HOTCHKA

Promotional graphic for "Kidnapped in Her Own Home: The Martha Carelli Story" featuring a car's rearview mirror. The reflection inside the mirror shows Stana Katic as Martha Carelli, a woman with a distressed expression and Tyler Tomás Perez as Michael Anderson, a man positioned behind her.

Movie Review :: Lifetime’s Kidnapped in Her Own Home: The Martha Carelli Story

It has been a while since Lifetime dipped back into the 'Ripped from the Headlines' stories, but the network's newest abduction thriller relates the true story of Martha Carelli, a harrowing incident detailed in a chapter of Ann Rule's 2008 ...

May 3, 2026 / Chuck Duncan / ★★★, Dove Meir, Drama, Gavin Keoni Spinner, Home Viewing, Ian Choi, Kidnapped in Her Own Home: The Martha Carelli Story, Lauren O'Quinn, Lifetime, Michael Shenefelt, Ripped from the Headlines, Stana Katic, Thriller, Tyler Tomás Perez / No Comments

Promotional image for "Kentucky Roses" featuring Andrew Walker as Ash Taylor, a man in a grey suit and Odette Annable as Sadie, a woman in a pink dress standing together. Behind them is a large golden horseshoe against a background of a blue sky with soft clouds. Vibrant red roses with green leaves are positioned in the foreground, and the title "KENTUCKY ROSES" is written in white, elegant lettering across the bottom.

Movie Review :: Hallmark Channel’s Kentucky Roses

It's May, and Hallmark Channel shifts gears into Mother's Day mode with its 'May for Moms' theme, although moms play a very small role in the first film of the month, Kentucky Roses, which debuted on the same day as ...

A classical portrait of a child wearing a white lace bonnet and ruffled dress gestures toward a vintage red television set that displays a vibrant blue, white, and pink chevron pattern, all set against a bright cyan background with overlapping yellow circles.

TV by the Decade :: May 3•9

The month of May typically signifies the end of the regular TV season, and the last push for networks to roll out some ratings-grabbing programming to set advertising rates for the next season, so there is little in way of ...

May 3, 2026 / Chuck Duncan / Banjo Hackett, Brenda Starr, Food Network Star: Comeback Kitchen, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, North and South: Book II, Peanuts by Schulz, Television, TV by the Decade, TV Commentary / No Comments

The Hollywood sign illuminated at night, stylized with a vibrant neon purple and pink aesthetic, overlooking a sprawling cityscape under a glowing gradient sky.

Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #301 :: April 30 to May 6

It's not a huge movie week, but there are certainly a few notable films that made their debuts including a noir classic, two shorts by a popular comedy trio and one from a cartoon cat and mouse duo, a movie ...

Theatre Review :: Kimberly Akimbo Tour at Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theatre

When you say, 'I'm going to see Kimberly Akimbo', to anyone who has little familiarity with musical theatre beyond the big name shows that dominate Broadway and tour the country, you'd most likely be met with, 'What's a Kimberly Akimbo?' ...

April 29, 2026 / Chuck Duncan / Ann Morrison, Baltimore Hippodrome Theatre, Broadway Across America, Darron Hayes, Emily Koch, Gabby Beredo, Jim Hogan, Kimberly Akimbo, Kimberly Akimbo Baltimore Review, Laura Woyasz, Marcus Phillips, Max Santopietro, Musical Review, Skye Alyssa Friedman, Stage, Touring Shows Review / No Comments

The words "THE BOOK OF MORMON" in bold black text with a metallic sheen, superimposed over a radiating white background with gold art deco-style zigzag accents on the left and right. To the right of the text is an ornate, silver, oval-shaped doorknob with a pearl-like button in the center.

Theatre Review :: The Book of Mormon Tour at Washington DC’s National Theatre

By now The Book of Mormon musical is well known, starting first in 2011, written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone from South Park along with Robert Lopez, at the time known for co-creating Avenue Q. The Broadway nerdiness was ...

Title card for "The Moonlight Murders" featuring Harley Bronwyn as May, a woman with dark hair looking back with an alert expression, standing in front of Clayton Louis as Zeke, a man wearing a dark hoodie. The background is a moody, blue-toned night scene.

Movie Review :: Lifetime Network’s The Moonlight Murders

Lifetime brings us a film fitting of the 'Sunday Night Thrills' theme, a serial killer thriller that is anything but standard issue with interesting characters and a tragic ending that completely catches you off guard. The Moonlight Murders revolves around ...

April 27, 2026 / Chuck Duncan / ★★★, Clayton Louis, Courtney Elvira, Drama, Harley Bronwyn, Home Viewing, John Hardy, Lauren Cole, Lifetime, Mystery, Russell Bradley Fenton, Shane Michael Costa, Sunday Night Thrills, The Moonlight Murders, Thriller / No Comments

Title card for Lifetime's 2026 film "Behind Closed Doors" featuring Jenny Pudavick as Morgan Marsh, Dennis Andres as Grant, Magalie Langrais as Lizzy Marsh and Chris Hong as Kevin Marsh with serious expressions against a dark, moody background, with a glowing, partially open door positioned between them and the film title in large, distressed yellow typography.

Movie Review :: Lifetime Network’s Behind Closed Doors

Lifetime delivers another gripping thriller, Behind Closed Doors, that is unfortunately deflated by an ending that just leaves you wondering what happened. Behind Closed Doors stars Dennis Andres as a man named Grant Dreyer who, when first seen, is running ...

April 26, 2026 / Chuck Duncan / ★★, Alison Mackay, Behind Closed Doors, Chris Hong, Colton Royce, Dennis Andres, Drama, Home Viewing, Jenny Pudavick, Jordan Mazeral, Lifetime, Magalie Langrais, Robin Craig, Thriller, Winston as Princess / No Comments

Promotional graphic for Hallmark's 2026 film "I'll Be Seeing You," featuring smiling man Tyler Hynes as Mark Appleyard and Stacey Farber as Amy standing on either side of a small vintage-style van named Mable, set against a warm circular yellow and orange background.

Movie Review :: Hallmark Channel’s I’ll Be Seeing You

Hallmark Channel's 'Spring into Love' theme sends one of its top male stars on a girls' road trip -- and one guy -- down the Pacific Coast in the charming I'll Be Seeing You. Stacey Farber, last seen on Hallmark ...

April 26, 2026 / Chuck Duncan / ★★★, April Amber Telek, BJ Harrison, Christine Ebersole, Drama, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Plus, Home Viewing, I'll Be Seeing You, John Prowse, Pete Graham, Romance, Spring Into Love, Stacey Farber, Tom Pickett, Tyler Hynes, Uncategorized / No Comments

TV by the Decade featured image. A hand with red-painted fingernails holds a black television remote control aimed toward a blurred television screen in the background.

TV by the Decade :: Apr 26•May 2

Only a handful of new series made their debuts this week across the decades starting with a 1956 Summer replacement variety show on its third network in four years, a 2006 MTV comedy series inspired by the success of its ...

April 26, 2026 / Chuck Duncan / Blowin' Up, Dexter's Laboratory, Houdini & Doyle, Space's Deepest Secrets, Television, The Eddy Arnold Show, The Loud House, TV by the Decade, TV Commentary / No Comments

Title card for LMN's 2026 film "A House Built on Lies" with large, bold white and red lettering. A dramatic low-light scene featuring Kimberly-Sue Murray as Daisy, Diana Salvatore as Louise and Ansh Pandey as Zack in an indoor setting. In the foreground, Daisy, a woman with long, dark wavy hair looks over her shoulder with a tense expression. In the background, Zack and Louise stand watching, all illuminated by moody, warm lighting.

Movie Review :: Lifetime Movie Network’s A House Built on Lies

I don't know why LMN's newest 'Home is Where the Harm Is' movie, A House Built on Lies, has such a low rating on IMDb, but after the dreadful offerings from the previous two weeks this one is Citizen Kane ...

April 25, 2026 / Chuck Duncan / ★★★, A House Built on Lies, Alexis Koetting, Ansh Pandey, Darryl Hopkins, Diana Salvatore, Drama, Home is Where the Harm Is, Home Viewing, Ian Kilburn, Kate Corbett, Kimberly-Sue Murray, Lifetime Movie Network, LMN, Mary Lewis, Mystery, Thriller / 1 Comment

A flat design illustration of a film strip with a dark teal screen and a beige border, casting a long shadow to the right against a muted green background.

Hotchka Movies by the Decade feature #300 :: April 23•29

While Movies by the Decade celebrates its own milestone -- 300 editions -- there are a few cinematic milestones to celebrate this week as well. One 1926 silent film with a Technicolor sequence survives today, a 1936 film features the ...