Reviews

This sharp critique of fame is perhaps the purest distillation of Garland's tragic power as a force of sheer entertainment. The song in the empty bar, the engagement scene during the recording, performing her big new number for her husband at home. Even with the heavy themes and tones, a stupid ear-to-ear grin rarely left my face for the near-3-hrs.

There is officially ZERO reason to watch Gray Man; THIS is the only (not-so-)semi-subtle homoerotic Netflix action epic we need. A tightrope walk between complete silliness & beautiful sincerity, it has entertainment value dripping from every colorful pore: insane action, enveloping dialogue, sprawling yet intimate storytelling, elaborate dancing (yep!). Admittedly, the unfamiliarity of the tone may be a bit much for those prepared, but it's hard to deny the bravura movie-making, daring you to not to have fun.

Seriously, it's a visual marvel: nightmarish make-up, endless pops of color against the darkness, unashamed comic book sets. It's another reminder of the unfortunate world of unnecessary realism our blockbusters are stuck in now. Sadly, a canyon exists between the quality of this movie's style & substance. The middle majority sags like crazy, but the opening & closing (&, of course, the fever-dream images) make it worthwhile.

Instead, I just kept thinking about how familiar and lazy the humor is, how uninteresting the animation and story are, and how paying Hart and Johnson to bring nothing except name recognition to the film was such a massive waste of money. I used to know how to enjoy life-getting old blows. SIDE NOTE: how are we just now getting a Keanu Reeves' Batman???

Still, Luhrmann & Butler achieve the impossible with Elvis, a man stuck between impulses the world deemed irreconcilable: sexuality & spirituality. Baz's Bazisms are so engulfing, all cynicism is swept away in the extravagant style & Presley's plight. It's no easy feat creating empathy for a bazillionaire. Cut some of the greatest-hits, musical-biopic hang-ups & focus more on the Elvis/Colonel relationship, this would be one of the best rock-history films ever.

There are certain entertainers that treat their careers like an athlete or a business-person stuck in an arts world. That's Lopez. Not a diss on her, but it does make her competitiveness & desire to climb the ladder feel sadly misplaced & bound to disappoint. Yet despite this being a sweaty, calculated vanity project meant to engender us to her, it works as an entertaining, in-depth Hollywood portrait. The decision to focus so much time on her Oscar hopes was inspired & emotionally suspenseful.

It's basically a terrible DCOM peppered with edge-lord swearing and misplaced mental health thematics that gets almost nothing right about being a high school rock star hopeful. However, if Netflix were at all interested in synergy, they would have Skullflower cover "Chrissy, Wake Up" ASAP.

What I think I forgot about the best of those movies is that the substance of the story & the characters is what makes them more than just another attempt to be cool, & Cha Cha is full of surprising substance. Things that could've been super corny (young man with arrested development finds love with an unhappily married mother) come off as endearing because they acknowledge the complications & differing perspectives of becoming an adult.

An epic, acidic melodramedy whose intriguing punches of insanity and experimentation stuck with me much longer than the moments of (admittedly intentional but nonetheless off-putting) hipster navel-gazing.

As a kid, this was one of my favorites because of Candy's absolute perfection as the endlessly hilarious, lovably lazy oaf. Now, it's one of my favorites because of the shockingly complex relationship dynamics, the in-depth character development, the strongest fusion of directing & writing in Hughes's career, AND Candy's absolute perfection as the endlessly hilarious, lovably lazy oaf. A broad, sentimental suburban comedy about connection, commitment, & family that's way better than you may remember.

Caan, the charismatic fast-talker, and Williams, the stoic tough guy, are fantastic; they are playing the opposite of who they would each become known for in their future careers and killing it. The maudlin storyline is sweet, sad, and largely un-manipulative...save the unbearably dated music.

"Love & Thunder" is like a fun but forgettable filler comic - silly, short, bright, diverting, feigning import, & largely lacking substance. The biggest problem is the incessant humor fighting against the uber-serious themes. I miss Branagh's Shakespearean self-seriousness that used to ground this character. Don't get me wrong; it's often quite funny, but when there are ten overly self-aware jokes every minute, some are bound to work.

When you make weirdo-dreamers the protagonists, you get Bottle Rocket...or Napoleon Dynamite, which feels like a prequel to this movie. Anderson & the Wilsons never glamorize these guys, yet they also portray them with such love. So many favorites: my favorite Anderson script, my favorite James Caan performance, and one of my favorite film characters in Dignan. Not that I would want much to change in this movie, but I wonder what this would look like in Anderson's modern signature visual style.

The best pure comedy Sandler has starred in since the 90s. I kept widely swinging between laughing out loud (Todd Bridges, Vanilla Ice, etc.) and cringing with disgust/distaste (statutory rape, incest, sexism, etc.), which, for better or worse, is exactly what I want from an R-rated Happy Madison movie.

A mixed bag of solid character arcs, lazy animation choices, and utterly forgettable story beats. However, my main issue is...WHY ARE THEY THE ONLY ANIMALS IN THIS UNIVERSE? Why isn't this reality a part of the plotting? Have I just been watching too much BoJack?

This new Father of the Bride feels nobly authentic in its cultural specifics and does enough new and different things with the story to warrant existence. However, there's a HUGE problem: Andy Garcia is about as poorly cast as you could imagine. His stoic stonewalling and self-seriousness make him seem embarrassed to be involved in this movie-my choice for replacement: Oscar Nunez.

The most you can hope from a Disney sports biopic is refreshing sincerity and a compelling narrative, which Rise has in spades. The story of an immigrant family overcoming adversity through sheer will and commitment to each other is as inspirational as it is effectively infuriating. What you wouldn't expect is for that Disney sports biopic to also be one of the most visually gorgeous films of the year.

"Hey, this movie's kinda cute...certainly better and funnier than the first one...Love how it utilizes the video game mechanics in the story...and what a fun climax at the wedding! Good stuff...let me just pause this so my kid can use the bathroo...THIS THING IS 2 HOURS LONG????"

Hustle suffers from some expected hang-ups: sports-drama cliches, poorly performed cameos, predictable plotting. Still, it's so sincere and well-charactered that it's hard to get too upset about all the Happy Madison familiarities. And who knew Adam Sandler and Queen Latifah would be the married couple we all needed? (NOTE: I've seen the excellent Rise on Disney+ since watching this, and now this already feels completely obsolete in comparison).

There is enough fun in the set pieces, sci-fi creativity, gorgeous visuals, and little nods to the lore haphazardly joked about in the Toy Story films to make this worth a watch. However, the lack of real story ingenuity and the constant influence-referencing (2001, Star Trek and Wars, Alien, AI, Interstellar, Gravity) leave an uninspired taste in the mouth. It's OK - like Cars or Bug's Life level Pixar. Still, it's hard to imagine this being anyone's favorite movie...even a fictional child's.

It took me a minute to get on this movie's wavelength, but I started really digging it about halfway through; I think it was the bike chase that ultimately won me over, or maybe it was the progression of the Michael Cera / Abbi Jacobson relationship. Since finishing the film, it's only grown in my estimation. It's a scrappy, messy, funny, quiet, insightful indie comedy that I may still be underrating.

She was such a strong, entertaining presence as a kid/teen. Both she and Curtis are fantastic as each other. There's a fair amount of dated cringe, both forgivable (style, music references) and less so (magical Chinese lady....yikes). It's still an often quite funny good time that serves as a decent representation of the role-playing intervention for family therapy...why, yes, I AM in therapy school currently. Why do you ask?

Because of the iconography of Pinhead, this often gets lumped in with the other horror films of its era. But I was NOT prepared for how dark, brutal, & creatively disturbing this is. Exploding with terrifically terrifying imagination, every creature, monster, & visual effect is seeping with gritty perfection. While the rules of the box & the demons are a little under-explained, the critique of Hollywood love is surprising & welcome.

A noir that delivers on nearly every front: endless amounts of incredible performances (Stallone and Liotta especially), a foreboding tone, a claustrophobic feel to the setting, questionable ethics seeping through every element, and more than enough dramatic turns to keep you invested and guessing. The actual filmmaking itself is pretty rudimentary; even so, it's like the greatest version of a cop procedural TV show one could ask for.

A faith-based movie starring a professional Elvis impersonator playing a fictionalized version of Elvis & his twin separated at birth. Yet, it somehow makes even less sense than that sounds. Every maudlin moment made me either cringe with shame or laugh with disbelief, mainly from the wigs. I'm surprised the cast didn't immediately melt into hell from sheer embarrassment; Green & Liotta doing southern accents is stunning. Bee Boppin' Baby slaps, though.