Editor’s note: A previous draft of this review for Mad Cats included the pun, “It’s not purrfect.” We apologize for even considering such a bad pun. We’ll do better in the future. A movie …
Action/Adventure
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1’ – McQuarrie & Cruise Complete a Hat-trick of Extraordinary Action Extravaganzas
by Sean Coatesby Sean CoatesWhere would we be without Tom Cruise? What is it about this crazed cinematic daredevil in his early 60s that keeps us coming back to the movies in droves? Hollywood is now a minefield of …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Emergency Declaration’: We Are Experiencing Some Turbulence
by James Y. Leeby James Y. LeeIt may be an obvious sentiment at this point, but it’s become genuinely difficult to look at the world around us and not think that something’s gone completely, ineffably, and gradually wrong. In the midst …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Top Gun: Maverick’ and the Irreplaceable Artistry of Tom Cruise
by Jack Edgarby Jack EdgarWarning: this review contains unabashed adoration for Tom Cruise. So leave your shit at the door, no one wants any part of it. Cowards couch their praise of Cruise behind opening statements like, “We all …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent’ and the Return of Nicolas Cage
by Jack Edgarby Jack EdgarA year ago, Nicolas Cage starred in a small, buzzy movie called Pig. When I wrote about it, I described his performance as somber and moving — an excellent Cage performance that put him back …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘The Northman’: A Fierce, Awe-Inspiring Spectacle
by Sean Coatesby Sean CoatesRegular MovieBabble readers must be growing tired of every review from yours truly opening with a sermon-esque pontification bemoaning the state of contemporary studio cinema, desperately trying to find some light at the end of …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Rocky IV: Rocky vs. Drago’: Stallone’s New Director’s Cut Is Not the Superior Version, but Makes for an Interesting Companion Piece
If you want to see how far a movie franchise can change in tone, watch the original Rocky and then its third sequel, Rocky IV. You can see the evolution (or devolution, if you prefer) …
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Here it is. After so many delays, James Bond has finally returned to the big screen. This was going to be Daniel Craig’s swan song for the character, the man who once famously said he …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Escape from Mogadishu’: The Latest from South Korea’s Biggest Action Director
by James Y. Leeby James Y. LeeCalling Ryoo Seung-wan one of the most successful South Korean directors of his time is not an incredibly far stretch — even when comparing him to his more acclaimed contemporaries — thanks to just how …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘F9’: To Boldly Go Where No ‘Fast & Furious’ Film Has Gone Before
by Blake Isonby Blake IsonThe Fast & Furious franchise is an ever-evolving set of films that has fascinated and possibly baffled audiences for the past two decades. Once upon a time, the franchise was about street racing, pink slips, …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Mortal Kombat’ Is Far From a Flawless Victory, But a Little Win for Video Game Adaptations
by Sean Coatesby Sean CoatesAs far as I am concerned, there are three certainties in life; death, taxes, and film adaptations of video game franchises always being bitterly disappointing or just plain bad. Over the years, so many great …
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Action/AdventureReviews
Bob Odenkirk Gives ‘Nobody’ a Lot of Personality
by Sean Coatesby Sean CoatesOne of the most fascinatingly odd Hollywood trends of the past decade has been the remolding of the action genre. With superheroes and comic book characters becoming the popular action stars for the new generation, …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Godzilla vs. Kong’: An Outlandish Battle for the Ages
by Blake Isonby Blake IsonFrom director Adam Wingard, Godzilla vs. Kong is the next epic installment in the Warner Bros. MonsterVerse that has been crafted over the past seven years. Kicking it off with Godzilla in 2014 and following …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Occupation: Rainfall’ – When It Rains, It Unfortunately Falls
by Blake Isonby Blake IsonOccupation: Rainfall comes to us from the mind of writer/director Luke Sparke and is the sequel to Sparke’s previous film, Occupation. Picking up two years after aliens have landed on Earth, a group of Aussie …
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It shouldn’t take long for audiences to realize they are viewing the birth of a cult classic when they watch Sion Sono’s latest film Prisoners of the Ghostland, which sees him pairing with Nicolas Cage. …
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Action/AdventureReviews
International Film Festival Rotterdam 2021 Review: ‘Riders of Justice’
by Liam Trumpby Liam TrumpRevenge is the basis for many films. This type of story is usually brought to life through small scale action scenes and brute characters. Almost every one of these films goes through the motions of …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Greenland’: A New Disaster Movie In 2020. What Could Go Wrong?
by George Clarkby George ClarkGreenland is Gerard Butler’s latest attempt at starring in a disaster movie, following the flop that is 2017’s Geostorm. Directed by Ric Roman Waugh and starring the aforementioned Gerard Butler along with Morena Baccarin and Roger …
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Fatman is an R-rated action movie starring Mel Gibson as Santa Claus… I can already feel many people shaking their heads. But, if you’re more like me, you might think this has the potential to …
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Action/AdventureReviews
San Diego Asian Film Festival 2020 Review: ‘The Paper Tigers’
by Liam Trumpby Liam TrumpAction films centering around martial arts have been having a resurgence as of late. Movies such as The Raid: Redemption, Ip Man, and The Man from Nowhere have all found a decent amount of success …
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Action/AdventureReviews
Is ‘Love and Monsters’ One of the Biggest Surprises of 2020?
by George Clarkby George ClarkWelcome to a world where monsters are real and the world is in despair. The second feature film by Michael Matthews is set in a world seven years after an apocalyptic event wiped out 95% …
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As the uncertainty of 2020 continues, there is one thing that we can be certain of, and that’s that we have another Christopher Nolan hit on our hands. A film that has seemingly united the …
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Action/AdventureReviews
Fantasia Film Festival 2020 Review: ‘Crazy Samurai Musashi’
by Sean Coatesby Sean CoatesA renowned philosopher and swordsman of the early Edo period, the life of Miyamoto Musashi has been told onscreen countless times since the late 1920s. Most notably in Hiroshi Inagaki’s Samurai Trilogy, where the legendary …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Samurai Marathon’ Sprints Past the History that Inspired It Towards Something Greater
by Chris Wagerby Chris WagerSamurai Marathon desires to be placed among the ranks of impressive historical Japanese films that have come before it. The filmmakers were inspired by history and took a small moment of Japanese history and wrapped …
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It might sound ridiculous to some, but so be it: VFW was one of my most anticipated films of the year. It started with the premise: a siege-style thriller with a group of aging veterans …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘The Call of the Wild’ Forges Its Own Path in the Current Wave of Remakes
by Kali Tuttleby Kali TuttleI wasn’t planning on seeing The Call of the Wild (2020) this year. Harrison Ford seemed out of place and the CG dog seemed like an abomination. Plus, I’d seen behind-the-scenes shots of Harrison Ford petting a …
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Capitalizing off the CGI technology available to it during this age of digital filmmaking, Jeff Fowler’s Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) could have been a dream come true for younger fans of Sega as well as …
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When I saw Disturbing the Peace on a list of upcoming movies, I thought it was going to be an adaptation of Richard Yates’ titular novel. The ending of the novel was particularly haunting. I always …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘The Gentlemen’ is a Disposable, Yet Welcome Return to Guy Ritchie’s Comfort Zone
by Sean Coatesby Sean CoatesGuy Ritchie has had quite an interesting career. Making a name for himself in the late 90s and early 00s with the critical and financial success of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, movie-goers were …
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Action/AdventureReviews
‘Bad Boys for Life’ is the Rare Delayed Sequel that Actually Works
by Nick Kushby Nick KushBad Boys 2 may be the best bad movie ever made. Not in the same sense as ironic classics The Room and Plan 9 from Outer Space, which offer nothing but laughs at pure incompetence and …
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We should bar every critic from calling 1917 a “cinematic achievement”, a “technical achievement”, or any derivation of the two. It’s an overused phrase in film discourse as it is, but 1917 has only made …