Rating: «« out of 4 stars

Running Time: 101 min.

January never lets me down. This week, the studios have brought us a haphazardly slapped together sequel. Ride Along 2 arrives quickly on the heels of its 2014 predecessor and features its two leads getting into all new cop-based shenanigans in Miami. Despite the best efforts of its capable cast, the approach taken is safe, bland and ultimately predictable.

Since the events of the first film, Ben Barber (Kevin Hart) has become a rookie cop, much to the chagrin of his detective/future brother-in-law James Payton (Ice Cube). When he comes into contact with a mysterious flash drive, Payton is sent to Miami to investigate. Eager to prove...

Hello again! It’s once again time to pick out highlights coming your way on Blu-ray and DVD. There are a lot of interesting releases, so if you can’t make it out to the movies this week be sure to give one of these titles a try!

Big New Releases!

Hotel Transylvania 2 - In this sequel to the animated hit, vampire/hotel proprietor Drac decides to give the his grandson a crash course in how to be a proper monster. The film garnered mixed reviews, although they were a little more positive for this effort than for the first installment. Most suggested it was a reasonably enjoyable bit of family fluff. The voice cast includes Adam Sandler, Andy Samberg, Selena Gomez, Kevin James...

Rating: ««« out of 4 stars

Running Time: 156 min.

In the midst of Hollywood sequels and reboots that relentlessly follow a predetermined formula, it’s great to see a big budget eccentricity like The Revenant. This is the type of film that clearly represents the personal vision of its filmmaker, melding western tropes with art house pretense. As a result of its unusual approach and icy tone, it’s going to garner extreme reactions. But from my perspective, this change from the norm is always welcome.

Set in the 1820s, the story is fairly simple. Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a guide for a group of fur traders in the wilderness. After a series of misadventures, a tragedy...

Hope every had a good holiday. Unlike the past couple of editions, this one is absolutely loaded with releases. Here are the highlights. So if you can’t make it out to the movies this week, be sure to give one of these titles a try!

Big New Releases!

Close Range - An ex-soldier takes on a drug cartel who is threatening his sister and niece in this low-budget action picture. Those who saw it warned that the script and acting was downright wooden and silly. However, they also stated that the fight choreography was impressive and that the action sequences in general were well-handled. As direct-to-DVD B-movie schlock-fests go, they felt that the fisticuff scenes make it slightly...