Monthly Archives: September 2018

Got to love it when a bad comedy sums itself up and all but saves you the trouble of writing an entire review. As in, “Guys, is this supposed to be funny, or not?” That’s what Debbie (Alex Meneses) blurts … Continue reading →

Spy recruiters tell us that there are four prime reasons why people betray their country, summed up by the too-cute acronym “MICE — Money, Ideology, Coercion or Ego.” And a couple of those can certainly be applied to the Egyptian turncoat Ashraf … Continue reading →

“A Simple Favor” is a thriller that ticks likes a Timex, a precision exercise in button-pushing manipulation and a laugh out loud mystery that mocks its own manipulations, giggles at its own far-fetched twists. Paul Feig of “Bridesmaids,” working from … Continue reading →

In his youth, John Lydon, who went by Johnny Rotten back then, was always good for an quote. Point a TV camera at him, as more than one British TV provocateur was given to do, ask him to say something … Continue reading →

Nothing to do with Nirvana, so let’s avoid any “Smells like” wisecracks. This Max Minghella film is about an aspiring pop starlet (Elle), her mentor (Rebecca Hall) and a BIG CONTEST that can make or break her. They’re premiering “Teen … Continue reading →

Regarding the college sex comedy “Frat Star,” it doesn’t really let co-directors Grant Johnson and Ippsie Jones off the hook by saying “They MEANT” to make something appalling. They succeeded, exposing the elitist, sexist and degrading “Greek” system as it … Continue reading →

The evangelist Billy Graham long had a film production company that produced movies with the same aim as his televised “Crusades” — to win converts, or at least reaffirmations of faith from believers. These were simple, modest-budget films with varying … Continue reading →

Shane Black writes the chewiest, funniest tough-guy dialogue in the movies. So having the writer-director of “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” and “The Nice Guys” in charge of “The Predator” reboot was sure to pay dividends. He’s a born smart-ass, and … Continue reading →

What did the sisterhood used to say about “mini skirts?” “If you’re old enough to have worn them the LAST time they came around, maybe they’re not for you THIS time.” Doesn’t really apply to movies, although you could make … Continue reading →

If you ever wondered where the term “Grand Guignol,” used to describe the bloody and macabre, over-the-top-horror, came from, here it is. If you ever speculated who might have been the original “scream queen,” long before Jamie Leigh Curtis, let … Continue reading →