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A classic slasher movie gets a modern day reboot almost three decades after the original Candyman was released. Like the original this incarnation is also based on the short story by British playwright, Clive Barker.

Director Nia DaCosta, who co-wrote the flick with Jordan Peele (who also produced it) is trying to give it a sense of being rooted more in reality than the original movie, according to its creators.

In the centre we find a struggling artist who decides to explore a myth about the Chicago location where his studio is located and unknowingly to him unleashes a pandora’s box of violence, which puts him on a collision course with destiny.

The uniqueness of Candman is that it was written in a way not to fall into the usual pitfalls of horror flick formulas. It also attempts to make us believe that it is not setting up a new franchise, although this might be deceiving, as every Hollywood studio wants a movie to be lucky enough to create endless sequels to any movie they produce.

Candyman is DaCosta second feature as a director. From one side a follow up to her award winning, Little Woods, and from the other side just a minute before she is going to become a Hollywood mega director, following the release of her next movie, The Marvels, the much anticipated sequel to Captain Marvel. This movie still has the exciting feel of what you would expect of a sophomore director.

This is a definitely a movie that you can tell is masqueraded as a horror flick, when it actually is a social satire about society in America at large is a very elegant way. I liked it a lot and give it a THUMBS UP!

We have seen many time machine flicks, yet this one tries to bring a new twist. In Reminiscence, Lisa Joy, aka Mrs. Christopher Nolan, cinematic directorial debut, she brings a story (that she also wrote) of what a journey down memory lane and how it may affect our present.

No-more Mr. Wolverine, Hugh Jackman, goes back to his romantic chops in this sci-fi film noir love story, running a business that sends his customers to their past. His life is turned upside down when a beautiful woman wants his help to help her close some gaps in her past.

Reminiscence does strike a chord regarding nostalgic yearning, as Jackman’s character so wisely says: there is nothing more addictive than the past. And yet although this might come across as a romantic flick, the end turns out to be very disappointing, so be warned.

By the end of “Reminiscence,” you feel like you have watched a bit too much of the inner lives of people to last you for a lifetime. There is nothing wrong with this flick, its writing is almost unpackable with including so many bits and pieces of other genre movies, however at then end of the day it doesn’t really deliver. I’ll give it a Thumbs in the Middle for trying.

In an age where first responders and working-class heroes are the focal point in society, an animated first of popular four-legged hero hits the big screen.

PAW Patrol raised almost a whole generation of kids, since it first premiered in 2013 on Nickelodeon, in it our heroic puppies and their fearless 10-year-old leader have together gone on countless adventures to combat their nemeses to correct the evils in the perfect world those pooches live in.

The filmmakers behind this animated flick, created a beautiful tale of empathy, which retains the look and feel of the TV show. They also made sure none of the pups get president over each other in the spotlight, giving each one its own moment to shine.

This mostly Canadian crew of this production included writer/director, Cal Brunker, writer Bob Barlen, executive producer: Ronnen Harary and British creator, Keith Chapman, who brought those pooches to our lives in the original television series by. The voice actors are joined by a slew of celebrity voices including Dax Shepard, Jimmy Kimmel and Kim Kardashian West.

The PAW Patrol: The Movie is one of those new hybrid releases that bow in theaters at the same day as online on a streaming service, Paramount Plus. I liked this one a lot and give it a THUMBS UP!

Respect begins and ends with Aretha singing in church as it chronicles one of America’s greatest icons of all times from childhood until the end of her life at age of seventy-six in 2018.

The song Respect is one of the all-time greatest anthems ever sung, yet one of the facts we learn during the flick is that Franklin herself didn’t really always live by her own words. We get a glimpse of a very sensitive and unguarded woman, not so much the icon she appeared to be to the world.

Jennifer Hudson who was chosen by Franklin to portray her (and even managed to have some personal meetings with her before she passed). Hudson definitely has the voice to portray Franklin for the over two-and-a-half-hour running time. but is a lot less impressive when it comes to her portraying the character.

The pandemic pushed the release date of Respect by a over a year, which gave the NatGeo’s Cynthia Erivo-starrer, Aretha-focused season of Genius a chance to reach audiences first, despite objections from the Franklin family. Both projects essentially are committed in celebrating Aretha Franklin’s accomplishments but the movie, ironically, is the one which is a bit light on the drama side.

This MGM Picture is the directorial debut for Broadway vet, Liesl Tommy, with a stellar cast that includes Oscar winners Jennifer Hudson and Forest Whitaker, as well as, Marlon Wayans, Audra McDonald and Mary J. Blige. I give it a THUMBS UP nonetheless.

The Suicide Squad is the do-over of the 2016’s mega-hit, Suicide Squad. It is classic comic-book moviemaking, coming from the mind of, sometimes controversial, director, James Gunn, who is considered the blockbuster wonderkid king of Hollywood.

The Suicide Squad gets right into the grunge underworld D.C. Comics origin story and with Gunn, who wrote and directed the flick, creating a splatter of comedy sans sensationalism, with heads and bodies getting splattered all over the place. There are tons of dicey bullets, lots of rats, and super powered heroes that aren’t all that powerful. The story is about a desperate crew of criminals attempting to save the world, where life itself is fully disposable.

James Gunn knows how to deliver what the studios expect of him, even with this being a two-hours-and-ten-minutes long flick, and this is exactly why they keep rehiring him, and yes, Disney has already lined him up for the third installment of Guardians of the Galaxy.

Being successful it doesn’t hurt to be next to Executive producers, Zack & Deborah Snyder, by his side and a dream cast that together with Margot Robbie, in this sequel include a very talented group of actors: Idris Elba, John Cena, (the voice of) Sylvester Stallone, Viola Davis and Pete Davidson. I am a bit undecided about this one so give it a THUMBS IN THE MIDDLE!