Freeze Frame

For his ninth feature film, writer/director Quentin Tarantino presents a very dark Valentine to the town and the art form he grew up loving and copying. “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” is about the movie business and the folks who attempt to survive the dramatic changes Tinseltown underwent in the late 1960s.   Leonardo DiCaprio hits all the right notes as Rick, loosely based on Steve McQueen, a T...

Disney’s stampede to create so-called ‘live-action’ remakes of its animated classics continues with “The Lion King.” The super-realistic computer-generated imagery that replaces the classic hand-drawn animation is nothing short of spectacular. But for some reason, the cinematic magic of the 1994 version doesn’t make the transition quite as smoothly. Much of the film is a shot-for-shot recreation,...

The violent action farce “Stuber” plays a bit like a comic reworking of the Tom Cruise/Jamie Foxx action flick, “Collateral.” Kumail Nanjiani plays an Uber driver named Stu, hence the jokey title. Dave Bautista is an LA cop who commandeers the ride, forcing Stu to take him on a series of trips to capture a homicidal drug lord. Nanjiani and Bautista are an appealingly odd couple and their repartee...

Your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man just wants to enjoy a quiet European vacation with his high school pals. Is that too much to ask? Of course, it is. Tom Holland returns as the socially artless Peter Parker in “Spider-Man: Far From Home.” During his summer holiday on the continent, Peter is recruited by Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury to don an advanced Spider-Man suit and join forces with new s...

What if the Beatles never existed but you knew all of their songs? That’s the high-concept behind the comic romantic fantasy, “Yesterday.” Himesh Patel plays a wannabe singer who, mystically, […] The post Freeze Frame: “Yesterday” (PG-13), “Ophelia” (PG-13), “Annabelle Comes Home” (PG-13), “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” (R) appeared first on KKFI .

It’s nothing less than a cinematic miracle. The folks at Pixar have gone back to an old mine and found more gold. “Toy Story 4” is a brilliantly conceived and […] The post Freeze Frame: “Toy Story 4” (G), “Child’s Play (R) appeared first on KKFI .

Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson last co-starred in the hit “Thor: Ragnarok,” They re-team to reboot the “Men in Black” franchise with “Men in Black International.” While this wacky sci-fi […] The post Freeze Frame: “Men in Black International” (PG-13), “Shaft” (R), “Late Night” (PG-13), “The Dead Don’t Die” (R) appeared first on KKFI .

Ever wonder if it’s possible for excellent actors to save stilted dialogue? A game cast gives it their all but there’s only so much they can do with the latest […] The post Freeze Frame: “Dark Phoenix” (PG-13), “The Secret Life of Pets 2” (PG), “All is True” (PG-13) appeared first on KKFI .

With the rise of Netflix, I’ve been asked to occasionally depart from our usual Freeze Frame format of reviewing movies in local theaters to cover some of the newest releases […] The post Freeze Frame: New on Netflix Edition-“When They See Us” (R), “The Perfection” (R), “I Am Mother” (NR) appeared first on KKFI .

Disney's ongoing effort to create live-action versions of its animated classics continues with "Aladdin." Will Smith steps into Robin Williams' genie shoes for this eye-popping musical extravaganza.   Director Guy Ritchie is best known for his frenetic action movies and he brings that sensibility to this busy enterprise. It doesn't capture the magic of the original, but this "Aladdin" is a likable...

The early years of author J.R.R. Tolkien are the focus of the lethargic biopic, “Tolkien.” Nicholas Hoult plays the “Lord of the Rings” scribe who suffered multiple losses in his youth. Lily Collins portrays his lover and muse, Edith Bratt. Although it’s sincere, “Tolkien” never provides much insight into the novelist’s imagination.   The vocal wisecracks of Ryan Reynolds provide most of the enter...

If great stunt sequences were are all a movie needed, then “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” would definitely fill the bill. Uber-talented professional hit man Keanu Reeves returns in yet another decadent explosion of violent mayhem. The script and plot are ludicrous, and the action sometimes becomes mind-numbing. But the fight choreography is first rate, making it an R-rated guilty pleasure.  ...

Dennis Quaid may be best-known for his good-guy roles in movies like “The Rookie” and “The Right Stuff.” But he takes a successful turn to the dark side in the new thriller, “The Intruder.” Meagan Goode and Michael Ealy play a nice couple who buy Quaid’s lovely Napa Valley home. Problem is, the strange senior citizen refuses to leave. At first, he just pesters them. As time goes on, he becomes a t...

Yes, the laborious stop-motion animation technique still has a place in a world dominated by CGI cinema. “Missing Link” is a visual treat from the folks at Laika Studios. Hugh Jackman, Zoe Saldana and Zach Galifianakis provide the voices in this comic tale about a big-headed Victorian explorer who discovers and befriends a big-footed sasquatch. The mildly amusing storyline is very slight and will...

With the exception of the exceptional “Wonder Woman,” most of the recent superhero movies from the DC universe have been dark and dour or dumb and dull. Thankfully, “Shazam!” has come to the rescue! Zachary Levi leads the cast in this witty, heartfelt work of escapism that that brings the fun back to the DC universe. Smart, funny and well-cast, “Shazam!” is fresh and refreshing.   “The Best of Ene...

The 1941 Disney animated classic “Dumbo” soared because of its charm. That’s the crucial element that’s sorely missing in Tim Burton’s live action remake. The superb art direction provides an immersive atmosphere, but Burton’s quirky style is ill-suited to the gentle story. It’s passable, but this overlong “Dumbo” never quite takes off.   Keira Knightley, Alexander Skarsgard and Jason Clarke from...

Originality is a rare commodity in Hollywood, but Oscar-winning writer/director Jordan Peele demonstrates more than his fair share in his new horror film, “Us.” Multiple social allegories are explored in the story of a family of four that is terrorized by a murderous quartet that looks exactly like them. Lupita Nyong’o gives a stunning dual performance as the mom and her evil doppelganger. Prepare...

he Marvel Universe offers yet another superhero origin story, this time set in the 1990s. “Captain Marvel” stars Bree Larson as Vers, a member of the alien Kree Starforce. But through a convoluted series of plot twists, she discovers that she’s actually Carol Danvers, a former U.S. Air Force pilot now imbued with high-energy powers absorbed during an experimental aircraft crash. Carol goes through...

Argentine/French filmmaker Gaspar Noé has a full and impressive command of the medium. But he has the darkest, ugliest world view of any working filmmaker. His latest descent into cinematic hell is “Climax.” A group of dancers enjoy a party until someone spikes the punch with acid and the affair degenerates into a hallucinatory orgy of violence. Although the dancing is excellent, Noé somehow rende...

Acclaimed French actress Isabelle Huppert plays a troubled woman who stalks young Chloë Grace Moretz around New York City in the campy thriller, "Greta." Written and directed by Neil Jordan, the Oscar-winning filmmaker behind “The Crying Game,” “Greta” tells the story of a naïve girl who finds a woman’s purse on the subway. When she tracks her down to return it, the woman sticks to her like chewin...

“How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” brings the wildly popular animated adventure trilogy to a satisfying conclusion.  Hiccup and his faithful dragon Toothless are forced to lead the […] The post Freeze Frame: “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” (PG), “Fighting With My Family” (PG-13) appeared first on KKFI .

The ‘down-on-his-luck cop trying for redemption’ genre gets a gender change in “Destroyer.” Nicole Kidman goes grimy and gritty in this dark character study about an LAPD detective with a lot of personal baggage whose past comes back to haunt her as she tries to unravel a murder mystery. Kidman goes all out in a performance that you’ll either find haunting or overblown. Count me somewhere in the m...

When “The LEGO Movie” debuted in 2014, it took audiences and critics by surprise…and the box office by storm! While the sequel “The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part” lacks the freshness of the original, there’s still plenty of creativity and animated razzle dazzle on display. The LEGO universe has descended into dystopia and must contend with invaders from the cute but deadly DUPLO world. There’s ple...

Producer James Cameron and director Robert Rodriguez team up to adapt the Japanese manga comic “Alita: Battle Angel.” In a dystopian future, a cyborg with a human brain is brought back to life to become the hero in a game of super Rollerball. While it’s an impressive visual spectacle, the story plays like a smorgasbord of ideas culled from other, better works. Annoyingly, there’s no climax, so the...

“Cold War” is one of the best European films of the year and is, rightfully, a contender for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. This bittersweet tale is about the on-and-off romance between a young singer and her choir director that begins in 1950s Communist Poland and makes memorable pit stops in other parts of Europe over a period of years. It’s artfully directed by Pawel Pawlikowski, feature...