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Put The Angry Birds Movie 2 into the basket of sequels that no one was asking for. Three years ago, it made (business) sense to release The Angry Birds Movie. That film helped boost the Angry Birds brand, which had already infiltrated almost e...

Arena is one of those movies where there’s a strong temptation to assign a one-star rating (or less). Indeed, based on “traditional” reviewing metrics, this 1989 sci-fi throwaway is undeserving of any degree of respect. The story is a hodgep...

It's amazing how a lifeless, pointless remake can provoke pangs of nostalgia about a mediocre movie. Such is the case with Arthur. The kindest thoughts I have ever experienced about the 1981 original occurred while I was watching Russell Brand and...

When it comes to Christmas movies, although most are quickly forgotten, a select few go on to become touchstones, beloved and re-watched by families year after year after year. Arthur Christmas may have what it takes to join the latter category. Wi...

When Mike Myers and Jay Roach introduced the world to Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery in 1997, their intention was to make a one-off spoof of James Bond movies and '60s culture. The movie did okay at the box office, then exploded in po...

Through the years, there have been many big-screen attempts to satirize James Bond, from the terrible misfire Casino Royale to the recent, even-worse Spy Hard. In between, even the "official" Bond series got in on the act -- during the Roger Moore...

Two elements comprise a comedy: content and composition. The first relates to what the joke is about; the second refers to how the joke is told. Good humor can be ruined by bad composition - think of someone who tells a "funny story" but messes up ...

For Rodney Dangerfield, the stand-up comedian whose catchphrase was “I don’t get no respect,” Back to School provided an opportunity to get more than his share of praise and adulation. The crowd-pleasing comedy grossed $91M, making it th...

Has the passage of 18 years and the removal of Michael Bay from the director’s chair revived or redeemed the roadkill represented by the previous Bad Boys sequel? To a certain extent, yes, but only when one considers that the third installme...

When artistic and marketing impulses collide, you end up with an unwieldy title like Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans. Director Werner Herzog's preferred name, Port of Call New Orleans, was deemed unsuitable by producer Edward R. Pressman,...