ReelViews for PG-13 movies

Mama follows an unfortunate recent pattern that has emerged in low-budget horror films, especially those with PG-13 ratings. It starts out strongly, using evocative visuals and an unsettling backstory to establish a creepy tableau, but it proves un...

Mamma Mia! delivers exactly what one can reasonably expect from it. It's a faithful adaptation of the stage play of the same name but, more importantly, it's a repository for ABBA songs - nearly two dozen in total. Considering that the average ru...

Even recognizing that it’s among the most unnecessary sequels ever made and that it exists purely because of how much money the original Mamma Mia made ($144M domestic, $610M worldwide), it’s difficult to hate Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again. I...

I’ve long since given up asking the question “Why?” when it comes to filmmakers turning to foreign language films for the storylines of new English-language films. Sometimes, in fact, the results can be quite satisfactory – take the 2022 r...

Director Patrick Hughes doesn’t have an impressive resume. His comfort zone lies in the realm of action-comedies that aren’t as exciting or as funny as they should be (to wit: The Hitman’s Bodyguard and its lamentable sequel). The Man from To...

17 years ago, the film industry dusted off a popular 1960s spy show, created a bloated, big-screen iteration with stars like Ralph Fiennes, Sean Connery, and Uma Thurman, and watched it implode at the box office. Terrible reviews and public indiffere...

Note: There is a "spoiler" in passing for Star Trek into Darkness. Not a big thing if you've seen the movie (or even if you haven't) but don't say you haven't been warned. I also refer in vague terms to the ending of this film. Khan has returne...

The men in black at Columbia Pictures made the right decision when they elected not to screen Man of the House for critics. The film fails in so many ways that it's impossible to imagine it getting more than a handful of positive reviews; all but ...

Talk about a movie with an identity problem! Man of the Year doesn't know what it wants to be and, because of this indecision calls to mind a well-worn phrase: "Jack of all trades, master of none." The film contains elements of a comedy, a thrille...

Okay, so maybe after seeing Tom Cruise scale the tallest building in the world in Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, 21 stories doesn't seem that high... but it's still a long way down. And I'd be willing to bet Sam Worthington didn't do all his...