Multiplex Madness
Haunted Heist
⭐️1/2
Genre: Comedy, Horror
Director: Lil Rey Howery
Starring: Lil Rey Howery, Tiffany Haddish, Andrew "King Bach" Bachelor, Karlous Miller
Four friends who are down on their luck break into an old, abandoned house for some easy money, only to find out it is inhabited by paranormal racists. There is a basic "Abbott and Costello in a haunted house" appeal to the premise that makes me want to cut this movie some slack. However, the dynamic between the characters is paper thin and the comedic flow is off, as there are big personalities but there is no chemistry. It feels like there is a lot of improv at play, as most of the dialogue feels like it's just saying words in search of a joke that meanders into nothing, making the movie feel slow and uneventful. Sometimes it's jarring when a joke actually does result in a belly laugh, but I should never be surprised when a comedy is actually funny. I did get a few chuckles, so I'll give some credit, but what amusement I received didn't counter just how lost the movie felt.
Her Private Hell
⭐️1/2
Genre: Thriller, Fantasy
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Starring: Sophie Thatcher, Charles Melton, Havana Rose Liu, Kristine Froseth, Shioli Kutsuna, Aoi Yamada, Dougray Scott, Diego Calva, Hidetoshi Nishijima
If one watched the movie on mute, they might be forgiven for thinking Her Private Hell is a masterpiece. This is one of those surrealist expressionism movies, so those going for a story are going to be deeply disappointed. Whether or not it's a good example of surrealism or expressionism depends on what you see in all of them pretty pictures flickering on the screen. I didn't see much in them myself. Nothing meaningful, at any rate. What little throughline of a premise the movie has centers on Sophie Thatcher, who plays an actress who is struggling with emotional issues after best friend Havana Rose Liu marries her father. While she sorts out her emotional turmoil, there is a boogeyman type killer on the loose named Leatherman, who rips women's chests open. What does he represent? Who fucking knows. And who fucking cares. There seems to be a weird connection between his actions and sexual pleasure, comparing exploding hearts with that of an orgasm, which is strange for a movie that otherwise seems to be about daddy issues. The movie is at its best when its using its stylization to really enhance the emotional state of its leads. It's at its worst when it's a neon-lit backdrop to characters who are just chewing the scenery with their erraticism. The experience as a whole is like listening to beatnik poetry on the set of Blade Runner. My theater experience was me and seven other people. Around forty minutes in, people started leaving. At the end of the movie, the only people left were me and some other dude, and I think he was asleep. That feels like the exact right experience for a movie like this.
Motor City
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Action, Thriller
Director: Potsy Ponciroli
Starring: Alan Ritchson, Ben Foster, Pablo Schreiber, Lionel Boyce, Shailene Woodley
Some say that the script in an action movie doesn't matter. Here to put that to the test is Motor City, a revenge thriller done mostly in pantomime. Reacher star Alan Ritchson is framed by girlfriend Shailene Woodley's ex-boyfriend, Ben Foster, in a surprisingly elaborate ruse to steal her back. The film restrains its dialogue to only a few scenes, where it's not exactly necessary, but just used to give a sequence more punch. Some of the silent movie techniques it borrows cleverly from 1920's cinema, though it does sometimes strain itself to keep its gimmick going. There are scenes where people are staring at each other and nobody is saying anything, and while the actors adequately express the story with their eyes, the movie can struggle to justify why no dialogue is being said. Shailene Woodley's character, who is little more than a McGuffin to be fought over, can sometimes come off as dim because of this. Because of the limited storytelling device, she's not allowed nuance and is often blind to things that are right in front of her. The tragedy of her story is numbed out in the crossfire, so it's up to Ritchson to save the film with his story of blood-boiling anger. The tension of the thriller sequences make for an exceptional potboiler and the action is on point throughout. Motor City is hardly a silent masterpiece but it's a fun experiment.
Movies Still Playing At My Theater
Backrooms ⭐️⭐️
Evil Dead Burn ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Invite ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Minions & Monsters ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Moana ⭐️1/2
Obsession ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Odyssey ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Supergirl ⭐️⭐️1/2
Toy Story 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Young Washington ⭐️⭐️
New To Digital
Disclosure Day ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Scary Movie ⭐️
Coming Soon!
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