Dann Gire
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Pets rule, humans drool in energized animated superhero parody 'DC League of Super-Pets'Jul 28, 2022 6:00 am - “DC League of Super-Pets” - ★ ★ ★ ½ In the energized animated comedy “DC League of Super-Pets,” Superman's canine buddy Krypto pulls off the biggest rescue of his 67-ye...
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Preposterous narrative twist ruins promising father-daughter drama 'Don't Make Me Go'Jul 18, 2022 6:00 am - “Don't Make Me Go” - ★ ½ “Don't Make Me Go” possesses a wonderfully provocative title that could apply to both its principal characters. California teen Wally Park (Mia ...
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Harsh survival tale 'Where the Crawdads Sing' compromised by voice-overs, inauthentic detailsJul 14, 2022 6:00 am - “Where the Crawdads Sing” - ★ ★ ½ Olivia Newman's “Where the Crawdads Sing” supplies a superb example of what happens when filmmakers try to create an excellent adaptat...
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Supernatural 'Black Phone' dials up jump-scares in derivative child serial killer thrillerJun 23, 2022 6:00 am - “The Black Phone” - ★ ★ ½ Two young actors, Mason Thames and Madeleine McGraw, deliver performances so immersive and realistically polished that they pick up a lot of t...
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Comic romance a 'Real Smooth' parable for the power of kindnessJun 16, 2022 6:00 am - “Cha Cha Real Smooth” - ★ ★ ★ Parts of Cooper Raiff's comically amiable “Cha Cha Real Smooth” sound like a grad student's first attempt at writing stage play juvenilia ...
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Thrill-a-minute 'Jurassic World: Dominion' also believes in the basic goodness of the common personJun 08, 2022 2:00 pm - “Jurassic World: Dominion” - ★ ★ ★ This thrill-a-minute, PG-13-rated, summer popcorn action/horror picture had me at “Wait ... you made a promise to a dinosaur?” Profes...
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'Crimes of the Future': Cronenberg's disturbing, cutting-edge tale of organ donors dulled by passive characters, slow paceJun 02, 2022 6:00 am - “Crimes of the Future” - ★ ★ ½ “Crimes of the Future” represents a cinematic distillation of everything we've come to expect - and fear - from the works of visionary ho...
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Visceral visuals, soaring soundtrack, flashy edits save flighty 'Maverick'May 24, 2022 12:30 pm - “Top Gun: Maverick” - ★ ★ ½ A testosterone tribute to arrested adolescence, the impending blockbuster “Top Gun: Maverick” presents a fantasy world of flashy video game t...
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Loads of smart dialogue, well-drawn characters dominate action, plot in 'Downton Abbey: A New Era'May 18, 2022 6:00 am - “Downton Abbey: A New Era” - ★ ★ ★ Maggie Smith still gets all the killer lines. The sharpest element in six seasons of the BBC TV series “Downton Abbey” (and its 2019 ...
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Chaotic, twisty 'Bad Guys' an animated comic vehicle powered by natural gasApr 21, 2022 6:00 am - “The Bad Guys” - ★ ★ ½ Don't assume that the pernicious green flatulence emitted by a bank robber named Piranha is just some cheap device pandering to the kiddie crowd....