“I Feel Pretty” (Comedy: 1 hour, 50 minutes)

Starring: Amy Schumer, Michelle Williams, Emily Ratajkowski, Lauren Hutton and Rory Scovel

Directors: Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein

Rated: PG-13 (Sexual content, nudity and strong language)

 

Movie Review: Amy Schumer is superior as a comedic, natural woman. She creates laughs by representing herself, extra weight and all. She dazzles as the everyday woman in an inspiring role.

Schumer is Renee Bennett. She works in the internet department for the chic Lilly LeClaire. Bennett aspires to be more. After she suffers a head injury, she awakes seeing herself as the most beautiful person in the world, although her appearance is the same. Her new outlook gives her great confidence and emboldens a fierce new woman.

“I Feel Pretty” is an enjoyable movie on multiple levels. It is a comedy, romance and a contemporary commentary on women’s beauty.

The movie inspires laughs. Schumer is funny. She carries this movie in a manner similar to comics of yesteryear, such as Lucille Ball and Carol Burnett. The humor is decent without wallowing in the filthy comedy done by most modern screenplays.

The movie is also a romance, albeit partially formulaic. Schumer and Rory Scovel, who plays the geeky boyfriend, are a gratifying duo. Their portrayals are not the typical romance, but their onscreen coupling is a natural one. That makes it more personable than some of the contrived couplings in other relationship films.

Also, the movie has a good message. No matter one’s appearance, every person must find his or her own beauty. In this case, this movie puts emphasis on how women should acknowledge this message. Even when the story has its typical moments, the message and the comedy are good.

Grade: B (It is pretty funny.)

 

“Rampage” (Action/Science-Fiction: 1 hour, 42 minutes)

Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Naomie Harris, Malin Akerman and Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Director: Brad Peyton

Rated: PG-13 (Violence, action and destruction, brief language and crude gestures)

Movie Review: This is another science-fiction movie that without the stardom of Dwayne Johnson would go straight to cable television.

The action sequences may be entertaining but the script is a farfetched action piece with dubious science. Even more, Johnson overdoes the machoism.

Johnson Dwayne — again — plays a muscle-bound protagonist with exaggerated masculine quips. This outing, he is Davis Okoye, a San Diego zoo primatologist. He also has a Special Forces background because those two fields fit each other obviously.

His best friend is George, an albino silverback gorilla. When George, a wolf and a crocodile become infected with a pathogen from Engyne Corporation, the three animals become destructive giants.

Okoye, Dr. Kate Caldwell (Harris), a genetic engineer and former Engyne employee, and Agent Harvey Russell (Morgan) of the United States government form a team to stop the giant monstrous animals from destroying Chicago.

Brad Peyton and Johnson previously worked together on 2015’s “San Andreas” (2015) and “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island” (2012). Their ventures are lackluster movies that usually portray tons of destruction to some city. This time Chicago is demolished.

During the destruction of Chicago by the three giant mutated animals, Johnson runs and fights aside the beasts as if he is their size. This takes machoism to a whole new level, yet such masculinity does not help make this script appear even a bit more realistic.

This is a popcorn flick. You know exactly the entertainment in store. It is energetic and boasts some nice visual effects scenes. However, “Rampage” fits its destructive title. It is a clichéd mixture of King Kong meets Godzilla meets The Rock.

Grade: C (This rampage is a straight-to-television-type script.)

 

“Sgt. Stubby: An American Hero” (Animation/Historical: 1 hour, 25 minutes)

Starring: Logan Lerman, Helena Bonham Carter and Gérard Depardieu

Director: Richard Lanni

Rated: PG (Violence and thematic elements)

Movie Review: Animation is the best, easiest manner to capture the story about a dog during World War I. Writer Richard Lanni directs. He is no stranger to war movies. He directed and the wrote the screenplay for the World War II documentary “The Americans in the Bulge” (2010).

Stubby, a stray dog, befriends Robert Conroy (voiced by Lerman). The two Americans soon find themselves soldiers in France fighting in World War I. The man and dog become a good team. However, Stubby becomes the hero, rising to the rank of sergeant.

History labels Stubby as the most decorated dog in American history. The movie details why. Sgt. Stubby was a brave dog and saved many lives. The movie pinpoints the dog’s most pressing noble moments. The script stays simple, brushing over Stubby’s life in a brief manner.

The story is a nice family tale. Although it climbs to entertaining heights, it never peeks as a war movie. Still, Stubby is a nice tale; it works well enough to satisfy and inspire audiences.

Grade: B- (Stubby is heroic.)

 

“Truth or Dare” (Horror: 1 hour, 40 minutes)

Starring: Lucy Hale, Tyler Posey, Violett Beane

Director: Jeff Wadlow

Rated: PG-13 (Violence, some sexuality, strong language and thematic material)

Movie Review: “Truth or Dare” is a very lackluster, conventional horror flick. The thrills are cheap, rendering it not scary. Its slick advertising is better than this formulaic movie.

Seven friends are on vacation in Mexico when they are convinced to play a game of truth or dare inside of an old monastery. Little do the friends know, they are entering a pact with an ancient trickster demon. If the friends refuse to play, they die. While playing the game, they cannot tell a lie or refuse a dare, or they will die.

It is an elementary game, where the players are clueless. They worry about petty concepts while a demon is trying to kill them. One would think death was more important that who is in love with whom. These people treat the situation as if they are tormented by a demon on a daily basis, no big deal apparently.

Grade: C (Truth: It is not worth the dare.)

 

“Isle of Dogs” (Animation/Adventure/Comedy: 1 hour, 41 minutes)

Starring: Bryan Cranston, Liev Schreiber, Koyu Rankin, Edward Norton, Courtney B. Vance and Bill Murray

Director: Wes Anderson

Rated: PG-13 (Thematic elements and violent images)

Movie Review: “Isle of Dogs” is director Wes Anderson’s ninth full-length photoplay. It is his second stop-motion animation movie. The latest artistic endeavor is a humorous adventure. It takes audiences on an entertaining view of life through the eyes of dogs and a boy determined to find his protective pet.

A mayoral executive decree exiles all canine pets from Megasaki City. The dogs’ new home is Trash Island, a large garbage dump. Twelve-year-old Atari Kobayashi (Koyu Rankin) travels to Trash Island in a miniature Junior-Turbo Prop in search of his bodyguard dog, Spots (Schreiber). There, Kobayashi and five crossbreed dogs led by Chief (Cranston) begin a noble quest to reunite with Spots.

Wesley Wales Anderson is a talented man. He acts, directs, produces and writes screenplays. His movies are known for their artistic flair, distinctive narratives and visually expressive. “Isle of Dogs” follows the same tradition and boasts a humorously engaging adventure.

A larger cast lends voices in an entertaining manner. They are riveting as their animated characters. All make a swell team. Cranston and Rankin are especially keen.

The characters’ story is good, and their lines are topnotch. The written material is more than just a boy looking for a dog. The script contains witty humor that inspires as much as it entertains despite some portions of the story being overly farfetched.

Although numerous lines are not in English, a translation is not necessary. The characters actions are plentiful enough to deliver what is required, the message of friendship.

Grade: B+ (Visit this isle of adventure soon.)

 

“Beirut” (Thriller: 1 hour, 49 minutes)

Starring: Jon Hamm, Rosamund Pike, Dean Norris and Mark Pellegrino

Director: Brad Anderson

Rated: PG-13 (Violence, strong language and brief nude image)

Movie Review: Beirut is the capital city of Lebanon, and serves as the setting for this intriguing espionage thriller. Hamm and Pike are engaging, and this story gives him a chance to shine. “Beirut” is a crafty production directed by Brad Anderson (“The Machinist,” 2004).

In 1982 Beirut, weeks before the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, Mason Skiles (Hamm), a former U.S. diplomat, returns to service to save a friend and former colleague Cal Riley (Pellegrino) from the terrorist group that killed Skiles’ wife.

Skiles has the aid of several operatives, including Sandy Crowder (Pike), a CIA field agent undercover at the American embassy. Her task is to safeguard and direct Skiles’ mission during a Lebanese civil war. However, Skiles has a motive for placing himself in the middle of danger that may be lead to adverse results.

“Beirut” is a savvy photoplay. It keeps its story dramatic in a tangible manner that makes it feel like a historical account, making its characters worth following.

Hamm and Pike are a good team. Hamm is especially sound here. He makes his role one of grief and triumphs through revelation. Hamm makes this a natural transference to audiences. His scenes with a talented Pike are fascinating, especially considering her character has a duty to guard Hamm’s Skiles while having loyalties elsewhere.

The script involves a corrupt government official that is cliché. This part of the movie is unneeded. It pushes the screenplay to typical scenes that detract. Also, some scenes involve character actions that are baffling, but otherwise, the rest is sound material that easily gets one’s attention.

The thriller is a sound piece about life in a war-torn country during the 1980s. The movie nicely uses its setting to create something gratifyingly appealing. Espionage, terrorism and governmental motives collide to provide a good narrative penned by writer Tony Gilroy (“Dolores Claiborne,” 1995; “Michael Clayton,” 2007).

Grade: B (A good movie set in a country’s disastrous period.)

*Playing in larger cities

 

“Super Troopers 2” (Comedy: 1 hour, 40 minutes)

Starring: Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan and Rob Lowe

Director: Jay Chandrasekhar

Rated: R (Violence, profanity, drug use, graphic nudity, sexual content)

 

Movie Review: A sequel to “Super Troopers” (2001), also directed Jay Chandrasekhar, is silly, with only a few intelligently planned laughs. Like many American comedies, mindless behavior rules.

This is the case with “Super Troopers 2.”

During a border dispute between the United States and Canada, five Vermont state troopers, who are inept law enforcers and avid pranksters, have the job of establishing a highway patrol station in the disputed area.

When a serious crime happens, the troopers must solve it, while trying to outdo their Canadian counterparts.

The jokes are lame at this comedy’s beginning. They create deadpanned moments that are unintended comedic errors. The plot takes an hour to get somewhere remotely worthy. These lackluster elements would explain why the movie needed a crowdfunded movie campaign.

The movie is for diehard fans of the comedy series. Others should note the shenanigans as old material with some new bits thrown in for creativity. Intellectual creativity is lacking. Adult characters behave like children. Again, their farfetched pranks are not humorous; they are just plain silly.

Grade: D+ (Nothing super here to see, move along.)

“Traffik” (Drama/Thriller: 1 hour, 36 minutes)

Starring: Paula Patton, Omar Epps, Missi Pyle and Luke Goss

Director: Deon Taylor

Rated: PG-13 (Violence, profanity and thematic elements)

 

Movie Review: Sadly, millions of people are treated as slaves each year. Women and girls make up the bulk of these. Most of those women are involved in human trafficking, mainly sex rings. This is the message of “Traffik.” The message is worth relaying, but this narrative does not help that important message.

Journalist Brea (Patton) and John (Epps) plan a romantic weekend getaway to a nice mansion in an isolated mountainous area. Unexpectedly, two friends, couple Darren (Laz Alonso) and Malia (Roselyn Sanchez), join them. Romantic and restful plans go awry when a violent gang led by Red (Goss) arrives wanting something the couples have.

The message takes a backseat to the thriller components of the movie. The violent parts of the movie are typical of poorly scripted, formulaic scenes. The characters’ actions are stupid and a major plot twist is over the top. Even more, the runtime is too short to get to know the characters.

This is a sham. Producer and actress Paula Patton is a beautiful woman. She tries, but she is not convincing as the lead. As Patton was his boss, Director Deon Taylor (“Supremacy,” 2014) could not relay that to her.

Grade: D+ (Message trafficked by lesser thrills.)