Review: “Pet Sematary” (2019)

2 out of 5 stars. Buried somewhere within “Pet Sematary,” there’s an interesting commentary on dealing with death and the fear of dying. But the film, which is based on the classic Stephen King novel and was adapted once before for film in 1989, doesn’t begin to unleash its full potential until the last 25 […]

Review: “Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase” (2019)

2.5 out of 5 stars. “Nancy Drew” is one of the most beloved and most famous children’s book series of all time, and yet, despite numerous attempts from the 1930s to now, no film or television adaptation of it has fully been successful. The same can be said for “Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase,” […]

Review: “Shazam!”

3 out of 5 stars. If “Aquaman” was lauded as the current DC cinematic universe’s first real foray into more light-hearted fare, then “Shazam!” takes it to a whole new level. The film based on the comic book superhero originally known as Captain Marvel is more a comedy than anything else, with eye-popping visuals and […]

Review: “Dumbo” (2019)

2.5 out of 5 stars. Out of all the Disney films, the story of “Dumbo” has the most room to grow. The 1941 animated classic clocks in at only 64 minutes long, and is the simple story of a baby circus elephant ridiculed for his large ears—which he had actually use to fly. The loving […]

Review: “The Kid Who Would Be King”

3.5 out of 5 stars. Charming live-action family adventure films are largely a thing of the past. But writer and director Joe Cornish breathes new life into that sub-genre with “The Kid Who Would Be King,” a modern retelling of the tale of King Arthur and the sword in the stone that may not do […]

Review: “The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part”

3.5 out of 5 stars. I think it’s safe to say that on its release in 2014, “The LEGO Movie” surprised everyone. That a film based on a toy line could not only be genuinely witty and fun, but also incredibly meaningful, is still a bit hard to believe. Naturally, a good portion of that […]

Review: “Cold War”

4.5 out of 5 stars. Many of the greatest film romances of all time are sweeping epics, in runtime and scale but also in the way they probe into so many aspects of their characters’ lives and relationships. Polish filmmaker Pawel Pawlikowski does almost the opposite of this with his romantic drama “Cold War.” The […]

Review: “Aquaman”

3.5 out of 5 stars. We all know that Warner Brothers’ DC cinematic universe hasn’t been all that successful thus far, and that the vast majority of the films in the series have had both visually and thematically dark tones. So it was an interesting choice for the studio to go with Aquaman—traditionally a very […]

Review: “Bumblebee”

4 out of 5 stars. I never thought I’d willingly watch another “Transformers” movie, much less enjoy it. But that’s exactly what happened with “Bumblebee,” an attempt to reset the franchise based on the popular 80s toy line by bringing the story back to the beginning. While it has all the action and special effects […]

Review: “Roma”

5 out of 5 stars. Alfonso Cuarón has had a hand in a number of epic films over the years, from the dystopian movie “Children of Men” to the third “Harry Potter” film to his last movie, 2013’s space thriller “Gravity.” But it’s the intimate and deeply personal “Roma” that is the director’s greatest achievement […]