Breakdown is a simple but effective suspense-thriller with an amiable performance from Kurt Russell showing his on-screen charisma with very little to work with in terms of character development.
The Shawshank Redemption is a movie I really should re-watch every other year if not every year as it’s an extraordinary and perfect film from the script to direction to the phenomenal performances from Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman.
F9: The Fast Saga might have some insane scenes but not quite in the good way. There are some okay little moments like seeing some old character reunite, however this is missing the magic with the series’ height: the chemistry with Vin Diesel and the late Paul Walker.
Black Widow is a movie that was released a few years too late for sure, however the execution of what we did get was lackluster with a few plot points that didn’t make very much sense, however I did like Scarlett Johansson even if she feels like a side character at times.
The Gateway is only worth checking out if only for some solid performances, however the story is relatively thin and clocking in around 87 minutes doesn’t allow these characters to be developed.
Arabesque isn’t perfect and pales in comparison with the likes of North by Northwest or Charade, but the enigmatic performances from Gregory Peck and Sophia Loren was so much fun to watch.
The Star Trek: The Original 4-Movie Collection is a solid enough of a set and does have respectable 4K video along with the audio which is likely the same from past Blu-ray releases, even so still high quality.
Dune wasn’t a movie that I found incredibly engaging or even entertaining from a story or character standpoint, however I can at least appreciate some of the more technical aspects with respectable effects work for its time, and some even stand out today.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is an okay, if not exceptional lengthy, film and well worth checking out, especially if you’re a DC fan or just curious, plus splitting it into parts does help if you don’t want to watch in one sitting.
The Cat o’ Nine Tails arrives on 4K Ultra HD from Arrow Video on August 24th. This horror-mystery-thriller stars James Franciscus, Karl Malden and Catherine Spaak and ports over all the features from the 2018 Blu-ray release.
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It might break the formula a bit but I found myself a little disconnected and the primary saving grace is once again with Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, both still great together and gives the film the necessary heart.
Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard is probably an unnecessary sequel and it does have its flaws from a flimsy plot and some of the humor doesn’t work, but for the most part I did like the core main characters and the addition of Salma Hayek was the highlight.
All in all, even as someone who doesn’t gravitates toward the western genre, I found these four films part of the Vengeance Trails box set to all be well made films, all with revenge as a central theme.
Moment by Moment was a swing and huge whiff of a romantic-drama where the two leads shared absolutely no chemistry and many awkward scenes that made the movie pretty tough to sit through.
Those Who Wish Me Dead is the pinnacle serviceable suspense-thriller, something that could’ve come out in the 1990s. Angelina Jolie is great in the lead and even the young Finn Little thankfully wasn’t obnoxious.