“Kong: Skull Island” taps into the same definition of “spectacle” that applies to “Jurassic World” nearly two years ago. This ain’t your old “King Kong.” This is “go big or go home.” If you’re looking for the version steeped in awe and wonder, go watch the 1933 original. To expand the original’s wonderment with the best of today’s special effects, go watch Peter Jackson’s 2005 remake. If you want a rip-roaring roller coaster with no strings, rules, or heavy gravitas attached, you’ve come to the right place in 2017.

MOVIE REVIEW: The Finest Hours

Normally, every protagonist in a live-action Walt Disney film gets a unnecessarily thick coat of heroic paint and every encounter, obstacle, or event calls for a full-throated orchestra of peril and self-importance. In a somewhat pleasant surprise, "The Finest Hours" avoids most of the the puffed-up flamboyance that we expect (and commonly grow tired of) from the Mouse House. The key word is "most," as the film thankfully dials down the usual Disney over-inflation while still possessing plenty of imperfections and distractions.

MOVIE REVIEW: The Drop

It is of great surprise that, for me, all I kept thinking about during "The Drop" was Michael Madsen's response-begging question from Quentin Tarantino's "Reservoir Dogs" as Mr. Blonde: "Are you going to bark all day or are you going to bite?" For too much of "The Drop," a seemingly record number of bushes are being beaten around. Don't get me wrong. A dialogue-driven and slow-boiling premise can work and has worked, worlds over, but it has to deliver at some point. "The Drop" does have a sly ending in mind and at play, but it doesn't match or make up for the tedious lead-up. Considering the talent involved, I expected more.

EVERY MOVIE HAS A LESSON

by Don Shanahan

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