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.

In this neo-noir set at a California high school, loner Joseph Gordon-Levitt battles against school’s drug ring to investigate the details of his ex-girlfriend’s disappearance. It contains many of the expected noir features: jazzy soundtrack, femme fatales, lost blondes, slow moving fans, and the detective being knocked out multiple times. it also includes quite a convoluted plot with bread crumbs being thrown left and right that don’t always lead straight to the conclusion. I probably would have liked this a lot more if I hadn’t watched The Kid Detective fairly recently. That film handled shifts in tone infinitely better and the teenagers seemed more realistic which gave me greater entertainment value.    

A band of mercenaries, led by Rod Taylor and his friend Jim Brown, are hired by Congolese President Calvin Lockhart to ostensibly rescue Europeans from an isolated mining town, but in actuality to recover $50 million worth of diamonds from the town’s vault. It may or may not be an accurate portrayal of political struggles in the heart of Africa post-colonialization, but it certainly is a violent one, including scenes of children being murdered, rape, and an iconic chainsaw battle. There is only the slightest pretense that the mission isn’t completely about war profiteering nor much concern about the growing body count toward its completion.