Recent theatrical viewings

[M.10rda]

Wow... so you live in Belgium, Doctor?

[Dr. Whom]

Wow... so you live in Belgium, Doctor?

Indeed

[Rev. Powell]

SUPERMAN (2025): Superman, aided by Krypton the dog and the "Justice Gang," battles Lex Luthor. Sloppily-plotted, lore-heavy, obvious, by-the-comic-book feature enacting exactly the formula you expect from James Gunn. Disclaimer: I don't generally like superhero movies, and particularly not Superman movies, and Gunn is very hit or miss for me--when he's being lazy, as he is here, he's a miss. 2.5/5.

[indianasmith]

SUPERMAN (2025) I thought I'd balance the Rev's negative review with my own thoughts on this film.
The phrase "feel-good movie" is overused, to be sure, but I walked out of this movie with a smile on my face and hope in my heart.  Doing the right thing because it IS the right thing, and because you are striving to be a good person, is what this movie is all about.  The world needs more of that right now. 5/5

[Rev. Powell]

It has a good heart for sure but I'm not giving it bonus points for that. I put my disclaimer on there because I do think others are going to like it more than I did.

[chainsaw midget]

I just got back from seeing it and I thoughtfully enjoyed it. 

One of the things I loved most about it is that it does not try to deny or hide the fact that it's a superhero movie in the slightest.  There's no attempt to make it more grounded or more realistic.  The movie doesn't even question why there's 5th dimensional imps or giant growing monsters and portals to another dimension.  They're just there and I love it!

[Rev. Powell]

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS (2025): The superhero family fights a planet-eating monster. The main attraction here is the mid-20th century retro-futurist universe--vinyl records and cathode tubes exist alongside reel-to-reel robots and faster-than-light travel--an aesthetic distinction which is unlikely to survive the F4's inevitable collision with the rest of the Marvel universe. 3/5 (remember that I am not a big fan of superhero movies or non-Batman superheroes in general; I would expect most here to consider this a 4/5).

[Rev. Powell]

EDDINGTON: Spurred by his dislike of mask mandates (and personal animosity), an asthmatic sheriff in the tiny town of Eddington, NM runs for mayor, a decision that leads to a web of lies and violence and brings him into conflict with BLM protesters, antifa, and a pedophile-conspiracy cult. Just ten years ago, this movie set just five years ago would have played like an outlandish satire on the level of SOUTHLAND TALES; now, it seems like something that almost might have really happened. 3.5/5.

[M.10rda]

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON (2025):
Our first trip to a big screen w/ our (now 11-year old) niece since an aborted attempt to make it through BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE last year. I was prepared to compose a "If she were my daughter..." type post, but in fact she sat engaged for two solid hours and appeared to enjoy every minute. So, chalk this up as Full-Length Features: 1, TikTok: 0.

I should probably hate this film on principle/for all it represents, but Madame and I quite enjoyed it, too, though she'd seen the original animated version and based on her testimony of how similar the remake is to the original, I rather think I'd be bored to death by this if I too had already seen the earlier one. But I hadn't, so.

For me the biggest boon of HTTYD is Gerard Butler, repeating the role he originated in 2010 as the dragon-punching Viking King and flummoxed father to the juvenile protagonist. I could probably post about Butler in the "Movies You Like Because Of The Acting" thread - that's most of his movies, to the extent I like them at all. He got to play an unusual tragic/romantic lead as THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and was memorably iconic in 300, then also gave a complex, very sympathetic performance in the somewhat ridiculous thriller LAW-ABIDING CITIZEN. But besides those roles, he's been practically as typecast as Michael Madsen in one simpleminded action movie after another, w/ the occasional stoopid romcom thrown in as a kick to the nuts of his career. Nevertheless Butler keeps working and always comes off as credible and likeable. He seems to be having a ball here in a role that allows him to be a badass, a comic foil, and occasionally even a character w/ human dimensions. If Butler never did another film I imagine he and his kids and grand-kids could live comfortably off the royalties from HTTYD alone, plus generations of children will know him for this role if nothing else. Good for you, Gerard Butler!

3.5/5
...Though really Gerard Butler should play Frank Castle in a gritty, realistic PUNISHER streaming series.

[Rev. Powell]

TOGETHER: An anxious 35-year old still trying to make it as a rock musician contracts a mysterious condition after getting lost in the woods with his longtime girlfriend. Suggested alternate title: "Cold Feet, the Movie." Seriously, this is pretty good, with genuine unease and body horror, right up until the silly ending. An excellent date movie! (Don't take that advice unless you have a very strong relationship). Stars Dave Franco and Allison Brie are married in real life. 3.5/5.

[Rev. Powell]

SKETCH: Young Amber, being raised along with her brother by a single father after her mother's death, draws pictures of monsters when she gets mad at people--but what will she do when the sketches come to life and start rampaging through town? Exceptional kids' horror with great acting, comedy, kooky monsters, genuine suspense and scares, and a valuable message. Made by a "faith-based" producer, but you can't tell from the end result--there's not a single direct mention of religion. This is the best live-action kids movie I've seen in years. 4/5.

[Rev. Powell]

JIMMY & STIGGS (2024): A burnout multi-drug abuser is abducted by aliens (rubber puppets with neon-colored blood), and arms himself to the teeth to slaughter them when they return for him. Appreciate the focus on practical effects and the fact that it embraces its microbudget to the fullest, but it accelerates to max speed almost immediately, leaving it nowhere to go for a climax. If you liked DEAD ALIVE and EVIL DEAD 2 but wanted half the character development and twice the F-bombs, this may be the movie for you. Preceded by two fake grindhouse trailers (for THE PIANO KILLER and DON'T GO IN THAT HOUSE, b***h), I think done by Eli Roth, which were only mildly amusing. For some reason, the version projected at my theater had burnt-in closed captions, I assume other prints do not have them. Some folks here may like this because it is nearly nonstop violence, but it's not funny like it's splatter-comedy inspirations. 2.5/5.

[Rev. Powell]

CLOUD (2024): Yoshii, who hustles to make money by reselling items (often fakes) on the Internet, quietly makes a lot of enemies, who team up to bring him down. This morality play starts as a low-stakes drama and ends as an improbably high-stakes thriller, and although the second half is livelier, it's an underwhelming effort from horror specialist Kiyoshi Kurosawa. 2.5/5.