This Is Me...Now

This Is Me…Now; Lopez has been equally fascinating & frustratingly cheesy throughout her career, displaying glimpses of extraordinary talent & work ethic alongside questionable choices. This extended long form album/music video has the same highs & lows. Cameos are super fun, rest not so much; C+

The Flash

The Flash; Super fan service w/plenty of surprises. Well executed action scenes and the right tone throughout balances heart, humour and heroism. Fantastic script doesn’t lose itself to time travel traps, but rather emphasizes the shared tragic/treasured realities of humanity; A

Clerk

Clerk; Film by film retrospective paints the picture of a self-made man with plenty of people weighing in, mostly favourable industry friends. Clips and backstory aplenty reminds us how Smith became the talker he is today and why we embraced him in the first place. Solid doc; A-

Zack Snyder's Justice League

Zach Snyder’s Justice League; If thought of as a six episode superhero series, this is an improvement on the original (can’t complain about more Flash & more Cyborg). Expands the characters & lives longer in the moments. Like we’ve grown accustomed to from premium television; B+

Justice League

Justice League; Sum of the parts not nearly as interesting as each individual character could be. Casting is great but assembly awkward and underwhelming. Not very memorable at all; B-

Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice; Bat bits are fantastic, Supes' angst complex, female roles fierce. Lex is lame. Comic lovers film; A-

Chasing Amy

Directed by:  Kevin Smith
Starring:  Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams, Jason Lee, Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith
Running Time: B+

Kevin Smith's apology to the critics who hated Mallrats at the end of the film sums up what is good and bad about this movie.  The fact that Smith grew up a bit, took on some serious ground and peppered his unique funniness in an attempt to please those critics.  The fact that he is trying to please those critics also takes away from the humour that is so abundant in his first two films.  Granted, this isn't a full fledged comedy.  It's comedy in the sense that it doesn't take itself too seriously.  Extremely stunning performances by a cast that was used as side jokes in the first installments of the New Jersey trilogy really make the film.  The blend of seriousness and comedy is great but not complete.  This is a good transition film for Smith.

Grade: B+

Good Will Hunting

Good Will Hunting; This amazing screenplay is really in touch with a younger generation of movie goers without leaving traditionalists behind. There's something for everyone's tastes in this movie that combines comedy, drama, and romance in their physical, spiritual, and mental aspects. Gus Van Sant makes the writing even better by getting soul baring performances from the whole cast. He makes the emotions physically manifest themselves on the screen. He dares to shoot one emotionally revealing scene between two lovers with the actors very plain and naked, not like the heavily mood lit/make up sensualizing of romance we're used to. This lets the inner emotions, struggles really reach out and touch the audience. The multi-layered script hits personally and universally; A-