Reviews

Red One (3 stars out of 4)



As fun as it is to dive into the holiday movie season, it’s easy to feel like you’re just watching the same titles over and over again…and not just because you’ve stumbled onto some 24-hour marathon of “It’s A Wonderful Life” or “A Christmas Story.” There are lots of great Christmas movies out there,

Now that November is here, it’s time for me to start thinking about my 2024 UFCA ballot, and to start catching up on some movies I’ve missed along the way. Over the last few weeks, in addition to covering new releases like “Here” and “Heretic,” I’ve been working through a list of “to watch” titles. Here is my first round

Heretic (2 ½ stars out of 4)



During the two years I spent as a missionary in Northern Illinois, I would occasionally wind up at an appointment where the investigator clearly wasn’t interested in learning about the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. In the best cases, they just wanted to have an intellectual discussion about theology, but often the culprit just

Here (2 1/2 Stars out of 4)



30 years ago, Robert Zemeckis directed Tom Hanks and Robin Wright in “Forrest Gump,” a heartfelt journey through the 2nd half of the 20th century told through the eyes of an eccentric simpleton. “Gump” won Best Picture and Best Actor for Hanks.



Three decades later, Zemeckis is returning to the well in a sense. Not

The Faith of Angels (2 1/2 stars out of 4)



“The Faith of Angels” is based on the true story of a ten-year-old boy who was lost for several days in an abandoned mine outside Tooele, Utah.



Director Garrett Batty’s effort doesn’t spend a lot of time getting off the ground. We are quickly dropped into a church outing with a group

Speak No Evil (2 1/2 stars out of 4)



I like to think of myself as a horror movie fan, and there are plenty of longtime favorite movies that would support that claim. But sometimes I come across a “good” horror movie that is a bit too unsettling to offer a full-throated recommendation, and I’m always left wondering if I’m not

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2 ½ stars out of 4)



Back in 1998, I went to see “Blues Brothers 2000” with tempered excitement. I was genuinely looking forward to the experience, but I knew I should keep my expectations low. There was no chance the film would even approach the grandeur of what had become my favorite movie of all-time, and even more

Deadpool & Wolverine (2 ½ stars out of 4)



The first time I reviewed a Deadpool movie, back in 2018, I found it refreshing—a term that didn’t go over well with my editors at the time. Yes, it was violent and vulgar, but like “Thor: Ragnarok” and the “Guardians of the Galaxy” movies, it provided a much-needed pushback to the relentless

Alien: Romulus (2 ½ stars out of 4)



Like the “Terminator” franchise, “Alien” movies have been trying to recapture their former glory for several decades. In both cases, successful sequels gave filmmakers the idea that their franchises had continuing potential, but as of 2024, it’s hard to argue that any releases after 1986’s “Aliens” or 1991’s “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” have

Sing Sing (3 ½ stars out of 4)



Where most classic prison movies like “The Shawshank Redemption” and “Cool Hand Luke” are focused on a character getting out, “Sing Sing” seems more interested in making the best of things while still behind bars.



Inspired by true events, Greg Kwedar’s film follows an inmate theater group that stages a comedy for their fellow