Female Film Critics 24/375
How many ways can a critic warn: “This picture is absolutely awful?” Ill-conceived and ineptly scripted, this re-imagining of Warren Adler’s 1981 novel The War of the Roses and the 1989 Michael Douglas/Kathleen Turner relationship comedy of the same name, is not technically a ‘remake’ because so many of the erratic plot points are different.
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According to legend, when his home planet of Krypton was about to explode, baby Kal-El’s parents placed him in a space capsule headed for Earth. But what no one realized until now is that, just before blast-off, Kal-El’s beloved puppy, Krypto, jumped into the capsule too. Written by director Jared Stern (LEGO animated films) with John Whittington, this animated comic-book feature is loosely based on DC’s “Legion of Super-Pets,” which first appeared in 1962’s “Adventure Comics #293.” It’s loaded with laughs, imaginative jokes and a heartfelt life lesson about the value of friendship – and it sets up a sequel.
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Stories about stand-offish/lonely/workaholic adults being transformed by their relationship with precocious/charming/offbeat kids aren’t hard to find in Hollywood, but — until Family — none have hinged on the transformative power of acceptance by the Juggalos. And that helps make Laura Steinel’s quirky, poignant comedy about a reluctant aunt and her awkward niece stand out from the crowd.
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this comedy gets Orange Is the New Black’s Taylor Schilling out of her prison garb and into a millennial power-suit as Kate, a tactless working gal trying to climb the ladder of success at her hedge fund job while lacking any kind of filter when spewing demands and insults at her co-workers. She is nothing but scathingly honest. Suddenly, she is recruited by her estranged brother to be a caretaker for her awkward tween niece, Maddie (Bryn Vale), who is bullied in school, sneaks out of ballet class to take martial arts lessons instead and likes to eat salt off of pretzel sticks.
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I really enjoy supporting women writers/directors, which is perhaps why I was a bit disappointed by Susanna Fogel’s buddy-comedy caper which, unfortunately, wastes the prodigious talent of SNL’s Kate McKinnon. In the midst of a shootout at an open air market in Vilnius, Lithuania, halfway across the world in Los Angeles, Audrey (Mila Kunis) is celebrating her 30th birthday, having just been dumped – via text – by one of the gunmen, Drew (Justin Theroux). He’s a C.I.A. agent and he doesn’t want to place Audrey in danger.
Read moreOpening July 16, AWFJ’s Movie of the Week is Ghostbusters, the hotly-awaited new all-female reboot of the beloved sci-fi franchise from director Paul Feig (Bridesmaids, The Heat, Spy) which stars Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones as the quartet of spook swatters.
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