Winchester (2018)

Ensconced in her sprawling California mansion, eccentric firearm heiress Sarah Winchester believes she is haunted by the souls of people killed by the Winchester repeating rifle. (IMDb)

Had potential–loved that red font of the opening title, the set-up was intriguing, and the setting perfectly spooky and surreal–but the execution really underwhelms: the interest surrounding the titular character dissolves almost right after we meet her, and what follows is merely a half-baked ghost story with mediocre jump scares and a commentary on grief and gun violence that’s never fully realized (not helped by average turns and poor dialogue–there’s a lot of people talking to themselves).

5.5/10 (Poor)

 

RED 2 (2013)

Retired C.I.A. Agent Frank Moses reunites his unlikely team of elite operatives for a global quest to track down a missing portable nuclear device. (IMDb)

After Die Hard 5 I said a protagonist has never been more annoying but Willis may have topped himself here by adding even more stupid smirks and patronizing remarks to his macho lead. Elsewhere we’re treated to a billion convenient last-second saviors and nearly as many eye-rolling villains in a mess of a plot I gave up on halfway through, while the dark humour from the first film becomes just plain disturbing (mirrored by the overload of bloodless killings). At least Marvin was still funny.

4.5/10 (Bad)

 

RED (2010)

When his peaceful life is threatened by a high-tech assassin, former black-ops agent Frank Moses reassembles his old team in a last ditch effort to survive and uncover his assailants. (IMDb)

Ocean’s Eleven meets James Bond, only with badass (and slightly terrifying-“I haven’t killed anyone in years”) espionage retirees. The cast is a hoot (Mirren and Malkovich especially) and along with the great uptempo soundtrack, fun editing (love those quick zooms and postcards), and darkly comedic dialogue (see Frank and Ivan’s initial convo about Igor the Butcher) keep things lively amidst the average action thriller plot. Could’ve done without the requisite romance though (Frank’s, I mean).

7.5/10 (Really Good)