Reviews

In the new ‘inspired by a true story’ drama “Tow”, Rose Byrne gives a stronger performance than her recent, Oscar nominated work in “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You”. Amanda Ogle is a Seattle woman whose car was stolen and then impounded. She can’t afford to pay the fee to get her 1991 Toyota […]

Like “Downton Abbey”, I didn’t watch a single episode of British crime drama “Peaky Blinders” (which ran from 2013 to 2022), but I was aware of its popularity. Just as I did with the “DA” film trilogy, I was willing to take a chance on the new movie that continues the “Peaky Blinders” saga to […]

Andrew Stanton won Best Animated Feature Oscars for Pixar’s “Finding Nemo” and “WALL-E”. He then shifted to live-action as director of Disney’s action/adventure “John Carter”, which didn’t live up to The Mouse House’s critical and box office expectations. Stanton returned to animation with 2016 blockbuster “Finding Dory” and is also helming the highly-anticipated “Toy Story […]

15 years ago Gore Verbinski won the Best Animated Feature Academy Award for “Rango”. Verbinski is also well known for the first three “Pirates of the Caribbean” installments and horror flick “The Ring”. During his video introduction at the screening I attended of his latest film, “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die”, he stressed the […]

“The Fifth Element” director Luc Besson presents his artistic spin on “Dracula”, and for the most part, it’s pretty engaging. Certainly much more successful than Guillermo del Toro’s recent, bland take on “Frankenstein”, which is up for nine Oscars. I actually think “Dracula” could be in the Academy Awards Makeup & Hairstyling, Costume Design and […]

When I was at NYCC in October, I went to the panel for “Mercy”, an Amazon-MGM Studios action / thriller from director Timur Bekmambetov (“Wanted”) and star Chris Pratt, both of whom were in attendance. They debuted the first trailer and shared insights on the film, pushing the concept pretty hard to the crowd. And […]

It’s Gerard January. Three of the past four years have had a Gerard Butler action movie from Lionsgate kick off the year. I enjoyed 2023’s “Plane”, and last year’s “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera” had a solid second half. They both did well enough for LG to make Butler’s next flick, “Greenland 2: Migration”, the […]

Two-time Emmy-winner Claire Foy (“The Crown”) gave an excellent performance as Janet Armstrong, Neil Armstrong’s first wife, in Damien Chazelle’s 2018 drama “First Man”. Foy’s work earned her Golden Globe, Critics Choice and BAFTA nominations, and she should’ve been on the Oscar ballot as well. Roadside and Lionsgate just released Foy’s new film, “H Is […]

An original concept, especially for a light drama primarily aimed at older audiences? How refreshing. “The Choral” is about a choir in England in 1916 who rehearse for an important performance. Ralph Fiennes is terrific, in a wide-ranging, dynamic role as the new chorus master, Dr. Henry Guthrie. Though Fiennes is prominently featured on the […]

“Dead Man’s Wire” is “Good Will Hunting” and “Milk” director Gus Van Sant’s first feature film in more than seven years. He returns with a gritty, grounded and almost bare-bones thriller. The experience feels real — not heightened, flashy or Hollywood-y, because Van Sant takes a unique approach. “Dead Man’s Wire” is a combination of […]

“Little Amélie or the Character of Rain” is a sweet, hand-drawn French animated feature based on author Amélie Nothomb’s 2000 novel. The central perspective is that of a young Belgian girl, who was born in Japan in the late ‘60s, and is about to turn three years old. This is a life-changing time for Amélie, […]

Director Richard Linklater loves passion projects and collaborations with a real ‘actor’s actor’, Ethan Hawke. Their latest venture is a true gem. “Blue Moon” stars Hawke as lyricist Lorenz Hart. It’s 1943, and after watching the opening night performance of “Oklahoma!” in NYC, Hart heads to a nearby restaurant to share his thoughts on the […]

I’ve been waiting for Dwayne Johnson to star in a drama for a long time. He’s dabbled in it a bit, with scenes in films like “Skyscraper”, “Snitch” and “San Andreas”. But the majority of his career has either been headlining big action movies or family comedies (live-action and animated). So my expectations going into […]

Since her starring role in Disney and director Kenneth Branagh’s terrific 2015 live-action version of “Cinderella”, Lily James has continued to deliver fantastic performances — in “Darkest Hour”, “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” and as Pamela Anderson on the “Pam & Tommy” miniseries. She’s on her A-game again as Whitney Wolfe in the new […]

Spike Lee’s “Highest 2 Lowest”, a new, modern day interpretation of Akira Kurosawa’s “High and Low”, is quite a ride! Denzel Washington is as good as ever, delivering an electric, knockout performance in his fifth collaboration with Lee (and first since 2006’s “Inside Man”). Washington is the reason to watch “H2L”, which is now streaming […]

Chris Columbus directed some of the most memorable movies of the ’80s, ’90s and early 2000s, including “Adventures in Babysitting”, “Home Alone” and its “Lost in New York” sequel, “Mrs. Doubtfire” and the first two “Harry Potter” installments. 10 years ago I covered the red carpet for the NYC premiere of his ‘video games come […]

I’m not crazy about director David Mackenzie’s 2016 “Hell or High Water”. It’s an alright but not powerhouse crime drama. But it was a rare August release that spoke to all of the major awards season groups, earning Oscar nominations for star Jeff Bridges and writer Taylor Sheridan (who would go on to “Yellowstone”), as […]

I’m all for the Lohanissance. I’m glad Lindsay Lohan is acting again. 1998’s “The Parent Trap”, her on-screen debut, is one of my 10 favorite movies. She had quite a run from ’98 to 2005, including “Life-Size”, “Get a Clue”, “Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen”, “Herbie: Fully Loaded” (all for Disney) and “Mean Girls”. […]

Here’s the lowdown on “The Pickup”: Eddie Murphy plays armored truck driver vet Russ. Pete Davidson is Travis, the rookie. What should be an ordinary cash pickup becomes anything but, as thief Zoe (Keke Palmer) gets their attention, revealing she’s after the money. She decides to take the two hostage on what also happens to […]

In “The Fantastic Four: First Steps”, the evil Galactus (played by Ralph Inesson) desperately wants the new baby of Reed Richards and Sue Storm. But they, and the other members of Marvel’s first family, Johnny Storm and Ben Grimm, are going to protect young Franklin at all cost, even if that also means defeating the […]