Freeze Frame

Producer James Cameron and director Robert Rodriguez team up to adapt the Japanese manga comic “Alita: Battle Angel.” In a dystopian future, a cyborg with a human brain is brought back to life to become the hero in a game …

When “The LEGO Movie” debuted in 2014, it took audiences and critics by surprise…and the box office by storm! While the sequel “The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part” lacks the freshness of the original, there’s still plenty of creativity …

The ‘down-on-his-luck cop trying for redemption’ genre gets a gender change in “Destroyer.” Nicole Kidman goes grimy and gritty in this dark character study about an LAPD detective with a lot of personal baggage whose past comes back to haunt …

Producer James Cameron and director Robert Rodriguez team up to adapt the Japanese manga comic “Alita: Battle Angel.” In a dystopian future, a cyborg with a human brain is brought back to life to become the hero in a game of super Rollerball. While it’s an impressive visual spectacle, the story plays like a smorgasbord […]

The ‘down-on-his-luck cop trying for redemption’ genre gets a gender change in “Destroyer.” Nicole Kidman goes grimy and gritty in this dark character study about an LAPD detective with a lot of personal baggage whose past comes back to haunt her as she tries to unravel a murder mystery. Kidman goes all out in a […]

When “The LEGO Movie” debuted in 2014, it took audiences and critics by surprise…and the box office by storm! While the sequel “The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part” lacks the freshness of the original, there’s still plenty of creativity and animated razzle dazzle on display. The LEGO universe has descended into dystopia and must contend with invaders from the cute but deadly DUPLO world. There’s plenty of broad humor for the kids and cheeky cultural references for adults, but the movie is almost undone by frenetic, breakneck editing. Still, “The LEGO Movie 2” delivers all the entertainment one could expect from a 90-minute toy commercial. Each year, I get the same question. Why should I care about the Oscar-nominated shorts if I can’t see them? Well, you can. The latest compilation has arrived and it’s easy to see why these films have been so honored. There’s no question as to the artistry of these efforts, so film buffs will have plenty to discuss in their post screening coffee talks. One note of caution: Most of these films are very dark and depressing. The best of the animated lot is probably “Bao,” the Pixar film about a dumpling come to…

“Cold War” is one of the best European films of the year and is, rightfully, a contender for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. This bittersweet tale is about the on-and-off romance between a young singer and her choir director …

“Cold War” is one of the best European films of the year and is, rightfully, a contender for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. This bittersweet tale is about the on-and-off romance between a young singer and her choir director that begins in 1950s Communist Poland and makes memorable pit stops in other parts of Europe over a period of years. It’s artfully directed by Pawel Pawlikowski, features stunning black-and-white cinematography and showcases a star-making performance from Joanna Kulig. “Cold War” is involving and packs an emotional wallop.   Melancholy may be the best term to describe “Stan & Ollie,” a very sweet, low-key tale about famed comedy duo Laurel and Hardy and their attempt to revive their sputtering film and theater careers in the 1950s. John C. Reilly and Steve Coogan are terrific in this beautifully produced comic drama. While the stars have the requisite chemistry, Laurel and Hardy’s gentle humor may not translate well for modern audiences.   If his autobiographies are to be believed, 1940s Hollywood actor Errol Flynn had amazing adventures on the high seas before becoming a swashbuckling hero in classic movies like “The Adventures of Robin Hood.” The film “In Like Flynn” stars Thomas…

The films from writer/director M. Knight Shyamalan are always a crap shoot. When he finds his stride, as he did with “The Sixth Sense” and “Signs,” his movies create an effective and otherworldly atmosphere. When he loses his grasp, as …

The films from writer/director M. Knight Shyamalan are always a crap shoot. When he finds his stride, as he did with “The Sixth Sense” and “Signs,” his movies create an effective and otherworldly atmosphere. When he loses his grasp, as with “The Last Airbender” and “The Happening,” it’s hard to believe that it’s the same filmmaker. His latest thriller is “Glass,” a dark comic book movie that provides the conclusion to a trilogy that also includes “Unbreakable” from 2000 and 2017’s “Split.” As you might expect, the results are a mixed bag.   Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson return from “Unbreakable” and James McAvoy reprises his brilliant role as a man with multiple personalities in “Split.” Shyamalan’s complicated plot amounts to a thesis on comic book superhero origins. It requires an inordinate amount of time and dialogue to explain, turning the actors into narrators instead of characters. Even though the movie is overlong, there’s little real character interaction.   While “Glass” isn’t bad, it just a disappointing conclusion to an ambitious premise that became too convoluted for its own good.   For patient viewers, the Korean film “Burning” offers many rewards. A sure thing for an Oscar nomination for…