April 14, 2020 “Getaway” (* out of four) was a horrendous horror thriller about three girls (Jaclyn Betham, Scout Taylor Compton, Landry Allbright) off on a weekend trip in the middle of the woods (cue that ominous music) when three redneck retards (what else?) kidnap one of them for sexual assault but she soon turns the tables on them by claiming she’s the descendant of a witch! Starts off passably but goes so far afield and becomes so hokey and stupid that it descends into pure awfulness. Betham is actually good in the central role but you’ll be likely planning your own “getaway” from this long before the running time is up. Continue reading →
April 14, 2020 “Killer Tattooist” (*1/2 out of four) was a sordid horror thriller about a serial killer/tattoo artist (Lewis Kirk) who eludes capture for years until a determined cop (Noeleen Comiskey) attempts to get close to him to bring him down but finds that this assignment is far more difficult than she imagined. Tired story about serial killers and undercover cops has been done far more skillfully and successfully before (“The Silence Of The Lambs” is just one example). Director Terry Lee Coker employs some stylish touches but not enough to enrich this sleazy material. Continue reading →
April 13, 2020 “In The Trap” (**1/2 out of four) was a better-than-average horror thriller about a reclusive proof reader (Jamie Paul) who is too tortured and terrified of an unknown evil force and has stayed inside his apartment for over two years but a mysterious priest (David Bailie) thinks he may have the answers to unlock the demons and evil and set him free. Yes, it’s one more horror movie about religion and exorcisms and a haunted house but it’s better made than most and is directed with some craft and style by Allesio Liguori. Ultimately done in by familiar horror movie conventions and cliches but still good of its kind. Massimiliano Mechelli’s rich music score and Luca Santagostino’s elegant cinematography are definite plusses. Continue reading →
April 12, 2020 “The Roads Not Taken” (** out of four) was a gloomy melodrama about 24 hours in the life of an elderly man (Javier Bardem) wrestling with older age and health problems and continues to consider alternate lives he could have had while his concerned daughter (Elle Fanning) considers her future and both of their well-being. Curiously unmoving story never really engages your emotions and never reveals much about its principal characters or their past. Both Laura Linney and Salma Hayek are wasted in throwaway roles. Bardem is solid as always but this itself is a road you may not want to take. Continue reading →
April 12, 2020 “Black Hearted Killer” (*1/2 out of four) was a laughably obvious thriller about a yuppie couple (Julie McNiven and Jon Abrahams) in mourning over the tragic loss of their daughter who donate her heart to a young woman (Kelley Jakle) who reaches out to them and becomes fixated on them due to unresolved issues from the past and (yawn) seeks revenge. Yet another rip-off of “Fatal Attraction” that is fatally low on any surprises or scares and is mean-spirited and stupid in equal measure. Oliver Johnson’s sleek production design and Lars Lindstrom’s glamorous cinematography are film’s only virtues. Continue reading →
April 12, 2020 “Sea Fever” (** out of four) was a not-bad sci/fi melodrama about an Irish boat crew (Dougray Scott, Connie Nielsen, Hermione Corfield, and others) who become stranded at sea and soon find themselves under siege by a parasite in their water supply which gradually kills off their crew one-by-one. Reasonably well executed and filmed but horror buffs will note that this is perhaps an all-too-obvious clone of “Alien”, “Event Horizon”, “Virus”, and many others. Has its moments but never fully takes off and becomes satisfying. Continue reading →
April 12, 2020 “We Summon The Darkness” (** out of four) was a mildly amusing horror thriller set in the ’80’s in which three female best friends (Alexandra Daddario, Maddie Hasson, and Allison McAtee) are en route to a heavy metal show in which they meet three aspiring musicians and go back to one of their homes which soon takes a deadly turn as the bodies pile up and both sides have to outsmart (and outkill) one another. Film features enough flashes of style and violence to keep you entertained for a while but not enough for feature length and it soon runs on empty. Johnny Knoxville shows up and has a key role at the very end but he needs to start summoning himself some better roles at this point in his career. Continue reading →
April 8, 2020 “Murder RX” (*1/2 out of four) was a slapdash melodrama about a determined single mom (Ana Alexander) who moves to a small-town with her rebellious teenage daughter (Taylor Rouviere) trying to make a fresh start but don’t realize how overrun this town is with drugs, despair, and deep secrets. Film attempts to fuse a small-town drama with a meaningful statement about the current opioid epidemic and with a mother-daughter reconciliation story but its ambitions far exceed its ability. In dire need of some conviction and emotional power. For a far richer and more complex movie about the current drug epidemic, watch 2000’s “Traffic” instead. Continue reading →
April 8, 2020 “Coffee And Kareem” (*1/2 out of four) was a crude and contrived Netflix comedy about a bumbling cop (Ed Helms) dating a woman (Taraji Henson) and agrees to pick up her son (Terrence Little Gardenhigh) from school but through circumstances too painful to describe- wind up on the run from drug dealers and corupt cops. Some sharp and funny dialogue at the beginning is eventually completely drowned out by Gardenhigh’s obnoxious and stupid character and dumb plot developments. A particularly egregious waste of Henson who spends most of the movie unconscious. Didn’t anybody here learn their lesson from “Cop And A Half”? Continue reading →
April 8, 2020 “Shooting Heroin” (** out of four) was a mawkish anti-drug melodrama about a small-town Pennsylvania tough (Alan Powell) who is filled with rage and despair after the drug overdose of his sister and bands together with a local mother (Sherilyn Fenn) and others to declare war on the local drug dealers and try to take back their town and flush drugs out of their community. Earnest and well-intentioned movie becomes increasingly overblown and unbelievable. Good performances help a great deal but can’t keep film from being preachy and forced. John Honore’s crisp cinematography is a definite standout. Continue reading →
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