“Boy Kills World” (** out of four) was a florid but feverish pulp-revenge thriller about a mute boy named Boy (Bill Skarsgard) whose family is murdered and is trained by a mysterious shaman (Yayan Ruhian) to be an instrument of death and seek violent revenge against the woman (Michelle Dockery) and underworld mob who killed them. Generally watchable for a while but starts to go overboard into excess and violent ugliness and wears out; shows the unmistakable influence and stamp of “The Matrix” and “John Wick” series.

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“The Shamrock Spitfire” (** out of four) was a frustratingly generic WWII true story of Brendan “Paddy” Finucane who at age 21 became the youngest ever wing commander in the Royal Air Force and became a celebrated war pilot. Not bad, with some good acting and camaraderie amongst the actors and squadrons, but too limited in scope and scale to make much of a mark or desired effectiveness. History buffs and war-film completists might want to add half a star.

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“Rebel Moon- Part Two: The Scargiver” (**1/2 out of four) was a proficient but bloated follow-up to the original which only came out at the end of last year; this time around Kora (Sofia Boutella) and surviving other warriors (Dimon Hounsou, Michiel Husiman, and others) prepare to defend their new home Veldt against the forces of the destructive Motherworld (Ed Skrein, Donna Bae, and others). Director Zack Snyder packs this with as much comic-book razzle-dazzle and visual effects as he can and lets his 10-year old comic-book imagination run wild especially in the final third but it lags at times (especially in the middle) and goes on too long. Hard-core Snyder fans and fans of the original will like this more obviously but it’s hard not to notice obvious story influences from “Dune” and “Star Wars” (particularly “The Phantom Menace.”)

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“Lazareth” (*1/2 out of four) was a lumbering melodrama about an iconoclanastic recluse (Ashley Judd) who raises her orphaned nieces (Sarah Pidgeon and Katie Douglas) in isolation from the rest of the world until an outsider (Asher Angel) arrives and threatens their peaceful existence and turns their world upside down. Yet another movie about a backwoods/redneck family and how their way of life is disrupted but this has none of the emotional power or pull of “Winter’s Bone” or even “Into The Forest” and is tedious and dull. Even the vibrant Judd just seems to be giving a greatest-hits of her other performances. Martim Vian’s stark cinematography is film’s only asset.

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“Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes” (**1/2 out of the four) was an imperfect but well-done follow-up set many years after the reign of Caesar as a young ape named Noa (Owen Teague) loses his parents and goes on a journey that leads him to question everything he’s learned about what he was taught and all the future choices for apes and humans alike. Uneven and overlong but features enough effective moments and great visual flourishes to make it worthwhile especially for series fans. Particular kudos to Gyula Pados’ cinematography, Mayes C. Rubeo’s costumes, and Teague’s rock-solid lead performance.

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“Bloodline Killer” (*1/2 out of four) was a thoroughly routine horror story about a young woman (Shawnee Smith) whose entire family was murdered at the hands of her deranged cousin (Sal Rendino); she then sets out to rebuild her life but knows he’s still out there on the prowl while the determined detective (Tyrese Gibson) on the case tries to track him down. Good cast can’t do much to enliven tired and flimsy material. Co-star James Gaudioso also co-wrote this.

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“Darkness Of Man” (** out of four) was a muddled action melodrama about an alcoholic interpol agent (Jean Claude Van Damme) who is trying to defeat various elements of the criminal underworld while simultaneously taking on the role of being a father to a young boy (Emerson Min) who is the son of an informant who was killed in a drug raid gone wrong. Well-made and features one of Van Damme’s better performances but is a mixture of action and relationship story that doesn’t gel and goes on too long. Kristanna Lokken, Shannon Doherty, and Sticky Fingaz are all wasted in supporting roles.

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“Abigail” (*** out of four) was a taut horror melodrama about a group of criminals (Melissa Barrera, Dan Stevens, William Catlett, and others) who kidnap the ballerina daughter (Alisha Weir) of an underworld heavyweight and retreat to an isolated mansion only to find out that she has vicious superpowers that turn them on one another and turn their sanity inside out. Opening is a little gradual and slow-going but it escalates and builds with skillful tension into full-blown gore and zany comedy. A good showing for directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett that shows the unmistakable influence of early Sam Raimi and “The Evil Dead 2” in particular.

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“Downtown Owl” (** out of four) was an overly cute adaptation of Chuck Klosterman’s 2008 novel set in 1980’s North Dakota in the midst of a blizzard which affects three small-town characters- an old man (Ed Harris) who spends his days reciting lines he’s heard from the coffee shop, a depressed high-school quarterback (August Blanco Rosenstein), and a hard-partying teacher (Vanessa Hudgens). Sincere performances can only do so much with a script and characters that ring hollow and false. Harris actually performs one of the songs on film’s lively soundtrack.

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“Possessions” (**1/2 out of four) was a sporadically creepy horror thriller about a devoted father (Clive Standen) who seeks a fresh start with his young son (Mason Wells) after the death of his wife and they move to a new town and purchase a storage unit facility but dark secrets lurking beneath the facility threaten to overtake them. Better-than-average horror story has good atmosphere and performances but is ultimately done in by standard horror cliches. A solid effort from writer/director Brent Cote but this cannot escape film’s origins of “The Shining” and (especially) “Poltergeist.”

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