Kingsman: The Golden Circle didn't live up to expectations of the original, and while that one was a lot of fun, it had problems of its own. There's certainly a fair amount of fun to be had, but Millar doesn't seem to have sequels nailed down. We'll also cover a lot of the latest new shows you should be checking out from Kevin Probably Saves The World to, surprisingly, Young Sheldon.
It was a very special episode for us this week because while we had some reservations about Aronofsky's latest, we weren't expecting to find a new low in film. We've both been to some low places in the world of cinema, and few of those spaces are occupied by writers and/or directors that also produced films that we loved. It's certainly a conversation piece, though we have some thoughts on Aronofsky's claim that it is metaphoric/allegoric in nature. Along with the many reasons to avoid this film...
It would be hard to jam up a week more than this, and in addition to three movies, we're also giving you the scoop on some new TV, including The Orville. We're overly tied to It, just as we were with The Dark Tower, but this time around our proximity to Derry didn't lead to a disappointment pitfall. Leap! looks like the sleeper animated hit we're rooting for, and Goon just didn't need a sequel. Tune in to get all the info on these films and find out why you too should love or hate them....
Another strange pairing finds us looking at Logan Lucky and The Glass Castle. Expectations were thrown and hopes were somewhat dashed this week as a pretty screwy adventure ended up not all that bad and a setup for a lot of laughs fell flat. We'll let you know if you need to get to these and catch you up on industry news.
We're a bit into Stephen King here in Bangor, and The Dark Tower is one of his most popular books and series, which means we were looking forward to this one more than most. On the other hand, we were hesitant for several reasons, not least the production problems the film apparently had. Did things work out? Is this one worthy of the series it's born from? Adaptations of King's work are famously rather hit or miss, but this is one that we were really holding out hope for. We'll let you know if ...
Atomic Blonde may not have taken over pop culture in the way that the trailers seemed to hope, but it had a fair number of people excited and a lot of critics think it delivered. We were looking forward to this one more than you might think, for several reasons, and there was talk at one point that we may have a Best List hopeful here. Did it live up to any of the various expectations? We'll let you know, and we'll chime in on industry news and keep you up on some of the new shows coming your wa...
Critics are almost unanimous in their love for Dunkirk and we almost joined them in their praise. Actually, one of us did. But, one of us didn't... exactly. On the flip side of that, not only were critics ready, willing, and able to take a poke at Valerian, but audiences were just fine with the idea of staying away from it. We split on this one as well, but whether you end up loving or hating the mega-budget, space opera, there's a lot of fun involved. One way or another, these are two that had ...
In case you weren't aware, it was a bit of a bonkers week, and that doesn't count Comic-Con gear up. We already differed on the previous movies, but we weren't that far apart here. If only... We'll let you know if you need to see this one in theaters, and we chime in on Doctor Who, The Muppets, and more. Apes might not be your thing, but there's a lot going on here even you aren't all that certain that Andy Serkis is the next greatest actor ever. I'm not saying he is, by the way....
It was a little rough with Rough Night, and while it definitely had some moments, it left most of the potential just sitting there. It could have been a better film, but it turned out to be mostly a "vacation" effort. Still, there is some fun to be found there. We'll let you know everything you need to about this one, and whether or not it might work better for you.
The Dark Universe may be off to a rocky start, even with Tom Cruise, and Universal may have to adjust its theory of pumping money into the franchise it's creating. But, is it that bad? It's a movie that made some mistakes, and spends too much time on things that are only there so that they can show up in future installments, but there's a lot of fun to be had for those looking for escapism. Of course, it may also be pretty boring, depending on how you look at things. We'll let you know if you ne...
This week we're reviewing Wonder Woman, and DC finally removed some of our fears about the future of the universe. There were some stumbles, but generally, we had a great time with this one, and we're pretty sure most people will as well. We also give you a rundown of what's coming in June, mainly because there's a lot headed your way this month, and if you only pay attention to the tentpoles, you might miss some gems.
The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise has taken us on a long and winding road since 2003, and the previous installment gave us little to celebrate. Dead Men Tell No Tales isn't as bad, or confused, as that one, but it doesn't pay enough attention to the story and fun involved to get us back to the level of the first two either. Johnny Depp is still fun to watch, but the life has mostly been drained out of the series. Luckily, this one still manages to be fairly entertaining.
This week made for a unique episode of the show. Two movies and putting our ratings together still wouldn't get you a good movie. King Arthur had a lot of potential, and even some fun moments, but even in theory it was all over the place. Alien: Covenant was an almost surreal experience, though not an unexpected one when looking back on the last film.
Bigger summer features kick off in a strange pairing as we look at The Fate of the Furious and The Circle. It's hard to tell if either of these films need a critic, or get any benefit/hinderance from good/bad reviews, but we'll let you know if they're worth your time. We'll also give you a rundown of some of the cooler films we caught at Tribeca, and some of them were really good.
The summer gets underway with The Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and we'll let you know if you need to make sure to get to this one. Spoiler, it's a lot of fun. We also take you through some of the films headed your way, and discuss recent industry news, including the wild life of Hellboy.
We're reviewing Going in Style this week as we prepare for Tribeca, and what a curious effort it is. Some favorite actors come together to comment on society through the wild idea of retirees who lose their pensions going after a bank job. We'll also let you in on some of the latest industry news, keep you in the loop on what's coming up, and otherwise give you some insight into the movie world.
Ghost in the Shell quickly became a film surrounded by controversy, which may have had a lot to do with the box-office for a film with Scarlett Johansson floundering. But, is this one any good, and how does it compare to the anime? We'll let you know if you need to get to this one, and we'll let you in on the usual industry news and other fun stuff.
When news of The Matrix reboot hit us, we were again staggered by Hollywood's inability to come up with something new. Then we realized we were reviewing Kong: Skull Island and Beauty and the Beast. It's an world of film these days. You might not be surprised to learn that Kong didn't blow us away, but Beauty and the Beast saw perhaps our biggest difference in ratings ever.
We're taking a look at Logan this week, and you may not be surprised to learn that we were not that far away from each other in our ratings. It looks to be the final time we'll see either of these actors in these roles, so the question is, do they go out on a big high? They certainly have no problems if the box office can be believed, even if the March record may not last until the end of this March. We'll let you know if you need to get out to this one. Spoiler alert, you do....
Get Out is crushing word-of-mouth and is already a hit at the box office, especially if you consider the film's price tag. Does it live up to the hype? We'll let you know if you need to get to this one. We're also covering the Oscars, and the craziness that made up Sunday night, and it's finally time for our annual "Can't Win" awards, where we shine the spotlight on movies and actors who deserve some recognition, but aren't actually among the possible nominees for anyone's awards.
It was a year that didn't make it too difficult to pick the best movies, but the worst is another story. From big name efforts that fell apart, to tentpole films that were too stupid to just go along with, to movies that were trying to be stupid and succeeded, this year had it all. We'll give you all the details on the movies to keep avoiding at all costs, and we'll probably have time to cover a couple more movies that are still lingering from the end of the year. We'll try to get to The Founder...
It's that time of year, and we're finally giving you our Best of the Year lists. This was an unusual year, and we'll take you back through it a bit as we run through our favorites. We'll also give you quick reviews of some of the films we haven't covered yet (because 50 films hit in the last month), and make sure you know which movies you still have to see. It may seem like this year has been wrapped up with a bow, because the same movies are winning all the awards, and show up on all the lists,...
We're technically covering Hidden Figures and Patriot's Day this week, as the remaining films that qualified for 2016 awards trickle into theaters, but we're mostly playing catch up as we lead into our Best and Worst lists starting next week. That means we have a dozen or so films to try to get through, which isn't going to happen, so the show is going to be a mad dash through films. Moonlight, Passengers, Fences, Lion, and several others will be up for grabs, and since people have been asking w...
This week we're reviewing Live by Night, but we'll also be catching up with several other films, including some that we're returning to like Rogue One, Passengers, Assassin's Creed, and many more. We'll also be looking at The Golden Globes and reflect on how they are going to influence the Oscars. We're leading into our Best and Worst of the year lists, so we're going to giving you a rundown of the last month in film, and the plethora of films that have hit theaters.
It's the biggest weekend of the year, until next week, and Rogue One has finally hit theaters. There's probably no point in reviewing it, but we'll let you know what we thought of the effort to take the franchise into prequel territory again. We'll also try our best to catch you up on what's coming, and the films that will be aiming at awards this year. Plus, Manchester by the Sea, the film that has Casey Affleck sitting as front-runner for Best Actor after winning the Critics' Choice Award, als...
The end of the year is fast approaching, which means most of the year's best are about to come out, or just did. This week we'll be looking at La La Land, recent winner of the Critics' Choice Award for Best Picture, A Monster Calls, and probably several more. We'll also be giving you the rundown of said CCAs, and let you know what we voted for that didn't get the win. It's a busy time, and there are a lot of films to get through, and now we're getting to the point where we really try to sell you...
It's award season, and with the Critics' Choice Awards nominations out, the race has really begun. That means we'll be going through movies as fast as we can, and this week we have (at least) Hacksaw Ridge, Nocturnal Animals, and Love & Friendship, but we may squeeze a couple more in as well. Beyond just looking at movies, we'll run through the Critics' Choice Awards nominations quickly, and let you know who we think will/should win when the award show hits on December 11th.
We're reviewing Allied & Rules Don't Apply this week, and we'll give you an initial rundown of the films that are in serious contention this award season. Two very different movies, both getting a lot of marketing push, but do either of them deliver? More importantly, do you need to see either of them in theaters? It's a World War II spy flick vs. Warren Beatty in what is possibly a passion project gone wrong. As the season gets into full swing, people are going to be talking about these, an...
Two highly anticipated movies have hit theaters and people can't stop talking about either of them. Arrival has really surprised audiences and Amy Adams is getting a lot of attention herself. Anything with a connection to Harry Potter obviously has people out, but does this one live up to the franchise expectations, and can J.K. Rowling really deliver when it comes to offering up the screenplay, or does it all work better when someone can adapt her books? We'll let you know if these are worth yo...
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back inspired us to wait for Doctor Strange, which is a new one on us. On the positive side, Doctor Strange just came out, and it's the first movie of the end of the year big guns, which means it's time to get excited about movies again. But, is Doctor Strange worth the time, and your money at the theater? We may be fast approaching a critical point in both the Marvel film world, and the superhero world in general. You might not have expected it, but this critical point co...
