January 11, 2017 “The Legacy Of Barack Obama” (***1/2 out of four) was a riveting documentary looking at Obama’s 8-year run as president focusing on a wide array of areas including Obamacare, immigration, gay marriage, terrorism, and gun violence and their affects on the country- and where the country is going now in the wake of the Trump administration. Excellently researched film features plenty of interesting interviews and viewpoints. Fascinating film whether you are a fan of Obama or not. Continue reading →
January 11, 2017 “Valley Of The Sasquatch” (* out of four) was a practically worthless horror thriller about a family who go to an isolated cabin for a weekend of hunting and are besieged and stalked by a family of hostile sasquatches. Dreadful special effects are matched by awful script and acting. You will find a lot more scares and laughs re-watching “Harry And The Hendersons” instead. Even the scenery looks pretty drab and plain. A real snooze. Continue reading →
January 11, 2017 “Lost In The Pacific” (** out of four) was a junky but watchable sci/fi thriller about a group of passengers (Brandon Routh, Russell Wong, Yuqi Zhang) aboard a transatlantic flight that is in danger of crashing and not reaching its destination when a snarling pack of wolves are aboard and start taking over. Reminiscent in some ways of “Snakes On A Plane” but isn’t nearly as stylish or original but it moves fast and is enthusiastically acted. Special effects are sometimes subpar but there’s enough action and scares to make this reasonably entertaining. Continue reading →
January 8, 2017 “Pitchfork” (*1/2 out of four) was a routine gorefest about a group of friends who return home and try to help a friend share a life-changing secret but this leads to multiple other problems and they are soon all being brutally murdered. Some interesting touches from director Glenn Douglas Packard (that opening shot is amazing) are bungled as film devolves into standard stalk-and-slash fare. It’s movies like these that really make you appreciate the original “Friday The 13th” movies that much more. Continue reading →
January 7, 2017 “Coin Heist” (** out of four) was a predictable teen comedy about four teens who hatch a daring plan to break into the U.S. mint and steal $10 million when financial cutbacks threaten to shut down their high school. Good cast does their best to enliven the proceedings but it’s mediocre at best. Story begins well but ending scenes involving the school principal and school’s eventual remaining open are ridiculous. Continue reading →
January 7, 2017 “Arsenal” (** out of four) was a sleazy, derivative melodrama set in New Orleans about a small-time former mob runner (Adrian Grenier) who is forced back into the underworld when his older brother (Jonathan Schaech) is kidnapped by a rival crime boss (Nicholas Cage) and his brother’s old friend who is now a detective (John Cusack) becomes involved. New Orleans accents come and go and so does one’s interest in this unpleasant story which feels like reheated Elmore Leonard or Quentin Tarantino. Schaech is good in a different role for him but Cage chews and throws up the scenery as an over-the-top thug. Continue reading →
January 7, 2017 “Death Race 2050” (** out of four) was a tiresome entry in the “Death Race” franchise set in the year 2050 in which the planet has become overpopulated and to help control population- the government implements a race in which competitors race across the country and score points for killing competitors with their vehicles. Allegedly a sequel to the 1975 David Carradine/Sylvester Stallone cult classic “Death Race 2000” but this is mostly more-of-the-same with lots of car chases, explosions, and accidents on the road. At least it’s a step up from the 2008 nonsensical remake with Jason Statham. Original producer Roger Corman produced this one also. Someone stop him before he remakes again! Continue reading →
January 7, 2017 “War On Everyone” (**1/2 out of four) was a breezy action comedy about two corrupt cops (Alexander Skarsgard and Michael Pena) who set out to frame and blackmail every criminal who comes in their path but their winning plan hits a snag when they encounter a new dangerous kingpin in town (Theo James) determined to take them down. Never fully takes off but has some surprisingly sharp writing and laughs at times and Skarsgard and Pena make a fun team. Promising work from director John Michael McDonagh who directed “The Guard” and “Calvery” and displays a flair here for comedy. Continue reading →
January 7, 2017 “Hidden Figures” (*** out of four) was a crowd-pleasing true story about three African-American women (Taraji Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae) who worked at NASA in 1969 and provided groundbreaking mathematical data that launched the program’s historical first space missions and had to overcome being barraged with racism and sexism. Henson is first-rate in an almost unrecognizable role and is surrounded by an equally impressive cast, including Spencer who is excellent as always and Kevin Costner in one of his best roles in years as NASA director Al Harrison. Too long and too Hollywoodized at times but nicely told and entertaining. Continue reading →
January 5, 2017 Fences” (*** out of four) was an affecting and effective melodrama set in the 1950’s about a working class African-American father (Denzel Washington who also directed) and his various trials and tribulations with his relationship with his wife (Viola Davis) and his son (Jovan Adepo). Less than perfect, with a minimal story that takes a while to take shape and goes on too long, but first-rate acting from all takes center stage and makes this a powerful watch. Washington does an impressive job on both sides of camera, in his own usual excellent performance and drawing strong acting from all others. This was all-too-obviously adapted from a stage play by August Wilson who wrote the script for this as well. Continue reading →
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