“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!

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“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!

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“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.

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“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.

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“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.

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“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?

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“Last Shoot Out” (**1/2 out of four) was a serviceable B-grade Western about a newlywed (Skylar Witte) who learns that her husband (Michael Welch) had her father previously killed; she then subsequently goes on the run in fear but is rescued by a fearless gunfighter (Billy Tyson) who hides her at a remote outpost while her husband looks to find her and take her home. Never escapes the cut-and-dried routine of most formula Westerns but having said that- it is sturdy and smooth and relatively well-made and well-acted. Finale provides enough tension and firepower to overall make this trail worth riding down.

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“Devil’s Island” (*1/2 out of four) was a pointless horror thriller about a young woman (Kat Alexandra) who inherits a small island in New York but discovers all-too-late that it has a dangerous history and that her and her friends (Danielle Jean Schaefer, Kristjan Sokoli, and others) are in imminent danger. Nothing you haven’t seen 1,000 times before and will likely see 1,000 times again but is bereft of any artistry or scares. ’70’s blaxploitation star Fred Williamson has a minor role here as a retired cop and is rock-solid as usual but this is unlikely to provide the comeback that he needs.

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“Death Link” (*1/2 out of four) was a limp horror melodrama with a group of bratty teenagers (Elise Luthman, Jessica Belkin, Riker Lynch, and others) who tell the gruesome stories online that they want to see with each story more deadly and daring than the last but suddenly these staged murder videos turn very real and they have to soon uncover who is the real killer amongst them. An ’80’s-themed horror movie brought up to date to the social media age except a few problems- it’s stupid and boring. Horror fans needn’t bother clicking on this “link”.

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“House Of Glass” (*1/2 out of four) was a suspenseless suspense melodrama about a feisty wife (Jenny Shakeshaft) who becomes convinced her husband (Matt Abshire) is having an affair and obsessively tries to uncover the truth at all personal costs. Since neither the wife nor the husband are especially likeable or interesting, film is very uninvolving and unpleasant after a while. This type of character melodrama might have worked better on the stage than on film. Watch “House Of Wax” instead.

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