Category: 2022

REVIEW: Nobody needs to see ‘Bodies Bodies Bodies’

Not sure I would really classify this movie as a horror film. Although, the thought of watching it again is horrifying.

“Bodies Bodies Bodies” picks up with the character Bee (Maria Bakalova) accompanying her girlfriend Sophie (Amandla Stenberg) to a weekend get together. The event is taking place at the home of David (Pete Davidson), Sophia’s longtime friend.

Sophie’s arrival is a bit awkward, though, as she hasn’t seen David, or her other friends, in quite some time.To help lighten the mood, they decide to play a murder mystery game called “Bodies Bodies Bodies.” However, things take a drastic turn when someone actually ends up dead.

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REVIEW: The thrill of the hunt is well portrayed in ‘Prey’

The fifth film in the “Predator” franchise is a blast from the past, with the alien hunter attacking warriors in the 1700s, rather than the present day.

In the Great Plains, during the year of 1719, a young Comanche woman named Naru (Amber Midthunder) has hopes of being a hunter like her brother Taabe (Dakota Beavers). For most of her life, she’s been relegated to being a healer, yet she continues to train for an opportunity that might come one day where she will use her skills.

That opportunity ends up happening in the form of a Predator alien. Naru begins finding strange tracks and fierce animals who’re killed, meaning there’s something dangerous out there. Knowing the threat posed to her tribe, Naru sets out to battle the threat.

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REVIEW: Don’t punch your ticket for ‘Bullet Train’

Stop this train, I want to get off.

Director David Leitch’s “Bullet Train” stars Brad Pitt as an assassin whose code name is Ladybug. The film picks up with him getting on a train with a mission that only includes recovering a brief case that two other men have in their possession.

Those two passengers are also hit men, who simply go by Lemon (Brian Tyree Henry) and Tangerine (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). Ladybug, who constantly notes how he has bad luck in life, ends up learning that there’s much more going on than he first thought and that the mission is increasingly dangerous.

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REVIEW: ‘I Love My Dad’ is an uncomfortable comedy (in the best way)

This film produces, perhaps, the most second-hand embarassment of any movie out there.

Patton Oswalt’s Chuck in “I Love My Dad” is a father whose relationship with his son Franklin (James Morosini) has broken down over the years. Chuck has missed too many of Franklin’s life events, and it’s fractured goodwill between the two.

It gets to the point where Franklin is so fed up that he shuts down communication between them, blocking Chuck on his cell phone and social media. As a way to still get in contact with Franklin, Chuck decides to make a fake profile of a woman named Becca (Claudia Sulewski). The two are once again talking, but unfortunately, Franklin falls in love with the Becca persona.

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REVIEW: Don’t waste grey matter on ‘The Gray Man’

Netflix keeps getting films with big name actors and they continue to be disappointing.

Ryan Gosling stars as “Six” in “Gray Man,” a member of a CIA program that turns ex-cons into black ops agents. The film picks up with Six coming across a drive with sensitive information during his latest mission.

Six learns that that the drive has proof of major wrong-doing by the CIA, and opts to try to get it in the hands of a clean higher up that can take action. However, this puts a target on his back, with former-CIA agent turned mercenary Lloyd (Chris Evans) being the one leading the chase.

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REVIEW: ‘Vengeance’ is an impressive look at true crime podcasting

Being a fan of true crime podcasts isn’t a necessity to enjoy this film, but it doesn’t hurt.

B.J. Novak, who wrote and directed “Vengeance,” stars as Ben, a writer at the New Yorker and an aspiring podcaster. One night after a failed pitch for a new podcast, he finds out a woman he had a short fling with died in Texas.

The woman’s brother convinces Ben to come to the Lone Star State not only for the funeral, but to look into her death, as it seemed suspicious. Ben decides to use this as a chance to create a podcast based on the woman’s death, and the concept of vengeance, as the brother is seeking it.

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REVIEW: While thought provoking, “Nope” is rarely gripping

“Nope” is a UFO movie. I’m resistant to using the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena term, UFO just sounds better.

In writer/director Jordan Peele’s newest film, Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer star as O.J. and Em Haywood, respectively. The brother-sister duo inherited a ranch from their father where horses were raised and trained to be used in the entertainment industry.

The business is struggling lately, though, and to generate revenue, O.J. has been selling off the horses to Jupe Park (Steven Yeun), the owner of a nearby cowboy-inspired theme park. As time goes on, the family’s financial situation becomes a lesser issue, with strange and disturbing events beginning to happen, with a potential UFO in the area.

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Ranking the Marvel Cinematic Universe Movies

Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe still has four more movies to go, but I feel like it’s a good time for a ranking since several movies have been released in this part of the franchise’s schedule.

Just a note, this will only be about the movies. The only MCU series I’ve watched are “Wandavision” and “Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” and I don’t have much interest in the rest.

Also, keep in mind that when it comes to the top 15 or so, some of the films become a little interchangeable. Film is subjective and evolving interpretation, it’s not an exact science or mathematical. So when I have one movie in front of another, there are cases where it’s only barely so.

Most importantly, there will be spoilers.

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REVIEW: Fourth ‘Thor’ is not an electrifying experience

“Thor: Ragnarok” was a success for Marvel, featuring an aesthetic that captured an 80s, hair metal, colorful look.

This latest movie takes a lot of what was in that film, but the nuance seems to have been forgotten.

After letting himself go after the Infinity War, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is back in shape at the start of “Love and Thunder,” but doesn’t feel completely right working with the Guardians of the Galaxy. The two decide to part ways, which comes at the right time, too, since there’s trouble in New Asgard on Earth, requiring Thor’s attention.

A being known as Gorr (Christian Bale) was wronged by gods in the past and is now on a crusade to slaughter as many as he can. He ends up targeting Thor, and abducts a group of Asgardian kids to lure the God of Thunder out. Thor has help in his rescue mission, though, as his ex girlfriend Jane (Natalie Portman) can now wield the hammer Mjolnir, inheriting Thor’s powers in the process.

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REVIEW: ‘Elvis’ is an exuberant, exhausting experience

Elvis Presley has been portrayed on the large and small screen many times before. However, none of them featured the flair of filmmaker Baz Luhrmann, until now.

The story of Elvis (Austin Butler) in this biopic is told from the perspective of the performer’s infamous manager, Col. Tom Parker (Tom Hanks). The movie begins with Parker on his deathbed and from there, the former manager recounts the events of his time with the singer, from when he discovered him to the performers final days in Las Vegas.

The movie showcases how Elvis’ popularity surged, his inspiration from African American musicians, his controversial stage movements and his attempt at a comeback after some down years. It also features the decline of his health during his time doing several shows in Vegas.

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