Author: dlepikcom

“Dangerous” (** out of four) was a mundane action melodrama about a former sociopath (Scott Eastwood) who has reformed and journeys back to a remote island to investigate the death of his brother but finds himself tangled up with various law enforcement (Famke Jannsen and Tyrese Gibson) and underworld figures (Kevin Durand, Ryan Robbins, and others). Half-baked story feels like another retread of the “Bourne” series; good cast makes it watchable but you’ve seen a lot of this before and done better. Mel Gibson is well-cast in a small role as Eastwood’s drunken therapist.

Continue reading →

“The Matrix Resurrections” (** out of four) was an unnecessary extension of this hugely popular series about the continuing adventures of Neo (Keanu Reeves) who is pulled back into the construct of the Matrix and reunites with Trinity (Carrie Anne-Moss) as he tries to find out if the everyday reality he has come to accept is a construct or concoction. Fourth entry is packed with the series’ usual mumbo-and-jumbo and pretentious gibberish (I was not as huge a fan as others of this series as you might have guessed) and self-indulgence. Picks up speed in its final third and does feature a few dazzling action scenes and visual effects but this still bears the marks of going back to the well once too often and was hardly worth “resurrecting.”

Continue reading →

“Ghostbusters: Afterlife” (** out of four) was a half-hearted sequel about a single mom (Carrie Coon) who arrives in a small-town with her two teenagers (Finn Wolfhard and McKenna Grace) and they soon begin to uncover their family connection to the original ghostbusters (Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, and Ernie Hudson) when strange paranormal activity begins to occur. Disappointing third entry in the series is just a weak nostalgia trip for original fans; the original trio show up in precious little and at the very end. Original deceased ghostbuster Harold Ramis shows up in some impressive CGI recreations.

Continue reading →

“Hostage” (*1/2 out of four) was a brutally unpleasant melodrama which holds the viewers hostage about a young cheerleader (Nicole Henderson) who was adopted by the murderers of her parents; years later in the midst of a home invasion she learns more about her parents and has to decide what side she is on and what course of action she wants to take. An unlikely candidate for Family Movie Of The Year award as film immerses you in unlikeable characters and harsh scenarios. Film only runs an hour-and-19 minutes but runs out of steam even at that length. No relation to the 2005 Bruce Willis actioner of the same name although come to think of it- it does have a very similar story

Continue reading →

“Spider Man: No Way Home” (***1/2 out of four) was a grand-slam sequel about Peter Parker (Tom Holland) who is struggling to come to terms with his identity as Spider Man now being known and turns to Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) for help but this leads to a culmination of problems as various characters from other worlds and parallel universes begin to appear. Packed with razzle-dazzle visual effects and showstopping action scenes but because it focuses on parallel universes and characters- it also brings back the 2 previous Spider-Men (Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield) and other various characters (Willem Dafoe, Jamie Foxx, Thomas Haden Church) which make this a feast for Marvel fans and comic-book fans in general. An all-around wow on every level!

Continue reading →

“Fortress” (** out of four) was a disposable action potboiler about a group of cunning criminals (led by Chad Michael Murray) who are out for revenge but a retired officer (who else but Bruce Willis) and his estranged son (Jesse Metcalfe) have to reunite and spring into action to save the day. Slick but soulless actioner which Willis can do (and is at times) in his sleep but evidently him and Murray like working with one another because this is their third film together (with more-or-less the same story) in less than a year!

Continue reading →

“Nash Bridges” (** out of four) was a flimsy reboot of the popular ’90’s television series showing Nash (Don Johnson) and his former partner (Cheech Marin) being called back into action in San Francisco’s SIU department where they have to conform to overwhelming changes in policy and policing that make their jobs vastly different than what it was 30 years ago but their dedication and duty remains the same. Both Johnson and Marin try and have good chemistry together as always but there simply isn’t a story or script here that gives them any support. Perhaps it’s time they both collected their pension and called it a day.

Continue reading →

“Red Stone” (*1/2 out of four) was an enervatingly bland melodrama about a morally conflicted hitman (Neal McDonough) who is tasked with hunting down a young teenager who witnessed a murder before the F.B.I. or rival hitmen find him first but soon finds that his conscience comes into play and he has to decide whether to follow his professional or personal instincts. Intriguing storyline never connects emotionally and winds up muddled and aloof. McDonough tries but is simply not given enough to work with to play such a morally complex character.

Continue reading →

“Death Valley” (** out of four) was a well-produced but empty, overly familiar horror thriller about a group of mercenaries (Jeremy Ninaber, Ethan Mitchell, and others) who are hired to rescue a bioengineer (Kristen Kaster) in an underground-storage bunker; upon entering the facility, they all find themselves under attack from an otherworldly creature and all have to fight for their lives to survive and escape. Initially, this seems to be a rip-off of George Romero’s “Day Of The Dead” but then it soon shifts gears and turns into a rip-off of “Alien.” Moves fast and is efficiently made but never sufficiently rises above the routine.

Continue reading →

“Red Snow” (*1/2 out of four) was a tawdry horror suspense thriller about a struggling vampire novelist (Dennice Cissneros) who vacations for Christmas at Lake Tahoe and must defend herself against actual real-life vampires and she must utilize what she has researched and written for years to save her life. Potentially intriguing material is undone by cheesy production values and a lack of irony and humor. A rarity in that film’s vampire and gore effects were achieved without the use of any CGI effects but so what?

Continue reading →