March was a busy month for movies, both in the theaters and on streaming at home. Most of them all released on or around the same day, with April showing no signs of slowing down. We’ve already reviewed some of the heavy hitters like “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” “John Wick Chapter 4,” “Scream IV,” “Shazam: Fury of the Gods” and more. But with so many ways to watch movies, it can be hard to keep up with everything being released, let alone review them all. So to make sure we cover as many films as possible, here is a short list of quick reviews from some recent releases we watched last month and where to find them!
“Tetris” (Apple TV+)
It appears that we are now in our “Brand” era of filmmaking, with a number of films in the vein of “Tetris” set for upcoming release. Directed by Jon S. Baird and written by Noah Pink, the film stars Taron Egerton and follows the wild true story of America’s bid for the rights to the global phenomenon in the late 1980s. Like the game itself, “Tetris” works best in its most basic form, with the building blocks of a charismatic performance from Egerton and a fast past, globetrotting web of business deals and riveting negotiation contracts being far more thrilling and entertaining than one would’ve guessed. Where it stacks too high is the overdramatization of events in its third act, where things get a little too far fetched and start to expose the muddiness of the script overall and the somewhat tonal imbalance of an otherwise enjoyable watch. “Tetris” is far more engaging that expected, but doesn’t quite make a strong enough case for the obviously embellished story to be told in the first place. It released on March 31st.
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
“Boston Strangler” (Hulu)
You know I’m a sucker for a good old fashioned reporter story and even more, a true crime investigation. “Boston Strangler” technically has both in spades, but doesn’t quite do either aspect particularly well. A hybrid of “She Said” and “Zodiac,” it only scratches the surface of its predecessors and ends up not being nearly as good as any of the films it sets out to stand with. Even starring Kira Knightley shedding her strong British accent for a Boston? one, she doesn’t quite fit in this space, looming a bit too large as an actress for a toned down, setting based film. She’s more distracting than engaging, which isn’t a knock on her performance as much as it is that the material of “Boston Strangler” doesn’t match the performer. There’s still enough to enjoy underneath, but the film is held back by its meandering pacing and lack of focus in the overall narrative. It released March 17th.
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
“Furies” (Netflix)
A Vietnam import (the first for Netflix) with ties to a previous film titled “Furie” from the same director, “Furies” is a martial arts, gun-fu action film that follows a mysterious woman who trains three young girls to fight against the injustices that had been done to them and seek revenge on some Saigon kingpins. “Furies” is a little more style over substance, Though more style over substance, “Furies” has enough emotional heft just below the surface to deliver an investing, well-crafted action film. It bites off a little more than it can chew story wise and has some pacing issues, but has just enough slick action to be a solidly entertaining action flick. There are some genuinely strange choices as far as framing and CGI goes, and the third act reveals go off the rails quickly, leaving a lot to be desired in its conclusion. It sports some pretty good ideas executed poorly, but “Furies” is a decent offering of action if you’re stuck scrolling categories with nothing to watch. It released on March 23rd, 2023.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Stars
“I See You” (Netflix)
An oldie but a goodie, “I See You” is actually a 2019 film that only recently hit Netflix this month. I have never been more regretful of missing a film when it was released, and I genuinely can’t believe how late I am to the party on this one! “I See You” is a straight up mind fuck psychological thriller that has no business being this good whatsoever. You would be right to dismiss something from Saban Films, and I went into pretty skeptical and was even more put off by how terrible Helen Hunt is here. She is grossly miscast, but the longer I tried to disengage from “I See You,” the more engaging it became the longer it went on. By the time we get to the drastic, tonal shift, things ramp up so quickly my brain felt melted by the end. It defines “let’s get nuts,” and somehow manages to make this out of this world twist after twist ending all come together in the end. “I See You” works best when you go in as blind as possible, as the cascading surprises are most effective when you know as little about them as possible. Don’t count this one out, and don’t do what I did and let it go unwatched for too long. Trust me, it Gwen Stefani level bananas in the best of ways. It released March 8th.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
“Money Shot: The Pornhub Story” (Netflix)
Everyone can unclench, I didn’t include my Pornhub searches in my reviews. And “Money Shot: The Pornhub Story” is nearly as saucy or racy as any joke about it may lead you to believe. What should be a complex and intriguing examination of sex work and the continuing impact of the internet on our lives, it never manages to truly capture, answer, or even deliver any concise commentary on its own issues. “Money Shot” is too disjointed to be compelling and too incomplete to be competent and bites off way more than it can chew. The Documentary is never able to evaluate a topic with any kind of discernment or forward thinking, making its own discussion muted and uninteresting. It tries to tell all sides of an issue larger than anyone they get to comment on it, and in turn ends up not really having all that much to say about something that is rich with conversation. Might have a new crush on Siri Dahl, though. It hit Netflix on March 15th.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
