Shelter

Jason Statham is and has been one of Hollywood's famous action heroes, especially after he was in the "Transporter" franchise. Most of his films are quite similar, but watching them has never been a chore since his presence is always captivating. He's done other films with Syvester Stallone and a short stint on the "Fast & Furious" franchise. So when "Shelter" came out, I felt, through the trailer, it would be similar too, but that's OK--it's still captivating.

This is an action-thriller starring Jason Statham as Michael Mason, a reclusive ex-assassin on a remote Scottish island who must protect a young girl, Jessie (Bodhi Rae Breathnach), he rescues from a storm, forcing him to confront his past as his enemies, namely Manafort (Bill Nighy) and Roberta (Naomie Ackie) close in. This is a formulaic, but polished story, blending action with a dramatic core as the protagonist prioritizes the girl's safety over his own. Will he survive while protecting this young girl from harm's way?

Others to round out the cast are Bryan Vigier as James Workman, Harriet Walter as Prime Minister, Daniel Mays as Uncle, Anna Crilly as Haneron, Tomi May as Ross, Steven Blades as Rob Wills and Tom Wu as Nightclub owner. 

This was certainly directed with amazing intensity and grit by Ric Roman Waugh ("In the Shadows" '01, "Felon" '08, "Snitch" '13, "That Which I Love Destroys Me" '15, "Shot Caller" '17, "Angel Has Fallen" '19, "Greenland" '20, "National Champions" '21, "Kandahar" '23, "Greenland 2: Migration" '26) plus a video. By his very resume, this filmmaker knows what it takes to run a big-budget film and make them work. His most recent film, "Greenland 2: Migration" kept its audience on the edge of their proverbial seats, and this movie, "Shelter" is no different. Statham's Mason is definitely a man of few words, however his presence and action speak volumes and this is not only effective directing but reliable acting by Statham as well. It was effectively written by Ward Parry ("The Shattering" '15, "Curtiz" '18). Surely the script was not extremely involved--after all it is a Statham film, but the connection that had to be drawn between Mason (Statham) and Jessie (Breathnach) could've been convoluted if written sloppily. Their connection was a pivotal aspect of this movie and is what held it together. Other than a few slightly slow places in script, this was an admiral attempt at a screenplay considering this writer's limited experience. If you like his brand of writing, his "Tokyo" is being filmed at this time. 

Certainly, if you're a Statham aficionado, you'll revel with this story. It is what we all come to expect from one of his films. And this film leaves open-ended--could there be a sequel? Well, considering the last two action films with Statham were incredible hits, then the odds look good. We'll see.

Out of 4 Stars: 3                                       Rated: R                                         108mins.

Melania

Hollywood has produced many documentaries to span the realm of topics, i.e. sports, politics, music, singers, religion and political figures to mention a handful. It seems like each documentary that comes along is dissected with more information and clarity in what the producers are attempting to strive for. Now, we have "Melania" which chronicles the last 20 days Melania Trump circumvented up to the inauguration of President Donald J. Trump.

Amazon/MGM Studios' film "Melania" offers unprecedented access to the 20 days leading up to the 2025 Presidential Inauguration--through the eyes of the First Lady herself. Step inside Melania Trump's world as she orchestrates inauguration plans, navigates the complexities of the White House transition, and moves her family back to the Nation's Capital. With exclusive footage capturing critical meetings, private conversations, and never-before-seen environments, "Melania" showcases Mrs. Trump's return to one of the world's most powerful roles. 

This was directed with clarity and introspection by Brett Ratner ("Money Talks" '97, "Rush Hour" '98, "Partners" (TV movie) '99, "The Family Man" 2000, "Rush Hour 2" '01, "Red Dragon" '02, "After the Sunset" '04, "X-Men: The Last Stand" '06, "Rush Hour 3" '07, "New York, I Love You" '08 "Cop House" (TV movie) '09, "Tower Heist" '11, "Hercules" '14) plus other films, music videos, videos and shorts. Since this film's contents streamed from different footage and interviews meticulously edited well by Alex Marquez ace, this film held no actual writer, however many documentaries are structured similarly. The cinematography by Dante Spinotti asc, Jeff Cronenweth asc and Barry Peterson was stunning and coupled with the fine film editing, the production was artistically put together with an awe-inspiring feel. What actually makes this film as well put together as it was, was the fact that it really wasn't a political film in that it wasn't about Donald Trump, his vice president, the cabinet or any actual political meeting thereof. It was about Melania and her 20 days consulting with tailors, event planners, fashion designers, interior desigbers, chefs, a couple of talks with a couple of queens of the world, etc. This movie allows a rare glimpse into Melanis's world and what she did to insure this inauguration went as smoothly as possible. Yes, there was some politics--Donald Trump and the secret service was in this, however this is clearly Melania's film. 

Whether one's politic's lie to the right of the aisle, or even the left, there is definitely something in this film that speaks to all. It has humor, insight that might surprise some, but at the end of the day it will keep one riveted. It was panned poorly by Rotten Tomatoes, but since their rating was so low, it had to have been biased, because this movie didn't get caught up with what all expected. Melania is a class act--much like Jackie was back in the 60s, and both were and are not uninformed which a certain number seem to believe. Well done MGM, well done.

Out of 4 Stars: 4                                      Rated: PG                                            106mins.

H is for Hawk

Hollywood has produced many films that chronicle the lives and adventures of birds and animals, i.e. birds, dogs, cats, horses, penguins, lions, bears, even elephants, and they are always a crowd pleaser--people are suckers for animals. So now we have yet another one appropriately named "H is for Hawk".

This is 2007, Cambridge, England. "H is for Hawk",based on a true story, follows Helen MacDonald (Claire Foy), who, after the sudden death of her father, (Brendan Gleeson) looses herself in the memories of their time birding and exploring the natural world together and turns the ancient art of falconry--rooted in European-tradition--training a goshawk she named Mabel to navigate her profound loss. But as she teaches Mabel to hunt and fly free, Helen discovers how deeply she has neglected her own emotions and life. What begins as an act of endurance transforms into an intimate journey of resilience and healing.

Others to round out the cast are Denise Gough as Christina, Lindsay Duncan as Helen's mom, Josh Dylan as James, Helen's brother, Sam Spruell as Stuart, Helen's friend, Garry Cooper as Charlie and Kamal Simpson as Director of Studies

This was directed with such poignancy by Philippa Lowthorpe ("Swallows and Amazons" '16, "Misbehaviour" '20) plus many TV movies, TV, and a short. The subtleness of how this director was able to coach Foy to respond in such quiet yet intense ways given the situation she was in was amazing. There were scenes where it looked like Foy was going to crack in half because of the intensity of her character, and this is talented directing. It was effectively written by Emma Donoghue ("Room" '15, "The Wonder" '22) plus a short, and Philippa Lowthorpe ("Eight Hours from Paris" (TV movie) '97, "The Other Boleyn Girl" (TV movie) '03, "Sex, the City and Me" (TV movie) '07) plus TV, based on "H is for Hawk" by Helen MacDonald. It was almost a rights of passage film for Helen in this--living her life, suddenly losing her dad whom she loved, having to deal with that and then realizing that, through hers and her dad's love for birding, she decides to attempt to train a goshawk with no experience except learning from her friend Stuart. And all this was a monumental task. This story was captivating and was such a different tale creatively penned well. Really, with the exception of it being a little long-in-the-tooth--a good 5 minutes could've been cut, this was a well structured script. The handlers, Lloyd Buck and Rose Buck were amazing in how they were able to train this hawk. 

If animal films are a type of film you like, this will be intriguing for sure. It's well directed and the acting, especially that of Claire Foy was perfection. It's a quiet film, so if you're into action=packed films, this probably won't be the film for you, but then again, one should know this before venturing to the multiplex.

Out of 4 Stars: 3.5                                     Rated: PG-13                                       119mins.

Mercy

Why is it that when Hollywood produces films that chronicle 'what would happen in the near distant future', that they end up causing an upheaval in our society? Think about it..."Fahrenheit 451", "A Scanner Darkly", "Minority Report", "Elysium", "District 9", to mention a handful. These are all 'big brother' oriented films, and understandably so. Now to add to that growing list, we have "Mercy".

This is a sci-fi action thriller with Chris Pratt as Detective Chris Raven accused of murdering his wife, Nicole (Annabelle Wallis), who must prove his innocence to an A.I. judge, Maddox (Rebecca Ferguson), who, through the Mercy program Raven has created, is the judge, jury and executioner to have to prove his innocence in 90 minutes, or face execution. The irony being the one who created the program is now on trial for his life. 

Others to round out the cast are Kali Reis as Jacqueline 'JAQ' Diallo, Chris Sullivan as Rob Nelson, Kylie Rogers as Brirr, Chris' daughter, Jeff Pierce as Patrick Burke, Rafi Gavron as Holt Charles, Kenneth Choi as Ray Vale, Jamie McBride as Dan Vogel and Ross Gosla as David Webb.

This film was intensely directed with grit and tons of action by Timur Bekmambetov ("Peshawar Waltz" '94, "The Arena" '01, "GAZ. Russkie mashiny" '02, "Night Watch" '04, "Nochnoy bazar" '05, "Day Watch" '06, "The Irony of Fate 2" '07, "Wanted" '08, "Six Degrees of Celebration" '10, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" '12, "Yolki 1914" '14, "Ben-Hur" '16, "Yolki 5" '16, "Profile" '18, "V2. Escape from Hell" '21) plus TV, music videos and videos. The fact that most of the film was shot in the Mercy courtroom with Detective Raven strapped to an electric chair facing an austere A.I. judge on a screen and it was able to produce the amount of tension, grit and a thrilling premise was pure genius for this filmmaker. Certainly there were scenes from the database that Raven was requesting to investigate where the film then edited to that scene, but the story literally hailed from one room and that is brilliant directing, which, in my opinion, makes the film even more intense. It was equally well penned by writer Marco van Belle ("Arthur & Merlin" '15). This film was clearly as intense as "Speed" '95 was when the first frame hit the screen--it simply cut to the chase and used the different database requests Raven wanted on screen to tell the story of how Raven got to that room in the first place. It was just a bit slow shortly into the film, but it didn't last long at all, and didn't impede on the story at all. It was sequenced well, cohesive and tight. In fact, if you like this writer's style, his "Feed' is in post-production and his "Arthur & Merlin: The Fire of Balor" is in pre-production. 

Certainly, if you're a fan of Chris Pratt, you will revel with this. And especially if you like action-packed crime thrillers, you'll like it even more. This has action, explosions all culminating with an amazing twist. This film was panned by several critics, and I'm perplexed why--I'm not sure what they were looking for, but I thought it filled every expectation I was looking for in a gripping thriller. This is the quintessential on the edge-of-your-seat film, so grab the popcorn and enjoy this gem.

Out of 4 Stars: 4                                      Rated: PG-13                                        99mins.

Charlie the Wonderdog

Typically we don't see animated films at this time of year--something that is reserved for the summer film season, but this independent film company decided to release "Charlie the Wonderdog" now hoping to receive a return on their investment and then some. If I had to put a word to describe this film, it would probably be heartwarming. 

A young and timid boy, Danny, (Dawson Littman) imagines a wondrous world in which he and his cherished dog, Charlie (Owen Wilson), star in their own superhero adventures. When Charlie is mysteriously abducted by aliens, he is gifted true superpowers and emerges as Charlie Wonderdog, the greatest and most famous superhero dog the world has ever seen. He is beloved by all except for Puddy (Ruairi MacDonald), the evil cat next door. With the fate of humanity hanging in the balance, Danny and Charlie must go above and beyond to thwart Puddy's diabolical plans.

Others to round out the cast are Tabitha St. Germain as President Rose, Rhona Rees as Alien Queen, Sebastian Billingsley-Rodriguez as Alien Prince, Zac Bennett-McPhee as Otis, Jenn Rogan as Danny's mom and Sam, Anthony Bolognese as Jacob and Lindsay Gibson as Judge Gruff.

This was directed with heart and whimsy by Shea Wageman ("What Could Have Been" '11, "Rocket Club: Across the Cosmos" '24) plus TV, a short and a video game. The huge difference in these characters was that of Charlie--going from an older, slower dog to a more powerful, quicker, seemingly younger dog, and this filmmaker was able to encourage his actor (Owen Wilson) to become this much improved version of Charlie by his sheer expressiveness, however Wilson is a talented actor, but this is fine directing. It was effectively written by Steve Ball, Shea Wageman and Raul Inglis. Inglis has the lion's share of the writing experience here, so I'm not quite sure why he took last in the credits, but obviously the other two were pivotal with their input. The premise of this was interesting, however it did become a bit disjointed in a couple of places. And it was a bit show in a couple of places, but what it lacked in some places of script, it more than made up for heart, humor with a definite family-oriented fare that will sure to please by small children. 

As aforementioned, this is a film that the kids and even the whole family should come and see and enjoy. It's heartwarming, whimsical, humorous and, let's face it, this was Owen Wilson's film as his portrayal of the lead character. Grab the popcorn and enjoy this.

Out of 4 Stars: 3                                    Rated: PG                                       92mins.

 

I Was a Stranger

There have been films in the past that chronicles humanity and how important it is lest we become an extinct species. The way we treat each other for the short time we are on this planet is staggeringly awful, especially the farther we travel into the future, and it doesn't seem to getting any better. Now, we have "I Was a Stranger" offered to show us that, no matter what happens to us individually, we are still fellow humans and should be treated as such.

When a Syrian doctor, Doctor Amira Homsi (Yasmine Al Massri) is forced to flee Aleppo with her young daughter, Rasha (Massa Daoud) one desperate choice sets off a chain of events that ripples across borders and pulls four strangers into the same storm. A smuggler, Marwan (Omar Sy) trying to save his son. A soldier, Mustafa (Yahya Mahayni) wrestling with his conscience. A poet, Fathi (Ziad Bakri) searching for home. A Greek coast guard captain, Stavros (Constantine Markoulakis) caught between duty and mercy. Their paths collide on one night in the Mediterranean, where survival and humanity is revealed in its rawest form. "I Was a Stranger" is a tense, deeply human story about the lengths people will go to protect the ones they love. 

This was intensely directed with grit and compassion by Brandt Andersen ("Refugee" '20--a short). This filmmaker doesn't have a stream of films to his credit, but considering he spent years over in the area that this film centers on to see for himself how challenging this place is, speaks volumes in my opinion. He was able to tell his story of these individuals' plight with so much pathos and expressions that emitted from these actors. He will receive more work. It was written as well by Brandt Andersen ("Refugee" '20--a short) in an equally intense and sobering way. Again, he doesn't have a plethora of experience, but considering his desire and passion to delve into the culture in which he was writing about speaks volumes as well. The writing was tight, gripping, cohesive and concise. Even though he wrote this in a way that overlapped from one stranger to the next, by films' end, they were inexplicably connected by the connecting events. At first, one might not think that this story doesn't connect, however, be patient; the longer the film runs, the more it does connect, and that's fine writing. 

Again, Brandt Andersen's sole reason in making this film was to showcase how we are connected even when we don't think so. It's the humanity he is attempting to show and the more we have differences, the more we are truly connected. This is something we all can learn from in spades. Even though the writing, directing and acting in this is consummate, not all can see this because of its sheer intensity, so be forewarned. 

Out of 4 Stars: 4                                       Rated: PG-13                                       104mins.

 

Is This Thing On?

We have entered the 'dead zone' as of 1-1-26 and although many films are typically not the best that Hollywood has to offer, there can and are some gems thrown into the mix as a treat for hanging in there. Although "Is This Thing On?" is a well directed and acted film, it does need a bit of polish in the writing realm. 

As their marriage quietly unravels, Alex Novack (Will Arnett) faces middle age and an impending divorce, seeking new purpose in the New York stand-up comedy scene while his wife, Tess (Laura Dern) confronts the sacrifices she made for their family, including their two sons, Felix (Blake Lane) and Jude (Calvin Knegten)--forcing them to navigate co-parenting, identity, and whether  love can take a new form.

Others to round out the cast are Andra Day as Christine, Bradley Cooper as Balls, Sean Hayes as Stephen, Scott Icenogle as Geoffrey, Ciaran Hinds as Jan, Alex's dad, Christine Ebersole as Marilyn, Alex's mom, Amy Sedaris as Kemp and Peyton Manning as Laird. 

This was brilliantly directed with subtlety and realism by Bradley Cooper ("A Star Is Born" '18, "Maestro" '23) plus music videos. Assuredly this filmmaker has not an extensive resume behind the camera, however what he has done has been exquisitely directed well including this film. His ability to get his actors to dig deep to find the correct character development in order to convince the audience is second to none. Bradley is an accomplished actor, but with each film he directs, he will be known as an amazing director as well. He also had a co-starring performance in this and was a pivotal character. It was effectively written by Bradley Cooper, Will Arnett and Mark Chappell, based on a story by Will Arnett, Mark Chappell and John Bishop. All these writers have a fair amount of experience--Chappell having the lion's share, but what they have, especially Cooper is impressive. The premise however intriguing, became a bit convoluted and meandered a bit, but once it found its footing, finally became the story it wanted to be. It was a slow burning epiphany for both Alex and Tess in their respective avenues in which they turned to in order to get on with their lives. Could it be too many writers involved? Not sure, but suffice it to say, it did need some polishing. The premise was certainly fraught with a lot of great fodder for a distinct screenplay, but missed a beat. The direction of Cooper more than made up for the script, and the script wasn't a wash--it just needed more clarity. And they could've used a bit less F-bombs, especially where it was obvious that they weren't needed in several scenes. 

If you're a Bradley Cooper fan, this will appeal, especially if you can appreciate his direction. The direction, acting and photography were first rate, and while these aspects were amazing, the screenplay could've been tighter--but definitely worthy of the price of admission.

Out of 4 Stars: 3                                      Rated: R                                          122mins.