JoeMama's Movie Reviews

Minions & Monsters Starring Pierre Coffin, Trey Parker, Allison Janney, Christoph Waltz Directed by Pierre Coffin For sixteen years and seven movies, the yellow pill-shaped Minions have invaded the cinema to the tune of over $6 billion dollars worldwide and counting. What is it about these little creatures that's endeared them to the hearts of children young and old alike, especially considering they don't even speak a language we can understand? Simply, it's the fact that they're so lovable despite having their only goal being to serve the most horrible villains in the world, and their antics that oftentimes resort to blowing raspberries at each other and hitting each other with all kinds of blunt objects that hearken back to classic Hollywood slapstick comedy. To that end, their third solo outing "Minions & Monsters" leans entirely on that - focusing on a new group of Minions that existed during the golden age of cinema and how their shenanigans led ...

Casa Grande Starring Lou Diamond Phillips, John Pyper-Ferguson, Christina Moore, Kate Mansi Directed by Juan Pablo Arias Munoz For the last few years there's been an uptick in Western-style television series that centers on family dynamics including "The Madison," "The Son," "Longmire" and most famously "Yellowstone," which has spawned numerous spinoffs. These types of shows are set in the wild west (sometimes in the past, sometimes in the present) with a big family that has their struggles and successes, but you know essentially what you're getting into. "Casa Grande" is essentially a long episode of one such show set on the big screen, and would've fared a lot better if it had joined the other Western-style shows littering the television landscape - but that's not to say it was a bad movie, just needed more depth to it. After murdering two ICE agents who were about to steal away Mael Morales (Javier Bolanos) along with...

  Dolly Starring Fabianne Therese, Seann William Scott, Ethan Suplee, Max the Impaler Directed by Rod Blackhurst In the Xochimilco canals of Mexico City is a famous, creepy doll graveyard of sorts - decaying mutilated dolls hanging from trees by the thousands, and it's a popular tourist spot. When I first saw the trailer for "Dolly," I was hoping it'd be a movie set in that location, but that hope was soon dashed when I saw the main villain and the backwoodsy setting, I didn't have high expectations. While it still delivered a decent story with great practical effects, it's nothing worth writing home about - but since it was done on a micro-budget and was an original idea, I have mad respect for it getting made.  While on a trip to a secluded wooded mountain for a relaxing hike, couple Macy (Fabianne Therese) and Chase (Seann William Scott) come into contact with a lot of porcelain dolls hiding out in the middle of the woods. That's creepy enough, but then...

Toy Story 5 Starring Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Greta Lee Directed by Andrew Stanton The "Toy Story" franchise is a rarity when it comes to cinema, considering their epic Rotten Tomatoes scores. The first three films earned 100%, 100%, and 98%, and served as an amazing trilogy for anyone who grew up with the antics of Woody, Buzz, Jessie and their friends. If they were children in 1995, by 2010 they were ready to leave for college, as Andy did at the end of the third movie, moving on from childhood toys and giving strong nostalgic feelings for them. Essentially, it was a perfect trilogy. Then "Toy Story 4" came out in 2019, and while it still earned high praise (97%), it served more like an epilogue to the trilogy - not as memorable or impactful, but still joyous to see them again. Now, with "Toy Story 5," there seems to be signs of decline as it "only" scored a 93%, which is still something most movies would die to have, but its becoming...

Pressure Starring Andrew Scott, Brendan Fraser, Kerry Condon, Chris Messina Directed by Anthony Maras I've always been fascinated with the weather, and how it impacts our day-to-day lives. When it's cold and snowy, I don't want to go out, but when its sunny and warm, I don't mind it. If there's some major storms coming, I don't want to travel far, but if it's a clear day I don't mind driving miles away. It's also a fascinating thing to study, because weathermen are well known for being wrong more often than right, due to the unpredictability of weather. Imagine how it was in the 1940s, before we had all these different radar systems that accurately predict weather days before it happened - and imagine how significant weather was during World War II, as the Allied forces planned their most dangerous mission yet, and one that could turn the tide of the war - as long as the weather followed suit. In June 1944, the Allied forces are planning Operation Ov...

The Death of Robin Hood Starring Hugh Jackman, Jodie Comer, Bill Skarsgard, Faith Delaney Directed by Michael Sarnoski Americans in particular know the tale of Robin Hood: an antihero who robs from the rich and gives to the poor, the leader of his jovial Merry Men, living in Sherwood Forrest and going against the tyrannical Sheriff of Nottingham. There's been numerous movies that focus on this legend, and most of them aren't that good - the last one being the Taron Egerton-led "Robin Hood" in 2018 that was a box office and critical bomb. It seems that all the stories have been told, and no one really cared about the hero that's existed in English literature since 1377. However, what if everything we know about Robin Hood was a lie? "Pig" and "A Quiet Place: Day One" director Michael Sarnoski wrote his own story about Robin Hood - based on an anonymous writer's work  Robin Hood's Death  written sometime in the 17th Century, and this movi...

Leviticus Starring Joe Bird, Stacy Clausen, Mia Wasikowska, Jeremy Blewitt Directed by Adrian Chiarella Leviticus 18:22 states: "Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable." It's no surprise why first-time director Adrian Chiarella chose to name his first horror movie "Leviticus" because it a visual representation of this verse in the modern era, where radical right-wing Christian Nationalists use this verse like it's the only gospel truth in order to condemn and vilify the LGBTQ community. To make anyone going through this feel like they're wrong, wicked, vile and detestable, making them hate themselves simply for who they want to love. In a sense, although our main characters are hunted down by a demonic-like spirit only they can see, the main villains in this movie are the unfeeling, overly-religious townspeople and family members who've forced them to travel such dark roads when they didn't need to. N...

Stop! That! Train! Starring Ginger Minj, Jujubee, Brooke Lynn Hytes, RuPaul Charles Directed by Adam Shankman Spoof comedies are making a comeback in cinema thanks to the surprise success of 2025's remake of "The Naked Gun" with Liam Neeson playing the son of the man the great Leslie Nielsen played in the 80s. That year ended with the equally hilarious "Fackham Hall" and then this year brought back the mother of all 2000s spoofs, "Scary Movie 6" to rousing success. Now "Stop! That! Train!" continues to chug ahead with the laughs that doesn't tread new territory, but it doesn't need to. Best friends Tess (Ginger Minj) and DeeDee (Jujubee) work as train stewardesses for a failing train line, but wish to work on the glamorous Glamazonian Express and get their shot when two of their stewardesses don't show up for work, so they disguise themselves and find themselves on board. Unfortunately, they don't know they're heading into...

The Furious Starring Xie Miao, Joe Taslim, Yang Enyou, Brian Le Directed by Kenji Tanigaki Jason Statham has had a string of mediocre films lately, most of which involve him saving children from predatory monsters, including the upcoming "Mutiny" where he does this on a boat. Each film is bland, mediocre, and just what you'd expect from a Statham movie. However, if you're looking for an action movie featuring heroes saving the lives of children who are about to be trafficked, look no further than "The Furious," a film that is 99% action and 1% story, but that doesn't matter - we know the basics, and that's all we need. We come for these movies for the action, and this one defines the word "action." Wang Wei (Xie Miao) is a tradesman with a young daughter Rainy (Yang Enyou), and life is rather idyllic until Rainy is kidnapped, forcing Wang to embark on a quest to find her. Aiding him is journalist Navin (Joe Taslim) who's searching for h...

Disclosure Day Starring Josh O'Connor, Emily Blunt, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson Directed by Steven Spielberg Growing up I always had a fascination with the supernatural - ghosts, aliens, cryptids, and so on to the point where I wouldn't sleep upstairs because I thought aliens would come through the window and abduct me. Then during my late teen years I became a Christian and went to Bible college to study scripture, but never lost my wonder in the supernatural - even though I was told that there were no such things as ghosts or aliens, and if they existed they were purely demonic creatures. Much like with science, there always appeared to be a disconnect between supernatural and religion, as well as science and religion, with most religious experts claiming you can't believe in science (or the supernatural) and God - but what if it's not supposed to be separate, but the supernatural and the science answers the "why" of religion? "Disclosure Day" doesn...

Scary Movie Starring Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Anna Faris, Regina Hall Directed by Michael Tiddes Back in 2000, The Wayans Brothers brought "Scary Movie" to the big screens focusing on parodying iconic horror films such as "Scream," and it was a huge success - so much so it spawned numerous not-so-great imitators like "Dance Movie," "Date Movie," "Epic Movie," and the like. They followed up their original hit with another banger in 2001's "Scary Movie 2," but then the Wayans left the franchise for the PG-13 friendly "Scary Movie 3" and "Scary Movie 4" in 2003 and 2006 respectively. Then the franchise took its seemingly death knell with 2013's abysmal, unfunny, all-around horrible "Scary Movie 5," and with that the parody subgenre essentially came to an end. Then 2025's "The Naked Gun" re-vitalized the subgenre, and then the Wayans Brothers returned (along with Anna Faris a...

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...