JoeMama's Movie Reviews

A Ghost Story Starring Casey Affleck, Rooney Mara, Kesha, Will Oldham Directed by David Lowery The Story: C (Casey Affleck) and his wife M (Rooney Mara) move into a nice one-floor house in Texas, and although they argue about living there or not, they maintain a good, healthy relationship.  When C dies suddenly, he returns as a ghost covered in a sheet.  He returns to his home where he sees M struggle with his death, and the aftermath of the decisions she makes. The Synopsis: David Lowery is a great independent director, directing "Ain't Them Bodies Saints" and "St. Nick" before going mainstream in Disney's "Pete's Dragon."  Using the funds he attained from "Pete's Dragon," he was able to bring his visionary work "A Ghost Story" to life, not only directing it, but writing it as well.  The outcome is a unique tale of love, loss, time, death, life, and everything else in between.  Essentially, it tells the s...

Gremlins Starring Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton, Frances Lee McCain Directed by Joe Dante The Story: While looking for a Christmas present for his son, wannabe inventor Rand Peltzer (Hoyt Axton) finds himself in a Chinese shop where he buys a cute, furry creature called a mogwai, who he feels would be a perfect pet.  He is given three important instructions: do not subject him to bright lights or sunlight, don't get him wet, and don't feed him after midnight. His son Billy (Zach Galligan) names the creature Gizmo and at first it's all happy bliss.  Then he accidentally gets Gizmo wet, and Gizmo reproduces five more mogwais.  These ones, however, aren't as friendly and nice as Gizmo, and they set out to create more of themselves.  Soon the entire town is overrun with these mean mogwai, and it's up to Billy, his girlfriend Kate (Phoebe Cates), and Gizmo to stop them before they destroy everything they love. The Synopsis: The 80s was a pionee...

Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi Starring Mark Hamill, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Carrie Fisher Directed by Rian Johnson The Story: As the First Order continues to wreak havoc across the galaxy, the Resistance - led by General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) - set out to destroy them once and for all.  Meanwhile, Rey (Daisy Ridley) finds Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and pleads with him to come join the fight. The Synopsis: "I have a bad feeling about this." This iconic line has been mentioned in every "Star Wars" film so far, and that was far from what I was feeling about seeing this film.  The trailers looked fantastic, the hype was real, the critics were loving it, and everything about it looked fresh, new, and exciting.  Then I saw it, and I must say, while it wasn't a perfect film, I absolutely loved it.  However, to my surprise, I found that "The Last Jedi" wasn't loved by everyone.  In fact, quite the opposite.  When films...

Die Hard Starring Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson Directed by John McTiernan The Story: New York City cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) travels to Los Angeles for Christmas to see his estranged wife Holly (Bonnie Bedelia).  He attends a big shindig at her office complex when it comes under attack by terrorists, led by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman), who wants to seal millions of dollars in bonds. McClane manages to evade the first attack and hides in the shadows, picking off Gruber's men one-by-one, aided by Sergeant Al Powell (Reginald VelJohnson), who is on the outside with the police.  Gruber grows increasingly frustrated that he cannot catch McClane, which causes him to escalate the hostage situation. The Synopsis: There's a saying going around: "There are two types of people in the world - those who believe 'Die Hard' is a Christmas movie, and those who are wrong."  I am on the side of it being a Christmas movie ...

Black Christmas Starring Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, John Saxon Directed by Bob Clark The Story: During Christmas break, the girls of a sorority house are hounded by perverted calls, and soon they begin disappearing.  At first, the police aren't interested, but when a search party results in the discovery of a dead girl, the town goes into a tailspin, and the girls are in fear for their lives, not knowing that the killer is living among them, hiding in the attic, waiting for the perfect time to strike. The Synopsis: Back in 1974, the term "slasher flick" wasn't really used.  Films like "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," "Psycho," "A Bay of Blood" and "Peeping Tom" were the only real slasher films out there, but after "Black Christmas," the subgenre took off thanks in part to John Carpenter's "Halloween," a film that wouldn't have existed if not for "Black Christmas....

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation Starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Juliette Lewis, Johnny Galecki Directed by Jeremiah Chechik The Story: The Griswolds - father Clark (Chevy Chase), mother Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo), daughter Audrey (Juliette Lewis) and son Rusty (Johnny Galecki) - decide to stay home for the holidays, and have their relatives visit them for Christmas.  Clark just wants to give his family the perfect Christmas - from the Christmas tree to the lights and food - but of course his good-natured intentions turn into hilarious disasters, and his family isn't the most functional either, especially Cousin Eddie (Randy Quaid). The Synopsis: While the "Vacation" series had two previous outings before this, "Christmas Vacation" is the most widely remembered and lovingly embraced, especially during the Yuletide season.  It's become a Christmas staple, up there with "A Christmas Story," "Miracle on 34th ...

Elf Starring Will Ferrell, James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen Directed by Jon Favreau The Story: When he was a baby at the orphanage, Buddy (Will Ferrell) snuck into Santa's sack and ended up at the North Pole.  There he was raised by Papa Elf (Bob Newhart) and believed himself to be an elf - despite his huge size.  When he found out that he was human, he wanted to find his real father.  Papa Elf tells Buddy of his true birth, and Buddy travels to New York City to see his father, Walter (James Caan). Arriving in the Big Apple, Buddy's good-natured attitude and positive upbeat style rubs everyone the wrong way, except for Jovie (Zooey Deschanel), a girl playing an elf at a department store.  Buddy finds his father, who's a children's book publisher, and only cares about money and power.  While at first rejecting him, Walter takes Buddy in and he begins to soften his heart to family and what really matters in life. The Synopsis: Will Fe...