David S

Predator Badlands can't decide what it wants to be, so it cribs from much better movies and delivers an unsatisfying experience. It plays like Disney bought the Predator IP and did to it what they've done to every other film series. At it's heart it's a buddy movie between a predator and an android, with a cute but deadly sidekick thrown into the mix. There's also an evil android that prioritizes returning a deadly alien to Earth to satisfy the corporate keepers. There's every hunter android being clones. There's the opposites attract buddy film. There's action sequences with the volume turned up to eleven that seem to be the real purpose of this film, with the story (such as it is) shoehorned in between. You don't have to think too hard to identify which movies they've plagiarized. The special effects are well put together, and since there's very little story to get in the way the film moves at a brisk pace. That's not really enough to recommend Badlands. Two stars.

The difficult part of biopics is we know going in how things ended up. In the case of Bohemian Rhapsody, knowing Freddie's fate added a poignancy to his story. Deliver Me From Nowhere suffers from an opposite fate, knowing Springsteen sold his back catalogue for over half a billion dollars somehow takes away from the struggling artist vibe this movie shoots for. Disclaimer: I'm a huge Springsteen fan, own his catalogue and have seen him in concert over 15 times starting with the late 70's and last saw him in the 2010's, so my expectation for the performance pieces may be unfairly high. The first act is ok. Flashbacks to a tough upbringing mixed with faux concert footage that ventures to karaokeish. It's not horrible, but it's not great either. There's also lots of biopic tropes used to advance the story...necessary unless they offer a five hour directors cut. Throughout the second and third acts we get a smorgasbord of Springsteen's relationships, personal and professional. That's where this film really hits it's stride, diving into how his life at that moment shaped his music. They also did something smart, showing Bruce warts and all rather than deifying the Boss. But ultimately, this angsty take rings hollow because we also know how the actual story up to this point played out. He had already had success, was a huge concert draw, sold lots of albums and had been on the covers of magazines proclaimed "the future of rock". As the final credits rolled I had been entertained, but not blown away, by this movie. Springsteen fans will like it, non fans not familiar with his story will probably be more entertained. Three Stars

This has been a bad season for scary movies, and Black Phone 2 may be the worst of the lot. How cheesy was Black Phone 2? It should have been a product of Wisconsin. The story, the script, the direction and the acting were only missing the macaroni for a hearty side dish...but not something you'd want to consume at the movies. What went wrong? What didn't! This movie was an art house version of Nightmare on Elm Street: Dream Warriors. If that sounds bad, it is. There was none of the redeeming entertainment of the original and instead was a self reverential class in overacting. Let's check the boxes: a serial killer (check) who killed a bunch of children (check) attacks the heroine in her dreams (check) nearly kills her (check) until she realizes she can protect herself in her dreams (check) and ultimately defeats said killer (check). Roll credits. The only redeeming part of this disaster was Pink Floyd's The Wall pt 1 being on the soundtrack since the movie took place in the 80's (another Nightmare check). Somebody should have turned off the ringer on their black phone instead of greenlighting this mess. Skip this one. Rent the third Freddy Kruger movie instead...you'll enjoy it more. One Star

As a pseudo erotic thriller, with the eroticism of a dead fish left out in the sun, Bone Lake should have more appropriately been named Bore Lake. A couple with trust issues wind up sharing an out of the way deluxe lake house they rented with another couple that was "accidentally" double booked. So this is definitely not a new plot device. The sexiness necessary for a film like this to work is all inferred, so it fails on that level. Thus, the eroticism is boring (boreotica?). The plot twists are readily apparent early on. The gore, which Bone Lake (finally) gets to in the last 15 minutes, is as tepid as the sex. The acting is meh at best to laughable at worst. One of the leads looks like the winner of an Ashton Kutcher look alike contest...but is somehow an even worse actor than the original. There is absolutely zero reason to see this one...not in a theater...not at home...not on a tablet in a plane...nowhere. One Star* *because Google doesn't have a zero start option.

To call this movie bad is a disservice to the word bad. The Strangers Chapter 2 needs a new word to describe what it is. The direction is like a mediocre film student trying to crib from 80's horror, down to shoot selection and framing. Act one takes place in a Hospital (Halloween 2), act two takes place in the woods (Friday the 13th) act three is a boring mess (all the movies trying to be Halloween, Friday or Nightmare). The worst thing about this "horror" movie is the lack of kills...a total of three. Unless you're a paraplegic rolled into the theater with no ability to leave, skip this incredibly bad movie. One Star because zero isn't allowed

Are really good performances in service of a stupid movie to be applauded or mourned? That's the question after watching this bonkers film. The leads are quite good in their roles, as are the supporting cast. Unfortunately, that doesn't add up to an enjoyable experience here. It's a frustrating one. The movie starts with a bunch of "revolutionaries", more accurately sheep playing at being revolutionaries, releasing illegals held by ICE. They graduate to robbing banks and killing, with them proudly shouting their names while committing the crimes. One of them gets caught and turns rat. Act 2 is DiCaprio playing his best Cheech and Chong stoner bit, Sean Penn playing a racist Colonel who loves sex with Black women and DiCaprio's daughter character...who is the only sane one of the bunch. Act 3 is it all going to hell. To top it off, the overly loud background music is a piano motif of the Witch's Theme from the Wizard of Oz. If that sounds like something you'd enjoy committing almost three hours of your life to watching, go for it. The thing is, you could watch this funky flick at home and enjoy it just as little. Probably more since you could pound adult beverages and gummies hoping they will help this film make sense. There's no compelling reason to see it in a theater (this review is from seeing it on a large format screen). Two Stars (one of them for the amount of juice Penn must have taken to bulk up for the role)

As a rule I hate sequels. Going into one for a 40 year old movie my expectations were low. Somehow, Spinal Tap 2 made me a believer that a great sequel isn't impossible. Where the first Spinal Tap had a lot of industry inside jokes (a reason it's so popular with any act that's been on tour) the sequel feels more like full on movie. There's callbacks and new characters. There's genuine humor and heart. There's the classic songs. Most importantly, there's the gifted actors who play "the Tap" in top form. Even better, this time there's cameos...big music industry names who came along for the ride. ST2 isn't the Godfather Pt. 2, but it's tons of fun and better than anybody could have expected. Five Stars

There's a new-ish Toxic Avenger movie out (it's been in the can for years, but it's finally getting a theatrical release). The obvious question is how did they manage to land an all-star cast for a niche remake? Don't get me wrong, it looks like all involved were having an absolute blast leaning into what made Troma the schlock horror studio of choice back in the day. It just seems there's no way this production can turn a profit. The basics are the same. Mild mannered good guy exposed by evil company to toxic waste and becomes a good guy monster. There's the glorious Troma sense of humor, but with much better effects then back in the day. That said, it does begin to drag about halfway through. While the cast and effects are better than the original, it is a basic rehash of the original. That's it's strength and it's weakness. If you enjoyed the original you'll love this. If you aren't familiar with the original but like your horror on the absurd side, you'll like this. Otherwise, you'll be ready to go halfway through. Four Stars

There have been some famous action stars, with no acting chops, who when paired with the right director could make an entertaining movie. Nobody 2 is the flip side of that coin. This film features a gifted actor, paired with the right director to turn him into an old school action star. The story is that a fixer takes his family to a small town carnival/water park, only to learn the town had become a waypoint for transport of all things illegal...from cartel cash to weapons He winds up taking on the local crime boss and crooked cops. The casting is stellar. Odenkirk is believable as an action star. Christopher Lloyd is back as his father, and Sharon Stone chews the scenery. It's a quick 90 minutes that flys by. The pacing is perfection, and there's no padding in this film to round out the run time. If you're a fan of 80's/90's action flicks you'll love this one. Five Stars

Weapons views like a fairly well put together extended episode of the X-Files...the early seasons, when it was great television. The setup is all the children, but one, from a class disappear one night. Of course, there's a supernatural phenomenon to blame. The setup is fine. The payoff? A witch is the evil doer. She gets her comeuppance. Roll credits. That's not to say this film doesn't have moments of real suspense and horror, it's just a long slog between those moments. The cast does well with the material...it's the shortage of quality material to justify the run time that keeps this movie from greatness. Barbarians, the director's previous movie, is far superior. If you like your horror on a slow burn, in this case a very slow burn, Weapons is a movie for you. That said, there's no real reason to see this in a theater when watching it at home, in the dark, preferably on a rainy night, will suffice. Especially since you can fast forward through the long-winded exposition and repetitive parts and not hurt your viewingexperience. Three Stars