Matthew Liedke

REVIEW: ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’ Strengthened By Character Arcs, Except The Villain’s

After 2014’s “X-Men: Days of Future Past” that jumped around with time travel, Director Bryan Singer has returned to a more linear concept for the latest mutant adventure.

In the new “X-Men” story, audiences get introduced to En Sabah Nur, better known as Apocalypse. Labeled the first mutant in history, Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac) is a man who considers himself a god and survived through the ages by transferring his consciousness to a new body. The last time this occurred, though, was in ancient Egypt and Apocalypse ended up getting betrayed and trapped in rubble.

Fast forward to the 1980s, the film starts up with Professor Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) now running a fully functional school with multiple students. Through contact with a character from one of the previous films, Xavier finds out that Apocalypse could be returning, and in doing so, bring his friend Magneto (Michael Fassbender) out of the shadows.

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REVIEW: Shane Black’s ‘Nice Guys’ Is A Fun Throwback To The 70s

Director Shane Black takes audiences back to the 1970s in “The Nice Guys,” a movie that brings together Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling.

The movie begins with Crowe’s character Jackson, an enforcer and Gosling’s character Holland, a private investigator, at odds with each other over a case.

Circumstances related to the case force the two into a team-up, though, and they get some help from Holland’s daughter Holly (Angourie Rice) along the way, too.

The mismatched buddy comedy is a genre that’s been around for quite some time, so it’s always nice to see one that brings a fresh take. “The Nice Guys” is exactly that.

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REVIEW: ‘Captain America: Civil War’ Endures Some Flaws To Deliver Solid Blockbuster

Iron Man’s repulsor beam finally matches up with Captain America’s shield in a full on fight in “Civil War.”

The third installment of the series dedicated to the stars and stripes wearing hero starts off with the Avengers, sans Hulk and Thor, on a mission in Africa. While the mission goes well at first, there’s a moment when it shifts into disaster resulting in multiple casualties.

Prompted by this and other incidents involving the team, the world governments create an accord to reign in the Avengers and only deploy them when necessary. Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), who’s switched from player to general manager of the team in a way, is on board with the plan, but Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans) has reservations.

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REVIEW: Key And Peele Deliver Laughs, But Don’t Escape Flaws With ‘Keanu’

Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key, a duo who brought a refreshing, sharp sketch humor show to Comedy Central, have finally taken the leap to the big screen in “Keanu.”

In their first team-up on the silver screen, Peele plays Rell while Key portrays Clarence. The two are average “everymen” who live relatively safe, good lives. The movie picks up with Rell who, while trying to get over a bad breakup, ends up finding a small kitten and names it Keanu.

After brightening his life for a while, Rell finds his home broken into and his kitten gone. In response, Rell and Clarence decide to try and find the cat. Unfortunately, it turns out that those that kidnapped the kitten was a dangerous Los Angeles gang, forcing Rell and Clarence to infiltrate that world.

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REVIEW: While Predictable, ‘Barbershop’ Sequel Delivers With Heart

Ice Cube is back with the “Barbershop” crew and this time he went out of his way to add some depth and drama into the mix of comedy.

The film picks up with Ice Cube’s character Calvin, who is now successfully running his barbershop in Chicago with his business partner Angie (Regina Hall). For the most part, life for the crew is good, although, they begin to notice the increase in gang-related violence plaguing the streets.

In response, Calvin and the barbershop workers decide to try and call a truce between local gangs and give out free haircuts for a weekend to help promote peace on the streets.

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REVIEW: ‘The Jungle Book’ Hits Its Stride With Lead Voice Talents And Effects

The 2016 “Jungle Book” film certainly adds some new bits here and there, but those who have seen the Disney animated movie should find themselves in familiar territory.

As the classic tale goes, “Jungle Book” tells the story of Mowgli (played by Neel Sethi), a young boy living in a vast wooded area who’s been raised by a pack of wolves and a panther named Bagheera (Ben Kingsley).

While Mowgli’s life for much of the film’s introduction is peaceful, his world shakes up when a human-hating tiger, Shere Khan (Idris Elba), threatens him. While trying to escape, Mowgli comes across multiple other animals in the jungle including a bear named Baloo (Bill Murray) and the two form a friendship.

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REVIEW: Action Visuals In ‘Hardcore Henry’ Don’t Carry Film Far Enough

“Hardcore Henry” is the first feature movie helmed by Russian filmmaker Ilya Naishuller and takes place entirely through a first person perspective.

Right from the start, the gimmick the movie is utilizing is apparent. From the moment the lights go down to when the credits roll, the picture plays out just like a first person shooter game would.

Regarding the story, the movie opens the plot is set in motion very quickly. The main character Henry wakes up in some type of special facility and learns he’s a part man and part machine. After the quick realization, he comes into contact with the movie’s villain Akan (played by Danila Kozlovsky) who plans to use creations like Henry for nefarious purposes.

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REVIEW: ‘The Boss’ Stumbles Due To Poor Writing

Melissa McCarthy is back with another comedy, this time playing a character who happens to be the owner of a huge corporate empire.

The character is Michelle Darnell, who rose to the top on her own and used cut-throat business practices to do so.

Her ways of getting by eventually lead her into trouble, though, when she gets arrested and sent to prison for a white collar crime.

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REVIEW: ‘God’s Not Dead 2’ Sacrifices Good Film-making To Deliver Message

What happens when you make a movie with no substance or style and instead focus simply on a message? You get “God’s Not Dead.” When you do it again, you get “God’s Not Dead 2.”

The sequel tells the story of Grace Wesley (Melissa Joan Hart), a devout Christian and high school history teacher. During one of her lessons she’s asked a question about the similarities between quotes from Jesus and Martin Luther King Jr.

Because of a subsequent series of developments, Grace soon finds herself in court with Ray Wise playing a lawyer named Peter Kane who also happens to be an atheist completely obsessed with proving that “God is dead.”

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REVIEW: Acting Veterans Highlight Drama ‘Eye In The Sky’

If the government has a chance to take out high profile terrorists, should it take the shot? That’s the question asked in Director Gavin Hood’s “Eye in the Sky.”

The movie takes place at a few different locations, a command center with Colonel Katherine Powell (Helen Mirren), a government meeting room with Lieutenant General Frank Benson (Alan Rickman), a drone operating room with pilot Steve Watts (Aaron Paul) and an on the ground unit with the spy Jama Farah (Barkhad Abdi).

In basic terms, the movie plays out like a game of ping pong. Military personnel locate a house in Kenya housing potential suicide bombers and plan to strike the target.

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