Don’t Breathe 2

THE GIST: Having barely survived a brutal and deadly home invasion a few years back, our blind veteran is now training his home-schooled daughter into survival, which is good because someone else is about to invade his home again.

Don’t Breathe 2 follows in the footsteps of its predecessor and pretty closely at that. In fact, just like that movie, the action scenes are quite thrilling, but a few plot points are quite leaky—like how he makes it to the bad guys' lair so quickly and, of course, just in time.

Stephen Lang is, as before, quite good at taking a beating and giving it back. This time he faces off against Brendan Sexton III, who performs admirably.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Just like the first chapter, the story is quite predictable, but there are a couple twists and enough tension to make it worth your time.

Grade: 6

Quaint Church

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East River at Dusk

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Free Guy

THE GIST: An upbeat and charming bank teller sees his world suddenly change when he accidentally discovers he's actually an NPC (a Non Playable Character) in a massive multi-player videogame. What is he going to do next?

Free Guy's core premise is quite simple, but the final product greatly benefits from Ryan Reynolds's comedy chops and irresistible charms.

It doesn't hurt that he's flanked by other talented actors like Jodie Comer, Lil Rel Howery, Joe Keery, and the inimitable Taika Waititi.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Cool visual effects, a fun cast, and an interesting story pretty much guarantee a good time.

Grade: 7

Concentric Lines

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The Woman in Black

THE GIST: A recently widowered lawyer, still deeply in mourning, is sent to a remote village to settle the affairs of an estate. He encounters a lot of hostility from almost everyone he meets and soon discovers that the mansion he's supposed to get ready for sale is haunted by the vengeful ghost of a wronged woman who terrorizes the locals.

The Woman in Black is the typical horror movie that fails to impress because of a barebones backstory that is weighed down by too many trite tropes.

I found myself shaking my head in confusion and disbelief more times than I could count, which is never a good sign.

Daniel Radcliffe does a fairly good job in the lead, but sometimes he does look a bit lost. And even the always great Ciarán Hinds has to work overtime to sell us his rather unrelatable character.

THE BOTTOM LINE: I cannot recommend this movie, even though it redeems itself with a final scene I really didn't expect.

Grade: 4.5

Bursting Petals

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Respect

THE GIST: We follow Aretha Franklin from childhood to stardom, from singing in her father's church's choir to finding her own voice, style, and vocation—and eventually becoming an icon of the musical world, of the civil rights movement, and of America itself.

Respect is a well put-together biopic about the late great Aretha Franklin, played with excellent ability by Jennifer Hudson, who's blessed with one of the most powerful and unique voices I've ever heard.

I wouldn't be surprised to see her receive an Academy Award nomination for her performance.

Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Tituss Burgess, Marc Maron, and Audra McDonald are just some of the spot-on casting choices that wonderfully support Ms. Hudson's tour-de-force.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Whether you're a fan of the Queen of Soul or are just curious about the life of a world-renown artist, this movie won't disappoint.

Grade: 8

Peeking In

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In Memoriam

Jean-Paul Belmondo (April 9, 1933 - September 6, 2021)

Belmondo broke through in the world of cinema with 1960's Breathless, which helped establish him as one of the main figures of France's La Nouvelle Vague, or New Wave, an experimental and ultimately revolutionary narrative style in the history of cinema, widely influential also in American cinema.

He really was one of the last few greats left.

R.I.P.