Special: The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On The Run, Body Cam, Capone Mini-Reviews

 The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge On The Run:

Synopsis: After SpongeBob's beloved pet snail Gary is snail-napped, he and Patrick embark on an epic adventure to The Lost City of Atlantic City to bring Gary home.

My thoughts: Definitely stronger than the last full length SpongeBob adventure. Sponge On The Run has a bunch of non-canonical scenes that bothered me, an avid watcher of the early SpongeBob episodes. That bothered me a little but I was mostly able to put it aside as this film uses the "Kamp Koral" first meetings between all the characters is the driver behind the overall message of the film: Friendship. The live action roles of Snoop Dogg, Danny Trejo and Keanu Reeves were most excellent (heh). The soundtrack was also strong, with the highlight being Weezer's Bikini Bottom song which opens the film. The CGI animation took a bit to get used to even though it was partially used in it's predecessor but after a few minutes the minute details stopped bothering you.

Final verdict: 4 fish in the sea out of 5.

Body Cam:

Synopsis: When a routine traffic stop results in the unexplained, grisly death of her colleague, a cop (Mary J. Blige) realizes footage of the incident will play for her eyes only. As the attacks mount, she races to understand the supernatural force behind them.

My thoughts: Firstly I was very surprised when this turned out to be a thriller/horror instead of action. I didn't read anything into it, just went based on the cover of the DVD which lead me to imagine a Black & Blue type movie but with the supernatural horror vibes I definitely got more than I bargained for. They turn the gore up to 11 and tries to add equal scares but it doesn't really land all that often. The cast is strong enough and the story tries to add some racial undertones that (SPOILER) ends up being the driving force behind the action but falls flat and forced early on in it's runtime.

Final verdict: 3 tales of revenge out of 5.

Capone:

Synopsis: Once a ruthless businessman and bootlegger who ruled Chicago with an iron fist, Alfonse Capone was the most infamous and feared gangster of American lore. At the age of 47, following nearly a decade of imprisonment, dementia rots Alfonse's mind and his past becomes present. Harrowing memories of his violent and brutal origins melt into his waking life. As he spends his final year surrounded by family with the FBI lying in wait, this ailing patriarch struggles to place the memory of the location of millions of dollars he hid away on his property.

My thoughts: Tom Hardy excels as a dementia ridden former crime lord... Everything else is a jumbled mess of a film that doesn't surprise anyone it ended up on VOD as soon as COVID closed theatres. The only intriguing part other than Hardy's performance is the action sequence near the end of the movie but it was too little too late to save Capone. 

Final verdict: 2.5 adult diapers out of 5.

Special: It Chapter 2, Dora And The Lost City Of Gold, Men In Black International Mini-Reviews

It: Chapter 2

Synopsis: Evil resurfaces in Derry as director Andy Muschietti reunites the Losers Club in a return to where it all began with "IT Chapter Two," the conclusion to the highest-grossing horror film of all time. Twenty-seven years after the Losers Club defeated Pennywise, he has returned to terrorize the town of Derry once more. Now adults, the Losers have long since gone their separate ways. However, kids are disappearing again, so Mike, the only one of the group to remain in their hometown, calls the others home. Damaged by the experiences of their past, they must each conquer their deepest fears to destroy Pennywise once and for all...putting them directly in the path of the clown that has become deadlier than ever.

My thoughts: It's not nearly as strong as the first, partly because the scares were minimized to (likely) appeal to the surprising number of smaller children that seen the 1st part and although a lot has been made of the length it did not seem long and was expected with them needing to shoehorn time for the younger cast into part 2.

Final verdict: 4 happy dancing clowns out of 5.

Dora And The Lost City Of Gold:

Synopsis: Having spent most of her life exploring the jungle with her parents, nothing could prepare Dora (Isabela Moner) for her most dangerous adventure ever -- High School. Always the explorer, Dora quickly finds herself leading Boots (her best friend, a monkey), Diego (Jeffrey Wahlberg), a mysterious jungle inhabitant (Eugenio Derbez), and a rag tag group of teens on a live-action adventure to save her parents (Eva Longoria, Michael Peña) and solve the impossible mystery behind a lost city of gold.

My thoughts: I never really watched Dora in my life, I was too old when it came out and although I babysat cousins that watched it I wasn't really paying attention. That being said, this was an excellent movie. They kept out the really weird parts of the cartoon that wouldn't work in a live action film but they were still able to give them nods. A tamed down tomb raider with more laughter and even, dare I say, more adventure? Dora is definitely worth your time.

Final verdict: 4.5 poo songs out of 5.

Men In Black International:

Synopsis: The Men in Black have always protected the Earth from the scum of the universe. In this new adventure, they tackle their biggest, most global threat to date: a mole in the Men in Black organization.

My thoughts: As far as Men In Black movies go, this one didn't have the same heart as the others. They had the opportunity to make a good story with Tessa's characters backstory but they never really did anything for it other than giving her a reason to show up. The humour was definitely the scripts focus and it worked but not sure it was worth the downgrade in other departments. Kumail's voicework was more than enough comedy that they didn't need to lead Hemsworth into "funny" territory (with mixed results at that). In the end International is solid but certainly the weakest in the franchise.

Final verdict: 3.5 neuralizers out of 5.

Special: Batman Vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Screwball, See You Yesterday Mini-Reviews

Batman Vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles:

Synopsis: The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles go to Gotham City and discover that the Foot Clan is working with the League of Assassins to reign terror over Gotham. Batman then teams up with the Turtles while investigating to save Gotham from the newfound alliance.

My thoughts: I had previously read the comic book series and worried it would be a near identical adaptation but it was changed enough while keeping the core story in tact that it was enjoyable for me without being too much of a retread. Overall the movie was strong but I wasn't a fan of the animation style so it's hard for me to call this a perfect movie. I will say that DC and Nickelodeon did a great job balancing this flick so it appeals to DCAU fans while still being kid friendly enough for the Nickelodeon fans.

Final verdict: 4 cartoon crossovers out of 5.

Screwball:

Synopsis: Recounting the high-profile doping scandal that rocked Major League Baseball, director Billy Corben (Cocaine Cowboys) takes us into the surreal Miami underworld that provided performance-enhancing drugs to Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez and other star players. They say South Florida is a sunny place for shady people and this is certainly true of steroid peddler Anthony Bosch and his most notorious client, Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees. While Bosch's medical credentials may be lacking, his storytelling skills are first rate as he hilariously details the rise and fall of his "health clinic", including mob connections, financial chicanery, his cocaine habit, and Rodriguez's eccentric behavior. The documentary plays like a madcap Floridian crime comedy in the vein of Elmore Leonard or the Coen Brothers while it raises serious questions about the ethics of professional sports. Powerful interests would be happy to let this story slip from memory, but Screwball makes it unforgettable.

My thoughts: You normally wouldn't rave over the storytelling of a documentary but you have to for Screwball. They have the real life people recounting their stories while children dressed like them act it out. It's a riot. It's compelling and it's incredibly interesting even if you only have passing knowledge of steroids in baseball.

Final verdict: 4 anti-aging clinics out of 5.

See You Yesterday:

Synopsis: High school best friends and science prodigies C.J. and Sebastian spend every spare minute working on their latest homemade invention: backpacks that enable time travel. But when C.J.'s older brother Calvin dies after an encounter with police officers, the young duo decide to put their unfinished tech to use in a desperate bid to save Calvin. From director Stefon Bristol and producer Spike Lee comes See You Yesterday, a sci-fi adventure grounded in familial love, cultural divides and the universal urge to change the wrongs of the past.

My thoughts: A nice modern day time travel tale. I'll be up front in saying sci-fi is not my cup of tea so this was a harder sell but as far as these things go this was fine even if it was a tad predictable the powerfulness of the story made up for that.

Final verdict: 3 time travelling backpacks out of 5.