‘Pacific Rim’ sequel feels like every other terrible sequel
Rating: 1.5 / 5 stars “Pacific Rim: Uprising” is the sequel to 2013’s “Pacific Rim,” which was directed by Guillermo Del Toro (“The Shape of Water”). This time around, Steven S. DeKnight (“Daredevil”) takes the director’s chair for this sequel…
Despite controversy, ‘Ready Player One’ mesmerizes
Rating:4.5/5 stars Spielberg is back. After a decade of directing period dramas and expensive family films, legendary filmmaker Steven Spielberg returns to the cultural phenomenon of the Hollywood blockbuster to helm his newest project, “Ready Player One.” Based on the…
It’s ‘Game Over, Man!’ for ‘Workaholics’ trio’s new film
Rating: 1/5 stars Netflix recently released an action/comedy film called “Game Over, Man!” directed by Kyle Newacheck (“Workaholics”). The protagonists are three best friends working in a hotel as housekeepers. The opening scene shows the trio cleaning a room that…
Will ‘Thoroughbreds’ be sleeper hit of 2018?
Rating: 4.5/5 stars “Thoroughbreds” is directed and written by Corey Finley and stars Olivia Cooke (“Me, Earl and the Dying Girl”) and Anya Taylor-Joy (“Split”) as Amanda and Lily, two polar opposite girls who develop a very strong, very strange…
Alicia Vikander’s star power not enough to save this reboot
Rating: 1.5/5 stars Making video game movies does not seem to be a job of which filmmakers pride themselves. From “Super Mario Bros.” to “Assassin’s Creed,” they are rarely, if ever, a winner in the eyes of the movie-going public….
‘Gringo’ has ingredients for good film, none of which work
Rating: 2.5/5 stars “Gringo” is directed by Nash Edgerton (“The Square”) and stars David Oyelowo (“The Cloverfield Paradox”) as Harold Soyinka, a down on his luck corporate employee who is facing a possible job termination due to a company merger,…
Alex Garland crafts another sci-fi masterpiece that forces viewers to question life
Rating: 4.5 / 5 stars “Annihilation” is directed by Alex Garland (“Ex Machina”) and stars Natalie Portman (“Jackie”) as Lena, a cellular biologist and former Army ranger. When her husband (Oscar Isaac, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”) returns from an…
J-Law’s performance not enough to save ‘Red Sparrow’
2/5 Stars Based on a 2013 novel, “Red Sparrow” features Jennifer Lawrence (“mother!”) as Dominika Egorova, a former Russian ballerina forced after an accident to do some shady dealings for her uncle, Ivan (Matthias Schoenaerts, “Far From the Madding Crowd”),…
‘Game Night’ best comedic ensemble since ‘The Hangover’
4/5 Stars “Game Night,” directed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley (“Spider-Man: Homecoming”), stars Jason Bateman (“Ozark”) and Rachel McAdams (“Spotlight”) as Max and Annie, two extremely competitive people who are very much invested in their routine game nights…
‘Black Panther’ takes monumental leap for representation
4.5/5 Stars “Black Panther” has made a statement on the human condition and creatively touches on issues that are relevant to the time. Being the new installment of the Marvel universe, “Black Panther” has hit theaters and continued to break…
