Once again, what’s winsome and bodacious in Free Guy begins with Ryan Reynolds. From Van Wilder and Deadpool and everything hit-and-miss in-between, he combines naivety, enthusiasm, and dorkiness to a vitality level that is nearly second to none among his comedian peers. Ryan’s verbal gift-of-gab has long been legendary, and his go-for-broke physical comedy skills on top of that mouth are the true, full commitment to the bit.
Read MoreThe possible branched and multiplied interpretations, unanchored to any specific religion or philosophy, are innumerable. So few films hit true existentialism this strongly. Nine Days is an intellectual treasure that moves your heart and mind greater than some many other things you can watch and absorb from a couch or theater seat. With brevity and profundity wholly rooted in the preciousness of life, Nine Days leaves its mark as one of the best films of 2021. Discover this unique and crushingly beautiful gem immediately.
Read MoreWho’s going to make it or not? Who or what else is going to show up? What actors will make the most of their arbitrary characters? What improves from the grossly reviled 2016 movie? Most of all, as the action piles on, keep losing chips on trying to guess WTF is going to happen next. The pitch is clear. Come to The Suicide Squad and place your bets for the roller coaster experience that awaits. All of that warped glee equals the energy brought forth by James Gunn’s resuscitated and hyper-juiced sequel.
Read MoreThe Green Knight states all good myths are brave and bold. At some point, that profundity has to go beyond aesthetics. The screen titles also announce that what is presented is not that kind of legend. Yeah, and that’s the problem when considering the source material built with magical bedrock. Never has chivalric romance and so-called adventure been treated so pensively.
Read MoreLook, Jungle Cruise knows exactly what it is, much like the brand of comedy coming from Dwayne’s skipper that’s called out by Blunt’s pragmatic presence. The jokes are corny, the hijinks aim for hilarity, and the spectacle is large. Like its theme park inspiration and Pirates of the Caribbean walking so this movie could run, Jungle Cruise is meant to be a ride that puts a smile on your face, and it sure is a zippy one. That’s right where it’s supposed to be.
Read MoreThis is Shyamalan’s second ever adaptation, following the disastrous The Last Airbender, and he has smeared another one. The predicament of the setting and the possibility of unseen puppeteer strings are given more mysterious investment than the people at the core. That has very limited appeal. At some point, someone, more than something, has to matter.
Read MoreMuch of Joe Bell has the pungent trace of an unglamourous “glamour project” for Mark Wahlberg and likely a few of the film’s manly executive producer backers including Jake Gyllenhaal, NFL Hall of Famer Derrick Brooks, and former NBA All-Star Michael Finley to name a few. Projecting for sure, this movie feels like a place where the A-lister is trying to put forth marketed atonement for his own past bigotry. When all of this movie adds up to be about him, the genuineness aligns to the wrong place.
Read MoreRafe Spall’s Teddy shares a lovely line to his best girl Leanne, played by Zahra Newman, towards the beginning of Long Story Short. He says “I love you more than I did yesterday and not as much as I will tomorrow.” I adore that line. It speaks with such intentional optimism. If only we all lived our lives as honestly and as purposefully as that little mantra. If you see sweetness in that gracious sentiment, there’s much more where that came from in the romance at the center of this little Aussie VOD gem written and directed by actor Josh Lawson.
Read Moreby Lafronda Stumn
As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.
Read MoreSlotted with a self-important story to tell that takes place after the events of 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, this prequel arrives with a better-late-than-never party invitation of hype. Boasting some of the best melee work in a Marvel film, Black Widow belongs on the big screen and displays gratifying action sequences that rightfully highlight powerful females worthy of the spotlight. It also belonged in front of our eyes five years ago and not now. There is an unshakable magnitude of foregone conclusions that curtail the upper tier of potential excitement.
Read Moreby Lafronda Stumn
As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.
Read MoreEdge of the World chronicles the story of James Brooke’s emergence as the first White Rajah of Sarawak on the Malaysian island of Borneo during the middle of the 19th century. The adoptive leader became the inspiration template for authors Rudyard Kipling and Joseph Conrad and their respective far-off adventure stories of The Man Who Would Be King and Lord Jim.
Read More
