Month: April 2022

Roguish impoverished poet Howard Keel accidentally proves himself to be prophetic to the benefit of corrupt Wazir Sebastian Cabot, while his daughter Ann Blythe falls in love with the disguised caliph Vic Damone in this musical filled with mistaken identities and other mishaps. The plot feels like a retread, the songs are unmemorable, and there is an exceptional amount of glaringly white skin for a desert setting, but Keel and Cabot do well in their over-the-top roles. It’s also filmed in my beloved Cinemascope. While they could have gone further in their design, the costumes and settings are delightful and brightly filmed through that medium. 

FBI agent Dennis Quaid is hot on the trail of the serial killer who kidnapped his son. There’s so much of this story that feels familiar that I can’t be 100% certain I haven’t seen it before, but it could easily be that it’s just that trope filled. Quaid isn’t the most inspiring lead, but luckily there’s plenty of interesting characters, including R. Lee Emery and Ted Levine as small town cops and Danny Glover roadtripping with Jared Leto in a pimped-out Cadillac, that the attention doesn’t have to focus solely on Dennis for long.    

For his wedding anniversary with his sight impaired wife Faye Dunaway, Daniel J. Travanti hires his secretary Kim Cattrall’s husband John Laughlin to take the four of them on a pleasure cruise in the Caribbean. In actuality, he’s wanting to search for treasure left many years earlier on an island near Cuba. This is the type of story I really wish would be remade. There’s plenty of alliance switching, unknown connections, and hidden information that gradually gets revealed as the movie progresses. Though it remains an entertaining bit of fluff, everything else about the production sadly fails the potential of the compelling plot.

Middle class virgin Adesua Etomi is set to marry rich, former playboy Banky Wellington, but not without many snafus from meddling parents and former girlfriends to a replaced best man and a party crashing robber. Since the wedding scenes were some of the most memorable in the last Nollywood film I’d seen, I figured I couldn’t go wrong with one completely centered on a Nigerian wedding. The wedding here is indeed lavish (so much color, dancing, and food), but the production values are otherwise a bit lacking. It’s still fun, fluffy entertainment with appealing, though one-dimensional, acting.   

Braggadocious criminologist and writer Joel McCrea is hot on the trail of a jewel thief when his investigation is waylaid by jealous reporters who have played a practical joke on him, utilizing actress Jean Arthur in the process. It’s a convoluted way to get to the theater performance covering a heist trope, but it’s necessary padding for an otherwise weak plot. Arthur isn’t given much of a role, but it is cute seeing her amongst a group of men all a head taller than her.

Golf instructor Kevin Costner leads an aimless existence in west Texas until meeting psychologist Rene Russo, the girlfriend of his former college teammate Don Johnson. Even though golf is one of the most boring activities to watch, Costner is always affable in these sports films. The moral of the film is a bit weird as he seems unable to overcome his worst traits to be successful in the sport. Russo is also, admittedly, a horrible therapist and romance between them doesn’t make sense from the beginning. As Costner’s long-suffering friend, Cheech Marin gives the best performance though the film doesn’t respect him for it. 

When lobbyist Jessica Chastain begins working against the gun lobby, their entire power structure, including United States Senators, comes gunning for her. At its core, it feels a bit like a based on actual events film written by Aaron Sorkin, similar to his and Chastain’s pairing in Molly’s Game. She gives a truly powerhouse performance that controls the entire film and outshines everyone else. Sadly an unnecessary prostitution side plot and a seriously contrived ending ruined too much of my enjoyment of the film.