June 20, 2016 “The Nice Guys” (** out of four) was a fizzled crime comedy starring Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling as a pair of mismatched private eyes investigating the murder of a pornography star on the seamier side of Los Angeles in 1977. Disappointing result for director and top screenwriter Shane Black whose directing is adequate but whose script is one-note, repetitive, and not terribly funny and did this action buddy comedy much better in “Lethal Weapon” in 1987. A reunion of Crowe and co-star Kim Basinger who both starred in “L.A. Confidential”, a much better crime drama from 1997 that actually had more laughs than this does. Continue reading →
June 20, 2016 “Even Lambs Have Teeth” (*1/2 out of four) was a disposable horror thriller about two young girls (Kirsten Prout, Tiera Skovbye) on a road trip who happen to stop in redneck country and are captured and tortured by a group of bible-spouting hillbilly retards (are there any other kinds in movies like these?) but later turn the tables on them and enact revenge. Filmmakers evidently watched “I Spit On Your Grave” and “Mother’s Day” one too many times before making this but horror fans won’t even want to watch this once. For masochists and Jerry Springer fans only. Continue reading →
June 20, 2016 “Hopeless Romantic” (*1/2 out of four) was a hopelessly dumb and stale romantic comedy about a young guy (Brandon Jones) who tries to use methods from (better) romantic comedy movies to win back his ex-girlfriend (Christa Allen) who recently left him and as the movie progresses, it’s easy to understand why. Viewers would be better off watching any of those other movies (“Sleepless In Seattle” among others) and ignoring this trifle. It’s movies like these that make you realize how much romantic comedies have gone down the tubes over the years. Continue reading →
June 20, 2016 “The Conjuring 2” (** out of four) was a more-of-the-same sequel that makes you wish yet again that horror filmmakers would conjure up some new ideas for horror movies. This time around, Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) and Ed (Patrick Wilson) travel to North London to help a single mother (Francis O’Connor) whose house is possessed by (yawn) evil spirits similar to the ones that plagued their home years before. Some scares and good performances but a definite feeling of deja-vu hangs over the proceedings. Can anyone really tell the difference between this, “Sinister 2”, “Insidious 2”, or any one of the “Paranormal Activity” movies? Continue reading →
June 19, 2016 “You May Now Kill The Bride” (** out of four) was a mediocre thriller about a couple (Ashley Newbrough, Rocky Myers) who get engaged but his stepsister (Tammin Sursok) thinks she has a claim on him and wants to kill him before their wedding. Pedestrian acting and filmmaking make this an all-too-typical Lifetime made-for-tv production. Film could have used more twists and turns and fails to be as clever as its title. Continue reading →
June 19, 2016 “The Funhouse Massacre” (*1/2 out of four) was a campy and silly horror thriller about six of the world’s scariest psychopaths who escape from a local asylum and precede to terrorize the unsuspecting attendants at a Halloween funhouse. Too bad there’s not any fun left over for the audience. Strictly amateur night in terms of filmmaking and production but one-time horror icon Robert Englund is fun as the loony asylum manager and figures prominently in film’s gory opening. Continue reading →
June 19, 2016 “Me Before You” (**1/2 out of four) was a heartfelt emotional drama about the relationship between a young caretaker (Emilia Clarke) who falls in love with a quadraplegic patient (Sam Claflin) who she’s taking care of. Takes too long to get going and too long to get where it’s going but Clarke’s endearing performance and moving final scenes make it hard to resist. Charles Dance is also really good in a rare sympathetic role as the boy’s father. Continue reading →
June 19, 2016 “Traded” (** out of four) was a languid Western set in the 1880’s about a former gunslinger (Michael Pare) turned family man who must leave his ranch and go to Dodge City to rescue his daughter who has fallen into the clutches of a sinister businessman (Tom Sizemore). Terrific performance from the underrated Pare makes this watchable but movie is too sluggish and features all the usual Western cliches (bars and whisky, horse-racing, brothels, fast-draw matches, etc.) you’ve seen hundreds of times before. Re-watch “Shane” or “Unforgiven” instead. Continue reading →
June 19, 2016 “Now You See Me 2” (** out of four) was an inferior sequel to the 2013 heist comedy about The Four Horsemen (Jesse Eisenberg, Dave Franco, Woody Harrelson, Mark Ruffalo) and a new recruit (Lizzy Caplan) being forced by a tech nerd (Daniel Radcliffe) to pull off their most daring heist yet. Some cool magic tricks (one sequence involving Eisenberg stopping rain is a real wow) but lacks the freshness and clever intricacy of the original and is too long. Pleasant enough but overall a better thing to “see” is the original again. Caplan, of “Mean Girls” fame, is a virtual dead-ringer here for Katy Perry. Continue reading →
June 19, 2016 “Blackway” (** out of four) was an unexceptional thriller about a girl (Julia Stiles) who is aided and taken on the run by a super-intelligent former cop (Anthony Hopkins) when she is targeted by a ruthless and vicious criminal (Ray Liotta). With that cast, it’s easy to watch….but just as easy to forget. Not bad but not memorable either Continue reading →
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