Category: Action
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From Braveheart to the Outlaw King
Outlaw King will not be considered an equal bookend to Braveheart’s first part of the story of the Scottish Rebellion, but it should not be considered a failure by Mackenzie. The history presented is debatable, but it’s close enough to warrant some nice scenes and a series of muddy battles.
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The Girl In The Spider’s Web (***1/2) Returns to the scene
“Overall, the film is a winner, but barely. The lack of subtlety hurts when one can easily determine when they can step out to take a leak because they know the moments and plot points instinctively. If they can find a way to keep it all a mystery, that’d be a real treat.”
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Overlord (****) is adrenalized with righteousness
#overlord “There are several cool moments in this film that feel borrowed from other films. This doesn’t diminish their enjoyability. Avery’s ability to mix sight and sound is jarringly good most of the time. Whether this can be replicated in a home theater depends on your system, The acting of Adepo and Russell push beyond…
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Hunter Killer (***) is obvious and likable
Let’s be honest. It’s not a tremendous work of art that Marsh, Butler and co. have produced here. There are no nominations or awards forthcoming. What Hunter Killer does have, though, is enjoyability on a completely masculine scale. It’s the kind of film I might have watched with my dad when he was alive. It…
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Venom (***1/2) has some juice
#venom Somewhere between the drawing board and the actuality of the screen a great film was lost. What is left is a good film that has enough pieces on the cutting room floor, the home release should be interesting…Venom could surprise at the box office. It’s better than the standard is for hero films these…
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Alpha (**) Doesn’t have a dog in the hunt
This film will not stick with me too much beyond this week, to be sure. It’s just another approximation of stuff we’ll never be able to prove. Hughes might want to stick with future apocalypse stuff like The Book of Eli, since most of his work seems to be based on stuff placed for effect…
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Along with the Gods: The 49 Days Exceeds Every Expectation (*****)
“The greatness of this series is in its ability to mix action, emotion, mythology and philosophy effortlessly and quite earnestly. Whether one believes in the premise, we understand that the characters believe it. This makes it as important to us as it is to them. ”
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Mission: Impossible – Fallout (***1/2) completes a cycle
“This is an excellently crafted film. It hits every mark that needs to be hit, often times too squarely for effect. The story worked with Rogue Nation for a two film arc, but it would be a good idea to go back to the original premise of different directors for different films now that we’ve…
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Equalizer 2 (****) is a sequel worth coming back for
The Equalizer 2 – 2018 Director Antoine Fuqua Screenplay Richard Wenk Starring Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Ashton Sanders, Bill Pullman, Melissa Leo There is almost nothing in The Equalizer 2 you have not already witnessed many times over. There is McCall (Washington) who is the wounded warrior archetype, trying to live a Cincinnatus existence. The promise made to his wife…
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Skyscraper (***) lacks nuance, but not acting energy
Skyscraper – 2018 Written and Directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber Starring Dwayne Johnson, Neve Campbell, Chin Han, Roland Møller, Noah Taylor, Byron Mann, Pablo Schreiber, Hannah Quinlivan Rawson Marshall Thurber has maybe two half decent films on his resume. Dodgeball is an offbeat star vehicle that works for Vaughan and Stiller. Central Intelligence does the same in a more or less comedy action way…
Ebert Did It Better: Gasbag Reviews 