RETROFILMMAVEN

A dog and his humans in the sentimental canine tale A DOG'S PURPOSE. A devoted dog discovers the meaning of its own existence through the lives of the humans it teaches to laugh and love. *** out of ***** A DOG'S PURPOSE Director: Lasse Hallström Screenplay: W. Bruce Cameron & Cathryn Michon & Audrey Wells & Maya Forbes & Wally Wolodarsky. Based on the novel by W. Bruce Cameron Starring: Josh Gad, Dennis Quaid, Peggy Lipton, K. J. Apa, Britt Robertson, Bryce Gheisar Rated

Milla Jovavich returns as Alice as she and a band of rebels take one last stand in RESIDENT EVIL: THE FINAL CHAPTER. Picking up immediately after the events in RESIDENT EVIL: RETRIBUTION, Alice is the only survivor of what was meant to be humanity's final stand against the undead. Now, she must return to where the nightmare began - The Hive in Raccoon City, where the Umbrella Corporation is gathering its forces for a final strike against the only remaining survivors of the ap

Xander Cage returns and sits down with Xiang and Serena Unger, two members of a group he's been sent to find. After coming out of self-imposed exile, daredevil operative Xander Cage must race against time to recover a sinister weapon known as Pandora's Box, a device which can control any orbiting satellite and bring it crashing down to earth. ***1/2 out of ***** XXX: RETURN OF XANDER CAGE Director: D.J. Caruso Screenplay: Jonathan Penner Based upon "The Bridge to Body Islan

James McAvoy stars in M. Night Shyamalan's SPLIT, a film about a man with multiple personalities. Though Kevin has evidenced 23 personalities to his trusted psychiatrist, Dr. Fletcher, there remains one still submerged who is set to materialize and dominate all of the others. THE SPOILER-FREE REVIEW: THE SPOILER REVIEW: ***1/2 out of ***** SPLIT Director: M. Night Shyamalan Screenplay: M. Night Shyamalan Starring: James McAvoy, Betty Buckley, Anya Taylor-Joy, Haley Lu Richard

Gary Stretch stars as Ivan, a man targeted by a hate-filled and vengeful son in MY FATHER, DIE. Deaf and mute since having his hearing knocked out at the age of twelve, Asher has been training for over a decade to avenge himself on Ivan, the man that killed his older brother, fourteen years ago. **** Stars My Father, Die Director: Sean Brosnan Screenplay: Sean Brosnan Starring: Joe Anderson, Gary Stretch, Candace Smith, John Schneider Not Yet Rated Running Time: 1 hour 42 mi

THE SALESMAN Director: Asghar Farhadi Screenplay: Asghar Farhadi Starring: Shahab Hosseini, Taraneh Alidoosti, Babak Karimi, Mina Sadati Language: Persian with English subtitles Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements and a brief bloody image Running Time: 2 hours 5 minutes **** out of ***** While performing Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, Emad and Rana Etesami find their relationship being tested in THE SALESMAN. Confucius' famous proverb says “Before you embark on

Photo: STX Entertainment No matter where you are, even in a library, THE BYE BYE MAN will find you. When three college students move into an old house off campus, they unwittingly unleash a supernatural entity known as The Bye Bye Man, who comes to prey upon them once they discover his name. The friends must try to save each other, all the while keeping The Bye Bye Man's existence a secret to save others from the same deadly fate. * out of ***** THE BYE BYE MAN Director: Stac

SCARY ENDINGS is a web series where filmmakers come together to make short films which deliver thrills, chills and screams. The films are lean and mean and are often quite funny or genuinely unnerving. Their spooky stories have dealt with the supernatural, clowns, monsters, politics and even Santa Claus himself. Besides the sly sense of humor and unsettling creepiness the one thing these films have in common is they all must have a zinger of an ending; hence the name of t

Selene (Kate Beckinsale) and David (Theo James) seek shelter in UNDERWORLD: BLOOD WARS. Vampire death dealer, Selene must fend off brutal attacks from both the Lycan clan and the Vampire faction that betrayed her. With her only allies, David and his father Thomas, she must stop the eternal war between Lycans and Vampires, even if it means she has to make the ultimate sacrifice. *** out of ***** UNDERWORLD: BLOOD WARS Director: Anna Foerster Screenplay: Cory Goodman Story by

LA LA LAND Director: Damien Chazelle Screenplay: Damien Chazelle Starring: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, J.K. Simmons, John Legend, Rosemarie DeWitt, Tom Everett Scott, Rated PG-13 for some language Running Time: 2 hours 8 minutes **** out of ***** Spirits soar and sparks fly when an actress and a jazz pianist meet in Damien Chazelle's LA LA LAND. Over the last several decades the big "movie musical" has usually been comprised of big-screen adaptations of Broadway hits, like L

Another year closes which means it's time to look back at 2016's cinematic offerings and choose the best of the bunch. Of course, films are very subjective so there's that grey area between being the best, insert your favorite THE ROCK quote here, and being a favorite. As is this case with any year, one person cannot see every film released which results in missing some films that would have likely appeared on this list. Films I have yet to see include MOONLIGHT, NOCTURNA

HIDDEN FIGURES Director: Theodore Melfi Screenplay: Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi Based on the book by Margot Lee Shetterly Starring: Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe, Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons, Mahershala Ali, Glen Powell Rated PG for thematic elements and some language Running Time: 2 hours 7 minutes **** out of ***** Dorothy Vaughan (OCTAVIA SPENCER), Katherine G. Johnson (TARAJI P. HENSON) and Mary Jackson (JANELLE MONAE) prove t

A MONSTER CALLS Director: J. A. Bayona Screenplay: Patrick Ness Starring: Lewis MacDougall, Felicity Jones, Sigourney Weaver, Liam Neeson, Toby Kebbell Rated PG-13 for thematic content and some scary images Running Time: 1 hour 48 minutes **** out of ***** Young Conor seeks the help of a giant tree monster in J.A. Bayona's A MONSTER CALLS. Benjamin Franklin famously said that "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." It's a sad and undenia