January 16, 2023 “Kate” (** out of four) was a fairly routine pulp thriller about a world-weary assassin (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) who is assigned to target a deadly yakuza clan and finds out she has been poisoned and has 24 hours to live and seek her vengeance and she then turns to her mentor (Woody Harrelson) for help. Yet another female-assassin/vengeance film in the mold of “La Femme Nikita”, “Atomic Blonde”, and too many others although at least it’s directed with some style by Cedric-Nicholas Troyan and remains watchable. Lyle Vincent’s eye-candy cinematography is a highlight throughout. Continue reading →
January 15, 2023 “Wetware” (** out of four) was an inherently derivative thriller set in yet another dystopian future in which a bioengineering company releases a new product called Mungoes- artificially intelligent human beings with no feelings or emotions but a lead engineer (Jerry O’Connell) has bigger plans for them to turn into actual human beings and begins to implant them with new emotions which leads to ambiguity and conflict. Perhaps it’s time filmmakers were “implanted” with new emotions and ideas because virtually every idea now about movies set in the future have been told in the past and far better. Hardly the worst of its genre and watchable for sci/fi diehards but a definite sense of deja vu hangs over the proceedings. Continue reading →
January 15, 2023 “Dog Gone” (**1/2 out of four) was a hokey but likeable adaptation of Pauls Toutonghi’s true-story novel about a father (Rob Lowe) and son (Johnny Berchtold) whose beloved dog runs off and they embark on a search for him along the Appalachian mountains and attempt to repair their strained relationship at the same time. Uneven, with a few unnecessary scenes and plot strands, but easy-to-watch especially for those who love dogs and have ever had one missing. Plus- the dog itself is adorable and great! An interesting companion piece to director Stephen Herek’s live-action remake of “101 Dalmations”. Continue reading →
January 14, 2023 “Bed Rest” (*1/2 out of four) was a dour horror thriller for people who likely need bed-rest about a pregnant woman (Melissa Barrera) at home who starts to wonder if her house is haunted or if the hallucinations and paranoia she is going through is all in her mind. Suspenseless and sluggish for most of its running time until it finally gets going in the final third but even then is simply a collection of haunted house horror-movie cliches. Barrera tries in the lead but is unable to enliven or enrich material. Continue reading →
January 14, 2023 “Sick” (*** out of four) was a clever horror thriller set in the midst of the pandemic in which two friends (Gideon Adlon and Bethlehem Million) decide to go to a lake house in the middle of nowhere to quarantine and enjoy life on their own but soon find that they are not alone and a vicious killer is around their house. Writer/producer Kevin Williamson’s return to the horror genre is no classic but features enough scares and good kills to keep you on edge. Adlon is strong in the lead role. Film features some homages and similarities to Williamson’s previous works “Dawson’s Creek”, “Stalker”, and “I Know What You Did Last Summer.” Continue reading →
January 14, 2023 “My Sister’s Serial Killer Boyfriend” (*1/2 out of four) was disposable trifle about a young woman (Revell Carpenter) who starts taking self-defense classes and falls for her Mr. Charming instructor (Rib Hillis) but her sister (Brianna Cohen) soon investigates and begins to suspect there may be more to him underneath his exterior. Laughably obvious and predictable and lauded with plot holes. Anyone who has seen a thriller before will be miles ahead of this clinker. Continue reading →
January 14, 2023 “The Old Way” (** out of four) was an all-too-typical Western done in the “old way” about a former gunslinger (Nicholas Cage) and his daughter (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) who find themselves in the crossfire when the son (Noah Le Gros) of a man he killed years ago arrives on their frontier for vengeance which leads to bloody warfare. Passably done for Western fans and Cage die-hards but others may find this overly derivative and similar to “Unforgiven” and (especially) “True Grit.” Cage goes through the motions cashing another check in a direct-to-DVD trifle but Armstrong is strong as his daughter. Continue reading →
January 13, 2023 “Bottle Monster” (* out of four) was a nearly unendurable psychodrama about a mother (Billie Proffitt) with severe alcoholism and trying to take care of her young son (Ryker Overacker) and is then confronted with a monster at home (Willie Aames) even more destructive than the bottle she has been battling. Dark and serious subject of alcoholism is bungled by terrible filmmaking and absolutely dreadful acting that will likely make anyone want to drink. Many critics praised this film but they themselves must have been under the influence. A well-meaning but complete misfire. Continue reading →
January 12, 2023 “Naked Singularity” (*** out of four) was a stirring melodrama about an idealistic NYC public defender (John Boyega) who becomes burned out by the criminal justice system of which he is a part of and facing his own disbarrment and disgusted by the leniencies of the criminals he represents getting off- decides to become a criminal himself and team up with one of his clients (Olivia Cooke) and co-workers (Bill Skarsgard) to rob a multi-million dollar drug-dealer. Sharp and incisive script is laced with satirical wit about what a joke our NY justice system has become although story contrivances and plot holes start to weaken the film in its second half. Boyega is winning as usual in the lead and keeps film sturdily on track and Cooke is also in strong form. Continue reading →
January 12, 2023 “Stray Dogs” (** out of four) was a wildly uneven melodrama about a man (Skyler Pinkerton) who has to put his dog down and embarks on a backpacking trip through the wilderness with his brother (Tad Davies) to bury the dog where they found him but along the way encounter a stranger (Adam Gascho) who appears to be on the run and they find their own lives in jeopardy. Opening scenes with Pinkerton and his ailing dog are heartbreaking but once he sets off into the wilderness- film becomes a routine and generic crime caper. Gascho also co-wrote and directed and Pinkerton co-produced; both of them are out-acted by the dog who is great! Continue reading →
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