May 13, 2024 “Darkness Of Man” (** out of four) was a muddled action melodrama about an alcoholic interpol agent (Jean Claude Van Damme) who is trying to defeat various elements of the criminal underworld while simultaneously taking on the role of being a father to a young boy (Emerson Min) who is the son of an informant who was killed in a drug raid gone wrong. Well-made and features one of Van Damme’s better performances but is a mixture of action and relationship story that doesn’t gel and goes on too long. Kristanna Lokken, Shannon Doherty, and Sticky Fingaz are all wasted in supporting roles. Continue reading →
May 11, 2024 “Abigail” (*** out of four) was a taut horror melodrama about a group of criminals (Melissa Barrera, Dan Stevens, William Catlett, and others) who kidnap the ballerina daughter (Alisha Weir) of an underworld heavyweight and retreat to an isolated mansion only to find out that she has vicious superpowers that turn them on one another and turn their sanity inside out. Opening is a little gradual and slow-going but it escalates and builds with skillful tension into full-blown gore and zany comedy. A good showing for directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett that shows the unmistakable influence of early Sam Raimi and “The Evil Dead 2” in particular. Continue reading →
May 11, 2024 “Downtown Owl” (** out of four) was an overly cute adaptation of Chuck Klosterman’s 2008 novel set in 1980’s North Dakota in the midst of a blizzard which affects three small-town characters- an old man (Ed Harris) who spends his days reciting lines he’s heard from the coffee shop, a depressed high-school quarterback (August Blanco Rosenstein), and a hard-partying teacher (Vanessa Hudgens). Sincere performances can only do so much with a script and characters that ring hollow and false. Harris actually performs one of the songs on film’s lively soundtrack. Continue reading →
May 10, 2024 “Possessions” (**1/2 out of four) was a sporadically creepy horror thriller about a devoted father (Clive Standen) who seeks a fresh start with his young son (Mason Wells) after the death of his wife and they move to a new town and purchase a storage unit facility but dark secrets lurking beneath the facility threaten to overtake them. Better-than-average horror story has good atmosphere and performances but is ultimately done in by standard horror cliches. A solid effort from writer/director Brent Cote but this cannot escape film’s origins of “The Shining” and (especially) “Poltergeist.” Continue reading →
May 10, 2024 “DC Down” (** out of four) was a serviceable action thriller about an earthquake that decimates Washington, D.C. and traps the President (Sean Young) under pounds of rubble while the military frantically tries to rescue her and her staff and various other personnel (Eric Roberts, Jack Pearson, Geoff Meed, and others) have an agenda of their own. Reasonably well-made and fast moving enough but never escapes the mold of the routine. Young is slightly miscast as the leader of the free world. You might want to watch “Olympus Has Fallen” again instead. Continue reading →
May 4, 2024 “Dark Blood” (*1/2 out of four) was a molasses-moving horror story set in the Australian countryside about a bickering married couple (Jonathan Pryce and Judy Davis) whose lives are changed when they meet a sinister young man (River Phoenix) in the outback. Film was shot in 1993 and then shelved after River Phoenix’ death but was finished and completed in 2012 and is getting a re-release now but it hardly seems worth all the bother. Director George Sluizer deserves credit for completing this in the wake of Phoenix’ death but this film is nowhere near as creepy or scary as his 1988 masterwork “The Vanishing.” Continue reading →
May 4, 2024 “Chief Of Station” (*1/2 out of four) was an enervated action thriller about a former C.I.A. operative (Aaron Eckhart) who is pulled back into espionage and the underworld when he finds out that his wife’s tragic death was not an accident and he teams back up with a former adversary (Olga Kurylenko) to uncover a sinister conspiracy involving terrorism and the government. Ho-hum story of international espionage and the C.I.A. feels like reheated story elements from the “Bourne” series. Even the usually dynamic Eckhart and Kurylenko seem to be just going through the motions. Continue reading →
May 4, 2024 “A Chef’s Deadly Revenge” (** out of four) was a synthetic suspense thriller about a chef (Kathryn Kohut) who starts over after an abusive relationship and opens a successful restaurant but is targeted by a vindictive and ruthless attacker and she has to turn the tables on them. Typical thriller without all that many surprises or shocks. For a movie about the restaurant/kitchen industry, it’s pretty flat and flavorless. Continue reading →
May 4, 2024 “There’s Something In The Water” (** out of four) was a tepid shark suspense thriller about a group of friends (Hiftu Quasem, Lauren Lyle, and others) who go on a wedding getaway but are besieged by a killer shark and they struggle to survive. Well-shot and competently made but is yet another by-the-numbers killer shark movie that no longer seems fresh. Nowhere near the worst of its genre but you’d best re-watch “Jaws” again. Continue reading →
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