Action/Adventure Rated PG-13
“Joss Whedon is a small-screen storyteller. And I mean that as a compliment.
“…provides something truly satisfying: a sense of closure.”
“…mostly registers as yet another Marvel punchplosion.”
“…a business play forcing us to make yet another payment on our collective Marvel mortgage.”
“…sometimes feels like the kiddie version of Inglourious Basterds.
Action/Adventure Rated R
This standard shoot-’em-up, in which Vin Diesel plays a DEA agent looking to avenge the murder of his wife, is rife with cliches and incoherent action scenes. It’s a straight-to-video mishap masquerading as a feature film.
Horror Rated PG-13
The Ring left its sequel a great setup, but The Ring Two quickly abandon’s the cursed videotape premise of the original – as well as the true original, Japan’s Ringu – in favor of a demonic possession plot. This time the avenging ghost of the tape tracks down the reporter from the first film (Naomi
A heist movie with heart, thanks to a strong emotional center and an amiable cast. The thieves in this remake – including Mark Wahlberg, Edward Norton and Charlize Theron – banter like the cast of Friends, while their latest job is less about money than avenging the murder of their patriarchal leader. There’s a serviceable
Perhaps because it is the directorial debut of screenwriter Jonathan Hensleigh, The Punisher has just the sort of narrative economy most comic-book movies lack. Thomas Jane plays a FBI agent bent on avenging the murders of his family. It’s a story born of brutality, and the graphic violence grows wearying. Yet the movie offers plenty
Drama Rated R
Narc gets most of its fire from a riveting Ray Liotta. As a hard-core narcotics officer hell-bent on avenging his former partner’s murder, he lumbers through the movie like a bear that everyone else on screen is afraid of rousing. He and Jason Patric, who plays an undercover cop, turn the movie into a tense
