reviews

More than 50 years after the original, "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Jr.' still resonates at The Children’s Theatre of Annapolis.

Century's Jalen Stanton received Male Athlete of the Year honors at the Carroll County Times High School Athlete of the Year Awards banquet June 26, 2018 at Martin’s Westminster.

Liberty field hockey beat Hereford 1-0 to capture the Class 2A state championship Nov. 10, 2018 at Washington College.

Stevie Nicks played at Royal Farms Arena on March 26 and proved she's still got it.

Five and Dime Ale House, a new restaurant in Hampden, benefits from being owned by the experienced restaurateurs behind Pratt Street Ale House.

Owner Justin Hostetter has taken Cardinal Tavern's food to the next level since buying the Canton bar in November, thanks to chef Steven Grant's Southern-inspired menu.

Rock writers (including yours truly) have spent thousands of words building the myth of Bruce Springsteen's live show. Well, how about Sir Paul McCartney?

As Baltimore breakfast stalwart Blue Moon Cafe gets ready to celebrate 20 years, its second installment, Blue Moon Too, continues its tasty traditions.

A rule that always applies, no matter the restaurant: The higher the cost, the higher the expectations.

By Wesley Case

Jan 27, 2016

Disney films have a tried and true formula, and "The Good Dinosaur" is no exception. However, there's something rather soothing about the familiar, and when it's executed well, it's cinematic comfort food. The time-tested template is in full force in the latest Disney-Pixar flick: take one misfit youth, add parental peril and a journey away from home, where our protagonist learns a life lesson or two and displays some hard-won heroism.

Dalton Trumbo won an Oscar for writing the 1956 film "The Brave One," a moniker that should have been bestowed on Trumbo himself.

Since 2009, 13.5% Wine Bar has announced its presence on the Avenue in Hampden with larger-than-life orange letters spelling out its name. You can't miss it.

This film is so stupid it may burst your appendix.

It¿s worth pausing for a moment to reflect on how fortunate we are to be living in a time when Van Halen is whole again ¿ performing, and maybe even making new music.

By Matthew Hay Brown

Aug 30, 2015

Fells Point beer bar does things the right way

By Wesley Case

Apr 8, 2015

You might be further lulled into thinking that Bookmakers is solely a cocktail lounge when you have a look at the drinks menu, which features in addition to a vast selection of bourbon, rye and American whiskeys an array of Japanese and Taiwanese whiskeys, eight varieties of absinthe, three kinds of chartreuse and 10 brands of amaro. All that, and a full-page cocktail list courtesy of Bookmakers' beverage director, Ryan Sparks, an alumnus of Brewer's Art, Jack's Bistro and Of

Kosher restaurants in Baltimore have always tended to be Chinese joints, pizza shops and casual grills, but every 10 years or so, someone will try something a little fancier. These places don't usually last long, and who can say why? It could be because Baltimore's orthodox Jewish community is more family-oriented, not so interested in fancy dining. Or maybe those attempts were ahead of their time, or just not that good.

Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike star in David Fincher's film of Gillian Flynn bestseller 'Gone Girl.' Three and a half stars.

Redesigned for 2015, this second-generation Genesis looks, feels and drives like a luxury car should: distinctive, roomy, comfortable, quiet, powerful and loaded with safety and infotainment features. Yet it¿s priced thousands less than similarly equipped competitors.

Directed by Brett "I almost ended the X-Men" Ratner and starring Dwayne "Why didn't they cast me in this 10 years ago?" Johnson, it's a brief, violent and narrowly-focused tale of a Hercules utterly removed from myth.

Scarlett Johansson stars as a woman injected with brain-expanding drugs and out for revenge in Luc Besson's silly thriller. Two stars.

'The Purge: Anarchy' is James DeMonaco's somewhat better, bloodier sequel starring Frank Grillo, Carmen Ejogo and Zoe Soul.

It's no "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial." (What is?) But on its own modest terms, the alien adventure "Earth to Echo" is a lively and likable knockoff that should divert, if not exactly enthrall, tweens and young teens.

Melissa McCarthy's Tammy a road trip picture with more laughs than Identity Thief, more heart than The Heat.

Mark Wahlberg steps in for Shia LaBeouf in Michael Bay's fourth Tranformers outing.

The peculiar sweetness of "21 Jump Street" has taken a hiatus in "22 Jump Street," a brazen sequel that's both slightly disappointing and a reliable, often riotous "laffer" in the old Variety trade-magazine parlance.

The John Green best-seller about teenage cancer patients in love comes to the screen starring Shailene Woodley and a bucket of tears. Two stars.

"Ping Pong Summer" envisions a time when a kid's biggest worry was showing off at the local arcade, when a beach-side cookout with your weird relatives could become the stuff of family legend, when friends were all that really mattered and appearing cool was the toughest challenge a guy could face.