Monthly Archives: January 2020

Films set in Puerto Rico are as rare as hurricane aid to the storm tossed island. This is worth seeing just for the novelty.

All the years of fitfully studying Spanish, all the Spanish language films I’ve reviewed, and today I learn a new word. “Ñoño.” It’s Spanish (Mexican slang) for “lame.” I didn’t hear it in the new Netflix comedy “All the Freckles … Continue reading →

The film is largely French, and has opened in France. But somebody’s sure to pick it up here, if only for limited release pre-VOD/Streaming. A drama about motherhood, the Big Mission and the tug between the two. A plum role … Continue reading →

Not going to name names or anything, but SOME of us remember when Alice Krige made her first big splash on screen as the title character, a young woman accidentally killed by callous young men who are later haunted by … Continue reading →

The thing that stands out about the second trailer for this Guy Ritchie/STX action comedy (Jan. 24) is how canny Henry Golding’s agent was for talking him into this gig. A somewhat fey romantic lead in his recent films, let’s … Continue reading →

A very accomplished cast can’t prevent “The Grudge” reboot from being the first dog of 2020, a well-acted but incompetently-plotted tale of a curse that transfers like a deed — a haunted house that crosses hemispheres. A gaunt Andrea Riseborough, … Continue reading →

Even if you’re old enough to remember “How High,” you probably don’t remember how sloppy and generally unfunny it was. Because the whole point of watching it back in pre-legalized 2001 was to be a little buzzed during the experience. … Continue reading →

“The meek shall inherit the Earth,” Jesus preached in his “Sermon on the Mount.” By that ethos, Soane Tokelau should be landed gentry on his native Wallis Island in French Polynesia. He doesn’t look it, a Polynesian hulk of 120 kilos … Continue reading →

Screen Gems is the “We don’t preview these for critics” (generally) division of Sony. So this Sam Raimi-produced, Jackie Weaver horror take with an over familiar title becomes a pig in a poke, and the first wide release of a … Continue reading →

The tropes, story arc, violence and stereotypes of mob movies are so ingrained that it’s nigh on impossible to do anything new with the genre. The only novelty in the “true story” variant served up in “The Irishman” by Martin … Continue reading →