The Grouchy Editor

In gripping courtroom testimony, actress Gwyneth Paltrow this week described her first date with jailed movie producer Harvey Weinstein. Here is a sampling of the emotional exchange between the actress and a lawyer: *

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Men

Jessie Buckley plays a woman who moves to an English hamlet, where she encounters increasingly, uh, bizarre males.

I considered writing a review of this British horror film, but decided it’s much easier to just comment on other critics’ reviews:

Christy Lemire of RogerEbert.com gave it 3/4 stars, calling it “a visceral experience” and adding: “it reinforces [writer-director Alex] Garland’s singular prowess as a craftsman of indelible visuals and gripping mood.”

My take on Lemire’s take: “Yes.”

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Armond White of National Review wrote: “… Plus, it’s too absurd to substantiate the media’s fascination with ‘toxic masculinity.’”

My take on White’s take: “Yes.”

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Kevin Maher of The Times gave it 2/5 stars, writing: “It culminates in a protracted, effects-filled birthing sequence that manages, after 90 minutes of man-hating, to be aggressively misogynistic.”

My take on Maher’s take: “Yes.”

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Mark Kermode of The Observer gave the film 3/5 stars, calling it “a playfully twisted affair — not quite as profound as it seems to think, perhaps, but boasting enough squishy metaphorical slime to ensure that its musings upon textbook male characteristics are rarely dull, and sometimes deliciously disgusting.”

My take on Kermode’s take: “Yes.”

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By the way, audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of “D+” on an A+ to F scale.

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*Hey, if the Babylon Bee isn’t going to cover this stuff, we might as well.

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Don’t mess with these two

A common complaint about “reality” shows like Survivor: They aren’t real.

Outlast on Netflix might not be the real deal, either, but it certainly seems a lot more lifelike than most shows of its ilk. Rather than a bunch of Millennials lounging on a tropical beach gossiping about each other, Outlast has an ex-con heroin addict stealing sleeping bags from a competing team, the members of which must then spend a sub-freezing, rainy night at their camp in the wilds of Alaska. 

We’ve got conditions so dire that not one, but three, contestants drop out of the show in the first couple days. Oh, and the whole area is swarming with bears.

And did I mention the two female contestants (pictured above) who make Eva Braun and Lizzie Borden seem like Laverne and Shirley?

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After watching this awkward, delightful Oscar-night interview with Hugh Grant, I’ve decided that he is my new favorite movie star.

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We have to stop bailing out these banks. Let them fucking fail and if there is hell to pay, then there is hell to pay.

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The year 2023 — just like 2022 and 2021 — sucks. I advise that you do what I’ve been doing. Escape, if only for a few hours, to a simpler time.

I’ve been watching the 1950s Francis comedies. You remember Francis, the talking mule? Whoever was responsible for casting the series was a genius — and I’m not talking about the performing mule. Chill Wills as the gravel-voiced jackass and Donald O’Connor as the sidekick whose voice cracks like a kid at puberty, are a hoot.

For some unfathomable reason, YouTube doesn’t have the original movie (they made seven Francis movies), so I recommend Francis Goes to the Races and Francis Covers the Big Town.

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This is the kind of story you find in Popular Mechanics these days?

© 2010-2025 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

We need lawsuits — and we need them yesterday — against publishers like Amazon who are hiring snot-nosed college grads to “edit” classic books by retroactively removing “sensitive content.”

Dr. Seuss, Roald Dahl, Ian Fleming — even George Orwell, who warned us about this kind of crap — I really don’t care if their descendants are fine with “sensitivity readers” censoring these books. Leave the damn stories alone.

It’s especially egregious to alter an e-book (talking about you, Kindle) after it’s been purchased:

I suppose this means nothing is safe. Music, movies, TV shows … all of them subject to the whims of woke “editors.”

Lawsuits, please. Yesterday.

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Poker Face

I am going back and forth on this show. One of the early episodes, 2 or 3, had a completely arbitrary bit of MAGA-bashing, when the heroine is listening to the radio in her car. There was no narrative reason for the scene, other than to trumpet to Trump supporters: We here in Hollywood think you suck.

On the other hand, the fourth episode, with Chloe Sevigny as an aging rock star, had a truly brilliant final reveal.

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Scott Adams has been cancelled. OK, he’s one guy.

But if this poll about race relations that Adams was referring to is accurate, how is that not a much, much bigger story?

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Yup, what she said.

© 2010-2025 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

Gutfeld on Maher’s Podcast:

1)  I enjoyed watching the two veteran funnymen reminisce about old TV shows, old movies, and old music, probably because I am, in terms of age, a fellow traveler in their world. (I’m a bit younger than Maher, and a bit older than Gutfeld.) It was good to see longtime liberal Maher and longtime conservative Gutfeld mostly avoid politics — and completely avoid tearing each other’s throats out.

2)  I don’t know if it was the booze and marijuana talking, but it was a bit rich to listen to Maher expound on the secret of his success — speaking truth to power and always telling it like it is — when, in terms of our current political climate, in which nearly every entertainment institution embraces the political left, it is Gutfeld, not Maher, who is David battling Goliath.

3)  Maher is the wittier of the two; Gutfeld is the nicer.

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The Weasel and the Wuss 

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.                                         Weasel                                                                   Wuss

The problem with interviewing people like Merrick Garland (by Congress) and Christopher Wray (by Fox News) is that any topic that might prove embarrassing to them — or worse — is declared off-limits due to “ongoing investigation,” “internal protocols,” or “national security.”

On the other hand, if answering the question might put them in a positive light, they have no problem complying.

The only way to get accountability from these liars is to put them on trial.

But what are the odds of that?

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After two stellar seasons on Netflix, Mindhunter has been cancelled by the streaming service. That’s too bad. It was a good show. The serial-killer drama was a David Fincher project.

The problem: Season one premiered in 2017. Season two streamed in 2019. The show’s future was in limbo until now, which you might have noticed is the year 2023.

That’s a long time between seasons. With so many shows on so many channels, it’s difficult to keep track of the series you’ve watched, much less maintain any sort of “buzz” to support a favorite show’s renewal.

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I must be getting (more) lazy. Last week, I posted short “reviews” of the political clowns we see in the news.

This week, I’m posting short reviews of movies and TV shows I’ve been watching.

The good news: Unlike the aforementioned political clowns, most of these movies and TV shows are pretty decent.

Red Rose — A British miniseries aimed at, I guess, the young-adult demographic. The twisted plot reminded me of The Game. Or The Truman Show. Or Black Mirror: bad things happening to teenagers, thanks to modern technology.

I liked the kids and the premise, but the ending was less than satisfying. Grade: B+

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Top Gun: Maverick — Read my review here.

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The Strays — Based on the plot synopsis, I was expecting super-woke dreck. But after a slow start, this British thriller about the perils of trying to ditch your past becomes … interesting. To say the least. Grade: B+

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M3GAN — It was … just OK. At heart it’s simply yet another evil doll movie. You know, like the “Chucky” franchise. Grade: B-

Next week — short reviews of my short reviews.

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Speaking of “Zelinaky,” the Ukrainian pit bull is sounding more and more like he believes he is the de facto American president. He does not just want, but is entitled, to your tax dollars.

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Apparently, “Libs of TikTok” are now leading our grand juries.

© 2010-2025 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

Unfiltered Opinions

Hey, I don’t know any of these people personally. Maybe they just come off as awful human beings on TV. Their mothers probably love them. They might have pets. The following opinions are just my gut reactions to them.

There are more liberals than conservatives on this list because liberals are in power and are doing the most damage.  The scum:

Pete Buttigieg — a clueless, cowardly mother’s boy.

John Fetterman — a liar who gets depressed and then expects your sympathy.

Don Lemon — a narcissistic idiot who never had a “prime,” and never will.

Graham and McConnell — establishment hacks who have disdain for their constituents.

Kamala Harris — too stupid to have the job. Any job.

Biden — the biggest traitor in American history.

Joy Behar — a loud-mouthed fool.

Liberal “firsts” (gay, female, black, fill-in-the-blank) — setting back their individual “tribes” by being, in general, astoundingly incompetent.

Zelenskyy — this guy needs to negotiate with Putin, or find a new sugar daddy to fund his war.

Raquel Welch — an amazing piece of ass.

Teachers — always wanting more money but already have more than they deserve (and stop blaming your unions; you voted for them)

Greta Thunberg — a spoiled brat turned homicidal adult.

I could go on and on.

I also could be wrong.

But I doubt it.

© 2010-2025 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

Sadly, the above headline is wishful thinking. Nothing bad ever happens to liberals in power. Instead, they get golden parachutes and new jobs at Harvard.

She’s not the most articulate person in D.C., but I admire Boebert for saying out loud what so many of us are thinking.

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If I was an activist, I would organize large, pro-life-apparel-wearing groups to swarm the damn place every day until summer. Oh, yeah, and heads need to roll at the Smithsonian.

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Want to know how low I’ve sunk? Today is a relatively nice, sunny day, yet I’ve spent the afternoon watching a televised double-bill of Willard and Ben. The 1970s rat movies. 

I have no excuse.

Although I’ll have to say, the Michael Jackson title tune “Ben” remains oddly compelling.

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I might be sinking to new lows, but I haven’t reached the depths of Rip van Dinkle, who continues to be emasculated by Filipino artist Kryanne. (That’s her in the lower-right corner pulling down Rip’s pants.)

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The Chinese Balloon

At least we now have an idea of what to expect in the event of a nuclear attack on America.

The Biden administration will either Plan A: not do a thing, and hope that no one notices that Montana has been obliterated off the face of the Earth, or Plan B: dither for a week trying to decide what to do, during which time the rest of the continental U.S. will become a pile of ashes.

This is the doddering, perverted, traitorous fool you voted for, American Democrats. Because, you know, you didn’t like Trump.

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YouTube kept telling me to watch talk-show host Lex Fridman, so I finally caved and watched a few episodes. My thoughts? Fridman is just a new Charlie Rose for the current generation. Rose was just the new Tom Snyder for his generation. Snyder was just the new … I dunno, Edward R. Murrow, perhaps?

That’s not a slam on Fridman, just an observation.

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Shows to watch (or not)

Fauda — Israel’s defense-forces thriller is still as tense and exciting as ever in its fourth season. But I will have to say, I am becoming a bit burned out on its repetitive formula: scheming bad guys, vacillating decision-makers, family angst. Repeat, rinse, repeat, rinse.

The Snow Girl — The Netflix series is nothing you haven’t seen before (child kidnapping drama), but it’s very well done.

© 2010-2025 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

Videos, Videos, Videos

If there’s one lesson we should all have learned from controversial videos, it’s that the initial narratives surrounding them — colored by knee-jerk emotions — are often erroneous. Like the Covington kids video and, to a certain extent, the George Floyd video.

That said, here are my first impressions of the onslaught of such videos we got in the past few days:

The Pfizer Executive

Whether he’s a liar or not, dude gave plenty of ammunition to the anti-vaccine-mandate crowd. And, once again, the liberal media is doing its best to bury this story.

Paul Pelosi

Shockingly, what I’ve seen of this home-invasion video seems to support much of what the Pelosi camp initially claimed. But why were they so hesitant to release it?

Memphis Cops

Yup, the cops sure look guilty as hell. But the fury with which they attacked poor Tyre Nichols lends credence to the gossip that this was personal, that perhaps Nichols banged a cop’s wife.

Of course, all of my conjecture could turn out to be bullshit. Only time will tell. Maybe.

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I’ve only seen the first episode of Poker Face on Peacock, which is getting rave reviews. That episode was good, yes, but I’m not quite ready to declare that the show is the Second Coming of Columbo. Somehow, Columbo’s methodical investigations were more convincing than Charlie Cale’s “I can just tell when anyone lies to me.”

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If you want to know which Fox News hosts are pro-military-industrial-complex, pro-establishment regarding our involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war, just monitor which of them are giving tons of airtime to hawkish ex-generals.

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Will we ever get to the bottom of this?

If we just knew who is/was being blackmailed, it would likely go a long way toward explaining a lot of inexplicable behavior by Big Shots.

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Oh no! How will Tom Brady ever again find tits and ass like that?

Oh … wait. He’s Tom Brady.

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© 2010-2025 grouchyeditor.com (text only)

I believe it’s high time we stop misusing the word “elites” when referring to Bill Gates, Al Gore, and the other clowns who attend the World Economic Forum.

“Elite” has a positive connotation. Ken Griffey Jr. was an elite athlete. Meryl Streep is an elite actor. Gates, Gore, et al. have money and clout, but they are misguided tools.

How about we call each of them Big Shot Asshole, or B.S.A.?

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Posting this picture will be seen as an exercise in bad taste by some folks, but holy moly …

If it’s good enough for the New York Post, it’s good enough for us. Also, if she was proud of the picture while alive, why not now?

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Clearly, the artist responsible for the above picture is “borrowing” from the Smallest Penis in Brooklyn pageant.

Speaking of the pageant, here is Filipino artist Kryanne’s progress on her latest rendition of S.P.B. star Rip van Dinkle:

We hate to leave you with the mental image presented above, so here is this again:

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