In Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker the battle between the Resistance and the First Order rages on while Rey (Daisey Ridley) and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) continue their journey to find out who they truly are. In the conclusion of the Star Wars saga, fans will find themselves torn between the good and the bad. During parts, The Rise of Skywalker is fantastic, such as the visuals, but it has many parts that will leave you shaking your head. The Rise of Skywalker also brings back stars John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Issac (Poe), and Kelly Marie Tran (Rose), but some of the stand out characters in The Rise of Skywalker are the Droid C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) and newcomer Babu Frik. Director J.J. Abrams was given a huge task to not only finish the Star Wars saga but also try to tie up every loose end left by The Last Jedi, and I feel he did the best he could with what he had.

So, how do I rate the movie? As a Star Wars fan, I rate the movie a B. It is rated PG-13 for sci-fi violence and action. There is death, a little bit of blood, some curse words, and of course scary Sith. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is in theaters December 20^th. (R.Barry)

Jumanji, The Next Level (in theaters FRI 12.13.19).  Is this sequel beating the concept like a dead horse?  That answer, would be no.  This is hands down the funniest and most adventurous of the series!  JTNL picks up roughly a year after the last film, and the crew has grown older, a bit wiser, and for young Spencer (Alex Wolff), a bit more depressed.  Desperate to relive the glory of Jumanji, he re-enters the game on his own leaving his old crew to figure out what’s happened to him.  Determined to save their friend, they re-enter the game, but with a complication this time.  Spence’s grandfather Eddie (Danny Devito) and Eddie’s elder best friend Milo (Danny Glover) who are unwittingly pulled into the video game action.   In the best and funniest twist possible, the game avatar ownership gets changed as the crew gets pulled into the action – this time, old grandpa Eddie becomes Dr. Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson) and Milo becomes the impish zoologist, Franklin Finbar (Kevin Hart).  And to keep you completely rolling on the floor, the rest of the crews avatars are swapped which introduces new characters including the wily, Ming (Awkwafina).  A new evil threatens Jumanji and his name is Gregor The Hound…sorry, I mean ‘Jurgen The Brutal.’  portrayed by Rory McCann of GOT fame.  Couldn’t resist.  Our intrepid crew must battle ostriches, humid deserts, and crazed baboons on their way to thwarting Jurgen’s evil plot to use a stolen precious gem and an arranged marriage to become King of the land.  This is by far the best of the series and what makes this version special is how well Hart & Johnson are able to personify the elderly characters their avatars inhabit.  I was really looking for ‘cracks’ between the two of them and the others as they haphazardly swap identities throughout the film.  The entire cast did a fantastic job of staying in their original characters voice and personalities, just a phenomenal job.  If I had one complaint for this version, it would be the ‘bad guy Jurgen’ motivation.  Oddly, once you get to know him, he’s not really evil and his plan, outside of stealing the precious gem isn’t as dastardly as his predecessors, it’s actually a bit benevolent.  Put that aside and you’ve got a raucous and wild ride and what is sure to be a box office success.  A- (Fearless box office weekend forecast: $71 million)

Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is a popular crime novelist with an entitled and eccentric family. When Harlan is found dead after his 85th birthday party the police and Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) come in to investigate. Even though the police believe Harlan’s death to be an open and shut case Detective Blanc has the feeling nothing is as it seems. Soon Detective Blanc learns almost every one of Harlan’s family members is hiding something and has a possible motive. Who killed Harlan, and why?

Hands down the best whodunnit movie of the year. With an all-star cast that includes Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, and Toni Collette it is Daniel Craig and Chris Evans who give the standout performances and provide some of the best quotable movie lines that will have you rolling with laughter. Even those who are not murder/mystery movie fans will be entertained by Knives Out. I give Knives Out an A. Even though Knives Out is rated PG-13 it does contain a lot of strong language and violence. Opens in U.S. theaters on Nov. 27, 2019. (R. Barry)  

Judgment day came for all of the Terminator movies after Terminator 2, and they have been Terminated. Terminator: Dark Fate occurs over twenty years after the end of Judgement Day, and it delivers the original Terminator feel. Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) saved humanity and stopped Judgement Day, but still ended up losing the most important thing in her life, her son John who is killed by a T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger). It seems though humanity never learns from its mistakes, and one A.I. (Skynet) is replaced by another A.I. (Legion). Hell-bent on wiping out the human race Legion sends its own Terminator, Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna), back in time to kill Dani Ramos (Natalia Reyes). To help Dani survive in the past the human resistance sends back an augmented human, Grace (Mackenzie Davis), to protect her.

But Grace isn’t the only help Dani has. No longer running from Terminators Sarah Connor has a new purpose in life, to hunt them. Receiving information from an unknown ally Sarah arrives just in time to help Grace and Dani escape Rev-9, and she decides to continue to help protect Dani in the hopes of preventing another apocalyptic future.

Terminator: Dark fate brings back the nostalgia of the first 2 movies thanks to the return of Linda Hamilton and James Cameron. If you are a Terminator fan you will enjoy and be entertained by Dark Fate. Linda Hamilton and Mackenzie Davis are the stand out actors and provide some of the best action and lines in the movie. I give Terminator: Dark Fate a B-. It’s entertaining, leaves you with questions, but is unfortunately predictable. The movie is rated R due to violence, language, and nudity. Out in theaters 11/1/19. (R. Barry)

Did you miss your chance to see it in theaters? How about catching it again, and for a worthy cause. Tribeca Film Festival and Bloomberg Philanthropies have teamed up with City Pop-Up Baltimore to bring a one-of-a-kind experience to our city…and its free! Check the details below and #staygeeky

Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Tribeca Film Festival chose Baltimore for the inaugural City Pop-Up event in 2017, which featured the documentary STEP. Based on that success, and in continued recognition of the community’s resilient spirit, they returned for a second year. City Pop-Up was born from Bloomberg Philanthropies and Tribeca’s joint mission to help revitalize cities and build communities by bringing people together through film and entertainment. Last year’s event featured a screening of the groundbreaking film Black Panther and brought out hundreds of local residents to the event.

SCREENING DETAILS: On October 25, 4PM, they are hosting City Pop-Up: Baltimore, a community event featuring a free public screening of the 2019 version of THE LION KING. City Pop-Up takes place at the Under Armor House at Fayette, operated by Living Classrooms. This event is an amazing opportunity to bring the Baltimore community together for a night out featuring local food vendors, performances and music. Click the weblink for more details

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