Jumanji: The Next Level continues a story begun way back in 1995 with wit, intelligence, imagination and creativity, and I’m honestly a little shocked to admit that I cannot wait to see where things go next.

While there’s the high probability that Paradise Hills will grow on me on re-watch, as magnificent as the visual elements are and as strong as the social commentary might be, that’s not near enough to overcome the places where this motion picture falls disappointingly flat.

I had a great time watching Maleficent: Mistress of Evil come to such vibrant, colorfully intoxicating life, and as magic tricks go this is one moribund franchise I’m glad to say has risen from the ashes of its predecessor and found fiery new life as its own, captivatingly idiosyncratic animal.

I thoroughly enjoyed director Michael Dougherty’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters. It made me smile.

While lacking in the same kind of ingenious magic that helped allow the original to stand the test of time, this new Aladdin still has a few winning tricks up its sleeve making it worthy of a look.

While my initial trepidations in regards to Rob Letterman’s latest proved to be somewhat unfounded, it still wasn’t like Pokémon Detective Pikachu won me over entirely.

Avengers: Endgame is a solid adventure that fans will go nuts for. As for me, the last assembling of the original team of Avengers brought a smile to my face, this curtain call a satisfying final bow for a team of comic book heroes who all deserved this moment in the spotlight standing at the center of the stage.

Shazam! is a story where the children literally lead the way, teaching all of us to look inside our hearts for the potential hero within whether we think they reside there or not.

I loved Captain Marvel. More than that, I can’t wait to see it again.