September 29, 2016 “Septembers Of Shiraz” (** out of four) was a ponderous war melodrama set during the Iranian revolution in which a prosperious Jewish family (Adrien Brody and Salma Hayek) abandon everything they have before they are caught up in the overwhelming revolution and their family is killed. Brody is strong as always but even he is let down by a script and story with limited emotional power and never shifts into high gear. Hayek is solid but sorely miscast and wasted as his wife. For a much richer and more powerful look at some of the same material, watch Brody’s previous war melodrama “The Pianist” instead. Striking music score by Mark Isham is an undeniable plus. Continue reading →
September 29, 2016 “Capsule” (** out of four) was a claustrophobic, monotonous outer-space thriller about a a British fighter pilot (Edmund Kingsley) who charters Britain’s first mission to space on his own but he’s literally left stranded when his capsule malfunctions and he’s drifting in space with limited communication with the U.S., the U.K., and Russia to help him. One-person story in the form of “The Martian” and “127 Hours” about a man racing against time to stay alive- but unfortunately there’s no Matt Damon or James Franco here. Kingsley (son of Ben) is good and holds the screen but he’s unable to sustain an hour-and-a-half of screen time on his own. Might have worked better as a stage play. Continue reading →
September 29, 2016 “I Am Hooligan” (*1/2 out of four) was an almost completely uninvolving melodrama set in the London underground about a young man (Mark Wingett) who becomes gradually brainwashed into thinking that the only way out of his dead-end existence is to ignore society’s conventions and become a football hooligan. He should have found his way out of this dead-end story instead. Grungy and grimey-looking movie cries out for the stylistics of Guy Ritchie whose movies look like award material next to this. “I Am A Loser” might have been a more apt title for this timewaster. Continue reading →
September 29, 2016 “Chalk It Up” (** out of four) was a lively but dumb comedy about a college student (Maddy Curley) who is dumped by her boyfriend and then attempts to get back at him by starting her own college gymnastics team but soon finds she surprises herself with her own capabilities and success. Gets maximum mileage from Curley and other’s enthusiastic performances but is still really thin stuff. Plays like an unsold sitcom pilot. Young girls and college students may like it more. Continue reading →
September 29, 2016 “Donald Trump: The Apprentice President” (** out of four) was a generally unrevealing docudrama of the controversial billionaire which traces his rise (or some would say fall) from worldwide businessman to Presidential candidate and showcases his (to put it mildly) extreme views and what it could mean for America. Regardless of whether you endorse or despise Trump, this movie tells you little about him you probably don’t already know. His presidential debate with Hillary last night and his shows “The Apprentice” were more informative and entertaining. Continue reading →
September 29, 2016 “Bridget Jones’ Baby” (*1/2 out of four) was an extremely annoying entry in this popular series starring Renee Zellwegger in her third go-round as Bridget Jones whose plans to re-focus on her career and on her single life are interrupted when she’s pregnant but she’s unsure of who the baby’s father is, leaving two possibilities (Patrick Dempsey and Colin Firth). Exact same premise is carried out with much more conviction and laughs on any episode of The Jerry Springer Show. Zellwegger ranges from charismatic to irritating with her fake English accent and both Firth and Dempsey are wasted. Abort this series once and for all. Continue reading →
September 29, 2016 “Broken Vows” (** out of four) was an illogical and derivative thriller yet again modeled after “Fatal Attraction”, “Obsessed”, and too many others to mention. A young career-woman (Jaimie Alexander) about to be married hooks up with a bartender (Wes Bentley) who turns out to be (what else?) a real sicko who seeks to turn her life upside down when she won’t see him again. Attractive and watchable but story has more than a few logic gaps and seems to be following much too familiar a pattern by now. Bentley appears to be playing a more psychoactive version of his character from “American Beauty”…but there’s no rose petals here. Continue reading →
September 25, 2016 “Deserted” (*1/2 out of four) was a dreary melodrama that makes the audience feel deserted right along with the main characters. A 24-year old (Mischa Barton) is released from prison and meets up with her brother (Jackson Davis) and they go on a road trip but they get hopelessly stranded in the valley with the usual array of rednecks, wild animals, etc. Pretty to look at but otherwise- pretty much of a bore. “Deliverance” covered this same territory more than 40 years ago and “Wrong Turn” stylishly updated it 13 years ago so sometimes more is less. Continue reading →
September 25, 2016 “Complete Unknown” (*1/2 out of four) was a complete waste of time about a man (Michael Shannon) who meets a girl at a dinner party (Rachel Weisz) who he is sure he knew before and it turns out this is true and that she changed her name and identity years ago and the two share an endless all-night odyssey discussing their past, their future, and the importance of change. Good actors Shannon and Weisz should have probably discussed the importance of picking a better script together. Potentially interesting story is rambling, hazy, and (after a while) bizarre and boring. Similar story was covered much more powerfully in “The Age Of Adeline”. Continue reading →
September 25, 2016 “Assassin X” (** out of four) was a slick but empty Redbox action thriller about an aging assassin (Olivier Gruner) who is double-crossed by his sinister boss (Patrick Kilpatrick) when he falls in love with his target (Stephanie Gerard) and refuses to kill her leading to them both having to take it on the run to stay alive. Wall-to-wall music soon becomes grating and nearly drowns out the dialogue in some scenes although it’s no loss. Stylish direction and cinematography are plusses and Gruner’s charisma compensates to some extent. ’90’s star Richard Grieco pops up in a meaningless supporting role and Martin Kove picks up a few bucks as one of Grunier’s nemesises. Continue reading →
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