When we meet Billi (played by Awkwafina), she’s broke and living alone in New York. The one constant in her life is her relationship with Nai Nai (played by Zhao Shuzhen), her grandmother who lives in China. Billi is informed by her parents that Nai Nai’s doctor discovered she has cancer. Nai Nai doesn’t have […]
‘Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw’ New Movie Review: More like ‘Long & Tedious’
Law enforcer Luke Hobbs (played by Dwayne Johnson) and career criminal Deckard Shaw (played by Jason Statham), supporting characters in the Fast & Furious franchise, now have their very own spinoff. What was once fast and furious is now long and tedious. If you’ve ever wondered what one of these movies would be like without […]
‘Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood’ New Movie Review: This film is a pleasure to watch
In Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Rick Dalton, a B-level Western star whose career has never branched outside of television and who’s often accompanied by Cliff, his stuntman, go-to repairman, and best friend (played by Brad Pitt). As the late-1960s radical counter-cultural movement overtakes America, Dalton’s career momentum […]
‘Yesterday’ New Movie Review: This is a refreshing summer sleeper
Danny Boyle’s Yesterday isn’t the jukebox musical I feared, nor the one-joke sitcom its trailer would leave you to believe. In fact, even with its shortcomings, this is a refreshing summer sleeper that has more on its mind than what’s on the surface. Television actor and big-screen newcomer Himesh Patel makes a strong starring role […]
‘Midsommar’ Movie Review: Why this film critic is postponing his Swedish vacation
Ari Aster’s Midsommar is the first movie I’ve seen all year that feels like it was made by a real filmmaker, an artist who has carefully designed each shot, collaborated in full with every cast member, and has a true vision he reaches with every scene. It’s that good. While the promotional materials are pushing […]
‘Annabelle Comes Home’ New Movie Review: Annabelle 3 is a well crafted and worthy addition to the Conjuring Universe
Here’s a word rarely used to describe mainstream horror movies: classy. This is exactly how I’d describe Annabelle Comes Home and it’s a favorable attribute to this, one of the best in the growing and mostly great “Conjuring Universe.” Judy (played by Mckenna Grace) is the sweet but lonely daughter of the newsworthy paranormal investigators […]
‘Anna’ Bonus New Movie Review: It’s trashy fun… up to a point
When we meet Anna (played by newcomer Sasha Luss), she is a Russian street peddler who is discovered by a talent agent. A few whirlwind days later, Anna is picked up by an agency, on the set of a busy photo shoot and living in a packed apartment with other models on the rise. The […]
‘Toy Story 4’ New Movie Review: This franchise has overstayed its welcome
We didn’t need a Toy Story 4, though that didn’t stop everyone at Pixar from trying. The problem with most fourth sequel installments is that, even if the audience enters the theater with goodwill, the uphill battle from the start is to not seem forced. The initial thrill of seeing Woody, Buzz, and the gang […]
Bonus Movie Review: ‘Dark Phoenix’ – Despite being deemed a box office flop, this may be the first-ever ‘X-Men’ cult movie
In writer and director Simon Kinberg’s Dark Phoenix, we learn how mutant Jean Grey (played by Sophie Turner from “Game of Thrones”) obtains extraordinary powers that corrupt her psyche and destroy the relationships around her. As a member of the X-men and a reliable presence at the school for mutants established by Dr. Charles Xavier […]
Bonus Movie Review: ‘Shaft’
John (played by Jessie T. Usher) is shocked to discover his best friend has died under mysterious circumstances. When he can’t fully utilize his connections with the FBI and fails to turn up evidence on his own, John makes a desperate plea for help and reaches out to his Dad… Detective John Shaft, played by […]
New Movie Review: ‘Men in Black: International’
The word “deadpan” can be used to describe the tone and performance approach to the original Men in Black. In that film, Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith played two very different, black-suited secret agents who took on “the scum of the universe” together, by utilizing high tech weaponry. The key to that film was […]
Retro Movie Review: ‘Friday the 13th’ (1980)
I’ve been to Camp Crystal Lake. In fact, I even dipped my toe into the resting place of Jason Voorhees, though I’m getting ahead of myself. Camp No-Be-Bosco is a gorgeous, lushly green Boy Scouts’ camp tucked away in beautiful Blairstown, New Jersey. I visited the spot during the summer of 2007 and was struck […]
20 Years of the Maui Film Festival: Critic Barry Wurst II reflects on the greatest movies to play at the world’s finest film festival
As the annual Maui Film Festival enters its 20th year, the high points are easy to cite. Let’s start with the various “Tastes”: the Oceanside Taste of Summer, the “crown jewel” Taste of Wailea, and for serious choco-holics, the granddaddy of them all, the Taste of Chocolate. There’s the glorious outdoor bonding experience of the […]
Maui Film Festival Movie Review: ‘Echo in the Canyon’
Echo in the Canyon is director Andrew Slater’s documentary on the game-changing music movement in the mid-late 1960s that took place in Laurel Canyon, California. The history of that remarkable time is presented from a bevy of music legends, including David Crosby, Ringo Starr, producer Lou Adler, Michelle Phillips, Jackson Browne, and Eric Clapton (to […]
Summer Movie Preview 2019: Another Summer of Sequels and Re-Makes
While there’s a great deal of promise and maximum entertainment value to be derived from the selection of this year’s summer movies, I’m already thinking ahead… to next summer. It’s not that the return of Godzilla, Chucky the Doll, and two generations of John Shaft isn’t exciting. The thing is, I’ve been waiting most of […]
Bonus Film Review: ‘Pokemon Detective Pikachu’
Someone thought the world needed a live-action Pokemon movie, so here we are. In Pokemon Detective Pikachu, a young man named Tim (played by Justice Smith) turns to the title character (a fuzzy yellow critter voiced by Ryan Reynolds) to investigate an unsolved mystery. Along the way, they learn of a vast conspiracy at work […]
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