Aespa World Tour in Cinemas

Aespa World Tour in Cinemas; The allure of K-Pop lies in tight choreography paired w/driving beats & vocal gymnastics across slightly uniquely tailored personalities. Aespa is no exception, clearly fleshing out each individual performer through brief vignettes between bops. Well done, great fun; B+

Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver

Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver; Snyder knows how to visually construct worlds & stage elaborate action sequences. The attempts to make main characters likeable and more than just cool assassins is less successful. Undeniable artistry happening across departments in service to a tired story; B+

Monkey Man

Monkey Man; A more brutal John Wick (if that’s possible) revenge style action film. The fights hit hard while the emotional through-line gives it added oomph with each blow the Monkey Man dishes out and takes in. The scenes simply refuse to cut away at the points where one wants to look away; A-
 

The Great Mouse Detective

The Great Mouse Detective; Short, sinister and slightly surreal. Taking Sherlock Holmes into mouse mode with high stakes and high adventure is a bold choice for the House of Mickey Mouse. It pays off, as a dark tale surprisingly capped off by a slick soundtrack and silly little lines; B
 

Cars 2

Cars 2; Setting the Cars characters in a James Bond/M:I spy genre is an inspired choice. Too bad Mater’s stupid schtick is the driving force of the film, as his annoying dumbness is infuriating to watch. Some good jokes, some great animation but the clueless guy mistaken for suave spy falls flat; C+

An Extremely Goofy Movie

An Extremely Goofy Movie; Feels like Rodney Dangerfield’s Back to School with more heart and animated angst borne out of father/son anxiety and weirdness. It’s crazy how straight to DVD era Disney gave us this lower quality tier silliness compared to the ambitious feature films of the 2010s; C