JoeMama's Movie Reviews

Welcome to Marwen Starring Steve Carell, Leslie Mann, Merritt Wever, Janelle Monae Directed by Robert Zemeckis The Story: Mark Hogancamp (Steve Carell) was an acclaimed artist who favored wearing high-heeled shoes, and one night a gang of men beat him up because of that, leaving him for dead.  The beating was so savage that he forgot everything in his life that happened before, and became a sort of recluse, hiding away in his mobile home and instead creating his own world he calls Marwen. Set in a Belgium town during World War II, the town of Marwen serves as a safe haven for Mark, where he has a doll made in his likeness who's a brave commander.  The town is populated by women that Mark knows in real life - Roberta (Merritt Weaver), Julie (Janelle Monae), Carlala (Eiza Gonzalez), Suzette (Leslie Zemeckis), and Anna (Gwendoline Christie).  There also exists in the land of Marwen a witch named Deja (Diane Kruger), who seems to desire Mark but also is the caus...

Teen Titans Go! To the Movies Starring Scott Menville, Greg Cipes, Khary Payton, Tara Strong Directed by Peter Rida Michail & Aaron Horvath The Story: While all the other superheros are getting their own movies, the Teen Titans - led by Robin (Scott Menville) - are desiring a movie of their own, particularly Robin.  No matter how hard they try, they can't seem to draw the attention of famous filmmaker Jade Wilson (Kristen Bell), because they don't have an arch-nemesis, and are seen as goofs.  Robin, along with Beast Boy (Greg Cipes), Cyborg (Khary Payton), Raven (Tara Strong), and Starfire (Hynden Walch) set out to find their own arch-nemesis, and find it in Slade (Will Arnett), who plans on controlling the minds of everyone in the world to do his bidding. The Synopsis: In 2003, the original "Teen Titans" cartoon hit Cartoon Network, and the show was a critical and audience hit, because it didn't dumb itself down for a younger audience, but rathe...

The Friday Five Keanu Reeves While his latest film "Replicas" hasn't received the best of reviews, that hasn't always been the case for Keanu Reeves and his illustrious film career.  Here are my five personal favorite films starring Keanu Reeves... **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** #5 John Wick: Chapter 2 In a rare case where a sequel can be just as good as the original, Keanu Reeves reprises his most recent role of trained assassin John Wick who comes out of retirement to take out an Italian gangster's sister.  Much like the first film, this is filled with suspenseful, stylized fighting, a tight story, and a strong supporting cast including Ian McShane, Ruby Rose, Common, and Laurence Fishburne, reuniting with Reeves for the first time since "The Matrix." #4  The Matrix 1999 was an amazing year for Keanu Reeves, culminating with this iconic film that stretched the boundaries of what films could do during that time, an...

Special Review:  Rutland Quincy Sherwood's Unbelievable Guide to Salvaging the Impossible The Story: Arthur Sherwood and his love Eliza have just gotten married when they're met by the mysterious Chadwick von Winkler, an old partner of Arthur's uncle Rutland.  He informs Arthur that Rutland is still alive and missing, and he has to be found in order to save the magical land of Adelmar from the evil Kepler and his sorcerer Keres.  Embarking on another magical adventure, Arthur and his friends find more twists and turns, and learn some shocking revelations that threaten to change their world forever. The Synopsis: The much-anticipated sequel to my friend's previous book "The Last Will and Testament of the Incredible Mr. Rutland Quincy Sherwood," this novel takes what made the first book great and adds an even more meaningful depth and meaning than originally expected.  Much like true sequels, it manages to both maintain strong character development ...

Mary Queen of Scots Starring Saoirse Ronan, Margot Robbie, Jack Lowden, Joe Alwyn Directed by Josie Rourke The Story: While Queen Elizabeth I (Margot Robbie) rules over England, her cousin Mary (Saoirse Ronan) rules over Scotland, and both lands are heavily involved in a religious battle between Protestants and Catholics.  While the male leaders around them try to sway the women to their side, they remain steadfast in their beliefs and rules, and Mary continually converses with Elizabeth by letters, often asking her to name her the successor to her rule.  Elizabeth fears Mary's desire for the throne, and when Mary becomes pregnant by her second husband Lord Darnley (Jack Lowden), Elizabeth fears it all the more.  Yet Mary herself has bigger issues to deal with, as a maniacal preacher and her half-brother desire for her throne, and set up several events that challenges her right to the throne. The Synopsis: Power, intrigue, romance, murder, lies, deception, ...

The Wife Starring Glenn Close, Jonathan Pryce, Christian Slater, Max Irons Directed by Bjorn L. Runge The Story: Joan (Glenn Close) and her husband Joe (Jonathan Pryce) have been married many years, and she's always been content with being Joe's silent partner in his successful writing career.  When they receive word that Joe will be receiving the Nobel Prize in Literature, they're both over the moon and eagerly fly to Stockholm with their son David (Max Irons) to receive the prize. After arriving in Stockholm, the family is hounded by writer Nathaniel Bone (Christian Slater), who wants to write Joe's biography, and soon after Joan begins experiencing regret over her life decisions.  As the night of the awards ceremony draws closer, Joan slowly emerges as a stronger woman than what she was given credit for, and through flashback stories involving a young Joan (Annie Starke) and Joe (Harry Lloyd), we learn there's much more to this marriage and partners...

Escape Room Starring Taylor Russell, Logan Miller, Deborah Ann Woll, Tyler Labine Directed by Adam Robitel The Story: Six strangers - Zoey (Taylor Russell), Ben (Logan Miller), Amanda (Deborah Ann Woll), Mike (Tyler Labine), Jason (Jay Ellis) and Danny (Nik Dodani) - are invited to a mysterious escape room experience, where those who survive will be given $10,000.  Thinking its just a game at first, the participants don't take the game seriously, but when they learn it's a matter of life and death, things become all too real, and they soon realize they weren't selected by accident - they have a dark secret in common that could be the biggest clue to getting out of the game alive. The Synopsis: The torture porn subgenre of horror was all the rage about a decade ago, but humorously enough, people have gotten tired of seeing other people gutted, decapitated, and sliced open repeatedly...who would've thought?  With once-appealing concept movies like "Saw...