A conspiracist discovers the moon is on a collision course with Earth. Cheerfully shambolic SF disaster flick, cribbing from across the genre from Contact to The Core as well as from the director’s back catalogue. A sturdy cast of B-listers helps, with John Bradley being especially good value.
Here’s the trailer.
Five people arrive at an island resort where they are each promised their fantasy can come true. Horror-tinged revisiting of the 70s TV show, that plays initially like an Amicus/EC anthology. It doesn’t all work, but there’s plenty going on, and the cast of game character actors is a smart approach.
An elderly man becomes a drugs runner for a cartel. Crime drama based on a true story. Baggy and indulgent in places, but with some charming moments, and a decent lead performance from Eastwood. The script’s the issue; we never quite get to the heart of the character, despite efforts to tell a rounded story.
An astronaut is marooned alone on Mars; he develops a plan to survive. Smart, funny and upbeat space peril movie with winning ensemble performances, clean visuals, and a diligent script from the Andy Weir bestseller. A thoroughly professional and entertaining job all round.
Two LA patrol cops cross the paths of a street gang keen to make their mark. Excellent contemporary crime drama focusing on cop camaraderie. A semi-improvised approach and use of found footage give the movie texture, as does the rapport between the lead actors. Recommended.
Lang, Hank Pym and Lana re-team, this time to find Pym’s wife, long thought lost in the quantum realm. Superior Marvel adventure, all the better for its modest scale, humour, and invention in blending 3D, action and the conceit of the size-changing tech.
A special forces team is dropped behind enemy lines in Afghanistan to take out an enemy stronghold. Well-shot but uninvolving post 9/11 drama, based on a true story. The usual battle movie cliches, though with occasional interesting Western genre flourishes.
Two bad cops try to snatch heist takings. After The Guard and Calvary, a disappointment from this writer/director. A stylized would-be comic thriller which gets as much wrong as it does right in mistaking context-free excess for fun.
![Blumhouse’s Fantasy Island [AKA Fantasy Island] (2020, dir. Jeff Wadlow)](https://255review.files.wordpress.com/2020/07/fi-2020-poster.jpg?w=1080)
255 Review 