke to Larry Charles for Cracked.

The Best Comedic Performances Overlooked by the Oscars

So many funny performances received no love from the Academy. For Cracked, I shine a light on some of the most egregious oversights. Hope you enjoy. 

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: Sacha Baron Cohen, Robert Zemeckis and 'Bad Hair'

On this week's episode, we review films currently available on Amazon, HBO Max and Hulu. (How many people have all three services?) You can hear all our takes down below.

How Is the 2020 Borat Different Than the 2006 One?

 

Has Borat changed? Or have we? I share my thoughts over at MEL.

'Borat Subsequent Moviefilm' Review

Funny as the first film? No. Still pretty fun? Yes. (And Maria Bakalova is terrific in it.) My review of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm is live over at Screen International.

'The Trial of the Chicago 7' Review

Aaron Sorkin takes on the 1960s with his latest. The Trial of the Chicago 7 is very, very Sorkin-y, but I think it works pretty well.

'Who Is America?' Review

I have seen the first episode of Who Is America? I have some thoughts about it. Over at MEL, I wrote about the show, Sacha Baron Cohen and the Freddie Mercury movie he never got to make. You can read my musings here.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: 'Midnight Run' and Fighting About 'X-Men: Apocalypse'

Over at The New Republic, Will and I devote this week's podcast to debating the new X-Men movie. (I'm right.) We also dissect the corpse that is Alice Through the Looking Glass. And we take a look back at Midnight Run and discuss whether it holds up. (Good lord, that Danny Elfman score is an abomination.) You can hear the whole thing here.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: '10 Cloverfield Lane' and 'Dead Again'

In the latest Grierson & Leitch podcast, we get into 10 Cloverfield Lane and The Brothers Grimsby. But perhaps the most interesting segment concerns us continuing our initiative of reviewing a movie suggested by our listeners. This week, that was Dead Again, which Will and I remembering liking back in 1991. Things change. You can hear the whole thing here.

'The Brothers Grimsby' Review

I used to have such faith in Sacha Baron Cohen. But a look on IMDb reveals that Borat was 10 years ago, with very little to show for it since. His latest film, The Brothers Grimsby, has a funny idea: What if Baron Cohen's English doofus was brothers with an elite MI6 assassin (Mark Strong)? The inspiration sorta ends there, though. I reviewed this wan comedy for The New Republic.

The Strange Case of Sacha Baron Cohen

For Deadspin, I wrote a little something about Sacha Baron Cohen. The way I see it, he's in a very unenviable point in his career. Yes, he's still popular, but with the release of The Dictator imminent, he's come to a place where his shtick is starting to feel familiar. That can't be easy. Here's my article.

'The Dictator' Review

For months, I've been dreading The Dictator. This is somewhat surprising considering how much I loved Borat, which was only six years ago. So, I'm happy to report that Sacha Baron Cohen's new film is pretty consistently funny. Not great, but consistently funny. My review is up at Screen International.