Movies, Film, and Chili

  Heart of Stone is a fantasy spy thriller for Netflix starring Gal Gadot . Directed by Tom Harper who isn't really known in the States. He was nominated for a BAFTA and there isn't much wrong with the direction as much of the flaws of the film lie with the acting and writing. I was excited to see Greg Rucka  was on the writer's table as he wrote The Old Guard  which makes me think he wrote the action scenes which were okay if not worse. The progressive writing probably comes from Allison Schroeder  which only hindered the movie. I know she's a capable writer as she wrote Hidden Figures . It feels like they're trying to make Salt or Atomic Blonde but with Gal Gadot as the lead and make it more modern and for a female audience. Action films typically have a male audience and so perhaps that was why it felt off. Gal Gadot does not sell the idea that she's just a tech girl who's into chess. She also just walks through all the lines and doesn't emote much th

  Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is a reboot of the franchise with a stylistic take on the animation and characters. After failing to gain traction with The Mitchells vs. the Machines the writer/director Jeff Rowe tried with an ensemble cast that was sure to get a hit. Only they weren't so sure as now only the story and animation could have used a lot of work. Everything and everyone is ugly. People will be talking about Spider-Man Into the Spiderverse for years to come with their stylistic take on the series but the same won't be said for this. None of the voice actors are really that great except Ice Cube,   Jackie Chan, and oddly enough Post Malone . All of the turtles were voiced by actual teens but they didn't have enough acting lessons to really land the lines they were written. The jokes were probably written by Seth Rogen but none of them really landed because of the actors' experience. I wish movies would avoid progressive cliches because it shows

  Retribution is a thriller similar to the hit movie Speed only this time it's a bomb under a pressure plate in Liam Neeson 's car. Directed by  Nimród Antal , the film could have used some reshoots in the beginning as the characters are introduced in an awkward and unrealistic way. Almost like they were saying 'Yeah kids are like this right?' The movie gets better as it goes on but that's more of a credit to the writers over the director. Antel you might remember directed 2010's  Predators . Liam Neeson  tries to shout but any Dad would know that volume isn't a Dad shout. It lacks enthusiasm or frustration and it feels like he's just reading the dialogue. I think this will be a stain on his legacy, but I imagine he got a decent paycheck. Lilly Aspell plays the daughter and she actually does a decent job. Perhaps you'll recognize her from Wonder Woman as young Diana. Also Jack Champion is in the film as the angsty older teen who doesn't listen to

  They Cloned Tyrone is a Netflix science fiction film that touches on racial tensions in the united states. The writer from Creed II and Space Jam: A New Legacy comes to Netflix to try and direct. I could see how they could have faith. It's not his first time directing but it's his first time directing anything worth seeing. Solid job for Juel Taylor, as directing for the first time could spell trouble. He and Tony Rettenmaier wrote the screenplay. Their writing has come a long way from when they co-wrote Space Jam: A New Legacy. There is a delicate balance when writing about race in America as too harsh one way or the other and you'll alienate the other side. They write it from the perspective of black Americans in black-dominated democratic-run suburbs. Each role is a caricature of their role as The Pimp, The Hoe, and The Thug. Jamie Foxx plays the pimp and an overdramatized late twentieth century. I tried to think who else in Hollywood could have played this role and

  Blue Beetle is a niche comic book hero and this is his origin story adapted to fit the silver screen. Blue Beetle is directed by  Angel Manuel Soto, who has brought you hits like. *checks notes* Oh he hasn't really done anything worth seeing. I'm sure he would disagree with me but let me be frank: I take issue with both his direction and how he promoted the movie. The film could have used more time in the oven as the CGI isn't up to par. Many scenes felt they could have been cut and I wonder if it was his choice to intentionally steal scenes from other comic book movies. There are scenes taken straight from Iron Man, Spider-Man,  and even Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny . It doesn't seem like homage either. There are two shining parts of the movie and those are Xolo Maridueña and  Bruna Marquezine who have on-screen chemistry. They make the movie at least bearable to watch.  Belissa Escobedo on the other hand couldn't help show her attraction towards Xolo d

  The Last Voyage of the Demeter  is based on the captain's log for Bram Stoker's Dracula.  Directed by  André Øvredal, the film could have been as good as his earlier work like Troll Hunter  and The Autopsy of Jane Doe.  This film fails to deliver. Not only with uninteresting scenes, boring dialogue, and unbelievable events but also a lack of horror. The movie just isn't scary one bit. I could probably let my 9-year-old watch this and she would just laugh at the attempts to scare. Corey Hawkins  plays the main character and already at the beginning of the film he's unlikeable, he doesn't grow on you either. You can tell he was just there to sell the diversity of the film, and this will be a blemish on his career. The film also has Liam Cunningham and David Dastmalchian but their side story doesn't go anywhere and you're not really rooting for either one of them to survive. You might know Liam from Game of Thrones  and David from his other horror movie this

  Gran Turismo is a film based on a video game based on the sport of racing. This had everything going against it since sports movies especially car movies can bomb, and it's a video game movie. Only a handful of directors, Neill Blomkamp  including, could pull this movie off. You might know him from District 9, Elysium, and Chappie . There are some transitions to remind you that everything is based on the video game and that it's also based on a true story. Who knows how much is actually true as I'm not that deep into Formula 1 and other major racing. David Harbour of Stranger Things fame plays the coach for Orlando Bloom's test program where they take video gamers and try to see if their skill translates to the real world. Turns out it does when the simulation is pristine like Gran Turismo or Microsoft Flight Simulator . Not all simulations have real-world applications, for instance, The Sims doesn't make me a better human.  Archie Madekwe plays Jann Mardenboro

  Meg 2: The Trench  takes the formula for gigantic animal horror and leans into the campiness.  Directed by Ben Wheatley, who has directed a bunch of British films that you've never heard of. The film suffers in pacing, and perhaps due to Stathom's prestige that he didn't reshoot some scenes that desperately needed it. To be fair this also could have been the editor's fault but they might not have had much to work with. The screenplay was written by the duo of Jon & Erich Joeber  as well as Dean Georgaris . The Joebers wrote the first Meg  as well as Battleship and RED 1+2. They don't produce all stinkers as I actually enjoyed the 2009 film Whiteout . Dean  helped write the first film as the remake of The Manchurian Candidate.  This leads me to believe the dialogue was mainly written by him, or at least the funny parts as there are some great lines by both Stathom and Page Kennedy who returns as DJ . Shuya Sophia Cai  plays the half-white, half-Chinese child w