Quick Review: A little moody, not exactly neat, mildly compelling, and hardly ever suspenseful, yet weirdly captivating, finely-cast, and offering enough twists and turns to make up for its outdated premise and deliver a controversially vague payoff, this slow-burning murder mystery earns its title by emphasizing on the small details during the investigation, but the main focus remains the growing bond between Denzel and Malek as the two cops going after the shady freak, who Leto inhabits.
Quick Review: Not half as graphic or devastating as Teague's powerful essay about his dying wife, on which "Our Friend" is based on, if still gut- wrenching, the film skips the most terrifying details and centers more on the dynamics between the family and their bestie before and after the fatal diagnosis in nonlinear style of narrative, which evokes very mixed emotions throughout, but the lead trio work well together in order to depict this tragic real-life story in an affecting, plausible way.
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: The child trafficking theme has enough unsettling depth to compensate for the trite premise, plus, the revenge subplot fits in well with the main story, emphasizing the contrast between the likable hero and the ruthless villain, both played brilliantly, but this violent thriller also impresses with a slick photography and edgy camera work that benefit from the Jap and Thai settings, and some frantic fist combats, cut-throat knife fighting, bombastic explosions, and intense car chases.
Quick Review: "Insidious" meets "Conjuring" with a 'nasty child' twist, not only this Korean supernatural horror heavily borrows ideas from the films above, but it also contains pretty much every 'haunted house' trope - from property with dark past and vengeful spirits to paranormal inspector and visions of the beyond, and the end result is a trite 'ghost story' with fine acting and looks, but zero frights, minus the 'boo' ones, and some wannabe be ghastly, but actually cheesy imagery.
Quick Review: There's an original and interesting idea behind it, due to a clever script that gathers black legends in a fictional meeting full of substantial dialogues on racial and religious subjects, the cast is fairly convincing and fully dedicated, and the sleek cinematography, fine retro vibe and warm colors add aesthetic value to it too, but King's decision to put four people in a hotel room and make them talk, argue, and fight for over 90 min gets a bit tiresome and exhausting after a while.
Quick Review: The illogical actions of the two brothers with contrasting personalities, both finely-portrayed by Grazer and Whitehead, make the whole 'captive' situation implausible, bordering on absurd, but this bleak heist-gone-wrong thriller goes in an unexpected direction, as a result of series of surprising twists and turns which help it maintain the suspense throughout its brief runtime, though it is Wilson's intimidating, often eerie performance that effectively delivers some memorable chills.
Quick Review: A bit awkward and not necessarily funny, yet charming, often moving, and at times inspiring, this is a fish-out-of-water dramedy about an unattractive 'tomboy' girl trying to discover and express her feminine side through pole dancing, and though it's a seemingly shallow premise, the film luckily manages to convey its 'stay true to who you are' message earnestly, mostly thanks to Bedia's frank lead turn as Nour, who challenges herself to cope with her confusing identity crisis.
Quick Review: Delicate, sweet and moving, but above all inspiring, this Irish drama benefits from McCann's heartfelt turn as the selfless, loving and diligent single mom struggling to provide for her kids, if determined to build a house, "Herself" is a much about home abuse, trauma, PTSD recovery, moving forward, and not giving up, as it's about help, support and humanity, which turns it into an emotional roller coaster of a family story told that peaks in a dramatic, yet truly uplifting last act.
Quick Review: A modern, twisted, if cruel take on "Red Riding Hood", this EU horror deserves credit for its daring approach, but sadly it's the sub-par execution of this clever idea that ruins it, along with the inexpert acting, despite Worthalter's strive to portray the psychotic 'snuff' sadist convincingly, and though "Haunted" delivers some tense moments and violent scenes of sheer brutality, it goes crazily over-the-top during the third act, becoming unintentionally funny and pretty absurd.
Quick Review: A beautifully-filmed XIX century western, taking place in North Texas, "News of the World" is long, quiet, and far from eventful, as it is a simple road trip story about a town-to-town traveling news reader, stumbling upon a little girl raised by Kiowas, but the movie remains fairly engaging throughout, thanks to Tom Hanks charismatic, low-key turn, the genuine bond the main characters develop as the plot unfolds, as well as some poignant moments during the emotional third act.
Quick Review: Sweet and sincere, if corny and lacking depth, this one plays it as a 'road trip' friendship- turned-semi-romance dramedy, but underneath that, it is an emotional tear-jerker loss, grief, sickness and support, told from a positive point of view, and led by two likable leads, though the story works best not in its cutest or most dramatic bits, but when it makes you appreciate the audio we take for granted – sounds, voices, noises and music.
Quick Review: Swank is miscast, but does it her best as the psychotic detective, even if her character is underwritten, as is Ealy's, though he doesn't seem to care, but that's not even the worst part about "Fatale" – a stylishly-shot, yet horribly generic and highly predictable stalker affair with cheap thrills and little to zero suspense that wastes the talent of its cast, due to a weak script that's too contrived to make its far-fetched story a tiny bit plausible, or at least to work in a 'fun' manner.
Quick Review: A disturbing, eerie, and effective blend of captive thriller and occult horror with supernatural elements and some gore, not only "Anything for Jackson" generates a spooky tone and delivers some big chills, but it deftly takes a diabolical turn you will never see coming, and though its last act isn't as horrifying as expected, it's still a nightmarish story about death and resurrection, which 'messes' with the beyond in a darkly amusing fashion.
Quick Review: The 'time travel pill' concept feels fresh, but the film also works as a tense paramedic thriller with a buddy story at its center, due to the chemistry between the leads, and a balanced script with enough dramatic twists to keep you on your toes, which makes "Synchronic" on one hand a psychedelic experience with clever ideas and snazzy effects, wrapped in a trippy mystery, and on the other -- a touching story about family, friendship, humanity, morality and sheer selflessness.
Quick Review: For a slow-burner, it should have had a more shocking climax, and it drags too much here and there, but "Rent-A-Pal" is still a refreshing entry into the genre with grim tone and proper '90s feel and look, led by the unsettling turn from Wheaton as the oppressed, deeply desperate Andy looking for love, but ending up with an uncanny digital friendship instead, and his portrayal of deep loneliness leading to sheer insanity is as sad as it is disturbing, and even scary at times.
Quick Review: An intimate look at immigrant S.Korean family pursuing the 'American dream' in the 80s, set against the lush backdrop of rural Arkansas -- one that depicts their struggles in a genuine manner and with great depth -- "Minari" is a very simple and uneventful, but well-told story of family bonds and human's connection to nature, with the most moving bit being the younger-older relation between David and Soonje, who Yuh-Jung Youn makes the most distinguished character.
