April 16, 2022 “Bulldozer” (*1/2 out of four) was a ridiculous action thriller about a former underworld heavy (Michael Lazar) who is pulled back into the depths once his girlfriend is kidnapped and he has to resort to returning to his former ways and becoming a hard-core thug once again. A vanity project for writer/director/star/co-producer Lazar but it’s unfortunately all a load of bull. You’d best re-watch “Commando” which told the same story with a lot more action and humor as well. Continue reading →
April 11, 2022 “Alien Sniperess” (*1/2 out of four) was a disposable action thriller about a female sniper (Olivia Okoro) who tries to fulfill the wish of her deceased fiance by leaving her sharpshooting life behind her but is called back into action when a hostile alien invasion threatens to overtake the planet. The direct-to-DVD equivalent of junk food, as it moves relatively quick and is easy to watch, but has no nutritional content and is utterly forgettable. Roger Corman used to produce movies like this in his sleep years ago. Continue reading →
April 11, 2022 “Broken Soldier” (**1/2 out of four) was an earnestly done melodrama about a newly released veteran (Mark Kassen) with PTSD who befriends a young girl (Sophie Turner) but her controlling father (Ray Liotta) wonders if he can be trusted which puts all three of them on an eventual collision course. Potent subject matter and Liotta’s usual strong performance hold your attention for a while even as the drama starts to dissipate towards the end as story contrivances start to seem evident. Imperfect but still overall worthwhile. Continue reading →
April 9, 2022 “Hillwalkers” (*1/2 out of four) was a dreary horror thriller set on the Irish countryside in which some hikers (Elise Brennan, Aoife Honohan, and others) who tresspass onto private land in which the landowner (Mark Agar) turns out to be (what else?) a redneck psycho intent on killing them. By the time this concludes, you may wish they all just had some Lucky Charms and Guinness and had a party together instead. Yet another ripoff of the classic “Deliverance” that fails to deliver. Even the Ireland scenery looks lifeless and dull, much like the movie itself. Uafasach! Continue reading →
April 9, 2022 “All The Old Knives” (** out of four) was a disappointing suspense melodrama about two C.I.A. operatives and ex-lovers (Chris Pine and Thandiwe Newton) who meet at a luxurious resort to review an incident 6 years prior in which an operative was doublecrossed while others (Laurence Fishburne, Jonathan Pryce) try to make sense of things. Ho-hum storyline covers all-too-familiar territory and has no urgency and thus no suspense. Strong cast does what they can with tired material. Based on the book by Olen Steinhauer which has unfortunately grown stale over the years. Continue reading →
April 9, 2022 “Agent Game” (** out of four) was a half-baked paranoia suspense thriller about a group of C.I.A. operatives (Mel Gibson, Jason Isaacs, Dermot Mulroney, Katie Cassidy) operating in different quadrants around the world and find that they’ve all been duped and are being set up. But who’s exactly playing who? Reheated governmental conspiracy/C.I.A. thriller feels like a leftover relic from the ’70’s and the “Bourne” era. Overly complicated and talky, with only its strong cast to keep it watchable. This reunites Gibson and Isaacs from “The Patriot” but both are off of their “game” here. Continue reading →
April 9, 2022 “Morbius” (**1/2 out of four) was a moderately entertaining Marvel comic-book adaptation about a biochemist (Jared Leto) suffering from a rare blood disorder; he tries to cure himself with an experiment but this turns him into a superhuman vampire and vigilante out on the streets. Lack of plot and focus are compensated by strong mood and style with homages to “Batman Begins” and Leto’s usual commanding performance. Far from the best of Marvel’s comic-book lot but still better than you might have heard. NYC scenes were actually filmed in Manchester in the United Kingdom! Continue reading →
April 9, 2022 “Jurassic Island” (*1/2 out of four) was a cheezoid action adventure about a group of explorers (Sarah T. Cohen, Nicola Wright, Kate Sandison, and others) who become stranded on an island where they are preyed upon by extinct dinosaurs. Unbelievable ripoff of “Jurassic Park” right down to its title but is pretty tedious and boring. As for the special effects and dinosaurs, let’s just be kind and say they can’t hold a candle to “JP” which came out nearly 30 years ago! Continue reading →
April 7, 2022 “Barbarians” (*1/2 out of four) was a bloody bore about four friends (Catalina Sandino Moreno, Iwan Rheon, Tom Cullen, Connor Swindells) who come together for a birthday celebration that turns ugly when dark secrets emerge and strange occurrences begin occurring around them. Takes forever to get going but then once it does becomes predictable and over-the-top. Story takes elements of “The Big Chill”, “Suicide Kings”, and “The Strangers” and throws them all into a synthetic blender. Continue reading →
April 7, 2022 “Follower” (*1/2 out of four) was a cliche-strewn horror melodrama about three girls (Revell Carpenter, Molly Leach, Gigi James) on a backpacking trip in the wilderness where they soon find they are (what else?) stalked by a mysterious redneck who seems to be tracking their every move and seems to have watched “Mother’s Day” and “Wolf Creek” one too many times. Story is so by-the-numbers that it wouldn’t surprise you if numbers actually appeared at you off the screen and gets pretty unpleasant and ugly after a while. Decently acted overall but still there’s not much worth “following” here. Continue reading →
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