At the start of writer/director Rian Johnson’s Knives Out, a famed mystery novelist (played by Christopher Plummer) has been murdered and everyone in his family is a suspect. A pair of detectives (played by LaKeith Stanfield and Noah Segan) and a wild card crime solver (played by Daniel Craig) interrogate each family member and learn […]
‘Jojo Rabbit’ Bonus New Movie Review
One of the great stories in cinema lore is Jerry Lewis’ 1972 The Day the Clown Cried, in which the comic legend and actor/director helmed a World War II internment comedy that has never been released. It stars Lewis as Helmut, a clown who is arrested by the S.S. and mistakenly placed in the Auschwitz […]
‘A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood’ New Movie Review: It’s a film for all of us
In the new film from director Marielle Heller (whose Can You Ever Forgive Me? was a sleeper last year), Matthew Rhys stars as Lloyd, an Esquire Magazine writer assigned to cover Fred Rogers (played by Tom Hanks). Lloyd’s volatile relationship with his father (played by Chris Cooper, in a vivid turn) has made him a […]
‘Frozen II’ New Movie Review: The songs are duds
If you’re 12 years old or younger, then you’ve been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Frozen II. Of course, that doesn’t mean adults won’t show up, too: I sat in a packed theater on opening day, visibly the only solo grown-up in a sea of kids and their parents. Yes, I have a little girl […]
‘Charlie’s Angel’s’ New Movie Review: It has an identity crisis
Back when Gerald Ford was president and people drank something out of a carton called Tang, there was once a TV series called “Charlie’s Angels.” It entailed the adventures of three gorgeous agents, played by Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson, and Jaclyn Smith, who fought crime and answered to a mysterious benefactor named Charlie (voiced by […]
White Hawaiian: Eric Gilliom talks about his career, from his earliest influences to stage highlights with some of Maui’s biggest stars, and how it’s all led to his new one-man show
Eric Gilliom is returning to the theater. On the surface, it doesn’t sound like a big deal, as Gilliom’s been performing on stage, playing alongside the likes of Willie K, Mick Fleetwood, and the Island Rumors Band, for over a decade. However, his new project, called White Hawaiian, is not strictly a musical performance. For […]
‘Doctor Sleep’ New Movie Review: It may be divisive among “shine-hards,” but it’s an impressive film
Danny Torrance, the little boy from The Shining, is a grown man (and now played by Ewan McGregor). Like his father, Danny is an alcoholic with a frightening temper. A harrowing mistake leads him adrift from one state to another, though Danny can neither outrun his past nor his psychic ability to “shine.” He meets […]
‘Terminator: Dark Fate’ New Movie Review: James Cameron, the Governator, and Sarah Connor are back!
At the start of Terminator: Dark Fate, old and new come crashing together. The former comes in familiar doses of clips, both vintage (we once again get Linda Hamilton’s terrifying monologue about the end of the world) and reconfigured (a beach provides a Normandy-like robot invasion). The latter is served in a startling introductory scene, […]
‘Zombieland: Double Tap’ New Movie Review: Never make a sequel to a comedy classic
The last time we were in Zombieland, it was a decade ago and our group of heroes had survived a massive zombie attack in an amusement park. Now, the gun-toting, Twinkie-loving Tallahassee (played by Woody Harrelson), brainy and neurotic Columbus (played by Jesse Eisenberg), stern Wichita (played by Emma Stone), and fed-up Little Rock (played […]
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil New Movie Review – Another unjustified sequel
I don’t see movies more than once in the theater and usually avoid repeat viewings of the films I like for a few years. I do this because I want the repeat experiences to feel fresh and also, I see so many movies that I don’t really have the time to watch the same ones […]
Illustrating a Love for Hawai‘i: Talking story with local artist Noble Richardson before Maui Comic Con
The fourth annual Maui Comic Con is upon us and one of the featured guests is a local hero in the most profound sense. Maui native Noble Richardson has created eye-catching, emotionally stirring murals in Wailuku and Kahului. His art, in addition to being beautiful and rich in detail, often interweaves Hawaiian history and culture. […]
‘Gemini Man’ New Movie Review: Will Smith and cutting edge CGI can’t save this script
In the mid-’90s there were two high concept screenplays that were much discussed and in demand to be made within the Hollywood studio system. One was called “The Ticking Man,” set in the near future, about a man who wakes up, finds a bomb has been surgically planted in his chest, and has one hour […]
‘Joker’ New Movie Review: It succeeds at stacking cringe-worthy scenes
Finally, someone at Warner Brothers realized that if you release a stand-alone movie about the Joker, you’re bound to make piles of money. The trouble is, they entrusted the story of Batman’s greatest nemesis with Todd Phillips, the director of Due Date, whose love of ‘70s movies (and mean-spirited material in general) gets the better […]
‘Alien’ Movie Review: Still a masterpiece, ‘Alien’ returns to theaters for three days in October
The “jump scare” is a well established trope of horror films, in which the “shriek chord” on the soundtrack suddenly rises, in order to give audiences a jolt. Lazy horror films aggressively use the “shriek chord” but aren’t fooling anyone. If a filmmaker needs the equivalent of someone screaming in my ear to induce fear, […]
‘Ad Astra’ New Movie Review: The film is engrossing, but asks challenging questions
Director James Gray’s Ad Astra takes place in “The Near Future” and stars Brad Pitt as Roy McBride, a celebrated astronaut of notable lineage – Clifford, his late father (played by Tommy Lee Jones) is a cosmonaut of legendary status. McBride is working on the International Space Station when a cosmic freak occurrence, referred to […]
Lean, No-Nonsense, and Brutal – “Rambo: Last Blood” delivers
After John Rambo (played by Sylvester Stallone) saved a group of missionaries and murdered most of the bad guys in Burma, he settled down, found a home with a mailbox bearing his last name, and embraced normal life. At least, that was the conclusion of Rambo, the 2008 installment which belatedly caught us up with […]