Category: comedy
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Coffee & Kareem [2020] ★
Netflix’s “Coffee & Kareem” is only 88 minutes long (including the credits). So why on earth does it feel like an endurance test? It has none of the qualities of a decent comedy, and it’s a long way from Ed Helms’ “The Hangover”. He plays a police officer who teams up with the loudest kid…
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Dolemite Is My Name [2019] ★★★
Simply put, “Dolemite is my Name” is one of Netflix’s finest movies. It gives Eddie Murphy the role of a lifetime, playing Rudy Ray Moore, the underground comedian who rose to fame in the 1970’s and inspired a generation of artists. This is Murphy’s territory, and he lets it bleed, giving a comeback performance that impressed…
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The Laundromat [2019] ★★
Steven Soderbergh is a director that I’ve greatly admire over the years, which is why it’s difficult for me to admit that I couldn’t entirely enjoy his latest satire “The Laundromat”, streaming on Netflix. It has an all-star cast (including Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas, Jeffrey Wright, Sharon Stone, David Schwimmer and James Cromwell!)…
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Spenser Confidential [2020] ★★
Mark Walhberg can make any movie worth seeing, even mediocre ones like “Spenser Confidential”. Think of every buddy cop movie you’ve seen, add to it Walhberg’s energetic persona and you get Netflix’s latest action/comedy. It’s not bad, but you’ve seen it all before, and better. Walhberg plays an ex-cop who served time for beating up…
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The Half Of It [2020] ★★★
With “The Half of It”, Netflix may have finally dropped their finest coming-of-age movie yet. You heard me. Alice Wu directs this sweet and tender film about Ellie Chu (Leah Lewis, a revelation), a smart teen girl who writes essays for other students in exchange for cash (a piece of cake for her). Her most…
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Bad Education [2019] ★★★
This fact-based story starring Hugh Jackman like you’ve never seen him before is the perfect film to stream during confinement. Jackman transforms himself completely to play happy-go-lucky superintendent Frank Tassone, who, in 2002 became a prime suspect in an embezzlement scandal. The film , directed with a keen eye for detail by Cory Finley, focuses…
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Love Wedding Repeat [2020] ★½
I’m always on the lookout for the next Netflix comedy. Will it be worse than its predecessor? In the case of “Love Wedding Repeat”, the answer is yes. This is a disastrous film that has no redeeming qualities, except the fact that it was shot in Italy. If beautiful sceneries were enough, then this movie…
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Onward [2020] ★★★
The folks at Disney/Pixar have done it again. As soon as their latest film opened, I felt at home. You could tell that a lot of effort has been put to bring this story to life, with clever staging, hilarious moments and spectacular action scenes. So what is “Onward” about? It’s basically several things at…
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Sonic The Hedgehog [2020] ★★½
Ok ok, I might be a little bit biased here, but this live-action version of one of the most influential video games of the 90’s is actually…fun? I know, I’m a bit surprised myself. But get this: as someone who grew up with the blue hedgehog (I pretty much owned every Sonic game on the…
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Birds Of Prey (And The Fantabulous Emancipation Of One Harley Quinn) [2020] ★★★
Doubters can relax: this is the Harley Quinn movie we’ve all been waiting for. 2016’s “Suicide Squad” briefly introduced us to this flamboyant character (at least on the big screen), but “Birds of Prey” moves things forward in ways you don’t always see coming. It’s a colorful, over-the-top and often hilarious film that rarely pulls…
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The Gentlemen [2020] ★★★
After “King Arthur” and last year’s “Aladdin”, Guy Ritchie finds himself revisiting old grounds in “The Gentlemen”. It’s not the director’s best work, but it has all the right ingredients to satisfy his loyal followers. A great ensemble cast? Check. An intriguing story? Check. Richie’s usual trademark? Double Check. In telling the story of how…
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Bad Boys For Life [2020] ★★½
It doesn’t reinvigorate the genre or take the franchise in completely different directions, but “Bad Boys For Life” has a pair of live wires that would make any action flick rise above the routine. I’m talking about Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, who are still just as entertaining to watch as they were 25 years…
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Like A Boss [2020] ★
This painfully unfunny comedy, courtesy of Miguel Arteta, is easily the worst film of the decade so far. Tiffany Haddish and Rose Byrne are wasted as Bffs who run a small, local cosmetics company. Enter Claire Luna (Salma Hayek, so bad), a giant in the industry who offers to cover their huge debts, as long…
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Jojo Rabbit [2019] ★★★
It doesn’t always hit all the right notes, but there’s something charming and irresistible about this World War II satire, courtesy of Taika Waititi. “Jojo Rabbit” is just as quirky as it sounds, as we follow Johannes “Jojo” Betzler, a 10-year-old German boy who also happens to be a die-hard Hitler fan. One day, he…
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The Farewell [2019] ★★★
I ended the year with a movie and I’m starting my 10th year on this blog with a review about it. “The Farewell”, written and directed by Lulu Wang and starring Awkwafina in a superior performance, is a film that you need to experience. In telling the story of how a Chinese woman living in…
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Last Christmas [2019] ★★½
T’is the season. Every year I struggle to find a new Christmas movie to watch, so I always end up revisiting the same old classics. I refused to see “Last Christmas” at first (it kept reminding me of the song and I can’t listen to this song anymore), but I finally caved in this weekend…
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Jumanji: The Next Level [2019] ★★½
As far as sequels go, “The Next Level” is enjoyable enough. The harshest thing anyone can say about it is that it lacks the element of surprise, and understandably so. The 2017 movie caught audiences by surprise and delivered superior entertainment (although I was skeptical at first). So naturally, a sequel had to happen. Dwayne…
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Charlie’s Angels [2019] ★★
To say that this reboot doesn’t have any reason to exist would be the understatement of the year. The 70’s TV show wasn’t great by any means, but it had its charm. The 2000 film version starring Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu had some good moments here and there, but it’s no classic…
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Zombieland: Double Tap [2019] ★★★
Yes, it took a decade for director Ruben Fleischer to cook-up a sequel to his 2009 surprise hit. As a huge fan of the first film, this was damn worth the wait. But before that, and in true “Zombieland” fashion, let’s take a closer look at what the cast and crew had been up to…
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Yesterday [2019] ★★★
I don’t know how I missed out on this gem of a movie upon its release, but now that I’ve seen it, I cannot but recommend it, especially if you’re a fan of The Beatles. “Yesterday”, written by Richard Curtis and directed with a keen eye for detail by Danny Boyle, is a film that…
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