MOVIE REVIEWS - In Theaters Now

Bad Moms Christmas

This bunch is back again, and this time taking on Christmas.

Here comes Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, and Katherine Hahn reprising their characters again.  And this time, their moms are involved, as we welcome Kristine Baransky, Susan Sarandon and Cheryl Hines. A big cast, but are there big laughs. Well, yes there are some.  This is a movie that is a good example of knowing exactly what its target audience wants and gives it to them.  Don't look for this at the Oscars though.

This movie does a few things well.  It is wonderful parody of the relationship between mom and daughter, and how it relates to the holidays. Of course it's exaggerated and over the top, but it's overall effective.  I do like how they have carved out these three main characters, and our stars are fine.  Is this hilarious? No, but fun.

I do wish that sometimes editors would realize when a joke, or phrase is being beaten to death though. Fair statement, this is no where near original.  There is too much of the same gag, and jokes in much of this, but if you can wade through that like I was able to, this is fun.

Bad Moms Christmas. If this is your thing, then it's your day!


Thank You For Your Service

Miles Teller stars in this movie that s very powerful, and anything but light movie watching.

But, this is good.  Being fair, this is not as good as I thought it would be.  But it's still good.  This deals with three veterans, all young, and their re-entry to being out of the Army and blending back into society. And it's not very easy, if possible at all.  I do like the story and the entire idea of telling these stories, as this is based on true events.

But some of this becomes to my eye a bit like a news feature at times, and for moments loses its focus. But is does refocus and gets back on track. This is a very serious movie that deals with a very poignant topic, and I'm glad it's here for us to see.

Performances are good, story is worth telling and this will leave you more aware than when you walked in.

Thank You For Your Service.  Quite good.


Only The Brave

This is a movie that is a great example of a story that should be told, and takes you somewhere you have never been before.  Both are huge checks in the plus column.

Toss in a GREAT cast,  lead by Josh Brolin, Jeff Bridges, and Miles Teller, and you have a really strong early fall flick. This movie makes us all pause and again give thanks for the fearless folks who fight fires of all kinds, including suburban, city and wildfires.  This movie is the true story of the Arizona Granite Mountain Hot Shots.  All were lost in a terrible wildfire a few years ago.

I won't give too much away, but this tells you exactly who these guys are, and who their families are, as they are all in the lifestyle together.  These are truly the Navy Seals of firefighters.  They fight fires without water, and go places that most would never dream of going daily, putting themselves in incredible danger.

Brolin and Bridges are terrific, and the story is powerful and on point.  To this movies extreme credit, this movie is far more story and substance as opposed to special effects.  This movie is very careful to get it right, and spends far more quality time on what they should do...and not what they could do.

Only The Brave.  I loved every frame of this movie.


The Foreigner 

It is so good to see Jackie Chan back making movies.  With all due respect to the half action, half comedy movies he has made and had great success with.  This is the Jackie Chan I really like.

This is the story of a very sad man, (Chan).  His entire family has been killed over the years all by political means.  After his youngest daughter is killed in England, our hero decides he has had enough and sets out to avenge years of horrible events.  The last killing has ties to the political wars in Ireland and England, and this is backdrop of our story.

Chan is still remarkable as he continues to amaze us with his physical talent, and his overall charm and likability.  This also stars Pearce Brosnan, who I thought was terrific in this movie.  This has action, and a strong story, and more than that, it marks the return of the Jackie Chan we have been waiting for.

The Foreigner.  Very good, and is set up for more!




The Mountain Between US


Very quick. Idris Elba and Kate Winslet star in this love story, that I really liked.  Can these two survive a plane crash in the Rockies, and where do they go from there if they do.


Great date movie, and just a good movie that got lost in the movie shuffle


The Mountain Between Us -  Good!