Olsen plays Montgomery, an ordinary citizen of the very ordinary Wylie, Texas. She’s a devout Methodist who seems happy with her church and her husband Pat (Patrick Fugit), who’s a nice-but-bland individual. He likes to chuckle slightly at “The Love Boat,” and one gets the impression that such moments are the peak of excitement in … Read more
The word “sisu” is nearly untranslatable, but its closest meaning suggests an unbreakable determination, one that seems to even stave off death. Determination is exactly what Korpi will need when, on his way home with his fortune of nuggets hanging on his horse’s saddlebag, he comes across a band of sullen Nazis. The Nazis are … Read more
This is the case for Michi (Chieko Baisho), an elderly woman who is let go from her job at a hotel at the beginning of the film. Customers have been complaining that it makes them sad to see elderly people still working, management explains. That’s all well and good, except that Michi has no family … Read more
The aforementioned screenplay is little more than a half-assed rehash of “True Lies,” “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” “Knight and Day,” and the like that brings absolutely nothing of interest to the table. “Ghosted” is essentially a laundry line connecting its interchangeable action beats with tired characters, lazy plotting, and a complete lack of wit, humor, … Read more
It begins with a lone flamenco dancer performing alone on a wooden board laid across the sand in the middle of a Mexican desert. Her staccato taps seem to spell out in Morse code the thoughts we hear about men and the trouble they bring. And then one arrives, bringing trouble. He asks, “Where is … Read more
Bologna’s talent and charisma helped him ascend to the loftiest echelons of the royal court. But his background as the son of a plantation owner and a slave meant that he could never truly belong. Over the past 200-plus years, Bologna’s life story and impressive body of work have been buried and lost to time; … Read more
The latest in the series, “Evil Dead Rise,” comes from Irish writer/director Lee Cronin, whose 2019 feature debut “The Hole in the Ground” also revolves around sinkholes and mommy issues. Cronin’s grimy sensibility is much closer to that of remake director Fede Alvarez than Raimi’s live-action cartoons. But he does share one key thing with … Read more
There are some laughs here and there, but they’re mainly in the first 15-20 minutes before the gang runs out of jokes and starts repeating the same ones. Honestly, the only real joy to be found in “Quasi” is the kind that comes from seeing a group of old friends having a good time. While … Read more
You can sense that condescension in the film’s unnatural development, as seen in commonplace scenes of prejudice: Eric Roberts briefly appears as a bigoted service station owner that shouts the Black Globetrotters away from his gas by touting a double barrel shotgun; a hotel rents a room to the monkey Mr. Bananas rather than the … Read more
Along the way, and with the encouragement of his support group (led by an appealing Brandon Scott Jones with spot-on timing), Renfield realizes that a different life is possible for him—a happy one of his own. Hilarious details abound in production and costume design as Renfield seeks a cheerier, more colorful persona, far from the … Read more