Andy Ritcher Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Andy Richter-whose latest project "Obsession" is in theaters today. 

Andy Richter's Filmography Ranked:

13.My Boss's Daughter (D)

12.Dr. Dolittle 2 (C-)

11.Big Trouble (C)

10.80 for Brady (C)

9.Semi-Pro (C+)

8.Scary Movie 2 (C+)

7.Madagascar (B-)

6.Blades of Glory (B-)

5.Elf (B)

4.Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (B+)

3.Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (B+)

2.Obsession (A-)

1.Pootie Tang (A)

Top Dog: Pootie Tang (2001)

Sine your pitty on the runny kine! Sepatown! Sadatay! Wahdahtah! These are the wise, immortal words of the legend known as Pootie Tang. The impact he's made through his work as a philanthropist, musician and crime fighter will never be properly measured and the world would be a much better place if there more people like Mr. Tang in it. 

Bottom Feeder: My Boss's Daughter (2003)

One of the most unsung staples of the 2000's were comedy movies that came out during the winter or late summer that just completely ate shit in their pursuit of laughs. My Boss's Daughter very well could be my personal favorite example of this long forgotten breed of movie as it's basically a series of loosely connected bits with a romantic subplot where absolutely nothing works. What make this misfire particularly disheartening is that was it directed by comedy legend David Zucker. How the guy behind Airplane!, The Naked Gun and Top Secret! managed to make something so brutally unfunny is one of those mysteries that will never produce an answer that makes any sense. 

Most Underrated: Pootie Tang (2001)

Blaxploitation spoof Pootie Tang is about as niche as comedy gets and its status as a minor cult classic among the people that stumbled upon it on home video or VOD following its disastrous theatrical run in the summer of 2001 proves that. I'm proud to be part of this small group that will champion this movie whenever the opportunity arises. There are honestly only about 15-20 movies that I've ever seen that have me laugh harder than Pootie Tang and one scene in particular is a surefire bet to make me cackle to the point where tears are streaming out of my eyes every single time I see it. Even in the far wackier creative climate of the early 2000's, it's hard to believe that a movie like this was able to secure funding from a major studio and I'd like to thank whoever at Paramount was responsible for greenlighting this for allowing a genuine miracle to happen on Earth. 

Most Overrated: Madagascar (2005)

Admittedly, including Madagascar here is kind of a stretch as it's not aspiring to be much more than a goofy movie for kids and it does a perfectly fine job of delivering on that front. However, it's pretty widely considered to be a classic in the 2000's animation space, and I just think it's too minor of a movie to have such high praise placed upon it.  

Some Thoughts on Obsession Since I Didn't Review It After I Saw It in March:

Does the horror genre have its next ascending star filmmaker in Curry Barker? Time will tell, but Obsession is a mighty promising sign that the 26-year-old that started out making sketch comedy videos on YouTube with his longtime creative partner Cooper Tomlinson-who also appears here in a key supporting role-under the name that's a bad idea is well on his way to becoming one of the genre's most exciting filmmakers. His first feature to play on the big screen (his 2024 feature debut Milk & Serial is available on YouTube) is a really well-constructed piece of work that does wonders with its simple premise revolving around an awkward "nice" guy's (Michael Johnston) wish for their longtime unrequited crush (Inde Navarrette) to fall in love with him going horribly wrong. Barker does an incredible job of walking a tonal tightrope that frequently switches between dark/cringe comedy and hardcore horror throughout while Johnston and Navarrette deeply commit to making this forced relationship feel nauseatingly uncomfortable from the very moment the wish is granted until it reaches its inevitable horrific conclusion. The story goes to some very twisted places (there are three scenes in particular that caused the sold-out festival crowd that I saw it with to go fucking bonkers) so I'd urge horror fans to check this out as soon as possible before the spoilers are shouted all over the internet rooftops. 

2026 NFL Position Rankings: Top 50 Wide Receivers

 ()=2025 ranking

+=Unranked or ineligible in 2025

50.(+) Quentin Johnston (Chargers)

49.(+) Kayshon Boutte (Patriots)

48.(+) Rashid Shaheed (Seahawks)

47.(+) Luther Burden III (Bears)

46.(42) Josh Downs (Colts)

45.(18) Brian Thomas Jr. (Jaguars)

44.(+) Emeka Egbuka (Buccaneers)

43.(+) Ricky Pearsall (49ers)

42.(+) Christian Watson (Packers)

41.(39) Deebo Samuel (Free Agent)

40.(+) Keenan Allen (Free Agent)

39.(25) Chris Godwin (Buccaneers)

38.(37) Jauan Jennings (Vikings)

37.(34) Khalil Shakir (Bills)

36.(+) Rome Odunze (Bears)

35.(+) Parker Washington (Jaguars)

34.(32) Ladd McConkey (Chargers)

33.(+) Wan'Dale Robinson (Titans)

32.(15) D.J. Moore (Bills)

31.(+) Romeo Doubs (Patriots)

30.(30) Michael Pittman Jr. (Steelers)

29.(31) Jakobi Meyers (Jaguars)

28.(46) Rashee Rice (Chiefs)

27.(16) D.K. Metcalf (Steelers)

26.(+) Michael Wilson (Cardinals)

25.(+) Tetairoa McMillan (Panthers)

24.(11) Mike Evans (49ers)

23.(35) Jameson Williams (Lions)

22.(47) Alec Pierce (Colts)

21.(27) Stefon Diggs (Free Agent)

20.(17) Davante Adams (Rams)

19.(20) DeVonta Smith (Eagles)

18.(28) Courtland Sutton (Broncos)

17.(14) Malik Nabers (Giants)

16.(13) Garrett Wilson (Jets)

15.(21) Jaylen Waddle (Broncos)

14.(10) Terry McLaurin (Commanders)

13.(12) Tee Higgins (Bengals)

12.(23) Chris Olave (Saints)

11.(19) Zay Flowers (Ravens)

10.(29) George Pickens (Cowboys)

9.(8) Drake London (Falcons)

8.(5) A.J. Brown (Eagles)

7.(9) Nico Collins (Texans)

6.(3) CeeDee Lamb (Cowboys)

5.(4) Amon-Ra St.Brown (Lions)

4.(22) Jaxson Smith-Njigba (Seahawks)

3.(1) Justin Jefferson (Vikings)

2.(6) Puka Nacua (Rams)

1.(2) Ja'Marr Chase (Bengals)

2026 NFL Position Rankings: Top 50 Running Backs

()=2025 ranking

+=Unranked or ineligible in 2025

50.(44) Ray Davis (Bills)

49.(38) Justice Hill (Ravens)

48.(+) Samjae Perine (Bengals)

47.(+) Sean Tucker (Buccaneers)

46.(42) Nick Chubb (Free Agent)

45.(12) Chuba Hubbard (Panthers)

44.(22) Brian Robinson Jr. (Falcons)

43.(+) Chris Rodriguez Jr. (Jaguars)

42.(19) Alvin Kamara (Saints)

41.(+) Woody Marks (Texans)

40.(+) R.J. Harvey (Broncos)

39.(14) Aaron Jones (Vikings)

38.(+) Quinshon Judkins (Browns)

37.(+) Ashton Jeanty (Raiders)

36.(+) Kyle Monangai (Bears)

35.(+) Jacory Croskey-Merritt (Commanders)

34.(+) Kimani Vidal (Chargers)

33.(28) Tyler Allgeier (Cardinals)

32.(43) Tyrone Tracy Jr. (Giants)

31.(+) Omarion Hampton (Chargers)

30.(+) Cam Skattebo (Giants)

29.(25) Rhamondre Stevenson (Patriots)

28.(29) Jordan Mason (Vikings)

27.(+) Kenneth Gainwell (Buccaneers)

26.(27) Rico Dowdle (Steelers)

25.(16) Bucky Irving (Buccaneers)

24.(17) Tony Pollard (Titans)

23.(23) Rachaad White (Commanders)

22.(+) TreVeyon Henderson (Patriots)

21.(32) J.K. Dobbins (Broncos)

20.(+) Blake Corum (Rams)

19.(9) David Montgomery (Texans)

18.(30) Zach Charbonnet (Seahawks)

17.(40) Jaylen Warren (Steelers)

16.(36) Travis Etienne (Saints)

15.(18) Chase Brown (Bengals)

14.(47) Javonte Williams (Cowboys)

13.(24) Breece Hall (Jets)

12.(37) D'Andre Swift (Bears)

11.(1) Saquon Barkley (Eagles)

10.(5) Josh Jacobs (Packers)

9.(10) Kyren Williams (Rams)

8.(20) Kenneth Walker III (Chiefs)

7.(11) Jonathan Taylor (Colts)

6.(7) James Cook (Bills)

5.(3) Christian McCaffery (49ers)

4.(15) De'Von Achane (Dolphins)

3.(6) Jahmyr Gibbs (Lions)

2.(2) Derrick Henry (Ravens)

1.(4) Bijan Robinson (Falcons)

Movie Review: Mortal Kombat II

2021's Mortal Kombat-which was notable for being the first R-rated take on the legendary fighting game franchise-had two very common gripes from fans: 1. The titular tournament wasn't featured at all. 2.The main character (Lewis Tan's Cole Young) was an original creation for the movie who struggled to leave much of an impression when sharing the screen with MK's stable of iconic characters including Scorpion, Subzero and Sonya Blade. The creative team for the sequel Mortal Kombat II headed up by returning director Simon McQuoid and new screenwriter Jeremy Slater (Moon Knight, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire) listened to fan feedback and came up with a really groundbreaking solution: Break out the tournament and make fan favorite character Johnny Cage (Karl Urban) the protagonist.  This application of constructive criticism/olive branch fan service is exactly the remedy MKII needed to improve upon its predecessor.  

Structurally, Mortal Kombat II tests the limits of the definition of narrative storytelling. About 90% of the film is a breathless upchucking of frantic, CGI gore-soaked fights, quips that were collected off the cutting room of all three Deadpool movies and lore dumps about magic amulets that make fighters invincible and warning of the horrors that would fall upon the people of Earth if a tyrannical monster from another dimension were to win the latest edition of an interdimensional martial arts tournament where the losing contestants are typically killed in an over-the-top gruesome manner.  These smooth-brained shenanigans will drive certain viewers absolutely fucking insane as they chug along for a little under two hours until it reaches a conclusion that features wait for it... a tease for the next movie. 

For me, this particular configuration of a Mortal Kombat movie is pretty ideal. The first thing that comes to my mind when I think of Mortal Kombat is a relentless stream of over-the-top fights and building a movie around this cornerstone of the game just feels right. Honestly, the only time I wasn't entertained was when they attempted to build an emotional core surrounding Kitana (Adeline Rudolph) and her quest for revenge against big bad Shao Khan (Martyn Ford) for killing her father when she was a kid. Trying to establish even just a single somewhat substantial arc for one of these characters is just entirely antithetical to the rest of the movie that is built around things like Character X ripping Character Y's head off or Character A sparing the life of Character B to remind the viewer that they're one of the good guys, and it shows in the complete lack of heart that is put into this subplot. There was really no need to try to apply some half-assed personal stakes to a plot that basically boils down to "if Shao Khan wins the tournament, he will be free to enslave the Earth" and it's really hard to argue that it serves any purpose other than to than fill up the small bursts of dead air that exist between fights. Just let the cartoonish martial arts do the talking and leave the emotional resonance to movies that don't include spontaneous trips to Hell, a recently resurrected man melting goons with the laser eye that some corpse paint-covered wizard conjured up in a few seconds upon request and an avatar for Jean-Claude Van Damme helping save Earth from the brink of extinction. 

Assuming Mortal Kombat III gets greenlit, the path forward for this franchise could suddenly get murkier. Doubling down on the tournament/lore formula could swiftly erase the goodwill that was built up here and pivoting to a weightier story just doesn't make much sense for a franchise that is at its worst when its characters aren't trying to fight each other to the death. While there are certainly far worse outcomes than a fighting game adaptation peaking with something that's on the level of Mortal Kombat II, there's still some room for these movies to grow in terms of leaning into the inherent ridiculousness of this material and upping the creativity of the fight choreography in a world where the possibilities for combat fireworks are basically endless (more stuff on the level of the Kung Lao vs. Liu Kang fight in this installment would be awesome). A flawless victory is in sight, the people behind the controller just have to lock in and put the work into making it happen. 

Grade: B

Karl Urban Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Karl Urban-whose latest project "Mortal Kombat II" releases in theaters today.

Karl Urban's Filmography Ranked:

16.The Loft (D+)

15.Priest (C-)

14.The Chronicles of Riddick (C)

13.The Bourne Supremacy (C) 

12.The Bluff (B-)

11.Riddick (B-)

10.Star Trek Beyond (B-)

9.Doom (B-)

8.Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (B-)

7.Acts of Vengeance (B) 

6.Red (B)

5.Star Trek Into Darkness (B+)

4.The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (B+)

3.Dredd (B+)

2.Star Trek (A)

1.Thor: Ragnarok (A)

Top Dog: Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Taika Waititi coming in and revitalizing Thor after The Dark World turned the Norse God into the MCU's biggest liability as a solo movie headliner is one of the best things that's ever happened in the history of this massive franchise. Ragnarok is a big, colorful blast of a movie that is unafraid to get weird and show off Chris Hemsworth's underutilized range by turning Thor into this magnetic goofball who is finally forced to be vulnerable as his home faces extinction from his estranged sister Hela (Cate Blanchett in a delightful scenery-chewing villain turn).

Bottom Feeder: The Loft (2015)

It would be very hard to find a throwback sleazeball thriller attempt that's as misguided as The Loft. Belgian director Erik Van Looy-who is remaking his own 2008 movie Loft in English!-establishes a bafflingly serious tone for a movie with a logline that basically amounts to "five friends find a dead woman in the luxury apartment that they all use for their extramarital affairs and have to figure out who is responsible for this unidentified corpse before the authorities are alerted", none of the actors save for Matthias Scohenaerts-who also appeared in the original-invest any energy into trying to sell the fractures in the group's dynamic that this heinous crime has exposed and the obligatory avalanche of plot twists that arrives in the final act is too clumsily deployed to provide the intended seismic reconfiguring of the lens that the preceding events are viewed through. 

Most Underrated: Dredd (2012)

Plan and simple, Dredd fucking tips. The bloody, slow motion-driven action sequences hit like a truck, the simple plotting and confined apartment complex setting keep the suspense at a very high level throughout and the interactions between Urban's stoic brute Judge Dredd and Lena Headey's cartoonishly evil drug lord Ma-Ma are consistently electrifying. I would be absolutely overjoyed if Urban finally got his longstanding wish to get a sequel off the ground.

Most Overrated: Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Being on an island when it comes to Return of the King is one of the loneliest places you can ever find yourself in the world of movie takes. The reality is that I was very underwhelmed by this as a kid and that feeling has stuck with me as an adult. Padding out the runtime by tacking on nearly an hour of inert drama following the destruction of the ring adds a huge anticlimactic streak to what is supposed to be this soaring conclusion to an epic story. Looking back on it now, I'd argue that this creative choice proved to be a harbringer of what was to come with Peter Jackson's drawn-out adaptation of The Hobbit. Perhaps, a rewatch of the full trilogy would unlock something that I missed all of those years ago but for now, I remain firm in my belief that this is easily one of the most overrated movies I've ever watched.  

2026 NFL Position Rankings: Top 25 Quarterbacks

Blooming flowers and the promise that summer is within reach isn't the only thing that May always brings. That's right, there's also the considerably less exciting arrival of my annual NFL Position Ranking series. This was a tradition that was born out of pure boredom during the seemingly endless offseason about a decade ago and it's something that I really enjoy putting together every year. Here are a few notes on how this series works before we get started.

1.Rookies are barred from inclusion.

2.Players are judged on where they currently stand in my opinion, not the player they once were or could potentially go onto be.

3.Each player is listed as a member of the team they're currently rostered by. If a player is not on a roster at the time of the publishing of their position's rankings, they'll be listed as a free agent.

Quarterback has the honor of kicking things off as per usual and for the first time in a long time, there's a new guy occupying the top spot. Hope you enjoy and I encourage you to regularly check back over the next 8-9 weeks as the remainder of the series is published. 

()=2025 ranking 

+=Unranked or ineligible in 2025

25.(16) Kyler Murray (Vikings)

24.(+) Kirk Cousins (Raiders)

23.(+) Jacoby Brissett (Cardinals)

22.(23) Bryce Young (Panthers)

21.(25) Aaron Rodgers (Steelers)

20.(+) Daniel Jones (Colts)

19.(12) C.J. Stroud (Texans)

18.(+) Bo Nix (Broncos)

17.(8) Jayden Daniels (Commanders)

16.(11) Baker Mayfield (Buccaneers)

15.(24) Caleb Williams (Bears)

14.(18) Trevor Lawrence (Jaguars)

13.(9) Jared Goff (Lions)

12.(13) Brock Purdy (49ers)

11.(17) Jordan Love (Packers)

10.(20) Drake Maye (Patriots)

9.(5) Jalen Hurts (Eagles)

8.(10) Dak Prescott (Cowboys)

7.(6) Justin Herbert (Chargers)

6.(15) Sam Darnold (Seahawks)

5.(2) Lamar Jackson (Ravens)

4.(4) Joe Burrow (Bengals)

3.(1) Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs)

2.(7) Matthew Stafford (Rams)

1.(3) Josh Allen (Bills)

Movie Review: Deep Water

 

Picture this: It's the first weekend of the summer movie season and you're in the lobby of your local multiplex. Among the offerings playing is a Renny Harlin-directed disaster movie-turned-shark survival thriller starring Aaron Eckhart, Ben Kingsley and Angus Sampson. A reasonable follow up question would be what year is it? 1998? 2004? Perhaps, 2010? Believe it or not, this was a scenario that could've played out if you had walked into any of the 1,675 theaters in the United States/Canada that were playing Deep Water this past weekend. What's just as surprising as something like this making its way to the big screen in 2026 is that it's a legitimately solid piece of throwback entertainment.

Deep Water is the kind of movie that Harlin should always be considered for but rarely gets hired to make these days. His largely uninspiring filmography over the past 25 years has painted a distorted picture of who he is as a filmmaker and getting the chance to direct this two-for-one schlock special is his way of proving that he's still the same guy he was in the 90's when he was one of Hollywood's preferred hires when they needed a reliable pro to direct a dumb blockbuster. The pride he takes in being able to stage a massive plane crash that kills dozens of people via flying objects, slamming their heads off their tray tables, etc. then immediately shift gears to having the some of the people that survived the impact of the plane hitting the open ocean water promptly get eaten by sharks can be felt through the screen. This material doesn't require buy-in from the director, but Harlin can't help but get earnestly invested in the plight of these one-note characters, their struggle to survive back-to-back catastrophic events and the horrific dismemberment of the (mostly) unlikable souls who don't make it out of the shark-infested, debris-filled waters alive. After seeing him slip back into his old form here, I'm actually kind of excited to see what he did on the whale attack movie he made with Melissa Barrera and 2-4 Travoltas last summer.

Deep Water isn't the next Deep Blue Sea (although there are a few moments in the final 20 minutes where Harlin channels the same demented over-the-top cartoonish energy that made that movie so much fun), let alone the next Jaws. It is however a reminder of the special entertainment value that a disaster/survival movie that's earnestly cheesy and dumb enough can hold. This is a recipe that has threatened to be lost with time, and it was nice to see a trusted steward of its legacy allow it to stave off extinction for now by cooking up a damn fine meal with it at a time where it was widely believed he longer knew his way around a kitchen. 

Grade: B-