JoeMama's Movie Reviews

Worst2First:  My Top Ten War Films War is hell, and it's been portrayed on the big screen for decades.  From telling real-life events to centering on some of history's most iconic generals and tacticians, there's no shortage of films centering on war. Here are my personal top ten war films, worst2first... **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** #10 Hacksaw Ridge Following the journey of Desmond Doss, the first conscientious observer to receive the Medal of Honor during World War II, "Hacksaw Ridge" is an unrelenting look at a particular skirmish between American and Japanese forces.  Played by Andrew Garfield (who received an Oscar nomination for his performance), the film at first focuses on Doss's life and then throws us - and him - into the throngs of war where we get to witness a true inspiration of a man who rescued soldiers without carrying a gun. #9 Black Hawk Down Centering on the Battle of Mogadishu - where the U.S....

Solo: A Star Wars Story Starring Alden Ehrenreich, Joonas Suotamo, Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke Directed by Ron Howard The Story: A young Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) and his paramour Qi'ra (Emilia Clarke) work for a criminal gang and yearn to escape, and when they find coaxium (one of the most important and expensive hypermatter that allows faster-than-light travel), they use it to escape, but only Han makes it out.  Vowing to return, he enlists in the Imperial Flight Academy where he meets rogues Beckett (Woody Harrelson) and Val (Thandie Newton), who plan on stealing a shipment of coaxium which will earn Solo enough money to buy his own ship and return to rescue Qi'ra. Solo then meets Wookie Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo), and the two form a strong partnership as they join Beckett in his quest for obtaining the coaxium, but that's just the tip of the iceberg as Solo learns of an even bigger score at hand, leading him into the company of smuggler Lando Calrissi...

Show Dogs Starring Ludacris, Will Arnett, Stanley Tucci, Jordin Sparks Directed by Raja Gosnell The Story: Max (Ludacris) is a NYPD Rottweiler police dog who's hot on the case of a stolen panda, when FBI Agent Frank (Will Arnett) compromises his case.  Forced to work together, the two polar opposites head to Las Vegas for a prestigious dog show where they learn the panda will be sold.  However, that kind of life is not Max's style, so he relies on former dog show champion Philippe (Stanley Tucci) to show him how to be prim and proper, as he and Frank learn to work together to find the panda in time. The Synopsis: Fur the love of all things great and mighty, I have absolutely no idea why this film was made in the first place.  It's ruff from start to finish, left me many moments to paws and reflect on my choices in life, left me wondering howl I would be able to make up for the lost time seeing this, wished for this reign of terrier to end, and made me decid...

Worst2First:  My Top Ten Film Soundtracks When it comes to film, a soundtrack can be just as important as the visuals being seen on screen.  Sometimes they help heighten what's happening, other times it's the driving force for what we're seeing.  Without a great soundtrack, a film is severely lacking. I'm omitting soundtracks from musicals, because that could be a list all by its own.  Instead, I found ten films where their soundtracks helped add to the overall feel of the film, and how it's lasted through the years. Here are my personal top ten film soundtracks, worst2first... **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** #10 The Graduate Dustin Hoffman stars as Benjamin, a recent college graduate who falls for an older married woman's seductions, leading him to make important life decisions.  The film is heightened by the soundtrack, including several songs from Simon & Garfunkel, not to mention the now-iconic song "Mrs. Robinson," an...

Book Club Starring Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Candice Bergen, Mary Steenburgen Directed by Bill Holderman The Story: Friends since college, four older women have participated in a monthly book club meeting every month, solidifying their friendship despite being polar opposites of each other.  Diane (Diane Keaton) is a widower who has two high-strung adult children who believe she should live in their basement because they worry she won't be able to survive on her own.  Vivian (Jane Fonda) is a no-nonsense, headstrong woman who's never fallen in love and has made a name for herself in a string of hotels she founded from the ground up.  Sharon (Candice Bergen) has been divorced for eighteen years, and finds solace in her cat.  Carol (Mary Steenburgen) is happily married to Bruce (Craig T. Nelson), but their love life has fizzled after he retired. Vivian chooses the book "Fifty Shades of Grey," and the women use the book as a way to re-enrich their lives....

Deadpool 2 Starring Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brokin, Morena Baccarin, Zazie Beetz Directed by David Leitch The Story: Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) once again finds himself on the side of justice as he has to protect a troubled mutant named Firefist (Julian Dennison) from Cable (Josh Brolin), a time-traveling cyborg who's set on killing the kid.  To do this, he enlists a superhero team consisting of lucky Domino (Zazie Beetz), along with old friends Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) to stop him. The Synopsis: Sequels often have the issue of "been-there-done-that" where we've already been treated to the characters depicted and therefore lessens the impact of the film.  The first "Deadpool" was a revolutionary work of nature, the first superhero movie (sorry "Blade") to be rated R, and served as a film that is indeed not for children, unlike all the other Marvel brand titles.  Ryan Reynolds was practica...

Breaking In Starring Gabrielle Union, Billy Burke, Ajiona Alexus, Seth Carr Directed by James McTeigue The Story: After her possible-felon father is killed, estranged daughter Shaun (Gabrielle Union), her teenage daughter Jasmine (Ajiona Alexus), and younger son Glover (Seth Carr) travel to Wisconsin to sell her father's vastly huge estate.  Once arriving, they find the house under full lockdown, with cameras all over the place, and the most high tech security system known to man. However, this doesn't deter Eddie (Billy Burke) and his crew from breaking into the house in order to find a safe loaded with cash, and Shaun and her children end up in the crossfire.  With the lives of her children at risk, Shaun will stop at nothing to rescue them and make it out of the night alive. The Synopsis: Christina Simoes and her 18-month-old child were trapped in their apartment on the third story after it caught fire, and she wrapped the baby in her arms and jumped.  ...

Worst2First: My Top Ten Film Universes It may be all the rage nowadays, but cinematic universes have existed since the black-and-white era.  A cinematic universe consists of several different films featuring different characters who cross over to other films (so it could be a sequel/prequel, but with two different lead characters), and spin-offs of a certain character in a film. Here are my personal top ten film universes, worst2first... **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** #10 The Alien/Predator Universe When the two titular alien villains finally clashed in the first "Alien vs. Predator," they became a shared universe.  People in space not only needed to fear the acid-spewing Aliens, but also the stealthy Predators who hunt with extreme camouflage and unrelenting terror as well. #9 The Friday the 13th/Nightmare on Elm Street Universe Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger finally clashed in "Freddy vs. Jason," but their shared universe cam...

Life of the Party Starring Melissa McCarthy, Molly Gordon, Gillian Jacobs, Maya Rudolph Directed by Ben Falcone The Story: Doting mother Deanna (Melissa McCarthy) has watched over her college daughter Maddie (Molly Gordon) all her life, and as she's about to enter her senior year at college, can't be more proud.  Then her husband (Matt Walsh) abruptly declares he wants a divorce, and Deanna realizes that she gave up on her biggest dream - graduating college with a degree in archaeology - because of him.  So she re-enrolls to finish out her senior year with her daughter, and learns more about life and teaches others about the importance of acceptance and being yourself. The Synopsis: Melissa McCarthy is one of today's most ingenious comediennes, who first burst into the limelight in her Oscar-nominated performance in "Bridesmaids."  Since then, she's had a string of hits ("The Boss," "Spy," "Identity Thief," "Th...

The Blackcoat's Daughter Starring Kiernan Shipka, Lucy Boynton, Emma Roberts, Lauren Holly Directed by Oz Perkins The Story: At a Catholic boarding school, all the students go home for break except for wild child Rose (Lucy Boynton), and social outcast Kat (Kiernan Shipka), because their parents haven't arrived yet.  Kat fears her parents dead, while Rose told her parents to pick her up later so she can see her boyfriend again.  Together with two nuns they spend their time at the school while an evil entity lies in the shadows, threatening all of them.  Meanwhile, mysterious Joan (Emma Roberts) arrives at a bus station when she's picked up by married couple Bill (James Remar) and Linda (Lauren Holly), and their story has deep ties to what is happening at the school. The Synopsis: I absolutely love horror movies, and I really enjoy them when they're more than just a simple slash-and-kill motif.  When a horror film can transform itself into a thriller an...

Worst2First:  My Top Ten Films Based on Classic Literature There's been countless films released based off novels, and even though many of them are from recent books, there's some that are based off classic literature.  While I haven't read all the books themselves, I really enjoyed the films they're based off of, so I'm not basing it on how close the film follows the novel. Here are my personal top ten films based on classic literature, worst2first... **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** #10  Sleepy Hollow Based on "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving in 1820, Tim Burton's vision of Sleepy Hollow is a terrifying story of the Headless Horseman, who kills by taking the heads of its victims.  Johnny Depp stars as Ichabod Crane, a detective sent from New York to investigate the murders in the small sleepy town.  Co-starring Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Michael Gambon and Caper van Dien, "Sleepy Hollow"...