JoeMama's Movie Reviews

Bad Moms Starring Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Kathryn Hahn, Christina Applegate Directed by Jon Lucas & Scott Moore What is the movie about? Amy Mitchell (Mila Kunis) is the perfect mom - making her kids breakfast, taking them to school, sports functions and school plays, actively involved in the PTA, work a demanding job where she's the oldest person there, makes healthy lunches, does her children's homework and finds the only thing she's really good at is being late to everything. When she finds her husband cheating on her with a girl on the Internet, she decides to live life a little more carelessly, and joined by single mother Carla (Kathryn Hahn) and fellow overworked mother Kiki (Kristen Bell), they decide to let loose and live a little and allow themselves to be "bad moms" - moms who don't have it all together, who are real and who try to be less perfect. This angers overbearing, controlling PTA leader Gwendolyn (Christina Applegate),

Phoenix Forgotten Starring Florence Hartigan, Luke Spencer Roberts, Chelsea Lopez, Justin Matthews Directed by Justin Barber What is the movie about? March 13, 1997, Phoenix, Arizona.  A series of bizarre lights light up the night sky, something thousands of people witnessed and recorded.  To this date there's been no real proof about what happened...was it a government experiment?  Flares?  Or something other-worldly? For Josh (Luke Spencer Roberts), the mystery was too alluring, so he decides to film a documentary where he and his friends Ashley (Chelsea Lopez) and Mark (Justin Matthews) choose to investigate on their own.  Of course, they're never seen again. Twenty years later, his younger sister Sophie (Florence Hartigan) returns home to film her own documentary about what happened to her brother, and discover the real truth behind the Phoenix Lights. Who is involved in the movie? The film features a bunch of rather no-name actors that help drive the f

Fight Club Starring Edward Norton, Brad Pitt, Helena Bonham Carter, Meat Loaf Directed by David Fincher What is the movie about? The Narrator (Edward Norton) is a traveling automobile recall specialist who suffers from insomnia, and in hopes of curing it he attends a support group for testicular cancer patients, where he is able to fully release his emotions and lead to him being able to sleep again.  He attends different support groups until he sees Marla (Helena Bonham Carter), another imposter who bounces from different support groups.  He becomes infuriated and his insomnia returns, and they agree to go to different support groups. On an airplane he meets Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt), a soap salesman with a carefree attitude toward life, and the Narrator is drawn to him.  When his home is destroyed, the Narrator goes to live with Tyler before getting involved in a fist fight outside a bar.  As they fight another night, they draw the attention of different men, and they f

Shut In Starring Naomi Watts, Jacob Tremblay, Charlie Heaton, Oliver Platt Directed by Farren Blackburn What is the movie about? "Shut In" is a psychological thriller starring Naomi Watts as Mary Portman, a child psychologist who is still reeling over the sudden death of her husband and having her son Steven (Charlie Heaton) in a vegetative state.  She tries to help young Tom Patterson (Jacob Tremblay), who is deaf, through some personal issues, but when the boy goes missing she begins having hallucinations that he is somehow haunting her and her son. Who is involved in the movie? Oscar nominee Naomi Watts plays Mary Portman, a woman who is still coming to terms with the death of her husband and struggling to take care of a son who's in a permanent vegetative state.  She gives a decent performance but the script doesn't allow her to really spread her wings and fly, and ends up a very forgettable performance, even earning her a Razzie for Worst Actress

Trolls Starring Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Zooey Deschanel, Christine Baranski Directed by Walt Dohrn & Mike Mitchell What is the movie about? "Trolls" is an animated film by Dreamworks that centers around those lovable long-haired treasure trolls that were famous in the 90s.  Here the trolls are being hunted by creatures known as Bergens who find they cannot be happy unless they eat the trolls. Twenty years after escaping the Bergens, they're discovered by the excommunicated Bergen Chef (Christine Baranski) and some are taken captive and returned to the new King Gristle (Christopher Mintz-Plasse).  Princess Poppy (Anna Kendrick) sets out on a solo adventure to rescue her friends, and she's eventually accompanied by Branch (Justin Timberlake), a dreary troll who doesn't sing, dance or hug.  They discover the lowly scullery maid Bridget (Zooey Deschanel), who is the key to getting to the King and the captured trolls, and hopefully they can

Moana Starring Auli'i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Rachel House, Temuera Morrison Directed by Ron Clements & John Musker The Story: The Polynesian island goddess Te Fiti formed the islands, supplied the lands with life and it's all because of her heart.  However, demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) stole her magical heart to give to humanity as a gift, and Te Fiti stops creating new islands and begins to decay.  Maui is attacked by Te Ka, a lava demon, and he loses the heart and his magical fishhook. A thousand years later, in a small Polynesian island, young Moana (Auli'i Cravalho) is being bred to be raised as the first female chief of her island.  Her father insists she stay safe on the island and never venture out, but she's felt a calling for the ocean since a young age, and she feels called by the ocean to return the heart of Te Fiti to its rightful owner by finding Maui, convincing him to travel with her, face Te Ka, and restore Te Fiti's heart so th

The Fate of the Furious Starring Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Charlize Theron, Jason Statham Directed by F. Gary Gray The Story: After marrying his longtime love Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) is relaxing in Cuba on their honeymoon when he's met by a mysterious stranger (Charlize Theron), who blackmails Dominic to turn against his team and work with her to steal some of the most top secret, deadly weapons in the world. Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell) brings in Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and his former enemy Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) to work together to bring Toretto in, and he also enlists his former team members Letty, Roman (Tyrese Gibson), Tej (Ludacris) and Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel).  Most of them don't believe Dominic really turned, but the truth is far more deadlier than they could imagine. The Synopsis: There's something fascinating about the "Fast and the Furious" franchise, and it's the fact that many people do

Jackie Starring Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard, Greta Gerwig, Billy Crudup Directed by Pablo Larrain The Story: While conducting an interview with a newsman (Billy Crudup), Jackie Kennedy (Natalie Portman) tells the story of the events before, during and prior to the assassination of her husband, President John F. Kennedy (Caspar Pillipson). The Synopsis: Whenever I hear about a movie that's based on true events, I typically take it for a grain of salt.  While the overarching theme of the movie could be the actual event, as it is with Hollywood there's certain liberties taken to embellish the story and make it grander, stronger, and bigger than they really were.  With "Jackie," this idea is nearly thrown out the window as instead of aggrandizing the facts, Chilean born director Pablo Larrain (who, being from a different country, was able to showcase an almost entirely unbiased view of the Kennedys) instead focused on the tormented former First Lady as

The Case for Christ Starring Mike Vogel, Erika Christensen, Faye Dunaway, L. Scott Caldwell Directed by Jon Gunn The Story: In 1980, Lee Strobel (Mike Vogel) is an award-winning journalist for the Chicago Tribune, married to Leslie (Erika Christensen), and the father of a young daughter and a baby on the way.  One night at a restaurant their daughter almost chokes to death, but is saved by nurse Alfie Davis (L. Scott Caldwell), who thanks Jesus for having them be at the same restaurant - because they were going to go somewhere else, but she felt led to that place. Moved by what she heard and how Alfie saved her daughter, Leslie goes with her to church and becomes a Christian, to the chagrin of her atheist husband.  He sets out to disprove the existence of God by focusing on the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus - for if he is able to disprove the resurrection happened, he could cripple Christianity and bring his wife back. The Synopsis: Christian movies in the past

The Wicker Man Starring Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee, Britt Ekland, Diane Cilento Directed by Robin Hardy The Story: Devout Christian Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward) travels to the remote Hebridean island of Summerisle to investigate the disappearance of Rowan Morrison (Gerry Cowper) after receiving an anonymous letter.  Once he arrives on the island, he's greatly troubled by the pagan rituals the townspeople make, involving celebrating open sexual actions, including children as part of their May Day celebrations, teaching of phallic symbols to the children, and using the most strange methods of medicine to cure the most common ailments. As he tries to conduct his investigation, it seems that the entire town doesn't want Rowan found, including her own mother, as most of them totally disavow even knowing the girl.  When he eventually discovers the girl's burial plot, he pleads with the island's leader, Lord Summerisle (Christopher Lee) to get permissio

Special Review: The Last Will and Testament of the Incredible  Mr. Rutland Quincy Sherwood The Story: Arthur Sherwood has always admired his Uncle Rutland, a man who was filled with adventure and wonder, a man with a gift of discovering the undiscovered, a man who unfortunately slipped into a seemingly irreversible coma.  At the reading of his will, Arthur learned he not only inherited the mansion, but also a mysterious item known as Merlin's key, which would open a secret door housing treasures untold. One night he is visited by the mysterious Eliza Dunmore, whose mother was a friend, confidant and lover of Ruthland's who disappeared ten years ago.  She has the other half of Merlin's key, and together they find the secret door that transports them to a magical land known as Findas, where Eliza is a princess and her mother is the Queen who was kidnapped by the evil Agnar.  Together with a band of highly skilled warriors, Arthur, Eliza and Arthur's cousin Ho

The Walking Dead The First Day of the Rest of Your Life Season 7 Episode 16 Review **SPOILERS FOR THE SHOW, EPISODE AND COMICS FOLLOW,  READ AT YOUR OWN RISK** When the season began, our favorite heroes were reduced to shells of their former selves after Negan ruthlessly based in the heads of beloved characters Abraham and Glenn.  Maggie and Sasha dealt with the loss of their loves the hardest, retreating to the Hilltop while Rick became subjugated to Negan's wishes, and Daryl succumbed to Negan's control as his prisoner.  To say the least, it was a bleak outlook for everyone, and throughout the following episodes we saw them slowly rise up and gather together in order to regain the life they once knew.  Now it's the season finale, and as in the case with "The Walking Dead," it was an explosion of emotions - love, joy, fear, anger, resentment, and most importantly...hope. As the show begins, Sasha is in a dark place listening to "S