Month: December 2018

“Middle Of The Night” (*1/2 out of four) was a trashy and stupid horror show about the cast of (what else?) a reality t.v. show (Erika Othen, Shelly Martinez, Derek Easley, and others) who find themselves trapped in an old murder house where a nutjob is on the loose who welds a sledgehammer as his weapon of choice. Not all that different from “Halloween 6: Resurrection” but nearly as awful as that disaster. If this were in fact a reality television series, it would never have a prayer of a second season. This runs only about an hour-and-ten minutes but viewers will likely want to bolt by the middle of the movie.

Continue reading →

“The Old Man And The Gun” (*** out of four) was an agreeably done crime melodrama based on the true story of Forrest Tucker (Robert Redford) who escaped from prison over 16 times and continued a notorious string of bank robberies through his 70’s, with the police (led by Casey Affleck) on his trail and the media highlighting his every move. A fine vehicle for Redford who is breezy and engaging and so is the movie although after a while you start to wish there was more of a point and more backstory on Tucker besides that he loved to rob banks. Solid supporting cast includes Sissy Spacek as a woman who falls in love with Redford and Danny Glover and Tom Waits as members of his elderly team. Very similar in plot and film parallels to Michael Mann’s “Public Enemies.”

Continue reading →

“Black Mirror: Bandersnatch” (** out of four) was a virtual head-trip set in the 80’s as a young programmer (Fionn Whitehead) makes a fantasy novel into a lucrative video game for a blockbuster company but finds that his own reality and sense of perception and sanity become turned inside out. Is he losing his mind or is he having a psychotic breakdown? The more this techno-pop thriller goes on and the more cerebral it gets, the more you’re less likely to care which says something since the film is little more than an hour long. Some arresting scenes, to be sure, and ’80’s soundtrack is a definite plus but film becomes overly weird and unpleasant. Many loved this film so you may want to judge for yourself.

Continue reading →

“Colette” (*** out of four) was a lushly told period drama set at the dawn of the 20th century about the French novelist Gabrielle Colette (Keira Knightley) who finds much success writing novels under the name and ownership of her husband (Dominic West) but she soon attempts to take ownership of her own material and make her own voice heard by breaking free of their partnership and their marriage. Two terrific performances from Knightley and West dominate this film even though it takes its time getting going and film’s ending feels sudden and pat, even if it is based on truth. Not quite a great film as some other critics have said but still well worth watching for its acting alone.

Continue reading →

“Green Book” (***1/2 out of four) was an enormously satisfying comic melodrama set in 1962 in which a crass, bigoted nightclub tough (Viggo Mortensen) was hired by a gay African-American jazz pianist (Mahershala Ali) to be his driver on a tour of the Deep South. Initially, he takes the job just for the money but over time they develop an unlikely relationship and respect for one another. Mortensen is sensational in perhaps the best performance of his career and Ali’s performance grows more complex as it goes along and both enhance a razor-sharp screenplay that is filled with period detail and unexpected humor. One of director Peter Farrelly’s (“Dumb And Dumber”, “Kingpin”) most unusual films and also one of his best.

Continue reading →

“He Knows Your Every Move” (** out of four) was an obvious, predictable “Fatal Attraction” knockoff of which the audience will know every move and every twist and turn. A successful career-woman (Rosalie McIntire) finds her laptop is broken so she takes it to be fixed and starts dating the laptop worker (Drew Seeley) who- to the surprise of no one- turns out to be a serious sicko who turns her life upside down. Handsomely photographed and watchable but film even has the gall to rip off the bathtub ending death from “Fatal Attraction.” McIntire and Seeley are decent but won’t make anyone forget Michael Douglas or Glenn Close anytime soon.

Continue reading →

“The Toybox” (*1/2 out of four) was a grisly and unpleasant horror story about an estranged family (Denise Richards, MIscha Barton, Jeff Denton, and others) who take a trip to the desert in a used RV which (naturally) breaks down in the scorching sun and they soon find that it is inhabited by the spirit of a serial killer which kills them all one by one. Lots of gore but few scares in this rip-off of “The Hills Have Eyes” which offers little you haven’t seen before. Co-star Denton also produced this and did its unremarkable script and story

Continue reading →

“Lukas (The Bouncer)” (*1/2 out of four) was a flaccid action melodrama about an over-the-hill nightclub bouncer (Jean Claude Van Damme) who struggles to raise his 8 year-old daughter (Sveta Alviti) while at the same time staying alive and trying to find his place in life. Compelling at first then stalls and then goes nowhere as film becomes aimless and dreary. Van Damme is stiff and sleepy as usual. A different type of role for him which combines dramatics and emotional exploration but “Bloodsport” did a much better job of that over 30 years ago.

Continue reading →

“American Dream/American Knightmare” (*** out of four) was a rock-solid documentary about notorious music mogul Suge Knight featuring interviews with him talking about his upbringing, his initial career as a professional football player, and his mutation into a businessman and street conglomerate who built Death Row Records until his admitted addiction to power and violence proved to be his undoing. Particularly interesting for fans of ’90’s rap as film features tons of interviews and footage featuring Dr. Dre, Tupac, Snoop Dogg, and Knight’s parents. Directed by Antoine Fuqua who interviews Knight for the film.

Continue reading →