Category: 2018

REVIEW: Black and Blanchett elevate otherwise forgettable ‘House with Clocks’

I can’t say that I ever expected Jack Black and Cate Blanchett to make a good onscreen duo, but here we are.

The two performers appear on the big screen in this fantasy film, directed by Eli Roth. While they headline the picture, though, the main character of the picture is Lewis, played by Owen Vaccaro. The film’s opening finds Lewis moving to Michigan to live with his uncle Jonathan (Black) after the death of his parents. Not long after Lewis moves in, he soon finds out that both his uncle and his uncle’s friend Florence (Blanchett) are warlocks.

As he begins to learn about the world of magic, Lewis not only finds out that sorcery exists, but that the house he’s living in contains an evil clock with nefarious designs.

Continue reading “REVIEW: Black and Blanchett elevate otherwise forgettable ‘House with Clocks’”

Monday Movie Report: Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker revealed, ‘Captain Marvel’ trailer debuts

Fans and audiences were treated to an early look at the upcoming Joker-based film starring Joaquin Phoenix recently.

Continue reading “Monday Movie Report: Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker revealed, ‘Captain Marvel’ trailer debuts”

REVIEW: While entertaining, latest ‘Predator’ doesn’t top others in the series

I don’t get why they couldn’t just call this “Predator 4” and forget the “Alien vs Predator” movies exist. That’s what I do.

The latest entry in this series, directed by Shane Black, mainly follows the character Quinn (Boyd Holbrook). Quinn is a sniper specialist for an elite military unit who sees a UFO crash during one of his missions.

As one might guess, Quinn encounters a Predator. However, those higher on the pay grade decide that  they should cover up the experience and put Quinn with a group of other soldiers who’ve been classified as needing mental health treatment. Because Quinn, and his family, are targeted by the Predator, though, he has to team up with the group to defeat the alien.

Continue reading “REVIEW: While entertaining, latest ‘Predator’ doesn’t top others in the series”

REVIEW: ‘White Boy Rick’ dragged down by story, characters

The latest gang/crime drama has released to theaters, but this one comes with a bit of a twist.

“White Boy Rick,” based on a true story, follows Rick Wershe Jr. (Richie Merritt). Rick lives in Detroit with his father Richard (Matthew McConaughey), who sells firearms in poor neighborhoods. As this process continues, local and federal law enforcement agencies become aware of Richard’s dealings and look to put an end to it.

However, instead of arresting him, the FBI and local detectives give Richard an out by giving Rick the opportunity to be an undercover informant and make controlled drug deals. Rick takes the offer and begins to work undercover, but soon comes to terms with the dangers associated with the role.

Continue reading “REVIEW: ‘White Boy Rick’ dragged down by story, characters”

Monday Movie Report: ‘Green Book’ wins big at Toronto film fest

The comedy drama “Green Book” secured itself as an award season contender this weekend, winning top honors at the Toronto International Film Festival.

The film, directed by Peter Farrelly, won the Grolsch People’s Choice Audience Award. According to The Hollywood Reporter, “Green Book” took the top spot, while director Barry Jenkins’ “If Beale Street Could Talk” earned runner-up. Jenkins’ 2016 film “Moonlight” went on to win the Best Picture Oscar.

Continue reading “Monday Movie Report: ‘Green Book’ wins big at Toronto film fest”

REVIEW: ‘The Nun’ is a generic, one note picture that you can skip

I wasn’t sure if “The Nun” would be all that scary. But what I really didn’t expect was for it to be so boring.

“The Nun” is part of the “Conjuring” cinematic universe and actually takes place decades before the original movie came out. The story follows Father Burke (Demian Bichir) and a young nun in training, Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga).

The two are sent to Romania by the Vatican to investigate the death of another nun at an old abbey. As they begin their investigation with the help of a local farmer (Jonas Bloquet), though, they soon learn that they have to face a horrifying entity.

Continue reading “REVIEW: ‘The Nun’ is a generic, one note picture that you can skip”

REVIEW: Cho’s performance, effective storytelling create a fantastic thriller in ‘Searching’

Talk about dad reflexes. John Cho’s character is definitely Father of the Year material in this flick.

Cho plays David in “Searching,” a single father raising his teenage daughter Magot (Michelle La). While he is a caring dad, though, the father-daughter relationship has been strained, since the death of David’s wife Pam (Sara Sohn).

Any argument over the small things in life go away quickly, though, when Margot disappears and becomes a missing person. While the local police department begins a thorough investigation into Margot’s status, David relentlessly continues to do research on his own to find his daughter.

Continue reading “REVIEW: Cho’s performance, effective storytelling create a fantastic thriller in ‘Searching’”

REVIEW: ‘Peppermint’ brings very little to the table and is ultimately forgettable

After many years in other genres, Jennifer Garner has returned to the world of action films. However, her latest picture isn’t the best she’s starred in.

In “Peppermint,” Garner plays Riley, who lives in a lower-middle class household with her husband Chris (Jeff Hephner) and daughter Carly (Cailey Fleming). Her day-to-day life is shattered, though, when a gang murders Chris and Carly in a drive-by shooting.

While Riley is able to identify those who did it, the corrupt law system provides no justice. As a result Riley decides to take the law into her hands and launch a mission of revenge.

Continue reading “REVIEW: ‘Peppermint’ brings very little to the table and is ultimately forgettable”

Monday Movie Report: ‘Die Hard’ part 6 in the works

It’s been roughly 30 years since the release of the original “Die Hard,” and it looks like the series isn’t over yet.

According to Empire, the New York Police Department officer John McClane (played by Bruce Willis) will again appear on screen in the sixth picture. Empire reports that the next film will be part-sequel and part-prequel, with portions of the movie dedicated to McClane’s time as a young officer.

Continue reading “Monday Movie Report: ‘Die Hard’ part 6 in the works”

A decade at the theater: Reflecting on 10 years

The big “one-oh.”

I turned 30-years-old in May and started reviewing movies in September 2008. That’s a third of my life, and over that time I’ve reviewed more than 600 movies, some more memorable than others.

It’s been a journey that has involved changing websites. I actually wrote my first reviews on MySpace (yes, seriously), and after that site screwing up and losing an entire review I wrote, I decided to make a new web-page. My reviews were first hosted on the site Webs.com.

Continue reading “A decade at the theater: Reflecting on 10 years”