Category: Film Review

We just did this. Last month saw the release of “Popeye’s Revenge,” which was the first production to take advantage of the public domain debut of the comic strip character. The endeavor was awful, made quickly and on the cheap, finding the filmmakers trying to follow the profitable ways of “Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey” by making a quickie offering of bottom shelf nonsense. Well, Popeye is back, and he’s on a mission to take lives once again in “Popeye: The Slayer Man,” which is also a low-budget slasher sticking to the formula all these movies contain, once again following curious youngsters into a remote area while a mysterious monster works to pick them off one-by-one. Director Robert Michael Ryan doesn’t have enough money or imagination to make this silliness frightening, or even entertaining, as too much of “Popeye: The Slayer Man” is dull, poorly scripted, and lacking energy when it comes to the destruction of victims. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Unicorns. Usually, they’re a force of goodness, or magic. Possibly rainbow power. “Death of a Unicorn” attempts to alter the reputation of the fantasy creatures, turning them into ornery beasts with a taste for blood. Such violence is warranted in the picture, as writer/director Alex Scharfman (making his helming debut) creates plenty of ruthless human behavior to explore, merging the mental illness of greed with a most unexpected discovery in the Canadian wilderness. The writing gets off to a wonderful start, managing distinct characterization and intensifying demands of unicorn energy, setting up something special in a clash between the rich and the horned. “Death of a Unicorn” doesn’t maintain such inspiration for the full viewing experience, but it covers enough of it with a demented sense of humor and lively performances, helping to give the material a little more dramatic weight than many might expect from an offering that initially seems somewhat ridiculous. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Inspired by real events,” “The Penguin Lessons” dramatizes the story of educator Tom Michell and his unusual experience in Argentina, where, in 1976, he found a penguin in distress. He managed to clean it up and nurse it back to health, only to find the creature wasn’t interested in leaving his side. The complications of this relationship are perfectly set up for comedy and heartwarming events, and those do occur in the movie. However, “The Penguin Lessons” tries to be a little more than simple comfort food cinema, as the tale also takes place during a military coup in the country, greatly complicating relationships in the story, scripted by Jeff Pope (“The Lost King,” “Philomena,” “Stan & Ollie). The film carries an uneven tonality at times, as director Peter Cattaneo (“The Full Monty,” “The Rocker”) battles to balance material that’s periodically all over the place, but the feature stays engaging, hitting beats of sweetness and sadness. And star Steve Coogan finds a few layers of character to play to prevent the picture from becoming a Disney-style examination of an unlikely friendship. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In 1999, director Milos Forman attempted to replicate the Andy Kaufman Experience in “Man on the Moon,” and Jim Carrey set out to fully inhabit the comedian, trying to communicate a strange life to a mass audience. The movie didn’t attract too much attention at the box office, and it came up short when attempting to understand what made Kaufman tick, which, admittedly, is no small feat. “Thank You Very Much” is a documentary from Alex Braverman (“Waffles + Mochi,” “The Mind of a Chef”), and he’s much more direct in his pursuit of whatever truth there is to pull from Kaufman’s legacy. “Thank You Very Much” is a refreshingly insightful look at the performer’s creative origins and connections, giving fans and newcomers a greater understanding of his professional and personal drive to be a bizarre as humanly possible. Kaufman-y shenanigans aren’t present here, as Braverman dares to add a human side to the subjects clouded ways, making for a fascinating viewing experience. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Director Barry Levinson has been in a career freefall for quite some time, possibly dating back to 1998’s “Sphere” if you want to be completely ruthless about it (weirdly, he’s done his best work on cable productions). And yet, he continues to find employment, often on movies few people see, including 2015’s “Rock the Kasbah” and 2021’s “The Survivor.” Levinson returns once again with “The Alto Knights,” out to craft a very Martin Scorsese-esque tale of aging gangsters with help from “Goodfellas,” “Casino,” and “The Irishman” screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi, and one that’s not shy to rehash elements from those pictures. “The Alto Knights” hopes to be another epic of crime bosses and their anxieties, putting Pileggi back to work cooking up allegiances and double-crosses, shoveling in all the wise guy conversations he possibly can, likely reaching a level of torture for some viewers. Levinson has been here before, dealing with period ornamentation (“Diner,” “Tin Men,” “Avalon”) and gangster cinema (“Bugsy”), but he has little control over this offering, which is too meandering to matter, unable to find any peaks of drama as it stumbles from one scene to the next. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Just four months ago, Tyler Perry tried for some award season glory and dramatic resonance with “The Six Triple Eight,” a World War II story meant to celebrate an important achievement in history. The picture managed to score a single Academy Award nomination, but the movie wasn’t far from the usual in Perry’s oeuvre of melodramatic, simplistic offerings. He’s right back to his old ways in “Duplicity,” an especially budget-conscious mystery that’s daring to blend the crisis issue of police shootings with relationship troubles facing overly combative characters. Perry’s back in soap opera mode in the endeavor, giving the effort a healthy dose of ridiculousness to keep viewers interested. And he’s especially sloppy assembling the details of the feature, skipping critical questions of evidence and characterization to plow ahead as a tedious detective story with an absurd payoff. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In 2012, there were dueling movies about the world of “Snow White.” Both “Mirror Mirror” and “Snow White and the Huntsman” attempted to do something different with the source material, getting away from the Disneyfied take usual associated with the brand. Now the Mouse House tries their luck bringing the tale to modern audiences, turning “Snow White” into a live-action adaptation of the 1937 Walt Disney production that basically created the business of feature-length animated entertainment. Director Marc Webb (“(500) Days of Summer,” “The Amazing Spider-Man” and its sequel) is put in charge of the reworking, which takes the fairy tale atmosphere of the original offering and turns it into a “Frozen”-style musical, merging the ways of storybook fantasy with Broadway-like song and dance numbers. “Snow White” has its highlights, and remains an entertaining picture, led in part by Rachel Zegler’s impressively sincere performance as the eponymous character, which gives a sometimes slack offering real heart, backed by a powerful voice. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Locked” is a remake of a 2019 Spanish film, “4×4,” with screenwriter Michael Arlen Ross (“Turistas,” “The Throwaways”) attempting to bring a little North American energy to the thriller. It’s a story of imprisonment, as a young criminal unable to pull himself out of trouble elects to steal an unattended SUV, only to face a vehicle owner completely focused on making the intruder suffer for his crime. It’s close-quarters panic handed to director David Yarovesky, who previously attempted to explore the darker side of a superhero origin story in 2019’s “Brightburn.” The helmer has better luck for this round of torment, as “Locked” manages to remain tense and a little ugly for its first two acts, exploring the central fight for survival as it becomes a battle of perspectives. The conclusion doesn’t entirely work, but suspense is there for the most part, putting viewers in the middle of a bad situation that delivers a few cinematic chills. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“The Assessment” is a film about the future. As with most pictures looking to the world of tomorrow, things aren’t great, and screenwriters Dave Thomas, Nell Garfath-Cox, and John Donnelly maintain a dystopian view with the material, which returns viewers to a ruined Earth filled with weary, detached citizens. The difference here is a question of continuation, as the tale examines the arduous process of becoming a parent when fertility is no longer an option. “The Assessment” spends most of its run time as a psychological test, and director Fleur Fortune (a music video veteran) does a capable job generating intense points of pressure on the characters as they push to realize a dream. What this hope actually is makes up the real mystery of “The Assessment,” which contains a strange power for the most part, getting into the struggles of responsibility and the nerve pinch of doubt, delivering a mostly successful behavioral puzzle. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Elijah Bynum follows up his little-seen 2017 picture, “Hot Summer Nights” (starring a semi-unknown Timothee Chalamet), with “Magazine Dreams,” which is bound to achieve a lot of attention for the filmmaker, one way or another. It’s certainly a more accomplished feature, as the helmer deeply inhales “Taxi Driver” fumes to inspire this understanding of obsession and mental illness. It’s a rough journey for the main character, following an aspiring bodybuilder as he gradually detaches from reality while pursuing a vision of fame and respect, maintaining a tenuous grasp on self-control. It’s a heavy viewing experience that’s not for everyone, but those more interested in intense psychological studies are sure to embrace the slow ride to explosion presented here. It’s also hard to deny the unique presence of star Jonathan Majors, who hits a few frightening beats of intimidation in his fully committed performance. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Flying Lotus is a musician adding the world of filmmaking to his artistic interests. He previously directed the little-seen “Kuso,” collaborated with the late, great David Lynch on a music video, and added a segment for 2022’s “V/H/S/99.” Following his genre interests, Lotus goes full-on horror in “Ash,” which takes inspiration from 1979’s “Alien,” examining the disaster of a space exploration team trying to understand life and dangers on an unknown planet. Screenwriter Jonni Remmler provides a map of confusion to follow, keeping things somewhat mysterious and incredibly violent at times. However, “Ash” isn’t driven by plot, which struggles with formula, instead finding life through its visual presentation. Lotus serves up a satisfactory nightmare with the endeavor, and it intermittently scores through heavy atmosphere and vicious encounters. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Filmmaking ambition is a hard thing to find these days. Storytelling formula usually wins out in the end, and viewers tend to respond to such familiarity, as it provides comfort and, hopefully, a good time at the theater. Writer/director Geremy Jasper attempt to mount a major musical event in “O’Dessa,” which is his follow-up to the 2017 hit (and box office bomb), “Patti Cakes.” The helmer remains in a musical mood with his latest effort, detailing a ruinous future world of digital distraction facing the might of a young woman and her uniquely powerful voice. The film is a fantasy, and while Jasper doesn’t have access to a significant budget to realize his setting, he does have a strange imagination for the endeavor. It’s not entirely successful as a drama, but “O’Dessa” contains some wild world-building and Tomorrowland touches, joined by an excellent soundtrack, which turns this deeply flawed offering into “The Apple” for Generation Z. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“High Ground” is the seventh picture directed by James Bamford to be released since 2024. He’s a quantity over quality type of filmmaker, tearing through B-movie productions, with his last endeavor, the dreadful “Jade,” briefly in theaters just one month ago. He’s not a helmer too concerned with creativity and surprise, and he issues another wheezy actioner in “High Ground,” which is actually more of a family tale than anything offering suspense. Screenwriter John Thaddeus creates the simplest of stories to follow, slapping on as much formula as possible to help the material cross the finish line, leaving behind some potential for craziness to occur in this examination of a small town crisis. Bamford’s here to supply stunt work, which isn’t inspired in the feature. In fact, “High Ground” doesn’t even visit violence until well past its midway point, leaving excitement behind to deal with uninteresting characters and their half-realized emotional issues. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Maria Schneider was an actress for nearly three decades (she passed away in 2011), playing a number of different roles in productions of various quality. However, she’s best known for her part in 1972’s “Last Tango in Paris,” an erotic drama that attracted a lot of attention when it was initially released and, amazingly, still does to this day. “Being Maria” isn’t a bio-pic, but an attempt to understand the subject during a few tumultuous stretches in her life, as co-writer/director Jessica Palud endeavors to illuminate violations of trust and mounting frustrations that added turns to Schneider’s life, and not always in the right direction. There’s only a surface appreciation of familial and professional challenges in “Being Maria,” but Palud finds ways to connect the dots of disappointment, making for a decent examination of struggle as Schneider battles to maintain reputation and emotional stability. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Eleven months ago, “Cash Out” was released. Did you see it? Have you even heard of it? Well, now there’s “High Rollers,” which is a sequel to the 2024 release, and one promised at the end of the original feature. Instead of being titled “Cash Out 2,” the production has elected to remove all identification that the new release is actually a direct continuation, and I feel bad for those lured into a rental thinking they’re about to watch a James Bond knockoff starring John Travolta. Instead, they’re offered junk, directed by “Ives” (allegedly a pseudonym for noted shlockmeister Randall Emmett), who delivers another low-budget caper featuring most of the same underwhelming cast and an unexotic location. It’s not an improvement, and it requires knowledge of “Cash Out” to make sense, and even that’s not guaranteed. It’s a dim take on “Ocean’s Eleven,” made by a production team looking to slap together movies as fast as possible. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Just two months ago, director Steven Soderbergh was in theaters for a hot second with “Presence.” It was the famously idiosyncratic filmmaker’s version of a ghost story, and an effective one, with enough atmosphere to pass. He’s right back in play with “Black Bag,” trying a spy game on for size, and one scripted by David Koepp, with the pair also collaborating on “Presence.” The team returns to the chilliness of relationships in the feature, which is no “Mission: Impossible” clone, but closer to a “My Dinner with Andre” riff that’s occasionally interrupted by urgent elements of surveillance and scheming. And it clicks nicely, but certainly not forcefully, as Koepp goes more for dialogue than danger, and Soderbergh doesn’t vary his low-fi style, keeping things nice and dry. “Black Bag” doesn’t boil over, but it retains a good simmer, pulling viewers into suspicion through a few decent hooks, and the cast can’t be beat, as they all seem to enjoy a chance to play with battling personalities instead of weapons. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Before he achieved a bit of industry notice with his screenplay for 2023’s “Cocaine Bear,” writer Jimmy Warden was already busy exploring more craziness in the world of stalkers and their objects of desire. Shot in 2022, “Borderline” aims to have some darkly comedic fun with severe mental health issues, pitting a pop star and her battle with a most determined, and insane, fan, who’s attempting to stage a wedding to his beloved without consent. Warden (making his directorial debut) gets semi-wacky with the endeavor, and he’s very tuned into style and soundtrack, treating the picture like a music video at times. “Borderline” has the makings for something surprising and enjoyably grim, but the helmer pulls most of his punches in the offering, and his sense of humor and casting leaves much to be desired. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Joe and Anthony Russo have struggled to land a hit picture since their box-office-busting work on 2018’s “Avengers: Infinity War” and 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame.” The siblings have elected to go big with follow-up projects, including 2022’s insufferable “The Gray Man” and 2021’s “Cherry,” with the latter stretching for event movie status involving an indie film story of addiction. Instead of rethinking their creative approach of the last five years, the Russos double down on excess for “The Electric State,” which is an adaptation of a graphic novel by author Simon Stalenhag. Screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely (who wrote the “Avengers” features, also “The Gray Man”) don’t put much of an effort into the endeavor, sticking with blockbuster formula as they develop a tale of robots and humans fighting for freedom on an alternate reality Earth. The helmers throw a monster-budgeted party with “The Electric State,” but visuals alone can’t carry the viewing experience, unable to distract from a lack of conflict and meaningful drama that keeps the offering instantly forgettable. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Shal Ngo made an impression with his 2023 film, “The Park.” The picture was far from perfect, but it showed promise, giving Ngo a chance to improve on his moviemaking abilities. He returns with “Control Freak,” which goes from the expanse of an open world setting used in “The Park” to the tight confines of a screaming mind, exploring the savagery of insanity as one woman is confronted by the mysteries of her past and the unrelenting itchiness of her present. The feature is undeniably slow burn, never in any hurry to pursue frightening highlights, but Ngo delivers a reasonably engrossing study of trauma and guilt in the offering. And he provides star Kelly Marie Tran with a killer leading role, allowing the actress to get a little wild as she handles a part that keeps her in a sustained state of agitation. “Control Freak” really gets to weird places through Tran’s commanding performance. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Just over a decade ago, co-writer/director Craig Johnson delivered “The Skeleton Twins.” He achieved a delightful balance of heart and humor with the picture, creating something a bit off-beat but still very human, ending up with one of the best features of the year. Johnson hasn’t been able to match such a creative triumph, struggling with subpar character studies (including 2017’s “Wilson”) and television work, but he steps up once again to challenge tonal balance in “The Parenting.” While a play on demon possession movies, the offering fully intends to be hilarious before it tries to become horrifying, putting Johnson in a difficult position of handling atmosphere for an endeavor that’s looking to be a little mischievous along the way. “The Parenting” (which was shot three years ago) definitely has laughs, mostly thanks to casting, and the helmer manages to execute some genre elements with care. It’s a bit uneven overall, but Johnson stays mostly alert with the effort, hoping to hit viewers in unexpected ways. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com