Minions: The Rise of GRU  ★★★ IF YOU had told me a year ago that Jean Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren and Danny Trejo would be in an animated kids’ movie I would have laughed. Last week I did actually laugh with all three B Grade, menacing action heroes providing […]

Retro Gru sure to amuse the kids

Interceptor  ★★ IT PAINS me to give Interceptor a low rating. Matthew Reilly is a self-made success story. The Australian author has written more than a dozen successful books aimed primarily at action fans. Reilly’s books are written to a formula, told simply with a cliffhanger at the end of […]

Interceptor fails to fire

Top Gun: Maverick  ★★★★ EVERY time I realise that Tom cruise is my age I have a moment of self-reflection. No doubt I’m not the only one who thinks “what the hell are you doing with your life while he’s jumping out of planes and leaping across buildings?” I guess […]

Cruise still Hollywood’s top gun

Alex Cross ★★½ JAMES Patterson is one of the most successful crime writers in history. But, like Lee Child’s Reacher, one of Patterson’s best known characters hasn’t yet resulted in a successful film franchise. Dr Alex Cross has been played by Morgan Freeman and Tyler Perry. Freeman’s two outings – […]

No cross-over for Alex

C’mon, C’mon  ★★★½ JOAQUIN Phoenix’s latest film, C’mon, C’mon, is likely to pass many people by. While he’s one of the best actors of his generation, he’s not a general crowd puller. The title of this film isn’t exactly a magnet either. But this gentle comedy/drama slowly draws you in […]

C’mon, let’s be positive

Jackass Forever (and Jackass 4.5) ★★★ I KNOW what you are going to say. Even you’ve seen one Jackass film you’ve seen them all. That’s true to an extent, but Jackass Forever, the latest 2022 instalment in the reality comedy franchise, is appearing 12 years after the last film. It […]

Jackass may be forever

Jurassic World: Dominion  ★★★ THE Jurassic franchise can almost do no wrong. I mean who doesn’t like dinosaurs and the studio behind these films has always been prepared to stump up enough cash for decent special effects. The best instalment remains the 1993 original, based on a Michael Crichton novel […]

Dinosaurs still rule

Escape From Mogadishu  ★★★ SOUTH Korean action drama Escape From Mogadishu presents viewers with a mixed bag. It’s based on real events but presented in a way that succeeds in being entertaining but muddies the impact of the drama. In 1991 South Korea was seeking to be admitted to the […]

Koreas forced to combine

Firestarter  ★★½ STEPHEN King’s Firestarter isn’t one of his best or most popular novels. And the 1984 film isn’t one of the best screen adaptations of those many novels. So, if you’re going to remake it, you’ve got a reasonable starting point and chance of success. But director Keith Thomas […]

New Firestarter fails to fire

The 12th Man  ★★★½ WORLD War II continues to provide film material 77 years on. While some stories from the period are well known, there are an equal number of stories of courage and sacrifice you may never have heard of. One of those may be that portrayed in The […]

Heroism stories keep coming

The Sadness  ★★★★ TAIWAN’S The Sadness is “the most violent and depraved horror movie ever made”, according to one horror magazine. So that kind of review meant I was all in for This film which pretty much lives up to the hype. Watching the film, which is set in Taipei, […]

The Sadness = joy, joy, joy

Hell Hath no Fury ★★½ FRANCE 1941. A German officer and his French girlfriend are fleeing the war with gold bars to fund their future together. They are attacked by partisans and a gun battle occurs. Fast forward to a couple of years later and the American forces are starting […]

Hell minus much fury