Baby Driver (2017)

Director: Edgar Wright
Stars: Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Lily James, Jon Bernthal, Eiza González, Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx
Runtime: 113 minutes
Viewed at: City Lights 12 Georgetown

The secret to Wright’s utterly perfect spin on the classic getaway driver crime thriller lies in the tunes. Not just exhaust, either, as the eponymous Baby (Elgort) listens to his iPod when he’s on rounds – and his taste in music fits the incredibly crafted action like a driving glove. The performances, the editing, the chases, Wright’s trademark spin on tired tropes – albeit with just a touch of irony, which really fits the mood – all wow at every corner. Baby Driver gets its hands wet on the wheel of a well-oiled genre and reinvents it into a brilliant speed symphony. (99 words/A PLUS PLUS PLUS)

Haywire (2011)

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Stars: Gina Carano, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, Bill Paxton, Channing Tatum, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas
Runtime: 93 minutes

The fearsome freelance spy Mallory (Carano) uses her fists and wits in equal measure in this utterly fantastic thriller. The true showcase of Soderbergh’s artistry in his thoroughly classic yet amazingly modern work lies not in the story, simple yet satisfying as is, but in each and every action setpiece. Few films these days strike a balance between visceral realism and stylistics sans Steadicam, but Carano’s MMA prowess and Soderbergh’s trademark style combine magnificently to create a tense and entertaining genre masterpiece. The pillow shot gave me chills, and the realistic feel just works wonders. Haywire is a knockout. (99 words/A PLUS PLUS)

Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017)

Director: David Soren
Stars: (voices of) Kevin Hart, Ed Helms, Thomas Middleditch, Nick Kroll, Jordan Peele
Runtime: 89 minutes
Viewed at: City Lights 12 Georgetown

Some mercifully brief tacked-on musical interludes aside, Underpants is DreamWorks’ most hilarious film in years. Just like its source, Soren’s inventive animated adaptation, where two fourth graders use a hypnosis ring to turn their principal into the eponymous superhero they created, revels in juvenile humor, but with an earnestness that rivals any dedicated craft. The voicecast, especially Helms’ helming role and Kroll as the supervillain Professor Poopypants, shares that genuineness. Hilarious entertainment that fits snugly, like an elastic waistband if you will, between Disney’s trademark innocence and Lego’s outright snark. Let’s hope for more Epic Movies in this series. (99 words/A MINUS)

It Comes At Night (2017)

Director: Trey Edward Schults
Stars: Joel Edgerton, Christopher Abbott, Carmen Ejogo, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Riley Keough
Runtime: 91 minutes
Viewed at: Cinemark Round Rock

Schults’ no-frills psychological horror effort does manage to keep the tension high, but feels a little below par. While just as artfully made and performed as other horror of late, and the chilling moments are worthy, the emperor has no clothes here. The film’s major plot point also makes its biggest downfall – the focus on fear as opposed to its cause, the source of the pandemic, cannot be as easily generalized as Schults believes. I love slow burning horror, but I can’t help but feel a tad disappointed coming from the director and distributor of the gleefully twisted Krisha. (99 words/B MINUS)

Wonder Woman (2017)

Director: Patty Jenkins
Stars: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Danny Huston, David Thewlis, Connie Nielsen, Elena Anaya
Runtime: 140 minutes
Viewed at: Cinemark 14 Round Rock

DC’s best since Nolan. Yup. This wonder of a blockbuster not only hits the right notes, but brings in a few truly remarkable ones of its own. Jenkins eschews Snyder’s storytelling for a straightforward origin story with a twist as Diana (Gadot), the Amazonian warrior princess, gets caught in the front lines of WWI. Spectacular action with tasteful use of CGI and slo-mo, plenty of humor and heroics, and just a little darkness. Basically, very unlike DC! An awesome wartime romp that puts the heroics back into the superhero genre – Gadot proves it’s not just a boys’ club. (98 words/A PLUS)