Dick Johnson is Dead (2020)
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I have not [...]
Action
Unholy Relics: Appreciating the Goofy Charm of ‘Batman the Movie’ at 55
As a movie and as a TV series “Batman” belongs in a time capsule, not of Batman lore but of a loving tribute to the pop sensation of the swinging 60s. To watch it again after almost 50 years is to be reminded of a time when television – and for that matter pop culture […]
Captain Marvel (2019)
If there is any one element that has kept the Marvel Cinematic Universe constantly inventive and entertaining over the past 10 years it is that the films, for the most part, have been relatively simple. Not simple-minded, just unburdened – the plots are thin enough that they get out of the character’s way. This has […]
Miss Bala (2019)
Miss Bala is exactly what you expect from an action movie opening in February, more than that its exactly what you expect from a movie about a woman on a murderous rampage that is NOT directed by Quentin Tarantino. That’s a nice way of saying, this movie stinks! Part of the problem is that it […]
Venom (2018)
Here is a confession. I am nearly absent of any knowledge of the Marvel Comics character called Venom. I know that he has an affiliation with Spider-Man but that’s about it. Having seen his movie, I have to say, I find him interesting if not entirely appetizing. He looks a little like Spider-Man crossed with […]
BlacKkKlansman (2018)
There was once a time when the release of a new Spike Lee joint came with a set of expectations. You knew that a new film by this most inflammatory of American directors would not only piss you off but would challenge your perceptions about the uneasy American racial landscape. He looked it dead in […]
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)
When Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom ended, I sat in my second-row seat staring at the rolling credits with a feeling of general puzzlement. I’m a pretty attentive movie-goer but I wondered if I had missed something. I wondered if there was a line of dialogue or a plot point that blew by me amid all […]
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
A little less than an hour before sitting down to write this review, a lady asked me “Would the new Avengers movie make any sense to someone who hasn’t seen the other movies in this series?” My quick answer is simple: “Yes, but it won’t mean as much to you because you don’t know the […]
Tomb Raider (2018)
The new reboot of Tomb Raider is 118 minutes of “Who Could Care?” Seriously, there’s nothing here. It gathers points for looking appropriately grungy and having stuff move around on the screen but ultimately it leaves you empty and dissatisfied. Here is a movie that is passionless, joyless, unoriginal and drags a perfectly good Oscar-winning […]
