In Theatres

[Davy_Lee]

Dora and the Lost City of Gold - 7/10
Before seeing it, I had watched the trailer and thought it was going to be pretty enjoyable. My guess was right. The plot plays like a teenage Indiana Jones with just enough childish humor to retain its cartoonish nature. But unlike Indy Jones who ventures intentionally on a mission into the jungles, Dora, along with her classmates, is deceived into becoming an accidental adventurer in search of her missing parents deep in the Peruvian jungle. Isabela Moner gives the titular teenage adventurer a winning performance. Delicioso!

[Davy_Lee]

Angel Has Fallen - 7/10
Newly appointed Secret Service director Mike Banning goes on the run after being framed for an assassination attempt on the president's life. It's an action-packed thriller that could be seen as a standalone. The movie actually ends perfectly with the handshaking scene, but the tagged-on comedy in the mid-end credits ruins the overall tone. Then there's also the obligatory and amateurish shaky cam shots in many of the fights. What were they thinking?

I skipped the first two but decided to see the third after watching the trailer. It's nothing new though, just another popcorn movie. If anyone's interested in seeing it, go for an Atmos-equipped movie theater (despite the film Dolby 7.1 sound mix) for amped-up sound during the action sequences. Recommended to old-school action movie junkies.

[Davy_Lee]

Rambo: Last Blood - 5.5/10
After his old friend's granddaughter is kidnapped by a gang of ruthless Mexican drug cartel and human traffickers, Rambo dishes out his cruelest brand of justice to those responsible.

With its uninspired and derivative revenge plot, Rambo: Last Blood has strayed from the franchise theme on unsung war hero. In the third act, Rambo's outburst of PTSD is excessively exploited on screen that makes the iconic character look like a psychopathic avenger.

The franchise ended well with the 2008 sequel. This newest sequel is the least Rambo-esque of them all.

[Davy_Lee]

Ad Astra (IMAX 2D) - 6.5/10
An astronaut is sent on a secret solo mission to Mars to help stop a series of catastrophic power surges, believed to be emanating from a space station of an ill-fated expedition to Neptune headed by the astronaut's estranged father many years before, which are threatening Earth and the solar system.

I like seeing cerebral space movies but didn't quite like the slow pacing of this two-hour psychological sci-fi drama. Partly recommended.

[Noor_Razzak]

The Irishman - This was a film I was really looking forward to, I didn't mind the long run time, what I did mind was that it wasn't as satisfying as I'd anticipated it to be. There are some great Scorsese flourishes, it looked incredible. The production design was impeccable, I didn't mind the de-aging effects but the story didn't grip me totally. 6.5/10

[Davy_Lee]

October
Joker – 8.5/10
Gemini Man – 5.5/10
Terminator: Dark Fate – 7/10

November
Midway – 6.5/10
Ford v Ferrari – 8/10

December
21 Bridges – 7.5/10
Jumanji: The Next Level – 5.5/10
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker – 6.5/10

[Noor_Razzak]

The Farewell - Other than an independent drama I had little to no clue what this film was about, decided to see it on a whim. I did not regret my decision, this is a terrific film, it's darkly funny and features an excellent performance from Awkwafina. It's funny, it's touching, it's sad, and it's one terrific film, 9/10.

[Noor_Razzak]

Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker - I waited a little bit to finally see once the crowds got low and managed to avoid all spoilers! After the disaster that was The Last Jedi I went into this with zero expectations and came out actually liking it even though it felt like a fan-service film that exists to right the course at the last minute. To be honest I'm ok with fan service, while it's not perfect it hit the right notes where it needed to and managed to entertain me more so than I thought. Overall I wish the last three chapters of the "Skywalker" saga where better I'm reasonably ok with how this one ended. 7/10.

[Davy_Lee]

Bad Boys for Life – 7.5/10
The dynamic duo are back in the game to take down a myterious vengeful assassin. This is the best of the three - a surprisingly entertaining blend of action, comedy, and drama.

[Matthew_B_Harrah]

Sonic the Hedgehog
My rating: ***1/2 [I'll admit I'm being a little generous on 1/2.]

Enjoyed it for the most part. Granted its marketing didn't really connect with me, but playing the games at my friend's house several years ago, and nothing else really playing-was enough to get me to see it. Hopefully the sequel will be just as good or better.

Not planning to buy it in the future, but will watch it again when it appears on TV.

[Davy_Lee]

1917 – 7/10
Great cinematography though the seemingly continuous scenes become rather tiring to watch after a while. The one dramatic scene that brought tears to my eyes was when Lance Corporal finally reached the Second Batallion and heard the folk and gospel song "the Wayfaring Stranger" being sung by a soldier to his comrades. Very moving.

Sonic the Hedgehog – 6.5/10
The trailer is better than the movie. Jim Carrey's wacky performance saves the show.

[Matthew_B_Harrah]

Greed
My rating: **1/4

Had a few chuckles here and there. For the most part its just another soft-R; in other words just bad language and missed/failed opportunities to have real adult-R film. Examples:

[Reveal] Spoiler:

Few spots could easily had nudity without being exploitation {as in it just part of the story} or towards the end when a character gets mauled by a lion. {You know something like this was going to happen once the lion is introduced early on.} Now unless I missed it, they never show the leg being ripped off. Yet there it is a few shots later. I would have loved for the lion to go off and attack the refugees as well as the party guess-that would have made this movie easily *****. However I shall digress.

I would recommend it for those who like British/business world satire, however should warn that the movie has a low-level of "liberal propaganda" (call it what you will), but it's not shoving it down your throat like (cough) Disney... these days.

[Matthew_B_Harrah]

Onward
My rating **3/4

Pretty much what I expected, given the marketing campaign. However it was a little better than what I though it was going to be. Though if this was a non-Dhiz-Nhee PG-13 or R film I would of loved to see highly inappropriate jokes. I mean common it's the lower half of the body, bathroom and sex jokes are a must , but I shall digress.