Category: Film Review

In 2016, director William Oldroyd made a strong impression with “Lady Macbeth,” transforming a Russian novella into a riveting sit, and one that offered an amazing lead turn from Florence Pugh, helping to launch her visibility. After a seven-year break, Oldroyd is back with “Eileen,” which presents another adaptation challenge, bringing Ottessa Moshfegh’s 2015 book to the screen, with the author co-scripting with Luke Goebel. The filmmakers have quite a story to share with viewers, cutting into the fantasies and brutal realities of the eponymous character – a young woman facing a stagnant life of casual abuse, with her essence enlivened by the arrival of a psychologist looking for friendship, or maybe something more. “Eileen” takes its time to set mood and deal with the ways of the complex characters, and Oldroyd delivers compelling atmosphere to support the journey, also handling potent performances from stars Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Family Switch” claims it’s an adaptation of “Bedtime for Mommy,” a 2010 children's book by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. In this story, a little girl playfully swaps roles with her mother for their bedtime ritual, putting the kid in charge of bath and book reading before moving on to her father. It’s a cute tale, but it isn’t the story used for “Family Switch,” which pulls inspiration from Mary Rodgers’s 1972 book, “Freaky Friday,” which has been adapted for screens big and small multiple times, and ripped off even more. Perhaps there’s a legal issue standing in the way of true credit, but role-swapping turns into body-switching in the new film, with director McG offering a hyperactive understanding of comedic possibilities involving parents and kids in awkward situations, creating an unexpectedly aggressive viewing experience that immediately suffocates all emotion it offers, while its overall sense of humor is dispiriting. The production would’ve been better off actually turning “Bedtime for Mommy” into a movie. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“The Shift” is a feature-length version of a 2017 short film by writer/director Brock Heasley, and he returns to make sense of material that initially ran 20 minutes, and now runs just under two hours. It’s an adaptation that initially seems ambitious, bringing viewers into a fantasy world where multiple realities are controlled through technology, and faith is the power that drives away evil. It’s not an unappealing premise, especially for an episode of television, but Heasley is determined to make a movie out of “The Shift,” and it never comes together. It’s Christian entertainment with a defined message of hope, but the rest of the writing is a little murkier, going into the multiverse while attempting to examine a relatively simple study of grief. “The Shift” isn’t compelling, with Heasley struggling to find some sort of pace to the endeavor, which largely remains in conversation mode, diluting any potential for suspense. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Acclaimed Hong Kong director John Woo made the leap to Hollywood in 1993, commencing a decade-long run of actioners that brought his signature style to America, creating a few genre highlights in the process (including 1997’s “Face/Off”). Woo returned to his homeland to continue his artistic explorations, and now, 20 years later, he’s back in the U.S.A. with “Silent Night,” which doesn’t provide an extreme tonal challenge, retaining all the hardcore violence the helmer is known for. Instead of losing his identity, Woo tries to maintain some solemnity with “Silent Night,” laboring to preserve elements of catastrophe while still maintaining rough stunt work and chaotic gun fights. The screenplay by Robert Archer Lynn has sorrow to share involving one man’s fight for revenge against those who’ve killed his son, and Woo gets to most points of pain in the endeavor, which is an interesting return to the ways of expressionistic filmmaking. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Under the Boardwalk” is a 2023 animated film that parodies the world of “Jersey Shore,” an MTV show that originally aired 14 years ago. In terms of timing, the feature has a strange sense of pop culture ribbing, trying to work with the basics of the reality program, transferring imagery and attitude to a world of crabs and their quest to find themselves in the big sweep of oceanic life. The target is stale and at least one hire in the voice cast is sure to make viewers cringe, but “Under the Boardwalk” isn’t a sloppy effort. It’s nicely animated work with a colorful sense of character design and locations, offering a pleasant New Jersey journey with the smallest of creatures, with director David Soren (“Turbo,” “Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie”) doing well with some comedic activity and exploration. It’s not an especially strong picture, but as this type of entertainment goes, it has polish and some decent ideas to share with little ones concerning kindness and acceptance. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

1997’s “Good Burger” wasn’t a hit movie, but it managed to make a little money during its brief theatrical run, eventually developing a loyal fan base and cult appreciation. A feature-length version of a Nickelodeon “All That” sketch, the picture wasn’t a towering achievement in the art of filmmaking, but it was goofy and mostly fun, with the screenplay managing to expand on the world of television, also serving as a vehicle for stars Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell, with the latter showing great comedic chops as a lovable half-wit. 26 years later, there’s “Good Burger 2,” which reunites Thompson and Mitchell for a new adventure in fast food mischief, and the atmosphere of absurdity is mostly retained in the sequel. The endeavor doesn’t stray far from the highlights of the previous effort, presenting likeable dumb guy entertainment with minimal stakes, and Mitchell once again becomes a good reason to sit through the occasional dud bits the writing creates. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Family Matters” was a popular ABC show during the 1990s, part of the “TGIF” movement to bring family programming to prime time. However, the show itself, which began as a study of household dynamics, soon became the Steve Urkel show, giving the spotlight to a nerdy character with an extraordinarily broad screen presence. Urkel claimed a spot in pop culture, spawning all kinds of merchandise (even a breakfast cereal) while gradually handed major screen time, helping to expand the mainstream appeal of “Family Matters” while undoubtedly irritating a few of his castmates. The show ended in 1998, but the icon is back, in animated form, with “Urkel Saves Santa,” which returns star Jaleel White to the role that made him famous, contributing voicework that’s digitally altered, but still Urkel-y with lowered expectations, sending the geek into help mode as holiday cheer is threatened, requiring his special inventing skills to save the day. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Five years ago, Bradley Cooper made his directorial debut with “A Star Is Born.” He poured a lot of soul into the endeavor, emerging with not only a hit movie, but a feature that carried pop culture for a few moments, and dominated the music scene. It was a film with many flaws, but Cooper had passion for the project, and its cinematic potential was something to see. He returns with an even fiercer understanding of creative and romantic life with “Maestro,” which isn’t a bio-pic of composer Leonard Bernstein, but a portrait of behavior and musical mastery, also delivering an inspection of marital challenges and sexual needs. It’s all over the place, but that’s what Cooper wants from the effort, which follows the patterns of Bernstein’s volatile orchestral achievements, exploring sudden surges of emotion and inspiration as the conductor tried and often failed to exert control over his own domestic life. “Maestro” is gorgeously made, but much like “A Star Is Born,” the dramatic value of the picture often trails its incredible craftsmanship. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Genie” is a remake of a 1991 BBC special, “Bernard and the Genie,” which took a slightly darker look at the relationship between a sad man and the magical, wish-granting prisoner he releases. The show was written by Richard Curtis (“Love Actually, “Four Weddings and a Funeral”), and he returns to duty with an Americanized update, trading a slightly somber study of the dangers of wish-fulfillment for the brightness of comedy that typically emits from Melissa McCarthy. The actress doesn’t push too hard with her usual slapstick ways here, but she’s in charge of bringing positive energy to the endeavor, with director Sam Boyd looking to generate a cozy holiday mood for the offering. “Genie” is not a powerful viewing experience, and comedic value is tested at times, but it’s gentle work with a pleasing Christmas atmosphere. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2023 marks the 40th anniversary of the Cabbage Patch Kids phenomenon. The dolls have been around longer than that, but in 1983, sales of the brand went through the roof, creating scarcity in stores, which soon led to hysteria. Some recall the violence that broke out as parents madly dashed to claim a prized box for their children (or even themselves), with the media devoted to capturing such insanity, adding fuel to the fire of Cabbage Patch Kids frenzy. There have been a few television specials tracking the history of the brand name this year, while “Billion Dollar Babies: The True Story of the Cabbage Patch Kids” offers a feature-length overview of ownership and marketing, with director Andrew Jenks finding some fresh ways to detail a known story, gaining access to a few people who’ve gone on record about the brand’s development and its legal woes. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Please Don’t Destroy is a comedy troupe best known for their work on “Saturday Night Live,” picking up the weird-short-videos-from-three-friends mantle previously held by Lonely Island. Members John Higgins, Ben Marshall, and Martin Herlihy have a special approach to comedy, combining intense emotional highs and lows with healthy amounts of absurdity, sold with lightning-fast edits and zoom-happy cinematography. Their bits are often limited to their office space, and the gang uses the art of brevity well. Much like Lonely Island, Please Don’t Destroy is ready for a cinematic upgrade, with “The Treasure of Foggy Mountain” their debut movie, requiring Higgins, Marshall, and Herlihy to think bigger and much longer with their screenplay. Not straying far from their sense of humor, “The Treasure of Foggy Mountain” is a big goof, but it’s also a very funny one, with Please Don’t Destroy successfully handling the challenge of length with a fast-paced, wonderfully silly romp. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

To help celebrate the Walt Disney Company’s 100th anniversary, the studio is attempting to get back to basics with “Wish,” their latest animation offering. It’s a fairy tale set in a storybook world, using the broad strokes of fantasy to inspire a classic hero vs. villain conflict, buttered up with plenty of songs and the usual offerings of animal sidekick comedy and positivity. It’s basically an easy lay-up production for Disney, but they do this stuff relatively well, and “Wish” is no exception, with directors Chris Buck (“Frozen” and its sequel) and Fawn Veerasunthorn overseeing a decent offering of widescreen magic, and one that’s aware of the studio’s legacy, presenting easter eggs and origin stories for dedicated fans. It’s easy to enjoy the picture, but it’s best to approach it with some sense of understanding that it’s not swinging for the fences in terms of storytelling, content to deliver the essentials, sold with outstanding visuals. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

After sitting out the last “Hotel Transylvania” sequel, 2022’s “Transformania,” Adam Sandler returns to the world of animated entertainment with “Leo,” which he co-scripts with Paul Sado and Robert Smigel (who co-directs with Robert Marianetti and David Wachtenheim). Sandler remains in family film mode with the endeavor, which looks to illuminate the world of fifth graders and their specific concerns about life, especially when they’re coached by a talking lizard facing the end of his days. Much like Sandler’s 2002 holiday effort, “Eight Crazy Nights,” the feature is an unexpected musical, using tunes to support a lighter journey into neuroses, giving the effort some amusing moments of performance before it heads back to simple silliness. “Leo” isn’t grand, but it's fun, with lively voicework and some genuinely hilarious moments. Those in the target demographic will likely find it shockingly real about elementary school concerns, giving the movie a nice edge of relatability as it deals with typical Sandler goofballery. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

While he works almost non-stop at this point, it’s heartening to watch Nicolas Cage at least make some effort to challenge himself with wildly different parts. In 2023 alone, he’s portrayed a cowboy (“The Old Way”), Dracula (“Renfield”), a bison hunter (“Butcher’s Crossing”), a lunatic (“Sympathy for the Devil”), and a man of action (“The Retirement Plan”), and Cage retains that omnipresence for “Dream Scenario,” playing an average person who’s suddenly inserted into everyone’s mind while they sleep. It’s a dark comedy from writer/director Kristoffer Borgli, who uses Cage’s natural way with strangeness and panic perfectly, guiding the actor to his best performance of the year in a movie that takes on the choppy waters of fame and infamy, tracking the powerlessness of such a position in our modern age. “Dream Scenario” is a mix of Spike Jonze and Charlie Kaufman, with Borgli more interested in behavior then quirk, finding some level of humanity in the middle of a giant subconscious mess. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The cinematic exploration of “The Hunger Games” ended eight years ago, concluding with two pictures meant to bring finality to the saga of Katniss Everdeen, following the epic scale of revolution envisioned by author Suzanne Collins. The saga was over, making a killing at the box office in the process, giving fans a rest after dealing with four straight years of class turmoil in the fictional world of Panem. But something this profitable could never be finished, finding Collins resurrecting the brand name for a 2020 prequel, going back in time to see how the villain of the franchise, President Snow, became the monster he was meant to be. To some, it was a welcome return to this universe, while others were critical of Collins’s true creative mission with the release. To Lionsgate Films, “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” means the moneymaking machine is back online, quickly ordering up a film adaptation, with director Francis Lawrence (who helmed the last three “Hunger Games” features) returning to explore a time of development and betrayal, making a plodding movie in the process. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Dashing Through the Snow” is a new contender for holiday perennial viewing, with this tale of a stranded Santa and his Scrooge-like companion aiming to deliver seasonal tingles and sizable laughs for viewers ready to devour Christmas entertainment. The screenplay is credited to Scott Rosenberg, who long ago did memorable work with “Beautiful Girls” and “High Fidelity,” but recently found his way to fortune with the “Jumanji” sequels and “Venom.” Rosenberg is definitely not at his best with “Dashing Through the Snow,” conjuring a mostly generic study of holiday adventuring, and one that’s strikingly similar at times to 2018’s “The Christmas Chronicles,” hitting the same beats of discovery and music. Director Tim Story doesn’t help the cause, overseeing a few charisma-free performances and a general lethargy to a tale that’s meant to inspire audience investment in Santa’s survival. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There have been many interpretations of Napoleon Bonaparte, with the French leader explored in all forms of media, reaching a point where the reality of his existence isn’t nearly as interesting as the myth. Director Ridley Scott and screenwriter David Scarpa (“The Day the Earth Stood Still” remake, “All the Money in the World”) hope to restore some grit and eccentricity into the world of Bonaparte, with “Napoleon” their epic take on a life filled with petulance, violence, and longing for a woman he couldn’t fully possess. It’s a massive story of military development and hunger for power that’s difficult to explore, even with a 157-minute-long run time, but the material definitely plays to Scott’s interests in epic filmmaking and chilly emotionality. “Napoleon” isn’t a consistent viewing event, but Scott manages to capture bigness to the historical journey, while Scarpa’s in charge of conjuring more intimate drama to reach viewers, with editorial choices losing some important connective tissue along the way. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Casting professional turned screenwriter Samy Burch attempts to resurrect the saga of Mary Kay Letourneau for “May December,” which isn’t a strict dramatization of the famous sex offender story, but it definitely uses it for inspiration. Burch doesn’t rehash the salacious details of the crime, turning it into an unusual detective story instead, using the ways of Hollywood professionalism and commitment to inspire a strange examination of obsession involving the method of an actress hired to play a Letourneau-like woman. Director Todd Haynes certainly has experience in areas of fixation and repressed trauma (previously helming “Carol” and “Velvet Goldmine”), working to give “May December” an atmosphere of uneasiness while slowly tunneling his way into the minds of fractured and manipulative characters. The feature has a way of remaining elusive, which isn’t always welcome, but Haynes has strong performances to manage, and an interesting approach from Burch. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Thanksgiving” originally appeared in the 2007 double-feature extravaganza, “Grindhouse,” offered as one of a few faux trailers for genre entertainment meant to spice up the viewing experience with a little film marketing fun. Director Eli Roth set out to lampoon holiday-themed slasher entertainment, ending up with a bloody, goofy highlight reel of an R-rated massacre from the 1980s. “Thanksgiving” has returned in 2023, with Roth aiming to extend the life of the joke for a feature-length study of deadly happenings in Plymouth, Massachusetts. What worked in two minutes doesn’t easily translate to a 100-minute-long endeavor, with Roth visibly struggling to expand on the trailer’s premise. And he’s always right there with comedy, returning to silliness while splashing the frame with all kinds of gory encounters. It’s meant to be a blast, but this update/expansion/do-over eventually loses steam, leaving viewers with the helmer’s one-note sense of humor and a mystery that fans of nasty business shouldn’t have trouble solving. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It probably won’t happen, but there should be a book written about the making of “Next Goal Wins.” The production history of this thing is too strange, with principal photography beginning four years ago, finding director Taika Waititi riding on the success of 2018’s “Jojo Rabbit,” returning to duty for a low-budget underdog sports film about the efforts of the American Samoa soccer team and their quest to actually score a single goal during a game after suffering many humiliations. For reasons unknown, Waititi walked away from the movie for a long time, eventually completing “Thor: Love and Thunder” in 2022, returning to “Next Goal Wins” years after he started making it. It’s a tale of temporary abandonment that’s potentially fascinating, and the feature itself is very charming. While a lot of editorial fussing is present, Waititi returns to the small, oddball comedies of his early days here, creating some laughs and formulaic fun with this examination of teamwork and understanding. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com