March 4, 2023 “Her Affair To Die For” (*1/2 out of four) was a stale suspense thriller about a roommate (Meghan Carrasquillo) whose roommate (Logan Mariner) starts dating an older man (Ryan Francis) who she develops a serious crush and fixation on which leads to an onslaught of problems for all of them (and the audience). Packed with the usual logic gaps and contrivances of this genre but doesn’t feature enough twists or suspense or much of anything else to make it worthwhile or justify its existence. 1957’s “An Affair To Remember” offers more tension and drama (and probably thrills) than this timewaster. Continue reading →
March 2, 2023 “Jesus Revolution” (*** out of four) was an inspired melodrama set in 1970’s Southern California in which a group of young hippies (Joel Courtney, Jonathan Roumie, Anna Grace Barlow) become involved in their own spiritual awakenings which causes waves and ripple effects within their community and the local adults and parents (Kelsey Grammar, Brian Shoop, and others). Filled with Christian themes of salvation and redemption but directors Jon Erwin and Brent McCorkle infuse the movie with bounce and flair and plenty of great ’70’s soundtrack songs so this is not your typical earnest church religious drama. Film is loosely based on the life of American Evangelical Baptist priest Greg Laurie who also co-wrote the screenplay. Continue reading →
March 2, 2023 “Luther: The Fallen Sun” (**1/2 out of four) was an initially taut adaptation of the BBC television series showing the disgraced detective John Luther (Idris Elba) in prison; when a vicious serial killer (Andy Serkis) begins terrorizing London, he realizes it is up to him to stop him and he breaks out of prison and evades the police and attempts to penetrate the London underworld to find him. Elba is commanding as usual in the title role and helps you overlook story flaws and contrivances but film loses its way before its improbable and silly conclusion. A good example of a television series that starts to show its cracks when expanded to feature-length film. Continue reading →
March 2, 2023 “Driven To Murder” (** out of four) was a better-than-average suspense potboiler set in L.A. in which a young woman (Lucia Guerrero) is picked up by a Ryde driver (Adam Blake) who turns out to be a serious sicko and she realizes she’s in for a long night as she literally cannot escape his clutches. Ultimately done in by genre cliches and plot holes but effectively directed by Colin Everett on a low-budget and Blake is solidly creepy and scary as the killer. Reminiscent at times of Michael Mann’s “Collateral” but better than most killer Uber/Ryde trash. Continue reading →
February 28, 2023 “12 Desperate Hours” (** out of four) was a perfunctory suspense melodrama about an overworked mother (Samatha Mathis) who finds herself and her children under siege in their own home when a murderer (Harrison Thomas) invades their house and threatens them all. Obvious rip-off of “Desperate Hours” right down to its title with little suspense or character development and thus not much to keep you involved. It’s nice to see Mathis on screen again but she can’t do much to enrich this tired material. Inauspicious directing debut for actress Gina Gershon. Continue reading →
February 28, 2023 “You Can’t Escape Me” (*1/2 out of four) was a feeble suspense thriller about a meek artist (Gina Vitori) who marries a seemingly perfect Mr. Charming (Alex Trumble) who turns out to be an abusive creep who will stop at nothing at controlling her and tracking her down even after she attempts to leave. It’s much easier to leave and “escape” the film instead. Thoroughly predictable storyline combined with some terrible acting turn this into a real chore to watch. For the same storyline with some tension and conviction, watch 1991’s “Sleeping With The Enemy” with Julia Roberts/Patrick Bergin instead. Continue reading →
February 27, 2023 “The Whale” (*** out of four) was a poignant story about a reclusive and morbidly obese older man (Brendan Fraser) and his realization that he is at the end of his life and he tries to reconnect with his stubborn and estranged teenage daughter (Sadie Sink) before it is too late. Fraser is simply magnificent in the best performance of his career and is equal parts heartbreaking and humorous and is aided by astonishingly real CGI and latex makeup; unfortunately the film lacks a dramatic arc as the story is too thin (no pun intended) and film’s ending is abrupt and corny. A great actors showcase if not exactly a great movie but still well-worth watching overall and in keeping with some of the past themes of alienation and redemption of director Darren Aronofsky’s past work. Continue reading →
February 27, 2023 “Jesse James: Unchained” (* out of four) was a disastrously lame Western about the legendary outlaw (John Bradley Hambrick) who escapes captivity and pairs up with a woman (Rachael Redolfi) he takes hostage and he attempts his last score before disappearing into the sunset. Many of the scenes look like they were shot in someone’s dilapidated backyard and the script and filming look like a production from high school. Seriously- is this the best they can do for a Western these days? Continue reading →
February 26, 2023 “Meteor: First Impact” (*1/2 out of four) was a cheesy disaster thriller about a scientist (Thom Hallum) who realizes it’s apocalypse now but no one believes him so he has to race against the clock to save the Earth from a series of deadly meteor attacks. Writer/director Brett Bentman throws in as many disaster-movie cliches as he can think of from “Independence Day” and especially “2012” but film is severely hindered by its lack of budget and effects. Hallum tries to whip up as much urgency as he can but this still should be gone from Redbox machines at the speed of a meteor. Continue reading →
February 26, 2023 “The Lost Husband” (** out of four) was a syrupy adaptation of Katherine Center’s novel about a recent widow (Leslie Bibb) who moves in with her aunt (Nora Dunn) on her goat farm and falls in love with her stubborn farm manager (Josh Huhammel). Heavy-handed and hokey drama feels like reheated Nicholas Sparks material but succeeds as far as it does thanks to it’s capable cast and Aaron Kovalchik’s pretty cinematography. Duhammel is likeable as usual but he needs to start picking edgier scripts and material. Continue reading →
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