JoeMama's Movie Reviews

Masters of the Universe Starring Nicholas Galitzine, Camila Mendes, Idris Elba, Jared Leto Directed by Travis Knight Growing up in the 80s was an amazing time. "Transformers," "G.I. Joe," "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," "Thundercats," "Voltron," "He-Man" and many other animated shows filled my young mind with wander and excitement, and the toys gave me countless hours of entertainment before the age of technology. In recent times, some of these iconic hits have tried to make their way into modern society with mixed results, to say the least. Michael Bay's "Transformers" series was just an excuse for him to create CGI robots to smack each other. His "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" franchise turned them into grotesque CGI abominations. The live-action "G.I. Joe" franchise never really got its footing after the acceptable first movie. The one amazing movie that came out of this was director Travis...

Backrooms Starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett Directed by Kane Parsons Back in 2023, YouTube creator Kyle Edward Ball spent $15,000 and created the film "Skinamarink" based on some of his viewers' nightmares. The result was a unique film to say the least, centering on two young children who find their parents missing, and soon discover that other items in their house - including doors, windows, and even the toilet - also go missing. It's shot in grainy footage where it's really hard to discern what's happening, resulting in a more jarring experience for the audience: or they just found it boring because nothing happens for long lengths of time. The film's love was divided between those who admired the work done, and others who found it boring, again, because nothing happens for lengths of time. Now, YouTube star Kane Parsons brings to cinematic life his series of YouTube shorts called "Backrooms" which has gained...

The Breadwinner Starring Nate Bargatze, Mandy Moore, Will Forte, Kumail Nanjiani Directed by Eric Appel There's a reason I find comedies the least enjoyable of the genres - it has no originality, no vibrancy, and seems stuck in the past, with only rare exceptions stepping out of the mold. "The Breadwinner," sadly, doesn't break that mold but instead settles nicely into a plot that's reminiscent of the Michael Keaton-led 1983 film "Mr. Mom" where the husband and wife switches roles where the husband goes from a successful businessman to a stay-at-home dad and the mother goes from her mommy duties to the corporate world. Comedian Nate Bargatze obviously took liberties from this classic for this film that's based on his more wholesome stand-up comedy routine (kudos to him for being actually funny on stage without resorting to crude humor), but as always, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery as Oscar Wilde said, but no one mentions the second half...

GOAT Starring Caleb McLaughlin, Gabrielle Union, Aaron Pierre, David Harbour Directed by Tyree Dillihay Being not a big fan of sports, even I know what it means to be the G.O.A.T. - the Greatest Of All Time. There's been a lot of debate especially in the basketball world over who is the true G.O.A.T. - Michael Jordan or LeBron James - and I absolutely have no opinion on it. Getting back to the movie, it could be titled either GOAT or G.O.A.T. since it has two different characters who embody those terms: a literal goat, and a panther wishing to be the G.O.A.T. in an animal-like version of basketball. While the animation is top notch, and the characters are expertly voiced, it's still a basic story of an underdog team rising the ranks to become the best. Ever since he was young, Will Harris (Caleb McLaughlin), an American Pygmy goat, wishes to join the Vineland Thorns roarball team, and become the G.O.A.T. after idolizing longtime player and all-star Jett Fillmore (Gabrielle Unio...

Passenger Starring Jacob Scipio, Lou Llobell, Melissa Leo, Joseph Lopez Directed by Andre Ovredal Back in the day when gas was under $2 a gallon, my friends and I would drive around in my van in the middle of the night just to drive. I remember one night I stopped in the middle of a dark, deserted road filled with trees and no lamps and turned off the lights, and the ambiance was very creepy and eerie. There's nothing more terrifying than driving down a dark road alone, because you feel like someone is watching you. "Passenger" offers that sense of dread but proves someone - or something - actually  is  watching you, and if you don't obey the rules of the road you'll find yourself another victim of the road's unyielding power. Tyler (Jacob Scipio) and his girlfriend Maddie (Lou Llobell) decide to give up the big city living and spend time roaming the backroads of America in their souped up van that doubles as a mobile home. At first they're both excited at...

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu Starring Pedo Pascal, Jeremy Allen White, Sigourney Weaver, Steve Blum Directed by Jon Favreau  I've never been a huge "Star Wars" fan, having seen Episodes I-III before I saw the original trilogy. Then I saw the three Disney-led trilogy along with "Rogue One" and "Solo," and then I never saw any of the shows on Disney+ because it seemed like an extremely tedious task: "The Mandalorian," "The Book of Boba Fett," "Obi-Wan Kenobi," "Andor," "Ahsoka," "The Acolyte" and "Skeleton Crew" (not to mention the even more numerous animated shows) weighed down the franchise and made something that was once a spectacle into a shrug and "well, it's a Friday." That's the nature going into "Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu," which is essentially a new season of "The Mandalorian" set to the big screen and with the same amo...