By Laurie Coker Rating: A Girl power is at the forefront of many movies this summer, but often the effort to promote female strength and equality feels forced and faked. In 1989, Tracy Edwards, a twenty-four-year-old boat cook, put together the first-ever, all-female crew to sail in the Whitbread Round the World Race. Documentarian Alex… Continue reading Review: MAIDEN
Category: Reviews
Review – On DVD & Streaming September 9th: YESTERDAY
By Laurie Coker Rating: B+ Yesterday were the Beatles and today, only a glimmer remains – or no memory of them all. Director Danny Boyle takes his viewers on an enchanted journey in this twist on the music of the Fab Four. Written by Richard Curtis, Yesterday offers a modern mix of Beatles music in a sentimental and… Continue reading Review – On DVD & Streaming September 9th: YESTERDAY
Review – Now Available on Amazon Prime: GAGS the CLOWN
By Laurie Coker Rating: F- Gag! Everything in Gags the Clown is rotten. Taking the hand-held camera production approach does nothing to bring terror or entertainment to this half-baked, horror flick, now available for rent or purchase on Amazon Prime. Director and co-writer, with John Pata, Adam Krause fails miserably at the found-footage genre, but not as… Continue reading Review – Now Available on Amazon Prime: GAGS the CLOWN
Review: THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN
By Laurie Coker Rating B- Garth Stein’s transparent, yet touching tale and Kevin Costner’s gravelly voiceover of the canine lead in The Art of Racing in the Rain offer a breath of fresh air in a season fraught with dismal dramas and over-blown action thrillers. Regardless of the formulaic story ploys, director Simon Curtis manages to rise… Continue reading Review: THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN
Review: EDIE
By Laurie Coker Rating: B People who complete amazing feats of strength, determination, and perseverance fill the world. However, we rarely hear about octogenarians who climb mountains. Director Simon Hunter and screenwriter Elizabeth O’Halloran weave a beautiful tale of life after death – death of a husband that is. Sheila Hancock stars as Edie, a… Continue reading Review: EDIE
Review: PROMISE AT DAWN
By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) A single mother struggles to provide her son with the best and most successful life possible. Now I know this simple synopsis sounds rather cliche and common in cinema now. However, considering that the story takes place between the 1920s and 1950s makes this a more… Continue reading Review: PROMISE AT DAWN
Review: THE ANGEL HAS FALLEN
The angel HAS fallen. The Angel has Fallen is a sequel that should have fallen before it was in the can. Starring Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman, and Jada Picket Smith, The Angel has Fallen relies too heavily on action and chase sequences and fails to deliver a story of any merit, not that one is… Continue reading Review: THE ANGEL HAS FALLEN
SXSW 2019 Review: “Raise Hell: The Life and Times of Molly Ivins”
By Liz Lopez Rating: A Director Janice Engel’s feature documentary was screened during SXSW a few months ago and is easily one of my favorites from this year’s festival. I am not the only one to think so, as this film is an Audience Award Winner in the Festival Favorites category. Engel and Monique Zavistovski… Continue reading SXSW 2019 Review: “Raise Hell: The Life and Times of Molly Ivins”
Review: BRITTANY RUNS A MARATHON
By Mark Saldana Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars) So far, it has been a great year for inspirational, feel-good cinema. And considering that the real world has taken some scary and disturbing turns in the past few years, maybe crowd-pleasing cinema is just what the doctor has ordered. Comedic actress Jillian Bell gets her… Continue reading Review: BRITTANY RUNS A MARATHON
Review: AFTER THE WEDDING
By Mark Saldana Rating: 3 (Out of 4 Stars) Based on Suzanne Bier’s Danish film Efter brylluppet, After the Wedding has plenty of stong, compelling material, but its execution and presentation gets bogged down with indulgent melodrama and a third act and epilogue that play out rather flatly. I suppose an argument could be made… Continue reading Review: AFTER THE WEDDING