“John Wick” (3 stars): Keanu Reeves turns in one of his most intense performances playing a retired contract killer. Once he’s forced back to work, the only thing that can stop him from getting total revenge is running out of bullets. Reeves brings just the right amount of killing tenacity, tempered by a five-year absence from the job, to make Wick formidable yet slightly vulnerable.
“Dracula Untold” (2 stars): The film is entertaining, just not memorable. It eventually will become the kind of heavily repeated feature film that cable channels use to fill weekend afternoons when there’s nothing original to air. Luke Evans has neither the charisma nor the muscle to make Vlad the same kind of captivating character that Dracula has been in past productions. Sarah Gadon’s work as Vlad’s wife is so colorless that she often blends into the scenery.
“Dear White People” (3 stars): Director/writer Justin Simien looks at race issues on an Ivy League college campus during the Obama era. Despite the tendency to want to believe that society is crawling out from under the ugly shadow of bigotry, “Dear White People” offers a reminder that in many ways racism has become more abhorrent because it’s done in such a subversive manner.
“The Best of Me” (2½ stars): A pair of former high school sweethearts reunite after many years when they return to visit their small hometown. No one has ever accused Nicholas Sparks of being subtle when it comes to layering on the emotional levels in his writing. That’s fine as long as the sentimentality doesn’t become so heavy it becomes crushing. “The Best of Me” suffers that fate.
“Ouija” (zero stars): The scariest thing about the new horror film is that you might get crushed under its pile of cliches or fall out of your seat from boredom. Should you go see this movie? Do whatever you have to do to move the planchette to say “NO.
Also new on DVD this week:
“Richard Pryor: Omit the Logic”: Documentary that examines the legacy of the comedian.
“Anzac Girls”: Based on the true story of five Australian and New Zealand nurses during World War I.
“Boys”: Mischa Kamp’s award-winning story of two track stars finding their first love.
Rick Bentley, the Fresno Bee
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