Predator Badlands

Actors: Elle Fanning as Thia/Tessa, Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, Reuben de Jong, Mike Homik

Rating: 9 out of 10, Only Hollywood would try to make one of the 1980s arch villains into a hero. Predators have always had a tinge of respectability because of the warrior ethos and they liked to kill aliens but this was a bona fide attempt to make a movie with one of the predators as the focus point and hero. Somehow it works. Really well. A smallish predator escapes his family, which is trying to kill him for his lack of stature, and tries to prove himself by going after an apex killer on the appropriately named Death Planet. There he runs into a crew of cyborgs, sent from the Weyland-Yutani Corporation (of Aliens infamy) who are after the same creature. Elle Fanning (always good) plays one of the cyborgs cut in half by the creature and teams up with the predator. The interaction between those two is worth the price of admission by itself. You add in the state-of-the-art CGI with non-stop action and you’ve got a pretty good flick. Go figure – rooting for a predator. Loved it.

MVP: Fanning in the dual role of Thia/Tessa, needed comic relief and deadly presence

Avatar Fire and Ash

Actors: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Kate Winslet,

Oona Chaplin, Cliff Curtis, Joel David Moore

Rating: 8 out of 10, The story picks up in the aftermath of the events of the second sequel to this matchless use of CGI. Cameron has created an amazing world that the viewer cannot help but be pulled into and forget that the spectacular views are all computer generated. Jake Sully and his family are still grieving their losses in the prior film with Mrs. Sully particularly and violently upset. It’s a tribute to Zoe Saldana as an actress that her pain and rage come through so clearly despite the computer imaging. Resident bad guy, the Colonel, is back and has hooked up with an equally unbalanced Na’vi lady who leads a tribe bent on killing everybody. I felt a little uncomfortable because I couldn’t help thinking the villainess was kind of hot, despite being eight foot tall and blue. This might be the best of the Avatar movies as Cameron has figured out we need a compelling story as we are now accustomed to the fabulous scenery. While each movie has a similar buildup to a final confrontation, each is eminently watchable. That is certainly the case here with some interesting elements and quandaries inserted. Cameron remains a master movie maker. My only gripe is the obvious setting up for additional sequels. He’s done Avatar, it’s time for him to branch out and break new ground in some other milieu. A truly great movie. MVP: Oona Chaplin sneaky hot as Varang, leader of the warmongering Mangkwan

In the Grey

Actors: Henry Cavill, Jake Gyllenhaal, Eiza Gonzalez, Kristofer Hivju, Fisher Stevens, Rosamund Pike, Carlos Bardem

Rating: 9 out of 10, This is Guy Ritchie’s latest action flick with some of his usual collaborators in Eiza González and Henry Cavill with the welcome addition of Jake Gyllenhaal. Ritchie does action proud each time out and this is no exception. I also liked that Gonzalez isn’t just a pretty face (she certainly still has that going for her) but the mastermind behind a plot to recover a billion dollars from the villain. The villain employs one of the GOT wildings in underused fashion. Cavill and Gyllenhaal share great chemistry as they carry out Gonzalez’ plans. Beautifully shot, I’m surprised I have not heard more about this, a great little movie.

MVP: Gyllenhaal as Bronco, a laid back but deadly operative

Running Man

Actors: Glen Powell, William H. Macy, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, Emilia Jones, Daniel Ezra, Jayme Lawson, Sean Hayes, Colman Domingo, Josh Brolin.

Rating: 8 out of 10, The original Governator film was high camp but they play this newer one closer to a possible reality. That allowed some well thought out satire to inject itself into the plot. Glen Powell, once again, proves decisively that he has graduated from supporting roles. He plays an angry husband/father who enters the game to rescue his family, cue the evil corporation. Instead of a defined game arena, he must navigate through a future society where everyone, including a highly trained team of assassins, is scouring the info-nets to locate and kill him. This was a nice update to the concept and, again, Powell is a super-star on the cusp.

MVP: Powell as Ben Richards effortlessly carrying movie

Weapons

Actors: Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Cary Christopher, Toby Huss, Benedict Wong, Amy Madigan

Rating: 9 out of 10, Weapons is awesome. A spooky premise of 17 elementary school classmates all disappearing on the same night, scarily all running with arms extended behind them towards an unknown location. The director takes an interesting route by exploring the disappearance from the viewpoints of several different characters including the teacher of the class where all but one student disappeared and also the parent of a missing child. The tension slowly builds as we learn more about the situation and it culminates with the final twenty minutes of absolute mayhem as the source of evil is revealed. It was a satisfying climax as all the loose threads were answered in a satisfying manner. There were also some needed light moments; the best being when Josh Brolin wakes from a scary dream and says the line every audience member is thinking. I’m usually not brave enough to see a horror movie by myself (pointed out to me by my son) but I’m glad I did, because Weapons is excellent.

MVP: Madigan as the wholly evil Aunt Gladys

Sisu Road to Revenge

Actors: Jorma Tommila, Richard Brake, Stephen Lang

Rating: 8 out of 10, An excellent follow up to the surprising first film. Our hero, once again, without saying a single word in the movie, plows his way through a horde of enemies trying to kill him. He sneaks into the Soviet Union in 1946 to visit his old homestead where his family was killed. He dismantles the house and attempts to sneak it back into Finland. The Soviets, a bit put out by the more than 300 Soviet soldiers he killed during early WW2, decide to send the man who killed his family after him. Big mistake. Jorma Tommila is truly a force of nature as the Soviets don’t do any better than the Nazis did in the first film. You have to suspend a lot of disbelief to make it work but this is an eminently watchable, non-stop action flick as he wades through the Russians. Stephen Lang is the head bad guy as he seems to have made a career out of scarily competent villains. The cinematography is fantastic as the filmmakers don’t depend, too much, on CGI. A great movie.

MVP: Who else could it be but Tommila reprising his role as Aatami Korpi

Wizard of Oz

Actors: Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr, Billie Burke, Margaret Hamilton

Rating: 7 out of 10, I finally added this to my collection. It is one of the most cherished movie memories of my youngest years. It’s still amazing to see what they were able to accomplish in 1939 in the way of special effects. From Garland's heartrending rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow, to the amazing switch to breathtaking color when they leave Kansas, to the three immortal companions for the trek along the Yellow Brick Road this movie still packs a well-aimed punch to the heart. My favorite character as a young boy was the cowardly lion who I thought was hilarious. Watching as an adult I appreciate all three, especially the scarecrow, hard to look away when these three are on the screen.  In 4K you can see the backdrops were obviously painted but it doesn’t distract from the story. The witch is still scary despite all modern attempts to rehab her image. A fun, nostalgic watch.

MVP: Who else could it be but Judy as Dorothy