Sinners review
Have you ever been watching a classic vampire movie like “Fright Night” or “The Lost Boys” and thought, “This is good, but this could be great with two of the guy who played Apollo Creed’s kid in those ‘Creed’ movies as well as some blues music and a dash of racial commentary!”? Well, put up your black square on Instagram and clutch your George Floyd bobblehead in celebration because a celebration is a comin’! Your reason for celebrating is the movie “Sinners” from director Ryan Coogler. He directed the Black Panther movies and the first two Creed movies and sinks his teeth into the vampire genre with his latest movie. No “Wakanda Forever” in this. More like “Live Forever” in this southern-fried take on vampire movies. Coogler’s favorite leading man, Michael B. Jordan plays both Smoke and Stacks (Get it. Smokestack!), identical twins who’ve made a name and some money in the criminal game. Now they’re coming home back down south from Chicago to open up their own juke joint for dancing, drinking and gambling. Their own little taste of Vegas in the Deep South. Along the way they pick up their younger cousin, Preacher Boy Sammie, who is very talented with a guitar and a blues voice from the heavens. He’s played by the impressive Miles Caton. Before long, some vampires show up to try to make the good times last forever but in a blood-sucking evil way and the movie goes from bluesy crime drama to stakes in the heart and burning vampires. Is it worth your time at the theater? Check out this episode to find out! “Sinners” also stars Delroy Lindo, Jack O’Connell, Hailee Steinfeld, Yao, Saul Williams and Omar Miller.
Warfare review
“War is hell” is a common phrase, but as we live our peacetime lives, it can be hard to visualize what that phrase really means. The movie “Warfare” provides a way to see and comprehend that phrase. The movie is directed by “Civil War” and “Ex Machina” director Alex Garland and Iraq War veteran Ray Mendoza. Mendoza was one of the soldiers in the middle of the real-life battle that this movie shows. Garland and Mendoza don’t hold back on showing the shocking, brutal and bloody side of war. If you know someone with PTSD and you want to understand, at least a little bit better what would cause something like that, this movie is for you. In this movie, Navy SEALs are sent out into Ramadi, Iraq where they gather in a multi-story home to surveil insurgents. The team settles in and goes through the tedium of just sitting and observing. Their sniper starts noticing a build-up of men getting closer to their position and soon that quiet tedium is over as the explosions start and the bullets start flying. The team does all they can to fight off the insurgents and call in to get evacuated out but what happens next just ratchets things up to a whole other level. Is it worth finding out what that is in theaters? Check out this episode to find out! “Warfare” stars Will Poulter, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Cosmo Jarvis, Joseph Quinn, Aaron Mackenzie, Alex Brockdorff, Finn Bennett, Evan Holtzman, Michael Gandolfini, Joe Macaulay, Laurie Duncan, Noah Centineo, Taylor John Smith and Charles Melton.
The Salton Sea review
Val Kilmer was one of the most eclectic and enthralling actors of his generation and one of the movies that heavily showcased this is this week’s movie, “The Salton Sea.” Kilmer showed he could be wacky, like in “Top Secret!” and “Real Genius” or deadly serious like in “Spartan” and “The Doors.” In “The Salton Sea” he sort of combines those two and it makes for an entertaining and captivating performance. If you want a movie that leads you down one path, en route to setting an expectation, just to subvert it, and does it multiple times, “The Salton Sea” just might be for you. Kilmer plays Danny Parker, a trumpet player, who has a faithful marriage to a beautiful wife until that all comes to an end. Afterwards, his life becomes a drug-filled downward spiral as he joins the perpetual night party of the tweaker to cope, or is that why he’s really doing it? We don’t know. He’s also a confidential informant for a couple of L.A. detectives who want him to set up a maniacally, murderous drug dealer named Pooh Bear. This is a drug dealer known for killing people suddenly just because he doesn’t like the tone of their voice. Also, Danny is told that he’s been marked for death for something he didn’t do, so things went from beautiful and romantic to pitiful and manic really quick. Is Danny Parker for real, or is he someone else? Will he survive the vortex of violence he finds himself in? Is it worth finding out in this lesser known Val Kilmer movie? Check out my spoiler-free review on this episode to find out! “The Salton Sea” also stars Vincent D’Onofrio, Adam Goldberg, Luiz Guzman, Doug Hutchison, Anthony LaPaglia, Glenn Plummer, Peter Sarsgaard, Deborah Kara Unger, Chandra West, BD Wong, R. Lee Ermey, Shalom Harlow, Sherry Knight, Meat Loaf, Azura Skye, Josh Todd and Danny Trejo.
A Working Man review
There are a few thing certainties you can count on in movies. If it’s an Adam Sandler movie, there’ll be at least one fart joke. If it’s a Jason Statham movie, there’ll be at least one dude getting a limb broken and plenty of punching. This week’s movie “A Working Man” that bill. Statham plays Levon Cade, who used to be an elite military operator, but now tries to make an honest living as a working man in construction. He works for land developer Joe Garcia, played by Michael Pena, who knows what he used to do. When Joe’s daughter is kidnapped, he pleads to Levon to find and return her. Levon has a young daughter himself, so he can feel this father’s pain and agrees. That decision lights the fuse on a bloody mission to find the girl. The human traffickers responsible for taking her, have no idea who is on their trail. Levon makes them very aware of who’s hunting them, one by one. Levon has to intimidate, go undercover and just plain go on all-out frontal assaults as part of his quest. Is it worth going to the theater to find out how it all ends? Watch this episode to find out. “A Working Man” also stars Jason Flemyng, Merab Ninidze, Maximilian Osinski, Cokey Falkow, David Harbour, Noemi Gonzalez, Arianna Rivas, Isla Gie, Emmett J Scanlan and Eve Mauro.
Novocaine review
I’ll admit it. All us guys, at one point or another, have fantasized about being some one-man action hero that kicks a bunch of bad guy butt to rescue a beautiful woman. It’s a great fantasy until reality kicks in and you start thinking “I don’t wanna do that! I could experience pain!!!” The main character in this week’s movie, “Novocaine”, doesn’t have to worry about the pain part AND he reluctantly has to be a one-man action hero. “Novocaine” stars Jack Quaid as Nate Caine, a young bank assistant manager who has a condition that prevents him from feeling any pain. He lives a solitary, boring, uneventful life as a soft-spoken, gentle guy until one day a beautiful co-worker named Sherry, played by Amber Midthunder, asks him to lunch. This takes the movie into cutesy-pie rom-com territory where Nate and Sherry just click as a couple and all of a sudden Nate is walking on sunshine. That is until the bank robbery. Nate’s bank is hit by some no-good bad guy bank robbers and wouldn’t you know it, they take Sherry as a hostage to get away from the cops. Well Nate isn’t going to let some baddies just take his new lady love away from him without him doing something about it. Gone is the fantasy and enter reality. Nate is on a mission to rescue HIS beautiful woman and he’s got the advantage of feeling no pain. This of course makes for so many great scene possibilities and writer Lars Jacobson digs in and takes full advantage. Does Nate succeed and save his damsel in distress? Of course he does! However, is it worth going to the theater to see it? Check out this episode to find out! “Novocaine” also stars Ray Nicholson, Jacob Batalon, Betty Gabriel, Matt Walsh, Conrad Kemp, Evan Hengst, Craig Jackson, Lou Beatty Jr., Garth Collins and Tristan de Beer.
Heart Eyes review
If you thought you hated Valentine’s Day, you’ve got nothing over the serial killer in “Heart Eyes.” No Hallmark cards, 2 hour wait times at a fancy restaurant and overpriced flowers for this killer. This Heart Eyes Killer’s MO is to kill couples in different cities every Valentine’s Day. You’ll see people get maimed in this movie but ubiquitous rom-com movie tropes get pummeled as well in a bitingly witty way, while the blood flows. Olivia Holt plays Abby who is trying to get over a break-up and she has a meet-cute at a coffee shop with Jay, played my Mason Gooding, who orders the exact type of drink she does. Very cliche right? “Heart Eyes” enjoys creating moments like that to just pull the rug out from under them and couples it with a no-holds-barred graphically violent slasher flick. To that end, Abby and Jay eventually find themselves getting chased by the Heart Eyes Killer so this courtship will have to happen while avoiding getting slashed by a psycho. Typical stuff. “Heart Eyes” also stars Jordana Brewster, Devon Sawa, Gigi Zumbado, Michaela Watkins, Yoson An and Jacque Drew.
Companion review
Do you have that problem where someone is always asking you to watch a romantic movie but the movie has too much of that, ya know, love and romance? I just might have the solution you’ve been looking for in this week’s movie “Companion.” This movie is a romantic movie in marketing only to perhaps help you get your special someone to watch it with you. Then you’ll both get to watch how the movie spins its head and becomes a twisted, malevolent, bloody, yet funny, series of devious plot twists. What kicks off the movie is Josh (Jack Quaid) and Iris (Sophie Thatcher) traveling out to a remote lake house to just have a weekend hang with Josh’s buddies. It’s a fun, casual environment as they all eat, drink and be merry. Josh and Iris are getting along swimmingly with everyone else. Then something deadly happens and Josh and company have to go into “we’re on a mission” mode before any devious plans are revealed and more people die. Who will live? Who will die? Who will try this apple pie I just made? Is it worth finding out? Check out this episode to see. “Companion” also stars Lukas Gage, Megan Suri, Harvey Guillen, Rupert Friend, Jaboukie Young-White, Matt McCarthy, Marc Menchaca, Woody Fu and Ashley Lambert.
World War Z review
In this episode a retro review was in order and that retro review goes to Brad Pitt’s World War Z. In this 2013 zombie apocalypse summer hit movie, Pitt plays Gerry Lane a ex-U.N. investigator who suddenly finds himself re-employed zombie attacks start. He has to protect his wife and daughters, not to mention saving the world by finding a cure. This sends him all over the globe to gather clues while trying not to get turned by the millions of super-fast, super-strong zombies. This was directed by Marc Forster who also directed Finding Neverland, Monster’s Ball and Quantum Of Solace. Check out this spoiler-free review to catch what’s spreading about World War Z. This also stars Mirielle Enos, James Badge Dale, Fana Mokoena, Daniella Kertesz, Ludi Boeken, Matthew Fox, David Morse, Elyes Gabel, Peter Capaldi, Pierfrancesco Favino, Ruth Negga, David Andrews.
The Equalizer 3 review
No Denzel isn’t Malcolm X or a dirty cop or a Civil War soldier in The Equalizer 3. He again plays Robert McCall, a ex-government contracted killer who just wants to help even the score, or equalize, against bad people in the name of good people. In this finale in the Equalizer trilogy, McCall is in Sicily trying to equalize a situation and it gets bloody. Afterwards, he ends up in a small Sicilian town where he learns to care about the people and finds a home. However, some evil Italian mobsters terrorize the town and they’re interrupting McCall’s peace and tranquility. That’s the last mistake they’ll ever make. Is this movie worth the drive to the theater? Check out this spoiler-free review to find out. The Equalizer 3 also stars Dakota Fanning, Eugenio Mastrandrea, David Denman, Gaia Scodellaro, Remo Girone, Andrea Scarduzio, Andrea Dodero, Daniel Perrone, Sonia Ben Ammar and Zakaria Hamza.