Category: Film Review

Six years ago, writer/director Jim Jarmusch released “Only Lovers Left Alive,” which was his first foray into horror, spinning a vampire tale in his own inimitable fashion. In 1999, he created “Ghost Dog,” which represented his take on samurai cinema. With “The Dead Don’t Die,” Jarmusch attempts a mash-up of his favorite genres, adding Asian swordplay to a Romero-esque zombie picture, wrapping this odd cinematic gift with his traditional deadpan performances and droll dialogue. It’s a witty endeavor and a tonal daredevil leap that many viewers won’t want to take, but for the Jarmusch faithful, “The Dead Don’t Die” is a fine addition to an eclectic filmography. While some ideas die on impact, the feature has a compelling appreciation for weirdness and eeriness, and it’s a pretty grisly undead rising event as well. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com 

We already did this back in 2006. Screenwriter Simon Kinberg (along with Zak Penn) attempted to bring elements of the “The Dark Phoenix Saga” to “X-Men: The Last Stand,” trying to do something with a major character arc from the comics, which found Jean Grey in command of awesome powers, making her the most powerful mutant of them all. In 2019, Kinberg returns the source material for “Dark Phoenix,” making another pass at beloved material, using the opportunity to craft his directorial debut after having a hand in scripting three previous chapters of the “X-Men” saga. Perhaps Kinberg should’ve selected a more modest picture to helm, as he’s clearly out of his league with “Dark Phoenix,” showing limited authority with performances and action staging. He’s striving to summon ultimate power with the endeavor, but there’s mostly noise and a cruelly half-baked vision for Jean Grey’s ultimate test as a mutant. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Always Be My Maybe” pairs comedian Ali Wong with actor Randall Park, giving the duo a romantic comedy premise to play with where the characters aren’t always interested in each other. Park and Wong co-script with Michael Golamco, creating a cinematic space to showcase their gifts, with both performers graduating to lead status with the effort, and they look like two people determined to make every moment in the feature count. Their labor pays off in “Always Be My Maybe,” which delivers big laughs and sizable heart as something of an anti-rom-com. The writing doesn’t bother to dispose of cliché, but it manages to preserve a bright spirit strong enough to break the sleeper hold of predictability, supporting an engaging study of near-misses and awkward situations. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It hasn’t been an easy road to release for “Katie Says Goodbye.” Shot over three years ago, the feature has remained on the shelf after a lukewarm fest festival debut. In fact, it’s been delayed so long, write/director Wayne Roberts managed to make another movie in the interim, releasing “The Professor” (starring Johnny Depp) last month to largely negative reviews. It’s interesting to see how the two pictures share a morbid curiosity with disaster, with “The Professor” charting the slow decline of a man diagnosed with cancer, while “Katie Says Goodbye” follows a young woman’s road to ruin as a small town prostitute. Perhaps Roberts has some undiagnosed depression he needs to see someone about, with therapy more meaningful than filmmaking, as his latest endeavor (or his first, technically) is an unrewarding slide into hopelessness, asking the audience to endure painful acts of violence and humiliation in the name of characterization that’s never truly there. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2016’s “The Secret Life of Pets” was a troubling movie. Harmless, sure, but the story was basically a remake of “Toy Story” while the overall feature reveled in cartoon mayhem, hitting the target demo with noise instead of trying to win their hearts. It made a ton of money, as such simple entertainment tends to do, inspiring “The Secret Life of Pets 2,” which does make a noticeable attempt to calm down and enjoy the view, at least for the first two acts, with director Chris Renaud (joined by Jonathan del Val) rethinking all the yelling and collisions, but the poop and pee jokes remain. “The Secret Life of Pets 2” is an improvement over the previous picture, which is a good thing, but this madcap overview of animals and their idiosyncrasies (and bathroom habits) isn’t exactly the finest example of animated storytelling, offering a brief (75 minutes) and basic continuation that doesn’t stray far from the formula that made the original film such a hit. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Seth Green has been in the entertainment business for 35 years, but “Changeland” marks his feature-length directorial debut (also credited with the screenplay). It’s not a bold career leap for the actor, but it does provide him with some control, putting himself in charge of a tiny indie production that takes a long trip to Thailand to examine one man’s descent into depression. Green isn’t making this one for audiences, preferring to document some type of vacation with a collection of dear friends, loved ones, and his spouse, taking a page from the Adam Sandler playbook, cooking up a mild crisis to support what’s really a travelogue, and one that’s not nearly as profound about the ways of a broken heart as Green would like to believe. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In this day and age, five years to wait for a sequel is an eternity. The success of 2014’s “Godzilla” wasn’t entirely a surprise, but the pump was primed for a continuation, building on the foundation poured by director Gareth Edwards, who made a specific creative choice to hold back some when it came to giant monster battles. The film was released, and then nothing. Well, at least until 2017’s “Kong: Skull Island,” which introduced the potential of Legendary Pictures and their “MonsterVerse,” creating a franchise battle plan for large things that smash. Finally, there’s “Godzilla: King of the Monsters,” which isn’t an improvement on the 2014 effort, but more of a direct response to criticisms of the previous movie. Co-writer/director Michael Dougherty (“Krampus”) has been ordered to lose Edwards’s restraints, mounting a more ferocious, action-packed continuation that dials up the noise and the property destruction to give fans the viewing experience they want. And in this feature, titans unleashed is always preferable to humans talking. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com 

After winning an Oscar in 2012 (for “The Help”), Octavia Spencer has struggled some while trying to figure out how to capitalize on such major exposure. She’s managed to find bit parts in money gigs and participate in some quality work along the way (including 2016’s “Hidden Figures,” which presented her with an Academy Award nomination), but “Ma” feels like the first time Spencer’s been unleased as a star, with “The Help” director Tate Taylor putting his faith in the actress to carry her own horror project. And boy, does she ever. Wildly ridiculous but also appealingly demented, “Ma” is appetizing junk food for the multiplex, with Spencer making it her personal mission to become a cult nightmare figure for genre fanatics, delivering a wonderfully unhinged performance that Tate returns to whenever he runs into storytelling trouble. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com 

There’s a lot “Late Night” wants to say about the state of the world today. It’s a story about the changing tides of the entertainment industry, diversity, and workplace representation. Somewhere buried underneath all its ambition is a tale about a stony television legend learning to be something better to a world that wants her back in top form. Mindy Kaling’s screenplay feels like it was filled with complete ideas at one point during the picture’s development, but the final cut of “Late Night” is unnervingly incomplete, with missing pieces, sloppy editing, and characterization that’s missing a real sense of fullness. There’s much to like here, with the lead performance from Emma Thompson enjoyably ragged and impatient, but the feature doesn’t reach many of its goals, often going vanilla when Kaling seems ready to provide necessary poison. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

For various reasons, it’s been seven years since a Brian De Palma film has hit screens, with 2012’s “Passion” his last endeavor. Such a break represents the longest delay between projects in the helmer’s career, but it hasn’t been easy for De Palma to find his place in the business these days, with his signature style and interest in melodrama having a hard time matching the proper material to let his imagination flourish. “Domino” initially appears to be a return to form for the moviemaker, put in charge of a revenge story with various players and interest in the horrors of Islamic terrorism, and there’s genuine greatness wedged in here at times, with De Palma getting up to speed with a few terrific set pieces. Overall, “Domino” is messy, feeling as though it was slapped together instead of properly edited, as character beats come and go, and the central story of madman hunting isn’t provided enough concentration to matter. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A lauded documentarian, Werner Herzog often brings his idiosyncratic point of view to his subjects, with a habit of making himself part of the informational approach, securing a defined personality when it comes to the examination of faraway places, future technology, and strange individuals. Herzog isn’t one to make a defiantly confrontational feature, but he’s not big on tongue baths either, with “Meeting Gorbachev” a rare shot of sunshine from the helmer, even while assessing the dark history of Soviet politics. Offered three chances to sit down with the former U.S.S.R. leader, and Herzog tries to remain on task with questions concerning the highs and lows of Gorbachev’s time in power, but he can’t help but feel for the subject’s unusual position as a man who sought clarity in the midst of Communist confusion. “Meeting Gorbachev” takes it easy on Mikhail Gorbachev, but that’s the idea, with Herzog most interested in identifying accomplishments and mourning a lost vision for sanity in an increasingly hostile world. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“The Poison Rose” is meant to be throwback entertainment, restoring an interest in noir entanglements that haven’t been a staple of big screen entertainment in quite some time. The production isn’t shy about its fondness for the genre, with the lead character living above a movie theater showing “The Maltese Falcon,” while a cat is named Raymond and a character is branded Chandler. I’m sure there are more references to be found, and perhaps finding these touches is more entertaining than the actual film. Loaded with characters and motivations, “The Poison Rose” is a buffet of dangerous activity from untrustworthy characters, but director George Gallo doesn’t show much enthusiasm for the construction of suspense, keeping the feature fatigued and overly expository, turning the central mystery into homework, unable to create a delicious cinematic stranglehold. The production wants the audience to know it understands the basics of classic noir, but it shows limited interest in becoming one. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It’s difficult to assemble an B-movie experience these days, as self-awareness and nostalgia tends to dominate the viewing experience, with most filmmakers striving to celebrate the ugly side of storytelling, without truly grasping the needs of such entertainment. Richard Shepard (“The Matador,” “Dom Hemingway”) almost finds a way to resurrect the exploitation experience with “The Perfection,” creating a seductive feature that’s initially about one thing before changing entirely, only to reset one more time, making a neck brace readjustment a requirement for all act breaks. It’s a sinister picture, and Shepard wins points for taking his endeavor to the extreme, but the aggression of “The Perfection” grows tiring in a hurry, with small grotesqueries more effective than the gonzo avenues the production is a lip-licking hurry to explore. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Screenwriter Zack Stentz and director McG are trying to make a next-generation “Goonies” with “Rim of the World,” only instead of kids on their own hunting for pirate treasure, the children featured here are in charge of saving the world from an alien attack. The premise is irresistible, holding the potential for sci-fi adventure and adolescent antics, but the production doesn’t follow through on wonder and silliness. “Rim of the World” is shockingly corrosive instead, with a painful sense of humor and a budget-minded take on intergalactic war, with Stentz trying to muster R-rated shenanigans with material that’s aching for something more special than a collection of lame improvisations and generic young teen rebellion beats. It’s definitely bright and colorful, but the movie has no sincerity. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com 

“Brightburn” offers a premise where a Superman-like figure is born bad. Fans of comic book cinema have seen this before, in “Superman III” and sections of “Justice League,” but writers Brian and Mark Gunn have decided to push the idea into the realm of horror, losing fantasy touches to move full steam ahead into slasher territory. It’s a shame the screenplay doesn’t show more interest in doing something original with a well-worn concept, but this is a low-budget chiller after all, giving the production little room to experiment as it tries to deliver frights. “Brightburn” has promise in its early scenes, moving toward an unsettling confrontation between a wicked alien and loving parents trying to preserve peace, but the Gunns are mostly in this for the gore, cooking up a series of banal stalking sequences, while the overall movie feels half-baked at best. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com 

“Rocketman” has the appearance of a typical musician bio-pic, this time focusing on the highs and lows of Elton John as he grows from a musical prodigy to a rock star. It’s hard to doubt the routine of it all, with “Bohemian Rhapsody” smashing box office records and Motley Crue’s “The Dirt” capturing viewers on Netflix. “Rocketman” isn’t about to deny the popularity of tales involving musicians caught in psychological strangleholds, but this is Elton. Hercules. John. He’s one of the most flamboyant and popular entertainers around, but his life story isn’t complete, with screenwriter Lee Hall and director Dexter Fletcher transforming certain aspects of John’s experience into a jukebox musical that teases delightful fantasy, but mostly fixates on depression. The feature works to pry John open, inspecting his demons and dreams, but the movie only finds intermittent clarity. The rest is frustrating repetition, though star Taron Egerton makes it his personal mission to feel everything offered here in full. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com 

Olivia Wilde is looking to expand her career, taking control of her professional future with a move behind the camera for “Booksmart,” her directorial debut. While she’s been growing as a performer, taking a few interesting risks, Wilde seems most comfortable as a helmer, displaying thrilling confidence with her first feature, which takes on the teen sex romp subgenre and finds ways to disrupt expectations and deliver a clear vision for companionship. It’s a buddy comedy that contains a lot of laughs, but Wilde isn’t completely focused on the jokes, instead working with the screenwriters (Katie Silberman, Sarah Haskins, Emily Halpern, and Susanna Fogel) to deliver stronger characters to best support episodic shenanigans, largely avoiding the grimly vulgar nonsense these types of pictures are known for. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

For the second installment of Disney’s Year of Animated Remakes, there’s “Aladdin,” which is a live-action reworking of one of the company’s finest animated offerings, with the 1992 picture filled with heart, humor, and wonderful songs. Following in the footsteps of March’s “Dumbo,” the new release tries very hard to downplay cartoon whimsy and fluidity to become yet another underwhelming, CGI-shellacked event, taking audiences to a version of Agrabah that doesn’t look or sound quite right. Director Guy Ritchie (who co-scripts with John August) has the unenviable task of turning something joyous and relatively simple into an epic summertime blockbuster, continuing his recent big-budget career freefall (following duds “King Arthur: Legend of the Sword,” and “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.”) with yet another hollow viewing experience devoid of real magic. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“We Have Always Lived in the Castle” is a highly bizarre picture, and this type of strangeness always has the potential to dissolve in the filmmaker’s hands, requiring someone committed to weirdness without permitting the movie to be dominated by eccentricity. The feature is based on a novel by Shirley Jackson, and screenwriter Mark Kruger makes a specific effort to retain as much literary flavor as possible, organizing curious characters and their fried minds as they interact in tight spaces, inspect the depths of dysfunction. Director Stacie Passon (previously reaching screens with the unusual “Concussion”) miraculously maintains control of tone and threat, giving “We Have Always Lived in the Castle” an intriguing atmosphere, joining Kruger to examine insanity and not lose concentration on the storytelling essentials along the way. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

As 2019 becomes the year of Charles Manson and the revival of interest in all the chaos he created, “Charlie Says” (the second of three movies about the man this year) makes an effort to move away from some of the famous imagery and characterization that usually inhabits tales about the cult leader. The focus here is on the women in his life, with special attention on the ways of Leslie Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Susan Atkins. Reteaming after their collaborations on “American Psycho” and “The Notorious Bettie Page,” director Mary Harron and screenwriter Guinevere Turner endeavor to humanize those involved in barbaric crimes, striving to understand the brainwashed drive of three women who were caught up in something they didn’t completely understand, chasing emotional needs to macabre extremes. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com