August 25, 2020 “What The Night Can Do” (** out of four) was a maudlin melodrama about a 12-year old girl (Peyton Kennedy) who is on the cusp of adolescence and trying to find her identity but is surrounded by an onslaught of family problems (Stuart Margolin, JoBeth Williams, Mercedes Mason, and others) that challenge her every step of the way. Heavy-handed coming-of-age story changes moods and directions often and has some sporadically effective moments thrown into the mix but has no real story to tell. John Rotan’s vibrant cinematography and Margolin and J.A.C. Redford’s moving music score are definite plusses but can’t compensate for film’s pedestrian script and storytelling. Continue reading →
August 25, 2020 “Hard Kill” (** out of four) was a wearily derivative action potboiler about a billionaire C.E.O. (Bruce Willis) whose daughter (Lala Kent) is kidnapped for ransom money and he enlists mercenaries-for-hire (led by Jesse Metcalfe) who save her and protect vital and valuable information for his company that could lead to worldwide war and destruction. Neither the best nor the worst of this genre but Willis has done- and can do- far better than this. Features enough firepower and fighting to make it watchable for genre fans but a definite sense of deja vu hangs over the proceedings. At 65 years old, it’s “hard” to see what keeps Willis doing these routine paycheck programmers. Continue reading →
August 25, 2020 “The Pale Rush” (*1/2 out of four) was a stale, hollow Western/horror hybrid about two brothers (Jake Ryan Scott and William Tate) who engage in a bungled train heist and end up stranded in a ghost town inhabited by a coven of witches and have to fight to the death to make it out alive. If you’ve ever wanted to see “Pale Rider” or “The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly” remade as a low-rent horror film, then look no further; anyone looking for suitable entertainment or scares would best look elsewhere. Superb character actor Stan Shaw pops up in a minor supporting role but unfortunately this is unlikely to give his career the “rush” that it needs. Continue reading →
August 24, 2020 “The Vanished” (**1/2 out of four) was a moody but meandering story about a husband and wife (Thomas Jane and Anne Heche) whose daughter mysteriously disappears; when the local police (Jason Patric and Peter Facinelli) are stumped on leads, they then take the law into their own hands to find their daughter and enact justice at any cost. Intriguing at first but story wanders after a while and never gets fully back on track until its finale. Fun fact: both Heche and Jane played husband-and-wife previously in the HBO series “Hung.” Similar story was covered with more power and raw emotional ferocity in 2013’s “Prisoners.” Continue reading →
August 23, 2020 “Unhinged” (** out of four) was an unwieldy action thriller about a woman (Caren Pistorius) who induces the road rage of a psycho (Russell Crowe) who she honks her horn at and he will stop at absolutely nothing to enact revenge and turn her life upside down. Alternately tense, harrowing, unpleasant, and routine as film derives elements from “Duel” and also “The Call” among many others; not bad but film is overall too slight and too derivative to make much of an impact. Pistorius is solid in the lead but Crowe surprisingly isn’t and is atypically awkward and unconvincing. Continue reading →
August 22, 2020 “The Unfamiliar” (*1/2 out of four) was a dreary horror thriller about a British army doctor (Jemima West) who returns home from a war and thinks she has PTSD but soon finds that there is a mysterious malevolence in her life that has overtaken her and is threatening her and her family. Ironically titled time-waster is actually very familiar and is simply an amalgam of ideas borrowed from “The Exorcist” and “Paranormal Activity.” West’s sincere performance fails to enliven or enrich the proceedings. Continue reading →
August 22, 2020 “Rogue” (** out of four) was a highly uneven war melodrama about a soldier mercenary (Megan Fox) who leads her squadron on a rescue mission in Africa to free hostages from their captors but the mission goes awry as they find themselves stranded in the African desert against a brutal gang of rebels and a group of ravenous lions. Starts off engrossing and intriguing but then goes flat; remains watchable through-out and jump-starts now and then but not often enough to make it stand out. Fox is unusually forceful in a change-of-pace role for her. Continue reading →
August 22, 2020 “You’re Not Alone” (** out of four) was a middling horror suspense thriller about a mother and daughter (Alexis Alton and Whitney Andrews) who are forced to acknowledge and analyze the presence of an evil spirit that exists in the walls of their home and they have to decipher how to get it out. By the standards of these “Exorcist”/”Amityville Horror”/”Paranormal Activity”/”House” rip-offs, this is by no means bad and is well-made and does have some watchable content and style, but you have seen this before and better many times and likely will again. Watchable but overall eclipsed by the memories of many other (and better) movies. Continue reading →
August 21, 2020 “One Night In Bangkok” (*1/2 out of four) was a flashy but empty action thriller about a grimly determined hitman (Mark Dacascos) who flies into Bangkok seeking vengeance for the death of his wife and child and hires an all-night cab driver (Vanida Golten) to drive him around until she discovers what he’s really up to. Result is such a brazen and ridiculous rip-off “Collateral” but let’s just be kind and say that Dacascos isn’t at the masterly level of Tom Cruise and writer/director Wych Kaosayananda is no Michael Mann. Golten’s strong performance and glossy cinematography by Kaosayananda are plusses but otherwise this is one mighty long night. Continue reading →
August 21, 2020 “Star Light” (** out of four) was a hokey horror thriller about a rebellious teenager (Cameron Johnson) who finds a pop star (Scout Taylor-Compton) who is beaten and left for dead and he has to help her to escape her violent pursuers but finds that they may be more than meets the eye. Ungainly pastiche of sci/fi and horror and teen melodrama elements doesn’t gell but is well-made enough to be watchable. From the executive producer of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” but this lacks that movie’s gory vitality and buzz. Continue reading →
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