Podcast - Freeze Frame

Russ Simmons gives his take on upcoming movies.

Freeze Frame: “Queenpins” (R), “Kate” (R), “The Lost Leonardo” (PG-13)

The wacky comedy “Queenpins” is, oddly enough, based on a bizarre true story. Kristen Bell and Kirby Howell-Baptiste star as a couple of Phoenix women who made tens of millions of dollars by counterfeiting manufacturers’ coupons and selling them online. The filmmakers turn the story into an offbeat farce that...

Freeze Frame: “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” (PG-13), “Worth” (PG-13)

The Marvel Cinematic Universe just got a bit more diverse. Newcomer Simu Liu stars in the rousing adventure “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” an impressive visual spectacle that will ultimately tie in with other movies in the ongoing superhero series following the events of “Avengers: Endgame.” Liu...

Freeze Frame: “Candyman” (R), “No Man of God” (Not rated), “Vacation Friends” (R)

Who can creep out viewers? The “Candyman” can. Twenty-nine years after the scare-fest “Candyman” dared viewers to “Say my name,” a woke sequel slithers into theaters. This time out, “Candyman” has some social context to go along with the chills, skewering gentrification along with a heap of human bodies. Yahya...

Freeze Frame: “The Protégé” (R), “The Night House” (R), “Sweet Girl” (R)

Maggie Q plays a super-skillful assassin out for revenge in the slick and sleazy action flick. "The Protégé." Samuel L. Jackson does his usual thing as Maggie’s hired-killer mentor and Michael Keaton goes against type as Maggie's nasty nemesis. There's plenty of bloody mayhem under the workmanlike direction of Martin...

Freeze Frame: “Free Guy” (PG-13), “CODA” (PG-13), “Beckett” (Not rated)

The star of "Deadpool" and the director of "Night at the Museum" team up and the results are just what you'd expect. “Free Guy” is a visually elaborate comic fantasy with a snarky PG-13 edge. Ryan Reynolds plays a background character in a violent video game who doesn't know he...

Freeze Frame: “The Suicide Squad” (R), “Nine Days” (R)

“The Suicide Squad" is a reboot and reimagining of the disappointing 2016 DC Comics movie "Suicide Squad," about super villains manipulated into serving a shady government agency. Writer/director James Gunn of "Guardians of the Galaxy" fame gives this decadent R-rated action flick a wacky, comedic grindhouse edge. Some of the...

Freeze Frame: “Jungle Cruise” (PG-13), “Stillwater” (R), “The Last Mercenary”

Turning a theme park ride into a movie worked box office wonders for Disney’s “Pirates of the Caribbean.” The Mouse House employs the same template with “Jungle Cruise.” Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt bring plenty of personal charisma to their roles of a charming Amazon boat captain and a spunky...