Reviews

Yikes. How many grade school productions of Guys and Dolls did the casting agent have to sit through before finding Lowri Watts-Joyce? That was brutal.

I know what you're thinking... Another forgettable, low-budget comedy horror. But what if (stay with me for a second) it was actually really, really funny? And "unwoke" for a rare change? I hate to list that as a pro, but it's been exhausting over the last few years and we deserve a break.

Well then, thank God it's still OK to make fun of immigrants, as long as they're white, because otherwise we'd have never met Radu. Is he Russian? Bulgarian? I'm not sure it's ever specified. He starts as a side character, but quickly gets more and more screen time as the film progresses to the point where he actually performs the end credits song. And what a joy that is to listen to, without a hint of sarcasm.

I wonder if that was the filmmaker's plan all along, or if it became obvious they were on to a good thing with that character so started layering him in more. Regardless, we're all winners as a result.

But the dialogue as a whole is very funny, solid cast and passable special effects. Honestly, I turned this on as a "background" movie while futzing around the house, but quickly realized it was going to be way better than the average streaming schlock so sat down to watch.

Will there be a Crabs 2? I for one really frigging hope so, you dirty hole persons!

Effects rivaling Ecco the Dolphin on the SEGA Genesis, coupled with As's raspy, scraggly, squeaky shriekies and over-emotive face-pulling, make this a "shart" week treat to behold.

If you absolutely have to watch this, with a gun to your head or something, drink heavily and insist on earplugs.

"The Requin: Requit While You're Ahead".

Does "La Patasola" translate to "insufferable Liberal moonbat"? Jesus, I could not wait for that character to get hoovered by the forest vampire. The worst curse in this movie is Naomi.

Dial back all the political and racial conversations I usually watch movies to get away from, and there's some quality at the core.

The late employees, the difficult table, the surprise critic and health inspector visit, proteins in short supply, staff infighting, disconnects between front and back of house... a few spoilerish surprises... and a chef who bears the brunt of it all. Boiling Point brought me back to all the best and worst memories of my own experiences working in restaurants.

The single long shot style adds to the mayhem, and as usual Graham's acting is on (boiling) point. None of the actors falter in spite of the pressures of filming this way. Nothing seems rehearsed, awkward or purposefully improvised. Highly recommend this tasty entree.

"Lamb" was a surprise. I knew nothing going into it. A surprise in terms of Rapace's acting (she's never not good, but - wow), the dreary yet gorgeously spooky scenery, the sparse yet effective dialogue - and, man oh man. That twist about 20 minutes in, though.

Don't be turned off by the subtitles, either. The dialogue is minimal most of the way through.

It's difficult to delve much further into "Lamb" without spoiling it for others, but I can say I really, really dug this movie and will be telling all my friends about it. Highest recommendation.

Some great scenes of a sleepy guy wandering around his kitchen, pausing occasionally to eat cereal. Now and then he moves the camera and we see him napping on his couch or filming shower curtains.

Look, I admire DIY filmmaking, but the first 45 minutes, after 10 minutes of credits and definitions of tricky words like "ghost", consists of a cabinet door closing, a cat jumping around and a lovely wall wreath. And that's about it.

Dialogue includes 3 separate variations of "Well I gotta go to work. So I'm gonna eat something, leave the camera running, and see if we catch anything". That's probably all you need to know, folks.

Harsh much? Not the complete waste of time implied by other reviewers. Now, the NYT stugots definitely owed somebody money, or is related to the director, but there's potential here. Scale back the mob movie cliches a bit - getting ingredients for the Don's "gravy", Irish priests, slow motion set to 1950s music, women wearing leopard print - and there's likely a rising talent behind the scenes. Also, even with limited screen time for the heavy-hitters, the cast assembled is a treat for fans of the genre. Flawed, but not without some hope for future projects from Giannopoulos.

When I eventually got over how much JT Hynes reminds me of Ben Foster, and as the story unfolded, I really found myself digging Body and Bones. Solid Canadian Indie from a first time (feature length) director. Kelly VDB also did a terrific job as the young sorta-starstruck woman veering dangerously close to mental illness or, at least, some terrifically bad decisions. Glad I stumbled onto it and would recommend.

I really enjoyed Hubie - laughed out loud multiple times all the way through. Great to see so many SNLers reunited too. Watch it for Hubie's Mother's 50-cent thrift store shirts alone.

All I'm retaining after watching this mess, is that it has something to do with a Canadian werewolf dancing awkwardly through locations in Cuba.

How they arranged a cast made up of classic Hollywood actors coupled with early-80s porn stars like Amber Lynn, I'll never know. I watched it for this reason alone, and enjoyed Evils of the Night for what it is.

Lovely locale and competent Shark CGI gets bogged down by main characters so dislikable it's distracting. I started praying for Emma and Eugene to be eaten as soon as they stuck their toes in the water for the first time. Everyone, save for Richie and Lucas (who are supposed to be the bad guys) have a massive chip on their shoulder - and it gets old fast.

Lots of humor at Paul's expense, cool cameos and many of the jokes are well-written and effective. I liked it. John Cleese is especially hilarious.

"Let's write a star-making vehicle for a wooden K-Pop star centered around... golf." Luckily, they also included a sub-plot involving wirelessly controlled sex toys, or this may have ended up being one of the oddest films ever conceived.

In the first 20 minutes the potential was there, primarily via Nick Fink's performance. Once the other actors take over as an ensemble seeking the titular character, their incessant, chirpy dialogue, most of which attempts to be funny but rarely lands, becomes excruciating.

The Turner Risk drinking game would be to simply down a shot every time someone says: "What's that supposed to mean?!" You'd be unable to walk by the credits.

Some flashes of quality here - but for the writer and director's next projects, they'd likely benefit from more time in the editing room and less time focused on trying to make every character an amateurish insult comic.