Deadly Dreams (1988)
Mar 20, 2009Dream Horrors
A dully directed imitator of A Nightmare on Elm Street, although a series of highly contrived twists eventually reveal that there are no dream horrors after all
Xander Berkeley
Candyman (1992)
Dec 8, 2000Boogey Man/Clive Barker Adaptation
A Clive Barker adaptation capped by a magisterial performance from Tony Todd. This was greeted as a horror masterpiece when it came out and went on to spawn two sequels. Not too bad if it falls short of the classic status
Apollo 13 (1995)
Jul 31, 2000True-Life Space Mission Disaster
Probably the best among Ron Howard's mostly undistinguished films, a dramatisation of the real-life Apollo 13 space mission disaster. Once the film gets the capsule up into orbit, the drama is gripping
Within the Rock (1996)
May 18, 1999Alien Nasty
Low-budget Alien copy directed by makeup effects artist Gary J. Tunnicliffe with a plot that prefigures Armageddon as drillers uncover an alien nasty on an asteroid
Barb Wire (1996)
Nov 21, 2003Anarchic Future/Leather-Clad Bimbo
Enjoyably silly comic-book adaptation with a pneumatically-inflated Pamela Anderson playing the titular bounty hunter in an anarchic future. You cannot complain that this is a film that delivers exactly what it promises
Gattaca (1997)
Aug 9, 1999Genetically-Engineered Dystopia
The first film from Andrew Niccol, a smart work set in a dystopian future where genetic engineering has perfected the human species and those who are born naturally are doomed to an underclass
Universal Soldier: The Return (1999)
Aug 17, 2010Undead Super-Soldiers/Action
Sequel to Roland Emmerich's Universal Soldier, this brings back Jean-Claude Van Damme but otherwise substitutes a brain dead plot that has him facing an evil A.I.
Repo Chick (2009)
Dec 31, 2009Repo Man Sequel
Alex Cox sequelizes his off-the-wall cult hit Repo Man but only turns it into an amateurish, meandering effort that is only trying to be wacky and cultish
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009)
Jul 3, 2010Comic-Book Superhero Teamup/Animation
An animated film that seems premised on not much more than bringing various obscure DC Comics characters out of mothballs for one giant-sized punch up
Year One (2009)
Jan 30, 2010Cavemen Stumble Through the Old Testament Comedy
Not very funny comedy from Harold Ramis and Judd Apatow where Jack Black and Michael Cera are cavemen who stumble through many incidents from the Old Testament
Luster (2010)
Jan 22, 2015Man at War With His Split Personality
British director Adam Mason has been a rising name of note in recent years. Here he makes a Jekyll and Hyde story with Andrew Howard as a mild-mannered man at war with his own evil half
Kick-Ass (2010)
Apr 18, 2010Superhero Wannabes
One of several films around the same time about wannabes without powers playing at being superheroes. Matthew Vaughn delivers a film that falls between witty deflation of and a celebration of nerdy fantasy
Son of Batman (2014)
Aug 11, 2014Comic-Book Superhero/Animation
Another of the DC Universe Original Animated Movies, this devoted to the character of Batman's son Damian. Solid action, a well moving plot that makes good use of its characters, adding to a decent entry even if it is not up among the best of these animated DC films
Solace (2015)
Sep 11, 2016Clairvoyance Thriller
This was intriguingly once planned as a Se7en sequel but I felt uninspired as it seems just another clairvoyant murder mystery. On the other hand, it is grippingly well written and has some great performances. With the introduction of a rival clairvoyant halfway through, it however becomes something amazing
Allegiant (2016)
Mar 26, 2016Young Adult Dystopian Future
The Divergent series is a fundamentally implausible scenario for people that think horoscopes are a profound insight into human nature. This is the most interesting of the films and gives us an imaginative future world
The Dark and the Wicked (2020)
Nov 14, 2020Evil Waits to Claim a Dying Man's Soul
Bryan Bertino has become a Must Watch director ever since The Strangers. Here he makes an uncanny slow burn film about a family gathered to tend a dying father as something evil waits to claim his soul