Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

(M) ★★½Director: Joachim Rønning & Espen Sandberg.Cast: Johnny Depp, Javier Bardem, Brenton Thwaites, Kaya Scodelario, Kevin McNally, Geoffrey Rush.The Cure had been on the road for far too long.So long as Johnny Depp keeps signing on to play Jack Sparrow, and so long as they keep making treasure chests worth of money, Disney will keep making Pirates Of The Caribbean movies.How else can you explain the fact we're up to Pirates 5 when only...

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RIP Chris Cornell

Like most people of a certain age, I was shocked and saddened to hear of Chris Cornell's passing. Of all the alternative sounds that shaped the '90s (and thus a whole generation of malleable minds), the sound of Cornell's voice is one of the most prominent. It was phenomenal, soaring across four octaves like a stunt pilot. Cobain and Vedder were more influential as singers, but only because no one could do what Cornell did - Cornell was inimitable...

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King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword

(MA15+) ★½Director: Guy RitchieCast: Charlie Hunnam, Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey, Djimon Hounsou, Aidan Gillen, Jude Law, Eric Bana.Much like Tarzan, filmmakers just can't leave King Arthur alone.It's one of those old public domain stories that Hollywood types love to dig up, dust off and "re-imagine" every few years when bereft of anything new to contribute or when all the good franchises have been snapped up by other production companies.And so...

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Alien: Covenant

(MA15+) ★★★½Director: Ridley Scott.Cast: Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir, Carmen Ejogo, Amy Seimetz, Jussie Smollett, Callie Hernandez."I'm going to kill everyone, starting with the writers of Prometheus."In most decade-spanning franchises, the goodwill of the early films can be enough to make fans endure the usually inevitable diminishing returns as they live in hope of a return to the glory...

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Get Out (includes audio review)

(MA15+) ★★★★★Director: Jordan Peele.Cast: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Lil Rel Howery, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones, Stephen Root, Betty Gabriel, Marcus Henderson."Has anyone seen Guess Who's Coming To Dinner?""Oh yeah, I love Ashton Kutcher!"THE best horror and sci-fi stories reflect the fears and concerns of the time. Godzilla is the manifestation of Japan's post-Hiroshima nuclear nightmares. Invasion...

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