Special: Da 5 Bloods, Fantasy Island, Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made Mini-Reviews

Da 5 Bloods:

Synopsis: From Academy Award Winner Spike Lee comes a New Joint: the story of four African-American Vets -- Paul (Delroy Lindo), Otis (Clarke Peters), Eddie (Norm Lewis), and Melvin (Isiah Whitlock, Jr.) -- who return to Vietnam. Searching for the remains of their fallen Squad Leader (Chadwick Boseman) and the promise of buried treasure, our heroes, joined by Paul's concerned son (Jonathan Majors), battle forces of Man and Nature -- while confronted by the lasting ravages of The Immorality of The Vietnam War.

My thoughts: Delroy Lindo puts on a tour de force acting clinic in this Spike Lee joint. Lee is continuing his hot streak proving he's left Oldboy well in the past. The world may not have known a few months ago that we needed this movie but Lee certainly did. It runs longer than it needed to be and was slightly uneven but that can also be said about war itself.

Final verdict: 4 gold bars out of 5.

Fantasy Island:

Synopsis: In Blumhouse's new spin on Fantasy Island, the enigmatic Mr. Roarke makes the secret dreams of his lucky guests come true at a luxurious but remote tropical resort. But when the fantasies turn into nightmares, the guests have to solve the island's mystery in order to escape with their lives.

My thoughts: I watched the unrated cut so I can't speak to people's complaints about the film being toned down. I will say that given the Blumhouse advert and the name dropping of Halloween and Get Out you expect horror. And yes I know they only do horror's but it's their bread and butter. That being said this is an action thriller with some gore elements (reminded me of the Death Wish remake). The twists kept it interesting when the characters could not (despite me generally enjoying the majority of the actors). It's certainly no 7% movie, but it's not a must watch either.

Final verdict: 3 fantasies out of 5.

Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made:

Synopsis: Based on the best-selling book, "Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made" follows the hilarious exploits of Timmy Failure, a quirky, deadpan 5th grader from Portland who, along with a 1,500-pound polar bear named Total, operates Total Failure Inc., a detective agency. Somewhat of an outsider at his elementary school, Timmy is clueless but confident and wants to see his detective agency become the best in the world. But first he must navigate the world of adults around him, including his overburdened mother Patty, her well-meaning boyfriend Crispin, his teacher and nemesis Mr. Crocus, and Mr. Jenkins, a school-mandated guidance counselor, and figure out what it means to be normal when you know deep down inside you're different.

My thoughts: Tom McCarthy followed up an Oscar winning film with a Disney+ original kids movie, but a good one at that. Timmy Failure is charming and filled with a number of quirky jokes. That being said they could've done more with the plot to avoid falling into mundane territory.

Final verdict: 3.5 Segways 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.