Films: December 14 - 20

Bisangsuneon (Emergency Declaration) (2022)

Somewhere In Time (1980)

Sleep, My Love (1948)

Sitting Pretty (1948)

The Long Haul (1957)

Canyon Passage (1946)

The Lost City (2022) ///

Bisangsuneon (Emergency Declaration) (2022) Finely crafted and tensely structured, a terrorist boards plane impregnated with virus that quickly contaminates. Deft surprises keep authorities guessing on ground and claustrophobic decisions in air, ae well as thrills visually tight, even if resolution snaps narrative effect.

Somewhere In Time (1980) Rising playwright Christopher Reeve fulfills his destiny and wills himself into the past to romance celebrated actress Jane Seymour despite controlling Christopher Plummer. Attractively mounted and cast, a sincere and finally affecting love story with everlasting John Barry score.

Sleep, My Love (1948) Controlled storytelling with atmospheric set pieces and sufficient twists despite unsurprising resolution, as inquisitive Robert Cummings discovers insecure Claudette Colbert is being sent mad by suave but cruel Don Ameche. Solid production and performances.

Sitting Pretty (1948) Generous and breezy domestic comedy with despairing Maureen O'Hara and Robert Young mistakenly hiring imperious Clifton Webb as live-in babysitter to three unruly sons. Light on plot until revelations of newcomer's intentions to reveal small town secrets, a series of solid comic situations.

The Long Haul (1957) Making solid use of gritty, low-budget locations, tight staging elevates crude characterization with broken Victor Mature dragged into crooked truck operations in post-war Britain. Disillusioned Diana Dors provides acute emotions all the way to satisfyingly bleak conclusion.

Canyon Passage (1946) Beneath the burnished Technicolor surface, a vivid portrayal of Oregon pioneer life, brute violence and greed colliding with community dreams on expressive locations. Restless Dana Andrews, bold Susan Hayward and strong support cast feed personal desires amid dynamic set pieces.

The Lost City (2022) Adventure comedy throwback throws disillusioned romantic novelist Sandra Bullock and uncomplicated model Channing Tatum into quest for ancient relic, dodging billionaire Daniel Radcliff's bullets on volcano threatened island. Anonymously enjoyable, misses genuine spirit.

Films: December 7 - 13

The Batman (2022)

Joker (2019)

Once Upon A Dream (1949)

Beyond The Curtain (1960)

The Mummy (2017)

Black Jack (1950)

The Tomorrow War (2021) ///

The Batman (2022) Constructed with brutal skill and care, as well as an atmosphere that drips with menace and intrigue, noir-doomed narrative ensnares agonized cloaked hero Robin Pattinson's battle with Riddler and edgy relationship with Zoë Kravitz's Catwoman. Bleak visuals accentuate exhausting corruption.

Joker (2019) Bleak visuals aligned with irresistibly off-kilter Joaquin Phoenix conjure flamboyant character study as instability leads to savage violence. Meticulous design mirrors personal and urban decay, effectively unsubtle, claustrophobia accentuated by suffocating soundtrack.

Once Upon A Dream (1949) Inoffensive trifle never builds needed head of comedic steam as lightheaded Googie Withers fantasizes about practical Griffith Jones, her demobbed husband's army batman. Commentary on stresses with post-war economy and rebuilt relationships lost amid surface farce.

Beyond The Curtain (1960) Broken ruins of cold war Berlin sustains ominous backdrop while family dynamics for Eva Bartok's forced return to Eastern control are are edgily uncertain, yet low budget imagination and Richard Greene heroics feel forced. Marius Goring and Lucie Mannheim provide solid support.

The Mummy (2017) Polished action and mystery rapidly dissipates in confusing VFX and genre jumble with swaggering Tom Cruise returning from the dead to encounter Russell Crowe's Dr. Jekyll as head of secret society chasing supernatural threats. Despite technical skill, drama flounders.

Black Jack (1950) Though George Sanders makes a fittingly ambiguous hero, his unconvincing action dynamics and affection for morally defined Patricia Roc tend to flatten involvement. Evocative Mediterranean locations and equivocal, shady characters provide some interest, amidst floundering narrative. 

The Tomorrow War (2021) Buoyed by likable cast and time travel concept that sees floundering Chris Pratt thrown into the future to fight vicious aliens, but more importantly save the past with resolute daughter Yvonne Strahovski. Big action, soft family dynamics, bloated conclusion.