Category: Film Review

For the sixth installment of the anthology series, “V/H/S/85” is actually just like the other pictures, with the producers gathering a small assortment of directors to share their bite-sized visions of screen horror. The last sequel, “V/H/S/99,” couldn’t get out of mediocrity despite some creative highlights, and the new endeavor is only a slight improvement, doing a little better when it comes to shock and situations of survival. Jittery visuals and human suffering returns, dialing back the clock to the 1980s, when video formats were a source of debate and handheld cameras were becoming omnipresent. “V/H/S/85” remains in line with franchise demands, concentrating on characters experiencing a great disruption to their strange lives, with some of the storytellers a bit more invested in pace and screen tension than others, making for an uneven sit with a particularly sluggish conclusion. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A case of the cutes threatens to break out at any moment in “She Came to Me,” which is a strange approach to a film that’s mostly about infidelity and legal entanglements. It’s the latest feature from writer/director Rebecca Miller, who’s done good work before (“Personal Velocity: Three Portraits,” “The Ballad of Jack and Rose”), but hasn’t been seen in a while (2015’s “Maggie’s Plan”), with her latest feeling like an opportunity to try some funky tones out while feeling around for dark comedy and deep drama. “She Came to Me” is a handful at times, but Miller’s commitment to character is involving, exploring semi-unwell people hunting for control and opportunities in their sad lives. It’s a fascinating study of ego as well, nicely propped up by the cast, who secure distinct personalities in the haziness of Miller’s screenplay. Wackiness and anguish don’t mix as well as the helmer hopes, and the endeavor is often unsteady, but there are ideas that connect here, making for some interesting conflicts. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There wasn’t much excitement surrounding the release of 2019’s “Pet Sematary,” which offered an updated take on the Stephen King novel, trying to compete with a previous film adaptation from 1989. However, profit is profit, and the feature did small-time business on a minimal budget, inspiring the producers to try and milk the brand name once again, this time going the prequel route with “Pet Sematary: Bloodlines,” which examines the horrors of Ludlow, Maine in the 1960s. The story for the picture is actually part of King’s book, but here, it’s the whole show, with screenwriters Jeff Buhler and Lindsey Anderson Beer (who also directs) on a mission to make something out of this small piece of local history, hoping to resurrect some of the dark “Pet Sematary” magic for another round of small-town violence involving the newly reanimated. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Sean McNamara makes a lot of movies, already onscreen this year with last spring’s “On a Wing and a Prayer.” The “Bratz” and “Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite” helmer isn’t one to worry about the fine details of filmmaking, with production speed his primary motivation. This creative approach is easily identified in “Vindicta,” which looks to combine the pressurized experience of being a paramedic in the big city with a horror story about a masked killer looking to destroy anyone involved with the history of a burned building in Seattle. “Vindicta” is a low-budget offering of suspense, and McNamara’s clumsy approach to everything in the endeavor doesn’t inspire a rich ride of genre entertainment. It’s confused work, never quite settling on a cohesive tone as it goes from vocational stress to family woes to blood-spurting bodily destruction. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Sean McNamara makes a lot of movies, already onscreen this year with last spring’s “On a Wing and a Prayer.” The “Bratz” and “Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite” helmer isn’t one to worry about the fine details of filmmaking, with production speed his primary motivation. This creative approach is easily identified in “Vindicta,” which looks to combine the pressurized experience of being a paramedic in the big city with a horror story about a masked killer looking to destroy anyone involved with the history of a burned building in Seattle. “Vindicta” is a low-budget offering of suspense, and McNamara’s clumsy approach to everything in the endeavor doesn’t inspire a rich ride of genre entertainment. It’s confused work, never quite settling on a cohesive tone as it goes from vocational stress to family woes to blood-spurting bodily destruction. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Saw” was released nearly 20 years ago, and sequels offered an annual celebration of death for quite some time. It became an event series for horror fans, who refused to ditch the franchise, even when it repeatedly played with retconning and logic-bending to take an idea for a single film and stretch it out over nine films. “Saw X” is the tenth chapter of the saga, with the production determined to win fans back after recent revivals of the brand name (including 2017’s “Jigsaw” and 2021’s “Spiral”) were met with a shoulder shrug. Director Kevin Greutert returns to duty after time on “Saw VI” and “Saw: The Final Chapter,” and he’s working with something the production has never managed to offer before: a somewhat interesting script (by Peter Goldfinger and Josh Stolberg). Blood, guts, and loud suffering returns to “Saw X,” but also moments of basic humanity and motivation, giving lead Tobin Bell a little more to do than glare and growl, while the revenge plot definitely drives an involving study of pain, building a much more potent “Saw.” Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Director Gareth Edwards has only made a few films, and they’ve been very good, but none of them have been truly great. It’s this closeness to excellence that’s been difficult to watch, with Edwards managing to create interesting tales of large-scale problems in “Monsters,” 2014’s “Godzilla,” and “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (he actually had plenty of help on the latter effort). He generates incredible visuals and has a passion for genre storytelling, but the helmer usually manages to underwhelm at all the wrong moments. “The Creator” is another mild success for Edwards (who co-scripts with Chris Weitz), manufacturing a future world of runaway artificial intelligence, and how some seek to work with it, while others strive to destroy it. It’s a timely study of machines, with “The Creator” pulling from a long list of sci-fi classics to build its world, and Edwards has an endless appetite for scenes of destruction. It’s the rest of the picture that’s a little less inviting, as the production stumbles with a few clunky performances and a general commitment to repetition that takes the grandeur out of the epic Edwards is looking to make. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

For most of his filmmaking career, writer/director John Carney has been obsessed with music. It’s become a focal point for nearly everything he’s done, with songs often becoming a lead character, usually guiding people in and out of love. He’s made “Once,” “Sing Street,” and “Begin Again,” and now “Flora and Son,” which also tracks the healing power of music as it finds its way into the hearts and minds of emotionally wounded people. In many ways, Carney is repeating himself with his latest endeavor, but peaceful feelings are welcome in the picture, which reaches intended intimacy and atmosphere, also becoming a showcase for lead Eve Hewson, who delivers an outstanding performance of prime itchiness and concern, handed a shot to really show her stuff as Carney crafts a gentle study of relationships soothed by musical expression. It’s nothing radical, but the feature is suitably heartening. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2001’s “Paw Patrol: The Movie” was an attempt by the producers to bring the popular animation franchise from T.V. to the big screen, giving kids raised on the adventures of these rescue dogs and their indefatigable dedication to helping those in need a proper cinematic extravaganza. Such a business move was complicated by a general release during miserable pandemic times with hesitant ticket-buyers, but “The Movie” did well, reinforcing the popularity of the brand name and the promise of feature-length storytelling to come. Two years later, “Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie” hopes to keep momentum going, with the heroes of Adventure City back to take on evil, newly armed with superhero powers but still interested in a slightly more explosive take on family entertainment, with action sequences once again capturing attention while the script for this follow-up is a little less thrilling. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The worlds of art and crime connect in “The Kill Room,” which is largely being promoted as a reunion for stars Uma Thurman and Samuel L. Jackson, who last acted together in 1994’s “Pulp Fiction.” A lot of time has passed since the release of the Quentin Tarantino film, but not everything has changed, as “The Kill Room” has Thurman portraying a rattled woman turning to drugs and dangerous men to keep herself distracted, while Jackson once again inhabits the part of an easily agitated, profane man caught up in a criminal situation that slips out of control. Slightly fatigued Tarantino-isms are certainly present in the screenplay by Jonathan Jacobson, intended or not, but the story launches with compelling oddity, highlighting the strange ways of art appreciation and manipulation, which is far more interesting than underworld entanglements that come to claim the effort’s second half. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The Spanish production “Nowhere” is certainly not a film for those who are easily troubled by onscreen horrors. It’s a survival feature, primarily remaining on a single character as she battles to stay alive while trapped in a shipping container that’s been dumped into the middle of the ocean, left only with some supplies and her inner drive to live. It’s primarily a single-space study of endurance, with lead Anna Castillo pretty much the only actor in the endeavor, tasked with sustaining suspense as she portrays a desperate person stuck in an impossible situation. “Nowhere” doesn’t have a grand political statement to make about the refugee experience, with director Albert Pinto more about a growing sense of despair silenced by ways of empowerment, looking to take viewers on a rough ride of danger and panicky problem solving. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

It’s been a very strange experience to watch Andrew Dice Clay take on more dramatic parts over the last decade. The profane comedian, one of the more controversial people in the entertainment business during the late 1980s and early’90s, Clay is not typically known for his seriousness, generally pursuing funny business with previous acting work. “Warrior Strong” adds to the thespian rebuilding of Clay, who returns after parts in “Blue Jasmine” and “A Star is Born” to participate in a sports underdog picture, which is unlike anything he’s done before. And Clay is appealing in the feature, which doesn’t take many chances in the screenwriting department, but the movie has its heart in the right place, hoping to bring some feelgood storytelling to family audiences trying to find something suitable. It’s a nice turn for the once and future Diceman, who’s joined by a lively supporting cast aiming to make formula palatable in this study of high school basketball leadership. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The state of the R-rated comedy in 2023 is fairly dire, with various releases looking to charm viewers with displays of crude humor and profanity, which is often an unwelcome substitute for actual considered dialogue. “The Re-Education of Molly Singer” is another misfire for the year, with the picture also going the raunchy route to deliver a good time for audiences, only the screenplay by Todd M. Friedman and Kevin Haskin doesn’t have much to offer besides a slightly promising concept for silliness, following a thirtysomething woman’s return to college after making a mess of her life. Something could be done with the idea, but the writing doesn’t go anywhere with it, while director Andy Palmer (“Camp Cold Brook”) switches to autopilot, putting little thought into the comedic potential of the feature (which was shot over two years ago), creating a dispiriting viewing experience. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Co-writer/directors Ben and Jacob Burghart make their feature-length helming debut with “Head Count,” which is an expansion of their 2014 short film. The original work only ran four minutes in length, requiring the siblings to dream a little bigger with their production, and they try to do some things with style and dark humor with the endeavor, which makes it to 75 minutes (sans end credits) before tapping out. It’s a Coen Brother-esque viewing experience, with some quirks and violence to manage, but missing from the effort is a sense of momentum. “Head Count” steps forward with a can’t miss premise, only to repeatedly lose focus with characterization that doesn’t connect as intended, and the writing plays too much with time, aiming to be clever and twisty instead of simply remaining compelling. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Reptile” is really all about Benicio Del Toro. The celebrated actor stars in the feature, but he also co-produces and co-scripts, taking some control over a picture that’s largely meant to celebrate his acting abilities. It’s a police procedural thriller with some mystery blended into the tale, and Del Toro gives the part as much as he’s capable of with a deeply internalized take on a haunted cop struggling with the details of his latest case. Music video helmer Grant Singer makes his narrative directorial debut with the endeavor, and he’s trying to be mysterious with the movie, which concentrates on police brotherhood developments and growing unease concerning a murder case. “Reptile” looks to be more measured with its chills, willing to go deep into character, but such dedication to drama doesn’t translate to a riveting sit, with long stretches of the effort going still instead of profound. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

One of the great surprises of the 2021 film year was the release of “Shiva Baby.” A claustrophobic dark comedy about snowballing mistakes and confrontations at a funeral gathering, the picture was hilarious and horrifying, announcing great talents in the making with writer/director Emma Seligman and star Rachel Sennott. “Bottoms” is the follow-up project for the pair, who reunite for something far less insidious, going broad with this satire of teen horndog cinema, taking on the staples of undersexed adolescents and their schemes to attract the attention of their crushes. “Bottoms” hopes to be a wild ride of silliness and strangeness, with Seligman (who co-scripts with Sennott) eager to put on a show of character liberation and pants John Hughes entertainment. When it goes wild, the feature is fun, showcasing imagination for relationship woes and craziness with violence and heartache. Seligman and Sennott don’t take their premise the whole way, leading to some disappointment, but they have something here that’s quite different at times, and uproarious when it wants to be. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Brian Duffield made an impressive helming debut with 2020’s “Spontaneous,” which explored human intimacy in the midst of exploding bodies, making for a highly unusual and absorbing viewing experience. He’s back on more familiar ground with “No One Will Save You,” which is an alien invasion story, going where many filmmakers have gone before as Earth is visited by strange beings most curious about the ways of human response. Facing formula, Duffield shifts course, crafting a bizarre survival story that employs almost no dialogue, hunting for a more primal feature that’s mostly built out of reactions from lead Kaitlyn Dever. “No One Will Save You” is slow-burn and protective of its mysteries, but the reward for such patience is a visually striking and periodically exciting chiller that heads in unusual directions, shaking off predictability early as the story finds ways to thrill and touch on the human condition. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The “Spy Kids” franchise has been very good to Robert Rodriguez, who’s turned the adventures of superspy families into a cottage industry, making movies in his home studio, often involving his children in creative decisions. The series hasn’t gone cinematic since 2011 (the unbearable “All the Time in the World”), sticking with animation offerings (2018’s “Mission Critical”) and similar endeavors (2020’s charming “We Can Be Heroes”), but Rodriguez has revived the adventure with “Spy Kids: Armageddon,” creating the screenplay with his son, Racer Max. The helmer isn’t too interested in taking creative chances with the picture, which plays like a remake of 2001’s “Spy Kids” and 2003’s “Game Over,” once again introducing a new round of family fighters and their battle against video game-inspired evil. “Armageddon” isn’t exactly fresh, but it’s fun to a certain degree, delivering lively entertainment for younger audiences while Rodriguez continues to explore his fascination with greenscreen production achievements, occasionally coming up with diverting visuals. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“The Expendables” franchise has always catered to a specific taste in action cinema, offering fans of the genre a chance to see some big names return to screen glory, having fun with over-the-top violence and male posturing. 2010’s “The Expendables” and 2012’s “The Expendables 2” understood the assignment, with Sylvester Stallone leading the charge with R-rated, testosterone-laden ridiculousness, putting on a big show for loyal viewers. 2014’s “The Expendables 3” was a more divisive chapter for some (muting the roughness to a PG-13 rating didn’t help the cause), but it remained invested in the mood of the saga and its dedication to stunt casting. Box office returns took a hit with the last installment, but the brand name is back for “The Expendables 4” (or “Expend4bles,” but we can all pretend that’s not the official title), which looks to restart the series with a mix of young and old faces, definitely out to create new action heroes instead of finding classic ones (sorry, Jeff Speakman), while the screenplay remains weirdly flat, unable to cook up exciting sequences for the crew as they slowly assemble to take on a generic enemy in a sequel that’s nowhere near as entertaining as previous adventures. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A longtime actor, Sung Kang is best known as one of the stars of the “Fast & Furious” franchise. He portrays Han, a member of the “family” who has managed to evade death and significant weight gain from an enormous calorie intake. Fans love Han, but Kang is trying to figure out other avenues to his career, turning to direction for his debut, “Shaky Shivers.” The picture is out to charm with its broad displays of dark comedy, looking to merge wackiness with a few frights, but providing chills isn’t a priority to the production. Kung has a tiny budget to bring “Shaky Shivers” to life, and the effort is aided by his leads, Brooke Markham and VyVy Nguyen, who deliver big charm and appealing enthusiasm for the material, which definitely needs their spirit as the screenplay by Andrew McAllister and Aaron Strongoni takes a few extended breathers between on-screen incidents. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com