Lights Camera Jackson

Movie Reviews, Entertainment News and Views from Lights Camera Jackson

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‘Minions’ Review

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After seeing 2010’s “Despicable Me” the first of several times, I knew that supervillain turned Superdad Gru’s little yellow assistants, the Minions, were destined to star in their own movie. Five years later, “Minions” puts the title characters front and center. Unfortunately, the film falls short on the fun meter. “Minions” is a prequel to […]
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‘Terminator Genisys’ Review

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“Terminator Genisys” is the fifth installment in the now-31-year-old-franchise. The main reason why this sequel hoped to erase 2009’s “Terminator Salvation” from the minds of most diehard fans is that ARNOLD is back! But I actually liked “Salvation” and now even more after experiencing “Genisys”, which is dull, dry and disappointing. Schwarzenegger receives top-billing, but […]
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‘Max’ Review

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Six months after their release of “American Sniper”, Warner Bros. is out with a family-friendly war-themed (of sorts) film, as a Marine service dog returns from battle and has trouble adjusting to homelife in “Max”. As the opening credits reveal, K-9s have been used in the military since WWI. Max, a Malinois Shepherd, was the […]
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‘Batkid Begins’ Review

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On Friday, November 15, 2013, San Francisco was transformed into Gotham City as five-year-old leukemia patient Miles Scott became Batkid for the day. He and Batman saved citizens from danger and defeated their arch-enemies The Riddler and The Penguin. The day, which began as a simple request to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, turned into one of […]
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‘Me and Earl and the Dying Girl’ Review

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“Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” is the film adaptation of the popular YA novel. The movie won both the Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Clearly, those voting groups were made up of die-hard indie lovers who easily embrace quirky. However, when you look at “Me and […]
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‘Ted 2’ Review

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“Ted” was “Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane’s first feature film, co-writing and directing the tale of a foul-mouthed teddy bear who comes to life. Saying the film was a success is an understatement, so it’s no surprise that – 3 years later – we have “Ted 2”. What is surprising is that this sequel is […]
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‘Dope’ Review

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The indie drama “Dope” was one of the darlings of this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Open Road, best known for distributing the animated comedy “The Nut Job” and the excellent Jake Ghyllenhaal thriller “Nightcrawler”, won the multi-studio bidding war. Writer/director Rick Famuyiwa (“Our Family Wedding”) collaborated with the powerhouse production team of Pharrell Williams, Sean […]
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‘Inside Out’ Review

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Disney/Pixar’s “Inside Out” is director Pete Docter’s follow-up to his Oscar-winning “Up”, which featured the most emotional opening scene in Pixar history. “Inside Out” is all about our emotions, and while I laughed at times, this film also desperately wants you to cry, but falls short in achieving that reaction. It’s good, but far from […]
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‘Jurassic World’ Review

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In 1993, four little words, an iconic John Williams score and some mind-blowing visuals changed cinema forever, as the late Richard Attenborough welcomed us to Jurassic Park. Now, 22 years later, original director Steven Spielberg hands the reigns of the “dinos on the loose” franchise over to Colin Trevorrow for “Jurassic World”, which covers similar […]
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‘Spy’ Review

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“Bridesmaids” and “The Heat” director Paul Feig has returned for a third go-around with the Academy Award nominated star of those blockbuster comedies – Melissa McCarthy. “Spy” is a slick, sophisticated, very solid action comedy. McCarthy is CIA analyst Susan Cooper. For years, Cooper has been the voice inside the earpiece of suave secret agent […]
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