Asher Luberto

While the creators do their darndest to make an animated version of “Adaptation,” they’ve instead made an animated version of “Space Jam: Legacy”–a series of callbacks to IP that serves no other purpose than to remind you that they exist.

This gripping, taciturn thriller set in a frozen landscape isn’t necessarily any different from the other titles, but the well-crafted drama is a good reminder of how tangible atmosphere can transcend predictable narrative. At least at first.

As good as she is, and as timely as the film can be, it is frustrating that the villain seems to have waltzed in from a 1930s noir.

A Castle for Christmas delights in a stuffed-stocking of tropes and still offers a few surprises.

There’s a wealth of talent involved in this film, not the least of which is Snider himself. Unfortunately, Hard Luck Love Song doesn’t capture the essence of the musical source material, though one could argue there isn’t much emotional heft in the song to begin with.

It’s light, sweetly frisky, and warmly inspiring, with a lead performance from Toni Colette keeping things on track.

Because this is a packed ensemble and a joke-driven movie, the characterizations are fairly thin. We don’t know much about Lori, just that she isn’t ready for marriage. Though the casting of Cash opposite Harper makes sense, and the performances make us believe in the pair, we aren’t given any reason to believe they were once a happy couple.

The whole thing is a wildly uneven, extremely repetitive mess that could have used a few rewrites, as well as another look at the genial, genre-bending source material.

Although the actors are a joy to watch (as always), honestly, Edith and Basil’s real-life story just isn’t that cinematic, and the film never makes their discovery feel like our own.

It’s a bold and terrifying story, but it’s told with all the usual bells and whistles, basements and attics, creaks and bangs.

While fans of either Freaky Friday or Friday the 13th might not get enough of what they came for in Freaky, fans of Vaughn will get more than enough to keep them satisfied. He makes Freaky absolutely worth it.

It’s the same primitive family-friendly fare that made the original a box-office sensation.

As the film becomes more of a conventional horror flick, it also leaves unexplored the darker realities of these contemporary fears for easier, gorier thrills.

Rather than focusing on the specific aspects that make the film unique, Centigrade turns into a mishmash of genres.

Not surprisingly, Cut Throat City is a product of RZA’s voice, highlighting his social awareness and raw, deep, in-your-face delivery. What is surprising is how scattered the film is. Like a rapper without flow, Cut Throat City lacks the oomph to keep audiences engaged.

D’Arcy wastes a very personal story on a standard-issue romance. It’s heartbreaking for all the wrong reasons.

Actor turned director Dave Franco delivers the goods in his unsettling directorial debut, in this regard— a seemingly morally ambiguous thriller that doesn’t tell you whether you should be rooting for the innocents or the bad guys and seems to have things on its mind to say about trust, privilege, infidelity, privacy, surveillance and more.

By seesawing between tired performances and hellish visuals, Vitthal never delivers on the rage his premise initially promises.

Arkansas is, for long stretches, laid back. Despite its cartoonish performances, the tone is defiantly low key, with little of the vigor you expect from something inspired by Tarantino.

This Netflix film works overtime trying to be flashy without bothering to create characters worth rooting for, and its long run time won’t do bored parents any favors.

In a world where the clouds are puffy, the script is fluffy and the funk is funky, it’s easy to stomach all the glitter a second time around. If you do decide to rent this via VOD, now that DreamWorks Animation has broken the theatrical window, you will likely be in harmony with kaleidoscopic visuals, not to mention a bunch of greatest hits the whole family can enjoy.

Emphasizing Selah’s discovery that cliques are kinda dumb and that her actions have consequences, Selah and the Spades loses momentum, despite a witty framing device that places characters as tiny figures in the school’s vast, empty rooms.

Ultimately, no amount of champagne, pretty faces, and New York real estate porn can turn dull lovers and a dramatic lack of focus into a pretty picture, and this is the reality The Photograph captures in the end.

It’s a dull, plodding retread with new souped-up VFX that’s deeply uninvolving.

Despite a script that’s as obvious as a treasure map, Low Tide works because of its leads. The four actors have never been better.