Monthly Archives: January 2018

Movie Review: “Scorched Earth” is D-movie Hell for Gina Carano

Mixed Martial Artist Ronda Rousey’s recently announced move to pro wrestling had to give Gina Carano pause. Rousey’s movie-star-pretty predecessor in the MMA spotlight may have made a splash in the movies with “Haywire,” and had her shot at playing … Continue reading

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Movie Review: New Year’s Eve brings threats real and imagined to “Midnighters”

A strained marriage, a tipsy New Year’s Eve party and a deadly road accident are but the opening gambit of “Midnighters,” a just-taut-enough thriller about ordinary people faced with extraordinary dilemmas. It’s about secrets and betrayals, shifting loyalties and the … Continue reading

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Movie Preview: “Hereditary” is smart horror the A24 way

Long been a big fan of A24 Films, the best of the arty boutique film distributors (“Ex Machina,” “Lady Bird,” “The Florida Project,” “The Disaster Artist,” etc.). Here’s the trailer to their upcoming horror tale, “Hereditary,” starring Toni Collette and … Continue reading

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Movie Review: Not Much There in”The Boy Downstairs”

There’s not much to say about the enervated romance “The Boy Downstairs,” except that literally every character and actor playing that character is more interesting than the leads. Every last one of them, down to the accented waiter at the … Continue reading

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Movie Preview: More Marvel Miniaturized Mayhem, “Ant Man and The Wasp”

Paul Rudd makes one of the more amusing superheroes, and if Evangeline Lilly isn’t forced to be the straight woman, this could be fun. It opens July 6, with Hannah John-Kamen, Walton Goggins, Laurence Fishburne and Michael Douglas in support.

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“The Last Jedi” vs. “The Force Awakens,” diminishing audience, diminishing enthusiasm in a single screenshot

As I was the first to tell you, as I’ve been telling you all along —  Disney is getting very rich by slowly bleeding enthusiasm for “Star Wars” to death. Courtesy of Box Office Mojo.

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Movie Preview: Wim Wenders “Submergence”

A hostage thriller/ethereal deep sea exploration romance, primal connections to the water, the womb and each other. Deep stuff. Very Wim Wenders. The vibe of this trailer for the film based on the J.M. Ledgard novel has only the vaguest … Continue reading

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“Winchester” has an Oscar winner, a primo release date, but…

I had high hopes for the Gothic horror “based on a true story” tale “Winchester.” It’s not a Hammer Films release, but CBS is distributing it, like the late-winter Gothic hit “Woman  in Black” of a few years back. It … Continue reading

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Netflixable? “Hired Gun” Showcases more Musicians in the Shadows

Stick with me a minute, as this is a peek at music through the lens of a movie critic and occasional concert goer and reviewer. There was this telling on-camera moment back in the 2008 “Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus: … Continue reading

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Movie Review: Ellen Page fends off Zombies in “The Cured”

  “The Cured” is a zombie movie heavy with allegory and political subtext. No zombie movie or TV show has a reason to exist without those elements. Only video games and films that aspire to their often amoral aesthetic get … Continue reading

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