November 10, 2019 “Harriet” (** out of four) was a lumbering biography of Harriet Tubman (Cynthia Erivo) who escaped the horrors of slavery and set off on a personal journey to free thousands of slaves and trying to stay free herself and stay alive. Earnest but superficial treatment of a great historical figure; Erivo is OK in the lead role but somewhat one-note and aloof. Janelle Monae is somewhat stronger portraying Marie Buchanon. A disappointment from director Kasi Lemmons who previously directed “Eve’s Bayou.” Continue reading →
November 9, 2019 “Motherless Brooklyn” (** out of four) was a disappointing crime melodrama set in 1950’s NYC in which a private detective with Tourette’s Syndrome (Edward Norton) attempts to solve and uncover the murder of his mentor (Bruce Willis) but this leads him to the seamier and more violent side of the criminal underworld. Director and star Norton knows where and how to place his camera and tells his story in style but it’s a world we’ve been to many times before, in “L.A. Confidential” and “Gangster Squad” among many others. Norton is solid in the lead as always but he played a better version of a similar role in “The Score” and much of the supporting cast (including Alec Baldwin, Willem Dafoe, and Ethan Suplee) is wasted and given nothing to do Continue reading →
November 7, 2019 “Wounds” (** out of four) was a sputtering thriller set in New Orleans about a bartender (Armie Hammer) who finds a cell-phone left behind in his bar and then strange occurrences begin happening which gradually causes his life to fall apart and him losing his mind. Intriguing story holds your attention at first but you begin to realize after a while that story is eventually going nowhere as it becomes predictable and repetitive. One creepy scene at the very end involving thousands of bugs provides the only real jolt in the movie. And what the hell is Dakota Johnson doing in this movie as Hammer’s girlfriend? Continue reading →
November 7, 2019 “Official Secrets” (*** out of four) was a taut melodrama set in 2003 based on the true story of a British whistleblower (Keira Knightley) for the GCHQ who leaked information to the press about an illegal NSA spy operation that pushed the United Nations security counsel into invading Iraq and how this led to a firestorm of controversy. Absorbing and compelling story never quite cuts loose but takes its low-key grip from Knightley in one of her strongest performances. Matthew Goode, Ralph Fiennes, and Jeremy Northam round out the impressive supporting cast. Continue reading →
November 4, 2019 “Rogue Warfare” (** out of four) was a pretty basic military action potboiler about a group of military elite from U.S., Russia, U.K., China, and France (Will Yun Lee, Jermaine Love, Rory Markham, and others) who join forces to fight an elite underground terrorist network that threatens worldwide destruction with chemical explosions. Some good action scenes and military combat but a definite sense of deja vu hangs over the proceedings since you’ve seen an awful lot of this before. Stephen Lang and Chris Mulkey are wasted as military superiors. Continue reading →
November 4, 2019 “Doctor Sleep” (**1/2 out of four) was a moderately creepy sequel to Stephen King’s “The Shining” about the now-adult boy from the original (Ewan McGreggor) who meets a young girl (Kyliegh Curran) who has the same powers as him and he is forced to confront his own childhood demons and fears as he tries to protect her from a cult (led by Rebecca Ferguson) who prey upon young children. Director Mike Flanagan impressively recreates the eerie mood and style from Stanley Kubrick’s original but story becomes fragmented and monotonous after a while, especially as it goes on nearly two-and-a-half hours. McGreggor is solid as always and die-hard fans of the original will have fun picking up on some of the cues and recreations from the first one. Continue reading →
November 3, 2019 “Scareless Attraction” (* out of four) was a scareless bore about a group of reality televsion stars (Tony Fadera, Sonera Angel, Primrose Bigwood, and others) who attend a Halloween haunted house which (to the surprise of no one) turns out to be real and they find out they must compete in a deadly game of truth or dare or they will all die! Feeble attempt at merging reality television with a torture-horror story. Maybe those “Saw” and “Hostel” sequels weren’t as bad as we originally thought. You may want to re-watch those instead of this time-waster. Continue reading →
November 2, 2019 “American Hunt” (* out four) was an American dud about a group of friends (Lacy Hartshelle, Taylor Novak, Allison Shrum, and others) in the wilderness on a camping trip who soon realize they are being hunted by a pair of sick weirdos and they attempt to turn the tables on them and stay alive. Umpteenth rehash of “Deliverance”, “Mother’s Day”, “Wrong Turn”, and too many others to mention begs the question of why not watch those movies again instead of this one? Film is only about 80 minutes long but you can still feel the padding. What a waste Continue reading →
November 1, 2019 “College Pranks” (* out of four) was a dreadful horror story that looks like it was made by college film students about a group of college kids (Shannon McKinnon, Kevin Derkash, Nick Ian Holmes, and others) who are invited to play a game sponsored by a website but soon find that this is not a game at all but a genuine case of life or death in which they have to fight to survive. Pretty stupid horror story with characters that you don’t care the least about and it goes on endlessly for about 2 hours. David Fincher’s “The Game” in 1997 told a similar story with much more richness and style. Continue reading →
November 1, 2019 “Deviant Behavior” (0 stars out of four) was a repulsive horror thriller about a seedy private eye (Eric Rodrigue) who is drawn into an underworld of murder, torture, and depravity and doesn’t know if he can morally or psychologically get himself out. Film is as disgusting and sleazy as the world it’s showing but also stupid and boring and terribly made. Rodrigue’s one-note performance (and unlikeable character) is no help. For a more inceptive and non-exploitive look at similar material, watch 1999’s “8 MM” instead. Continue reading →
dlepikcom 