November 26, 2022 “The Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special” (** out of four) was an inconsequential spin-off of the blockbuster Marvel series about the continuing adventures of Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) and Drax (Dave Bautista) and company as they go off in search of and kidnap Kevin Bacon (playing himself!) for the holidays! Enthusiastically played by its all star-cast and original director and creator James Gunn but mostly for fans only. Sufficient enough to hold Marvel fans over for the next “Guardians” entry but pretty trivial otherwise. For Marvel fans keeping track, this is actually set between the events of “Thor: Love And Thunder” and “Guardians Vol. 3.” Continue reading →
November 26, 2022 “A Party To Die For” (** out of four) an overly predictable and derivative suspense melodrama about a luxury boutique worker (Jonetta Kaiser) who meets a socialite (Kara Royster) who invites her out to a nightclub and after a wild night of partying find that someone is killed and they all find their worst instincts rising to the surface as they try to cover their tracks and find out whose playing who and who is the real killer. Glamorous cinematography (by Joseh Hennigan) and attractive cast help keep this watchable but it’s story and plot twists are all-too-familiar. Easy to watch but at the same time just as easy to forget. Continue reading →
November 26, 2022 “Ghosts Of Flight 401” (*1/2 out of four) was a hokey documentary about a paranormal investigator (Steve Shippy) and a paranormal psychic (Cindy Kaza) who on the 50th anniversary of the historic 1972 flight 401 attempt to make contact with the deceased and their ghosts who continue to allegedly haunt the Florida Everglades ever since. Earnestly done and well-researched but overall dull and decays into overbaked corn after a while. Perhaps it’s really about time we let those from the 1972 flight really rest in peace. Continue reading →
November 25, 2022 “The Menu” (** out of four) was a twisted black “comedy” about a group of guests (Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult, John Leguizamo, and many others) who travel to a remote island for an exclusive restaurant where the iconoclastic chef (Ralph Fiennes) has more than a few surprises in store for his guests and his fellow kitchen assistants. Highly bizarre and offbeat story is crammed with irony and over-the-top humor but the overall oddity and ugliness (no pun intended) leaves a bad taste in your mouth. Director Mark Mylod and cinematographer Peter Deming try to give this as much polish and style as much but can’t overcome central story and script deficiencies. Continue reading →
November 24, 2022 “Andromeda” (*1/2 out of four) was an empty, derivative sci/fi suspense thriller about a young man (Tim Llewelyn) who has to travel through the galaxies and the farthest extent of the universe to find his long-lost father (Paul T. Taylor) but finds multiple personal/physical/psychological struggles along the way. Just a series of ideas borrowed from other and better movies, particularly “Ad Astra” which this liberally rips off at times. Full of video-game like effects that vary the monotony but mostly look cheap. Continue reading →
November 24, 2022 “The Walls Are Watching” (*1/2 out of four) was a snail-paced horror thriller surely not worth “watching”; a man (Branscome Richmond) who recently lost his entire family and now his house refuses to accept that the house is no longer his and he starts to terrorize the new couple (Michael Perl and Lana McKissack) who have moved in in hopes that they’ll move out and he can regain control of his life again. Suspenseless movie is tedious and talky and might have worked better as a play. Richmond’s strong performance is one of film’s only virtues. Continue reading →
November 24, 2022 “Heart Of The Gun” (*1/2 out of four) was a logy Western that fires mostly blanks about a former military doctor (John Marrs) who searches the frontier for his wife who recently left him; he subsequently stumbles upon and saves a woman (Amber Rose Mason) who has been left for dead and they start to develop a close connection with one another and embark on a search for his wife together. Promising beginning opens effectively but gets draggier and talkier as it goes along and eventually story interest is completely eroded. Writer/director Travis Mills also has a supporting role as a gunslinger named Dolan. This is the final film of Jay Pickett and Dalton Breuer. Continue reading →
November 23, 2022 “You Can Never Go Home Again” (** out of four) was an unremarkable suspense thriller about a husband and wife (Omar Gooding and Maria Breese) who return to his hometown in Mississippi to start their lives over; he subsequently has an affair with his child’s teacher (Jackie Moore) who turns out to be (what else?) a serious sicko intent on wrecking their home and turning their lives upside-down. Competently made and acted but cliche-strewn and starts to fall apart in its silly climax. Al Sapienza is solid as Breese’s uncle who is a retired cop. Continue reading →
November 23, 2022 “The Killing Tree” (*1/2 out of four) was a ridiculous horror thriller about a vindictive widow (Judy Tcherniak) who conjures up a spell to resurrect her executed husband but something goes wrong and the dead husband is brought back as a Christmas tree (!) intent on revenge and murdering those who put him in the grave! What’s next? A Thanksgiving horror movie about a killer turkey??? Obviously stupid premise isn’t even made with any conviction and doesn’t generate any laughs or scares and turns into a real bore. This clunker makes previous holiday horror romps “Jack Frost” and “Silent Night, Deadly Night” almost look like Oscar fare by comparison. Continue reading →
November 22, 2022 “The Final Rose” (*1/2 out of four) was a slapdash suspense shocker about a young mother (Christina Masterson) who arrives on a remote island to compete on a reality dating show but soon finds out that someone is killing all the contestants one-by-one and that she has to fight to escape the island alive. Film’s main character is named Jess Rose hence the title but that’s about the most clever thing here. One scene of everyone drinking poisoned champagne is the only one that provides a real scare. Let’s all hope this is the “final” horror movie about reality shows and television. Continue reading →
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