Monthly Archives: July 2023

In sci-fi cinema shorthand terms, the German thriller “Paradise” is “Logan’s Run” with a whiff of “Soylent Green is PEOPLE!” “Youth” is even more of a commodity than it is today is this dystopian future. And the rich are as … Continue reading →

“The Passenger” is a slow-burn thriller/slow-footed thriller that pairs up a meek, aimless and dissociative young man with the fast-food employee who just shot up the burger joint where they both worked. People died, but something about the mousey, bullied … Continue reading →

Robert Mitchum didn’t play a lot of villains. But boy, when he did it was a wonder to behold. “Cape Fear” is a iconic thriller that parked Mitchum opposite stoic Gregory Peck in what turned out to be a classic, … Continue reading →

I interviewed Tobin Bell once, some years back, when it seemed like his “Saw” legacy was finally winding to a close. As a lifelong lover of character actors, I’ve celebrated his non-“Saw” outings, his chances to show us he’s more … Continue reading →

All hail Seth Rogen for making the first big screen version of “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” that doesn’t suck. Yeah, the “Sausage Party/Superbad/Pineapple Express” dude. The “Turtles” have always been the most juvenile among comic book adaptations, one of things … Continue reading →

Or are they and we out of “Cowabungas” to give? Let’s find out.

That warhorse genre “the police procedural” earns a fresh look with the French drama “The Night of the 12th,” an uncommonly sensitive inside-view of a grim case and its toll on the friends and family of the victim and the … Continue reading →

Yes, “Barbie” spoiled everbody, with its blowout “previews,” blockbuster Friday and Saturday, $162 million opening and dash to $250 million+ on its opening week. So when “Haunted Mansion” opened Wed. and Thursday to…$3.1 million. A modest but healthy $30 million … Continue reading →

Jason Statham told me a few times in interviews over the years that he used to chose roles based on who the fight choreographer was. Whatever the quality of the film, if the fights made him look cool, that was … Continue reading →

Filmmakers want to get their foot in the door to a career, and actors? They’ve got to book work to eat, right? That explains a lot of dismally dull and just “off” B, C and D-grade thrillers, especially “The Lurking … Continue reading →