August 3, 2019 “Crystal’s Shadow” (*1/2 out of four) was a pretty dismal horror melodrama about a young woman named Crystal (Mhairi Calvey) who is stalked by a strange man in black and flees into the dark countryside seeking help. Is this man a figment of her imagination or is she going insane? Some interesting ideas are “overshadowed” by film’s funereal pace and low-rent filmmaking. Film’s credits say it is dedicated to fellow travelers, mind expanders, truth seekers, and the morbidly curious! Continue reading →
August 3, 2019 “The Red Sea Diving Resort” (** out of four) was a tepid melodrama based on the true story of a heroic Mossad agent (Chris Evans) who in the late ’70’s/early ’80’s used a deserted holiday hotel in Sudan as a front to smuggle thousands of refugees to Israel and help many who were diseased and dying but this put him in personal and political crossfire with his organization superiors (Greg Kinner and Ben Kingsley) and his fellow agents (Alessandro Nivola, Haley Bennett, and others). Undeniably intriguing story has a few good scenes but never fully detonates and takes off and goes on too long. Similar stories were told with far more power and conviction in “Hotel Riwanda” and “Argo.” Good music score by Mychael Danna Continue reading →
August 3, 2019 “Dead Love” (*1/2 out of four) was an incoherent mystery thriller about a young man (Elias Harger) who falls in love with a mysterious funeral director (Kate Linder) with several dark secrets that threaten to envelop them both. Too much mumbo and too much jumbo and not enough fun in this potboiler. By the end, it literally makes no sense but you’ll probably be happy it’s over by that point. “Dead Movie” would have been a better title for this mess. Continue reading →
August 2, 2019 “A Score To Settle” (** out of four) was a muddled melodrama about an ex-convict (Nicolas Cage) who returns home after 22 years of wrongful imprisonment and seeks vengeance on his former mob cohorts (Benjamin Bratt, Mohamed Karim, and others) and simultaneously tries to rebuild a relationship with his estranged son (Noah Le Gros). Cage is good in an unusual role for him but story wanders and is limited in its emotional power and thus never excels as a pulp-revenge thriller nor as a character study. Cage actually played a similar character in “Gone In 60 Seconds” with more juice. A middling “Score” at best. Continue reading →
August 2, 2019 “Coyote Lake” (*** out of four) was a potent border melodrama about a teenager (Camila Mendes) and her overbearing mother (Adriana Barraza) who run a bed-and-breakfast along the U.S./Mexico border but two guests arrive in the middle of the night threatening everyone’s safety and they have to try to outsmart them and at the same time find their personal and criminal motives for this. Interesting and intriguing story harks back to early-day Sam Peckinpah and keeps its grip thanks to Mendes’ stirring lead performance through occasional lulls. Final third is particularly strong as many of the characters’ lives and fates intersect. Continue reading →
August 1, 2019 “Bottom Of The 9th” (** out of four) was a sincere but undistinguished melodrama about a once-aspiring baseball player (Joe Manganiello) who returns home to his Bronx neighborhood after 17 years in prison and attempts to pick up the pieces of his life and reconnects with his former coach (Michael Rispoli) who is able to fulfill his dream of playing baseball again. Strong performance from Manganiello helps keep this watchable but story is never as powerful or compelling as it should have been, and thus only results in a mild hit rather than a home run. Sofia Vergara is strong in an underwritten role as his former girlfriend. Continue reading →
August 1, 2019 “Fast And Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw” (**1/2 out of four) was an outlandish spin-off of the “Fast And Furious” series in which rogue agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and crew member Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) are forced to team with Shaw’s sister (Vanessa Kirby) when a genetically enhanced villain (Idris Elba) threatens worldwide destruction. Full of the series’ usual large-scale action scenes and moves fast enough but it starts to wear out after a while as story eventually starts to become tiresome, even though it keeps slamming you over the head with loud action and effects. Johnson and Statham make an engaging team and Elba is an entertaining villain but this still feels like an unnecessary (and cartoonish) extension of the series. Continue reading →
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