Weekend Roundtable: Erased from Canon
If the new Halloween can ignore and contradict all of the other Halloween sequels that came after the original movie, what will be the next franchise sequel to erase prior entries from canon? Jason...
View ArticleJohnny English Strikes Again Review: Strike? More Like a Spare
Full disclosure: I have not seen the previous two Johnny English films. Something tells me that I haven’t missed much in terms of plot or character depth, but I wanted to be honest with you, dear...
View ArticleThe Girl in the Spider’s Web Review: Hacky Hacker Reboot
It’s a pity that The Girl in the Spider’s Web: A New Dragon Tattoo Story takes a fascinating character like Lisbeth Salander and turns her into a generic hacker action star. The character’s trauma and...
View ArticleFantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald Review – Guilty as Charmed
Ravenous Harry Potter fans will likely feast in the often visually stunning Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, as it’s made just for them. The rest of us casual fans or disinterested parties...
View ArticleCreed II Review: Embrace with Arms Wide Open
If we’ve learned anything from boxing movies, it’s that the brutality of the sport is not in direct contrast to the emotions behind those punches. Divorcing passion in the ring from passion outside the...
View ArticleRalph Breaks the Internet Review: Wreck’s in Effect
Ralph Breaks the Internet provides a welcome return to the world of Wreck-It Ralph, the 2012 film that found an arcade villain on a hero’s journey for acceptance and redemption. The vintage world of...
View ArticleOnce Upon a Deadpool Review: Only Mostly Deadpool 2
If Deadpool is known for two things, they’re his metatextuality and the fact that he’s definitely not for young kids or those with delicate sensibilities. With this week’s release of Once Upon a...
View ArticleMary Poppins Returns Review: More Sugar than Medicine
The title of Mary Poppins Returns perfectly encapsulates just what you’re going to get from this sequel to Disney’s live-action/animation classic. Unapologetically nostalgic, Rob Marshall’s new musical...
View ArticleGlass Review: Shattered Hopes
M. Night Shyamalan is his own worst enemy. When he creates small films with deeply personal stories, he shines as a director. However, his grand gestures usually fall flat and earn unintended laughs...
View ArticleFrom Silents to the Seventies: The Drowning Pool
Private eye Lew Harper returns in The Drowning Pool, a surprisingly satisfying follow-up to 1966’s Harper. Paul Newman is back as the roll-with-the-punches investigator and his real-life wife Joanne...
View ArticleThe Lego Movie 2 Review: Another Brick in the Wall
In an alternate timeline where The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part was in fact the first of the series, it would rival just about any animated film that’s likely to come out this year. It’s smart,...
View ArticleWeekend Roundtable: Favorite Animated Sequels
Just about any successful animated movie is bound to get a sequel (or several). Some live up to their originals better than others. The Roundtable this week picks out some good ones. Shannon Nutt...
View ArticleHappy Death Day 2U Review: Second Verse, Different Universe
Revisiting a movie that’s wholly based on revisiting a day is a risky endeavor, but this repetitive repetition mostly works in Happy Death Day 2U. Picking up where 2017’s Happy Death Day ended, the...
View ArticleHow to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World Review – All Out of Fire
The third film in the series, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a strong example of not knowing when to call it quits. The movie isn’t a total waste of time or animation, but it never gives...
View ArticleAvengers: Endgame Review – Set and Match
For some 11 years, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been building up to this Endgame. From Iron Man in 2008 through to movies about interstellar pirates, ants and arachnids, Scandinavian gods, Eastern...
View ArticleJohn Wick: Chapter 3 Review – Now with More Latin
“Si vis pacem, para bellum.” The Latin phrase translates roughly as, “If you want peace, prepare for war.” It’s a paradoxical notion, like shouting for quiet, but perfectly in keeping with the frenetic...
View ArticleCannes Journal – Mektoub, My Love: Intermezzo
There’s a danger that talking about Abdellatif Kechiche’s new film somehow encourages it, similar to the fears that speaking the names of serial killers glorifies them. If any film at Cannes this year...
View ArticleGodzilla: King of the Monsters Review – A Monster Bore
Godzilla has always been a tale of unintended consequences. The original monster was a parable about the dangers of atomic warfare created in the country where the bomb was dropped. After more than...
View ArticleDark Phoenix Review: X-Men Flame Out
The X-Men series has felt like a bit of a misfire from the very start. Even by the convoluted standards of comic book fare, the ensemble pieces never quite managed to thread the needle between...
View ArticleThe Secret Life of Pets 2 Review: The Dogs Have Been Let Out Again
Big screens or small, people will always love watching animals. The Secret Life of Pets cashed in on that fact back in 2016, and without changing the formula too much, The Secret Life of Pets 2 is here...
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