Alan Ng

What you find is this isn’t a political film about the self-destructive life of a conservative blowhard. It’s a family drama, set in the world of politics with a message of daring to change the conversation by listening to one another.

You have to remind yourself constantly, this is real. There are no special effects.

The problem with the film is although we walk away from the theater with a good feeling inside, the film lacks an edge…particularly a dark one. Everyone in the movie is good, wholesome people. No one’s really the villain. Bernadette’s problem is not all that surprising.

Good story and strong acting are a killer combination in this independent film.

The story is unique, and the end revelations are clever but fall short of mind-blowing (which is the bar). Lathrop Walker carries the film from beginning to end. He’s exciting and likable. He excels at his stunt work and provides the empathy we need for his character to carry us to the finish line.

From a macro level, Brian Banks should just be a social justice film, but as we peer into the life of Banks himself, you’ll see a deeper and more profound story.

Everyone has defined, and distinct characters and no one is phoning it in. Just sit back and enjoy this unique romantic comedy.

Affleck carries a great deal of weight in the movie, but its Pniowsky who shines as the young pre-teen learning quickly what it means to be an adult.

The Peanut Butter Falcon refuses to condescend to its star and tells a story that’s authentic to the life and experiences of adults with Down Syndrome.

Hobbs & Shaw is an action film in every sense of the word. You’re meant to check your brain at the door, shove your face with popcorn, and have a good time. Why would you expect more? This isn’t Shakespeare!

It’s a good film…a better version of the Coen Brother’s Hail Caesar! A film that kept popping up in my head.

The Outsider puts a spin on the western drama but quickly falls back into the conventional tropes of the genre. It best to approach The Outsider knowing that its primary focus is on the story and not action.

The Lion King is, for the most part, a shot-for-shot remake of the original from 1994, but unlike the Beauty and the Beast remake, this photo-realistic Lion King leaps ahead of the original as the better picture.

Unfortunately, Stuber never rises to the point of being remarkable in any way. You’ll love it, if you are a fan of either lead, otherwise, it’s a standard buddy movie.

Overall, Cold Blood just falls flat. Secrets should be shocking, unpredictable, and strongly impact the story. Here they’re predictable and lacks cleverness in discovering everyone’s true identities and motives.

Schadt’s story is solid in choosing the three paths for his characters to go down. He then takes the consequences of their inaction to its logical conclusions and a decidedly thriller-esque conclusion.

What I can say is Jake Gyllenhaal is fantastic in this movie. I was skeptical about bringing in Mysterio as the potential antagonist (villain), and he exceeded my expectations. The FX-team transferred Mysterio’s powers from comic book page to the big screen beautifully.

What Richard Curtis brilliantly does with this well-worn storyline is bring in elements to make it feel fresh.

The film is good and will appeal to fans of the genre, but doesn’t do enough to transcend it, which is what you hope when you watch dozens of Rom-Coms every year and when you want to broaden the appeal of your film altogether.

Beauty aside, Toy Story 4 captures the heart of the entire saga in its own way.

The Lavender Scare is essential to watch and an excellently produced documentary about a time the communist threat overshadowed the so-called “gay threat” from our history books.

The final fight at the end is fantastic. It is by far the best X-Men fight in its franchise history (not counting Deadpool).

UglyDolls is good for the kids and a great way to occupy their attention for almost 90 minutes. For the adults, it’s just another uninspired children’s film to hold us over until the next one comes along.

Visually speaking, Fletcher’s film is wonderful to watch. The fantastical choices he occasionally makes is grounded and never pull you out of the film.

Whether you’re a Godzilla fan or not, you’ll have fun, but you’re not going to walk away feeling like you saw something spectacular or memorable for that matter.

As a chapter in the Disney classic remakes, Jungle Book still stands at the top. Behind it is Aladdin and Cinderella fighting for second place with the rest as a distant whatever.

This film could have been an excellent introduction to the world of Pokémon but alas it’s a squandered opportunity.

The Biggest Little Farm not only has by-the-minute drama and an ever-present tension between success and failure, but as an accomplished cinematographer, the film’s images of the farm is breathtaking.