By Laurie Coker Rating: C- Women have made their marks in history, and many wonderful films have shared their stories. In spite of these real-life stories of powerful women, Hollywood seems to feel the need to add heroines where there were none. Such is the case of Amelia Wren (Felicity Jones), a plucky, daredevil ballooning… Continue reading Review: THE AERONAUTS
Author: Laurie Coker
Knives out
By Laurie Coker Rating: A+ Nothing beats a good murder mystery and Knives Out starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Christopher Plumber, Don Johnson, Michael Shannon, Chris Evans, Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas and a host of other awesome actors keeps the audience guessing like an old-style Agatha Christie novel. Writer/director Rian Johnson plays every trick in… Continue reading Knives out
Review: BRITTANY RUNS A MARATHON
By Laurie Coker Rating: B From the trailers, the debut from the writer-director Paul Downs Colaizzo, Brittany Runs and Marathon looks like a goofy, body-shaming film in line with those by Amy Schumer, but it is far more. Colaizzo gives a little film with a big heart and Jillian Bell serves up a subtly touching… Continue reading Review: BRITTANY RUNS A MARATHON
Ford v Ferrari
By Laurie Coker Rating: A+ My father raced cars – this was back in Model A cars and I wasn’t alive – but he taught me how to drive – fast. I love speed and I love the film Ford V. Ferrari, starring Christian Bale and Matt Damon. Director James Mangold offers up the story… Continue reading Ford v Ferrari
Review: PLAYING WITH FIRE
By Laurie Coker Rating: C- Children, like fire, are completely unpredictable. Unfortunately, John Cena’s new movie, Playing with Fire, is blatantly predictable. Relying more on sight gags and pratfalls than on quality writing or acting, director Andy Fickman and co-writers Matt Lieberman and Dan Ewen miss their marks completely. With a cast as entertaining as… Continue reading Review: PLAYING WITH FIRE
Parasite
By Laurie Coker Rating: A+ Admittedly, I prefer to watch films with no subtitles. I become extremely distracted by them and miss things happening on the screen, but the film Parasite holds interest so intensely, that, like seeing a train wreck, it is impossible to look away. Director/ co-writer Bong Joon Ho and writer Han… Continue reading Parasite
Review: THE LIGHTHOUSE
By Laurie Coker Rating: A Art is relative. Who would have thought that art, especially funny art came in black and white celluloid-style in the 21st century? The Lighthouse starring Willem Defoe and Robert Pattinson is a surprising mix of masterfully woven madness and manic melancholy. They are souls trapped in a tower of solitude.… Continue reading Review: THE LIGHTHOUSE
Review: MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL
By Laurie Coker Rating: D+/C- Sequels, sequels and more sequels. Angelina Jolie reprises her role from the 2014 film Maleficent, a live-action twist on Sleeping Beauty, in Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. Jolie along with Michelle Pfeiffer add class and charisma to an otherwise dull and predictable story of good versus evil. Disney, director Joachim Rønning,… Continue reading Review: MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL
Review: HOTEL MUMBAI
By Laurie Coker Rating: A+ Had the events of 9/11 never happened incidents like the one that occurred at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai, India would have been little more than a few segments the evening news. Horrific actions on foreign soil had nothing to do with us. Director Anthony Maras who shares writing credit… Continue reading Review: HOTEL MUMBAI
Review: JUDY
By Laurie Coker Rating: C + Gearing up for or towards Oscar season, viewers can expect to see excellent films and excellent actors just not necessarily together. Renee Zellweger comes to the screen again in Judy, a movie based on the late, talented Wizard of Oz star, Judy Garland. Missing for a bit of time… Continue reading Review: JUDY