“The Equalizer 2” (Action/Crime: 2 hours, 1 minutes)

Starring: Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Ashton Sanders and Melissa Leo

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Rated: R (Strong violence, drug content and profanity)

 

Movie Review: Denzel Washington and director Antoine Fuqua made “The Equalizer” (2014) a major hit. They both return for “The Equalizer 2” (2018), which is not as potent as its processor, but it does double down on action this outing.

Robert McCall (Washington) returns to action after two brutes murder his dear friend CIA agent Susan Plummer (Leo) overseas. McCall endeavors to find her killers, helping others along the way.

Washington is superb as always. He plays his character in a quietly strong manner. McCall dispenses justice with extreme prejudice. He does so without cracking jokes or ridiculing his opponents. He simply disables or kills them and moves on to his next project.

His character appears more real than the protagonists who make funny quips during dangerous moments. This also makes his motives and actions more convincing than entertaining.

The sequel is more action-oriented than its prequel. It is an action film with a crime to solve in the background. Additionally, “The Equalizer 2” is not as smartly scripted as its prequel. It becomes a formulaic script about double agents and crime.

Still, it provides solid entertainment for those seeking violent thrills.

Grade: B- (It does not equal up to its predecessor, but it entertains mightily.)

“Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” (Musical: 1 hour, 54 minutes)

Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Lily James, Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan and Cher

Director: Ol Parker

Rated: PG-13 (Suggestive material)

 

Movie Review: The sequel to “Mamma Mia!” (Director Phyllida Lloyd) is grander. It boasts more music, more dancing and more characters. However, it is the backstory within this narrative that is invigorating.

In remembrance of Donna (Streep), her daughter, Sophie (Seyfried), plans the grand opening of a hotel named in her honor. As guests arrive and problems ensue, the movie flashes back to a young rambunctious Donna (James), experiencing the travel and adventures she had leading to her encounters with the three possible dads of Sophie (Amanda Seyfried).

Sophie realizes that a life lived is a life worth risks.

“Here We Go Again” has a few quirks, but it entertains enough to delight audiences expecting something similar from the last “Mamma Mia!”

The best part about this musical, besides the songs and music, is the backstory detailing Donna’s meeting three attractive men and getting pregnant from one of them. This part of the movie steals moments and becomes the musical’s better scenes.

Grade: B- (Mamma Mia! It amuses again.)

“Whitney” (Documentary/Biography: 2 hours)

Director: Kevin Macdonald

Rated: R (Profanity, violence, thematic elements and drug content)

 

Movie Review: Whitney Houston’s life is chronicled in this engaging documentary that covers plenty of the highs and lows of her life as one of the most influential singers of the world.

Although Houston died in 2012, the movie shows that her talent is ever-present. Scottish director Kevin Macdonald (“The Last King of Scotland,” 2006) and his team aggressively push to uncover lesser-known parts of Houston’s life, but they often fail to follow up on revelations.

The documentary delivers some major revelations about Whitney Houston. They introduce viewers to people who were part of her life to corroborate these revelations. They confirm rumors about Houston, but people from the other side are not present for rebuttals or to disprove the claims.

For example, “Whitney” alleges a cousin, who died in 2008, abused the singer. Whitney’s brother, Gary Houston, claims the cousin molested him and his sister. These claims have prompted a mixed response from the Houston and Warrick families, but the movie does not reveal the mixed responses.

The movie also reveals that Whitney had a fluid sexuality. Though she dated men publicly, Bobby Brown, Whitney’s husband of 12 years, is in this documentary, and confirmed her bisexuality in interviews in June 2016. However, Brown does not talk about that or rumors he and her family aided Whitney’s drug abuse and his jealousy of her fame.

Whitney’s brothers, Michael and Gary, indicate they indulged in drugs with Whitney when she was younger, her first foray into what would become an addiction.

The movie opens plenty of surprising elements of the iconic singer’s life, but “Whitney” only scratches the story of who Whitney Houston was. Instead, this movie contextualizes reasons for why this movie designates her as tormented.

Behind that angelic voice, Whitney was smiling for audiences, but her past — relationships that exposed her to a future with no rest from her demons — plagued her. The curse even traveled to her daughter, who died similarly to Whitney on July 26, 2015.

Kevin Macdonald’s style is intriguing and often blunt but his method does not show the full impact of the blows delivered by uncovered information. He delivers an exposé of the good and bad.

Whitney Houston’s life has all the makings of tabloid headlines. She had multiple problems stemming from childhood. In the end, she was misunderstood. Perhaps, the most tragic part is she could not be herself, a person free of her past..

Grade: B+ (Talented woman receives an in-depth biography, her life, the good and bad.)

 

“Unfriend: Dark Web” (Horror: 1 hour, 33 minutes)

Starring: Colin Woodell, Betty Gabriel and Stephanie Nogueras

Director: Stephen Susco

Rated: R (Disturbing violence, language and sexual references)

 

Movie Review: Modern technology meets evil again in this horror that tries to be original but quickly turns into the typical horror. “Unfriend: Dark Web” plays similarly to “Friend Request” (Simon Verhoeven, 2016). This means most of the movie is audiences watching characters watch their computer screens.

Matias O’Brien (Woodell) has possession of a new laptop. He soon discovers some disturbing information on the computer, and the previous owner wants the laptop returned. O’Brien and six of his friends’ lives change when they discover an unknown watcher is observing them all.

For its few smart moments, “Unfriend: Dark Web” quickly knows how to leave friends in the dark. The movie has moments that make little sense, and these moments become more asinine as the story continues. Characters’ actions become less intelligent as this movie continues.

Grade: C- (Unfriend this.)