Space Jam: A New Legacy Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

25 years after the original “Space Jam,” Warner Bros. relaunches the series with “Space Jam: A New Legacy” starring NBA superstar LeBron James. The plot follows James as he struggles to connect with his youngest son Dom (Cedric Joe), who would rather design video games than follow in his dad’s footsteps. In an attempt to bond with his son, LeBron brings him to a Warner Bros. pitch meeting for something called Warner 3000. The idea is conceived by WB’s algorithm Al-G Rhythm (Don Cheadle) and would see LeBron become the star of every Warner movie.

LeBron rejects the concept, angering Al-G, and when LeBron and Dom attempt to leave the WB lot, Al-G traps the two inside the Warner ServerVerse. He challenges LeBron to a basketball game where if Lebron wins, he and his son go free. But if Al-G’s side comes to put on top, Lebron and dom have to stay in the server verse forever. LeBron has to put a team together quickly, and he recruits Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang to help him get his son back.

I guess the best way, to sum up, “Space Jam: A New Legacy” is that the movie tries to be a little bit of everything: a showcase for LeBron James, a re-introduction of the Looney Tunes characters, and a tale about how we should focus on the more important things in life. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t execute any of them well enough, and instead A New Legacy serves as nothing more than a two-hour-long Warner Bros. infomercial to let people know all of the cool properties they own.

The relationship between LeBron and Dom is supposed to serve as A New Legacy’s emotional anchor. But from the first moment we see LeBron interact with Dom, I was rooting for the kid. The LeBron we see in these scenes is a horrible parent. Not only does he constantly compare Dom to his older brother, but he also puts down the things Dom cares about. Based on this alone, it was not a surprise when Dom forms a bond with Al-G and turns his back on his father. Now some of this has to be the fault of the script, but I’m surprised no one attached to the movie thought it made LeBron James look like a dirtbag instead of the sympathetic dad he should be.

However, where “Space Jam: A New Legacy” lost me for good was in the pitch meeting scene. After LeBron is shown clips of himself in movies like “Batman” and tv shows like “Game of Thrones,” he turns to the Warner executives and literally says adding to all these properties “is a terrible idea.” Keep in mind that this scene takes place15 or so minutes into a movie that is all about LeBron James interacting with every Warner Bros. property possible. This may be one of the dumbest scenes ever put into a movie. I mean why would you shoot down your own project at the start?

Like the 1996 original, “Space Jam: A New Legacy” contains plenty of the classic Looney Tunes humor. But unlike the previous movie, there weren’t any standout moments for me. Porky Pig’s rap battle was alright but could have been funnier. Lola Bunny attempting to become an Amazon was decent enough, but why Warner Bros. didn’t get Gal Gadot to voice Wonder Woman baffles me. Surely someone at WB has a Zoom account and they could have recorded Gadot that way. And don’t get me started on Bugs Bunny’s voice. Now that I think about it, some of the funnier Looney Tunes moments came in the closing credits, like Foghorn Leghorn’s reaction to a Chicken & Waffles sigh.

The only moments I can honestly say I liked comes while Leron and Bugs Bunny search for their team. Somewhere, the two end up in the middle of “Mad Max: Fury Road,” and it was so unexpected it did make me chuckle a bit. The other moment that I liked came during the climactic basketball game, Sylvester the cat claims he found Michael Jordan, and it turns out to be Michael B. Jordan. One of the other Looney Tunes characters shouts out “Couldn’t you find Michael A. Jordan?”

So, yeah, at the end of the day, “Space Jam: A New Legacy” was not for me. I didn’t care for the human characters, most of the jokes fell flat, the Looney Tunes were not used well, and Lebron James is made to look like the worst father in years. But having said that, I’m sure this movie will appeal to younger viewers and die-hard fans of the 1996 film.

“Space Jam: A New Legacy” final grade: C-

Better late than never review: A Quiet Place Part II

Possible spoilers ahead!

Written and directed by John Krasinski, “A Quiet Place II” continues the story of the Abbott family, Evelyn (Emily Blunt) and her children — Regan (Millicent Simmonds), Marcus (Noah Jupe), and her newborn baby — picking up the pieces after the death of Krasinski’s character, Lee at the end of the first film. Their first task is to look for another safe place to stay, and they soon run into Emmett (Cillian Murphy), an old friend of Lee’s.

As the group hides from the creatures, Regan decided to head out on her own to find the location where “Beyond the Sea” is playing over the radio on repeat. She’s convinced that it’s a call from other survivors, and If she can find them, she can use their system to amplify the feedback that is created when she puts her hearing aid directly into a speaker. And as we know from the first movie, this is the only thing that can stop the creatures.

After watching “A Quiet Place Part II,” I’m glad that I didn’t pay to see it in the theater and instead waited for it to hit Paramoun+. Had I seen it on their screen I would have been disappointed because the movie is a mixed bag. There are some brilliant moments here, like the opening flashback to the day the creatures arrived on earth. This sequence is tense and action-packed as we witness what the family was up to on the day everything changed for the world. Another good scene is when Regan comes across a derailed train that was taken out by the creatures some time ago. But beyond that, the movie’s main purpose seems to be to pass the torch to Lee and Evelyn’s kids.

Maybe John Krasinski put the focus on the kids in an attempt to build excitement, but since they’re kids, they often make poor decisions that usually put them and their families in greater danger. Not that Evelyn had a good track record making decisions, but at least in her case, the family was always together. In part Ii, the family has to split, which took me out of the movie to be honest. Evelyn Abbott became a supporting character when she should have been the centerpiece of the film. I loved how the first movie ended with her holding the shotgun ready to go to town on the invaders, but that didn’t amount to much in the sequel.

It wasn’t all bad though, I did enjoy how Regan Abbott has grown as a character since we first met her. The events of the first film had a lasting effect on her, and because of it, she is now willing to put her life on the line if it means her family lives to see a better day, and Millicent Simmonds does a phenomenal job conveying Regan’s development. But even this is cut short when her mother sends Emmet to look for her and he accompanies her for the rest of her journey.

I should also mention that “A Quiet Plance Part II” definitely looks amazing. My guess is John Krasinski got a bigger budget this time because we see a lot more of the creatures from start to finish. We even get to see them in proper daylight which was nice. Too often movies use the monsters at night, or in the rain to hide the CGI, but here they went all out and they looked great. I do wish the plot had given us more answers about them or expanded to show us what is going on elsewhere, but maybe they’re saving that for the next installment.

Despite my many complaints, I would say “A Quiet Place Part II” is still a good movie but with flaws. The family drama from before is replaced with more action and the father figure is also replaced to varying degrees of success. Look, If you liked the first movie, then part II is still worth seeing, even I liked parts of it. But in the end, I would say that the sequel is not as good as the first entry.

“A Quiet Place Part II” final grade: B

Infinite Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

The Paramount+ film “Infinite” was directed by Antoine Fuqua and stars Mark Wahlberg as Evan McCauley. For most of his life, Evan has been plagued by strange dreams and visions, and he was eventually diagnosed with schizophrenia. But it turns out Evan is an “Infinite,” a person who has the power of reincarnation. Meaning all of his visions are, in fact, memories.

Along with several other Infinites (including Sophie Cookson
as Nora) Evan vows to protect humanity from the Nihilists, (Infinites who have grown frustrated with their endless resurrections). They’re led by Bathurst (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who wants to destroy Earth in its entirety with some known as the Egg, but the only person who knows where the Egg is located is Evan. Well sort of, it’s his past self Heinrich Treadway (Dylan O’Brien) who knows where it’s at.

Reincarnation is a fascinating topic in general, but if you add in a sci-fi movie, you got my attention. And I have to say that the premise of “Infinity” is loaded with potential: all kinds of characters could introduce, different periods to play with, not to mention the idea that each character can remember all of their past lives. That alone could give you dozens of stories to tell without the concept getting stale. However, the movie barely scratches the surface on any of those things.

While the movie includes quick flashes of Evan’s past lives, they don’t have a lot of contexts and can get confusing. instead of having the audience experience these moments, the movie chooses to tell us all the important stuff. Nearly all of the vital information the viewer needs is explained in multiple conversations. I think this was a mistake because we never get a sense of who Evan is beyond what people say about him. It’s a shame the flashbacks are not given more weight because what little we do see, looked rather interesting. This is made even worse when it’s hinted that several characters have deep histories with one another but again, we learn this in conversations. As a result, there is no emotional arc in “Infinite.”

As an action flick, it okay. Director Antoine Fuqua knows how to stage engaging set pieces, whether it’s the opening car chase or the breakout from inside of a police station, the acton is there. However, some action sequences are filmed with little to no lighting making it almost impossible to see what is going on. At one point during the movie, my wife and I were asking each other who was chasing go. In another part, I knew one of the supporting characters was in peril, but I had no clue who it was.

When it comes to the cast, Mark Walhberg handles Evan’s disorientation in his typical style. If you like his work in other action movies, then you’ll probably like him here too. My main complaint about Evan’s arc is how easily and quickly he accepts learning that he’s immortal. For most people, I think you’d react with shock, but Evan is all “What do I have to lose?” I guess part of him reacting this way is a relief that he hasn’t been crazy all these years, but the script does not make this clear. But this isn’t Marky Mark’s fault, he did what was asked of him.

Meanwhile, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Bathurst chews up every scene he is in. For whatever reason, they have Ejiofor doing a strange accent. I don’t know if this was the actor’s choice or if he was instructed to do it. But I feel that his accent would have been more menacing as he hunts down the other infinities. Then we have Sophie Cookson as Nora Brightman. I like what I saw, but I wanted to see more of her and her story which looked like one of the most interesting in the film. There’s a lot more to Nora, but unfortunately, we didn’t get to see what else she can do, but it was a nice touch having photos of her past lives in her room.

Overall “Infinite” is a mixed bag. There are some good action sequences and some intriguing ideas are introduced. But those ideas are never developed or explored in depth. “Infinite” was originally going to open in theaters, but due to the pandemic, it made its debut on Paramount+ earlier this month. After seeing the movie I think going straight to streaming was probably for the best.

However, despite my many issues with the movie, I would say the premise deserves another shot as a streaming series. Each season could focus on a different life, meaning Mark Walhberg wouldn’t have to be in every episode. The potential is there, it just needs time to be explored.

“Infinite” final grade: C

In the Heights Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

The new film “In the Heights” was directed by Jon M. Chu and based on the Broadway play by Lin-Manuel Miranda. The story set in New York City’s Washington Heights follows Usnavi de la Vega (Anthony Ramos), a bodega owner who dreams of returning to the Dominican Republic to fulfill his father’s dreams. His best friend Benny (Corey Hawkins) works at the local dispatch company owned by Kevin Rosario (Jimmy Smits), the father of Nina (Leslie Grace).

Nina has just returned from her first year at Stanford and is trying to figure out how to tell her friends she’s decided to drop out of school. Then there’s Vanessa (Melissa Barrera) dreams of becoming a fashion designer downtown, but struggles with how to make that a reality. All of the events take place over several days amid a summer heatwave, with each of the characters choosing what their next big steps in life should be, but also with how their decisions will affect their neighborhood.

I didn’t know what to expect from the film version of “In the Heights.” While I knew what the basic story was about, I hadn’t listened to any of the music and none of the trailers had blown me away, and since I saw “Hamilton” last summer on Disney+, I figured there was no way this musical would be as good. But you know what? “In the Heights” exceeded all my expectations and then some

The film centers on a few characters from the Latinx community, but I thought it was a celebration of life. It doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from, or when you were born because “In the Heights” is easily accessible to everyone and that’s one of the reasons I enjoyed the movie so much.

The story and the music will have you laughing and perhaps shedding some tears. But the film does a good job balancing the ups and downs the characters experience. A;l; of the main characters are likable and all are well developed. It also helps that the cast have great chemistry, especially Corey Hawkins and Leslie Grace. But the big highlight for me was Melissa Barrera as Vanessa. She had some of my favorite scenes in the movie and has a great duet with Usnavi de la Vega in the third act of the movie.

Another reason I liked “In the Heights” is the way the film uses New York City as a setting. I never got the sense the film was shot on a lot, and every building from the bodega to the Abuela’s house felt like they were real places. And being able to pull off stuff like that, elevates any movie. The city setting gave the musical numbers a lot of energy too, like in the “carnival” number.

Since its release last week there has been a lot of talk about the casting choices made for “In the Heights.” I honestly didn’t notice anything while I watched the movie, but once the topic was brought up I thought “Oh yeah, that’s a good point.” Still, I don’t think anyone involved with the movie went in with bad intentions. The way I see it, they were telling the story of these particular characters, and they accomplished that.

When it comes to complaints I have about “In the Heights” I only have one: The movie is too long. But I’m not sure what (if anything you could cut. However, at almost two and a half hours, I started to doze after the bodega found out they’d sold a winning lottery ticket. Of course, starting the movie after 10 pm probably wasn’t a good idea. Luckily the music pulled me back in and I was fine the rest of the way.

Because “In the Heights” comes from Lin-Manuel Miranda, I’m sure a lot of people will compare it to “Hamilton.” But as I found out, you can’t compare the two. “In the Heights” is its very own thing, and a damn good one too thanks to fun and likable characters and music that will keep your foot tapping the entire time. So yeah, this movie is long, but in the end, it was well worth it.

“In the Heights” final grade: B+

Without Remorse Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

Directed by Stefano Sollima and written by Taylor Sheridan and Will Staples, Prime video’s “Without Remorse” centers around Navy SEAL John Kelly (Michael B. Jordan). When the film opens, Kelly is in Syria on a top-secret mission that appears to be successful. Months later, a now retires John returns home to his pregnant wife Pam (Lauren London) and takes a job with a private security company

However, the next chapter of his life is cut short when a group of Russian soldiers, angry about Kelly’s interference in Syria. The Russians break into the Kelly home and kill his wife. After the murder, John Kelly sets out on a revenge-fueled mission which leads him to uncover a covert operation that could set off a war between the United States and Russia.

“Without Remorse” is based on the novel by Tom Clancy and serves as an origin story for John Kelly, who is best known by his alias John Clark in Clancy’s novels and the subsequent film adaptations centering CIA agent Jack Ryan. Don’t remember him? me either, so I had to look him up and found out that the character has been played by Willem Dafoe and Liev Schreiber. On paper, this sounds like a good way to expand the Jack Ryan universe that Amazon seems to be setting up. Unfortunately, this movie is a chore to get through.

That’s bad enough, but the film also wastes the talents of Michael B. Jordan. I could not tell you anything about John Kelly the person besides that he’s a Navy SEAL. The script doesn’t take the time to make me care about him, his wife, or what his job is. Doing this undercut any character development, and thereby makes Kelly a one-note character. As good an actor as he is, there only so much that Michael B. Jordan can do with what he is given.

The main plot is as straightforward as it gets. The problem is it’s nothing audiences haven’t seen before. Off the top of my head I can think of “Hard to Kill,” “A Man Apart,” and “The Punisher” all of which had similar stories about a guy whose family is murdered and he sets off on a mission of revenge. With the lead character’s ambition crystal clear, it leaves little room for Michael B. Jordan to portray anything bud sadness. So it would be up to the supporting cast to balance the film’s emotions, but even actors like Guy Pearce and Jamie Bell couldn’t do much with this script

Even the action in “Without Remorse” looks cheap and uninspired. The potential for some exciting action sequences was there, but the film resorts to a bunch of shoot-outs like the ones you can see on any television show. Many of these scenes last so long that they end up becoming boring. And just like in the recent “Mortal Kombat,” many of the action scenes are badly lit, making it nearly impossible to make up what is going on or who is in the shot.

In the end, it’s probably a good thing that ” Without Remorse” went straight to streaming rather than hitting theaters. Even in a normal world, I think this movie would’ve had a difficult time at the box and the word of mouth would have been mixed at best. Michael B. Jordan and the rest of the cast do what they can, but with a weak script and uninspiring direction, this movie is one of the biggest disappointments of the year.

: Without Remorse” grade: C-

Mortal Kombat Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

The all-new, all-different “Mortal Kombat” film begins in 1617 Japan where Hanzo Hasashi (Hiroyuki Sanada) fights Bi-Han (Joe Taslim), a member from a warring clan who has the power to create ice and use it as a deadly weapon. Of course, these characters are better known as Scorpion and Sub-Zero, respectively, but before they assume those identities the film jumps to the modern-day and introduces a new character, Cole Young (Lewis Tan).

Cole is a failed MMA fighter, but he bears the birthmark of a dragon that is an invitation to a tournament known as “Mortal Kombat.” For centuries the tournaments have seen champions of Earthrealm battle against the forces of Outworld led by the nefarious Shang Tsung (Chin Han).

Soon, Cole teams up with special forces soldiers Jax (Mechad Brooks) and Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee) as well as smartass mercenary Kano (Josh Lawson) to find the temple of Lord Raiden (Tadanobu Asano) where they can fight alongside fellow warriors Liu Kang (Ludi Lin) and Kung Lao (Max Huang). However, the forces of Outworld have no intention of fighting fair and hope to eliminate the champions before they can make it to Mortal Kombat.

The Mortal Kombat video games caught on with fans in the 90s not just because they were gory, but because they were fun. The 1995 and 1997 live-action films failed to capture what made the video games great, and I’m afraid to say Simon McQuoid’s adaptation never gets there either. The best part of the movie is the prologue set in Japan. This sequence looks incredible and it’s heartbreaking. But it’s far too long and it doesn’t matter again until the very end of the film, making it almost unnecessary.

After the prologue the movie shifts between the vague plot with more exposition than action. When the film goes for an action scene, I found the fight scenes dull and badly lit. Several of them are edited badly too, making the action look even worse. Other scenes were filmed at night and in a dark place making it impossible at times to see what the hell was going on. If the filmmakers hired some of the best martial artists in the business, don’t hide the action, let us see them fight. After all, it’s what everyone watching this movie came to see in the first place.

This version of “Mortal Kombat” tries to skate by on gruesome fatalities, but do little with the rest of the plot. The film’s leading character, Cole (Lewis Tan), is boring and brings nothing new to the material. Sub-Zero looks great though, but I wish the script had given him more to do. Out of the entire cast, the only one who stood out for me was Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee). But again, the script barely scratches the surface there. I was left feeling that there is much more to Sonya than what we got in the final cut of the movie.

Another issue that I had with “Mortal Kombat” is that the movie spends too much time introducing the characters and explaining things. I understand it’s been twenty-four years since the last live-action adaptation, and a new generation of potential fans haven’t seen a Mortal Komba movie. However, chances are anyone checking out the new movie has been a fan for a long time. Don’t waste so much time, and get to the fights already!

As you can tell, the new “Mortal Kombat” didn’t do it for me. The movie has some good ideas and some solid special effects. But for some reason, the movie just never gets going. The entire thing seemed like the first episode of a new series rather than a stand-alone movie. On the bright side, the movie is far better than the 1997 sequel “Mortal Kombat: Annihilation,” so I suppose that’s something.

“Mortal Kombat” grade: C-

Movie Flashback: King Kong Lives (1986)

Directed by John Guillermin, the 1986s “King Kong Lives” opened with the finale of 1976s “King Kong” which saw Kong fall off the World Trade Center. But it turns out that Kong didn’t die from the fall, he’s just been in a coma for a decade. Overseeing Kong’s health is Dr. Amy Franklin (Linda Hamilton), an employee of the Atlanta Institute, or the Atlantic Institute as the onscreen text calls it later.

I’m still not sure why the institute is trying to bring back the creature that caused so much destruction in New York City. He also stepped on poor Charles Grodin in the previous film, but we can probably forgive Kong for that. Anyways, the institute has spent millions keeping the big ape alive. They’ve even given him an artificial heart, but nothing has worked. Things are so dire that Dr. Franklin proclaims: “Only one thing can save Kong, A miracle.” Luckily, Hank “Mitch” Mitchell (Brian Kerwin) may have exactly what she needs.

Mitchell is an Indian Jones cosplayer, who found a giant female ape in the jungles of Borneo. He may look like an idiot, but he’s smart enough to know that he can make good money with a 40-foot ape. When the institute calls, he captures the female ape and takes it to Atlanta. Dr. Franklin performs a blood transfusion which revives Kong, who instantly falls in love with Lady Kong (why isn’t she Queen Kong?). She reciprocates Kong’s advances, but this is where things got complicated for the Kongs: the apes escape the institute, but Lady Kong is eventually recaptured by the film’s villain, Lt. Col. Nevitt (John Ashton).

King Kong escapes the army dudes by jumping off a cliff into a river below. Shockingly, Lt. Col Nevitt immediately assumes Kong is dead. How could anyone think that? the big ape survived falling off the World Trade Center for Pete’s sake. But for some reason, Nevitt believes jumping into a river meant the end of Kong. Eventually, Kong ends up in the Louisiana bayou, where he survives by eating alligators and rednecks (don’t ask).

Meanwhile, Dr. Franklin and the Indiana Jones wannabe get to know each other. The problem is Hamilton and Kerwin have zero chemistry. But I think some of the blame goes to the script which makes sex scenes awkward by making Linda Hamilton say things like “We’re all primates.” We then learn that Lady Kong is very sad with the boo she’d barely met, oh, and she’s very pregnant. With this in mind, I’m sure you can easily figure out where “King Kong Lives” goes from there.

When it comes to King Kong movies, “King Kong Lives” is at the bottom of the pile. The basic premise isn’t bad, but the execution fell short of even the 1976 movie. After only a few minutes, the story became convoluted, the pace slowed to a crawl and the tone changed for the rest of the movie. The special effects here are terrible as well, but not surprising since the effects team from 1976 didn’t return for the sequel. The ape suits are not realistic, though Peter Elliott (Kong) and George Yiasoumi (Lady Kong) do their best to give the two Kongs some personality. But the other effects let down their performances.

As for the human cast members in the film, I’m afraid Amy and Mitch are horrible characters and suck the life out of the movie whenever the action cuts back to them. Neither is relatable or likable, and there was no reason for them to become an item. Not once did I believe these two would fall for each other, or that they wanted to help the Kongs. Meanwhile, Linda Hamilton seems to be phoning it in, almost as if she knew there was no saving “King Kong Lives.”

I’ve only seen this movie once, but I’m sad to say that in the end, “King Kong Lives” is a very dumb movie, even by 1980s standards. This is one of those movies that looked cool when you saw it on the shelf at Blockbuster, but when you take it home it becomes a huge letdown.

Godzilla vs. Kong Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

Directed by Adam Wingard from a screenplay by Eric Pearson and Max Borenstein, “Godzilla vs. Kong” is the latest chapter in the Monsterverse that began in 2014 with “Godzilla.” The new film explores a lot more of the Titans’ lore, while also laying the foundation for their big battle.

“Godzilla vs. Kong” takes place a few years after Godzilla saved humanity (and was destroyed by beloved Fenway Park). Things had been quiet until Godzilla reemerged attacking cities and killing many in the process. But once He senses King Kong, the big ape becomes his target. Meanwhile, Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall) and Jia (Kaylee Hottle) are working to protect Kong from Godzilla and from humans who want to use him as a weapon.

However, things change when Nathan Lind (Alexander Skarsgård), who is tasked by Apex Cybernetics CEO Walter Simmons (Demián Bichir) to take Kong from Skull Island to Hollow Earth in a bid to obtain its power source and use it to defeat Godzilla. Of course, there is more to this than meets the eye, and those things are being investigated by conspiracy-theorizing (and Apex employee) Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry) and Madison Russell (Millie Bobby Brown).

One of the big complaints fans had about 2014s “Godzilla” was that it didn’t have much of the jolly green monster. The main complaint I had about “Godzilla: King of Monsters” was that nearly every monster battle took place in the rain or the dark (sometimes both). But I’m happy to say that “Godzilla vs. Kong” delivers on most fronts. Godzilla shows up early and often, and some of his appearances ramp up the tension for what lies ahead.

The fight scenes between the two titans are fantastic and easy to follow most of the time. Kong and Godzilla go at it scratching, clawing, and throwing punches. Given the scope of the battles, there is plenty of destruction in the film. But at least this time, we understand the reasons for the fight. As I mentioned earlier, “Godzilla vs. Kong” delves further into the lore of the Titans and Hollow Earth, which I must say is incredible to look at. But nearly everything in the movie is visually stunning, and I think it helps when most of the action takes place during the daytime. There are still some sequences filmed with little lighting, but it’s not as bad as it was in King of Monsters.

When it comes to the human characters, they’re mainly there to deliver exposition. But I have to say this is the first time in these movies that I gave a damn about what happened to these people. The most interesting human plotline involves Jia (Kaylee Hottle) and her unique bond with King Kong, who trusts her and protects her. She is the only human who can communicate with Kong, and their relationship is one of the film’s highlights.

Since both protagonists are creatures, there is a lot of exposition delivered by the actors. However, in “Godzilla vs. Kong” the exposition matters to the overall plot. Nearly everything that is discovered by the cast leads to something else, making their stories much more interesting. I’m not saying every piece of dialogue is a home run, but I got the feeling that the screenwriters were trying for a change. Also, the movie has some solid humor from a conspiracy theorist and podcast host Walter Simmons (Demián Bichir). Watching him realize his “conspiracies” are true was pretty amusing, as was his line about not wanting to die sober.

Something else I enjoyed about “Godzilla vs. Kong” is that at no point did I feel like the movie was just setting up another sequel. It’s quite the opposite, because once the credits rolled I felt like everything had led up to this and that it was worth the wait. Not only that, but this movie is fast-paced and clocks in at under two hours, making it an easy watch.

As for complaints, I would have liked to have seen more of Rebeca Hall’s character. She’s in the entire movie and plays a key role. But, everything we know about her and Jia is told to us in about five sentences. I wanted to know who Hall ended up on Skull island, what made her take Jia in, and how her bond with Kong began. All of this could have been done in one of two scenes, and I’m sad we didn’t get to see any of it. And not that I’m a huge Kyle Chandler fan, but I feel bad for him because he only got about three scenes in the entire movie. Considering he’s the father of one of the main characters, I thought he’d be featured more.

Overall though, I was pleasantly surprised with how good “Godzilla vs. Kong” was. The movie delivers on the fights, features one or two surprises old-school fans will like, it keeps things moving, and the human characters don’t overshadow the monsters. As far as I’m concerned, “Godzilla vs. Kong” is the best film in the series so far.

“Godzilla vs. Kong” grade: B

Zack Snyder’s Justice League Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

At the end of 2017, I ranked “Justice League” as one of my favorite movies of the years for one main reason: as a longtime comic book fan, there was just something about seeing DC’s most important superhero team on the big screen. However, despite my ranking at the time, there were things in the movie I did not care for, and I was well aware that the movie I saw in the theater was not what Zack Snyder had planned for several years. But now thanks to a massive fan campaign we finally get to see what the director intended to do with “Zack Snyder’s Justice League.”

The four-hour film picks up following the events of 2016s “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” and sees Batman (Ben Affleck), Superman (Henry Cavill), and Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), Cyborg (Ray Fisher) and The Flash (Ezra Miller) — come together to stop Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds) from unifying three alien mother boxes that will bring Darkseid (Ray Porter) to Earth.

Unlike the theatrical cut which had little to no character development, Zack Snyder takes his time introducing each character individually before finally bringing them together to prevent Steppenwolf from gaining the mother boxes. While each introduction is good, the standout has to be Cyborg’s story. Ray Fisher finally gets to shine as Victor Stone as the popular hero gets a full arc that is both tragic and heartfelt. Not only do we get to see how he became Cyborg but also how he’s struggling with the change. His anger isn’t theater, it’s real emotion brought on by his father’s actions. And there are layers upon layers of the family drama between Vic and his dad, and they build throughout the movie in a way that I won’t lie, made me misty-eyed.

With four hours to play with, Zack Snyder and his team included plenty of new subplots and action scenes. Some are an extended sequence of the scenes in the Joss Whedon cult, (like the Wonder Woman museum scene) while others like Lois Lane (Amy Adams) and Martha Kent (Diane Lane) still grieving Superman’s death, are brand new to audiences. There are some great moments between Diana and Bruce Wayne, and between Aquaman and Wonder Woman which made me believe these people were bonding as a group.

For those in the public who like humor in their superhero films, “zack Snyder’s Justice League” features some great one-liners. Most of the jokes come from Alfred and Barry Allen, but my favorite joke came when Bruce Wayne brings the team to the Batcave for the first time and introduces Alfred by saying “Everyone, this is Alfred, I work for him.” The good news is that all the awful jokes from the 2017 movie are gone, as is the scene when Flash falls on Diana’s chest.

Something else I enjoyed about the new Justice League is how respectful Snyder and the other filmmakers treated Wonder Woman. Let me put it this way: the museum scene alone is better than anything in “Wonder Woman 1984.” This is the Wonder Woman I want to see more of. She’s still beautiful of course, but gone are the numerous butt shots that Joss Whedon added four years ago. Her fellow Amazons also fare better here, with an extended action sequence and with color corrected costumes which made them look regal instead of strippers.

The only negatives I can give “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” is that the director used too much slow motion. I can understand using it during any action scenes with the Flash because you want non-comic book readers to see what his powers are and how he uses them. But there’s no reason to use them during a football game, while someone is walking, or while waves wash over Aquaman. If you edited out some of the slow-motion scenes, this movie would easily be 20-25 shorter and would not lose anything plot-wise.

Also, there’s the introduction of Iris West (Kiersey Clemons). While it was nice to see the Flash get an action scene all to himself in this version, I’m not sure this was the best way to do it. I say that only because I believe Iris West has already been recast for the upcoming Flash movie (or whatever they’re going to call it), so I wasn’t invested whether this character made it or not. None of this is Kiersey Clemons’ fault though, she was fine in what little screen time she got.

Staying with the Flash for a moment, Ezra Miller is better in this movie. Snyder took out a lot of the more cringe-worthy Barry Allen moments from the theatrical cut, as his rant about brunch. But, Ezra Miller is still not my first choice to play the character. He’s not playing the Barry Allen from the comics, he’s not even playing Wally West at his worst moments. If anything, Miller is playing Bart Allen (Impulse), and I’m not sure whether that’s a good thing or not.

That said, as far as I’m concerned, this is one of the movies Zack Snyder has made. I was invested from the opening scene until the very end. But I’m also well aware that this movie will not be for everyone. If you liked Snyder’s previous DCEU movies, I think you will be happy with Justice League. However, if you didn’t care for “Man of Steel” or “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” then this movie is probably not going to change your mind.

In the end, this movie delivered everything I could have hoped for and more. It has excellent performances by all involved and exciting action-sequences throughout. But at four hours in length, I did have to take a couple of breaks. But doing so only enhanced the anticipation for the next chapter. I don’t know where the DCEU goes from here, but I would be more than happy to return to the Snyder-verse.

“Zack Snyder’s Justice League” grade: B

Coming 2 America Review

Possible spoilers ahead!

Over thirty years after going to Queens to find the love of his life, Prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy) is now living comfortably in Zamunda with his wife Lisa (Shari Headley) and their three daughters. However, the country has a law that claims only a male heir can become ruler of Zamunda, meaning eldest daughter Meeka (KiKi Layne), can’t become king when her father dies.

However, before his death, King Jaffe Joffer (James Earl Jones) informs Akeem that he has a son named Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler) from a one-night stand with Mary Junson (Leslie Jones). With the fate of his country at stake, Akeem heads back to Queens to find his son so that he can begin his training to become the new prince of Zamunda.

I’m always worried when a movie studio decides to make a sequel to beloved movie years (or in this case, decades) after the original. In most cases, the sequel falls short of the original film or is just downright terrible. “Coming 2 America” falls somewhere in the middle. On its own, this is a decent streaming movie. But as a follow-up to one of the best comedies of the 1980s, “Coming 2 America” doesn’t come close to matching the original.

The sequel uses the same plot from the original but updates it to the 21st century. The film even provides a recap of “Coming to America” in case you’ve forgotten what happened in 1988. Using the same plot would have been fine if everything else in the movie was as good as it was the first time around. In the 1988 film, the supporting characters were developed and had arcs of their own. In this movie, there’s almost zero character development.

One of the cool things about the first movie was getting to know Lisa’s family, the guys at the barbershop, the Soul Glo stuff, and the other random stuff that made us laugh. In the new movie, I couldn’t tell you anything about Lavelle (Jermaine Fowler) other than he’s from Queens. The same can be said for his love interest Mirembe (Nomzamo Mbatha). She’s a royal groomer at the palace, but the only background we get on her is that she wants to own a beauty shop one day and loves American movies.

Because the plot centers around Lavelle, it overshadows Meeka’s entire story and development. What happens to her is sexist and unfair, and should be the main plot of the movie. But for whatever reason, the film goes out of its way to sideline her completely for large portions of the film. Same with her sisters who barely get any screen time until the third act.

When it comes to the original characters, it was disappointing to see Akeem (Eddie Murphy) lose that spark of life that made him likable and relatable in the first place. Here he’s become his dad, treating his family as employees rather than loved ones. Arsenio Hall doesn’t fare much better, with his screen time drastically cut and his character being responsible for Akeem’s one-night stand. I’m not gonna get into the details of that, but I’ll say that if this had happened to a woman, this movie would be getting hell right now.

While it was nice to see other old faces like the barbershop crew, John Amos, Louie Anderson, and more, the movie doesn’t do much with them. I guess that’s partly due to time constraints, which is understandable. However, the one thing I can’t forgive is the film completely ignoring Lisa’s sister Patrice (Allison Dean). Considering how important she was in the 1988 film, it’s surprising when she’s never mentioned in the sequel. Lisa and her dad live in Zamunda, so the least they could do is throw a line of dialogue saying she’s still in New York or something.

To be fair, there are some genuine laughs in “Coming 2 America.” The funeral for James Earl Jones’ character has some solid cameos, Tracy Morgan gets a couple of good scenes as well, and Wesley Snipes steals every scene he’s in. The film even pokes fun at movie sequels, “though there are exceptions,” according to one of the characters. I just wished there were more laughs than what we got.

In the end, I think “Coming 2 America” is an okay movie. If you watch it on its own, it’s not an awful movie by any means. But as the sequel to an all-time classic, it’s not even close to the original. There are glimpses of what could have been, and that’s probably the most frustrating part of this movie.

“Coming 2 America” grade: C-