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The Avengers 2:
The Age of Ultron: Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) decide that they can do a better job than anyone else with a supercomputer that they think is in their control … “think” being the operative word. Ultron, played diabolically by James Spader, becomes a sentient and most malevolent creature who of course, is headed for world domination. As is always the case, the special effects are fabulous, the story hangs together well, and the action is non-stop. Scarlett Johansson was pregnant through most of the filming, so body double were used through much of the latter part of the film. Rated 14A.
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Magic Mike XXL:
Channing Tatum’s title character is operating his woodworking business three years after the action in the first movie, when an opportunity presents itself to get the old gang back together for just one more gig. The end game all takes place in Myrtle Beach, so this is a road movie of sorts, as we have to pick up all the Kings of Tampa along the way (the complete cast from the first movie) in order to get the job done. Missing is Matthew MacConaughey’s character. When the casting was going on for this film, MacConaughey had previously become an Oscar Winner (for Dallas Buyer’s Club) and had now priced himself right out of the movie. Not a very good film, but it’s not plot and acting you’re after anyway … it’s abs and … other stuff. And all that anatomy is abundant! Rated18A.
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Insidious 3:
Elise Rainier (Elizabeth Shay) turned out to be the real star of both the previous movies, in which she was able to walk in two worlds – the land of the living, and the land of the dead. She died at the hands of an evil demon in the second movie, before the producers realized entirely just how popular her character was. What to do? Aha … make a prequel! That’s what we have here, as we see the action prior to the events in the first movie, with Elise reluctantly using her ability to cross the threshold to the other world, to help a teenage girl who desperately needs to reach someone on the other side. Very spooky, and very, very well done!! Dermot Mulroney also stars. Rated 14A.
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Interstellar (2014):
A fine piece of cinematic sci-fi as Matthew MacConaughey leads a solid cast in film that does much more than just tip its hat to 2001: A Space Odyssey. Several of the scenes, and at least two of the movie's major set-pieces are clearly inspired by the Stanley Kubrick film from 1968. Here, MacConaughey is Cooper, a one-time NASA astronaut now living in a climate-change-challenged earth in which everything is a dustbowl, crops are failing everywhere, and the fate of the human race is precariously perched on the edge of extinction. His daughter Murph, well-played by MacKenzie Foy in her 10 year-old version, later by Jessica Chastain in her adult version, believed as a child that there was a ghost in her room. That belief comes back to haunt her adult life in a most intriguing way as Cooper heads back to space, this time to find inhabitable worlds to which humanity can migrate. This is both a visual experience and a think-piece as worlds unfold before us. Michael Caine also stars. Terrific movie in my opinion! Rated 14A.
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EASY RIDER (1969):
The late Dennis Hopper co-wrote (along with Peter Fonda) and starred in what is surely the classic road picture as two guys hit the roads of American on their choppers. Watch for a supporting role by music producer Phil Spector.
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