Author Archives: Dann Gire

Eric (Jason Sudeikis), left, and Mike (Tyler Labine) decide to throw “A Good Old-Fashioned Orgy” for their friends during Labor Day Weekend. Mike, an overgrown frat boy played by Tyler Labine, summarizes this movie best when he shouts, “This is the worst orgy ever!” Contrary to its misleading positive adjective, “A Good Old Fashioned Orgy” […]

Ned is “Our Idiot Brother,” a pleasant and innocuous little comedy with a low-key charm from Paul Rudd. “Our Idiot Brother” is a pleasant, innocuous little comedy given extra bounce and life by Paul Rudd’s charming and fluid performance as an idealistic man whose heart exceeds the size of his brain. The first scene tells […]

In “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark,” Sally (Bailee Madison) takes a bath as ancient creatures assault her. Weirdly enough, the scariest made-for-TV movies ever created come from the 1970s: 1. “The Night Stalker” (1972), with Darren McGavin as a sartorially challenged reporter on the trail of a serial killer he starts to think could […]

The relationship between Emma (Anne Hathaway) and Dexter (Jim Sturgess) changes over time in “One Day.” Maybe it was all more resonant, more poignant on the page: the many highs and lows and major life shifts that occur during the decades-spanning friendship/romance between Emma and Dexter in “One Day.” But here they feel so cursory […]

Jerry the vampire (Colin Farrell) teaches Charley the teenager (Anton Yelchin) a lesson about crucifixes in the horror remake “Fright Night.” Craig Gillespie’s “Fright Night” isn’t just a clever and entertaining remake; it takes the nuts and lightning bolts of Tom Holland’s 1985 comically scary horror film and tweaks them into something fresh and bold. […]

Conan the Cimmerian (Jason Momoa) defends a “pure blood” woman (Rachel Nichols) from assault in Marcus Nispel’s 3-D remake of John Milius’ “Conan the Barbarian.” In the early days of the ancient Hyborian Age, everyone apparently had access to excellent dental care, because the poor peasants in Marcus Nispel’s remake of “Conan the Barbarian” possess […]

Molly (Emma Bell) struggles to survive a horrible bridge collapse in the horror sequel “Final Destination 5.” It’s in 3-D, of course. Fans of the popular “Final Destination” horror films will be thrilled and amazed by the clever ending of the fifth entry in the decade-old series. But first, they’ll have to sit through 90 […]

Chet (Aziz Ansari), left, and Nick (Jesse Eisenberg) plot to steal a car in the shrill action comedy “30 Minutes or Less.” “30 Minutes or Less” might have been a lickety-split action comedy had its running time actually been 30 minutes or less. Ruben Fleischer’s movie runs a scant 83 minutes as it is, and […]

Skeeter (Emma Stone), left, befriends “The Help” — Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer) and Aibileen Clark (Viola Davis) — so she can write an expose on the snooty, racist white women in a Southern town during the Civil Rights era. Set in Mississippi during the violent Civil Rights era, “The Help” uses lots of crisp humor […]

Caesar, a super smart chimpanzee, contemplates stealing a deadly virus in the science-fiction prequel “Rise of the Planet of the Apes.” “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” a thoughtful, action-packed science fiction thriller, works best if you think of it as a prequel to Charlton Heston’s original 1968 “Planet of the Apes,” and not […]