Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom

Actors: Jason Momoa, Patrick Wilson, Amber Heard, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Randall Park, Dolph Lundgren, Temuera Morrison, Martin Short, Nicole Kidman

Rating: 8 out of 10, I know this latest version of Aquaman is not getting a lot of love from the critics which to me means it was probably pretty good. I was right. I truly enjoyed this latest venture into the undersea world which Jason Momoa has made his own. He continues to own the role and injects just the right amount of humor, danger, and recklessness. They brought back Patrick Wilson as his brother and they make solid chemistry with each other. The story moves right along with top notch special effects and a truly crazy final battle. I thought they missed a little by not giving the villain any redeeming qualities but everything was moving so fast that was a minor issue. This is a full-blown superhero epic that got misplaced from summer somehow but it certainly works. Critics wrong again, go figure.

MVP: Momoa effortlessly carries film

Anyone But You

Actors: Sydney Sweeney, Glen Powell, Alexandra Shipp, GaTa, Hadley Robinson, Michelle Hurd, Dermot Mulroney, Darren Barnet, Bryan Brown, Rachel Griffiths

Rating: 7 out of 10, I wasn’t prepared to like this movie as much as I did. I will admit the chance to see Ms. Sweeny in various bikinis did a lot for me but this movie is an equal rights teaser as my wife is now in love with Glen Powell. They both make a hugely attractive couple jumping through the rom-com hoops as required. I laughed a lot more than I thought I would and the setting of Australia was beautifully shot. The two stars meet in a Boston coffee shop (meet cute all the way) and spend a glorious day together only to fall afoul of fate (otherwise, no movie) and end up hating each other. They are thrown together with an invite to the Australian wedding where the predicable happens despite all the roadblocks they as well as their friends and family throw up. It was about an inch deep but a thoroughly enjoyable, harmless romp. The screen credits at the end were absolutely hilarious.

MVP: Sweeny’s bikinis