Category: Film Review

2020’s “Money Plane” wasn’t a hit film, but it managed to attract plenty of attention as an offering of B-movie ridiculousness. The feature examined the world of a plane-based casino where betting on violent acts was offered, leading to a few close-quarter combat scenarios involving angry characters. Now there’s “Speed Train,” which has no connection to “Money Plane,” but it shares similar production interest in delivering absurd low-budget action entertainment involving just a few sets and an odd cast. Co-writer/director Ryan Francis (a longtime actor, dating back to appearances in “Hook” and “Ghostbusters II”) doesn’t have much here, but there is an idea following the intensity of a runaway train and the mayhem of AI-controlled human weapons that could produce a decent enough ride. Unfortunately, “Speed Train” doesn’t reach its potential, stuck with repetition and limited resources as it attempts to provide some junky escapism. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“100 Nights of Hero” is an adaptation of a 2016 graphic novel by Isabel Greenberg, who blends the storytelling angle of “One Thousand and One Nights” to help invent a female-centric study of oppression and passion in a fantasy world of patriarchal control. It’s a tricky concept to the bring to the screen, putting writer/director Julia Jackman (“Bonus Track”) to work on world-building with a small budget and limited actors. The vision for the production is impressive, as Jackman hopes to delve into forbidden love and torturous experiences involving male oppressors. The execution of the feature is another story, and Jackman attempts to cast a spell over the viewer, luring them in with specialized production design details and acts of longing, but the slow-burn ways of the picture offer little dramatic reward. “100 Nights of Hero” ends up ambitious, but it’s also quite glacial. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Yes, of course there’s another “Troll 2.” However, this “Troll 2” has nothing to do with the notoriously bad 1990 release. The new film is a sequel to 2022’s “Troll,” where director Roar Uthaug received a chance to play with a Norwegian version of kaiju cinema, exploring the massive presence of fantasy creatures trying to understand their place in the world, often by destroying whatever happens to be within smashing distance. It was an entertaining picture, filling in the gap between major Hollywood-backed Kong and Godzilla productions, with Uthaug achieving a satisfying sense of scale and destruction. The trolls are back in business for the continuation, which has defined influences and formula to follow. The story feels a little more labored this time around, but there’s still a fun factor to embrace, and, when the movie gets around to it, troll interactions save the feature, delivering welcome action. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The holiday season. For some, it’s a time of magic and human connection. It’s a chance to spend time with thoughts and feelings, reflecting on the year and its challenges. It’s also a period of great celebration for many, as revelers look to kick off the blues and devour all the treasures that arrive. For the “Five Families of Christmas,” November and December represents a period when they can make a small fortune selling Christmas trees to the people of New York City. “The Merchants of Joy” is based on two magazine articles written by Owen Long, with director Celia Aniskovich (“Call Me Miss Cleo,” “Fruitcake Fraud”) setting out to follow the yearly rituals and power plays of the people involved in this niche business. As a study of organization and commerce, “The Merchants of Joy” is an intermittently fascinating examination of unexpected anxieties and competition. As an offering of seasonal warmth and inspiration, Aniskovich fumbles the good vibes of the documentary, offering too much time with abrasive personalities. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The holiday season is full of feel-good entertainment, with movies often celebrating the magic of love during times of family crisis. “Jingle Bell Heist” tries on crime for size, with writer Abby McDonald looking to add some excitement as she creates two characters out to find their fortune while the world around them gets into the Christmas spirit. Director Michael Fimognari (“To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You,” “To All the Boys: Always and Forever”) is tasked with selling the tingles of the holidays and the urgency of criminal plans, coming up with a slightly muted endeavor that only succeeds when personality manages to break through. The picture isn’t an “Ocean’s Eleven”-style romp, but something more restrained when it comes to thrills, while McDonald is ordered to find a little heat in the middle of all the thievery, desperate to add bits of burgeoning romance when the film is much better watching two partners figure out how to pull off an impossible task. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The afterlife offers incredible potential for storytelling. It’s a setting of mystery and extraordinary fantasy, permitting filmmakers to play with the details of the unknown, finding ways to explore the complicated mess of living as it comes to something of an end. Albert Brooks scored a major creative success with 1991’s “Defending Your Life,” offering a romantic and comedic take on the process of passing on to the next phase of existence. Now co-writers Patrick Cunnane and David Freyne (who also directs) riff on the same idea with “Eternity,” zeroing in on the pressure involved when the recently deceased are tasked with choosing their forever home. “Eternity” means to be light, but the premise can’t deny certain troubling realities, and the writers offer a mostly balanced appreciation of the central crisis, making an intermittently funny and emotional study of an impossible choice set in a strange wonderland of options. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

While many anticipated a hit film in 2016’s “Zootopia,” few could’ve predicted its monster success, taking the world by storm as it rolled on to become a billion dollar grosser. Disney certainly took their time cooking up a sequel, spending the intervening years developing the premise for streaming shows and theme park experiences, feeling out the true popularity of the brand name. Now there’s “Zootopia 2,” which looks to dominate the competition with a return of the franchise’s sense of humor, action, and commentary on the way of the world for underprivileged creatures. Directors Jared Bush (who also scripts) and Byron Howard aren’t looking to stray far from the formula that worked so well nearly a decade ago, but they end up with a much better picture, as “Zootopia 2” maintains a mostly playful presence with a wonderful voice cast, showing more consistency as it looks to balance silliness with societal issues. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Wake Up Dead Man” is the third installment of the “Knives Out” franchise, which probably was never meant to continue past the initial 2019 release, but audience interest and filmmaker enthusiasm was enough to turn the sleuthing skills of Benoit Blanc into a series. 2021’s “Glass Onion” switched the saga into a streaming experience, and one that was warmly welcomed by fans, even with a noticeable decline in quality. Writer/director Rian Johnson returns with another case of murder for the master detective to solve, this time examining the strange ways of faith and devotion, taking elements of danger to a church setting as a monsignor is offed and there’s a whole flock of troubled people involved in the situation. “Wake Up Dead Man” is no creative departure from the other chapters of “Knives Out,” but it’s a small improvement on “Glass Onion,” finding Johnson conjuring a more interesting case of ego, and the supporting cast gets plenty of mileage out of the Agatha Christie-inspired material. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Chris Foggin is in the business of making feel-good cinema. He’s been at it for years now, directing “Fisherman’s Friends,” “Bank of Dave,” “This is Christmas,” and “Bank of Dave 2: The Loan Ranger,” on a quest to make viewers walk away delighted and soulfully restored after watching one of his movies. He remains committed to the career cause in “Tinsel Town,” a holiday picture about a crusty action star sent to small town England to participate in a stage production of “Cinderella.” Obviously, complications ensue and fussiness begins its slow melt, as the screenplay (credited to Piers Ashworth, Adam Brown, and Frazer Flintham) isn’t out to blow minds with originality, painting in primary colors to secure likability. However, “Tinsel Town” is missing a more direct shot of appeal, as the material gets caught up in subplots in the final act, testing goodwill with writing that ultimately fails to stay on task. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Kate Beckinsale is working hard to become an action hero. In recent years, she’s appeared in “Canary Black” and “Stolen Girl,” presenting herself as a formidable force, often in the service of rescuing children. She returns to duty in “Wildcat,” portraying an ex-military woman who’s caught in a bad situation when her little brother drags her into a criminal entanglement, which also happens to threaten the life of her young daughter. Director James Nunn (who hit a few highs with his work on “One Shot” and “One More Shot”) is in charge of bringing some punchiness to the offering, but it’s not an easy task with this riff on Guy Ritchie cinema from screenwriter “Dee Dee,” who generates a familiar collision of underworld players and violent crime world mishaps in an uninspired endeavor. “Wildcat” offers a few acting highlights and the occasional viable threat, but there’s a heavy sense of déjà vu that keeps the feature from coming to life. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Grief is the Thing with Feathers” was a 2015 book by Max Porter, exploring the ways of death, recovery, and parenthood. Writer/director Dylan Southern looks to take the strange journey of the novel and turn it into cinema, with help from star Benedict Cumberbatch, who is no stranger to playing tortured characters. The material doesn’t directly assess the weakened state of a newly widowed father trying to make sense of the world and handle the care of his two young sons, going a more abstract direction with the tale, which involves the horror of a human-sized crow complicating the grieving process for a vulnerable character. “The Thing with Feathers” is very strange and also tries to be extremely sincere, but adaptation challenges are often too difficult to conquer. As much as Southern tries to respect the source material and play intense psychological games, he doesn’t create a particularly compelling picture. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Three years ago, there was “Sisu.” It was a Finnish production about an unstoppable man out to destroy Nazis during World War II, and writer/director Jalmari Helander brought a vivid imagination for bodily harm and big screen action. The picture wasn’t a major hit, but it attracted plenty of positive attention, celebrating Helander’s appetite for destruction. For “Sisu: Road to Revenge,” the formula hasn’t changed much, once again following the main character into many threatening situations as he seeks to calm his screaming mind by murdering his enemies in blunt fashion. Helander returns, joined by star Jorma Tommila, and the pair work out a new survival plan for the sequel, which remains as violent as possible while the helmer enjoys some Hollywood influences and a larger budget. The element of surprise is long gone, but “Road to Revenge” maintains an enjoyable viewing experience, running just a bit behind the original feature in terms of excitement. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

A little under two years ago, “The Family Plan” debuted as a streaming title, and…it was awful. Strangely coarse for what appeared to be a family picture, also offering wretched performances, direction, and writing, the movie struggled to provide a single inspired moment. However, it seems the feature was something of a success, because the creative team is back for “The Family Plan 2,” a relatively quickie production aiming to get right back to PG-13 business, following the adventures of an ex-assassin and his desperate need to be a protective parent and husband for his loved ones. Director Simon Cellen Jones and screenwriter David Coggeshall return to duty, cooking up new challenges for the main characters, going international to help spice up the incredible blandness of the production. On the plus side, “The Family Plan 2” is an improvement on the original, locating a better villain to help create a modicum of screen tension. The rest remains generic and unfunny, but hey, at least some progress has been made. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Once the director of “Daredevil” and “Ghost Rider,” Mark Steven Johnson is on a different career path these days. He’s in the business of making romantic comedies for streaming services, trying his luck with Hallmark Channel-style offerings of mild drama and feels that provide viewers with a sense of escapism as beautiful performers work with a screenplay of no particular emotional emphasis. It’s vanilla stuff, but Johnson locates a degree of charm in “Champagne Problems,” hitting all the highlights of fantasy as the main character faces a crisis of the heart and business ties during a holiday work trip to France. Johnson (who also scripts) has no love for originality, but he finds some help from the actors, who maintain mild warmth and a sense of humor while the feature strives to conjure as much coziness as possible. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

This time last year, “Wicked: Part 1” found its audience. An adaptation of the 2003 stage musical, the feature managed to delight the faithful and enchant younger audiences, finding its place as event cinema when such a thing doesn’t come around much anymore. It was a charming picture for the most part, launching the world of Oz and the troubles at Shiz University with a bit of spirit and a number of big songs, helping to establish friendship and growing tensions between the characters of Elphaba and Galinda. The original show was a complete experience, allowing an intermission to divide its two acts. “Wicked: Part 1” chose an open ending, ready to keep the story going in an entirely new movie. “Wicked: For Good” means to be the dramatic payoff after a year away, taking on the darker, more adult side of the tale, and the batteries do feel a little worn down this time around. It’s difficult to watch “For Good” and not think that all of this really should’ve been contained to a single epic film. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

One can experience all kinds of nightmares on the big screen involving a community of movie maniacs or supernatural threats. But there’s nothing more frightening than a collection of unsupervised, parent-free 12-year-old boys. That’s the level of fear writer/director Charlie Polinger brings to “The Plague,” which studies to corrosive effects of bullying at a water polo camp for kids, taking special note of one boy’s quest to endure unimaginable cruelty. The helmer hopes to maintain a high level of artistry with the endeavor, but he’s also out to make a Stanley Kubrick film here, merging the creeping terror of “The Shining” with the cancerous group dynamics of “Full Metal Jacket.” “The Plague” is a lot to take in, exploring how horrible children can be to one another, and Polinger looks to make an intensely atmospheric offering. It doesn’t quite come together in full, but there are moments where the material is chillingly authentic and difficult to process. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

If one squints hard enough, one could see some potential in “Altered.” It plays like a sci-fi novel, or perhaps a comic book, taking viewers to a future world that’s populated with mutated humans who live in two distinct classes, inspiring a tale of protection and revolution. There’s also a special mechanical suit in play, giving the lead character unusual powers to help deal with threats. Writer/director Timo Vuorensola (who made a positive impression with 2012’s “Iron Sky,” but hasn’t scored again since the picture’s release) blends all kinds of genre influences into the screenplay, maintaining interest in world-building and, for parts of the feature, action. However, “Altered” just doesn’t work, often caught struggling with momentum as the story starts and stops one too many times, and performances aren’t there, unable to bring the endeavor’s broadness to life. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

In 2022, director Noah Baumbach took all the accolades and attention he received for 2019’s “Marriage Story” and funneled them into the production of “White Noise.” It was often described as an “unfilmable” novel by Don DeLillo, but that didn’t stop Baumbach, who attempted to bring the book’s absurdities and eccentricities to the screen, ending up with a flawed picture that failed to find much of an audience. The helmer is back on solid ground with “Jay Kelly,” which returns him to the wilds of human emotions, especially guilt and shame, joining co-writer Emily Mortimer (the veteran actress also appears in the endeavor) for a look at a movie star, the last of his kind, coming to grips with mistakes made with his loved ones during an impossibly successful career. “Jay Kelly” looks to give everything to stars George Clooney and Adam Sandler, and acting is excellent as the whole cast is offered room to explore. However, Baumbach gets carried away with the run time (135 minutes), on a quest to make sure this effort hits the heart, no matter how long it takes him to do so. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Osgood Perkins is working fast these days, and perhaps for good reason. He scored a major hit in 2024’s “Longlegs,” blessed with a slick marketing campaign to bring big screen chills to the summer season. The feature worked for some viewers, and Perkins was right back at it in last winter’s “The Monkey,” reviving his love of slow-burn creepiness in a Stephen King adaptation that worked for, well, less viewers. Perkins isn’t wasting any time once again, returning with his second release of 2025 in “Keeper,” which continues his career obsessions with macabre imagery, screen stillness, and shock value, only he’s really in no hurry to offer much of anything this time around. “Keeper” is a small picture, sticking mainly to one location, and it’s not effective as a chiller, finding the helmer essentially repeating himself with another ineffective, glacially paced nightmare. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

2016’s “Now You See Me 2” was an attempt to see if there was a franchise to be built after the unexpected success of 2013’s “Now You See Me.” The original feature found an audience for its display of magicians using faux magic to pull off heists and rescues, and the sequel was more of the same, working on developing a world for the brand name that never quite took. Grosses dipped a little for the follow-up (especially in North America), but money was made, and another sequel was certain to follow. Until it didn’t. Now nine years later, there’s “Now You See Me: Now You Don’t,” which is an attempt to get things going again, with the production adding new magicians to the cast to help take over should the box office gods be merciful. There are fresh faces around the picture, but the screenplay (credited to four writers) is the same old stuff, delivering a tepid return to “Now You See Me” business, with director Ruben Fleischer in charge of making something flashy, not fulfilling. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com