Hard Target 2 isn’t a half-bad DTV flick though it is pretty standard fare and probably went on a good 10-minutes too long. Still, Scott Adkins makes for a serviceable action hero with the right amount of charisma to pull off the role while seeing Robert Knepper playing a villain is always a welcome.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows might’ve been an ever-so-slight improvement over its predecessor but that’s not saying a whole lot. It’s still too Bayish for my taste and the inordinate amount of visual effects makes it tiring, though the fan service at least makes it a tolerable enough experience.
Road House is another classic of the 1980s, a fun romp with a cheesy story and yet Patrick Swayze has more than enough charm to pull it off and make it all the more memorable.
James Wan’s The Conjuring 2 is the rare horror-sequel that at least matches the quality of the original with some genuine scares and well written character development for the Warrens in conjunction with fine performances by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga.
I so wanted to love and embrace the insanity of Urge, and yet with a few absolutely unlikeable characters and a story that devolves into zombie apocalypse territory, I can’t recommend it. However, it might be worth a rental.
Star Wars Rebels: Complete Season Two is a strong entry into the series with some decent animation to go along with well written storylines and nice character development.
Ratchet & Clank is a perfectly safe movie for younger viewers and passable enough for parents to watch with them, however between the animation and story, this probably better off as a direct-to-video release than something a studio spent millions to release to theaters.
Now You See Me 2 is not the type of movie that will tax your mind but instead is a perfectly serviceable caper-comedy, one that succeeds more on the chemistry with the ensemble, with newcomer Lizzy Caplan being the highlight, rather than anything to do with the thin plot, though I did appreciate some of the magic even if it’s CGI-generated.
Me Before You is a film adaptation that attempted to capitalize on the massive success of The Fault in Our Stars not to mention it’s the latest rom-drama in the vein of a Nicolas Sparks adaption sans an overabundance of sappiness, though the heavy-handedness doesn’t quite mesh with some of the more levity of light-hearted scenes that came before.
La Moglie Piu Bella is a haunting and disturbing movie featuring a strong, as well as incredible performance by Ornella Muti who was so young during the filming. Although I doubt I’ll ever revisit this movie, by all means it’s worth checking out especially if you’re a fan of Italian cinema.
Honey 3 isn’t a particularly ‘good’ movie but it’s perfectly harmless and should be satisfactory to fans of these types of dance dramas like Step Up and Center Stage. The acting is, at best, so-so but at least lead actress Cassie Ventura wasn’t bad and some of the music was decent.
The Vampire Diaries: The Complete Seventh Season is hardly terrible but it’s clear the writing and stories weren’t as strong and with Nina Dobrev’s departure, the series needs to end, which it will next season. Still, I’m sure hardcore fans might find it entertaining.
Midnight Run is a great and wonderfully simplistic and wildly entertaining movie featuring two great performances by Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin whose characters work well off one another.
The Huntsman: Winter’s War isn’t terrible yet clearly a movie that should never have been greenlit (at best might’ve served well as a TV series with an unknown cast). Even so, there’s some moments that worked, the visual effects were OK and I did enjoy the ensemble cast, mainly Hemsworth and Chastain.
The Nice Guys didn’t quite match my expectations but the laughs still were there and I did enjoy the bro chemistry that developed between Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling to the point I was able to overlook a story that seemed to get stretched a bit too thin, especially going into the third act. It’s no Kiss Kiss Bang Bang but still well worth watching.