Monthly Archives: April 2017

Eight films into the “Fast and Furious” franchise, this much is clear. These movies, especially the latest, “The Fate of the Furious,” are not to every taste. For all the action beats, the over-the-top digitally-augmented car chases, the trash-talk one-liners … Continue reading →

Major Percy Fawcett was a peripheral figure among that last gasp of stiff-upper-lip British explorers, a tragic figure who set out to find something exciting in one of the last great blank spots on the map — Amazonia. He disappeared … Continue reading →

A truly novel way to remake “A Star is Born” would be to flip genders in the casting, pair up an alcoholic/addict fading lady star with a hot new male talent who must deal with fame and falling in love … Continue reading →

The moronic comedies of Adam Sandler have long been a cultural punch line. The ridicule has been steady and merciless, with only the odd Sandler hangers-on (“The Dan Patrick Show”) refusing to acknowledge the obvious. The guy is comically/dramatically as … Continue reading →

At this point in time, if your film is going to take us into combat in the Iraq War and Occupation, you’d better find something fresh to say on the subject. It takes nothing away from the men and women … Continue reading →

Period piece romances set against the turmoil of war. They all start out as “Doctor Zhivago,” they all end up as “The English Patient” — or worse. “The Promise” is a World War I love triangle tale set during Turkey’s … Continue reading →

Dry, unemotional and — considering the subject matter — uninspiring, Lee Strobel’s “The Case for Christ” is a faith-based drama about one atheist’s research-driven conversion to Christianity. It’s got a great hook. An accomplished, skeptical journalist investigates the “case” for … Continue reading →

The formula for movies about “special” kids is given a clever flip on its head with “Gifted,” a cuter-than-cute comedy about a very smart child and the people wrestling over control of her future. Usually, the parent figure is over-matched, … Continue reading →

An interesting thought experiment I apply to every animated film I see is “Did they NEED to animate this story to tell it?” What justifies telling the story this way? The vast majority of animated movies pass that test. But … Continue reading →

Billy Joel says he remembers three things about 1969. “Led Zeppelin’s first album. Woodstock. And Joe Cocker.” And why did he fight the traffic, the crowds, the mud and an endless succession of earlier acts to go to Woodstock? “Joe … Continue reading →