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A heady and surprisingly effective blend of war movie, westerns, Shakespearean drama, and Biblical allegory, War for the Planet of the Apes is a top-notch conclusion to what stands as an unexpectedly epic series that continues to punch above its weight class. Its arrival during a summer increasingly defined by franchise fatigue gives a spark of … Continue reading
Luc Besson’s long-awaited return to space opera and pop sci-fi isn’t the worst movie of 2017, but bless his heart he definitely makes a sincere attempt at claiming that honor. Based on the long-running French comic book series, it’s pretty to look at, but also a shallow, loud, dumb and aimless test of one’s patience. … Continue reading
The second-best Spidey flick (behind Spider-Man 2, natch), Spider-Man: Homecoming manages to do what Ant-Man did as a superhero flick, only better: tell more personal story on a smaller-scale with a focus on fun and depth. It’s equal parts John Hughes coming-of-age teen comedy and comic book popcorn drama. In a nice change of pace, … Continue reading
Drive by way of La La Land, The Fast and the Furious with brains, Heat meets jukebox musical — Baby Driver is each of those, but in a good way. It marks an intriguing and promising change of course in the career of filmmaker Edgar Wright, who shows more freedom, focus, and confidence as a writer and director … Continue reading
It will come as no surprise if audiences no longer give a damn about another bombastic Transformers movie, especially now that it seems director Michael Bay no longer does. It’s not evident at first, but as the 149-minute slog of giant CGI robots pounding the holy bejeezus out of each other again starts to drag on … Continue reading
Writer-director Trey Edward Shults’ (Krisha) sophomore feature won’t do much to re-affirm anyones faith in humanity under pressure, but it will put the screws to the viewer for a lean, nerve-wracking 90 minutes. Don’t be fooled by the trailer — it’s less of a horror movie and more of a slow-burn psychological thriller, a brilliant … Continue reading
Warner Bros. and DC Comics score a much-needed win with Wonder Woman, a refreshingly sleek, adventurous, endearing, and even timely superhero flick that manages to be what the first entries in DC’s movie universe have not: fun. The character debuted in 1941 as part of a wave of patriotism-inspired comic books heroes who emerged in the … Continue reading
At this point, being five movies and 14 years into the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is like being five hours into a Gilligan’s Island marathon: It’s gone on way too long, the novelty has worn off, and we’re starting to realize how lame the gags were to begin with. Is Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead … Continue reading
Although Alien: Covenant doesn’t answer all of the questions or tie up all of the loose ends stemming from Prometheus (2012), it goes a long way towards cleaning up that hot mess, and it’s easily the most satisfying Alien film since the 1980s. (Note: That definitely should not be interpreted as damning with faint praise.) Director Ridley Scott and screenwriters … Continue reading
Generic sword & sorcery fantasy wrapped in pseudo-Arthurian legend, Guy Ritchie’s ill-conceived, atonal King Arthur: Legend of the Sword is a frustrating and incoherent mess with the occasional flash of brilliance. Granted, it couldn’t have been worse; if it had been, that would have made it more entertaining. This story is a drastic re-imagining of Arthur’s origins, … Continue reading
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