“The Bad Guys” is an animated comedy that takes the crazy vibe of Looney Tunes and brings it into a world of “Ocean’s Eleven”. They are a team of animal characters who run elaborate heists on all sorts of unsuspecting people in all sorts of places. Based on a children’s book of the same name, in which the team’s leader decides to change from being Bad to instead being Good. That goes against the motto of the team: “Go Bad or Go Home”.
“The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent” is a meta-concept movie of an actor playing a fictionalized version of himself. This has been done before, of course. But never in such a “Nick Cage” way! There is a lot of meta-humor in this movie, seeing that the main character is a fictionalized version of Nicolas Cage. Gee – I wonder who would be nuts enough to play that role? Read more
“Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore” is the next movie in the JK Rowling “Wizarding World”. But based on the crammed and jammed details of People, Places and Beasts that this movie covers, it begins to fall into the “Bewildering World”. It is mishmash of Wizard-level ‘Big Ideas’ that come across as half-baked content. The visually stunning effects are fun, but the long slog of run time make you feel like Muggle forced to take the 5th year O.W.L.S test. I mean, it’s a struggle to keep up… Read more
“Ambulance” is a high-energy, high-octane roller-coaster ride with some quality actors careening down the streets of LA in said emergency vehicle. The plot asks you to completely turn off your brain and focus on the screen — so you view the motion and feel the emotion. This movie is directed by Michael Bay. He continues to show that he must have an unofficial catch phrase: ‘The Secret to Success is Using Too Much Excess”. Read more
Streaming on Amazon Prime and in limited
theater screenings starting April 8, 2022
“All the Old Knives” is a standard spy story where the Agency must have a ‘mole’ and one of the top agents is sent to sniff out who it might be. Except that the event happened eight years ago. The interviewer has to determine the guilt of the potential mole. But this person is the ex-lover and prior co-worker of said agent/interviewer. Plus, the ‘interview’ is off-the-record and occurs at a swanky seaside restaurant.
You Won’t Be Alone” is a foreign language supernatural folktale, told in a meandering method. The focus is on an ancient scary story of witches in the mountain villages of Macedonia. The scenery of the area is beautiful, and the acting is strong. But this would not be awarded first place by the Macedonia Tourism Board.
“The Lost City” is a modern-day romp that feels like it was pulled from the 1980’s. The jungle adventure adds some weight to the lead character’s distress. A popular romance novel writer and her fabulous cover model friend get pulled into a reenactment of the latest work of fiction. Then add in some kidnapping, general havoc, and some fabled treasures on a Caribbean island — then you have the makings of a crazy tale. Read more
“X” is the title, but not the rating, of this horror movie. The plot twist revolves about a group of people making a porno film in 1979 in a backwoods of Texas. But when the cast and crew hook-up with the worst Hosts in the pre-AirBnB era, then the irony drips freely. Just like the blood from the edge of the knife… Read more
“The Outfit” is a movie, as it seems, ‘tailor-made’ to display the talents of the main star. Being a British import into 1950’s gangster-infused Chicago, the main character (a professional tailor, pardon me, ‘cutter’) is there to give some suave class to his ‘gentlemen’. Creating all the stylish suits worn by the mobster elite brings a tense situation to his clothing shop late one night…
This film releases exclusively to AMAZON PRIME streaming beginning this Friday March 4.
“Lucy and Desi” is a wonderful heartwarming documentary of the most unusual couple in Hollywood history. The Comedian and the Cuban, both minor stars on their own, had teamed up to become a powerhouse of early television. Read more
