Coco (2017)

A unique story with vivid animation and songs. I like that they sprinkled Spanish words into the dialogue. Held the attention of the adults and kids I watched with.

Rating: C

Havoc (2005)

This angle was already covered in a slightly better film called Black and White. Havoc felt like an amateurish rip off of it. There were glimmers of quality here and there, but in the end, it was the wrong movie for Anne Hathaway to show her gritty side by getting naked. Her perfect breasts could have gone to much better use in a different film.

Rating: D

Girlfight (2000)

Loved this at Sundance when it first premiered. Such a fantastic film.  Do yourself a favor and go rent it now. This is Michelle Rodriguez's debut acting role, and it's amazing.

Rating: A

Red Sparrow (2018)

That was a long movie to sit through for a mostly unsatisfying end. If anything, it drives home the fact that if Trump went to Russia, it’s a lock that he was compromised and is owned by Russian Intelligence--aka, Putin.

Rating: D+

Charlie Bartlett (2007)

This has the feel of a semi-autobiographical first time effort. I don't know if that's the case, it's just the impression I got. There's a "Running With Scissors" vibe to it, only this film was actually good. It flirts with being juvenile at times, but keeps it reigned in enough to maintain focus. You'll enjoy Robert Downey Jr. as always.

Rating: B-

X-Men: Apocalypse (2016)

It’s almost as if they built that pyramid specifically to be destroyed quite easily. Obviously, this latest installment starts out quite ridiculous and never comes back to Earth.

The special effects are quite amazing though. The Flash sequence was pretty cool. For me, I need a more grounded story-line based somewhat in reality. When every law of nature is thrown out the window and the screen is a blender of superpowers swirled together, I lose interest. It’s a shame everything went off the deep end after the first two X-Men.

Rating: C-

The Outlaws (2017)

A gritty Korean organized crime drama with violent turf wars, no-nonsense cops, and a lot of knife play, since they apparently don’t have guns over there. Fun despite its flaws.

Rating: C+

Basic (2003)

Plot was pure shit. I mean it. After the second or third twist, I lost interest and just waited for them to explain the convoluted story at the end. Even then I didn't really understand it, or care if I understood it. Several real poor performances, especially from Connie Nielsen. Miss this one.

Rating: F

Drag Me To Hell (2009)

Not exactly breaking new ground, but at least it's a decent renovation. I'll admit to screaming like a girl a few times and partially obstructing my eyes with my hands. Not sure why they even bothered with the "twist" at the end when it was so blatantly obvious.

Rating: C

Black Panther (2018)

Over-hyped. Not the usual origin story, but it seems all superhero movies end up in the same place, with the hero fighting an evil version of himself. Everything is CGI heavy without much depth. The plot was implausible--more so than most from the genre. Mildly entertained.

Rating: C-