Movies 993 results

Patti Cake$ – Movie Review

Patty Cake$ is a white female rapper whose big persona and bravado behind the mic hide a life riddled with ridicule and self doubt. Her life at home is also far from ideal and watching her overcome these issues pulls you in and makes you more than just a casual observer. You care about the outcome of her life and wisely the filmmakers keep the unbelievable away in most instances. This only enhances the experience. The acting performances are universally good and the characters are wild ...

The Hitman’s Bodyguard Movie Review

Jackson as the hitman tries his best to drop more F bombs than any of his other films and Reynolds delivers a Deadpool lite performance that shows how well he has a handle on comic timing. Salma Hayek, who has little screen time but nonetheless gives Jackson a run for his money in the profane stakes, plays the incarcerated wife of the hitman. The story simplified to its core element is just a soon to be buddies road movie and almost all the characters are comic book deep, old school ...

Girls Trip Movie Review

There are not a lot of surprises in store via the script but what they get just right is the chemistry between the four friends and how shared time together actually does build a bond that can transcend time. The humour runs the gambit from adult humour to juvenile shenanigans that are every bit as childish as dude road movie’s stock in trade.   //   Friends getting back together after life has driven them apart is a tale often told on screen but there is a genuine ...

BIFF Movie Review – Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary

The broad strokes are covered and some of John’s lesser angelic qualities are glossed over a bit. His drug and alcohol addictions are touched on but are reduced in the narrative. There is however a touching memory about him quitting cold turkey related by his step daughter Antonia Andrews.   //   The music in the soundtrack is well mixed, if a little repetitive as it seems the filmmakers only licensed a minimum number of track. It is great to hear JC’s music in a ...

Gifted Movie Review

Chris Evans hides his matinee idol good looks behind a scruffy beard and it’s a wise move as his compassion and intellect are what comes under close scrutiny. Few roles are written with this much humanity without dipping into unbelievable contrivances. Octavia Spencer is also very good, although it’s a bit of a shame her role is one of a cameo nature and is underwritten.   //   Lindsay Duncan is excellent in a mother role that tries its best to strike a realistic ...

American Made Movie Review

Tom Cruise in one of his strongest roles in years plays Barry Seal, a pilot, government operative, drug runner and so much more. As the number of government agencies he works with add up, so does the level of insanity. The actual sequence of events in Seal’s real life differ quite a bit from the movie’s timeline but why let the truth get in the way of a good story and what a story it is.   //   As a period piece, the clothes, hair and music reinforce a time that ...

The Dark Tower Movie Review

If this is tinsel town’s attempt to par down the series of eight books written by Stephen King into a more streamlined presentation, much is lost in transition. It is so thin on character development, that it is almost ghost like. If the intension was to create an on going movie franchise, it is a poor first salvo.   //   In the attempt to not overwhelm the viewer with detail, the filmmakers have relied too much on the audience being familiar with the book series by ...

BIFF Movie Review – Loving Vincent

It follows the last few days and mysterious death of the artist Vincent Van Gogh and is told in an almost police procedural manner. Where the film really soars though is in its visual presentation. Over 100 artists have created a hand painted animated look done in the appropriate impressionistic style and it makes every frame a visual work of art.   //   As the story evolves, there are a multitude of descriptions of the Dutch painter’s last few days and it is left up ...

Terminator 2: Judgment Day 3D Movie Review

. The film is filled with both technical flaws, like the motorcycle, young John Connor rides being a four stroke and the sound track blaring the sound of a two stroke (a completely different sounding machine) as well as lapses of logic (why not send the Terminator back earlier than modern day to stop the family line). It’s to the film credit that you just forget how preposterous the whole story line is and just enjoy the spectacle and humour. The humour is of special note as it just gets ...

Logan Lucky Movie Review

It’s also a work of two parts and while the first half struggles a bit to find its footing, in the second half, things pick up nicely. As in all good caper yarns, things are not always as they seem and the work's internal logic by film’s end is most satisfying. Soderbergh as is his way, loads the film with a heavy duty cast and it’s great to see Daniel Craig play against his usual screen persona as Joe Bang, a bleach blonde career criminal with a way with science.   // ...