Month: May 2020

Lucky Grandma review at Mountain Xpress

/ Ian Casselberry / Leave a comment

Honestly, I wondered if the COVID-19 pandemic ended my days of getting paid to write movie reviews. Not only are movie theaters closed, but Asheville’s Mountain Xpress, where most of my reviews run, had to pare down due to a lack of ad revenue.

But indie theaters have been showing movies virtually, with part of the rental fees going to those venues, providing publications with films to review. And thankfully, the budget to pay for those reviews is opening up again.

So I was eager to review Lucky Grandma when given the opportunity:

Director Sasie Sealy (who co-wrote the script with Angela Cheng) builds her feature debut around a memorable grouch, Grandma Wong (Tsai Chin), whose fortune changes when a huge amount of money literally falls into her lap.

Lucky Grandma is a clever spin on the crime caper genre, thanks to Chin’s wonderfully cranky performance and Sealy trusting her warped morality tale to play out to its natural end.

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WISE Sports Radio NFL hit: May 14, 2020

/ Ian Casselberry / Leave a comment

The NFL doesn’t have to worry about its regular season for another four months, so the immediate concern isn’t the same as baseball currently faces. But will we really have football in the fall? Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper is a believer.

On Thursday’s WISE Sports Radio NFL segment, Pat Ryan, Mike Gore, and I look at all the obstacles to clear. Additionally, we talk about former Michigan defensive lineman Taco Charlton, the XFL feud between Oliver Luck and Vince McMahon, and the Los Angeles Rams’ new uniforms.

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WISE Sports Radio MLB segment: May 11, 2020

/ Ian Casselberry / Leave a comment

Baseball’s last stand for a 2020 season will probably happen this week. Team owners have submitted a plan to players, and now the question is whether or not the players will accept it.

On Monday’s WISE Sports Radio baseball segment, we ask the question we’ve asked all along: Is playing baseball possible while keeping everyone involved safe? Even if this is the best plan presented, is it really feasible?

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WISE Sports Radio NFL spot: May 7, 2020

/ Ian Casselberry / Leave a comment

Football! The NFL keeps chugging along until any kind of COVID-19 regulations stop them from doing so. Thursday night, the league will announce its 2020 regular season schedule.

In the meantime, for Thursday’s WISE Sports Radio NFL segment, Pat Ryan, Mike Gore, and I talked about Brett Favre’s shady $1 million payday, Jadeveon Clowney still looking for a team, and the NFL’s first phase in reopening team facilities. Oh, and we start with some baseball talk on whether or not MLB players will approve the rumored plan for playing its 2020 season.

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WISE Sports Radio MLB segment: May 6, 2020

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Is Major League Baseball moving ahead with its plan to play the 2020 season with 30 teams divided into three divisions based on geography? Maybe, but nothing’s official.

On Wednesday’s WISE Sports Radio MLB segment, Pat Ryan and I discuss that along with the story of Baltimore Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini, whose current plight is something to which Pat can relate closely.

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