Johnel: Your Friendly Neighborhood Movie Goer

Movie review on new Bleeker Street Media film "Emily". Written and directed by FRANCES O’CONNOR. Released on February 17th, 2023. Starring: EMMA MACKEY, FIONN WHITEHEAD, OLIVER JACKSON-COHEN, ALEXANDRA DOWLING, ADRIAN DUNBAR, AMELIA GETHING and GEMMA JONES.

Synopsis

"EMILY” tells the imagined life of one of the world’s most famous authors, Emily Brontë, a rebel and misfit, finds her voice and writes the literary classic Wuthering Heights. “EMILY” explores the relationships that inspired her – her raw, passionate sisterhood with Charlotte and Anne; her first aching, forbidden love for Weightman and her care for her maverick brother Branwell whom she idolizes. Emily is haunted by the death of her mother, struggles within the confines of her family life and yearns for artistic and personal freedom. So begins a journey to channel her creative potential.

Movie review on new Universal Pictures movie "Cocaine Bear". Written by Jimmy Warden and directed by Elizabeth Banks. Released on February 24th, 2023 in theaters. Starring: Keri Russell, O’Shea Jackson, Jr., Christian Convery-Jennings, Alden Ehrenreich, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Brooklynn Prince, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Kristofer Hivju, Hannah Hoekstra, Aaron Holliday with Margo Martindale and Ray Liotta.

Synopsis

Inspired by the 1985 true story of a drug runner's plane crash, missing cocaine, and the black bear that ate it, this wild thriller finds an oddball group of cops, criminals, tourists and teens converging in a Georgia forest where a 500-pound apex predator has ingested a staggering amount of cocaine and gone on a coke-fueled rampage for more blow... and blood.

Movie review on new film distributed by Open Road Films entitled "Marlowe". Screenplay by William Monahan and Neil Jordan. Directed by Neil Jordan. Released in theaters February 15th, 2023. Starring: Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, Jessica Lange, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Ian Hart, Colm Meaney, Daniela Melchior, François Arnaud, Séana Kerslake with Danny Huston and Alan Cumming.

Synopsis

A gripping noir crime thriller set in late 1930’s Los Angeles, centers around a street-wise, down on his luck detective; Philip Marlowe, played by Liam Neeson, who is hired to find the ex-lover of a glamorous heiress (Diane Kruger), daughter of a well-known movie star (Jessica Lange). The disappearance unearths a web of lies, and soon Marlowe is involved in a dangerous, deadly investigation where everyone involved has something to hide.

Movie review on new Marvel Studios film "Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania". Directed by Peyton Reed. Released in theaters February 17th, 2023. Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kathryn Newton and Jonathan Majors.

Synopsis

In the film, which officially kicks off phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Super-Hero partners Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne return to continue their adventures as Ant-Man and the Wasp. Together, with Hope's parents Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne, the family finds themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought was possible. Jonathan Majors joins the adventure as Kang.

Movie Review for new Columbia Pictures(Sony) film "A Man Called Otto". Written by David Magee. Directed by Marc Forster. Based upon the best-selling novel “A Man Called Ove” by Fredrik Backman, and the film A Man Called Ove by Hannes Holm. Starring: Tom Hanks, Mariana Treviño, Rachel Keller, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Truman Hanks and Mike Birbiglia.

Synopsis

A Man Called Otto tells the story of Otto Anderson (Tom Hanks), a grump who no longer sees purpose in his life following the loss of his wife. Otto is ready to end it all, but his plans are interrupted when a lively young family moves in next door, and he meets his match in quick-witted Marisol. She challenges him to see life differently, leading to an unlikely friendship that turns his world around. A heartwarming and funny story about love, loss, and life, A Man Called Otto shows that family can sometimes be found in the most unexpected places.

Movie review for new Universal Pictures film "Knock At The Cabin". Written by M. Night Shyamalan, Steve Desmond & Michael Sherman. Directed by M. Night Shyamalan. Based on the national bestseller The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay. Starring: Dave Bautista, Jonathan Groff, Ben Aldridge, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Kristen Cui, Abby Quinn and Rupert Grint.

Synopsis

While vacationing at a remote cabin, a young girl and her parents are taken hostage by four armed strangers who demand that the family make an unthinkable choice to avert the apocalypse. With limited access to the outside world, the family must decide what they believe before all is lost.

Movie Review of new A24 film "Close". Written by Lukas Dhont & Angelo Tijssens. Directed by Lukas Dhont. Starring: Eden Dambrine, Gustav De Waele, Émilie Dequenne and Léa Drucker. Limited release in theaters as of December 2nd, 2022 and wide release as of January 20th, 2023.

Synopsis

Leo and Remi are two thirteen-year-old best friends, whose seemingly unbreakable bond is suddenly, tragically torn apart. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, Lukas Dhont's second film is an emotionally transformative and unforgettable portrait of the intersection of friendship and love, identity and independence, and heartbreak and healing.

Movie review on new Screen Gems film, distributed by Sony Pictures, "Missing". Written and directed by Nicholas D. Johnson & Will Merrick. Starring: Storm Reid, Joaquim de Almeida, Ken Leung, Amy Landecker, with Daniel Henney and Nia Long. Released world wide in theaters January 20th, 2023.

Synopsis

From the minds behind Searching comes Missing, a thrilling roller-coaster mystery that makes you wonder how well you know those closest to you. When her mother (Nia Long) disappears while on vacation in Colombia with her new boyfriend, June’s (Storm Reid) search for answers is hindered by international red tape. Stuck thousands of miles away in Los Angeles, June creatively uses all the latest technology at her fingertips to try and find her before it’s too late. But as she digs deeper, her digital sleuthing raises more questions than answers...and when June unravels secrets about her mom, she discovers that she never really knew her at all.

Movie review on new Lionsgate film "Plane". Written by Charles Cumming & J.P. Davis. Directed by Jean-Francois Richet. Starring: Gerard Butler, Mike Colter, Yoson An, Daniella Pineda, Paul Ben-Victor, Remi Adeleke, Joey Slotnick, Evan Dane Taylor, Claro de los Reyes and Tony Goldwyn. Released in theaters world wide January 13th, 2023.

Synopsis

In the white-knuckle action movie PLANE, pilot Brodie Torrance (Gerard Butler) saves his passengers from a lightning strike by making a risky landing on a war-torn island -- only to find that surviving the landing was just the beginning. When most of the passengers are taken hostage by dangerous rebels, the only person Torrance can count on for help is Louis Gaspare (Mike Colter), an accused murderer who was being transported by the FBI. In order to rescue the passengers, Torrance will need Gaspare's help, and will learn there's more to Gaspare than meets the eye.

Movie review on new Universal Pictures & Blumhouse film "M3gan". Written by Akela Cooper and directed by Gerard Johnstone. Starring: Allison Williams, Violet McGraw, Ronny Chieng, Brian Jordan Alvarez, Jen Van Epps, Lori Dungey, Stephane Garneau-Monten. Released in theaters January 6th, 2023.

Synopsis

M3GAN is a marvel of artificial intelligence, a life-like doll programmed to be a child’s greatest companion and a parent’s greatest ally. Designed by brilliant toy-company roboticist Gemma (Get Out’s Allison Williams), M3GAN can listen and watch and learn as she becomes friend and teacher, playmate and protector, for the child she is bonded to. When Gemma suddenly becomes the caretaker of her orphaned 8-year-old niece, Cady (Violet McGraw, The Haunting of Hill House), Gemma’s unsure and unprepared to be a parent. Under intense pressure at work, Gemma decides to pair her M3GAN prototype with Cady in an attempt to resolve both problems—a decision that will have unimaginable consequences.