Quick Review: The isolated rural house location and the intimidating intruders add up to the film's 'creep factor', along with some gruesome scenes later on in the story, but this demonic-ish take on family-reunion-gone-wrong tries too hard to shook by delivering one bonkers twist after another, instead of fleshing out its otherwise well-portrayed characters, besides, the anti-climatic conclusion doesn't do "A House on the Bayou" any favors at all, either.
Quick Review: Neither emotional, nor particularly amusing, let alone a great blend of both, "Startling" is an ill-balanced dramedy that explores grief of child loss, and how people cope with it in different ways, but it's also about a bird-human encounter turned into an untypical friendship, which despite the dodgy effects, is the best bit about this tonal mess, along with McCarthy's turn as the trainwreck Lilly and the sweet bond she has with the therapist / vet, who Kilne portrays so likably.
Quick Review: A 4+1 horror shorts anthology with trashy picture quality fits its '90s concept, in spite of the irritating corrupt footage effects, the "V/H/S/94" is more miss than hit -- the creepy creature feature "Storm Drain" ends up being the best, "The Empty Wake" is simply boring, the Frenkenstein-esque "The Subject" is technically great, but more bloody than scary, "Terror" is blurry, all over the place and unwatchable, and the narrating "Holy Hell" is okay, but you hardly ever care about it.
Quick Review: A sinister premise with great potential, let down by a sub-par execution, use of same old tired jump scares, and supposed-to-be ghastly images ruined by sleazy CGIs, "The Unholy" benefits from its gifted lead, creates an eerie tone, and reveals an effective twist, but it refuses to dig deeper into Mary's intriguing backstory, nor it delivers genuine suspense or true frights in its sluggish main plot, and the end result is a shallow, tedious and often cheesy religious horror.
Quick Review: A very lighthearted, family-friendly romp with charming cast and pastel-colored visuals that could be enjoyed by kids and their parents alike due to its harmelessly 'anarchic' spirit, "Yes Day" is a jolly comic mayhem with good message that will be mostly enjoyed by the target audience, though everyone else might find it a bit contrived, not particularly amusing, and trying too hard to be fun, and yet there is a sweetness about it that makes it a pleasurable experience.
Quick Review: A candy-colored silly romp with easy-breezy feel and vibrant visuals, driven by Wiig and Mumolo's comedic chemistry, even if they are more fun than truly funny, this one is unlike anything you have seen before, but sadly not in a good way, as it sloppily mixes comedy and fantasy, with the jokes being too flat and goofy to evoke big laughs, and the sci-fi bits as ill-fitting as Dornan playing the embarrassing Edgar in a zany, cringe-worthy role.
Quick Review: Part teen romance, part martial arts flick a'la Karate Kid, part cultural drama about religion, traditions, and natural heritage, this one has a typical run-of-the-mill plot about a spoiled wealthy guy seeking atonement for his misbehavior, and it is as cheesy as it sounds, not to say it takes an hour for any action to kick in, and though the training scenes are fun, the actual 'Sarong' fighting is unspectacular, with Yayan Ruhian being the best bit about this Indonesian mish-mash.
Quick Review: It deserves credit for its fairly original 'no commitment, no sex dating' premise, its plot has a festive feel and 'jumpy' structure, as it leaps from holiday to holiday, and Roberts' charisma lights up the screen every time she appears, but sadly her chemistry with Bracey is rather questionable, and the whole sweetness of their slowly developing yet fun-driven romance is ruined by some crude sexual jokes that never fit in, plus "Holidate" ends in a corny and predictable fashion.
Quick Review: A divine production design, striking locations and pretty leads cannot cover up Wheatley's struggles lift this his rendition above Hitchcock's 1940 original, failing to make the new additions to the story work, as what starts as a beautiful romance set in France, turns into a muddled, bland mystery melodrama devoid of soul that takes too much time to unveil the enigma behind the Rebecca, and when it finally does, it's with a supposed-to-be shocking twist which underwhelms.
Quick Review: An oddball, subtle in tone 'small town' horror comedy that is neither ghastly or frightening enough, nor particularly amusing to work as either, and too mild to work as a blend of both, this debut film by Jim Cummings, who also stars in it, has his typical quirkiness written all over it, but it fails in its attempt to balance the beastly murders with the 'inner beast' life struggles of its barely likable protagonist, plus, the climax is underwhelming.
