But Rapace is excellent as Alice, the original Lisbeth Salander bringing the same sort of energy, emotion and gravitas to Unlocked that she brought to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

“I hope that [Patti Cake$] can change somebody’s mind about what actors, what movie stars, can look and feel like. Changes their mind about what a popular movie can be. I get really excited if it can change some minds like that.”
– Geremy Jasper

Leap! showcases loads of potential, and no question its female-driven story of accomplishment and resilience has plenty of value. But neither of those elements is enough to overcome all of the missteps, the resulting film a substandard dance of aggravation that I’m still moderately upset about.

While I don’t think people should rush out and give The Only Living Boy in New York an immediate look, I certainly wouldn’t begrudge anyone from doing so if the opportunity to snag a cheap second-run matinee ticket might arise, Thomas’s story having just enough in the way of merit to warrant a cursory glance.

Patti Cake$ soars into the stratosphere like a shooting star spurting truth in its wake as it streaks across the sky, this drama a stunning, entertainingly electrifying crowd-pleaser deserving of a standing ovation.

Sheridan takes a rather simple story and spins it right on its head, crafting a saga about fatherhood, family, race, poverty, isolation, determination and life in America today that’s as haunting as anything I’ve seen this year.

Perfectly animated, emotionally pure, In This Corner of the World is an outright marvel, watching it come to life as it does with such authentically subtle exactitude an extraordinary achievement to be sure.

Logan Lucky is as giant an August surprise as anything I ever could have hoped for, the delight I felt watching only exceeded by the knowledge audiences were going to get to experience all this jovial throwback ebullience for themselves starting this weekend.

I left the theatre. What could have been an interesting foray into a new world of killers, bodyguards and international enforcement agents instead proves to be a mindless piece of fluff and not much else, and for a story about lethal marksmen who never miss their shot The Hitman’s Bodyguard up being well wide of the target the majority of the time.