Wolverine trilogy goes out on top with unshackled ‘Logan’
Movie review: “X-Men’s” Wolverine trilogy goes out on top with an unshackled finale.
Oscars
Wolverine trilogy goes out on top with unshackled ‘Logan’
‘Manchester by the Sea’ a brutal tale of loss and recovery (Movie review)
There are safe tear-jerkers, like TV’s “This Is Us” (where we kind of chuckle at the fact that it makes us cry), and then there are brutal ones, like “Manchester by the Sea” (2016, now streaming on […]
Cerebral alien visitation yarn ‘Arrival’ lacks a satisfying payoff (Movie review)
Like many alien visitation films before it, “Arrival” asks “What is their purpose on Earth?” After the requisite opening where the world tenses up as 12 giant egg-shaped spaceships take up stations around the globe, “Arrival” zeroes […]
‘Fantastic Beasts’ is an enjoyable expansion of the ‘Harry Potter’ universe (Movie review)
In 2009, I predicted – not particularly daringly – that we’d get another “Harry Potter” novel someday. Seven years later, while that prediction isn’t precisely on point, it’s in the ballpark: This year saw the book release […]
What John thought about ‘Star Wars: A New Hope’ on its 30th anniversary in 2007 (Movie commentary)
To round out the “Star Wars” movie reviews on my blog, here’s a look back at my 30th anniversary essay for “Episode IV: A New Hope,” published in the Brainerd (Minn.) Dispatch on May 24, 2007, one […]
What John thought about ‘Revenge of the Sith’ in 2005 (Movie review)
To round out the “Star Wars” film reviews on my blog, I thought it would be fun to look back at my review of “Episode III: Revenge of the Sith” from May 20, 2005, in the Brainerd […]
What John thought about ‘Attack of the Clones’ in 2002 (Movie review)
Just for fun — and to round out the “Star Wars” film reviews on my blog – I decided to look back at what I thought of “Episode II: Attack of the Clones” upon its release in […]
‘Star Trek Beyond’ is distractingly loud and stupid (Movie review)
In 2009, J.J. Abrams rebooted the “Star Trek” movie franchise by making a “Star Wars”-style movie with “Star Trek” trappings. The second entry, “Star Trek Into Darkness,” was perhaps closer to “Star Trek,” but it […]
‘Independence Day’ (1996) still worth celebrating
Movie review: For the 20th anniversary, we look back at director Roland Emmerich’s classic summer blockbuster that made aliens scary again.
In ‘The Force Awakens,’ the creative side of ‘Star Wars’ dies – with thunderous applause (Movie review)
“Star Wars: Episode VII — The Force Awakens,” the first big-screen building block in Disney’s takeover of the empire formerly owned by George Lucas, is frustrating on many levels: It copies the plot of “Episode IV […]