Category: Reviews

‘Beast’ feels manufactured and disposable. It doesn’t have much bite.

Jeff Mitchell

“Beast” (2022) – “Hakuna Matata!  Ain’t no passing craze.  It means no worries for the rest of your days.” – “Hakuna Matata” from “The Lion King” (1994) “I’ve never seen anything like this.  Multiple attacks without eating its prey.” – Martin Battles (Sharlto Copley)  Dr. Nate Samuels (Idris Elba) and his teenage daughters, Meredith (Iyana Halley) and Norah (Leah Jeffries), fly from the U.S. to Mopani, South Africa to visit his late wife’s (and their late mother’s) home and stay with his longtime friend, Martin (Copley).  The Samuels family is…

‘Easter Sunday’ offers something new, but a distracting plot thread meanders through this holiday.

Jeff Mitchell

“Easter Sunday” (2022) – How do you celebrate Easter Sunday?  Perhaps you don’t celebrate it at all.  For Joe Valencia (Jo Koy), this year, he drives from Los Angeles to Daly City, Calif. to spend the holiday with his family.  This 50-something standup comedian doesn’t trek up to Northern Cal very often because he’s regularly bustling through a hectic schedule of performing live and starring in commercials.  At the moment, Joe is trying out for a sitcom and hopes this could be his big break.  In addition, to running the…

‘Bullet Train’ isn’t a wreck, but this movie needed to pump the brakes.

Jeff Mitchell

“Bullet Train” (2022) – “There’s nothing simple about this job.” – Ladybug (Brad Pitt) Despite his nickname, Ladybug doesn’t feel lucky.  Actually, it’s his codename.  Our slim 50-something – who sports spectacles and a bucket hat – is an assassin for hire, so peril is sure to follow his misfortune. In director David Leitch’s (“Atomic Blonde” (2017), “Deadpool 2” (2018)) latest action flick, Ladybug boards a high-speed train in Tokyo – bound for Kyoto – and his only job is to steal an aluminum briefcase with a small sticker.  The…