There is something great about watching actors on screen who seem to be having fun. Their enjoyment turns into our enjoyment, elevating what might otherwise be a mediocre film to something better. That is precisely what happens with “Baywatch,” as… Read More ›
I laughed during one scene in Amy Schumer’s new comedy, “Snatched.” I can therefore not say that the movie is “wholly devoid of laughs.” Plus, that sort of phrasing feels mean, and there’s no reason to be mean. There is… Read More ›
I love big budget spectacle movies… or I love the idea of them anyway; recently I’ve been less impressed with the films themselves (but that’s neither here nor there). It is still nice though, as we head into summer with… Read More ›
One of the reasons the original “Guardians of the Galaxy” works so well is that it, at the time it was released, provided an entirely different feel from other movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Having just rewatched it, I… Read More ›
Suspension of disbelief. Some movies require it more than others. The entire “Fast and Furious” franchise asks that viewers have oodles upon oodles of it, and the eighth installment in the series, “The Fate of the Furious,” is certainly no… Read More ›
Body-swapping movies are a genre all their own and this weekend in the U.S. we’re getting an animated body-swapping feature from Japan, “Your Name.” Directed by Makoto Shinkai, “Your Name.” is the story of two high schoolers, Mitsuha (Mone Kamishiraishi)… Read More ›
For a significant portion of the new movie “Mine,” a U.S. soldier stands in the desert with one foot on a landmine. The soldier, Mike (Armie Hammer), is forced to wait 52 hours with his foot on the mine, unable… Read More ›
Some moments in “The Boss Baby” are not just wise, they are brilliant. These moments, and they tend to be frontloaded, offer up a perfect look at just what it’s like to have a baby join a family, of the… Read More ›
It is spoiling absolutely nothing to say that at the end of “Power Rangers,” the big screen update of the long-running television series, the group of five teens at the story’s center will indeed become Power Rangers. That is, after… Read More ›
In an ideal world, a movie is satisfying on all levels – even big spectacle films like “Kong: Skull Island” ought to work across the board. We do not, however, live in an ideal world and therefore it is not… Read More ›
Matt Damon leads the cast in Zhang Yimou’s Chinese fantasy film, “The Great Wall,” which is opening in theaters this week. And, if it seems like an odd choice to have Damon lead a cast in a movie about monsters… Read More ›
There have been a lot of Batman movies and no one is more aware of this than the people behind “The LEGO Batman Movie.” Over and over again throughout this “LEGO Movie” spinoff, we are reminded of the plethora of… Read More ›
There is a certain greatness to films that know what they want to be and go out and execute that plan with panache. “John Wick: Chapter 2” is the sort of film that is going to turn off a lot… Read More ›
There are many out there who will tell you that people don’t change, that we are who we are and that’s it. Such seems to be the philosophy behind the new Robert De Niro comedy, “The Comedian.” Directed by Taylor… Read More ›
One of the things that always strikes me about documentaries is just how powerful a tool the form can be. Wielded correctly, with laser focus, it burns away all the extraneous nonsense and gets to the core of an issue;… Read More ›
The 1990s offered up a “Knight Rider” spinoff television series called “Team Knight Rider.” The opening of the show, essentially, explained that while in the past one man and one car could accomplish the job of saving the world (or… Read More ›
Horror movies need a good villain. That is, after all, what they’re all about – some individual(s) who can scare the bejesus out of an audience. M. Night Shyamalan’s latest, “Split,” gets about halfway there. It offers a great idea… Read More ›
What does it take to bring the imagination of one child to life on the big screen? J.A. Bayona has the answer and offers it up in the utterly heartbreaking, completely devastating, totally brilliant “A Monster Calls.” Written by… Read More ›
It feels like this year in general, and this time of year in particular, is the right moment to ask ourselves a question about what constitutes a family. I would argue—as I believe I have previously—that family isn’t simply something… Read More ›
Director Peter Berg is great with depicting action sequences in a powerful, believable, riveting manner. We have already seen this once in 2016 with “Deepwater Horizon.” However, Berg is even better, an absolute master, when it comes to militaristic action…. Read More ›
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