Freeze Frame

One of the year’s most acclaimed movies has finally gotten its Kansas City release. It's hard to imagine a timelier movie about freedom of the press than “The Post.” Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep star in Steven Spielberg's riveting drama about the Washington Post's behind the scenes struggles leading up to the publication of the Pentagon Papers in 1971. Streep once again shows why she’s our greatest...

As we leap into 2018 it’s time to look back the best movies the year had to offer. Here’s my list of the cream of the cinematic crop.   10) […] The post FREEZE FRAME: Russ’ Top Ten Movies of 2017 appeared first on KKFI .

Oscar-winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin is best known for his machine gun dialogue for movies like “The Social Network” and “A Few Good Men.” It should be no surprise that he also takes a rat-a-tat approach for his first effort as director, “Molly’s Game.” The method fits the subject matter perfectly. Jessica Chastain stars in the true story of Molly Bloom, a former Olympic-class skier who ran a m...

It's hard to imagine a timelier movie about freedom of the press than “The Post.” Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep star in Steven Spielberg's riveting drama about the Washington Post's behind the scenes struggles leading up to the publication of the Pentagon Papers in 1971. It's suspenseful even though we know the outcome. That’s no small feat. If you're a lover of musicals, Hugh Jackman has a Christmas...

You can always count on filmmaker Guillermo del Toro to deliver visually arresting and atmospheric cinema. “The Shape of Water” is no exception. This adult sci-fi fantasy is really an oddball love story featuring an aquatic humanoid creature and a cleaning woman in 1960s Cold War America. Sally Hawkins leads a terrific cast as an emotionally damaged mute who works at a top secret US government res...

From "8 1/2" to "Day for Night" to "Ed Wood," some very entertaining movies are movies about making movies. You can add "The Disaster Artist" to that distinguished list. James Franco directs and stars in "The Disaster Artist," a behind-the-scenes film about the making of one of the worst movies of all time, the 2003 drama, "The Room." Franco gives perhaps the best performance of the year as Tommy...

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s “The Avengers!” Er, no, it’s “Justice League.” The DC cinematic universe plays catch up with Marvel by finally getting its superhero coalition to […] The post Freeze Frame: “Justice League” (PG-13), “Lady Bird” (R), “Wonder” (PG) appeared first on KKFI .

Kenneth Branagh’s take on the classic Agatha Christie whodunit “Murder on the Orient Express” is like its namesake: Luxurious, workmanlike…and just a bit stodgy. Branagh plays Belgian detective Hercule Poirot […] The post Freeze Frame: “Murder on the Orient Express,” “The Florida Project” appeared first on KKFI .

Although filmed in North Carolina, Martin McDonaugh’s bitterly funny comic drama “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri” has a very dark “show me” attitude. Frances McDormand is an instant Oscar front-runner playing a woman who posts billboards to prod Sheriff Woody Harrelson into investigating the rape and murder of her daughter. Sam Rockwell may also be an awards contender for his portrait of...

Is the third time the charm for “Thor?” The latest installment in the Marvel Universe to have the God of Thunder front and center is indeed the best of the three. A goofy, tongue-in-cheek action adventure that relies a lot on quirky comedy, “Thor: Ragnarok” is an eye-popping extravaganza that should please most fans, even though it’s a notch below many other Marvel entries.   Chris Hemsworth retur...

“Suburbicon,” a twisted collaboration between director George Clooney and the Coen Brothers, is a satiric poke in the eye to the idea of an idyllic 50s American suburbia. This pitch […] The post Freeze Frame: “Suburbicon,” “Goodbye Christopher Robin,” “All I See is You” appeared first on KKFI .

With a great cast, bestselling source material and acclaimed filmmakers in command, “The Snowman” should have been a solid thriller. Sadly, it’s an icy misfire. Michael Fassbender plays a detective on the trail of a cunning serial killer who leaves creepy snowmen at his crime scenes. The pace drags and the story is filled with multiple dangling plot threads. “The Snowman” is a frosty fizzle.   The...

“Marshall” is not a biopic about America’s first black Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall. It’s a courtroom drama about one Connecticut rape case that the famed jurist worked on in his early days as a lawyer for the NAACP. Chadwick Boseman plays the brash young Marshall who manipulates a local Jewish lawyer, played by Josh Gad, into defending the accused, played by Sterling K. Brown. The prod...

Is the highly anticipated sequel to the 1982 sci-fi classic “Blade Runner” merely a replicant? Nope. Happily, “Blade Runner 2049” is a compelling film noir follow-up that stands on its own. Ryan Gosling plays a LAPD officer who hunts down replicants, renegade bioengineered humans. Ultimately, he is led to unravel the mystery of his own life and confront a former Blade Runner, played by Harrison Fo...

One the most watched sporting events of all time is celebrated in the crowd-pleasing comic drama, “The Battle of the Sexes.” Emma Stone and Steve Carell star as Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, who, in 1973, faced off on the tennis court in a battle with significant social implications. The stars are appealing even if the movie is a little unfocused. “The Battle of the Sexes” doesn’t ace the stor...

Is the third time the charm for Lego’s animated franchise? Well, even though the novelty is wearing a bit thin, “The Lego Ninjago Movie” is, for the most part, cheeky, […] The post FREEZE FRAME: “The Lego Ninjago Movie,” “Kingsman: The Golden Circle” appeared first on KKFI .

Filmmakers have been trying for years to adapt the political thrillers by the late author Vince Flynn. His CIA super agent Mitch Rapp finally makes his big screen appearance in […] The post Freeze Frame: “American Assassin,” “13 Minutes” appeared first on KKFI .

A white, plus-sized female rapper from a depressed New Jersey suburb may be the most unlikely movie lead of the year. In “Patti Cake$,” Australian actress Danielle Macdonald plays a […] The post Freeze Frame: “Patti Cake$,” “I Do…Until I Don’t” appeared first on KKFI .

Robert Pattinson works hard to shake his “Twilight” image in “Good Time,” a gritty crime drama that takes place in one night. He plays a none-too-bright bank robber who tries […] The post Freeze Frame: “Good Time,” “Ingrid Goes West,” “Leap!” appeared first on KKFI .

Actor Channing Tatum and director Steven Soderbergh go rogue with their independently produced and distributed comic heist movie, “Logan Lucky.” Tatum plays a fired miner who decides to rip off all the cash for a big race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. He recruits a ragtag posse of hayseed thieves for a complicated caper. The terrific cast includes Adam Driver, Seth MacFarlane, Daniel Craig and...

The term “uplifting” is often overused, but it’s apt when describing “Step,” a documentary about a step dancing team from an all-girls high school in inner city Baltimore. Don’t expect lots of dance footage, however. “Step” instead focuses on the personal struggles of several team members, all of whom face unique challenges. The film shows how the work and discipline of the dance team help the gir...

One way or another, you will be disturbed by Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow’s grim and troubling historical drama, “Detroit.” Either the police brutality and racism will rattle you or the movie’s sadistically violent depiction of it will do the trick. During the summer of ’67, civil unrest gripped much of Motor City. An incident at the Algiers Motel left three black men dead and three whit...

The provocative Charlize Theron and some smashing fight choreography provide a potent one-two punch for “Atomic Blonde,” an ultra-violent adaptation of a popular graphic novel. Theron plays a British secret agent with a particular set of skills who is sent on a dangerous mission to Germany in 1989, just prior to the fall of the Berlin Wall. This celebration of sex and violence works in spite of it...

British actress Sally Hawkins gives the kind of performance Oscar loves in “Maudie,” a biopic about Maude Lewis, the late Canadian folk artist who gained fame in the 1950s. The story covers her struggle with crippling rheumatoid arthritis, her dysfunctional family, stark poverty in rural Nova Scotia and her awkward marriage to her boorish and sometimes abusive husband, well played by Ethan Hawke....

It may seem absurd, but I’m not monkeying around. The franchise update of “The Planet of the Apes” series that began in 2011 may be the best Hollywood franchise reboot ever. The third installment, “War for the Planet of the Apes,” is a visually spectacular and riveting drama that focuses on the ongoing confrontation between two species vying for world domination.   Director Matt Reeves uses specia...