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Hot Take: As an action flick, Atomic Blonde delivers on all levels. If you’re looking for a thriller, though, the movie has a few problems. It’s visually impressive, even when Charlize Theron’s face resembles Sylvester Stallone’s in Rocky.

At the beginning of the month, I rank the entire release schedule based on which films I’m looking forward to see the most. For July, Atomic Blonde sat at the top of the list. Charlize Theron in a Jason Bourne-like role as MI6 agent Lorraine Broughton set up as the perfect summer action thriller. Half of that ends up being true as Atomic Blonde, as an action movie, kicks tons of ass and delivers a number of beautifully crafted (and ridiculously violent) scenes in which Theron’s character finds herself boxed into a corner and must kick, punch and shoot her way out. The thriller side of the film, though, lacks a coherent story and doesn’t always make sense which keeps it from being on the level of Bond or Bourne. It might be splitting hairs to expect Atomic Blonde to work on both levels as the action is so good, it’s hard to penalize the film too much for what it lacks in story.Read More →

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For the second consecutive week, double digit releases hit the home video market. It’s Brie Larson week as she stars in not 1 but 2 of the releases. Only 1 of the 10 releases made a lasting impression at the box office (Kong: Skull Island) while the rest either failed to perform well or were direct to video releases. Here’s what to buy, rent, stream and skip for the week of July 18th:Read More →

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Hot Take: Another very good Netflix exclusive. Lily Collins is a rising star.

2017’s theatrical lineup has been a disappointment. One big win in the film world is the rash of good to very good Netflix exclusive films that has seemingly grown this year. One of the latest is To The Bone which is based on the real life experiences of writer/director Marti Noxon and deals with the struggle of eating disorders. It’s a film that, on the surface, has an appearance that it could be a little thin on plot (especially considering Keanu Reeves has a rather meaty supporting role in the film) but once inside the film, you realize To The Bone is an excellent character study and even a little bit educational when it comes to the worst issues that come about due to eating disorders.Read More →

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In: 2017, Ranked

On July 20th, Dunkirk became the 75th movie seen and reviewed by MHT released in 2017. While we’re well behind the impressive pace of 2016, the shorter theatrical windows and clear outs for tentpole releases has really hindered viewing some of the deeper cuts this year. Plus, MHT decided to sit out some of the sequels like Smurfs: The Lost Village, Cars 3 and Underworld: Blood Wars. There was finally a 5 star film in the last group of 25 — Baby Driver — and it has a firm grip on the #1 film of 2017 so far. Please check out the previous postings here:

Now that you’re caught up, here’s the next next 25 movies of 2017 and how they graded out:Read More →

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Hot Take: Tense and relentless, Dunkirk is a technical masterpiece that is sometimes overshadowed by its technical prowess. It’s impressive to watch but there’s an emotional intensity that’s missing that prevents Christopher Nolan’s latest from being more than just good.

The sights and sounds of Dunkirk are brilliant. Hats off to director Christopher Nolan for creating a technical tour de force. The slant he brings to a war movie gives this a much different slant than any other war movie like it. We already know war is hell but Nolan immerses us into the true tale of the Battle of Dunkirk that we’re smack in the middle of everything as it unfolds. As expected from Nolan, we have another good movie. However, is it great? Read More →

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Hot Take: Heavy. Maybe… the… most… serious… summer movie… I’ve ever… seen.

When I think summer blockbuster, I think the opposite of what I saw unfold in War for the Planet of the Apes, the third installment of the Planet of the Apes trilogy. Yes, it was a big budget action packed film. Usually, though, these action heavy films provide some level of fun and excitement. With War for the Planet of the Apes, you instead get tension, evolved thinking and a serious debate on morality and humanity. Yes, it has all the elements of a Sci-Fi film. However, the film is closer to Shakespeare, historical allegories to the civil rights movement and slavery or even the Bible than your normal Sci-Fi fare. There is absolutely nothing trivial about this summer sequel in a series that has traditionally been known for raising the bar well above the usual summer offering. However, that being said, it ain’t the fun, popcorn flick you’re used to seeing either.Read More →

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In: 2017, Lists, Ranked

At the halfway point of the 2017 movie season, it’s a good time to check in and see which movies were on the top of their game this year. It’s unlikely we’ll be talking about any of them come Award season but there was plenty of cinematic success to recognize. Here’s the best films and performances according to Movie Hot Take for the first half of 2017:Read More →

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Hot Take: The best Spidey flick yet. The Marvel Cinematic Universe continues their spectacular run.

Full disclosure: I was a comic book fan growing up and Spider-Man was easily my favorite. I like Spider-Man enough that even Spider-Man 3 was enjoyable to watch. (Amazing Spiderman 2? Not so much… sorry Andrew Garfield.) Also, it’s important to note that ever since Spidey’s cameo in Captain America: Civil War, I’ve been pretty stoked about the prospect of another Spider-Man reboot.Read More →

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Hot Take: A much needed successful romantic comedy in a genre desperately lacking anything worth talking about. One of the best movies of the first half of the year. Kumail Nanjiani gives a heartfelt and heartwarming performance as, well, himself.

Every summer, there is a smaller flick that sneaks up on us and “wins” the summer. I put wins in quotations because with the monster box office numbers of some of the summer tentpoles, it obviously doesn’t win as that is reserved for juggernauts usually involving superheroes (See the box office figures for Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2, Wonder Woman and Spider-Man: Homecoming). Last year, the best example was Hell or High Water. The early August release with a tiny $12 million budget more than tripled that at the box office and carried a solid summer performance to 4 Academy Award nominations. A similar path could be in store for The Big Sick, the 2017 romantic comedy based on the real life love story of star Kumail Nanjiani and his wife Emily V. Gordon. It’s already drawing at the box office in limited release and is slated for a monster 2,500+ theater expansion this weekend.Read More →

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It’s a rare double digit release week for the home viewer with box office giant The Fate of the Furious finding its way onto the small screen less than 90 days since it hit theaters. The rest of the releases — including The Lost City of Z — failed to make half of what the 8th installment into The Fast and the Furious franchise did at the cinema pulling in a combined $61 million vs. the $223.8 million of the Vin Diesel/The Rock vehicle. There’s plenty to see (and not see) this week. Here’s what to buy, rent, stream and skip for the week of July 11th:Read More →