No Escape is an all around entertaining film perfect for a Saturday movie night. No, it doesn’t make you think or have any profound performances but the acting isn’t bad with Owen Wilson serving as a fine everyman type of character and Pierce Brosnan in his small part is a lot of fun. This is probably worthy of a rental.
The Disaster Artist is quite the interesting insight into how The Room came into existence, though if you’re looking for answers as to who Tommy Wiseau actually is, you’ll walk away with many more questions than answers.
The Drowning Pool isn’t as strong of a movie compared to Harper but works mainly for Paul Newman once again and there was at least one fun set piece for the titled pool as the villain attempts to kill Harper.
Harper is a fun 1960s detective film that harkened back to the 1940s and succeeds with some sharp writing but mostly on Paul Newman’s charm and incredible charisma.
Inferno is an interesting documentary that filmmaker Serge Bromberg attempted to re-create the unfinished Henri-Georges Clouzot 1964 film that was only recently found, though not even the audio track could be found.
Black Eagle is a cheesy 1980s action/spy schlock that is weak on the fights, surprising given Sho Kosugi’s history, and a story that felt like second-rate Mission: Impossible or James Bond.
I have no idea how true I, Tonya really was given the contrasting accounts from the two primary sources, in conjunction with any inserts Hollywood generally includes in these “Based on True Story” movies, but taken for what it is, it’s a well made movie succeeding thanks to the performances by both Robbie and Janney.
Thor: Ragnarok was a refreshingly great, even semi-retooling, of the franchise with more aims at comedy than the outlandish plot which bogged down the previous entries, the second especially. I thoroughly enjoyed the film and would gladly re-watch in the future.
Lady and the Tramp is yet another fantastic Blu-ray release from the folks at Disney, of course from what I can tell, this is nearly the same as the Diamond Edition release from 2012. As such, we do get a couple new options to watch the movie along with a couple extra features.
Gate II is a fun and cheesy enough horror-fantasy that is by no means good but entertaining for the most part. The Blu-ray release through Shout Factory offers up fine audio/video transfers and nice to have any substantial bonus features to check out.
Darkest Hour is one of the better movies of 2017 and features a powerhouse, and Oscar-worthy, performance from Gary Oldman who proves once again that he is a chameleon no matter what role.
Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a so-so entry in the TCM franchise but considering how poor the others have been, even the second one which has garnered a fan base, it’s perhaps one of the better ones, though the scares are limited.
Hangman is just another in a long line of forgettable thrillers you probably pass on by at your local Wal-Mart and while this one does at least star Al Pacino and Karl Urban, I’m not entirely sure it’s worthwhile, though I suppose there were worse movies out there to watch.
Coco is yet another hit from Disney-Pixar and although I don’t think it’s the best they put out, I actually enjoyed Momoa a tad more, but the core story was so well written and had a great core, and non-cynical, message about family with a touching ending.
Macon County Line is a well developed drama that really stands out from others of the 1970s and does feature some great performances, particularly Max Baer (he also co-scripted) who previously was known as a comedic actor.