Wuthering Heights

My View: Wuthering Heights  (2026)  R Wuthering Heights is the legendary love story set against the backdrop of the Yorkshire moors that follows the intense, sometimes destructive relationship between Heathcliff (Jacob Elordi) and Catherine (Margot Robbie). Writer/director Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman) clarified that she was making a personal version of Wuthering Heights and not a direct adaptation of Emily Brontë’s much-loved novel. Your first clue is a soundtrack mostly composed of songs written and performed by Charli XCX, which gives the film a bit of a modern touch, though not as much as I anticipated. I have a feeling that fans of the book will be disappointed with this rather disjointed telling. The first half, which covers Catherine and Heathcliff’s childhood, is the most interesting part of the film. The dynamic between the two characters as children is interesting and at times riveting. I can’t say the same thing for when Heathcliff and Catherine are adults, especially when Heathcliff leaves for a spell because of Catherine getting married to rich suitor Edgar (Shazad Latif). I didn’t like the chemistry between Robbie and Elordi, as it never gave off the sparks that the film needed. Here’s a clue to this film: anytime it rains, you know Catherine and Heathcliff are going to have sex. And it rains a lot. I also had a hard time understanding Elordi’s dialogue, as he tended to swallow his words, trying to be the illiterate, brooding tough guy. I didn’t like any character in this film, including our two lovers, who seem like spoiled brats, selfish, and unable to keep their hands off each other (especially in the rain). I am surprised the film didn’t end with a rousing remake of “Blame it on the Rain”.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Wuthering Heights Website  Now playing in theaters

My View:  Crime 101  (2026)  R  Crime 101 follows a jewel thief named Mike Davis (Chris Hemsworth) whose heists along the 101 freeway have made him a legend and have left the police baffled. Mike has set his sights on the ultimate score and finds out that Sharon Colvin (Halle Berry), an insurance broker, wants in on the deal. Can Mike trust Sharon, or is she setting him up for a fall? I am a big fan of the Michael Connelly Harry Bosch book series, and one thing Connelly does is always talk about the traffic in L.A. Writer/director Bart Layton and Cinematographer Erik Wilson do a great job is capturing the look and feel of L.A. with its long line of cars on the freeway and the homes and hotels of the rich, along with the scenes of the homeless on the street, as our hero Mike figures out his next heist. I had fun with this film and its multiple storylines, which keep intersecting throughout. The film has some nice twists, and I had expected that there would be a romance between Hemsworth and Berry, but that’s not the case. Instead, both characters see each other as a tool to be used to get what they want. In fact, there is more attraction between Berry’s character, a woman who keeps bumping up against the glass ceiling and can’t break through, and Mark Ruffalo’s world-weary but by-the-rules cop, as they both are getting screwed by their bosses. Instead, there is a fun romance between Hemsworth’s character, who has a troubled past, and Monica Barbaro’s character, a woman he meets in a strange ‘meet-cute’ moment. I was amazed by how that relationship turned out. The big heist kept me guessing, and I thoroughly enjoyed Barry Keoghan’s motorcycle heist man, who is way in over his head on everything he does. It must be fun to be Keoghan these days, taking parts where he can go nuts. Crime 101 isn’t a brilliant film (comparing it to LA centric movies like Heat or Beverly Hills Cop), but it’s a fun time with a great cast and a city that is always interesting to be in.  My Rating: Full Price  Crime 101 website  Now playing in theaters 

Familyfaire:  GOAT  (2026)  PG  GOAT is about Will, a small goat with dreams of going pro and playing roar ball, the high-intensity, full-contact sport dominated by the fastest, fiercest animals in the world. Will is determined to prove he belongs and that “smalls can ball!” I don’t know, maybe kids who love basketball or goats will like this movie, but I was bored almost from the start. I didn’t like the animation style, which at times felt soft and at other times too harsh. The plot was too simple, the storyline wasn’t well thought out, and I didn’t care if the team of misfits ever won a game, much less make it to the championship. The film kept throwing ideas at us, as if it had decided to play dodgeball rather than basketball. Steph Curry, who produced the film and voices one of the characters, needs to stick to winning championships and stay out of the animation chair.  My Rating: Cable   GOAT Website Now playing in theaters

Indiefest:  Jimpa  (2025)  Jimpa is about Hannah (Olivia Colman), who, along with her nonbinary teenager, Frances (Aud Mason-Hyde), travels to Amsterdam to visit her gay father Jim (John Lithgow), who goes by the term Jimpa, instead of grandpa. When Frances expresses an interest in staying with her ‘Jimpa’, Hannah is forced to re-examine her parenting and her past. Jimpa is a film with its heart in the right place, but it doesn’t know how to convey that message without hitting us over the head. The film features impressive performances by John Lithgow and Olivia Colman, but it feels like it is filled with meaningless subplots, mostly involving Frances and their quest to find a place in the world. The film never hits the mark with its overabundance of sentimentality. It’s funny that Jimpa is about a filmmaker, Hannah, who is told that her next film project doesn’t have enough conflict to make a good drama. I can say the same thing for Jimpa.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Jimpa Website  Now playing in select theaters

Indiefest:  Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die  (2025)   R   In Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, a “Man From the Future” (Sam Rockwell) shows up at a Los Angeles diner and takes the patrons hostage. He claims he is a time traveler and needs their help in stopping AI from eventually destroying humanity. Sam Rockwell has so much fun in this role as the madman who bullies people into joining him in what he knows is likely a suicide mission. Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die is a wild ride with outstanding performances from Juno Temple as a mom grieving the son she thought she knew and Haley Lu Richardson as an angry, depressed young woman who seems set on joining the group because she wants to die. The film is incredibly wacky and doesn’t follow any rules, but its message is timely. How many times have you seen people walking into traffic or running into people because they can’t look up from their phones? That’s the core of this film, how the internet and our technology doesn’t care about us, it just wants our full-out attention. So put down your phone, get ready to see some really weird stuff, and join in on the revolution to stop AI from taking over the world and our lives. The “Man from the Future” will show you the way, though you might want not to go first.  My Rating: Full Price  Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die Website  Now playing in theaters

Indiefest:  Cold Storage  (2026)  R  Cold Storage is about two employees, Travis (Joe Keery) and Naomi (Georgina Campbell), who work at a self-storage facility built atop a former military base. Their night becomes a nightmare when a rapidly mutating, parasitic fungus escapes from the base. Their only hope is a grizzled bio-terror operative named Robert Quinn (Liam Neeson). Who would have thought that Academy Award-winning actress Vanessa Redgrave, Oscar-nominated actress Lesley Manville, and Liam Neeson would be in a zombie/fungus taking over the world movie and would have some sizable parts to boot. Keery and Campbell are fun as two security guards tasked with saving the world. The plot is pretty simple, and the zombies are really gross, with lots of splatter going on, including a zombie throwing up on a bunch of bikers to infect them. Neeson looks like he is having a blast in the part, along with a chain-smoking Manville. I assume Vanessa Redgrave is a friend of someone involved in the film, because she is there for comic relief and isn’t really important to the plot. This is one of those films that's perfect for a Saturday night, with lots of popcorn and a few drinks. Just don’t get anything green to drink. My Rating: Bargain Matinee   Cold Storage Website Now playing in theaters

Indiefest:  Nirvana the Band the Show the Movie  (2025) R  Nirvana the Band the Show the Movie takes place when Matt (Matt Johnson) and Jay (Jay McCarroll) try to book a show at the Rivoli, and it goes horribly wrong. So the guys try to create a time machine, like in Back to the Future, and guess what? It works! Only they are now in the year 2008 and can’t get back home. I didn’t know much about the guys or their show, but judging by the enthusiastic and boisterous audience, fans of their work are going to love this film. The duo takes a bit of getting used to, and their harebrained schemes are outlandish, but that’s the charm of these very Canadian guys, who say hello to almost everyone on the street and often ask where people are from, just to be nice. There is a running joke about copyrights that is hilarious, including stealing a whole lot from the earlier-mentioned Back to the Future films. And beware of anyone afraid of heights; a good deal of the plot revolves around the CN Tower, one of the world's tallest free-standing structures. You might need a parachute, or two.  My Rating: Full Price  Nirvana the Band the Show the Movie    Now playing in select theaters 

Forgotten Film: The Strawberry Statement  (1970) R A college student (Bruce Davison) joins a group of campus organizers, not because he is caught up in the politics of the day but because he hears it’s a great way to meet girls. And he does meet a girl (Kim Darby), but he also realizes the issues that they are protesting are meaningful and worthy. He soon learns that the protests can become scary and violent. This is a film that, while dated by being made during the Vietnam protests of the late 60s, still packs a punch and explores  ideals that are still relevant today. The film is enhanced by a great soundtrack featuring songs by Neil Young, John Lennon, and Crosby, Stills, and Nash. This is one of the late Bud Cort's first feature films.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  The Strawberry Statement Info  The film is available to rent on Apple TV+

Weird Credits: From the credits of Wuthering Heights: Candle Wrangler

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: Undertone  (2025)  R  A host of a popular paranormal podcast, Evy (Nina Kiri), is sent some mysterious and terrifying audio recordings that somehow become real in Evy’s world. Film critics who have seen the movie are giving it great reviews, and the trailer looks really scary. Plus its from the A24 studio, so you know its going to be a little bit weird.  Undertone Website  In theaters on Friday, March 13, 2026  

Until Next Time!

Transformers One

My View:  Transformers One  (2024)  PG  Transformers One tells the origin story of Optimus Prime and Megatron, who, when they were young, were friends who bonded like brothers. Little did they know that the two would change the fate of Cybertron forever after discovering what they had always been told was false. I am not a big fan of the Transformers films (other than Bumblebee (2018) and Transformers (2007)), but I know there are a lot of fans out there who love the series going back to the 80s TV show and the legendary The Transformers: The Movie (1986) that had a voice cast that included Orson Welles and Leonard Nimoy. I’ve lost count of how many live-action films there are, most of which were directed by Michael Bay. Having said all that, this is maybe one of the first films in the series that is not only good but is fun to watch, and not just for fans of the series. Transformers One is an origin story, so if your knowledge of the Transformers universe is only knowing that they are giant robot-like beings that turn into cars and trucks, you will be okay. We get to see how Optimus Prime and Megatron, who we learn were best friends, became the leaders of two warring factions that battled for control of the universe. The voice cast is outstanding, with great performances by Chris Hemsworth as Optimus, and Brian Tyree Henry as Megatron. Hemsworth worked with Peter Cullen, who has been the voice of Optimus for the franchise, to get ideas on how a young Optimus might sound. The rest of the cast isn’t too bad either with Jon Hamm, Laurence Fishburne, Steve Buscemi and Scarlett Johansson taking key roles. There is one voice actor who steals almost every scene he is in, Keegan-Michael Key, as B-127 (soon to be Bumblebee, a fan favorite in the Transformers world). Key is brilliant as the overly excited young worker who wants to be with the guys he sees as heroes, only to discover that he can become one. Transformers One is an old-fashioned origin story of how a villain is created by gaining power (both physically and emotionally) and a voice to express that power. It is also about how we need heroes to stand tall and be willing to sacrifice to stop those villains from wielding their power. So take the kids and, for once, have a good time yourself at an animated Transformers movie. My Rating: Full Price  Transformers One Website  Now playing in theaters nationwide. 

My View:  Never Let Go  (2024)  R  Never Let Go is about a mother (Halle Berry) and her two sons (Anthony B. Jenkins, Percy Daggs IV) who have been haunted by an evil spirit for years. Even when traveling outside, they keep themselves connected by tethering themselves with ropes, ensuring they are always linked back to their house. When one of the boy’s questions if the evil is real and the ties that bind them together are severed, their fight for survival becomes life and death. This film starts with an interesting premise: you have grown up only knowing what your mother has told you, that there is an evil force outside your home and the only way to survive is to stay connected to the house. Samuel (Anthony B. Jenkins) and Nolan (Percy Daggs IV) are becoming older, and Nolan is beginning to question whether what Mamma tells them is true or not. Is there really an evil force that wants to kill them as soon as they lose connection to their home? The film tries hard to create a horror aspect that it never delivers, as very early on, what Momma believes and sees is a very evil and scary world that constantly tries to trick her into letting her guard down. Even when some gross-looking characters come to torment Momma, the chills don't register. I thought Berry gave it her all with a character that, at times, is fierce and strong but also tilts on the side of madness. Both Percy Daggs IV, as the ever-questioning Nolan, and Anthony B. Jenkins as Samuel, always on the side of caution, always backing up his mother, even when it seems things aren’t what she says they are. Unfortunately, the final third of the film becomes a big mess, as the film fails to deliver what it has set up. The film becomes less of a horror film and more of a movie about who will win a will of beliefs. And while I won’t give it away, I hated the final bit of information the film gives us, a horror trope I have always detested when used.  My Rating: Cable  Never Let Go Website   Now playing in theaters.

My View:  Child Star  (2024)  The documentary Child Star explores the world of being a child star and how growing up in the spotlight and their ascension to fame, riches, and power affects their adult lives. Demi Lovato provides us with an inside look into the pressures and pitfalls that arise when children become stars at a young age. Lovato, whose own troubles were seen in the documentary Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil, takes us on a journey to explore what happens to children who often become the breadwinners of their family and are under constant pressure to preform, often at a nonstop pace. Lovato interviews former child stars Christina Ricci, Drew Barrymore, Raven-Simone, Kenan Thompson, JoJo Siwa, and Lovato’s fellow Rock Camp star Alyson Stoner. It’s a fascinating and, at times, horrifying look at an industry that often treats children as commodities to make money, and then when they grow up, or the ratings have gone down, to be let go without a support system to help them transition back into the real world. The film looks primarily at the world of Nickelodeon and the Disney Channel and how those two channels battled it out to make as much money off of their stars as they could. The documentary shows us too often that the star-making machine creates insecurity, eating disorders, and, ultimately, looking to drugs and alcohol as a way to escape. What I loved was that the blame wasn’t always put on the parents, as often they were only trying to make their children’s dreams come true. It's shocking to see how many child stars end up with almost nothing after their stardom ends due to mistakes and con artists. The film, unlike the documentary Quiet on the Set, doesn’t go into the seedier side of child exploitation but concentrates on the mental well-being of the children that grow up on sets, constantly being told they need to lose weight or they are pretty enough to get a role. And what we come away with is that Lovato is passionate and caring about making things better for the child star of tomorrow. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Child Star Website  Now playing on the Hulu platform.

My View: The Substance (2024)  R   Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) used to be the ‘it girl’, the woman that every man wanted and every woman wanted to look like. Elisabeth’s star has faded (literally as we see her Walk of Fame star develop cracks and fade during the opening credits), and she is getting old, at least as far as Hollywood is concerned. When on her birthday, she loses her job as host of a workout show (think Jane Fonda) and gets into a traffic accident, where she meets a doctor who slips her a jump drive that promises her a new, young, and improved body if she agrees to take a drug known as The Substance. The drug will transform her into a new person for 7 days, but then she must return to her old form for 7 days. What it doesn’t tell her is that her old body will be dormant for 7 days, while her new body, which is born out of her back, produces a new body (portrayed by Margaret Qualley), who takes the name of Sue. I will warn you that this film is full of incredibly uncomfortable and gross transformations, as the new body is first born out of the back of Elisabeth, reminiscent of horror films like Alien and The Fly. As the movie progresses, it becomes increasingly bizarre and repulsive. While a horror film, it is also a satire, with the film mocking the Hollywood system, controlled by dirty old men, with an emphasis on sex and beauty, always looking for the new fresh face. I became numb at all the incredibly over-the-top scenes, whether it was the extreme close-ups of the executive (played by Dennis Quaid) as he eats like a pig while firing Elisabeth or the constant transformations as Elisabeth suffers bodily disfigurement as the Sue person continues to be young and beautiful. I was excited to see this film because I am a big Demi Moore fan. Hollywood has ignored her for far too long, but after the first 30 minutes of the film, I became more and more disappointed that she was thrown into being the monster in a bad horror film. While I was impressed by the lack of CGI used to create all the special effects, the film went overboard with them and tried to constantly shock us. The film’s ending is as bizarre as the rest of it and makes it feel like a farce, more than a satire, as we end where we started, on the cracked and faded star on the Walk of Fame. I left The Substance feeling disappointed and longing for my two-plus hours back.   My Rating: Cable  The Substance Website  Now playing in theaters. 

Forgotten Film:  Kissing Jessica Stein (2001) R   Jessica (Jennifer Westfeldt) is tired of the dating scene and her bad luck with men. Her job as a copy editor and fact-checker causes her to be a perfectionist and overthink situations. She works for Josh (Scott Cohen), who used to be her boyfriend. After a series of disastrous dates, she decides to try dating a woman and answers a dating ad. Into Jessica’s life comes Helen (Heather Juergensen), who is instantly attracted to Jessica and is willing to try, taking it slow with Jessica. Helen is constantly amused by Jessica’s attempts at being with another woman, much like a person who doesn’t know how to swim, going to a pool and slowly dipping their toe into the water. I love this film, mostly because of the performance of Jennifer Westfeldt, who portrays Jessica as a woman with a good heart but someone who wants to go slow, really slow, in this new relationship, all the while worrying about what other people will say when they find out she is dating a woman. Kissing Jessica Stein is a romantic comedy with heart and wit and a lead that shines in every scene she is in. My Rating: Full Price  Kissing Jessica Stein Info  The film is available to rent/buy on Amazon Prime and Apple TV.

Weird Credits:  From the credits of The Substance:  English Translation

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You:  We Live in Time  (2024)  R  An up-and-coming chef (Florence Pugh) and a recent divorcee meet under some incredible circumstances that brings them together, in a decade-spanning look at life, love and heartache. The film wowed audiences at the 2024 Toronto Film Festival.  We Live in Time Website The film releases in theaters on Friday, October 18, 2024. 

                                                                   Until Next Time!

Alien: Romulus

My View:  Alien: Romulus  (2024)  R  In Alien: Romulus, a group of young space colonizers travel to a derelict space station named Romulus to make some quick money stealing equipment. Little do they know they are about to come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. I am a huge fan of the first two films of the series, with the first scaring the crap out of me at a midnight showing that I saw while I was a college student. Since then, I haven’t been much of a fan. Alien: Romulus does something that was lacking in those editions: fear. This is a fun thrill ride with plenty of scares, filled with tension as a clock is set for us and the team of young space raiders as they try to get out of a situation that goes from bad to worse. The film takes place between the first and second films, with a group of young people going to raid a ship without any idea what they are getting into. And that’s one of the cool things. As an audience, we know what they are walking into right when we see what's inside the ship they are raiding. The film centers on Rain (Cailee Spaeny) and her android sidekick Andy (David Jonsson), who has a few problems. Rain sees Andy as a brother rather than an android. That relationship is the key to the film, making the stakes higher as terror comes at them from every direction. The film excels in creating its own horror and providing us with a few Easter eggs from the past. There is a glaring weakness in the plot that I won’t go into (which is very apparent when you see it) that brings the film down a bit, but it’s not something that takes away from the overall experience. So get ready and remember: no one can hear you scream in space. But they can hear you scream in a theater.  My Rating: Full Price  Alien: Romulus Website    Now playing in theatres, including IMAX theaters.

My View:  Jackpot!  (2024)  R  Jackpot! takes place in 2030, as a Grand Lottery has been established in California with a giant payout. The only catch is that if you kill the winner (no guns allowed) before sundown, you can claim their prize. Katie (Awkwafina), an out-of-work actress, realizes that she is suddenly the winner and everyone is out to kill her. Her only hope of survival is amateur jackpot protector Noel (John Cena), but can Katie trust him? From the ton of footage accompanying the end credits, I am guessing that much of the film’s dialogue was improvised. While there are some funny scenes, the film feels as if an action film and a comedy film got together to make a movie, but only after each other had filmed their scenes separately. The film wastes the talents of Cena and Awkwafina, who try to right the ship many times, only to put in another action sequence that doesn’t work. I think the film could have done a better job if it had been darker and less slap-sticky. Jackpot! never finds a comic tone and pace to settle on, making it one long adventure to follow Katie around while people try to kill her. There is a bonus scene at the end of all the credits, if you make it that far.   My Rating: Cable  Jackpot! Website  Now playing on Amazon Prime. 

Indiefest: My Penguin Friend  (2024)  PG  My Penguin Friend is the story of a penguin rescued from an oil spill by a heartbroken fisherman, Joao (Jean Reno). Their friendship is so strong that 5,000 miles cannot separate them. Who doesn’t love penguins with their waddle and tuxedo look? Along comes a film about an unusual friendship between a penguin and a fisherman. Saved from near death, Joao, an old fisherman, against the odds, nurses the penguin back to health and is rewarded with a friend who follows him around like a puppy. But everything must come to an end, and one day, the penguin, now named Din Dim, goes back to the ocean and travels back to his breeding grounds, 5,000 miles away. However, what's 5,000 miles between friends? When it's time, Din Dim returns to Joao, and both his friend and the rest of the village are amazed. My Penguin Friend is a charming film that depicts the healing power of friendship and the benefits of showing kindness. Kids will fall in love with the little guy, and parents won’t mind the storyline (though it tries a little too hard to create some problems for the penguin to overcome). Hey, everyone needs a penguin best friend.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  My Penguin Friend Website  Now playing in theaters.

Indiefest:  Close to You  (2023)  R  In Close to You, Sam (Elliot Page), a trans man, is coming back to his hometown for the first time in years. He will try to reconnect with his family, maybe reunite with his first love, and discover if the world can change or will things remain the same. Close to You, Elliot Page’s first film post-transition, is obviously a way for Elliot to express to the world some of his feelings about his life now and how people see him. The film’s strengths are the performances, especially Page and Hillary Baack, who plays Sam’s old high school best friend, Katharine. Their scenes together are some of the best parts in the film, as Katharine slowly and unsteadily deals with not only Sam’s new life but also the realization that they were each other’s first loves. As the film progresses, their encounters, which become longer, are about two people discovering what they had. We see them feel each other out, figuring out a connection they had forgotten. The film's execution is uneven, with some scenes (with most of the dialogue improvised) feeling choppy and not fully formed, often resulting in an abrupt conclusion to the scene. The film's momentum is lost in the scenes with the whole family because there are too many cooks at the fire. Still, Close to You hits a lot of right notes, and in the end, we feel that we have been on a journey in which Sam has learned a bit more about himself and how to find the happiness that his childhood never gave him.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Close to You Website   Now playing in theaters. 

My View:  The Union  (2024)  PG-13  In The Union, it has been twenty years since Mike (Mark Wahlberg), an ordinary construction worker, has seen his high school ex-girlfriend Roxanne (Halle Berry). Out of the blue, Roxanne returns to Mike’s life, and the girl he has always loved is back in his life. One problem: Roxanne is a member of The Union, a top-secret government agency that does the dirty work that the CIA doesn’t want to do, and she needs Mike’s help on a mission. Anything for love. Right, Mike? So let me get this straight: a highly trained secret organization that does the stuff that the CIA doesn’t want to do picks a guy like Mike, with absolutely no training, because he was once the boyfriend of one of your top operatives and is a good guy? That right there should tell you how bad the plot of The Union is. Boasting a cast that includes two Oscar-winning actors in Halle Berry and J. K. Simmons, three Oscar nominees in Mark Wahlberg, Jackie Earle Haley, and Lorraine Bracco, and two-time Prime-time Emmy winner Dana Delany, how could a film be this bad? By the way, what bet did Dana Delany lose to be cast in such a throwaway role as Mike's old schoolteacher, who he is sleeping with? Truthfully, I was so bored with the plot that I lost track of who had the list of operatives everyone wanted. It’s in a backpack, no, a briefcase, no, a phone, no wait, it’s back in a briefcase. The sequence where they try to train Mike in all that he needs to know how to be a spy is incredibly badly done, but hey, so is the rest of the film. The end of The Union is so abrupt and badly executed that it makes that training sequence look Oscar-worthy. By the way, there is more chemistry between Dana Delany, as the former teacher, and Mark than there is between Wahlberg and Berry. And guess what? Netflix wants to make two more of these films. That’s the reason they give that Mark and Roxanne never kiss in the film. They want us to leave wanting more. I just want to leave.   My Rating: You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again. The Union Website  Now playing on Netflix.

Sorry I Missed It (A film that I didn’t see in theatres but have seen recently):  Snack Shack  (2024)  R  Snack Shack takes place in the summer of 1991, when two best friends, A.J. (Conor Sherry) and Moose (Gabriel Labelle), get the chance to run the swimming pool snack shack. In walks a new neighbor, Brooke (Mika Abdalla), who A.J. falls for at first sight. The small town pool and the two best friends will never be the same. It took me a bit to get into this film, as we are bombarded by the make-money schemes that A.J. and Moose are throwing out fast and furious at the beginning. Those scenes include betting at an off-track site across the highway from a zoo field trip from which they have escaped from without the school knowing. Once the idea of taking over a snack shack at a local community pool becomes their money maker (and it is), the film settles down to a fun and enjoyable coming-of-age film with a cast that hits all the right notes. Conor Sherry is just the right portion of geeky awkwardness with a bit of sexiness that you can see why Brooke instantly flirts with him. Mika Abdalla is the find of the movie as she steals every scene that she is in with great charisma and just the right amount of worldliness that her character exudes. Snack Shack is a fun film with some heart and hits a few tender moments as well. Just be warned, the guys smoke, drink (they brew their own beer), and constantly throw out a lot of profanity (sometimes spelled out in ketchup on the hot dogs they sell). So grab some sunscreen and jump in the pool. You’ll need a drink from the Snack Shack to cool down, and the guys will be ready to sell you one.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Snack Shack Website  Available for rent on most streaming services.

Forgotten Film:  We Were Soldiers  (2002)  R  The film tells the story of the first major battle of the American phase of the Vietnam War in 1965. Newly arrived in Vietnam, Lt. Col. Hal Moore (Mel Gibson) takes command of a battalion that is given the task of finding a group of North Vietnamese troops that attacked an army base. The army is unaware that the 400 men under Moore will soon be trapped by an army of 2,000 North Vietnamese. The film follows Moore and his men as they have to shift their objective from finding the enemy to defending a portion of the ground. The movie provides us with insight into the North Vietnamese, as we learn how the commander plans his attacks. We go back to the States to check on the well-being of the wives while their husbands are engaged in a war that America will soon hate. The outstanding cast includes Sam Elliot, Greg Kinnear, Chris Klein, Barry Pepper, Madeleine Stowe, Keri Russell, and Do’n Duro’ng. The film got lost at the box office, overshadowed by Black Hawk Down, but is an action film with some heart.  My Rating: Full Price  We Were Soldiers Info   The film is available to rent or buy on Amazon and Apple TV.

Weird Credits: From the credits of Alien: Romulus:  Offspring Application Team

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You:  Transformers One (2024)  PG  The origin story of Optimus Prime and Megatron, who, when they were young, were friends who bonded like brothers. Little did they know the two would change the fate of Cybertron forever. I’m not a huge Transformers fan, but I do know that this film is based on a blend of the original toys, the first games, and the early cartoons. The voice cast includes Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry, Scarlett Johansson, Keegan-Michael Key, Jon Hamm, and Laurence Fishburne.  Tranformers One Website The film is in theaters nationwide on Friday, September 20, 2024. 

Until Next Time!

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

My View: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) R  As the world falls, a biker horde led by the warlord Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) takes a young Furiosa. Years later, Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) tries to escape and find her way home as two tyrants wage a war. Having been a huge fan of the Mad Max franchise since I saw the original film at a midnight screening when in college, falling in love with the action and Mel Gibson (even with his voice dubbed because the studio thought American audiences wouldn’t be able to understand Gibson’s Australian dialect). I consider Mad Max 2 (The Road Warrior) (1981) one of the great action films of the 80s, and I picked Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) as one of the best films of that year. I am happy to say that while not as good as Fury Road, Furiosa is still an excellent action picture that gives us a ton of backstory on the origin of Furiosa, a character we all fell in love with in the 2015 film. A lot was made of the decision by filmmaker George Miller to not cast Charlize Theron again in the role, but Miller, after seeing how badly CGI did de-aging De Niro in The Irishman, Miller went with Anya Taylor-Joy for the role. It must be said that Taylor-Joy is only in the 2nd half of the film, as the early days of Furiosa use a much younger Alyla Browne in the role, as we learn she was kidnapped as a child by Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) and used as a kind of good luck charm as he terrorizes the world with his biker gang. The film is divided into segments, each telling an essential part of Furiosa’s life. When Anya takes over the role, she shows us she can kick butt with the best of them. I loved her in this role, and she showed she can handle the action sequences. There is an excellent sequence in the middle of the film as Furiosa has become the sidekick of the best rig driver, Praetorian Jack (played by a very charismatic Tom Burke), as he drives a massive war rig across the desert delivering precious gas while Furiosa and Jack fight off a seemingly endless group of attackers who are trying to highjack the rig. It’s a fantastic bit of stunt work that goes on for at least ten minutes of high-octane action. Chris Hemsworth dominates the screen every time he is on it, as the mad as a hatter warlord who loves to cause as much trouble as he can. Hemsworth chews scenery with the best of them, and it’s always fun to see just how nuts his character is in each chapter of the film. While not a great film like Fury Road, Furiosa is still a rousing action film filled with characters you will keep thinking about long after the last scene leaves the screen.   My Rating: Full Price  Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga Website  Now playing in theaters nationwide.

Familyfaire: The Garfield Movie (2024) PG  Jon (voiced by Nicholas Hoult) rescued Garfield (Chris Pratt) after finding the cat abandoned in a restaurant. Now grown, Garfield has a sudden reunion with his long-lost father, an alley cat named Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson). Now Garfield and his dog pal Odie (voiced by Harvey Guillen) are forced from their perfectly pampered life into joining Vic in a high-stakes heist. The bar is pretty low for any Garfield movie. I mean, Bill Murray sleepwalked doing the voice of Garfield for two movies in the early 2000s. So, how does this film stack up? It’s ok, which in Garfield movie-land means it’s watchable. Kids are going to enjoy the film. There is plenty of action, Garfield gets into lots of trouble and still saves the day, and the cast of characters are at least interesting and colorful. I was bored by most of the film, even with many movie references, but the kids in the theatre with me seemed to enjoy the antics of the fat cat. Chris Pratt does a fine job as the voice of the cat with an attitude. Unlike Mr. Murray, he at least sounded like he was having fun. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  The Garfield Movie Website Now playing in theaters. 

My View: Atlas (2024) PG-13   Atlas Shepard (Jennifer Lopez) is a data analyst who deeply mistrusts AI technology, even though her mother is responsible for creating the technology that gave AI robots their power. Atlas decides to join an anti-terrorist mission to stop an AI from destroying Earth. After an attack, Atlas is marooned on a planet, and her only ally is an AI robot named Smith. Together, they will have to succeed, or the Earth is doomed. I’ve always felt that Jennifer Lopez could have been a bigger film star if she hadn’t gone off to become a pop star. She had a successful run in the late 90s with Selena, U-Turn, and an outstanding performance in Out of Sight. Even Anaconda is fun to watch, and The Cell is so weird that it is extremely watchable. Then she went with the rom-com route, and we got Gigli, among others. I had hope when she got great reviews with Hustlers (2019), but then she went back to the rom-com route again with stuff like Marry Me and Shotgun Wedding. So now we have Jennifer as a tough-as-nails woman who is determined to stop an AI named Harlan (played by Simu Liu) from destroying the world, an AI that her mother created and set loose on the world. Jennifer spends most of the film inside a giant robot-like war machine that, to work properly, must sync with Atlas so that they both share each other’s thoughts. I liked the action sequences, and the ultimate battle between Atlas and the AIs is fun to watch, but it takes a long time to get there, and that’s what slows this film down. We slowly get the real reasons Atlas is so determined to defeat Harlan (besides his desire to kill humans). This isn’t a bad film; in fact, I enjoyed it for what it is: a sci-fi action film with not enough action in it. I am hoping that Jennifer will find the right role again in the near future. Just stay away from the rom-coms for awhile.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Atlas Website  Now playing on Netflix. 

My View: The Blue Angels  (2024)  The documentary The Blue Angels delves into the selection and training of the Navy/Marine Corps Flight Demonstration Squadron, called The Blue Angels. I grew up in San Antonio, TX, which is a big Air Force and Army town. So, I didn’t know much about the Blue Angels, but this film has corrected that. This film will amaze you with how skillful these Navy and Marine pilots are. The aerial photography is mind-blowing, and you will be thrilled at the precision it takes to fly these planes like the Blue Angels do. We get to know the pilots and, to a lesser extent, their families as the camera spends a year following the pilots as they crisscross the country, bringing their air show to crowds that sometimes are larger than a Super Bowl. What I loved was the behind-the-scenes training that these pilots do, showing us all the classwork and study sessions that go on throughout the year to try and achieve perfection in their flying. Like their airshows, I have a feeling that this film will inspire a few kids to want to become pilots and someday fly with The Blue Angels.  My Rating: Full Price  The Blue Angels Website  Now playing on Amazon Prime. 

Indiefest:  Babes  (2024) R  In Babes, Eden (Ilan Glazer) and Dawn (Michelle Buteau) have been friends forever. They grew up in NYC and experienced everything together. Eden, carefree and single, has a one-night stand and becomes pregnant. She decides to have the baby and will need all the help that her best friend can supply. This film is a hilarious and touching depiction of friendship and family. It's also about the family you create through friendship, and sometimes that bond is stronger than your real family. When we meet Dawn and Eden, they are getting together for their annual watching of a movie in a theater on Thanksgiving, and they will not stop for anything, even if Dawn is having a baby. We instantly see the dynamic between the two as they decide to leave the movie and get something to eat before Dawn has to suffer for ’25 hours like last time. ’ They are best friends, and nothing can get in the way of that. Except for life, especially after a great one-night stand, Eden finds out she is preggers, and Dawn is having trouble managing a new baby, a job, and a toddler. Glazer and Buteau's comedic timing is incredible, as the chemistry between the two women is off the charts. Their banter is laugh-out-loud funny, and the situations they are in seem based on real-world experiences. The film is helped by a great supporting cast, including John Carroll Lynch, who plays both women’s baby doctor. Every time he is on camera, there is a running gag that just made me lose it. While men are going to have a great time, and by the way, Marty (Hasan Minhaj), Dawn’s husband, is a saint, women are going to fall in love with Babes, and its observations on motherhood, pregnancy, birth, and friendship. Go see this film. You will laugh (with a few tears in between) from beginning to end.  My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again  Babes Website  Now playing in theaters. 

Forgotten Film: Clean and Sober (1988) R  Daryl (Michael Keaton) is a successful real-estate salesman who has seen better days. He is a drug addict and is in trouble with his job for taking some money and investing it (badly) in the stock market. Oh, and a woman he picks up at a bar dies from a heart attack due to all the drugs they did together. He decides to escape and enroll in an anonymous drug rehab program. His thinking is he can hang out until things cool down. Little does he know this program is run by a counselor who has seen guys like Daryl a hundred times before and will make Daryl work at his recovery. The movie is helped by a supporting cast that includes Morgan Freeman as the counselor, Kathy Baker as a fellow addict whose life is as big a mess as Daryl, and the great M. Emmet Walsh as Daryl’s AA sponsor. Keaton is perfect in the role of a guy who thinks he can either charm or BS anyone into believing anything. The film lets you know at the end that it will be a long and bumpy road for Daryl. We don’t know if he will succeed in staying sober, but at least he has a chance.   My Rating: Full Price  Clean and Sober Info The film is available on streaming services.

Weird Credits: From the credits of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga: Earthworks Manager

Coming Soon to Screen Near You: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)   After an unexpected family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family have come home to Winter River and the house we all know so well. Lydia (Winona Ryder) is still haunted by Beetlejuice, and to make things worse, her daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega), has discovered that mysterious model of the town. It’s only a matter of time before someone’s name will be uttered three times. Tim Burton and Michael Keaton have returned to bring us the magic back. As someone in a dirty, black-and-white suit says, “The Juice is loose!”  Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Website The film is slated for release in early September.

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The Flash

My View: The Flash (2023)  PG-13  Barry Allen, aka The Flash (Ezra Miller), uses his super speed to change the past and bring back his mother from the dead. However, messing with the past can have massive effects, including creating a world without heroes. The Flash’s only hope: a retired Batman, another Barry, and an imprisoned Kryptonian. The Flash is an attempt to reboot the DC superhero franchise. Does it succeed? Yes and no. The film is helped by an outstanding performance by Ezra Miller, who plays Barry as a young man who desperately wants to be a superhero but also wants to, somehow, someway fix the mistakes of the past. Barry discovers that through a thing called Speed Force, he can go fast enough to travel back in time. The Flash isn’t the first DC movie to do this (Christopher Reeve’s Superman), but it’s the first to do something that impacts every part of the DC universe. Because of the Flash using Speed Force to change the past successfully, it affects the present, and that’s when things get messy. It’s not a secret that Michael Keaton gets to get back into the Batman costume, and I am happy to say that it’s not just a one-scene appearance, but Keaton’s Batman is a major cog in the film and how The Flash is going to right things in the universe. I liked the action sequences and the amount of humor in the movie, but the film goes on for too long and tries to explain everything in detail. Having been a fan of The CW’s The Flash TV series, I am very aware of the Speed Force ability of Flash and the consequences that it can create. There are some fantastic cameos, and I enjoyed a new take on Supergirl (played by Sasha Calle), but an ending that seemed too easy to defeat the bad guy let me down. The Flash has created a DC multiverse with a ton of possibilities to explore in the future. It will be interesting to see where DC films go from here and how much Ezra Miller’s the Flash will be involved with them. And yes, there is a post-credit scene that brings up more questions.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  The Flash Website  Now playing in theaters nationwide.

Familyfaire: Elemental (2023)  PG  Ember (voiced by Leah Lewis) and Wade (voiced by Mamoudou Athie) live in a city where fire, water, land, and air residents work and play. Ember, a fire resident, and Wade, a water resident, aren’t meant to interact, but they start up a friendship, much to the dismay of their family and friends. Can fire and water really mix? Elemental may not be remembered for long, which is a pity, as its story of finding love in unexpected places is beautiful. Elemental is more a film for kids than adults, and they will love the brilliant animation and the unique world that it depicts. I love the two main characters. Ember wants to follow in her father’s footsteps and take over his store, but sometimes wishes she could do more. Wade is a good-hearted guy, a bit over-emotional, whose heart is huge, and who sees the best in everyone. The two star-crossed lovers learn that even though their worlds are so different, they can find common ground to explore together. I think the weak link in the film is that it isn’t as funny as I wanted it to be. Still, this is a beautiful tale worth seeing on the big screen. So go into a world where fire and water don’t mix…until they do.  There is a short film called Carl's Date, starring Carl (voiced by the late Ed Asner) and Dug the Dog from Up, before the feature film. It is a major disappointment, nowhere near past Academy Award-winning shorts that Pixar has made. It's basically a one joke story that tries to tug on your memories of that beautiful film and fails badly.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Elemental Website  Now playing in the theaters nationwide.

My View: The Blackening (2022) R  Seven black friends go away for a weekend only to find themselves trapped in a cabin and forced to play a game created by a killer who has a vendetta. Can the group use their street smarts and knowledge of horror movies to help them survive? Probably not. This film uses horror tropes and cliches about being Black in America, racism, and relationships for comedic effect. The game asks the group to answer questions. Some are trivia questions like ‘Name the five black actors who appeared on Friends.’ Other questions are more challenging and have dire consequences. The film uses films like Saw and any horror movie that takes place in the woods as fodder for the humor. The cast is fun and seems to have a good time making fun of horror films as they have to make choices that every horror film character has to make, like, should we stay together or split up? Should we go down to the basement? And what household items to use as protection (there is a nice callback on that one). The audience I saw it with had a blast and laughed throughout. I wanted a little more horror in the plot, but I still enjoyed the film, and the ending was a lot of fun.   My Rating; Bargain Matinee  The Blackening Website  Now playing in theatres nationwide.

My View: Extraction 2 (2023) R  After barely surviving his last mission, Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth) has recovered enough to take on his next assignment. Tyler and his team are to extract a family from a Georgian gangster, who, along with his family, is in a maximum prison. This time the mission is personal, and it’s going to get messy. I wish Netflix had released this in theatres because some of the action sequences don’t belong on a small screen. The film starts where the last movie ended, with Tyler Rake victorious but on death’s door. He is soon rescued and is in isolated recovery (retirement?) when a new job is thrown his way and we are off. I find it interesting that the person offering the job is played by Idris Elba, which I think means that there are plans to make this more than just a sequel. There is an action sequence in the prison that has to be seen to be believed, with Chris Hemsworth’s character in hand-to-hand combat while on fire. Extraction 2 is not your ordinary action film because Rake is a character that not only takes a lot of punishment but is a character with a tortured past that makes him not care about his wellbeing, just completing the mission. We get to see more of what makes Tyler tick and how he bonds with his fellow soldiers, and who he rescues. The action is brutal, and the kill count must be in the hundreds. And if you think the action sequence is impressive in the prison (which is in the film’s first half), wait until the ending. So get to your big-screen TV, turn up the sound, and watch Tyler beat the crap out of a ton of bad guys. Will there be more Extraction films? I think you can count on a few more bad guys dying at the hands of Tyler in the future.   My Rating: Full Price   Extraction 2 Website  Now playing on the Netflix platform.

Indiefest: Past Lives (2023)  PG-13   Nora (Greta Lee) and Hae Sung (Teo Yoo) were two childhood sweethearts who had a special connection. Then Nora moved away with her family to America and the two lost contact with each other. Twenty years later, they are reunited one fateful week in Seoul as they confront notions of love and destiny. One minor problem, Nora is married. Past Lives is one of the best films of the year, a sure bet to be on my top ten list. Past Lives is a film about love and how relationships don’t always work out how they should. It’s a film about what if. Nora has changed from when she was a kid living in Korea. She and Hae Sung have grown in different worlds, affecting how they view themselves and their place in society.. I loved Nora is in a good marriage with a husband, Arthur (John Magaro), who supports and understands her. Filmmaker Celine Song doesn’t make Arthur the villain of the film. Instead, the villain is time. What makes this film work is the brilliant performances of the two leads. Greta Lee is perfect as the headstrong young woman who has made a life in a new world and is happy but still wonders what her life would have been if she had stayed in Korea. Teo Yoo is fantastic as the idealistic young man who clings to a relationship rooted in the past. Hae Sung has years of living in a different culture than Nora, one with varying expectations of relationships, and that’s his downfall. Past Lives explores love and relationships, both ones that work and those that are better left in the past, because love doesn’t always end like a fairytale.   My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again   Past Lives Website  Now playing in select theatres. 

Indiefest:  Persian Lessons  (2020)   In 1942, Gilles (Nahuel Perez Biscayart) is among his fellow Jewish prisoners facing a Nazi firing squad. Gilles, through a bit of luck, is able to talk his way from death by claiming he isn’t Jewish but Persian. An officer named Koch (Lars Eidinger) in the prison camp wants to learn Farsi so that after the war, he can move to Tehran and open a restaurant with his brother. He enlists Gilles to teach him Farsi, telling him as long as he can teach him the language, Gilles will live. The only problem, Gilles doesn’t know Farsi and will have to make up a language to teach the German. This is one of those films that I liked a lot, but I didn’t love it. I enjoyed the cat-and-mouse game that the officer and Gilles played back and forth. Gilles constantly must change his plan to adapt to the officer’s demands, and Koch is, at first, looking for a slip-up that signals Gilles isn’t Persian. The two actors work well with each other, and they overcome some awkwardly handled moments in the film. It’s hard to make a film set in The Holocaust where the horror of the situation doesn’t overwhelm the film’s plot, and Persian Lessons does an admirable job of focusing on Gilles's story and his almost impossible quest to survive. Persian Lessons is a story of one man’s clever survival and an interesting one at that. However, the story overshadows that so many perished, and we see them, much like the Nazis did, as a continuous progression of people coming into the camp and leaving to die without knowing who they were. That being said, the film keeps the tension going as Gilles somehow, someway, stays alive for another day.   My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Persian Lessons Website  Now playing in select theatres. 

Forgotten Film: Sid & Nancy (1986) R  Sid Vicious (Gary Oldman) was on top of the world as a member of the punk rock groundbreaking band the Sex Pistols. He was all about breaking the rules, drugs, and having a good time. Sid then met an American groupie named Nancy (Chloe Webb), and his world changed. Sid & Nancy is a Romeo and Juliet story of two people who loved each other but were on a collision course with disaster. Gary Oldman burst on the scene with this film, and it’s a remarkable performance, giving us a personal look at a man who was a tortured soul who found love, but it wasn’t enough.   My Rating: Full Price  Sid & Nancy Info  The film is available on DVD and BlueRay.

Weird Credits: From the credits of The Blackening: Assistant Crafty

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: Oppenheimer (2023) R The story of American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) who, at the urging of a desperate U.S. government wanting to end WWII, developed the atomic bomb. The film is from Christopher Nolan (The Dark Night series, Interstellar (2014), Dunkirk (2017)) and boasts a cast that includes Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, Gary Oldman, Florence Pugh, Rami Malek, and Olivia Thirlby. Many theatres will show this in 70mm, and it was shot entirely with IMAX cameras. Oppenheimer will be an event film not to be missed in theatres! Oppenheimer will be released nationwide on July 21, 2023.   Oppenheimer Website

Until Next Time!