Category: 4 Stars
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Kong: Skull Island (****) great taste and it’s sort of fulfilling
There are many stories strewn throughout the wasteland of Skull Island. There is a point near the end, where we see a collection of ships that have been left abandoned there through hundreds of years. What happened to all of those people? It would be nice to get a hint of just a few of…
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Train to Busan (****) Next Stop, South Korea
Sang-ho has a true artist’s touch for many scenes. His perspective allows him to borrow ideas from other films and make it seem unique.
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The Founder (****) gives a decent take on who built that
I wish they could have stretched this out to perhaps another film or at least another hour, beyond the reach they allowed themselves. In this way, the movie feels a lot like that restaurant in San Bernardino. It’s fine start, but this story is worth a franchise.
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Doctor Strange (****) cuts a few corners but is no less enjoyable
Dr. Strange – 2016 Director Scott Derrickson Screenplay by John Spaihts, C. Robert Cargill and Derrickson Starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Michael Stuhlbarg, Benjamin Bratt, Scott Adkins, Mads Mikkelsen, Tilda Swinton We may be reaching a breaking point on guest stars in Marvel films. The talent in Dr. Strange is at once invigorating and frustrating. To find that Ejiofor plays Mordo…
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Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children (****)
Burton’s instincts are tempered here. He’s allowed the weirdness we normally get from him, but without any of the routine “no one understands how weird I want to be” normally pushed to the forefront. Having Green in the role normally reserved for Helena Bonham Carter infests certainly helps. Ultimately we get all of the benefits…
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The Accountant (****) is compelling though predictable
It’s a potential franchise for the perpetually disenfranchised. It’s Rain Man on steroids. It’s not so good will hunting. It’s a connection for all of us who thought we could never connect to someone of different ability, often referred to as being in an autism spectrum.
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Don’t Breathe (****) is only a motion away
Alvarez and Sayagues have a more relevant film here than just typical horror. There is motivation behind every character and that raises the stakes beyond useless gore. They may have a tough time pulling off a sequel, but the ending leaves that open. An extra star for them if they never do make it.
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The Magnificent Seven (****) is star power at its best
Even if you are not a fan of the recent spate of pale remakes that come along with every generation, this update is worth your time. It will take a spot in my collection, to be sure. Right after Kurosawa.
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Sing Street (****) You can go anywhere
If you like coming of age movies, you will like this film. If you like movies featuring music that aren’t “musicals” where characters spontaneously break into song for no damn reason, you will like this film. If you still have hope in humanity, you will like this film. If you like any combination of the…
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Free State of Jones (****) – The rebellion to the rebellion
McConaughey is certainly uninterested in presenting himself as a movie star. His performance stands in direct contrast to, say, DiCaprio’s overly desperate attempts and dramatization in The Revenant. Whereas that film goes out of its way to change history in order to make its protagonist the only sympathetic figure in the story, we get more…
Ebert Did It Better: Gasbag Reviews 