Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz star in the action comedy Knight and Day. On her way to her sister’s wedding, June Havens has her world turned upside down when she crosses paths with a secret agent. The action’s pretty good and gives the film a lot of energy. The comedy however, is a little overdone; as the clever satire starts to become farcical after a while. Also, there are times when the score undercuts some of the energy of the action scenes. Still, Knight and Day is a fun and entertaining film full of thrills, as well as laughs.
Redeeming Love is a touching and powerful drama based on the bestselling novel by Francine Rivers. A modernization of the biblical story of Hosea set in the Old West, a farmer, feeling lead by God, rescues a prostitute named Angel from a brothel and marries her, but she finds it hard to leave her life of prostitution behind and to accept the new life being offered to her. Starring Abigail Cowen, Tom Lewis, Eric Dane, and Famke Janssen, the cast is pretty good and deliver strong performances. And director D.J. Caruso does an impressive job as well. Additionally, the film handles the material especially well; without being sexually exploitive or preachy. However, the pacing can be a little slow at times and a couple of the characters are underdeveloped. Yet despite having a few weaknesses, Redeeming Love is a compelling story about love and forgiveness.
Ben Stiller, Edward Norton, and Jenna Elfman star in the hilarious rom-com Keeping the Faith. The story follows two friends, Brian and Jake, who grew up to become a priest and a rabbi in New York City, and reunite with their childhood friend Anna, but their friendships are jeopardized when Jake and Anna begin secretly dating. Stiller, Norton, and Elfman all have great chemistry together and do a good job at handling the witty, sardonic humor. And the film is surprisingly respectful of religion and has a positive message. However, the love story’s rather formulaic, featuring the usual tropes. Keeping the Faith has a few weaknesses, but overall it’s a fun and entertaining film.
Keri Russell stars in the satirical comedy Austenland. The story follows a young woman obsessed with the works of Jane Austen, who takes a vacation to a retreat in the English countryside where she gets to live out a Jane Austen style adventure. Russell gives a great performance and has good chemistry with her co-stars. Additionally, Jennifer Coolidge and Jane Seymour make for a strong supporting cast. Still, the writing is a little weak and the plot doesn’t always seem like it knows where it’s going. But despite its ups and downs, Austenland is fun and entertaining.
From Ron Howard comes the magical romantic comedy Splash. When Allen Bauer has a chance meeting with a mysterious woman on the beach, she follows him back to New York were the two strike up an unlikely romance; but unbeknownst to him, she’s a mermaid. The casting is brilliant, and includes Tom Hanks, Daryl Hannah, Eugene Levy, and John Candy; who all give strong comedic performances. The storytelling is a little lazy, but the characters are interesting and the comedy is done very well. Full of laughs, Splash is a charming film that’s entertaining and fun.
Nora Ephron bastardizes the classic ‘60s sitcom Bewitched in this modern adaptation. The story follows a witch named Isabell who’s trying to live a normal life without magic, but soon finds herself tempted when she’s cast in a Hollywood studio’s revival of the classic television show Bewitched. Starring Nicole Kidman, Will Ferrell, Shirley MacLaine, and Michael Caine, the cast is pretty good. However, Ephron seems more interested in making a satire about Hollywood than a rom-com; causing a lot of unevenness in the tone and wild shifts in the plot. Still, a lot of the jokes work and the characters are charming and fun. Yet while it’s entertaining, Bewitched is a mess that doesn’t have a clear vision of what it wants to be.
From the Farrelly brothers comes the classic ‘90s comedy There’s Something About Mary. When a therapy session awakens feelings for his old high school girlfriend, Ted decides to track her down but finds that the PI that he hired to find her has fallen for her too. Starring Cameron Diaz, Ben Stiller, Matt Dillon, and Chris Elliott, the film has a strong cast that has great chemistry together; delivering a ton of laughs. However, in typical Farrelly brothers style, some of the humor is a bit crass and over-the-top. Still, most of the jokes hit and the soundtrack is lighthearted and fun. There’s Something About Mary has its weak spots, but overall it’s a wildly entertaining film.
Worthy of every bit of its infamous reputation, Gigli is an amazingly bad rom-com. The story follows a low-level mobster who’s tasked with kidnapping the mentally challenged brother of a federal prosecutor, and soon finds himself saddled with a partner when his boss grows concerned about the job he’s doing. Ben Affleck gives a terrible performance, as does Jennifer Lopez. And it’s only made worse by the cameos of Christopher Walken and Al Pacino (who show-up everyone who dares to share the screen with them). However, part of the problem is the writing; as the dialog is horrendous. The tone of the film is also an issue, as there’s a lot of disparate elements that don’t quite fit together. Gigli has a few things going for it, but it just doesn’t work and ends up making a mess of everything.
It Could Happen to You is a delightful romantic comedy that’s inspirational and heartwarming. In this New York fairytale a beat cop promises half of his potential lotto winnings to a waitress in lieu of a tip, but when he wins the money brings about a strange and whimsical journey of ups and downs. Nicolas Cage and Bridget Fonda are charming together and deliver wonderful performances. Rosie Perez however, is as annoying as all get-out. Also, the plot is a bit formulaic at times, and there are issues with the pacing. Yet while it has its flaws, It Could Happen to You is a lot of fun.
“Never give up, never surrender!” Galaxy Quest is an extraordinary sci-fi comedy that’s smart and funny. The story follows a group of washed up actors from the cult sci-fi television series Galaxy Quest, who are abducted by a race of aliens that have no concept of fiction and see the Galaxy Quest cast as real life heroes. Starring Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, and Sam Rockwell, the cast is quiet impressive; giving exceptional performances that balance the humor and the action. And the comedy itself especially good and does an excellent job at spoofing the sci-fi genre and its topes; brilliantly satirizes ‘60s science fiction television (such as Star Trek), as well as the culture of fandom. By Grabthar’s Hammer, Galaxy Quest is a hilariously entertaining adventure.
“Greetings Starfighters...” A science fiction classic, The Last Starfighter delivers an imaginative, action-packed adventure. After breaking the record on the Starfighter arcade game at his trailer park, Alex Rogan is approached by the game’s creator and taken to a space-station on a distant planet where he learns that the arcade game was really an alien recruiting tool to find Starfighters to defend the Star League against an invasion force. Starring Lance Guest, Catherine Mary Stewart, and Robert Preston, the film has a good cast that delivers some pretty strong performances. And, as one of the first feature films to use CGI, the special effects are incredibly innovative and revolutionary for their time. The score by Craig Safan is also extraordinarily well-done, and is full of sweeping themes. Though it’s aged a bit, The Last Starfighter is a fun and entertaining space odyssey.
It’s game on in the goofball comedy Pixels. After mistaking a message from a NASA probe as an intergalactic military challenge, an alien race sends an army to Earth to fight a series of battles, each based on a classic arcade game, that will determine the fate of humanity. Starring Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Michelle Monaghan, and Peter Dinklage, the film has a fairly strong cast. The writing however, is rather poor; as the writers seem to have an idea of what they want to do, but don’t quite know how to get there. Still, the action sequences are pretty good and use the video game motif especially well.Pixels is entertaining and delivers a few laughs, but it’s a bit muddled at times.
Dan Aykroyd and John Landis get the band back together for the reunion film Blues Brothers 2000. Less of a sequel and more of a remake, the story is beat for beat the same as the original; which shows a complete lack of originality and creativity, making the film utterly pointless. But beyond that, the tone is inconsistent and is full of cartoonishness and fantasy themes that don’t work. A spectacular mess, Blues Brothers 2000 has no idea what it’s doing.
John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd are Jake and Elwood Blues, two blues musicians “on a mission from God,” in the hilarious comedy The Blues Brothers. Directed and co-written by John Landis, this popular Saturday Night Live sketch gets turned into a full length film that follows Jake and Elwood as they get their old band back together to raise money to save an orphanage. A virtual musical extravaganza, there are featured cameos from James Brown, Aretha Franklin, and Ray Charles; all in fun, energetic musical numbers. Some of the jokes are a little corny, but Belushi and Aykroyd’s charisma is just too irresistible. Wildly entertaining and full of laughs, The Blues Brothers is a classic ‘80s comedy with soul.
“Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?” From writer/director John Hughes comes one of the most iconic films of the ‘80s, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. The story follows high school senior Ferris Bueller, who ditches school in order to have a day of adventure and gets into crazy shenanigans with his freinds. Starring Matthew Broderick, Mia Sara, Alan Ruck, and Jennifer Grey, the film has a great cast; Broderick in particular has a lot of charisma. And the comedy is especially well-written, with some very clever meta humor and breaking of the fourth wall. Entertaining and incredibly fun, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is an excellent comedy and one of John Hughes’ best films.
Beating a dead horse, the Home Alone franchise delivers a fifth installment The Holiday Heist. When a team of art thieves attempt to break into a suburban house in Maine to steal an elusive painting, they must first go through 10-year old Finn Baxter, who’s determined to protect is house and his sister while his parents are away at a Christmas party. Christian Martyn is completely miscast as Finn, and is a major detriment to the film. And the thieves aren’t really all that villainous; making it difficult to take pleasure when they fall into Finn’s traps, particularly since they don’t know Finn and aren’t trying to hurt him. There are a couple cute jokes, but for the most part the humor is rather bland and none of the slapstick really works. Home Alone: The Holiday Heist is a pointless film that has strayed far, far from the original.
The story of the McCallisters continues with a whole new cast in Home Alone 4. With his parents in the middle of a divorce, Kevin chooses to stay with his father and his new girlfriend for Christmas and runs into his old nemesis Marv while he’s casing the house. The new cast isn’t as good as the original; particularly Mike Weinberg, who has none of the charm or charisma of Macaulay Culkin, and French Stewart is a poor substitute for Daniel Stern. Following in the mold of part 3, the humor is all in the slapstick; which is all over-the-top goofball shtick. And what dramatic heartfelt moments there are come off as artificial, with no substance to them. Home Alone 4 is a desperate attempt to revive a series that is long past its prime and has no magic left to it.
Laura Vandervoort stars in the ABC Family Christmas film Desperately Seeking Santa. The story follows a businesswoman who launches a Sexy Santa promotion to increase sales at her mall and soon finds herself falling for him. Vandervoort gives a strong performance and has good chemistry with co-star Nick Zano. However, the plot is full of contrivances and the usual holiday tropes and clichés. Still, there are some nice bits of humor and some touching dramatic moments. Despite its formulaic nature, Desperately Seeking Santa is an entertaining and fun romantic comedy with a bit of Christmas spirit.
From Netflix comes the holiday special A Very Murray Christmas. Actually, it’s kind of an anti-holiday special as it’s setup as a holiday variety show hosted by Bill Murray that gets cancelled by a snow storm; leaving Murray to mill around the hotel singing melancholy Christmas songs and socializing with hotel guests and staff. The special guests include Paul Shaffer, George Clooney, Miley Cyrus, Rashida Jones, Chris Rock, and Amy Poehler, some playing themselves and others playing characters. It all works surprisingly well, playing into Murray’s sarcastic band of humor while still having a festive, Christmassy spirit. Also, the nontraditional songs, such as “Christmas Blues,” “Alone on Christmas Day,” and “Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin,” do a good job at setting the tone. It’s not for everyone, but A Very Murray Christmas is an entertaining holiday special that, in its own way, celebrates the season.
Hulk Hogan is the Santa with Muscles in this atrociously awful children’s film. The story follows an eccentric businessman who leads police on a high speed chase and ends up hiding out at a mall where he gets knocked on the head and wakes up believing that he’s Santa Claus. Hogan’s “acting” is terrible; just crewing up the scenery. But Hogan is just one of a myriad of problems: the plot is ridiculous as all get-out, the villains are buffoons, the fight scenes are lame, and the costumes and sets look cheap. Complete and utter garbage, Santa with Muscles ranks among the worst Christmas films ever made, and for good reason.
Ashley Newbrough stars in the charming romantic comedy Saving Christmas Spirit. Fearing that she’ll lose her job due to upcoming budget cuts, archaeologist Lucy Stewart travels to Scotland to study a journal in the hopes that it will lead to an archaeological find that will save her job; and while there she begins to fall for a local scotch brewer who shows her around town and teaches her the local lore. Newbrough gives a strong performance and has good chemistry with co-star James Robinson. However, the rest of the cast is rather weak; playing one-dimensional stereotypes. And the plot is kind of all over the place, full of Christmas movie tropes; young love, estranged family members reconnecting, trying to save a failing business from closing, and even Christmas spirits. Yet while it’s a mess at times, Saving Christmas Spirit is also lighthearted and fun.
From director John Woo comes the holiday action film Silent Night. The story follows a father grieving over the loss of his son as he trains and prepares to get revenge on the LA gang responsible on Christmas Eve. Joel Kinnaman leads the cast and gives a pretty strong performance; especially considering that he has to convey everything through looks and body language. The dialog free motif of the film is rather interesting but requires a number of conceits (too many really) to work; however, overall it does a pretty impressive job at conveying plot information nonverbally. Additionally, the fight scenes are dynamic and exciting, with a visceral feel to them. Silent Night is a captivating film with a unique vision that, while it doesn’t completely work, is entertaining and full of thrills.
A crazy mess, It’s a Wonderful Knife is nonsensical garbage. After getting a college rejection letter and discovering that her boyfriend is cheating on her, Winnie Carruthers wishes that she was never born and finds herself in world where her town is being terrorized by a serial killer that she had killed the year before. Jane Widdop gives a fairly good performance as the lead, but the rest of the cast is pretty bad. And the plot is convoluted as all get-out; making less and less sense as it goes on. But worst of all, the killer isn’t at all scary and has no sense of menace, and the kill scenes are rather lame and perfunctory. It’s a Wonderful Knife has an interesting premise, but it doesn’t know what to do with it.
From McG comes the Netflix family comedy Family Switch. After going to the observatory to see a planetary alignment, the Walker family finds themselves having switched bodies and have to live out each other’s lives (with the kids having to go to their parent’s jobs and the parents having to go to their kid’s school activities) until they can find a way to switch back. Jennifer Garner and Ed Helms lead the cast and deliver good performances, and the child actors, Emma Myers and Brady Noon, and pretty good too. Also, the writers do a nice job at using the body swop tropes without making them seem overly silly or trite. And the comedy is well-done too; finding a nice balance of broad humor and satire. Still, the plot is formulaic and predictable, and full of contrivances. Yet while it has some problems, Family Switch is a fun and entertaining holiday film.
Holiday in the Vineyards is a fun and entertaining romantic comedy. The story follows the son of a wine mogul who’s sent undercover to discover who their potential competition is for an upcoming vineyard sale, but in the process he falls for the real-estate agent and comes to known and care for the people of the community. Josh Swickard and Sol Rodriguez lead the cast and have good chemistry together. Additionally, the comedy is well-done and the there’s a nice message about family and friendship. And the soundtrack does a good job at complimenting the scenes and at setting the right tone. It’s a little formulaic in parts, but overall Holiday in the Vineyard is a lovely holiday treat.
Christmas Cupcakes is a formulaic, low-budget holiday film. When their father passes away two sisters decide to reopen his bakery, but when financial troubles threaten to bankrupt them they enter a televised baking competition. The acting is pretty bad, but not nearly as bad as the script with its cheesy dialog, plot tropes, and one-dimensional characters. And the sets look cheap as all get-out, and the lack of background extras is quite noticeable; as no one is shown shopping at the bakery or working on the television baking show. It has a few cute moments, bit overall Christmas Cupcakes is a poorly made and rather dull family film.
Formulaic tripe, Best. Christmas. Ever! is anything but. When Charlotte’s son mistakes her sarcasm for a Christmas wish, he reprograms their driving route to take them to her old college friend’s house; and once there, Charlotte takes the opportunity to do some snooping, trying to poke holes in her friend’s braggadocious Christmas letter. Heather Graham, Brandy Norwood, and Jason Biggs lead the cast, but their performances aren’t very good; in fact, Brandy is exceedingly bad. And while the writers do a fair job at creating a sense of mystery to Charlotte’s quest to expose her friend’s Christmas letter as a fraud, the plot is abandoned halfway through the film in favor of a trite plot about friendship; which creates a number of inconsistences and story problems. Also, there’s some rather blatant environmentalist propaganda that comes off as forced. A poorly made film, Best. Christmas. Ever! is a hodgepodge of holiday clichés that doesn’t really work.
Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine star in the Academy Award winning drama The Apartment. An office worker at a New York insurance company tries to win the favor of his bosses by loaning out his apartment for their extramarital liaisons, but things take a dark turn when he finds one of the women having overdosed on sleeping pills in his bed. Lemmon and MacLaine both deliver incredibly strong performances and have good chemistry together. And the writers do an impressive job as balancing the comedy and the drama. Still, a number of the characters (particularly the cheating husbands) are underdeveloped and come off as one-dimensional stereotypes. Yet while it has a few problems, The Apartment is an entertaining film with some interesting things to say.
Patrick Stewart and Glenn Close star in the made-for-television remake of The Lion in Winter. King Henry II holds a Christmas court to determine who will succeed him as the next King of England, meanwhile his sons and the queen scheme and plot behind his back. Unfortunately the shadows of Peter O’Toole and Katharine Hepburn loom large, and while Steward and Close both deliver strong performance, in comparison they come up lacking. In fact, nearly everything, the costumes, the sets, the music, the cinematography, are all (while decent for a television budget) inferior to the ‘68 film. And it doesn’t do anything new or interesting with the material, following James Goldman’s original screenplay beat for beat. While entertaining, this made-for-television The Lion in Winter is but a pale imitation of the theatrical version.
Lindsay Lohan stars in the poorly made erotic thriller I Know Who Killed Me. When a stripper named Dakota Moss, who looks identical to a kidnapping victim named Aubrey Fleming, is found in a ditch with multiple amputations, she starts to suspect that she and Aubrey are connected and that she’s being effected by what Aubrey’s kidnapper is doing to her. The acting is pretty bad, especially Lohan, though to be fair the script does them no favors with some atrocious dialog and ridiculous plot contrivances. And the eroticism just comes off as trashy, lacking any sensuousness. Still, there is a bit of intrigue to the Dakota/Aubrey mystery, as well as a couple of intense and frightening scenes. I Know Who Killed Me has an interesting concept, but before long it falls apart and becomes a convoluted mess.
