Ghost Stories (2018)

A paranormal "debunker" is challenged to explain away three cases that undid a well-known skeptic predecessor. Though it's got all the goods: great production values, solid acting, and some decent scares, I had this nagging in the back of my mind that I was being had.

And -- yeah, I was. But it was clever enough of a twist ending that I wasn't mad about it.

B

A Star Is Born (2018)

I've (literally) seen this story before. While it's probably the best iteration, there's very little new here. Still, Cooper is great and Gaga is fine -- though not, in my opinion, best actress nominee fine.

B-

The Firm (1993)

Cruise is recruited fresh out of law school with an almost-too-good-to-be-true offer from a prestigious, but small, firm.... and you know what they say about things that seem too good to be true. So, the firm turns out to be a bunch of mob lawyers and any associate who tries to spill to the feds gets whacked.

I saw this 25 years ago, when it first came out, and it holds up pretty well. I still think the movie's plan to stay alive at the end is better than the book's. Holly Hunter pretty much steals the show with a nice assist from Gary Busey (before he turned into GARY BUSEY).

B+

Personal Shopper (2017)

My guess was that this movie concerned a millennial picking out stuff for rich clients to wear and then she... steals from them? Or something? So, it was a really nice surprise to find out that I was way off the mark. Maureen is, indeed, a personal shopper living in Paris -- a city she refuses to leave until her brother -- who died in Paris -- lets her know it's OK.

This movie truly defies categorization. The tension was palpable -- as was Maureen's annoyance with her meaningless job and deep grief over the loss of her brother. I was all in from the very first scene.

A-

Muriel's Wedding (1995)

When Muriel is dumped by her friend-group for not being cool enough, she follows them to their island girls-getaway vacation. What could have been a terribly cringey time for Muriel turns out to be the best days of her life so far because she runs into Rhonda, an old acquaintance, who immediately has her back. With the support of her new bestie, Muriel reinvents herself.

There's so much going on in this movie and all of it is amazing. There's the incredibly sad thread of her mother's despair, the exhilaration of her new life, the tragedy of Rhonda's illness, and the wtf of Muriel's whirlwind wedding.

This was our fourth or fifth viewing and it never disappoints. We've been quoting its dialogue for 2 dozen years and I doubt we'll ever stop. It'll always be a favorite.

A

Love, Simon (2018)

When ads for this first came out I thought that the subject made this a bit of a johnny-come-lately to the "shhh I'm gay" genre. It felt a little old-school for teens to be keeping that secret from their friends. But, surprisingly, the movie changed my mind. I hadn't considered the every day assumptions that families and friends make and their effect on a child's psyche. Why did I imagine that, just because the gay community is more visible now, everyone would feel emboldened to live their truth?

So, Simon's gay and strikes up a correspondence with another "hiding in plain site" gay guy at his school. The entire movie is, basically, him trying to find out who his secret pen-pal is. It makes for a surprising sweet story with actual real-feeling ramifications.

B

Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)

This is a bona fide crowd-pleaser. I know this because the capacity audience with whom I saw this movie applauded at the end of it. But, with a near shot-for-shot remake of Queen's 1985 Live Aid performance -- handled beautifully -- it would've been pretty stingy not to applaud.

Rami Malek acquits himself admirably in the challenging role of Mercury. The casting was pretty solid all around, actually. And, while the movie was enjoyable, the obvious story tweaks aggravated more than they added. Making Mercury the only "wild child" of the group while the rest are portrayed as "to bed early" family men was ridiculous, as was the jam-packed concert day in which he visited his family to make sure they're proud of him AND tracked down a missed-connection hottie on his way to the stadium.

Even with its problems, it'd be pretty hard not to have a good time watching this.

B+

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

Excepting Branagh's ridiculous moustache, the film looked amazing. But it was, in all other respects, a disappointment.

If you wanna see Poirot (and even this story) done right, check out David Suchet's perfect portrayal.

C

Who is Cletis Tout? (2002)

Movie-buff hitman tracks down his mark, Cletis Tout, only to have the guy insist that he is not actually Tout. The hitman is intrigued by this and offers the guy a chance to tell his story (as in a movie pitch) to save his life. The story involves a diamond heist, a prison escape, a dramatic death, assumed identities, a long-lost daughter... In short, it's a helluva pitch.

I found this to be pretty fun -- kind of in the vein of Hudson Hawk. The biggest problem was in the casting of the hitman. Tim Allen does not make for a convincing heavy.

B