New movie roundup: ‘Uncharted’ throws Tom Holland out of a plane
Tom Holland in "Uncharted" (Screenshot: YouTube)
Chicago - Whether you’re in a theater or streaming at home, movie choices exist in abundance, with more arriving every week. Here’s our take on what’s new, free, fun or all of the above.
‘Uncharted’: Is it a not-so-hidden treasure or a disappointing haul?
Mark Wahlberg and Tom Holland star in Columbia Pictures' UNCHARTED.
"Here’s the assorted loot you’ll find in the treasure chest of "Uncharted": Two slam-bang action setpieces, some lackluster plotting, a charming leading man turn from Tom Holland, an ensemble of wasted supporting players and a woefully miscast Mark Wahlberg. Does that add up to a hidden treasure or a disappointing haul? Well, that lies in the eyes of the fortune hunter.
"Uncharted" isn’t bad enough to be a bad movie, but not good enough to be a good one either. And for a highly anticipated video game adaptation that’s been in development for over 12 years (long enough for Wahlberg to have originally been cast as the young upstart rather than the mentor), that makes its long-awaited arrival a bit of an anticlimax." Read the rest of film critic Caroline Siede’s review.
Exclusively in theaters Feb. 18. Rated PG-13. 116 minutes. Dir: Ruben Fleischer. Featuring: Tom Holland, Mark Wahlberg, Sophia Ali, Tati Gabrielle, Antonio Banderas.
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Do an ‘Uncharted’ double feature with: ‘Hardcore Henry’
Hardcore Henry (2016): "Hardcore Henry" isn’t based on a video game, but it replicates the gaming experience more directly than any proper adaptation of the past two decades. Filmed entirely in "first person shooter" mode (i.e. from the perspective of the protagonist), this sci-fi shoot-‘em-up delivers a creative riff on action filmmaking with a gimmick it’s hard to believe someone hadn’t tried before. Rated R. 96 minutes. Dir: Ilya Naishuller. Featuring: Sharlto Copley, Danila Kozlovsky, Haley Bennett, Andrei Dementiev, Darya Charusha.
The best movie of the month (so far): ‘The Worst Person in the World’
Renate Reinsve appears in "The Worst Person in the World"
"Do we ever stop coming of age? That’s the question that implicitly sits at the heart of director Joachim Trier’s exceptional romantic dramedy, "The Worst Person in the World" — Norway’s official entry for Best International Feature Film at the Academy Awards and an early contender for best film of the year. Julie (Renate Reinsve) is a 20-something who swiftly decides that med school isn’t for her, even if she isn’t entirely sure what comes next. Her new boyfriend Aksel (Anders Danielsen Lie) is fifteen years older and struggling to figure out his own next step in life after finding early success as an acclaimed underground comic book artist." Read the rest of Caroline Siede’s review.
Rated R. 127 minutes. Language: Norwegian. Dir: Joachim Trier. Featuring: Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, Herbert Nordrum. Opens in select theaters Feb. 4.
WATCH: Joachim Trier’s "Thelma" and "Louder Than Bombs"
More new movies
Channing Tatum and a very good dog in "Dog." (Screenshot: YouTube.)
- Dog: Channing Tatum makes his directorial debut with this sweet road trip comedy about man’s best friend. Tatum also stars as a U.S. Army Ranger tasked with bringing a Belgian Malinois military working dog down the Pacific Coast in time to attend her handler's funeral. And if that premise alone is starting to make you tear up, you're definitely the right audience for this latest entry in Hollywood's ever-growing Dog Movie Cinematic Universe. Unlike "A Dog's Purpose" or "A Dog's Way Home," though, "Dog" stakes its claim with a simple, declarative title that says it all. Handsome men, cute dogs and some tear-jerking patriotism? What else could you need? Rated PG-13. 90 minutes. Dir: Channing Tatum and Reid Carolin. Featuring: Channing Tatum, Jane Adams, Kevin Nash, Q'orianka Kilcher, Ethan Suplee, Emmy Raver-Lampman, Bill Burr. In theaters Feb. 18.
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre: After 2021 gave us new takes on "Halloween" and "Candyman" and January kicked off with a new installment of "Scream," "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" is the latest beloved horror franchise to get a legacy reimagining. This one lands on Netflix and is slated to be a direct sequel to the 1974 original. (In other words, go ahead and ignore the other seven movies in between.) "Eighth Grade" star Elsie Fisher is among the new group of young people to venture to small town Texas and face off against the chainsaw-wielding Leatherface. There they meet the franchise’s original heroine Sally Hardesty (now played by Olwen Fouéré), the sole survivor of Leatherface’s infamous 1970s massacre. Rated R. 81 minutes. Dir: David Blue Garcia. Featuring: Sarah Yarkin, Elsie Fisher, Mark Burnham, Jacob Latimore, Moe Dunford, Olwen Fouéré, Alice Krige, Jessica Allain, Nell Hudson. In theaters Feb. 18.
- 10 Truths About Love: Camilla Belle stars as Carina Franklin, a thriving romance columnist who has her own love life totally figured out — at least until her longtime boyfriend dumps her. Even worse, her editor insists on giving her column a "male perspective" and hires a writer named Liam (David Lafontain) to balance her out. When the two new co-workers clash, Liam sets out to demonstrate that his tactics work by helping Carina win back her ex. Of course, in trying to prove each other wrong, Liam and Carina might just realize how right they really are for each other. "10 Truths About Love" is a Tubi Original. Rated TV-14. 90 minutes. Dir: Brian K. Roberts. Featuring: Camilla Belle, David Lafontaine, Jennifer De Lucia, Karn Kalra, Paula Rivera, David Keeley.
More show-stopping action, streaming free on Tubi
Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003): Director Robert Rodriguez conjures a bloodbath (and concludes his "Mexico" trilogy) when El Mariachi (Antonio Banderas), at the behest of a bonkers CIA operative (Johnny Depp), tracks the nefarious cartel kingpin (Willem Dafoe) who murdered the notorious gunslinger’s wife. Rated R. 101 minutes. Dir: Robert Rodriguez. Also featuring Salma Hayek, Mickey Rourke, Eva Mendes, Danny Trejo, Cheech Marin.
The Raid: Redemption (2012): Widely considered one of the greatest action movies of the 2010s, "The Raid: Redemption" (otherwise just known as "The Raid") follows an elite squad tasked with infiltrating a high-rise building run by a ruthless drug lord. Anchored by the Indonesian martial art of Pencak Silat and some creative staging in a limited setting, "The Raid" carves out a brutal action movie aesthetic all its own. Rated R. 100 minutes. Dir: Gareth Huw Evans. Language: Indonesian. Featuring: Iko Uwais, Joe Taslim, Doni Alamsyah, Yayan Ruhian, Pierre Gruno.
Crank (2006): "What if ‘Speed’ but inside a body instead of a bus?" That’s roughly the premise of "Crank," in which Jason Statham plays a British hitman who must maintain a constant flow of adrenaline in order to counteract a synthetic drug designed to kill him. Fights? Reckless driving? Ilegal drugs? Public sex? It’s all on the table in this ridiculously over-the-top action thriller that helped solidify the Stath’s action movie persona. Rated R. 87 minutes. Dir: Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor. Also featuring Amy Smart, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Efren Ramirez, Dwight Yoakam.
Hardcore Henry (2016): "Hardcore Henry" isn’t based on a video game, but it replicates the gaming experience more directly than any proper adaptation of the past two decades. Filmed entirely in "first person shooter" mode (i.e. from the perspective of the protagonist), this sci-fi shoot-‘em-up delivers a creative riff on action filmmaking with a gimmick it’s hard to believe someone hadn’t tried before. Rated R. 96 minutes. Dir: Ilya Naishuller. Featuring: Sharlto Copley, Danila Kozlovsky, Haley Bennett, Andrei Dementiev, Darya Charusha.
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