 Greenwich Entertainment, 2021. Is the five-time Grammy-nominated techno artist and animal rights activist, Moby, a self-absorbed asshole or one of the modern geniuses of music? Whichever side you fall on (and yes, when it comes to whether or not people like Moby, there usually is no in-between), everyone should be able to agree that "Moby Doc" is just polarizing as its subject.
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 Bleecker Street, 2021. I'm not exactly sure why, but the "horse movie" genre continues to thrive. It seems each and every year, we're given at least two (2021 will be no different, with the animated "Spirit Untamed" coming to Netflix this Summer as well).
The latest entry out of the gate is "Dream Horse," and here is the copy/paste description fitting of all horse movies: An unlikely horse, groomed by an unlikely person who is almost entirely out of their element, becomes a sensation after a lot of hard work, dedication and training montages...the evil businessmen of the "establishment" get in the way, but never so much as to knock the film from its PG-rating. So if horse films are your bale of hay, then you'll probably love the familiar rhythms of "Dream Horse." For everyone else, you'll most likely want to avoid this for the manipulative, steaming pile of horse manure that it is. Apple TV+ Review: 'Billie Eilish: The World's a Little Blurry' brings the iconic singer into focus2/25/2021  Apple TV+, 2021. Billie Eilish is about the biggest star on the planet at the moment, the singer/songwriter sensation who at age 15, uploaded a song to SoundCloud ("Ocean Eyes") and went on to become one of the most iconic and beloved stars of her generation. Her second album, 2019's "When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" was one of the best-selling album of 2019, with her number-one hit "Bad Guy" going platinum ten-times-over.
She's won two American Music Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards and five Grammys...becoming the youngest and only the second-ever to sweep the four major Grammy categories - Best New Artist, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Album of the Year - in a single year (if you're wondering who the first person to do this was, it was Christopher Cross in 1980). Eilish did all this before turning 19...and the most fascinating part of her deeply-compelling, revealing new documentary, "Billie Eilish: The World's A Little Blurry" (debuting on Apple TV+ on Feb. 26th), is just how glaringly adolescent Eilish still is. Despite being responsible for lyrics and vocals far beyond her years, we see Billie having boy trouble, getting her driver's license, handling the tremendous physical and emotional pressures that come with fame and fortune, and obsessing about Justin Bieber. In other words, she's just your average teenager, other than the fact that Billie Eilish's talents as an artist are anything but average.  Hulu, 2021. The title: "The United States vs. Billie Holiday," implies a movie that will feature some sort of lawsuit against one of the greatest jazz singers of all-time. But this is no court-room drama. Instead, the title categorizes not only how Holiday fought against the norms of the time, but how the FBI tried desperately to silence her voice both literally and figuratively.
 Warner Bros. Pictures, HBO MAX, 2021. "Judas and the Black Messiah" will remind you of other "undercover" movies, like "Donnie Brasco" or "Serpico," but with a timely twist. It's story, directed with confidence and urgency by Shaka King, is a gripping drama that will not only enrage, but enlighten, featuring some bold performances from Daniel Kaluuya and LeKeith Stanfield.
 Netflix, 2020. A darling of film critics and Hollywood insiders, "Mank" is being talked about as the early front-runner for the Best Picture Oscar, assuming the ceremony still happens as planned in April 2021. But for the average movie-goer who takes the bait and acts on critical recommendation to see "Mank," disappointment will be inevitable. "Mank" is one of the more under-cooked and over-hyped films of the year.
 Neon, 2020. Two remarkable performances make "Ammonite" worth discovering, but this film crumbles under its own weight.
 Roadside Attractions, 2020. Gloria Steinem is one of the most influential figures of the feminist movement in the 1960s and 1970s. Her story deserves big-screen treatment and is ripe for cinematic exploration. However in Julie Taymor's "The Glorias," style gets in the way of substance, and the audience is given the story of Gloria Steinem without the film ever quite capturing her spirit.
 Just WOW.
If you've never seen "Hamilton," don't fret...you're actually not alone. While it has been an absolute phenomenon since its off-Broadway debut in 2015, the show, its music and its stars have been impossible to avoid ever since. EVERYBODY has at least heard of "Hamilton." And it seems like there aren't too many who haven't seen it. I confess that not only had I not seen it - until now - but I had managed to avoid any spoilers over the years too. I always imagined I'd see "Hamilton," but I never thought it would be from the comfort of my own home, at least not for the first time. Now, "Hamilton" is being released July 3rd exclusively on Disney+, after the pandemic forced Disney to alter its plans of releasing it in movie theaters later this Fall. If you're reading this review, you're probably either A), like me, a poor, unfortunate soul that has somehow never seen "Hamilton" and you're curious if this at-home version lives up to the hype, or B), you have already seen "Hamilton" in some way, shape or form, and you're checking to see if you can ever trust another review from me ever again. Let me say this about "Hamilton": I've never entered into a film with such unbearably high expectations. And I've never left a film having felt more blown away.  Sony Pictures Classics, 2020. Marco Bellocchio might not be a household name in the United States, but he's been churning out films in Italy for over half a century. His latest film, "The Traitor" (Il traditore) is being billed as "the true story about the man who brought down the Mafia," and it's playing here in Michigan at the Detroit Film Theater this weekend.
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tom santilli movie reviews
Tom Santilli is a professional film critic, TV personality, host and
the Executive Producer of Movie Show Plus.
He also is the featured film critic appearing on WXYZ Channel 7 Action News in Detroit,
and appeared weekly on FOX-2 in Detroit from 2016-2020.
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