February 28, 2020 “The Night Clerk” (*1/2 out of four) was a genuinely bizarre character study of a voyeuristic hotel clerk (Tye Sheridan) who starts to become investigated for murder by a sardonic cop (John Leguizamo) while his mother (Helen Hunt) tries to proclaim his innocence but eventually doesn’t know what to believe. Story is weird and aloof just like its main character and the lead performance from Sheridan. Eventually, you realize you simply don’t care about any of the characters or their outcomes although Leguizamo adds spice and style as always. Continue reading →
February 27, 2020 “Fatal Friend Request” (** out of four) was a slick but empty, predictable thriller about a successful restaurant owner (Bree Williamson) who begins to use social media for the first time and is soon progressively stalked by a woman (Sarah Lind) who turns out to be the biological mother of her adopted daughter (Annelise Pollman) and turns out to be a deranged nutjob who will stop at nothing to get her back……….and we’re into another cliched revenge stalker melodrama. By the standards of these direct-to-DVD/made-for-television revenge stories, this isn’t bad and is well-acted, but by now you’ve seen it all before plenty. Pollman in particular is strong as the daughter caught in the middle of all this. Continue reading →
February 27, 2020 “2 Graves In The Desert” (* out of four) was an unendurable action melodrama about a man and a woman (Ryan Slater and Cassie Howarth) who find themselves kidnapped and wake up in a trunk driven by two criminals (Michael Madsen and William Baldwin) who have their own personal agendas with what they’re going to do with them. Brutal and unpleasant attempt at ’90’s style Tarantino pulp melodrama with lots of pseudo-hip dialogue and gore. Judging by what Madsen and Baldwin are churning out these days, a more apt title would have been “2 Graves For 2 Has-Beens.” Continue reading →
February 25, 2020 “Brahms: The Boy II” (* out of four) was an insufferably dull sequel to a horror movie that no one was exactly screaming for a follow-up to; a stable family (Katie Holmes, Owain Yeoman, Christopher Convery) move into a new estate where the boy almost immediately starts engaging in suspicious activity when he befriends a life-like doll named Brahms and (yawn) all Hell breaks loose. Yet another horror story about a possessed child and a killer doll which really scares you into thinking that filmmakers simply don’t have any ideas anymore for new horror movies; film doesn’t even have the saving grace of any scares or humor. And what the hell is Holmes doing in this? Continue reading →
February 25, 2020 “The Call Of The Wild” (**1/2 out of four) was a diverting adaptation of Jack London’s classic 1903 novel about a sled dog trying to find his place in the wilderness of the Yukon who is taken in by a gruff master (Harrison Ford) while trying to escape from a wealthy and corrupt landowner (Dan Stevens). Visually lush and spectacular cinematography by Janusz Kaminski on stunning Canadian locations but story lags after a while and is partially weakened by some obvious CGI work. A mixed bag but still worth checking out overall for animal lovers like me and fans of London’s novel. Continue reading →
February 24, 2020 “True Fiction” (** out of four) was a pretty unpleasant horror melodrama about a young writer (Sara Garcia) who obtains a job as an assistant for her favorite horror writer (John Cassini) but instead finds herself participating in various psychological and horror experiments in which her safety (and sanity) are threatened. Competently made and acted but story goes overboard with gore and stylistics after a while and starts to wear you out. Not all that different from Kevin Smith’s “Tusk” Continue reading →
February 23, 2020 “Burning Kentucky” (** out of four) was a lumbering melodrama set in the deep South in which a young woman (Emilie Dhir) begins to try to put the pieces together from an event that killed her family and when she finds out the truth- she is put in an emotional and psychological crossfire about whether to avenge their death or let it go and move on. Director Bethany Brooke Anderson and cinematographer Matt Clegg do an impressive job of establishing the Kentucky aura and atmosphere but you soon realize that’s pretty much all the movie is, since it moves ploddingly and never builds to much and all the characters are typical small-town cliches. Even so, this one several awards at independent film festivals last year. Continue reading →
February 22, 2020 “The Jack-In-The-Box” (* out of four) was a dreadful time-waster set in England in which new owners (Casey Reynolds, Lucey-Jane Quinlan) of the title doll begin to suspect there’s something sinister about it but it’s too little and too late for them (and for the audience) before they realize their mistakes and havoc ensues. “Child’s Play” more-or-less told this same story far more scarily and stylishly more than 30 years ago! Audiences would just do as well to pop this back in the box and bury it where it came from. Continue reading →
February 22, 2020 “Hollywould” (** out of four) was a mediocre action melodrama about a celebrity writer (Pete Postiglione) who returns to his hometown to seek inspiration for his next novel but soon meets up with a strange yet seductive woman named Holly (Caitlyn Fletcher) who turns his life inside-and-out. Lots of flashy touches and good individual scenes that unfortunately don’t add up to a cohesive or satisfying whole because it’s too weird although Eric Roberts has one of his best roles in years as an over-the-hill cop who’s retiring. A clever title in search of a better movie. Continue reading →
February 22, 2020 “Fantasy Island” (**1/2 out of four) was a respectable adaptation of the 1970’s television show about a magical island resort hosted by a delightful but insidious millionaire (Michael Pena) who takes his various residents (Lucy Hale, Maggie Q, Ryan Hansen, and others) in and indulges their fantasies but they don’t realize how this will affect their reality and thus their sanity and safety. Well-cast and well-told for a while but story gets unnecessarily cerebral and arbitrary in its final third. One of the better adaptations of a ’70’s television show that falls apart in the stretch but is still worth checking out for fans. Continue reading →
dlepikcom 