Resurrected again, Chucky resumes his murderous quest to escape his artificial body. Continue reading...
Child's Play 3 1991
Directed by Jack Bender. Starring Justin Whalin, Perrey Reeves, Jeremy Sylvers, and Travis Fine.
![A still from The New Mutants (2020)]()
The New Mutants 2020
Directed by Josh Boone. Starring Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Heaton, and Alice Braga.
We meet an assortment of angst-ridden teens with lethal mutant powers imprisoned in a hospital resembling a boarding school. Teen drama ensues, culminating in a big CGI finale. The single location and shallow characterization make this play like the pilot for a TV series. I liked Maisie Williams’s performance, but I knew her character from the comics and may have imported more depth than the film proffered.
![A still from Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (1985)]()
Friday the 13th: A New Beginning 1985
Directed by Danny Steinmann. Starring Melanie Kinnaman, John Shepherd, Anthony Barrile, and Suzanne Bateman.
After Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter delivered the franchise’s highest grosses, Paramount ditches Jason in an attempt to reboot the franchise. Bad idea. Continue reading...
![A still from Ride Lonesome (1959)]()
Ride Lonesome 1959
Directed by Budd Boetticher. Starring Randolph Scott, Karen Steele, Pernell Roberts, and James Best.
James Coburn’s debut. Randolph Scott plays a bounty hunter determined to bring in his query at all costs. Coburn plays the dim-witted sidekick of a man Scott meets on the trail. Continue reading...
![A still from Lilith (1964)]()
Lilith 1964
Directed by Robert Rossen. Starring Warren Beatty, Jean Seberg, Peter Fonda, and Kim Hunter.
Gene Hackman’s debut. Warren Beatty plays a returning veteran who hires on at a palatial mental institution. There he falls for the titular Lilith, a manipulative patient played by Jean Seberg. Hackman has a small, but memorable role as the smarmy husband of Beatty’s former flame. Continue reading...
![A still from Five Guns West (1955)]()
Five Guns West 1955
Directed by Roger Corman. Starring John Lund, Dorothy Malone, Mike Connors, and R. Wright Campbell.
Roger Corman’s directorial debut. During the Civil War’s waning days, the Confederate Army conscripts five convicted killers, offering them full pardons provided they intercept a Confederate traitor traveling with a fortune in stolen gold. Continue reading...
![A still from Child's Play 2 (1990)]()
Child's Play 2 1990
Directed by John Lafia. Starring Alex Vincent, Jenny Agutter, Gerrit Graham, and Christine Elise.
Restored to working order, Chucky resumes his murderous quest to sacrifice young Andy to escape his artificial body. Continue reading...
![A still from X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019)]()
X-Men: Dark Phoenix 2019
Directed by Simon Kinberg. Starring James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, and Nicholas Hoult.
Better than expected. The opening sequence sees the X-Men rescuing a troubled space shuttle mission. This marks the first time in the nineteen-year-old franchise where the team acts as superheroes combating a non-mutant threat. A refreshing change. Continue reading...
![A still from Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984)]()
Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter 1984
Directed by Joseph Zito. Starring Erich Anderson, Judie Aronson, Peter Barton, and Kimberly Beck.
I was still waking up early for Saturday-morning cartoons when this film premiered. What I knew of the series came via third-hand bits of lore relayed in wide-eyed playground whispers. Continue reading...
![A still from Kvinnors väntan (1952)]()
Kvinnors väntan 1952
Directed by Ingmar Bergman. Starring Anita Björk, Eva Dahlbeck, Maj-Britt Nilsson, and Birger Malmsten.
A portmanteau comprising the stories of three married women awaiting their husbands at a summer cottage.
The vignettes play out with confidence and ring true, but lack resonance. Honest performances all around, but the women’s deepest secrets all revolve around disappointments in their respective husbands. Shocking for a 1950s audience, but trite today.
