AQUAMAN

Reviewed by GREG KING Director: James Wan Stars: Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, Nicole Kidman, Dolph Lundgren, Temuera Morrison, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Michael Beach, Randall Park, Graham McTavish, Leigh Whannell, Otis Dhanji, voices of Julie Andrews, John Rhys-Davies, Djimon Hounsou. For a long time, DC comics attempts to rival Marvel and its successful Avengers franchise through the creation of its DC Extended Universe with the Justice League have fallen a little flat, and their movies have tended to be dark and dour affairs. The Continue reading

AMERICAN ANIMALS

Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Bart Layton Stars: Evan Peters, Barry Keoghan, Blake Jenner, Jared Abrahamson, Ann Dowd, Spencer Reinhard, Warren Lipka, Chas Allen, Eric Borsuk, Betty Jean Gooch. In 2004, four bored college students attempted a brazen heist in which they set out to steal $12million worth of rare and valuable books from the special collections room of the library at Transylvania University in Kentucky. Spencer Reinhard (played by Barry Keoghan, from Dunkirk and The Killing Of A Sacred Deer, etc) was an aspiring artist who became obsessed with a Continue reading

A STAR IS BORN

Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Bradley Cooper Stars: Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper, Anthony Ramos, Sam Elliott, Rafi Gavron, Andrew Dice Clay, Dave Chappelle, Ron Rifkin, Barry Shabaka Henley, Alec Baldwin, Greg Grunberg, Drena De Niro, Lukas Nelson. This is the fourth version of the classic story that was first filmed in 1937 with Frederick March and Janet Gaynor in the lead roles. It was notably remade in 1954 as a musical with James Mason and Judy Garland in the lead roles. It is forty years since we saw Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson in their version of A Continue reading

A PRAYER BEFORE DAWN

Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Jean-Stephane Sauvaire Stars: Joe Cole, Pornchanok Mabklang. This intense brutal prison drama is like Kickboxer meets Midnight Express. This unflinching, hard hitting and gritty and harrowing true story is set inside Thailand’s notorious Bang Kwang Central prison, better known as the infamous Bangkok Hilton. Like Midnight Express, which depicted Billy Hayes’ ordeal after being arrested and imprisoned for smuggling drugs in Turkey, A Prayer Before Dawn is based on the 2014 memoir written by expat Brit Billy Moore (played by Joe Cole, Continue reading

A SIMPLE FAVOUR

Reviewed by GREG KING Director: Paul Feig Stars: Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, Henry Golding, Bashir Salahuddin, Joshua Satine, Ian Ho, Jean Smart, Linda Cardellini, Andrew Randells, Danielle Bourgon, Dustin Milligan, Rupert Friend. This twisted, darkly comic female centric noir like thriller marks a change of pace for director Paul Feig, who is best known for his female centric comedies like the raucous Bridesmaids and the recent reboot of the 80’s cult classic Ghostbusters. Overachieving widow and single mother Stephanie Smothers (Anna Kendrick) is also a Continue reading