Movie reviews of Sandy Schaefer

Well-crafted and tells a worthwhile story, but makes for a better history lesson than moviegoing experience.

A stylishly surreal, but hollow, horror/thriller – and another Nicolas Winding Refn film bound to divide audiences.

Kevin Hart and Dwayne Johnson’s comedic chemistry save it from being a passable, yet forgettable, mainstream action/comedy.

While it isn’t as innovative a horror film throwback as its predecessor, it’s an excellent ghost story in its own right.

Essentially a solid Lonely Island sketch over-stretched to fill a feature-length running time.

More of a shiny, yet hollow, Disney product than meaningful continuation of Alice’s story.

An entertainingly breezy buddy-detective romp that steadfast Shane Black fans ought to get additional mileage from.

A well-directed and well-acted dramatic thriller weighed down by heavy-handed social commentary and implausible plot beats.

A great superhero blockbuster that lays the groundwork for even bigger and better things to come in Phase 3 of the MCU.

May be a glorified feature-length Key and Peele skit, but it’s also an entertaining and thematically-layered action/comedy parody.

A half-baked action/thriller that fails to properly explore its sci-fi premise.

Only partly successful at using the first person POV format to create a unique cinematic experience.

A solid mainstream comedy elevated by its star.

Has enough of its predecessor’s charm and sincerity to earn a passing grade.

A subpar installment in The Divergent Series that fails to justify the decision to split the final Divergent novel into two movies.

A middle of the road action/comedy where Sacha Baron Cohen’s R-Rated comedy brand offers diminishing returns.

An uneven, but otherwise passable wartime comedy/drama anchored by Tina Fey’s performance.

An uninspired sequel to Olympus Has Fallen, but has some of its predecessor’s cheesy action movie throwback charm.

A cheesy and visually unimpressive fantasy adventure that’s too dull to make for fun campy entertainment.

Its talented cast and inspired directorial flourishes are offset by messy storytelling choices.

Effectively unpleasant and creepy, but it works better as a psychological thriller than a horror film.

Relies heavily on rom-com tropes, but succeeds in putting a more thoughtful and funny spin on many of them.

Aims to be bigger and crazier than its predecessor, but amounts to a serviceable (though less memorable) comedy sequel.

A respectful dramatization of the real-life events that inspired it, but is too by the numbers to leave a strong impression.