Life:

Ryan Reynolds was supposed to be the main character in this sci-fi horror-thriller about our first encounter with extraterrestrial life, but scheduling conflicts meant that he had to take a lesser role, so don’t expect to see him around for very long once this group of astronauts onboard the International Space Station, starts messing with a little blob of protoplasm that is in their lab after being delivered by a deep space probe.  I love good sci-fi, and I even like mediocre sci-fi, and this movie falls into the latter category.  We know very quickly as the action picks up, that this little blob won’t stay that way for very long, and we also know that, just like the original Alien movie, most of the action will take place within the confines of a space vessel as something wreaks havoc with the crew, taking them out one at a time.  The big flaw here is in the realistic approach that has an exceptional set, a believable setting on the ISS … but a scientist who, instead of remaining detached and critical, tries to make a pet out of this little slice of life.  Have these people never seen a horror movie?  Do they not understand that you don’t mess with what you don’t understand?  What we end up with is a somewhat predictable chiller that can only end badly for most of the cast.  Rated 14A.

Everybody Loves Somebody:

This made-in-Mexico film did not make the rounds of North American theatres, and it’s something of an acquired taste as it doesn’t look a lot like a Hollywood film, but the story itself – well, that’s pure been-there-done-that stuff.  We have seen this plot so many times I lose count … a woman named Clara (Karla Souza), successful, smart, and attractive, is invited to a wedding back home in Mexico.  She has recently split with her long-time relationship, doesn’t want the folks South of the Border to know the grisly details, so she convinces a co-worker (Ben O’Toole from Hacksaw Ridge) to accompany her, and pretend to be her new boyfriend.  It gets complicated when the old boyfriend shows up at the wedding too.  No real surprises here, but it’s a good enough movie to pass an evening as a date-night.  Rated 14A.

Wilson:

Woody Harrelson and Laura Dern star in this film festival movie that was independently released and had very little distribution.  If you watch it, you’ll understand why that is.  As the title character, a neurotic man whose filters don’t work when it comes to unbridled honesty, Wilson is not a likeable person.  He has lived alone most of his life, he worries about everything, and he has no real sense of purpose.  He had a very brief marriage years ago to Pippi (Laura Dern) who was somewhat drug-addled back then, and isn’t much better today.  She had become pregnant during their short time together, but Wilson was told that the baby had been aborted.  Now, years later, he learns that this isn’t true and that he has a teenage daughter he has never met.  The problem with the movie is that it is very dark, there are no characters that even remotely approach likeability, and like’s Wilson’s blatant honesty, the script is also that way, to a fault.  Rated 14A.

The Fault in Our Stars (2014):

When I tell you the storyline here, you'll either run the other way, or run for the Kleenex.  Ansel Elgort and Shailene Woodley are Gus and Hazel, teens who meet at a cancer support group.  She has lung cancer, he has lost his leg, but they don't dwell on what's wrong, but rather on what's right.  Hazel's favourite author lives in the Netherlands, and after some significant coaxing, the two set out on an odyssey to find and meet him.  We know from the outset that this cannot end well, but there are surprises at every turn, and we marvel at how personable these young actors are.  I would encourage your seeing it despite the "downer" look of things.  Also stars Laura Dern.  Rated PG.

Sahara (2005):

 Based on the Clive Cussler action novel,  we see Matthew MacConaughey as Dirk Pitt, a soldier of fortune kind of guy who is looking for a Civil War ship ... in the desert.  Why it's in the desert, and how it might have come to be there with its alleged cargo of gold is the story.  In a subplot, he crosses paths with a World Health Organization scientist (Penelope Cruz) who is being harassed by a ruthless West African dictator, and soon Dirk and the Doc are on the same page as they look to solve a pair of mysteries.  Despite being a dozen years old, it still holds up as a good action movie that could have been the first in a series ... but wasn't because of the poor box office results for this one.  It plays well on TV though!  Rated 14A.