Category: 2.5 Stars
-
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (**1/2) is a take worth leaving
McDonagh has been effective in the past, with many of the same actors, even. He completely wastes Searcy, Dinklage and Hawkes here. If his writing seemed better in the past, it may have been due to more familiarity with the subjects. I wish the focus had been more on realistic characters, maybe punching up the…
-
Justice League (**1/2) Gathered too soon
I want to see more films with this cast. They are likable and they have something to offer. A deliberate altering of the path needs to happen behind to make that talent come alive.
-
The Mummy (**1/2) guesses wrong…a lot
This film is messy, but it’s not a complete disaster. It guesses a lot and most of those guesses land awkwardly… The film is passable, but in no way can we consider it the solid basis for the Dark Universe franchise. The sense of adventure exhibited in this film could lead to something better. It’s…
-
-
Bridget Jones’s Baby (**1/2) Just a little further…
Ultimately this is the story about Bridget Jones and Mark Darcy. In that respect, it feels more stilted than ever. Someone took happily ever after and broke it up only so they could make a couple of sequels. If it were only possible to make a happily ever after sequel that didn’t involve the split…
-
31 (**1/2) – It’s Hostel on the road
My hopes for this film started to drain the moment I heard Hilton-Jacobs faux Jamaican accent. Why oh why do they ever let that accent into any movie that doesn’t take place in the Caribbean? Hell, I even hated it in the third Johnny Depp opus. It’s something that should be discouraged at all points.…
-
The Shallows (**1/2) doesn’t wade too far
The Shallows – 2016 Director Jaume Collet-Serra Screenplay Anthony Jaswinski Starring Blake Lively One would think Blake Lively in a movie called The Shallows is an asshole reviewers’ dream match. In truth, we can’t make this movie into more than it is: a scary movie with a shark. There is no way a shark that big could be…
-
Jason Bourne (**1/2): It all ends tonight…until the next movie
“This is not like Bond. We aren’t just changing locales, women and suits here. It’s not as gadgetty or as funny as the Mission:Impossible films became after the 2nd one, either. While those film franchises used the intensity of the Bourne franchise to catapult into something better, Damon and Greengrass took the reputation well earned…
-
Lights Out (**1/2) but no dance
There are a few scary moments in Lights Out (hint: they don’t include Bello), but overall, the film is like a first date movie. The kind you take a girl to when you aren’t sure where she is with the concept of a scary movie, but you wouldn’t mind having her jump into your arms…
-
Central Intelligence (**1/2): A measure of the Rock’s comedic flexing ability
Let’s be serious though. This isn’t mensa material. It’s a big dumb action comedy. There is nothing here as funny as Thurber’s Terry Tate, Office Linebacker and thank goodness there is nothing nearly as bad as We’re The Millers. It might get a few sequels, and that’s fine. I’m pretty sure I won’t remember one…
Ebert Did It Better: Gasbag Reviews 