While Sonic the Hedgehog didn’t win me over, I sure as heck was never so annoyed that I regretted giving the film a look.

For me, though, even if I could chat with a chimp in chimpanzee, converse in polar bear, curse in fluent kangaroo or answer with a boisterous, “of courserous!” if asked if I could speak rhinoceros, Dolittle still would have been one talk with the animals I’d rather have not engaged in.

Cats might be a mess, but it’s a one-of-a-kind incredibly memorable mess (for better and for worse), and for all I know that’s entirely by design.

Maybe I’ll not feel so sad after I give The Rise of Skywalker a second look.

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.