Jodie Foster's HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS feels like a Thanksgiving turkey overstuffed with drama, comedy and a lot of melancholy, but damned if dessert doesn't almost bail out the meal. The cast is a holiday feast in itself. The always excellent Holly Hunter (Always, Broadcast News) is Claudia, a art restorer who starts off Thanksgiving week by getting fired by, and making out with, her much older boss Peter (Austin Pendelton). It's the opening scene of the film and the first of

Is it time to tell Osgood Perkins to take a break? That we don't need a new OP film every 9 months? I loved last year's "Longlegs" and his crazy adaption of King's "The Monkey" earlier this year. I went into his new film KEEPER anticipating more Osgood creativity. Mistaking repetition for storytelling, Perkins creates a boring slog that goes on forever. It feels like he's going for something Lynch-ian like "Mulholland Drive" but sadly, he creates his own "Eraserhead", a dull

If Indiana Jones and Mad Max had a cinematic offspring, it's surely the fantastic SISU: ROAD TO REVENGE. The leanest, coolest and funniest action thriller I've seen since the first film "Sisu" three years ago, it's a tribute to great action film making with a heavy dose of Coyote/Roadrunner mayhem. Our silent hero Aatami is back, perfectly played once again by Jorma Tomilla. It's 1946 and WWII is over. Aatami lost his wife and children to a Soviet madman in the war and he be

The last two Predator films from Dan Trachtenberg have been imaginative, thrilling fresh takes that breathed real life into the series. So what in the hell happened with the silly, soft, Disneyfied and stupid PREDATOR: BADLANDS ? This is the "Return of the Jedi" of the canon. It's so touch feely that I kept waiting for the Ewoks to show up and really put in the toilet. Oh wait, yep, there it is, a little baby creature that comes along for the adventure! Whoopeeee! Schwarzeneg

It's no secret that the final act of Wicked on stage can't compare to the opening act. The great news for fans is that the fleshed out second act on film is a triumph, offering no let down from last year's first installment. WICKED : FOR GOOD is a powerhouse finale and sure to be a massive blockbuster this holiday season. Director Jon M. Chu and his returning creative team start the film off with a fast paced pursuit of Elpheba, months after she flew off at the end of the f

In 1986, Woody Allen completed his brilliant New York trilogy that he began with "Annie Hall" and "Manhattan" by delivering HANNAH AND HER SISTERS . While its core is the familiar one you might expect, with Woody playing his NYC neurotic, nebbish character to perfection as he questions the meaning of life, the world around the familiar is filled with powerful stories. Woody is the ex husband of successful actress Hannah (Mia Farrow) who is now married to Elliott (Michael Cain

Glen Powell is officially the new Tom Cruise, a classic action movie star at ease with comedy, drama and running like hell, which he does a lot of in the enjoyable new remake, THE RUNNING MAN . If you're going to do yet another remake, you may as well target a goofy movie that wasn't very good to begin with. The 1987 original was always lesser Schwarzenegger, directed by Starsky (from "and Hutch" fame) and dragged down by a preening Richard Dawson. It was a one and done for m

Recovering from its lackluster second entry nearly 10 years ago NOW YOU SEE ME, NOW YOU DON'T sparks some enjoyable, if a bit too familiar, magic. The great news is that the final caper is a hell of a lot of fun and genuinely surprised me. We meet a trio of young illusionist street hustlers who have connected to the 4 Horsemen's mission of taking money from bad hombres. Dominic Sessa, who was SO damn good in his first role in "The Holdovers" a couple holiday seasons ago, is

A sweeping, epic fantasy that only the brilliant Guillermo Del Toro could create, FRANKENSTEIN is a big, sprawling, beautiful cinematic experience that I can't wait to watch again. It's been a lifelong quest to bring Mary Shelley's classic to the screen for Del Toro, and that passion shows. Each frame is a carefully crafted, stunning visual experience. From an ice bound ship (yes, that was built for real, not CGI) to the most stunning Dr. Frankenstein lab ever seen, this one

Looking for a superb war-time film for viewing this Veteran's Day? ALLIED is in many ways a rarity. First, by being a big-budget, old school thriller aimed squarely at adult movie goers. The film opens in 1942, with a dialogue-free ten minute sequence in which intelligence officer Max Vatan parachutes into the Moroccan desert, making his way to a rendezvous with his undercover contact, who brings him to Casablanca. As he will throughout the beautiful looking film, Director