Repressed teenager Janey Glenn (Parker) is newly moved to Chicago with her newly retired military dad, mom, and younger brother, having been enrolled in an all-girls Catholic school, but making a fast friend with...
Kitsch-master John Waters, after a rare seven-year hiatus from making films, takes a loving, though critical, look back at the early 1960s, utilizing the craze for dance shows on television to explore heavier issues...
JoBeth Williams stars as suburban Ohio housewife and mother Cathy Palmer, who escapes her joyless marriage in her spare time by reading her favorite romantic thriller novels, all starring a Modesty Blaise-like globe-hopping female...
2010s / Action / Science Fiction / Thriller
by Vincent Leo · Published July 8, 2018 · Last modified July 10, 2018
In the year 2045, orphaned teenage Columbus, Ohio resident Wade Watts (Sheridan, X-Men Apocalypse) lives, like seemingly everyone else around not working in the upper echelons of a corporation, in squalor (called ‘The Stacks”, which...
2010s / Action / Adventure / Science Fiction
by Vincent Leo · Published November 21, 2013 · Last modified February 6, 2020
Catching Fire is the much-anticipated follow-up to the wildly popular The Hunger Games, based on the young adult book series by Suzanne Collins. With the new film comes a new director, Francis Lawrence, who gives us...
2000s / Comedy / Fantasy / Musical
by Vincent Leo · Published July 18, 2005 · Last modified May 22, 2019
Although it’s not likely to replace the original movie, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, in the minds and hearts of many viewers, the good news is that Tim Burton’s version of the Roald Dahl classic book...
1980s / Action / Comedy / Martial Arts
by Vincent Leo · Published October 11, 2004 · Last modified May 14, 2019
I realize that this film, the first attempt to introduce Jackie Chan to American audiences, has been somewhat maligned over the years, but I’ll always have a special fondness for it. The Big Brawl (or Battle Creek Brawl as...
1970s / Comedy / Family / Fantasy / Musical
by Vincent Leo · Published December 30, 1999 · Last modified February 17, 2019
Although Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was more or less ignored on its initial release back in 1971, it is now regarded as a children’s classic, although some adults may still think it too disturbingly...
Caddyshack marks the first in Harold Ramis’ (Groundhog Day, Analyze This) now-distinguished directorial career, and you have to give him credit — he knows what’s funny. This is one hilarious flick that’s a certified classic for...
1990s / Action / Comedy / Musical
by Vincent Leo · Published August 6, 1998 · Last modified January 16, 2019
Elwood Blues gets out of jail and once again gets the old band together to head to Louisiana and enter a Battle of the Bands contest to save the orphanage. Along the way the...
Reviews from film writer Vince Leo, covering all eras and genres of films from classics to the latest releases.
Film reviews from Vince Leo, from classics to new releases, since 1996.
