Ryan Oliver

The film succeeds as a fun, late-night moviegoing experience, though those looking for something more substantial or memorable, may want to just wait for the next ‘Conjuring’ film and hope it overcomes the hex of the series’ increasingly conventional routine.

Unfortunately, the peripheral factors worth championing are not enough to save the film from being a routine slasher, with an unremarkable mystery at the center, that puts its prescient anti-bullying message first and genre second, making Thriller feel a bit like a chore.

It’s technically impressive and faulty in equal measure, expunging most of the substance in favor of occasionally effective, but mostly cheap, scares.

As it stands now, The Highwaymen arguably does just enough legwork to justify its existence, but good luck enduring it.

The greatest pitfall of Mary Poppins Returns isn’t the familiarity; it’s the cohesion, specifically the lack thereof. The narrative tissue is merely an excuse to set up each extravagant musical number, but the best musicals don’t forget to make the non-musical moments count.