Category: Film Review

Two years ago, Michael Caine announced his retirement from acting, electing to exit the business with “Best Sellers,” a passable but unremarkable comedy largely supported by the iconic performer’s skill. Apparently, such a decision was premature, as Caine is back on screen in “The Great Escaper,” which is based on the true story of Bernard Jordan, an elderly man who elected to leave his care facility and attend a D-Day commencement ceremony in France in 2014. It's a peculiar tale well suited for Caine’s thespian gifts, and he does exceptionally well in the part, portraying a determined man dealing with scars from the past. It’s a more appropriate farewell for Caine, joined by the late Glenda Jackson, who’s also marvelous in this study of guilt and aging, finding director Oliver Parker (“An Ideal Husband,” “St. Trinian’s”) wisely staying out of the way when it comes to the grace of his leads. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Co-writer/director/star Katie Burrell attempts to bring back the ski movie with “Weak Layers,” which follows the misadventures of a young woman trying to get her act together during a 72-hour filmmaking competition. Stories about the sport are few and far between these days, and while the heyday of the 1980s and ‘90s isn’t resurrected for the endeavor, Burrell does conjure mild appeal with the effort. The writing (Burrell is joined by Andrew Ladd) doesn’t actually have much interest in the ways of mountain activity, preferring to remain with the characters and their formulaic experiences, with the helmer attempting to create a more emotionally engaging feature with lovable, rascally personalities. “Weak Layers” is most tiresome when pursuing the expected, doing better with ski town atmosphere and maturation challenges, with Burrell capturing the bustle of the area and a few universal concerns about future plans. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer Brian Buccellato looks to start a franchise with “The Painter,” offering a superspy actioner featuring a main character with unusual sensorial abilities. The idea is a mild take on “Mission: Impossible”-type events, but the reality of the budget can’t help the film break through to the big time. Director Kimani Ray Smith uses his years in the stunt performer game to boost the endeavor’s visceral might, offering a steady stream of physical activity and showdowns to help the feature locate some excitement. There’s little in the way of invention in “The Painter,” which remains a VOD-type viewing experience with limited funds to pay for locations and sets, but Smith gets something going with Buccellato’s weirdness, creating an hour of decent B-movie adventure. The final act breaks the picture’s spirit, but there’s a bit more momentum to the effort than what the competition usually offers. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“He Went That Way” opens with a note that “This really (mostly) happened,” but one has to believe the whatever true story the feature is based on is almost certainly more involving than this picture. Screenwriter Evan M. Wiener hopes to stir up some oddity with the tale of a man, his chimp companion, and the killer they’re taking across the country in 1964, creating a relatively simple study of forming relationships during a particularly eventful road trip for the main characters. Director Jeffrey Darling (cinematographer of “Young Einstein,” who passed away in 2022) has an odd tonal challenge with “He Went That Way,” straining to make something threatening and ridiculous, also working on the inner lives of the players. The helmer doesn’t do very well with the strangeness of the endeavor, which wrestles with uneven performances and general lethargy, never reaching its creative goal to be interestingly bizarre. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Director Renny Harlin returns with “The Bricklayer,” which is meant to launch the cinematic adventures of Steve Vail, an ex-government agent who’s been exposed to too much while on the job, looking for peace in the construction industry. As it always goes with these things, Vail is pulled back into the muck of paranoia, double-crosses, and violent attacks, with author Noah Boyd providing literary inspiration for screenwriters Hanna Weg and Matt Johnson, who attempt to bring the excitement of the page to the screen. Harlin isn’t the same action authority he once was, and “The Bricklayer” doesn’t supply much of a jolt for viewers. It’s fairly generic, with star Aaron Eckhart tasked with creating a growly one-man-army figure for the helmer to bash around, but if you’ve seen one deadly encounter, you’ve seen them all here, finding the picture repetitive and surprisingly flat when it comes to matters of growing threats and past relationships. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Zack Snyder wants to craft another gargantuan film. He’s in the epic movie business, aiming to turn anything he makes into a large-scale vision of action and doom, working with top technology to deliver massive cinematic experiences. After failing to do something compelling with zombies in 2021’s “Army of the Dead,” Snyder looks to leave Earth and go sci-fi/fantasy with “Rebel Moon,” a sprawling vision of intergalactic war that’s been divided into two chapters, with “Part One – A Child of Fire” up first. The screenplay (by Snyder, Kurt Johnstad, and Shay Hatten) has a lot of heavy lifting to do for this introduction, as the helmer wants to make something massive with this endeavor, filling the frame with characters, environments, and motivations, and he’s not shy about lifting from other sources, with “Dune” a primary influence on the production. Snyder has his obsessions and his directorial sameness, struggling to sell “A Child of Fire” as something intense and involving when the viewing experience is quite the opposite. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Once a staple of multiplex entertainment, the romantic comedy has shifted in popularity, with streaming services and cable channels flooding the market with weekly offerings of love and misunderstandings. Screenwriters Ilana Wolpert and Will Gluck (who also directs) seek to return the ways of attraction to the big screen with “Anyone But You,” which follows the misadventures of two people struggling to define their attraction to each other after a one-night stand goes wrong. There should be some degree of fun here, especially with an Australian setting and a premise that’s built for at least passable wackiness. Unfortunately, Gluck goes leaden with the picture, which is hit by charisma-free leads trying to pass themselves off as seasoned comedians, and writing that’s strictly working on a sitcom level of engagement, making heart and humor nearly impossible to find in this depressing endeavor. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

When “Aquaman” was released in 2018, the world was radically different. Audiences were still interested in patronizing movie theaters, and they were especially open to seeing the D.C. Extended Universe present its most challenging hero to cinematically realize, turning the James Wan-directed picture into the biggest moneymaker of the bunch. Few expected such a rhapsodic response, but “Aquaman” was genuinely fun, giving viewers a true comic book ride with epic scale and a likable hero. A drumming octopus didn’t hurt the cause either. In 2023, comic book films have taken a hit, and the DCEU is being reorganized, with “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” the last gasp for the old direction, offering the King of the Seven Seas a final chance to wow with a sequel that finds Wan working hard to dazzle the crowds, adding grander visual effects, more thunderous action, and bigger family issues. If only there was a decent script to tie it all together in a meaningful way. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The unpredictable ways of the human heart are followed in “Memory,” with writer/director Michel Franco (“Sundown”) exploring an unusual situation of support from unlikely, or perhaps forbidden, sources. While it initially presents itself as a tale of struggle involving a parent’s quest to keep herself together as motherhood and additional responsibilities challenge her sobriety, the writing evolves into something much darker yet oddly remains tender, boosted by strong performances from leads Jessica Chastain and Peter Sarsgaard. “Memory” is a delicate picture, and not an easy one to process as Franco works through some difficult areas of character guilt and behavior. However, his spare approach permits access to this thorny tale of connection, which provides an unexpectedly challenging viewing experience. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

For their second release of 2023, Illumination (who scored a massive hit with last spring’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie”) goes to the birds with “Migration,” which remains within the company’s mandate to provide short, cartoony entertainment for family audiences. For this endeavor, the struggles of ducks trying to find their way south is the premise, and the director is Benjamin Renner, who’s done excellent work with past efforts “Ernest & Celestine” and “The Big Bad Wolf and Other Tales.” Renner has some adjustments to make going from small productions to the big time with Illumination, and he handles the job with some confidence, arranging an energetic viewing experience that does particularly well with frantic physical action. “Migration” doesn’t have the most inspired voice cast, but it’s still an enjoyable time with amusing characters and terrific animation. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Broadway is open to all kinds of stories, making room for a variety of dramatic voices and tales of struggle. However, it’s a little difficult to understand the thinking that went into the transformation of Alice Walker’s 1982 book, “The Color Purple,” into a stage musical, with the original material dealing with all sorts of violence and bleakness, which isn’t normally used as a launch point for song and dance. Clearly, the idea worked, with the show doing extremely well since its debut in 2005, wowing audiences with the pure talent of the cast and the bigness of the material, sharing such raw emotion with immediacy only live theater can provide. Looking to reignite interest in the material, producers have returned “The Color Purple” to the screen (the novel was previously adapted into a 1985 Steven Spielberg film), looking to bring the musical event to a wide audience. The effort is appreciable and the acting is alive, but the loss of live performances is felt in this diluted take on female spirit and endurance. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Andrew Haigh (“45 Years,” “Lean on Pete”) confronts unfinished business from the past in “All of Us Strangers,” which is an adaptation of a book by author Taichi Yamada. It’s a time-travel movie of sorts, though without the fantasy aspect of it all, with Haigh detailing a unique reunion between a son searching for his deceased parents, with such a connection in the past complicating a relationship in the present, giving him a chance for communication he’s been craving for decades. “All of Us Strangers” is a delicate picture about the fragility of feelings and the odyssey of unfinished business, with Haigh attempting to make something real about an unreal situation. It’s a tear-jerker, with the helmer working to hit hard with his slow-burn descent into vulnerability, and it manages to summon a special level of tenderness during the run time, creating a viewing experience with uncommon intimacy. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There’s been a small surge of movies made in recent years that explore the sport of rowing. There was darker intent with 2021’s “The Novice,” and more cliched material in “Heart of Champions,” released that same year. For “The Boys in the Boat,” familiarity returns, but there’s also a bit of sporting history to consume, with the feature an adaptation of a 2013 book chronicling the rise of the Washington Huskies, a competitive rowing team that faced incredible challenges as they attempted to defeat college rivals, with the prospect of competing in the 1936 Olympics driving their determination. It’s a classic underdog story handed a fine polish by director George Clooney, who’s out to make old fashioned entertainment for the masses, and achieves his goal with the picture. Gentle, human, and perhaps inspirational to some viewers, “The Boys in the Boat” isn’t an electric sit, but it connects where it counts, bringing the audience along on a journey of teamwork. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Sean Durkin, director of “The Nest” and “Martha Marcy May Marlene,” heads to the world of professional wrestling with “The Iron Claw.” The picture isn’t an examination of the business, but a study of one family’s experience with sports entertainment as they face numerous tragedies over the years. It’s the tale of the Von Erich clan, with matriarch Fritz putting his faith and fears into his sons to carry on the family name in pro-wrestling, only to help steer the boys to increasingly dire ends. “The Iron Claw” is a somber feature, but Durkin commits to the darkness in a brave manner, highlighting the strangeness and sadness of the Von Erichs, with son Kevin living long enough to witness emotional and physical brutality. It’s a powerful film, and one that captures the atmosphere of pro-wrestling and also the intimacy of heavy feelings emerging from people who have no idea how to communicate them to others. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Art Camacho has been involved in the world of movie stunts for decades, also chipping away at a directorial career, specializing in B-movies for the rental market. He’s been working in the film business for so long, it’s somewhat shocking to see how amateurish his latest endeavor, “Ruthless,” is, with the feature struggling on such a basic dramatic level of engagement, it almost registers as a big goof. There’s a simple set of ingredients here, with actor Dermot Mulroney handed a Liam Neeson-style thriller, tasked with selling a grim one-man-army offering of violent encounters and plenty of intimidation games. Camacho fumbles most of “Ruthless,” keeping the picture stiff and unconvincing when it comes to situations of aggression, pushing the effort to self-parody as overacting takes control of the viewing experience, while brutality is in limited supply here. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“The Family Plan” (not to be confused with the recent “Family Switch”) is being marketed as a comedy for, well, family audiences, with promotion emphasizing acts of bonding and cute baby reactions to entice viewers. The actual feature isn’t actually built for children, with director Simon Cellan Jones and screenwriter David Coggeshall (“The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia”) offering a coarse action comedy following the survival instincts of an ex-assassin trying to protect his loved ones from a team of killers looking to eliminate him. There’s nothing gentle in the picture, and it’s mostly a painful sit, with Coggeshall presenting random acts of violence without much of a story to provide dramatic investment, and Jones (a television vet) supplies generic stunt sequences, hoping blasts of brutality might distract from dismal comedic interactions, which this endeavor is chock full of. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Roald Dahl’s 1964 book, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” originally inspired a 1971 big screen adaptation starring Gene Wilder as a demented chocolatier who spends an afternoon teaching bratty kids lessons while on a tour of his massive factory. The picture wasn’t a hit when it was originally released, but time turned it into a classic, and Tim Burton took a shot at realizing Dahl’s world in a 2005 feature, which was an immediate smash. There’s still plenty of life left in the brand name, and co-writer/director Paul King (“Paddington” and its sequel) looks to return to a world of pure imagination with “Wonka,” which is a prequel story, eschewing Dahl’s creative leadership to set things up for a fresh round of character shenanigans and strange villainy. King goes soft and sweet with the endeavor, also keeping “Wonka” a musical, looking to give the effort a Broadway-style lift as the writing examines the early days of the master confectioner and his struggles against those who fear his greatness. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com