Let's Cee a Movie

Silver Lady

A well done horror movie (Massive Spoilers)

The Cycle is another movie that you should really watch before reading this review. It’s about Dr. Megan “Meg” Garland (Deborah Ann Woll), a forensic anthropologist for the Crichton Institute of Science. One day, Chief Ian Marks (Will Hochman) brings her an unusual case. About a month ago, they discovered a crime scene with three dead bodies. One of the bodies was Meg’s father (David Myers Gregory), who stepped out on her and her mother years ago.

Book of Magic

A legacy sequel that’s as good as the original (Spoilers)

As I mentioned in my review of Practical Magic, there’s no mention of a curse that dooms anyone the Owen family of witches fall in love with. However, author Alice Hoffman incorporates that and other elements from the movie into her 2021 sequel, The Book of Magic, which is about breaking the curse. As a result, Practical Magic 2 is one of those sequels that undoes the previous film’s happy ending and snaps everything back to square one.

Going to the Chapel

An entertaining B-movie that could have been better (Massive Spoilers)

Last Chance Motel is about the Last Chance Motel, a middle-of-nowhere desert establishment where guests come to get married, only to wind up brutally murdered. The latest people to fall victim are a couple, Casey (Danielle Harris) and Andi (Scout Taylor-Compton), and their wedding party consisting of Casey’s friends and family. Before the bloodshed begins, this movie does a pretty good job of establishing the group dynamic.

The Labyrinth of the Faun

A fairy tale that holds up 20 years later (spoilers)

Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) is a young girl growing up in 1944. She moves with her pregnant mother, Carmen (Ariadna Gil), to a water mill to live with her stepfather. Captain Vidal (Sergi López) is an officer during Francoist Spain’s fascist regime, trying to stamp out the rebellion. At her new home, Ofelia discovers a faun (Doug Jones) inside a labyrinth, who tells her that she’s the reincarnation of an underworld princess. However, to get back home, she must undergo three trials.

A Case of You

A very different, but still cute adaptation (Spoilers)

Practical Magic, based on the book of the same name by Alice Hoffman, follows the Owens family, a long line of witches dating back to Maria Owens (Caprice Benedetti). Maria also cast a spell to never feel love again, which inadvertently became a curse. That severely impacts the lives of two of her latest descendants, Sally (Sandra Bullock as an adult, Camilla Belle as a child) and Gillian (Nicole Kidman as an adult, Lora Anne Criswell as a child).

Rot Und Schwarz

A disappointing follow-up to a great horror hybrid (Spoilers)

Onslaught is about three super soldiers escaping from captivity and attacking the residents of a trailer park. It hails from writer Simon Barrett and director Adam Wingard, who previously made The Guest, which is about a renegade super soldier. After playing coy, Wingard did confirm that Onslaught is a stealth sequel to The Guest. Or as much of a stealth sequel as it could be when everyone immediately said, ‘this totally takes place in the same universe as The Guest.’

Mean Girls Duet

The original is so fetch while the musical is pretty good too (Spoilers)

Mean Girls is a 2004 cult classic that’s based on the non-fiction book Queen Bees and Wannabes by Rosalind Wiseman. The screenplay was written by Tina Fey, who also played the supporting character Ms. Norbury. Since then, the film was adapted into a musical in 2017, which was also adapted into a film in 2024. The latter is an adaptation of an adaptation of an adaptation (try and say that five times fast).

Masquerade

A great genre blend with strong lead performances (Spoilers)

Anna Peterson (Maika Monroe) is a young woman whose family is reeling from the death of her older brother, Caleb (Chris Harding). Her parents, Spencer (Leland Orser) and Laura (Sheila Kelley), invite a handsome stranger to stay with them. The guest (Dan Stevens) introduces himself as David Collins and says he served with Caleb, promising him that he would look after the family. However, it isn’t long before Anna realizes that he’s not who he says he is.

RE Fury Road

A film that captures the vibe of the games (Spoilers)

Bryan (Austin Abrams) is a medical courier who’s offered a last-minute opportunity to deliver a mysterious package to Raccoon City General. Bryan agrees after he’s promised double pay, though avoiding a serious, face-to-face conversation with his pregnant girlfriend, Michelle (Sara Paxton), is implied to be another factor. However, the latter becomes the least of his concerns when he encounters the walking dead (NSFW).

Your New Friend Until The End

A wild ride that’s funny and disturbing (spoilers)

Buddy the Unicorn (Keegan-Michael Key, Sergey Zhuravsky) is the star of It’s Buddy!, a children’s show best described as if Barney the Dinosaur lived at Pee-wee’s Playhouse. One of the kids on the show is Freddy (Delaney Quinn), who’s the first to pick up on that Buddy, to quote Toy Story 3, “may seem plush and huggable on the outside, but inside, he’s a monster.” Soon, the other kids realize it as well, leading to an escape attempt.