I like Luc Besson’s work. His films tend to be slick, pretty to look at, throw in some fun effects, and usually attract solid actors to the project. Lucy is no different, and lets Scarlett Johansson take the titular role in a science fiction-tinged action movie. Lucy (Johansson) is betrayed into being a drug mule…
Tag: runtime
Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991) – Mark L. Lester
Brandon Lee and Dolph Lundgren are mismatched cops in this goofy, but undeniably fun 90s action flick, Showdown in Little Tokyo. Filled with silly stunts; Lundgren jumps over a car, goofy banter, tons of nudity and martial arts, it’s just a hoot. They are joined in the cast by Tia Carrere and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, it’s…
Pitch Perfect 3 (2017) – Trish Sie
There’s, arguably, a good film and story in Pitch Perfect 3, something about the family we’re from and the family we find, but from the opening sequence, which involves an exploding yacht, I knew this one was going to be a mess. There’s some wonderful ideas, casting John Lithgow in the role of Fat Amy’s…
The Mummy’s Curse (1944) – Leslie Goodwins
The Mummy’s Curse feels like a wasted opportunity. Once again Lon Chaney Jr. seems to get short shrift without much to do in this installment of the Universal Monsters series. I have a couple of problems with this one. My first issue, this entry barely runs an hour and a good quarter of it is…
The Mummy’s Tomb (1942) – Harold Young
Working as a direct sequel to The Mummy’s Hand, The Mummy’s Tomb is supposed to take place some thirty years after the previous film as Karis the Mummy (now played by Lon Chaney JR.) is used to hunt down the members of the party that defiled the tomb in the previous film. That means archeologist…
The Mummy’s Hand (1940) – Christy Cabanne
I dig into more Universal monsters this week to the first sequel to The Mummy. Released in 1940, The Mummy’s Hand features Tom Tyler as the Mummy. It’s hard to come down on anyone’s side on this one nowadays. The ‘heroes’ are led by an archeologist, Steve Banning (Dick Foran) who is a snappily-dressed American…
Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard (2021) – Patrick Hughes
Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, and Salma Hayek return to cause problems, violence and dole out colourful language in the sequel to The Hitman’s Bodyguard, Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard. Director Patrick Hughes remains in the big chair and delivers a fast-paced sleek tale, that feels a little tighter in its storytelling, and its runtime. Michael Bryce…
The One (2001) – James Wong
Sci-fi fans know the name James Wong from his work on The X-Files, and Space: Above and Beyond, and eagle-eyed fans will recognize more than a few faces as Wong delivers this sci-fi actioner that he shot in Vancouver. Trotting out the idea of the multiverse several years before the MCU made it mainstream, he…
Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare (1968) – Yoshiyuki Kuroda
As much as I loved 100 Monsters, Spook Warfare almost disappointed me as much. It feels like a bit of a goofy film, and I get that this is the point of the series, the same way Godzilla went from a dark film to ‘who is he fighting this time?’ It starts out promisingly enough,…
TAD 2023: International Shorts After Dark
It’s the final day of the festival and Toronto After Dark always takes this opportunity to showcase some of the amazing genre shorts that have been submitted to them from all over the world. This year, there are ten shorts to dive into, something that is sure to tickle your fancy is to be found…
The Mind Reels 