film criticism by maryann johanson | handcrafted since 1997
Do you find Channing Tatum dance-grinding appealing? There’s not much of that here. There’s just the tedious grinding of dragging out yet another sequel in the face of diminishing franchise returns.
Plus a snarky heist, a two-century-old energy crisis, and more. (First published August 27th, 2022, on Substack and Patreon.)
Breezy fun that sticks a shiv into Hollywood’s — and the larger culture’s — disdain for women. Wonderfully subtle comic performances from a great cast having a ball make for a perfectly suitable light diversion from the world right now.
A brief rundown of some of the film- and TV-related winners…
As a piece of craft, this is a smack in the face to Hollywood’s bloated blockbusters. As a piece of pulp, it brings a sharp, smart feminist twist to familiar tropes of cinematic paranoia.
Fun enough and diverting enough while you’re in the middle of it, but hints of something much richer and more satisfying dangle just out of its reach.
A cringe-worthy jamboree of dimbulb manflesh that’s even more embarrassing than the first film. If you want a picture of the future, imagine Channing Tatum grinding his crotch in a human face, forever.
Or if, ahem, you have a U.S. IP address. First one’s free, kid…
They’re about to get a lot blander in order to appeal to the burgeoning Chinese market.
The one that comes instantly to mind for me is Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s Eleven…
