Baldywood: A "Superman" review // "What Should I Stream Tonight?" // "Reddit? Did It!" // Actor Redundancy of the Week // Reader feedback

"Remember, his taste sucks..."

Jul 11, 2025

Hello! And welcome to the Baldywood Newsletter.

On to this week’s newsletter…

In this edition:

A review of “Superman”
“What should I stream tonight?”
“Reddit? Did it!”
Actor Redundancy of the Week
Reader feedback

Let’s get started!

In theaters now: “Superman”

Superman is boring.

Not the movie - THAT is quite fun. I mean Superman, the movie superhero. He has practically no weaknesses. No dark side. No tortured past. His parents weren’t gunned down in front of him as a child; he was raised by two loving, supportive, living parents. He’s practically invulnerable. He fights for truth, justice and the American Way, for god’s sake.

Which is why I wasn’t particularly excited for the new “Superman” movie hitting theaters this weekend. However, it had one huge factor in its favor: Writer/Director James Gunn. Gunn’s specialty is getting me to give a damn about movies I wouldn’t normally care about: “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1-3” and “The Suicide Squad” in particular. But those were kind of oddball/lesser-known/quirky superheroes; could Gunn deliver with Superman?

I’m happy to report that the answer is a resounding and enthusiastic YES! “Superman” is fun and good, a depressingly rare combination these days. David Corenswet is a good Superman, Nicholas Holt is a good Lex Luthor, the movie has some good surprises… basically, everything about it is good. More importantly, it’s the kind of movie you make a trip to the theater for. It’s big, loud and best seen with a crowd.

Bald Fun Scale™ rating: Super fun!

Did you see “Superman”? Let me know what you thought.

“What should I stream tonight?”

I’m glad you asked!

I want an intense, modern drama that sneaks up on you: “Disconnect”

Whenever I recommend and describe “Disconnect” to people, they get a far-away look in their eyes, like they vaguely recall this movie ever existing. Which is too bad, because “Disconnect” is a smart, timely drama that more people should see. And unlike most 12+ year old movies about modern technology - which tend to age quickly - this one still feels topical and relevant.

The movie follows three separate-but-connected stories that all revolve around technology - social media, identity theft, adult chat rooms - and the effect that said technology has on families. The title is something of a double entndre - the movie examines the disconnect that technology can create between loved ones (and strangers), but the movie also subtly cautions us to “disconnect” from our devices.

Jason Bateman leads the great ensemble cast that also includes Hope Davis, Frank Grillo, Alexander Skarsgard and Andrea Riseborough. It’s rated R, which is unfortunate, because this is a story that teens should absolutely see. It’s intense and emotional, but it has a powerful message and raises important questions.

“Disconnect” is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

I want a crazy comedy based on real events: “Pain and Gain”

I don’t know what’s harder to believe: That there is a big-budget movie starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Mark Wahlberg that most people haven’t seen, or that said movie is based on a true story. Even crazier: It’s directed by Michael Bay, whose films like “Transformers,” “Armageddon” and “The Rock” make “Pain and Gain” look like a low-budget indie.

“Pain and Gain” is about three real-life personal trainers who conspire to steal money from one of their rich clients, but - because of their absolute ineptitude - things go horribly awry. Actually, “ineptitude” may be putting it kindly; these three meatheads are absolute morons. It’s sort of like The Coen Brothers meet Michael Bay; the screenwriters (Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely) are the powerhouse writing duo behind many of Marvel’s biggest hits, including “Avengers: Endgame.”

“Pain and Gain” is rated R - I definitely wouldn’t recommend it for younger teens. But in addition to being surprisingly good, “Pain and Gain” is also surprisingly funny. And Wahlberg and Johnson also deliver surprisingly good performances. The movie is full of surprises!

“Pain and Gain” is streaming on Paramount. Not a subscriber? Rent it here on Amazon Prime Video.

I want a documentary about a bizarre, off-the-grid family: “Surfwise”

In the 1970s, Dorian “Doc” Paskowitz - a practicing physician - quit medicine altogether to travel the world as a professional surfer. Odd, right? Well, what if I told you that Doc and his wife Juliette have 9 children? And they travel (live) in a camper van? Yeah. Odd.

Oddly fascinating! The Paskowitz family is complicated, as you can imagine. Doc has years and years of schooling, yet he abhors the educational system. His wife loves their children, yet seems to take a… casual attitude to their living conditions. And the kids all surf.

“Surfwise” is riveting, strange, a little bit creepy and surprisingly sweet. Despite all their idiosyncrasies, the Paskowitz family has genuine affection for each other. It’s rated R, mostly for language, so mature teens should find this interesting. Watch “Surfwise” and get ready to never forget the Paskowitz family.

“Surfwise” is streaming on Kanopy. Not a subscriber? Rent it here on Amazon Prime Video.

“Reddit? Did it!”

I love to browse movie forums on Reddit. Recently, a topic was posted to r/MovieCritic that asked, “What is your “I can’t believe this is making me cry” scene?” Great topic! So great, in fact, that we did it on my podcast The Film Vault in 2022, in two episodes titled “Top 5 Movies that Unexpectedly Made You Cry” My lists:

1. Shallow Hal (2001)

2. Logan Lucky (2017)

3. My Octopus Teacher (2020)

4. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

5. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

What’s YOUR favorite movie that unexpectedly made you cry?

Actor Redundancy of the Week:

Actor redundancies were first brought to my attention by my former co-worker and all-around swell fella Dave Dameshek, who delighted whenever an actor does the same oddly-specific thing in two separate, non-related movies. Such as…

Amy Adams plays a scientist brought in to communicate with an alien visiting Earth who is feared to be harmful despite just wanting to help humans in "Man of Steel" and "Arrival"

Reader feedback

Did you know that “feedback” is the only (normal) word in the English language that contains the first six letters of the alphabet (a, b, c, d, e and f)? Now that you know, let’s see what the readers have to say!

Reader Kevin B. commented on last week’s list of Top 5 Sacrifices:

“Favorite Sacrifice - the fighter pilot who steered his jet into an oncoming missle to save Harrison Ford’s President James Marshall in Air Force One. A frickin’ INCREDIBLE take on the “take a bullet for the president” genre!”

Great call, Kevin! Thanks for contributing to the newsletter - I love when you guys add your own to the lists!

Hooray for Baldywood!

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