“Best Years Gone” (** out of four) was a hokey melodrama about an older man (DJ Perry) who starts to reflect on his years of self-destructive behavior and how he has few close relationships in life besides the woman (Erika Hoveland) he loves and has to make sense of his life to enjoy the remaining years he has left. Some interesting themes of reflection and loss and realizing one is at the end of their life but story is thin and emotions are muted. Perry also co-wrote the screenplay along with Karl Manke who adapted this from his own novel. Similar story was told much more powerfully with Burt Reynolds in “The Last Movie Star.”

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“The Summoned” (*1/2 out of four) was a drably done supernatural horror thriller about two couples (J Quinton Johnson and Emma Fitzpatrick / Angela Gulner and Salvador Chacon) who go to a self-help retreat but they soon find out that this retreat (yawn) has a sinister side beneath its otherwordly veneer. Relatively well-made but covers all-too-familiar territory without any shock value or scares. Cast of decent actors helps but this overall feels like reheated Jordan Peele.

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“Above Snakes” (** out of four) was an overly flat Western about a gunslinger (Brandon Baker) who returns home from prison seeking revenge on the judge (Jeffrey Smith) who sentenced him and sets out to kidnap his daughter (Shannon Sinclear) but finds that this is more morally and personally complex than he anticipated. Potentially juicy storyline of vengeance and moral ambiguity is constricted by mediocre production values and stilted direction. Not the worst of its kind but not memorable either.

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“#Unknown” (* out of four) was a nearly unwatchable psychodrama about a successful author (Hal Oszan) who starts receiving bizarre phone calls as he attempts to write the follow-up to his lucrative debut but soon finds that the phone calls and stress begin twisting his reality inside-out and causing him to lose his mind. By the end of this mess, you’ll know exactly as he feels. Deeply unpleasant film is a real waste of time. Tom Sizemore is well-cast as a recovering drug addict; whether he is ever able to get his career back on track is the real “unknown.”

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“3 Demons” (* out of four) was an abjectly painful horror clunker about a deputy (Peter Tell) who is hired to watch over the corpse of a recently deceased woman (Zoe Cunningham) until her family can arrive and claim her but instead for reasons known only to him- he performs a dead ritual on her which (you guessed it) causes all Hell to break loose. Shoddy filmmaking and overhyped acting turn this into an unintentional comedy. Writer/director was Matt Cunningham and Tara Cunningham was one of the co-producers so apparently this demonic undertaking was a family affair.

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“Hustle” (*** out of four) was an engaging sports drama about a basketball scout (Adam Sandler) who is on a trip in Spain and discovers a phenomenal street player (Juancho Hernangomez) and tries to recruit him and bring him back to America but finds that he has a lot of personal and legal baggage to have to overcome. Film follows a predictable pattern from “Jerry Maguire” and “The Air Up There” (among others) and goes over the familiar numbers but is carried along by Sandler’s usual effortless likeability and Hernangomez’ charisma and their chemistry and camaderie together feels genuine and real. Julius Erving and Robert Duvall show up in key supporting roles.

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“Thor: God Of Thunder” (** out of four) was a flimsy action adventure about the mighty Thor (Myrom Kingery) who has to pursue his evil uncle Loki (Daniel O’Reilly) who plans to destroy a tree which holds the power of the universe leading to a battle between them for the fate of the universe and mankind as a whole. Allegedly based on the video game of the same name and NOT in any way connected to the Marvel blockbuster series; not bad for what it is but hindered by cheesy production and filmmaking. Fans would best wait for the similarly titled “Thor: Love And Thunder” out next week.

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“Night Blooms” (** out of four) was a languid melodrama about a troubled young girl (Jessica Clement) who begins in an affair with her best friend’s dad (Nick Stahl) but this obviously leads to moral/personal/legal consequences for the both of them as they both finds themselves at a crossroads in their life over what to do. Shallow and predictable story of young lust and rebellion and moral choices doesn’t go deep enough to carry much power or charge. Clement is good in the lead but her character is awfully aloof and obtuse.

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“Revealer” (** out of four) was a sordid suspense melodrama about a stripper (Caito Aase) and a religious protester (Shaina Schrooten) who are trapped together in a peep-show booth (!) but must put their differences aside to survive the apocalypse as all Hell is breaking loose around them. Not entirely disposable as film is directed with some flair by Luke Boyce and has candy-colored cinematography from Robert Patrick Stern but is too unseemly and routine to score overall. Set for no particular reason in the ’80’s.

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