The House With A Clock In Its Walls

PG
Starring: Jack Black, Cate Blanchett, Owen Vaccaro, Kyle MacLachlan and Renee Elise Goldsberry
Running Time: 1 Hour and 45 Minutes

This movie is based on John Bellairs 1970's children's book, "The House With The Clock In Its Walls". He has also written many other scary children's books. (I bet if this movie is successful, they will make more of his books into movies too).
When young Lewis Barnavelt (Owen Vaccaro) suddenly finds himself an orphan after a tragic car crash kills both of his parents, he is whisked off on a bus by himself to live with his next of kin. He is sent to live with his fathers brother, Johnathon Barnavelt (Jack Black). Uncle Johnathon is not someone that young Lewis is familiar with. Johnathon's unconventional lifestyle is weird and quirky and he lives in a very old and what seems to be haunted house!
There are all kinds of weird goings on at the house and it makes Lewis very uneasy and just plain scared!
Johnathon has absolutely no idea how to be a parent and allows Lewis to do and eat anything and everything that his heart desires. Johnathon has an unusual friendship with a unique woman named Florence Zimmerman (Cate Blanchett). She is very kind and understanding to the young and bewildered Lewis.
Lewis walks himself off to his new school all alone to register and finds he doesn't really fit in with the student-body. He feels like a misfit both at school and at his new place of residence.
As time goes by he is finding more and more creepy goings on at the house! He finds out that Uncle Johnathon is actually a Warlock and that he performs magic in the house too! A clock is constantly ticking but at night, it gets especially loud and no one can seem to find out where the mystery clock really is.
There are many haunted and magical things going on all of the time!
Lewis grows to like both Uncle Johnathon and Florence. He becomes a little more comfortable in the unusual surroundings and also starts to do better at school.
This movie is an intense movie. It has many scary and unusual special effects. I also thought a lot of it was very clever, especially if your are looking for a new and surprising Halloween movie.
Parents be advised: This movie is only rated PG. I honestly believe it should be rated PG-13. I would not recommend it for children under the age of 13. It has some very intense and dark scary scenes. The special effects are realistic and might be too much for young children! I think it could cause them to be uneasy and have nightmares! There was also some mild profanity and a lot of unnecessary bathroom humor. It kind of has the feel of an old-fashioned horror movie complete with sound effects and organ music. Great for teenagers and adults alike. .
I am giving "The House With A  Clock In Its Walls" two and a half bags of popcorn.

Crazy Rich Asians

 PG-13
Starring: Constance  Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Gemma Chan, Awkwafina and Ken Jeong
Running Time: 2 Hours

Based on the popular 2013 novel by Kevin Kwan and the first film by a major Hollywood Studio to feature a majority Asian American cast since "The Joy Luck Club" in 1993.
What a fun, happy and pleasant surprise this movie is!
 Rachel (Constance Wu), a wonderful young woman  meets the dreamy young man Nick (Henry Golding) in New York, and they start up a romantic relationship.
When Nick needs to go home to his native Singapore to attend the wedding of a relative, he invites Rachel to go with him.
When they get on the plane and fly first-class, she becomes a little suspicious. She is suddenly very well aware that Nick is not like an ordinary average young man as his family owns one of the wealthiest real estate companies in Singapore.
Rachel is a little shocked and overwhelmed with all of the action and excitement that Nick's upper-class lifestyle has to offer.
Many young eligible Singaporean women have their sights set on Nick and do not approve of her relationship with him.
Thrust into the middle of Nick's ultra fast-paced life, she is confronted by Nick's very possessive mother, Eleanor Young (Michelle Yeoh). Eleanor makes it very apparent that she does not approve or condone of Rachel, she wants her to leave and go back home to America.
 Rachel is heartbroken and discouraged and decides to leave.
I really enjoyed this movie. It has a bit of a fairy tale feeling to it. A great popcorn escape movie.
The scenery and upscale Singapore lifestyle was very fun and exciting.
Parents be advised: This movie is rated PG-13. I would recommend this movie for children over the age of 12. There is some profanity and adult-themed circumstances. Overall it was fun and refreshing.
I am giving "Crazy Rich Asians" three bags of popcorn.

Christopher Robin

PG Starring: Ewan McGregor, Hayley Atwell, Bronte Carmichael and the voices of: Jim Cummings (Winnie the Pooh/Tigger), Brad Garrett (Eeyore), Nick Mohammed (Piglet), Peter Capaldi (Rabbit), Sophie Okonedo (Kanga), Sara Sheen (Roo), and Toby Jones (Owl)  

Running Time: 1 Hour and 44 Minutes

This movie was so tender and so touching. One of the sweetest movies I have seen for a long time.

Ewan McGregor as Christopher Robin is the perfect fit.

Christopher Robin was a totally different character than I was expecting, a little rough around the edges. As an adult, he had been conditioned to the times and hardships to which he was living in.

When Winnie the Pooh unexpectedly makes an appearance in his life, the important things suddenly start to come into focus for Christopher.

Sweet little Winnie is still very much in love with his old-time pal and thinks things should still be the same as they were many years ago, but they are not. Some precious things in life are so valuable that you should never take them for granted!

This movie was incredible they way they took all of the original "Winnie the Pooh" characters and brought them back to life. How Disney meshed them back into Christopher Robin's current life is magical!

The characters were absolutely adorable, so lovable and believable. 

I absolutely loved this sweet little movie! It was very touching and it will transport you back in time to your childhood when things were more simple, fun and exciting. This movie also deals with some serious adult issues as well.

Parents be advised: This movie is rated PG. It deals with realistic life issues and it is not a fantasy movie. I would not recommend it for children under the age of eight years old. 

I am giving "Christopher Robin" four bags of popcorn.

Incredibles 2

PG
Starring the voices of: Craig T Nelson, Holly Hunter, Samuel L. Jackson, Brad Bird, Bob Odenkirk, Sarah Vowell, Huck Milner, Catherine Keener, Sophia Bush and Isabella Rossellini
Running Time: 1 Hour and 58 Minutes

Fourteen years later... and we have "Incredibles 2". What a great, colorful, exciting, intense and very fun sequel to enjoy with all the members of your family. This story takes place directly after the first one left off. We find The Parr family just living their regular lives outside of doubling as a family with their own superhero powers! Each member has their own unique power.
Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson), Helen Parr/Elastigirl (Holly Hunter), Violet Parr (Sarah Vowell),  Dashiell Parr/Dash (Huck Milner) and Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile) complete this little superhero team. Once an evil attack ensues in their city they jump into action to help out.
Elastigirl is specifically called on to help and leaves her husband Mr. Incredible, to take over the family responsibilities at home. Mr. Incredible finds out that it is more difficult than what he realized and baby Jack/Jack is discovering his own distinct superpower!
Fortunately at the very last and very intense moment, a major catastrophe is averted and
The Incredibles  save the day!
I found this movie suitable for all age groups and even more applicable for children because of the darling children and the baby highlighted in the movie.
This was a really fun and exciting story filled with all kinds of twists and turns.
Pixar did an excellent job again! Remember, Pixar always releases an adorable little short film before the movie. This time it is called "Bao", and it is definitely worth your time to see it!
I am giving "Incredibles 2" four bags of popcorn.

Ocean's 8

PG-13
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Rihanna, Helena Bonham Carter, Sarah Paulson, Awkwafina, Mindy Kaling, Dakota Fanning, Griffin Dunne, Elliott Gould and Richard Armitage
Running Time: 1 Hour and 50 Minutes

After the very successful "Ocean's" movies; "Ocean's Eleven" in 2001, "Ocean's Twelve" in 2004 and "Ocean's Thirteen" in 2007 we have another smooth "Ocean's" movie with an all-female twist!
Sandra Bullock stars as Debbie Ocean, (the sister to Danny Ocean (George Clooney) in the former "Ocean's" movies). Debbie has just recently been released from prison. She has a personal vendetta against Claude Becker (Richard Armitage) her former boyfriend who framed her.
While serving her time she comes up with a detailed genius plan to pull off a $150 million mega-heist during "The New York Metropolitan Museum Of Art" fundraising gala which is the most exclusive party invitation in America! Debbie knows that Claude will be there!
Debbie starts immediately to contact and build her ultimate "dream team" of all women to help her make this heist a reality. She had searched out individuals with special skills or accessibility to complete her brilliant plan!
Lou (Cate Blanchett) Debbie's good friend, Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway) a famous actress, Rose Wall (Helena Bonham Carter) a fashion designer, Amita  (Mindy Kaling) a diamond expert, Nine Ball (Rihanna) a computer hacker, Tammy (Sarah Paulson) a suburban mom who collects stolen goods and Constance (Awkwafina) a professional pickpocket are the women she recruits to make this long awaited plan a reality.
I found this movie to be really entertaining and just all around fun to experience. A great popcorn movie with all the special touches that most women only dream of. High-fashion, beauty, parties, high-society and Diamonds! Lots and lots of gorgeous diamonds, Cartier Diamonds and...
 did I mention Diamonds? It also reminds me a little bit of some of the old "Pink Panther" movies which I loved in my youth!
This is definitely a chick-flick but I really feel men will enjoy it as well.
Parents be advised: This movie is rated PG-13. I think children over the age of ten will be fine with this movie. It deals with adult schemes and crimes to heist millions of dollars from others.I did not find anything really objectionable other than some mild profanity and the f-bomb was dropped one time.
I am giving "Ocean's 8" three and a half bags of popcorn.

Avengers: Infinity War

PG-13
Starring:Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Benedict Cumberbatch, Josh Brolin, Chris Evans, Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hiddleston, Peter Dinklage, Zoe Saldana, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeremy Renner, Paul Rudd, Idris Elba, Dave Bautista, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Anthony Mackie, Tessa Thompson and Angela Bassett
Running Time: 2 Hours and 30 Minutes

This is the big one folks! The 19th movie in The Marvel Universe. The Marvel Cinematic Universe "movie of all movies"!
This is going to be a very brief synopsis from me about this movie.
We critics were asked to keep a lid on the story so that every person can enjoy this movie without spoiling any part of it. We had a strict embargo that we were asked to adhere to.
I have chosen to honor this request to keep it authentic. #Thanosdemandsyoursilence!
I will say that I knew this movie was going to be a bit shocking, I was in no way prepared for all of the carnage that took place!
Thanos (Josh Brolin) is a diabolical super-villain who has just arrived and is on a mission to collect all six of the Infinity Stones, he will stop at nothing to obtain them!
That is all I am going to divulge. I will say that this is a very dramatic and emotional movie.
In light of all the seriousness of it, it was actually pretty humorous as well. I would say that it is the total package. Make sure you stay until all of the credits have finished, there is a very important scene you can't miss!
Parents be advised: This movie is rated PG-13. This is a strong PG-13. Lots and lots of super-villain violence, very intense and some strong profanity too. I would recommend no children under the age of 13.
I am giving "Avengers: Infinity War" four bags of popcorn.

Rampage

PG-13
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Naomi Harris, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Jake Lacy, Malin Ackerman, Joseph Manganiello, P.J. Byrne and Demetrius Grosse
Running Time: 1 Hour and 47 Minutes

In case you you were not aware, the movie "Rampage" is loosely based on the very popular 1986 arcade game by Bally Midway. I will honestly admit that I went into this movie with zero expectations. I found myself immediately drawn in and completely engrossed in this movie! It reminded me of my childhood adventure movies that held my complete interest and kept me on the edge of my seat.
This is the story of a Primatoligist Davis Okoye (Dwayne Johnson) who works closely with primates and has become very close and attached to a silverback gorilla named George, to the point that he can converse with him through sign language. George is a very intelligent and human-like gorilla who has been raised by Davis since birth. The two of them share a very special relationship.
A renegade experiment had taken place by some unethical characters, the experiment went awry and all chaos ensues! A dangerous chemical is released into the atmosphere and it adversely affects the gorilla George, an alligator in the Florida Everglades and a wolf in Wyoming.
 It causes them to become super-sized, get very angry and become extremely violent! The three of them converge on the City of Chicago where a signal is being released and they are drawn to it.
This is where the ultimate showdown takes place!
Like I said in the beginning, this is just an edge of your seat popcorn movie. It really did take me back to my childhood days when I would watch the old "King Kong" movies and be completely captivated.
I actually really did enjoy this action/adventure movie, it was just a fun thrill ride. The special effects were great too.
Parents be advised: This is a PG-13 rated movie. That allows for more flexibility. This movie has a lot of monster type violence. There is a lot of profanity, even the f-bomb is dropped in this movie.
I am giving "Rampage" three and a half bags of popcorn.

Ready Player One

PG-13
Starring: Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Ben Mendelsohn, Lena Waithe, T.J. Miller, Mark Rylance, Win Morisaki and Philip Zhao
Running Time 2 Hours and 33 Minutes

You may not be aware that this movie is based on the 2011 science fiction novel, "Ready Player One" by American author Ernest Cline. And... another dystopian story set in the year 2045.
 I screened this whirlwind movie in 3-D IMAX. I knew it was going to be a super Sci-fi, but nothing could really prepare me for just how much Sci-fi! There seriously are so many things going on in almost every single scene that I found it to be totally overwhelming! On the other hand, the attention to detail was incredible and the computer generated images were very realistic. I loved all of the music they used throughout the movie too. It was a lot of fun. This is definitely entertaining, a serious popcorn movie!
This is the story of a young man named Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan) and his Avatar known as, Parzival. Both of Wade's parents are dead and he lives with his Aunt in Columbus, Ohio. They live in a very dismal and depressing area called "the stacks" where old trailers are piled one on top of the other in a very poverty-stricken neighborhood compliments of too many environmental disasters!
Wade is a super-talented video gamer who uses that talent to escape the reality of his surroundings.
He seeks to go to "The Oasis", a paradisaical dream world where everything is amazing!
The inventor of The Oasis, James Halliday (Mark Rylance) challenges all of his adoring followers to try and solve the mysteries using "Easter eggs" or secret codes to get the magic keys and ultimately win the game and take control of The Oasis. The winner has to find all three magical keys.
 Throw in some evil bad guys who want to take control of everything and you have yourself a very strange and futuristic movie. Steven Spielberg directed this movie and pushed the special effects to the max! He used several different cameos from other famous movies such as, Chuckie, Beetlejuice and a bloody scene from "The Shining" for extra drama. Plus Godzilla and King Kong. There is just so much going on that it is hard to focus on  the actual plot of the movie. Granted, video games are definitely not my thing so I'm seeing this movie from a different perspective. Maybe if I went and saw it again I would understand the plot just that much more, but I really have no desire to see this one again
Parents be advised: This movie is rated PG-13. There is a lot of video game reality, violence and profanity too.
I would not recommend this movie for children under the age of ten.
I am giving "Ready Player One" three bags of popcorn.

A Wrinkle in Time

PG
Starring: Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Chris Pine, Storm Reid, Deric McCabe, Levi Miller, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Zach Galifianakis
Running Time: 2 Hours

I had such high hopes for this movie having been a huge fan of the book in my youth... but, it ended up being a major disappointment to me! I was so excited to see how they were going to tell this unique story and bring it to life on the big screen. There was so much hype and anticipation for this movie that maybe that may have played into my disappointment as well.
I don't feel like they followed the story from the book closely enough to keep it authentic.
The movie takes place four years after the young father in the family Mr. Murry (Chris Pine) some kind of a scientist experimenting in dimensional time-travel, suddenly disappears.
From there his daughter Meg (Storm Reid) is determined to discover what on earth happened to her beloved father and prove that he is still alive. Meg, her six-year old brother Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe) and a close school friend Calvin (Levi Miller) suddenly find themselves in the presence of a unique woman named Mrs.Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon) when all chaos ensues and they are completely confused. They are suddenly whisked off into another dimension to try and find their father. They encounter Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling) and eventually the very calming and reassuring Mrs.Which (Oprah Winfrey).
This movie was so confusing and bewildering that it just left you completely baffled.
There were just too many strange occurrences with such unusual characters that it lost its appeal and draw. I felt like the movie was all over the place with no real direction.
The three Mrs. characters, Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which were some of the strangest and  most misunderstood characters in a movie. They had the weirdest make-up and hair dos ever. I did appreciate the strength in the character of Meg and her determination to not give up on her father. However, there were some really cool scenes with beautiful, bright colors and some stunning special effects.
Parents be aware: This movie is rated PG. There were some intense scenes with some very bizarre looking characters. There was also strange and unusual scenery that young children could find troubling and scary.
I am giving "A Wrinkle in Time" two and a half bags of popcorn.

Black Panther

PG-13
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Lupita Nyong'o, Michael B . Jordan, Angela Bassett, Martin Freeman, Forest Whittaker, Andy Serkis, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke and Sterling K. Brown
Running Time: 2 Hours and 20 Minutes

This is the next installment of the Marvel Universe (18th to be exact).
This is the story of the superhero "T'Challa"aka "Black Panther" (Chadwick Boseman). The film begins where Captain America: Civil War left off. T'Challa goes back to Wakanda in Africa to succeed the throne of his late father and become the King of this incredible little country.
What makes Wakanda so incredible is that it has been blessed with a very special substance there called "Vibranium", which came from a meteorite from deep in outer space... but it has a power all of its own!!!
I loved the introduction to Wakanda. It felt a little "Lion King" to me. I thought the special effects were just breathtaking! The beautiful scenery and the special colors made it spectacular.
The story was not that strong, I felt like T'Challa wasn't so much of a superhero as he was a man trying to be a great King and save his people from an outside threat. I enjoyed "Black Panther", I thought Michael B. Jordan did a great job as Erik Killmonger and I thought it was great to see an almost exclusive African/American cast. I really enjoyed the scenery, the music and the culture.
Parents be advised: there was some fighting and violence and some mild profanity.
I am giving "Black Panther" three bags of popcorn.