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

Time travel is a topic covered by many movies, and “Relax, I’m from the Future” is no different, once again exploring the strangeness of a mystery man who emerges from another time, desperate to deal with issues in the present to secure a brighter tomorrow, or for him, yesterday. The premise began life as a short film, and writer/director Luke Higginson attempts to turn it into a feature, and one with the particularly strong opening that merges comedy and itchy energy, slowly developing the bewildering situation for a cast of characters. “Relax, I’m from the Future” doesn’t sustain initial oddity, offering exposition instead of following surprises, which adds unnecessary weight to the picture. Still, there’s star Rhys Darby, who brings his natural charm to the endeavor, providing a bright, amusing performance in an effort that’s much better with the actor on the move. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

“Condition of Return” features elements of church, God and the Devil, and the deep guilt of Catholic sin. One might think they’re sitting down with a faith-based film, but the screenplay by John E. Spare doesn’t head in a more spiritual direction. Instead of being illuminated by heavenly light, “Condition of Return” is more of a Tyler Perry-style offering of campy melodrama, with Spare setting up a punishment routine for the main character while director Tommy Stovall cranks up the ridiculousness of it all, triggering many unintended (I think) laughs during the viewing experience. The movie begins with a severe act of violence, but the rest of the picture gets wild in a hurry, taking viewers on a ride of punishment and insanity. It should be fun, but it isn’t, and those coming to the endeavor expecting a kumbaya experience should prepare to sit through something far wackier than expected. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

There is a moment in “Dark Asset” where a character sitting in front of a screen openly wonders, “What is this?” There were many moments while watching the film where I wondered the very same thing. Writer/director Michael Winnick looks to confuse his audience with this endeavor, which plays with time and allegiance in the hope to come off as sophisticated spy game entertainment. “Dark Asset” doesn’t reach many highs concerning matters of smarts and survival, with the entire feature heading in the wrong direction when it comes time to deliver a shot of thriller cinema. The material is strangely talky for a picture about conflict, and action beats are lukewarm, with the helmer barely putting up a fight against his own movie’s inertia. With a plot that involves brain chips, assassinations, and double crosses, there should really be more of a pulse to this thing than what Winnick manages to deliver. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com

Writer/director Tim Brown has a film in mind with “The Retirement Plan,” only his execution is too knotted to sustain a fun factor. It’s a B-movie from the helmer, who’s mostly dealing with villainous and violent happenings, tasking star Nicolas Cage to carry the endeavor with his typical enthusiasm for eccentric acting opportunities. He plays a former government assassin coming into contact with his past in “The Retirement Plan,” and Brown is trying to bring out the lighter side of this dark comedy, keeping Cage twitchy and the players on the move as the hunt for a special hard drive tries to intensify in the middle of paradise. Brown has a lot to do with this material, and he only gets halfway there, with the picture far better with set-ups than payoffs, resulting an increasingly crowded offering of half-speed action cinema. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com