13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi is an even-keeled telling of the events of that night with minimal political undertones sticking with the actual attacks than placing blame. The performances are all well done highlighted by James Badge Dale and, surprisingly, John Krasinski.
Zootopia is on the heavy-handed side of its message however it’s a good one that would be beneficial to kids (and their parents for that matter). The animation is fantastic and the humor mostly works as does the voice talent involved.
“Roots” was a phenomenon for television and still relates so well today. Featuring top-notch performances from the likes of LeVar Burton and Louis Gossett Jr. amongst many others, this is well worth watching even for younger viewers though I suspect some will navigate toward the recent remake.
The Crush isn’t a good movie by any stretch but can be a guilty pleasure. It’s probably one Alicia Silverstone’s better performances, behind Clueless, and a lot of fun seeing/hearing Cary Elwes struggle with his American accent. The film is at best passable entertainment but not much more than that.
Get a Job is the quintessential movie that gathered dust on some shelf and finally saw the light of day courtesy of an On Demand or DTV release; it’s also telling that the film couldn’t get sold in spite of co-starring Anna Kendrick hot off of the success of Pitch Perfect. The final result is a laugh-less comedy with thinly written characters.
Gods of Egypt has its moments but as a whole it’s not well made in spite of a talented enough filmmaker in Alex Proyas and a respectable cast, in particular Gerard Butler hamming it up to great effect; not to mention lovely actresses Elodie Yung and Courtney Eaton as love interests to the two leads. This is probably worth a rental, not much more.
Hail, Caesar for me was a major misstep for the Coen Brothers even with what certainly passion behind their love letter to 1950s Hollywood. Outside of George Clooney and Tilda Swinton, the other cast members were more or less cameo appearances.
London Has Fallen is an entertaining actioner, something that probably would’ve better served released back in the ‘80s, though it’s not exactly a necessary sequel since Olympus Has Fallen, while a nice time, didn’t need a follow-up. Having said that, this entry is at least worth a rental, just don’t expect any sort of depth.
Mr. Right is one of better surprises from 2016 from the screenplay written by Max Landis mixing romance with violence and featuring two charismatic performances from Sam Rockwell and Anna Kendrick who was absolutely adorable in her role.
Jeepers Creepers 2 isn’t anything great and doesn’t quite have the same atmosphere as the first half of the original, however on the whole it’s still an entertaining horror-thriller with more tinge of humor thrown in this go around. The cast, outside of Ray Wise, aren’t as memorable and a few are more than obnoxious (albeit purposefully).
Jeepers Creepers works as a decent creature feature, albeit an uneven one with a great first half (solid 4/5) but devolves in the second half to standard fare. That said, Victor Salva’s film offers some good scares, nice performances by Justin Long and Gina Philips who work well opposite one another and some respectable make-up work.
Triple 9 didn’t exactly fulfill its potential given the cast and a solid start yet still it’s very entertaining with some well shot action scenes and fine performances by Casey Affleck, Woody Harrelson, Anthony Mackie and Clifton Collins Jr. who at times steals the show.
Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London isn’t a good movie and where the first at least had the fun factor, this one is left with bad writing and below average acting since it doesn’t have the benefit of featuring the likes of Angie Harmon, Ian McShane or even Darrell Hammond as presumably the studio wanted to cut costs.
Zoolander No. 2 might’ve had good intentions behind the camera for Ben Stiller and its cast, but the jokes rarely landed leaving us with the stupidity of the original without any of comedy. I can’t say I had a displeasured experience while watching, merely indifference and counting down the time until it would finally end.
The Finest Hours is not a great movie but perfectly adequate that tells a compelling story that is utterly amazing. The performances by Chris Pine and Casey Affleck aren’t anything awe-inspiring yet decent enough to carry their respective roles and storylines. While it could’ve been better, this is a movie at least worth a rental.