August 19, 2020 “The Stalker” (** out of four) was a minimalist horror melodrama about the title stalker who is on the loose in a wealthy suburb and sets his sights on one particular family (Jimmy Ace Lewis, J. Gaven Wilde, Chad Ayers, and Virgina Gogt) who have to set aside their recent differences and unite together to fight him off. By the standards of this trashy dreck, this isn’t bad and does move relatively fast, but is hindered by low-budget and production values to give it much distinction. Troy Fromin is creepy and funny as a pizza delivery weirdo who may or may not be the killer. This won the Broad St. Film Fest as best film of the year Continue reading →
August 19, 2020 “Looks That Kill” (*** out of four) was an absorbing teen drama about a high-schooler (Brandon Flynn) who has to deal with a lethally attractive face that literally kills others when they look at him but he soon finds more comfort and meaning in life when he meets a young girl (Julia Goldani Telles) who is ill and dying. Initially, this seems conventional and saccharine but story becomes more compelling as the two become closer and develop a strong relationship that eventually helps the film become more rich and moving; the final third is particularly winning and sends you out with a smile. Continue reading →
August 18, 2020 “Swimming For Gold” (** out of four) was an utterly predictable story about a young girl (Peyton List) whose dad sends her to Australia to coach an elite boys swim team but finds herself confronted with an old childhood rival (Lauren Esposito) who she has to make peace with to save the team and save the swimming camp that they are a part of from foreclosure. Nicely done at times and with good and enthusiastic performances to keep it lively but it’s usurped by a script and story that we’ve watched far too many times before. Young girls and sports fans may like this better. Continue reading →
August 18, 2020 “Before The Fire” (** out of four) was a moody but mild post-apocalyptic thriller about a television actress (Jenna Lyng Adams) who is thrust in the midst of a global pandemic and escapes back to her rural hometown but finds that civilization has collapsed and she has to hide from the virus and also a redneck (Jackson Davis) who is on the lookout for her. Strong work by Adams and Drew Bienemann’s bleak cinematography help this stay on track but not enough to make it standout from the rest of the pack (“28 Days Later”, “The Road”, many others) of other- and better- movies about the future and postapocalyptic society. Adams also wrote the screenplay. Continue reading →
August 17, 2020 “Below” (** out of four) was a scattershot comedy set in Australia about a security detention worker (Ryan Corr) who is lured by his boss (Anthony Lapaglia) and making big money into the lucrative underground world of staging fights between inmates but when a tragedy occurs with one fighter (Phoenix Raei) his conscience comes into play which puts him at a personal and career crossroads. Enthusiastic cast squeezes all the heart and humor it can out of a paper-thin script but it’s a hit-and-miss outing at best, mate. Even still, this was a standout at 2019’s Melbourne Film Festival. Continue reading →
August 17, 2020 “Death Follows” (* out of four) was a misbegotten murder melodrama about a young actress (Vicki Price) in London who finds herself being stalked by an unknown assailant and finds herself perplexed, flattered, and subsequently rattled by all this as the stalking gradually escalates into disturbia and a determined cop (Iain Hicken) investigates. Potentially interesting story about stalking and its effects on one’s psyche and even how one can be touched by this is completely undone by terrible filmmaking and slipshod production which makes this a patchwork. Hicken tries to liven things up as a hard-nosed cop but by no means is this worth “following” at all. Continue reading →
August 17, 2020 “The Discarded” (** out of four) was a pointless social/political melodrama about a young woman (Zara Jestadt) who is financially strapped and turns in desperation to a vigorous and vaguely defined military-like training program (led by Nick Biskupek) but soon realizes how harsh and grueling this really is and how this soon starts taking a toll on her mental and physical well-being. Director Piotr Skowronski attempts to make various points about training and brutality and the consequences of poverty but you’re unsure exactly what the main point is, especially when film’s wrap-up is so pat and abrupt. Biskupek sears the screen as the villainous head of the program. Continue reading →
August 16, 2020 “Follow Me” (** out of four) was a sordid horror thriller about a group of social media personalities and vloggers (Holland Roden, Ronin Rubenstein, Pasha D. Lychnikoff, and others) who travel to Moscow for a vacation getaway but soon become embroiled in a series of life-or-death games and traps and they struggle to survive both mentally and physically. Not bad by the standards of these things, with some creative kills and style in its second half, but takes too long to get going and is all-too-obviously inspired by the violent ugliness of the “Saw” series. Writer/director Will Wernick shows some creativity but needs to “follow” some more original ideas after this and his similarly themed “Escape Room” from a few years earlier. Continue reading →
August 16, 2020 “Ava” (**1/2 out of four) was a stylishly done but overly familiar action thriller about a ruthless and deadly female assassin (Jessica Chastain) who works for a black ops organization but finds herself thrown to the wolves by her sinister superiors (John Malkovich, Colin Farrell, and others) after a job goes wrong and has to fight for survival while trying to get to the bottom of a high-end conspiracy from the government. Solid production values and strong work from Chastain make this easy to watch but story seems to be following a much-too-routine pattern especially after many other similarly themed female assassin films (“Atomic Blonde”, “Lucy”, “Anna” just to name a few) over the last few years. Geena Davis and Joan Chen both have their best roles in years in minor but key parts. Continue reading →
August 16, 2020 “The Bad Nun 2” (* out of four) was a Godawful sequel to an original that I don’t think anyone was exactly saying their hail mary’s for a sequel to; this time, a young woman (Sarah T. Cohen) and her family move into an old and abandoned church and her grandmother (Nicola Wright) suddenly reveals that there are divine and unholy secrets associated with the church that results in all Hell breaking loose. Umpteenth movie about religious exorcisms and paranormal activity is made with absolutely no life or conviction whatsoever and is a real snooze. Avoid this “bad” sequel and re-watch “The Exorcist” or “The Amityville Horror” instead. Continue reading →
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