Hobbs & Shaw: Straying from the rest of the Fast and Furious family proved to be no problem for Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham. The inaugural spin-off in the street racing turned over-the-top action blockbuster franchise manages to carve out its own path without losing the infectious camaraderie and unapologetically joyous, absurd spectacle that have made the recent central entries such a blast. The snarky chemistry between Johnson and Statham is an ideal building block for an even more comedic take on the globetrotting, world-saving adventures this franchise has become known for of late. Director David Leitch (Deadpool 2, Atomic Blonde) has a ball injecting inspired physical humor into each insane, exceptionally-staged action sequence and provides his leads with every opportunity to flex their underrated comedic chops while quickly dispatching legions of bad guys. It also helps that once again every new addition to the cast (Vanessa Kirby, Idris Elba, Eiza Gonzalez, Eddie Marsan, a pair of A-listers that make surprise appearances in bit parts) revels in the distinct self-aware absurdity that defines this universe and adds even more magnetism to a series where charisma reigns supreme. Hobbs & Shaw is a terrific addition to the Fast and Furious canon and hopefully just the first of many adventures for this endlessly entertaining odd couple.
Grade: A-
The Kitchen: What an absolutely baffling and astonishing waste of potential this turned out to be. The Kitchen features solid acting from a great ensemble cast (Melissa McCarthy, Tiffany Haddish, Elisabeth Moss, Domhnall Gleeson, Margo Martindale, Bill Camp), the gritty look/feel of a classic gangster movie and toys with some interesting ideas surrounding gender, race and the general structure of an organized crime syndicate throughout yet it somehow fails to be consistently compelling. After a pretty solid opening in which these mobster wives, their varying domestic situations and how they get involved in the criminal underworld their incarcerated husbands were apart of are introduced, the film inexplicably collapses. The high body count, self preservation-driven betrayals and final act plot twists that are commonplace in a rise-and-fall crime story like this are delivered so coldly and abruptly that absolutely none of it carries any weight. I don't know if this wall-to-wall emptiness was a result of choppy editing that cut out important scenes that added more context to the character's motivations or it was just a case of bad writing/directing, but the staggering lack of storytelling momentum is a fatal flaw that makes The Kitchen feel more and more disjointed as it goes along. There's a great crime tale buried somewhere in The Kitchen, it just unfortunately doesn't get spend to a lot of time on the surface.
Grade: C-
Good Boys: Trying to convincingly argue that Good Boys isn't a one joke movie would be a very difficult task. It's more or less just roughly 90 minutes of 12 year old kids swearing, not understanding sex/drugs stuff and getting into adult situations they are hilariously ill-equipped to handle. The important question is does that really matter if you're laughing hard enough? Not at all. Thanks to their perfect combination of unassuming charm and ace comic timing, all 3 leads (Jacob Tremblay, Keith L. Williams, Brady Noon) crush their roles as the inseparable best friends the title refers to and the script constantly throws hilarious curveballs that turns their misadventures over the course of a single day where they decide to skip school to prepare for a kissing party being held by a popular classmate into something very memorable. Underneath, there's also some pretty effective commentary on friendship and coming to the dreaded realization that not every bond you establish as a kid will last forever that delivers an important life lesson I didn't expect to see in this type of raunchfest. Like Booksmart, Good Boys is yet another terrific 2019 R-rated comedy that has a real chance to develop into a generational touchstone for kids currently working their way through the awkward transition from elementary to middle school (if their parents allow them to see it of course😉).
Grade: A-
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