2005’s “Sin City” was a fascinating cinematic experiment. A slavish, stylish expansion of Frank Miller’s graphic novel, the feature enjoyed an element of surprise, stunning audiences with its particular approach to a literary adaptation. Instead of reimagining the book, co-directors Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller used the tome as an altar for worship, preserving the visual intensity of the original work and its taste for the unsavory. A hit with audiences, a sequel was all but guaranteed. However, that it took nearly a decade to revive this sleazy world is shocking, with the abyssal gap in years between installments hurting the aspiring series. Instead of fanning the franchise flames, “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For” tosses a wet blanket on the fun, stumbling with a plodding follow-up that’s missing the insanity and most of the grim highlights that made the original so memorable. It’s as though Rodriguez and Miller forgot how to make a “Sin City” movie. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Spoilers are a tricky thing. Some readers get upset when the name of a lead character is shared in a review, while others prefer to understand as much about a movie as possible before deciding to buy a ticket. It’s a tightrope walk that’s never fun to attempt, but with some features, it’s impossible to discuss the particulars at all without some explanation of plot. “The One I Love” is a particular challenge because the entire picture is built on a secret. Not an explosive one, but just revealing enough to make any critique a mine field of potential problems. I will do my best to avoid ruining this wonderful film, but to be safe, if you’re committed to going in cold, stop reading here. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Actor George Takei used to be known for his role as Hikaru Sulu on “Star Trek,” remaining with the part through multiple television incarnations and a series of feature films, cementing his fame in the sci-fi realm. Ask a kid who George Takei is today, and they might list him as one of the funniest meme curators on Facebook, or perhaps his tireless work for human rights is what immediately springs to mind. It’s been an amazing journey for the deep-voiced man, who’s now the subject of “To Be Takei,” a hilarious and heartfelt documentary by Jennifer M. Kroot that explores the strange magic that surrounds the icon, and how he’s used his fame to support his causes, with a personal drive to make the world a better place formed during his tumultuous childhood. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Sometimes it’s difficult to assess these teen tearjerkers, with my adult perspective reacting violently to the irrational decisions of young love, where passions rule and parents are a four-letter word. I’m all for warmth and deep feelings, but “If I Stay” is particularly ghoulish when it comes to the demands of an adolescent union. It’s a bizarre movie, though it’s interesting to note that the production doesn’t share the same assessment, plowing forward with images of death and unbridled selfishness without registering how weirdly it plays all stitched together. Mistaking control for adoration, “If I Stay” makes “Twilight” look like a Gloria Steinem manifesto. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“When the Game Stands Tall” wants to be “Friday Night Lights” so bad, it can taste it. The football melodrama, based a true story, is riddled with cliché, depending a vague faith-based perspective to give what audiences have seen over and over some identity. It’s a weird collision of Christian morals and gridiron action, flailing to find depth with perhaps one of the most one-dimensional sporting stories to hit the screen in a long time. “When the Game Stands Tall” hopes to be about the miracle of coaching influence, but it’s really about a team that’s used to winning sampling loss for the first time. The rest is just tired decoration from the Screenwriting 101 textbook. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“A Five Star Life” is an Italian production that has a few things going for it. For starters, it features a relatively original occupation to follow, with the main character a service inspector sent around the world to test hotels on their five-star status. That type of fastidiousness and globe-trotting life deserves its own film, but “A Five Star Life” would rather fixate on the human details, generating a mild dramedy that spotlights just enough honest emotions to help secure an otherwise featherweight movie. Well-acted and shot, the picture isn’t likely to knock anyone’s socks off, but on a scale of measured, intimate storytelling, it manages to articulate a sense of regret critical to the overall effort. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“The Possession of Michael King” is a feeble excuse for a horror flick. Following trends, writer/director David Jung has combined the demonic possession movie with found footage cinema, questing to manufacture a fright film that will keep viewers afraid of the unexpected, while tapping into quasi-religious questions of Heaven and Hell. Unfortunately, more emphasis has been placed on the visual tricks of the feature, leaving screenwriting achievements nonexistent. In fact, the titular character may be the most irresponsible boob of the 2014 film year, with his insistent foolishness keeping “The Possession of Michael King” more frustrating than terrifying, leaving one to openly wonder if Jung actually read his script before production commenced. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

The release of the 2012 French feature, “Le Chef,” in America is interesting. Coming into the marketplace at the same time as Jon Favreau’s “Chef” is exiting theaters, something tells me the distributor hoped to ride on the coattails of the indie film success, trusting audiences for specialized entertainment might be in the mood for another round of food fantasy. Where “Chef” was anxious and exploratory, “Le Chef” is more of a traditional comedy, with a few broad antics and a nice grip on characterization. It’s funny, well acted, and sharply paced, but most importantly, it trusts in the power of food. It doesn’t quite reach for the lusciousness of the recipes in “Chef,” but it aims to tease the molecular cuisine trend, which is long overdue for a pantsing. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Aging plays a major part in “The Expendables 3,” which was once envisioned as throwback franchise for older action stars to flex their muscles once again, showing the kids how it’s done. In the four years since the original effort, creator/star Sylvester Stallone has started to consider his years, with mortality and retirement major themes of the movie. He also introduces a younger squad of mercenaries to join the fight, not only to add some fresh energy to the series, but to secure its box office future beyond the battle-weary bros who’ve already survived two installments. That’s not to say “The Expendables 3” isn’t rock-em, sock-em entertainment with explosions, stunts, and quips galore, but it’s a surprisingly reflective feature that still traffics in big dumb fun, daring to address the mileage on a few of its leathery stars. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

After last year’s “Warm Bodies,” there seems to be a trend forming, centered on the idea of romantic escapades featuring humans and zombies. “Life After Beth” continues to develop the subgenre, offering a darkly comic take on eternal love, even after body tissue begins to decay. Funny, but more interesting when it screws around with tonality, the picture marks the directorial debut for “I Heart Huckabees” co-writer Jeff Baena, who delivers confident, wicked work with “Life After Beth,” mostly successful in his quest to blend traditional relationship woes with apocalyptic chaos, finding an amusing middle ground that keeps the movie approachable as it indulges some horrific turns of plot. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com