15 January
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THE UPSIDE Director: Neil BurgerStarring:   Kevin Hart, Bryan Cranston, Nicole Kidman, Aja Naomi King, Julianna Margulies Dell (Hart) is unemployed and can’t find work due to his criminal record. His bad attitude doesn’t help matters. He’s being threatened with going back to jail if he doesn’t come up with the proof that he’s at least job hunting. His latest attempt has him at the doors of Phillip Lacasse, a wealthy writer (Cranston) who’s quadriplegic. The position is to be his caregiver and attendant. Phillip is attracted to Dell’s unfiltered attitude and hires him on the spot despite the fact that Dell doesn’t really want theRead More →

06 July
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THE BEGUILED Writer/Director: Sofia Coppola Starring: Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, Kirsten Dunst, Elle Fanning, Oona Laurence Oscar winning writer and director Sofia Coppola is back and puts her stamp on a 1971 Clint Eastwood film of the same name. It’s 1864 and three years into the Civil War. Nicole Kidman stars as Miss Martha who runs a private all-girls home deep in an old seminary. It’s nestled within a secluded area in Virginia. She oversees six girls who live there as they’re getting their education by Edwina (Dunst), tending to the gardens, and doing other household chores. Their simple day to day lifestyle is shakenRead More →

06 April
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GOING IN STYLE Director: Zach Braff Starring: Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Alan Arkin, Ann-Margaret, Christopher Lloyd, Matt Dillon, John Ortiz, Joey King, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Kenan Thompson Between Alan Arkin, Michael Caine, and Morgan Freeman, they have a combined fifteen Oscar nominations and four wins. At this stage in their career, they’ve lightened up and are taking on the goofy, bumbling, senior guy roles. The movie opens with Joe (Caine) meeting with a banker to discuss the envelopes he’s receiving from the bank stating that his house is in jeopardy. They’ll seize it from him if he doesn’t pay his mortgage. Right then and there,Read More →

30 March
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GHOST IN THE SHELL Director: Rupert Sanders Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Pilou Asbæk, Takeshi Kitano, Michael Pitt, Juliette Binoche Let me state right up front that I went into Ghost in the Shell with no previous knowledge of this material. It’s based on the wildly popular 1989 Japanese manga comic series by Masamune Shirow. I’ve never read the books or watched the 1995 animated movie of the same name. Nor have I seen any of the franchise films that came after that. I went into this with an open palette and no preconceived notions of what to expect outside of the rumblings of Scarlett Johansson beingRead More →

23 September
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THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN Director: Antoine Fuqua Starring: Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio, Peter Sarsgaard, Byung-hun Lee, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Martin Sensmeier, Haley Bennett, Matt Bomer, Luke Grimes Within the same month I’ve seen two new westerns that have hit the big screen. The first was Hell or High Water, which is currently resting toward the top of my year end best list. Now comes the release of the remake of The Magnificent Seven, a movie that will not be on that list. It’s the late 1800s and the small town of Rose Creek is facing a bit of a dust up when industrialistRead More →

17 August
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PETE’S DRAGON Director:David Lowery Starring: Oakes Fegley, Bryce Dallas Howard, Wes Bentley, Karl Urban, Robert Redford, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Oona Laurence They say that a man’s best friend is his dog. For Pete (Fegley), it’s his dragon, Elliot. When he was just a little boy, he was the lone survivor of a fatal car crash that claimed the lives of his parents. The big green dragon appeared at just the right time when Pete was walking away from the crash frightened, scared, and not sure of where he was. The dragon scooped Pete up in his big furry paws and took him deep in theRead More →

14 July
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GHOSTBUSTERS Director: Paul Feig Starring: Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, Chris Hemsworth, Ed Begley Jr., Zach Woods, Charles Dance There’s a line in the classic Ray Parker, Jr. theme song that states, “I ain’t afraid of no ghosts.” I’m here to say that you shouldn’t be afraid of this movie. This new take on Ghostbusters will have you laughing from start to finish. Kristen Wiig plays Erin Gilbert, a nervous university professor who has put her days of tracking the paranormal behind her. She was firmly under the impression that her book, “Ghosts from the Past” was long forgotten until the headRead More →

06 March
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ANNIE Director: Will Gluck Starring: Quvenzhané Wallis, Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz, Rose Byrne, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Bobby Cannavale One of the movies I remember watching as a child was the 1982 film adaptation of the musical Annie. It starred Aileen Quinn as the red haired title character, Albert Finney as Daddy Warbucks, the legendary Carol Burnett as Miss Hannigan, plus Tim Curry and Bernadette Peters. Trepidation took over when it was announced that their would be a remake. There was already a television version a few years ago with Kathy Bates as Miss Hannigan. You really can’t top the 1982 film version, so why are weRead More →

20 February
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ROBOCOP Director: José Padilha Starring: Joel Kinnaman, Gary Oldman, Michael Keaton, Abbie Cornish, Michael K. Williams, Jennifer Ehle, Jay Baruchel, Samuel L. Jackson, Jackie Earl Haley Valentine’s Day weekend brought us three remakes of ’80s films. Three? Really? Yes, I kid you not.  Apparently we are void of any original love stories to be told for that special day. I vaguely recall seeing the original 1987 Paul Verhoeven flick edited for television many years ago when I was a kid flipping channels. Needless to say, I went in fresh without an ingrained memories of Peter Weller suited up taking on the criminals. Jump forward toRead More →

18 February
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ABOUT LAST NIGHT Director: Steve Pink Starring: Michael Ealy, Joy Bryant, Kevin Hart, Regina Hall, Adam Rodriguez, Paula Patton, Christopher McDonald, Joe Lo Truglio Is the third time the charm in regards to my relationship, or lack thereof, with Kevin Hart? You may remember from my reviews of Grudge Match and Ride Along that I have not hopped on the Hart bandwagon despite him being a huge box office draw and bonafide laugh-a-minute star to other people. Could he finally star in something that I found funny or have I just given in to his self-deprecating type humor? Could Regina Hall be just the rightRead More →