(***1/2) If tenacity was a superpower Richard Montañez would be in the Justice League inspiring people, all over the land. His indomitable spirit is the heart of this thoroughly entertaining and very amusing biofilm. Montañez’s book, A Boy, A Burrito and A Cookie: from Janitor to Executive, is the source material for this compelling look at a guy who rose from a blue-collar worker in a Southern California Frito-Lay plant to vice […]
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
(***1/2) Buckle up, Spider-Man fans. What feels like a barrage of one billion cartoon images is coming your way. Digital effects so massive and rapid-fire your eyeballs will scream for mercy. The Oscar®-winning 2018 Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse is a distant 2018 memory. Back then bug-bit, highschooler Miles-Morales (Shameik Moore) lived with his Puerto Rican mom Rio (Luna […]
The Little Mermaid
(***1/2) Romantic and social drama ignite this ode to love, tolerance and acceptance. “He’s a human!” Bellows Triton (Javier Bardem), an underwater sea god, who mistrusts those who live on land. “That doesn’t make him our enemy.” Exclaims Ariel (Halle Bailey), his mermaid daughter as she defends her love for a prince who is a […]
White Men Can’t Jump
(**1/2) White men who can’t dunk and the Black men who chide them was a fresh, chuckle-worthy idea back in the day. In today’s world, not so much. When b-ballers Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson trashed talked each other in the R-rated 1992 sports/comedy White Men Can’t Jump, their digs were edgy and hilarious. In this […]
Fast X
(***) “I don’t know what I just saw. But I liked it!” That’s what movie fans will say collectively when they stagger out of the theater after being assaulted with adrenalin-pumping action scenes for 2h 21m. It’s a formula that’s worked for 22 years, ever since The Fast and Furious premiered in 2001. Team up a crew […]
Unfinished Business
(***) A winner! That would describe this very reflective look at women’s professional basketball. From the OG players to today’s socially conscious, media-savvy Gen Zers. For the past year, the face of the WNBA has been Brittany Griner. The 6’9” athlete was accused of carrying hashish oil at an airport near Moscow. She was detained, […]
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
(**1/2) They’re back. This interspecies, intergalactic hodgepodge group of rambunctious space marauders-turned-crusaders is trying to make another bloated Marvel epic fly. Kids and diehard fans will be onboard. Adults may wait for the next flight. They’re cross-galaxies adventurers. Close knit and lose knit all at the same time. In this third installment of the Guardians of […]
Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant
(***) “No man left behind.” During America’s Revolutionary War that was the First Continental Army’s motto. That credo is a driving force in this very engaging war/act/thr. This film’s unlikely creator is director Guy Ritchie, who’s noted for making smug, densely plotted British capers (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) and lavish family films (Aladdin). […]
Chevalier
(***1/2) It’s not the same as it was. This retelling of 18th century French violinist-composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges’ life is steeped in history but rocked with a modern imagination. Screenwriter Stefani Robinson’s (Atlanta) research and ingenuity resurrects Bologne (Kelvin Harris Jr.) as a European superstar, given the honorary title Chevalier de Saint-Georges. Queen Marie […]
Sweetwater
(**) This b-ball, biofilm dribbles but can’t shoot. The direction, acting, script and production team are all in play, but nothing scores. Part of the problem is its subject. OG b-baller Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton was a pioneer. His achievements are worth retelling, but a bit murky. Technically, he was the first African American to sign an NBA contract. In fact on November 4th, […]
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