Onelinereview: The "Turn off Your Cell Phones" of 100 Years Ago

What was the big gripe at the movies 100 years ago? It's answered in D. W. Griffith's now-century-old short film Those Awful Hats.

Recommended

15:17 to Paris. Modest, sincere.
Avengers: Infinity War. Gets all the characters in; Elizabeth Olsen a standout, providing some heart.
Black Panther. A rich narrative, which introduces several compelling characters.
Crazy Rich Asians. Production values and spirit go a long way in generally standard romcom plotting.
Deadpool 2. Just like the first, with some brilliant song choices.
Eighth Grade. One of the many in the "awkward adolescence" coming-of-age genre, but a place, awkward and all, that was worth visiting for 90 minutes.
Game Night. Screenwriter-y nonsense, with hit or miss laughs, but a fun cast and enough silliness to brighten your day.
I Feel Pretty. A bit of a mixed message, but much funnier than its reviews suggest.
Isle of Dogs. Yeah, mostly cutesy.
Ocean's 8. Follows the formula well, with great ensemble work.
Paddington 2. Another winner, with an enjoyable Hugh Grant performance.
RBG. Informationally great, but very standard execution.
Ready Player One. Harkens back to Spielberg of old.
Spy Who Dumped Me, The. A surprise, with some intense action and many laughs.
Star Is Born, A. Old-fashioned Oscar bait; Cooper's performance better than his direction that nonetheless has sparkle at times.
Won't You Be My Neighbor? You're a better man thn me, Fred Rogers.

Skippable

Action Point. Barely even tries.
Ant-Man and the Wasp. Disappointing follow-up to the brilliant original, is still a decent entertainment.
Incredibles 2. Better than the first, even after all these years.
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Probably the best that could be done when locked into this formula.
Mission: Impossible: Fallout. Way overrated, and quite formula, has exciting moments in its finale and Cruise must be credited for going through the intense workout.
Skyscraper. The height stuff is exciting and Neve Campbell is both still cute and capable, but there was no way this was gonna be great.
Solo: A Star Wars Story. Patchwork, the least good SW movie, if it has its merits; lead Alden Ehrenreich, for all the rumors, was quite good.
Tag. Wishes it were "Game Night."
Tomb Raider. Vikander is certainly pretty enough, but it's just a tired formula film still reaping rewards from (1981s!) Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Tully. Not a particularly compelling movie that might have been better as short fiction.

Saturday, February 14, 2009