Freakier Friday

My View:  Freakier Friday  (2025)  PG  Freakier Friday takes place twenty-two years after Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Anna (Lindsay Lohan) had the body swap that changed their lives. Tess is now trying to support her daughter Anna as she merges two families. Anna is about to marry Eric (Manny Jacinto) and is trying to encourage her daughter, Harper (Julia Butters), to get along with her soon-to-be stepsister, Lily (Sophia Hammons). It turns out that Tess and Anna aren’t the only ones capable of switching bodies. In 2003, Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan made a Disney film about a mother-daughter duo switching bodies. Lohan proved she had some acting chops, and Curtis stole the movie as the teen inside a 30-something body. So it’s 22 years later, and we get to see if magic can happen again. While not quite up to the 2003 Freaky Friday film, it is still a fun ride, this time watching four body switches rather than just two. I think what helps is that in this film, we get Anna’s daughter Harper, a very unhappy, rebellious teen, and Anna’s soon-to-be step-daughter, an equally unhappy British teen, Lily, who wants to get back to London, also to be in on the body switch fun. As with the first film, Jamie Lee gets to do more of the comedy, as Lily has taken over her body, and once again, Curtis is an older woman with the mind and vantage point of a teen. As with the first film, Lohan is a little more reserved of the two, as her granddaughter has taken her over. The two unhappy teens decide to take advantage of their new adulthood and sabotage/stop the marriage of their two parents. Like the first film, Chad Michael Murray is brilliant as the hot guy who still has a crush on the older woman in Tess. Fans of the 2003 film will love this film, and even if you haven’t seen that film, you will have a good time watching Lohan and Curtis have a blast as teens unleashed. My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Freakier Friday Website   Now playing in theaters.

My View:  Weapons  (2025) R  Weapons begins one morning, when at 2:17 am, every child except one from Mrs. Gandy’s class woke up and left their homes, never to be seen again. What happened to the seventeen children, and how can a community discover their fate? Weapons is a horror film that is equally disturbing and funny. I was expecting far more scares (and there are still plenty), but I wasn’t expecting the humor, which took me for a ride. I saw the film with a packed audience, and one moment they were laughing and in the next they were shrieking from fear. I can’t give away too much of the plot because the reveals are so well thought out and brilliant that I don’t want to spoil it for you. From the first moments when we see the kids in the dead of night leaving their homes and running with their arms out behind them while George Harrison’s song “Beware of Darkness’ is playing, to the hectic and shocking ending, this is a masterful tale of horror, suspense, intrigue about a group of people in a small town trying to make sense of a mystery they can’t cope with. The film features remarkable performances, particularly from Josh Brolin, who portrays a father grappling with the disappearance of his son, and Julia Garner, who plays the troubled teacher of the classroom attended by the 17 missing students. Weapons is an exhilarating ride that keeps you on the edge of your seat, eagerly anticipating each reveal and shocked by the unexpected twists. It is a strong contender for horror film of the year and is a movie that will spark discussions not just in the parking lot, but for years to come.  My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again   Weapons Website Now playing in theaters nationwide.

My View:  The Pickup  (2025) R   In The Pickup, Russell (Eddie Murphy) is about to retire as an armored truck driver when he is matched with Travis (Pete Davidson). They are ambushed by a ruthless gang of criminals led by a savvy mastermind, Zoe (Keke Palmer), who has plans that extend far beyond the contents of the truck. When I watched the credits, I was surprised that there were only two writers credited because I could have sworn that this was a film that either had fifteen writers throwing everything they could against the wall to see what stuck, or it was the first feature film solely written by AI. This unfunny buddy action comedy has so many plot holes I was wondering how the script would get our two heroes out of hot water in the end. It doesn’t, and like the rest of the film, it forgets any ability for common sense and throws a happy ending at you that seems so sudden and poorly conceived that I almost had whiplash from it. The Pickup is one of those films where all three bad guys somehow survive a couple of horrendous vehicle crashes, but it doesn’t give us a clue how they survived. Just accept that all three get away with minor scratches. There are only two action sequences and one caper. The rest of the film is the characters talking. And they just keep talking, filling up lots of time without humor (unless you think Travis playing the Neutron Dance song from Beverly Hills Cop is funny) and wasting the talents of Murphy and Palmer. The lack of chemistry between Murphy and Davidson is palpable, and their banter grows tiresome very quickly. And please, someone, wake up Eddie Murphy; he has another line to deliver before the credits roll!  My Rating: You Would Have to Pay Me to See it Again  The Pickup Website  Now playing on the Amazon Prime

Familyfaire:  Sketch  (2024) PG  Sketch follows a young girl named Amber (Bianca Belle) who accidentally drops her sketchbook into a mysterious pond. The drawings she created suddenly come to life, wreaking havoc in her town. Now, Amber, along with her brother and a ‘butthead’ of a friend, must confront these creatures that were never meant to exist and save their families and the beloved town. Amber is a young girl who is angry and sad because of the death of her mother and her father’s inability to deal with the death. So Amber, on the advice of a school counselor, she channels her anger and loss into drawings in a sketchbook. The problem is now the drawings have come to life, and most are of horrible creatures that want to wreak havoc. Sketch is a wonderfully creative film that teaches kids about how to deal with their feelings and how to channel those emotions. Anchored by an outstanding cast and creative animation, the story is a heartfelt adventure in how kids see the world and react in different ways to grief and pent-up feelings. Bianca Bell is outstanding as Amber, who can’t believe that her drawings have come to life. Tony Hale excels as the father trying his best to connect with his children, only that his attempts at reaching his kids doesn’t always work the way he wants it to. While some of the creatures are a little scary, most will be enjoyable to kids to see as they are right off the pages of a child’s imagination. Sketch is a fun and meaningful film full of surprises, revealing heroes in unexpected places. Every kid fantasizes about being a hero and saving their family from creatures, and in Sketch, they do.  My Rating: Full Price   Sketch Website Now playing in theaters. 

Familyfaire:  Hola Frida  (2024)   Hola Frida is about a little girl named Frida Kahlo who sees life in vibrant colors. When life’s trials and tribulations come her way, she faces them with her spirit and her overflowing imagination. Hola Frida is a film that children will enjoy with vivid animation and a story that centers around a child who uses her imagination to create an imaginary self that she uses to escape the problems that Frida encounters. The film explores Frida’s troubled childhood, when she got polio and was teased for her weaker leg, but Frida always found a way to overcome her obstacles and persevere. Frida was a young girl who fought for her artistic ideals and became one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. Hola Frida offers young viewers a magical glimpse into her early years and the many challenges she overcame.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee  Hola Frida Website  Now playing in select theaters. 

Indiefest:  My Mother’s Wedding  (2023)  R  In My Mother’s Wedding, three sisters (Scarlett Johansson, Sienna Miller, Emily Beecham) return home to attend their twice-widowed mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) third wedding. The sisters struggle to understand their mother’s decision to marry again. As they navigate this unusual situation, the family is compelled to revisit their pasts and confront their future, aided by some unexpected wedding guests. My Mother’s Wedding is one of those films that has a dynamic cast, an interesting plot core, and one excellent speech, but the sum of its parts does not make up a good movie. The humor is somewhat forced and doesn't find an emotional center, which causes some of the hard-hitting moments to feel flat and lack any impact. The film centers mostly on Katherine, who is a Navy officer about to be given the promotion of a lifetime. Still, she can’t commit to her longtime companion (played by the always lovely Frida Pinto) and has trouble connecting with her son. Throughout the film, we see snippets of her childhood in black and white animation, as Katherine struggles with her mother’s wedding while thinking about the two fathers that she lost. I had a hard time connecting with each of the sisters, and I didn't figure out who was whose father until near the end of the film. There is a lovely moment near the end of the film when Kristen Scott Thomas’s character gives an impassioned speech to her daughters to grow up and quit idolizing their long-dead fathers. Thomas, who wrote the script based loosely on her life (both her father and stepfather died serving in the British Naval Air Force) and directed the film, gave herself the best scene in the movie. I wish she had written more compelling roles for the other three actors playing the daughters. My Rating: Cable  My Mother's Wedding Website Now playing in theaters. 

Forgotten Film: The War of the Roses  (1989) R  Oliver (Michael Douglas) and Barbara (Kathleen Turner) are seemingly the perfect couple, with two grown kids, a beautiful house, and lots of money. Barbara has been the ideal housewife and mother, but now that the kids are out of the house, Barbara realizes she has been under Oliver’s shadow too long and decides that she wants a divorce. Things are about to get ugly. Directed by Danny DeVito, The War of the Roses is a black comedy that pushes the boundaries of violence and outrageousness to extremes, resulting with a hilarious chaotic outcome. Turner and Douglas were at the top of their game and are willing to go all out in the physical comedy that starts slowly and escalates to an all-out war where any object that means something to the other person is fair game to be thrown or destroyed. It is an amazing piece of acting and storytelling, where you end up hating both spouses and loving every minute of their battle for the house.   My Rating: Full Price  The War of the Roses Info  Available for rent/buy on Amazon.   

Weird Credits: From the credits of Sketch: Caption and Language Strategist

Coming Soon to a Screen Near You: The Roses  (2025)  R  Theo (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Ivy (Olivia Colman) are a married couple with a beautiful house and two kids. Ivy is an incredibly successful chef whose stamp on the world is getting bigger. Theo is an architect who has lost his job and is unhappy in his marriage. Theo decides he wants a divorce, and the war between the couple is on. The Roses is a loose remake of the 1989 film The War of the Roses. The Roses Website     The film will be in theaters nationwide on Friday, August 29, 2025. 

Until Next Time! 

Toy Story 4

Familyfaire:  Toy Story 4  (2019)  G  When Woody’s (Tom Hanks) ‘kid’ Bonnie (Madeleine McGraw) goes off unhappily to kindergarten, Woody helps her create a new toy called Forky (Tony Hale). The problem is Forky doesn’t want to be a toy and escapes the RV Bonnie’s family is going on vacation in. Now Woody must go on a mission to find and bring back Forky to Bonnie. I don’t know how Pixar keeps doing it but Toy Story 4 is as good as any other of the Toy Story films. It is probably the funniest of the 4 films, mostly due to the antics of Forky. There is a sequence in the first ten minutes of the film that involve Forky that will have on the floor laughing. There are some great new characters including a motorcycle stuntman named Duke Caboom, voiced by Keanu Reeves and two stuffed caravel prize animals voiced by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele. It is Toy Story, so you are going to shed some tears and hate to break it to you, this is the last Toy Story film but rest assured it has a wonderful ending that is perfect. Stay through all the credits as there are bonus scenes, including a fantastic play on the Pixar logo at the end of the film. I will say this, this might not be a film for very small children. There are some rather scary bad guys that even creeped me out.    My Rating: I Would Pay to See it Again    Toy Story 4 Website

Indiefest:  Woodstock: Three Days that Defined a Generation  (2019)   Fifty years ago 500,000 people saw three days of magical musical performances. It was more than just a concert and the people that were there tell their stories about the event. Unlike the 1970 Woodstock film, this movie concentrates on the people, both behind the scenes and the people that experienced the concert from the grounds. They do show some of the more iconic performances like Santana and Hendrix. The fascinating facts are numerous as we learn that the land they intended to have the concert on was taken away by a local city council and they had to find and construct everything in just four weeks. Also, the two main investors didn’t know anything about put on a concert much less one that 500,000 people attended. I enjoyed this film, getting to know the people that first hand experienced it.  My Rating: Full Price     Woodstock Website

In Case You Missed It (A Film Just Released on DVD / Blu-ray):  Five Feet Apart    (2019)  PG-13  Two teenagers (Haley Lu Richardson, Cole Sprouse) with life-threating illnesses meet in the hospital and fall in love, despite the fact that they have to stay at least five feet away from each other. I agree with a fellow critic who said after the screening that this just might be Haley Lu’s break out movie. She is brilliant in the role of the girl with cystic fibrosis who is trying to do everything she can to keep living. Cole Sprouse is good in the role of the rebellious patient who becomes interested in Haley Lu’s character. This isn’t a great film, but it delivers what you want in this genre with all the tugs at the heartstrings. I was happy that there a couple of twists I didn’t see coming. I have trouble with a couple of the plot points but there aren’t too troubling and don’t really interfere with the storyline. If you like a romance with a few tears then this film is for you.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee    Five Feet Apart Website

In Memory of Ed Wood (A Movie I've only seen in Trailers but just looks like a bad idea):  The Angry Birds Movie 2  (2019)  PG  A second movie based on the game? I hated the first one, so I am guessing this won’t be an improvement.    The Angry Birds 2 Movie Website

Forgotten Film:  Pushing Tin  (1999)  R  Nick (John Cusack) is the number one air traffic controller, always getting his planes safely to their destinations. All this changes when the cocky and reckless Russell (Billy Bob Thornton) comes into the control tower. Will this rivalry endanger the lives of passengers? The reason to see this film is the preferences of Cusack, Thornton and Angelina Jolie, who plays Russell’s wife that Nick has an affair with. It is also interesting to see how air traffic controllers do their high-stress jobs. You are little let down by the ending but overall this is worth watching.  My Rating: Bargain Matinee    Pushing Tin Info

Weird Credits:   From the credits of Toy Story 4:  Sets Shading Artist

Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You:  The Farewell (2019)  PG  A Chinese family discover that their grandmother has only a short time to live. They decide not to tell her and stage a wedding as an excuse to gather the family together to say goodbye. This film made a big impact with audiences at the 2019 Atlanta Film Festival.    The Farewell Website

Until Next Time!