An aging father and his newly concerned son reconnect during an impromptu road trip in Nebraska. Director Alexander Payne has been at the helm of three films I absolutely loved: The Descendents, Sideways and Election. He also headed About Schmidt — a solidly regarded Jack Nicholson film that I barely managed to stay awake through. All […]

We’re now in the midst of a glut of movies based on Marvel superheroes and other characters, and there’s no sign of it letting up. For comic book fanboys, this is great; for the rest of moviegoers, it may not be so exciting. I’ll cross my fingers that things don’t decline to the point that there’s […]

A young boy is chosen to be a top military strategist in a battle to save the future of Earth from the onslaught of an alien race in Ender’s Game. Orson Scott Card‘s beloved sci-fi best seller is brought to the big screen for the first time. It’s the story of young Ender Wiggin (Asa […]

…takes on water from unexpected holes and sinks under its own weight.

A group of real-life climbers reach the top of K2 only to realize the most difficult part of their journey lies ahead in The Summit. In August of 2008, 18 climbers realized a dream by reaching the summit of one of the deadliest mountains in the world — K2. However, it’s the treacherous descent where most fatalities occur. This […]

The Wizard of Oz is my favorite movie. Period. It has everything I like about a great adventure or musical — memorable characters, catchy tunes, quests, a really evil character, comic relief, amazing special effects (for the time), a talented lead actress and even flying monkeys. Imagine my surprise when I learned that they were going […]

Vin Diesel first entered the consciousness of moviegoers with Pitch Black (2000) and The Fast and the Furious a year later even though he had small roles in Saving Private Ryan and Boiler Room. Diesel knows how to give back to his fans and doesn’t snub his nose at the movies that propelled him to […]

Some sequels are logical extensions of other properties. Think of how the X-Men movies led to the Wolverine films. Planes is also an offshoot of another popular property. Billed as “From above the World of Cars,” it does truly concentrate on the aerial citizens of that universe. That doesn’t limit the characters to those of […]

A group of friends and a local hippie they pick up along the way search for the ultimate high and some meaning in their lives in Crystal Fairy. There are great films. There are lousy films, and then there are films that remind me why I felt I had something to contribute to the glut […]

You won’t get bored while watching R.I.P.D., but that doesn’t mean it’s really very good.

The team from the surprise action/comedy hit of 2010 is back in action with the all-new sequel RED 2. Bruce Willis and John Malkovich are back, starring as retired CIA black-ops agents Frank Moses and Marvin Boggs respecitvely. Frank’s settled down into a rather mundane existence as the live-in boyfriend of Sarah Ross (Mary-Louise Parker) when Marvin […]

Gru and family return for a sequel to the 2010 smash-hit original in Despicable Me 2. In the new installment, Gru has given up his evildoing aspirations in order to focus on being the best father he can be for his three girls — Margo, Edith and Agnes. Unfortunately, his evil past means he’s also the best […]