June 26, 2021 “Lansky” (** out of four) was a disappointingly conventional melodrama about the final days of legendary gangster Meyer Lansky (Harvey Keitel) as he recounts his stories to a writer (Sam Worthington) who actually becomes a federal informant trying to uncover his millions of dollars which he made from his days as the boss of Murder Inc. and the National Crime Syndicate. Tired collection of underworld and mobster cliches and doesn’t tell you much else about Lansky you wouldn’t already know from other (and better) movies. Keitel has his usual effortless charisma and style but even he himself already played similar roles as Mickey Cohen in “Bugsy” and Bugsy Siegel himself in “Virginia Hill.” Continue reading →
June 26, 2021 “The Unhealer” (*1/2 out of four) was an ungainly sci/fi melodrama about a bullied teacher (Elijah Nelson) who is accidentally given supernatural powers by a local shaman (Lance Henriksen in a token appearance); when his dedicated mother (Natasha Henstridge) is accidentally killed by these bullies, he begins to use his newfound superpowers to embark on a bloody revenge. Heavy-handed mixture of horror and supernatural elements and teen melodrama needed to be well-directed and well-told to mesh properly but it’s not. Henstridge and Henriksen do what they can in minor roles but at this point- both their careers appear in need of some healing. Continue reading →
June 26, 2021 “Calm Like A Bomb” (* out of four) was an absolutely dreadful timewaster set over the course of one night in which one man (Gianfranco Giglio) seeks vengeance for the death of his girlfriend and engages in repeated bouts of sex, drugs, and violence in order to enact revenge and kill anyone and everyone in his path. If you want a perfect example of style over substance (and coherence), look no further than this mess which has almost no dialogue and almost feels like an extended music video at times except those are typically over in 2-3 minutes. Allegedly inspired by the Rage song of the same name but other Rage titles like “Settle For Nothing” and (especially) “Wake Up” suggest more what it’s like sitting through this. Continue reading →
June 26, 2021 “The Ice Road” (*** out of four) was a relatively solid action thriller about a big-rig ice-road driver (Liam Neeson) who must lead a death-defying mission over a frozen ocean in Northern Canada to save trapped miners (Laurence Fishburne, Martin Sensmeier, and others ) when a remote diamond mine collapses and various big-business and political figures (Matt McCoy and Matt Salinger) struggle to contain and defuse the situation. Neeson’s rock-solid presence makes all the difference here and elevates what might have been a B-movie throwaway into being watchable and entertaining although it starts to grow a little repetitive after a while. Filmed actually in Manitoba with striking and vivid cinematography by Tom Stern. Continue reading →
June 24, 2021 “Secrets Of A Marine’s Wife” (**1/2 out of four) was a serviceably done adaptation of Shanna Hogan’s best-selling novel told in flashbacks about the ups-and-downs of a marriage between a dedicated marine (Evan Roderick) and his unhappy wife (Sadie Calvano) which leads to disarray once he is accused of her murder and a hard-nosed detective (Andrea Drepaul) investigates. Did he really do it or were there other people who wanted her dead? Interesting “Rashomon”-like story with taut direction and storytelling but leads to an unsatisfying conclusion that is disappointing and flat. Eerily, Hogan herself died last Fall while this film was in production. Continue reading →
June 24, 2021 “Babysitter Must Die” (*1/2 out of four) was a must-avoid clunker about a group of armed cultists (Nic Fitzgerald, Melinda Yeaman, and others) who invade a household looking for something they believe to be inside; fortunately for the house, a tough-as-nails babysitter (Riley Scott) is inside and is determined to fight them back to the death. Umpteenth rip-off of “Desperate Hours” and also (for a more recent cross-reference) “Trespass” and also “The Purge”. Formulaic and unpleasant and not even the fight and revenge scenes are particularly well-staged. Continue reading →
June 22, 2021 “As The Village Sleeps” (* out of four) was an inept timewaster that will likely put you to sleep about a college girl (Chloe Cammerer) who organizes a birthday celebration at (yawn) a cabin in the middle of the woods with her friends and family (Winnie Du, Michael Gum, Shiah Luna) in which they play a mysterious party game which causes them to systematically turn against one another and kill each other rampantly. Dreadful filmmaking and production values turn this into a chore to watch. Yet another horror movie that looks like (and probably was) shot on someone’s cell-phone camera. Continue reading →
June 20, 2021 “Cruella” (***) out of four was a breezily done prequel to Disney’s “101 Dalmation” series showing the title character Cruella de Vill (Emma Stone) and how she started in the ’70’s as an up-and-coming fashion designer and punk-rock singer (!) whose various anger at life and rivalry with her narcissistic boss (Emma Stone) turned her into a cruel villain. Director Craig Gillespie works with bounce and lighthearded humor and infuses wall-to-wall great music, and Stone is perfect in the lead, although a little of this does go a long way as film does wear thin after a while. Still overall entertaining and definite fun for “Dalmations” and Disney fans. Continue reading →
June 20, 2021 “Chained” (**1/2 out of four) was an uneasy but engrossing pulp psychodrama about an abused and bullied young boy (Marlon Kazadi) who escapes his disillusioned life when he meets a criminal (Aleks Paunovic) chained inside an abandoned warehouse but the tables soon become turned when he soon becomes an abuser himself of the criminal and leads to a psychological power orientation and struggle between the two and also the boy’s abusive father (Adrian Holmes). Rough and difficult subject matter is turned into compelling material by strong acting and storytelling. Paunovic in particular is riveting as the chained and sympathetic criminal. Not to be confused with 2012 thriller of the same name. Continue reading →
June 20, 2021 “The Birthday Cake” (**1/2 out of four) was an engagingly stylish underworld melodrama about a young man (Shiloh Fernandez) who on the 10th anniversary of his father’s death brings a birthday cake to his uncle (Val Kilmer) and the rest of his mafia family (Vincent Pastore, Paul Sorvino, and others) but it turns out to be a night that none of them will forget. Not much plot per se but told with a nicely twisted sense of macabre humor and flair and packed with so many veteran actors and familiar faces (including Lorraine Bracco and Ewan McGreggor) that it holds your attention. A lumpy recipe at times but overall satisfying and filling. Continue reading →
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