Spring 2017 Quick Reviews (Belko, Life, Going in Style)

The film’s gruesome nature is its best attribute. With a plot that is as dreary as it is brutal, it no doubt will be entertaining for anyone who is a fan of the genre. The amicable cast of B-listers does a decent job of actually making you care about the characters that are mostly killed off by the films end. Don’t look for any type of mind boggling subtext. Whatever additional  point the film was trying to make in between the blood splatter gets lost in translation pretty quickly. FINAL GRADE: B

The film attempts to differentiate from Alien by applying more science to the science fiction. The specifics of the creature (nicknamed Calvin in the film) are spelled out for the audience, giving a sense of realism that does manage to add to the horror of it all. But none of the characters are memorable and only one of them (Hiroyuki Sinada) has an endearing subplot. So even though the film delivers on suspense, overall it just comes off feeling like a rip-off of something we’ve already seen done better. FINAL GRADE: C

The movie tries its damndest to be Last Vegas meets Ocean’s Eleven, but it never really pulls off the latter part well. From the moment the heist goes down, you’ll need to suspend every ounce of common sense and belief in the FBI to believe that a bunch of elderly men can pull of the theft of millions of dollars in broad daylight. But the cast makes things entertaining simply by them being their charismatic selves. Simple charm makes these men feel like the grandpas you wish you had and that makes the film likable even through its flimsy story. FINAL GRADE: C

#MichaelCaine #JamesGunn #HiroyukiSanada #MattDillon #Life #JakeGyllenhaal #AlanArkin #GoingInStyle #MorganFreeman #TheBelkoExperiment #RyanReynolds #RebeccaFerguson