Tim joined Paul Douglas to review the new drama “The Queen’s Gambit” (Netflix) and paranormal comedy series “Truth Seekers” (Amazon Prime Video) on the “Paul and Jordana” show on WCCO-AM. Click to listen below. The segment is brought to you by Michael Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show” on KQRS-FM, “Paul and Jordana” on WCCO Radio, “It Matters with Kelly Cordes” on WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “Let’s Talk Movies with Tim Lammers” with Tim Matthews on KRWC-AM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere, and reviews streaming programming on WCCO Radio’s “Paul and Jordana” as well. On TV, Tim has made hundreds of guest appearances on “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC).
Tim joined Tom Barnard and the crew on “The KQ Morning Show” on KQRS-FM Thursday to review the psychological thriller “You Should Have Left” and crime drama “Inheritance.” Click to listen below. Then on Friday, Tim reviewed “You Should Have Left” and “Inheritance” with Jordana Green on the “Paul and Jordana” show on WCCO-AM. The segments are brought to you by Michael Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show” on KQRS-FM, “Paul and Jordana” on WCCO Radio, “It Matters with Kelly Cordes” on WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere, and reviews streaming programming on WCCO Radio’s “Paul and Jordana” as well. On TV, Tim has made hundreds of guest appearances on “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC).
Ten years after the inspired original, Woody Harrelson and his band of fellow zombie hunters are back with “Zombieland: Double Tap,” a sequel that is every bit as entertaining as the first “Zombieland” in terms of its comedy, but nearly is a dated concept when it comes to the listless zombie movie genre.
Just like cinema’s overwrought obsession with vampires with the “Twilight” movies that began just over a decade ago, “Double Tap” tries its best to put a spring into the steps of the walking dead — an effort that would have failed in the hands of lesser filmmakers and talented actors like Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Abigail Breslin and Emma Stone, and new additions including Zoey Deutsch and Rosario Dawson as an Elvis-loving match for Tallahassee.
“Double Tap” picks up 10 years after the events of the original, where Tallahassee (Harrelson), Columbus (Eisenberg), Wichita (Stone) and Little Rock (Breslin) find themselves living safe and comfortably at the abandoned and well-stocked White House in Washington, D.C. And while Tallahassee and Columbus seem content with their cushy surroundings, sisters Wichita and Little Rock appear to be restless. Now coupled, Columbus wants to marry Wichita – an idea she’s not down with; and Little Rock feels a void in her life that could only be fulfilled by being with people her own age.
AUDIO: Hear Tim’s review of “Zombieland: Double Tap” with Tom Barnard on “The KQ Morning Show” on KQRS-FM. Segment is brought to you by Michael Bryant and Bradshaw & Bryant.
Ready to put themselves in harm’s way once again, the sisters hit the road, where they meet up with a peacenik hipster, Berkley (Avan Jogia), who strives to live in the utopia called Babylon. Little Rock loves the idea so much that she runs off with Berkley, giving Wichita no choice but to return to the White House to get Tallahassee and Columbus in a bid to find and rescue her little sister, and they’re joined by a bubble-headed blonde, Madison (Deutsch), for the ride.
Like the original, “Double Tap” is directed by Ruben Fleischer and co-written by Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick (the “Deadpool” movies), and team effortlessly brings the same smart and funny dialogue to the film, which is brilliantly realized by the always great Harrelson and the playfully wry Eisenberg. Deutsch adds an extra comedic punch as the ditzy Madison, a role that moviegoers will likely find hilarious or grating, depending on their tolerance for Valley Girl speak.
Naturally, the film is loaded with action and is punctuated by several gross-out zombie death moments, which are ultimately funny because they’re so outrageous. The big key to the success of the film is whether audiences who are over the whole zombie craze will want to revisit genre, which, as demonstrated by the dwindling ratings of AMC’s “The Walking Dead,” has almost completely run its course.
The filmmakers at least try to change things up by making the zombies smarter and more aggressive in “Double Tap,” but even that angle at this point feels all-too familiar. If it weren’t for the talent involved (also look for entertaining turns by Luke Wilson and Thomas Middleditch), this “Zombieland” would definitely feel (double) tapped out. The only possible thing better at this point would be a sequel to Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s “Shaun of the Dead.”
Lammometer 7 (out of 10)
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show” on KQRS-FM, “Paul and Jordana” on WCCO Radio, “It Matters with Kelly Cordes on WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere, and reviews streaming programming on WCCO Radio’s “Paul and Jordana” as well. On TV, Tim has made hundreds of guest appearances on “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC).
Tom Cruise raises the stakes to even more dizzying heights in “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” the sixth film in the actor’s thrilling “Mission: Impossible” franchise. Featuring Cruise’s usual brand of marquee stunts, intense action sequences and a sprawling story line loaded with twists and turns, the film ranks among the series’ best, and is only hampered by its nearly 2 1/2 hour run time.
Unlike previous installments in the “Mission: Impossible” franchise, “Fallout” has direct ties to its previous installment (“Rogue Nation”), where the chief villain, Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) and undercover MI: 6 Agent Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) remain a core part of the narrative. The film begins with a thwarted attempt by IMF (Impossible Mission Force) Agent Ethan Hunt (Cruise) to recover three plutonium cores which could annihilate three major cities, leading him on a dangerous mission to unearth the mysterious identity of the person behind the planned attacks.
AUDIO: Click to hear Tim’s review of “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” with Tom Barnard on “The KQ Morning Show.”
However, due to the botched recovery of the plutonium in the first place, CIA Director Erica Sloan (Angela Bassett) requires Hunt to add CIA operative August Walker (Henry Cavill) to the team, which still includes computer hacker Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) and tech expert Benji Dunn (the always amusing Simon Pegg). Complicating matters, though, is Walker’s differences in philosophy, as well as the reemergence of Faust, whose identity and purpose in the matter remains ambiguous. Pivotal to the recovery of the plutonium, though, is the now-imprisoned Lane — who still very much remains a vital part of the crime organization The Syndicate — and he’s hell-bent on making Ethan witness the destruction he’s planning on causing with the nuclear material.
While Cruise continues to push the envelope with mind-blowing stunt work throughout the film (he trained for a year to do a 25,000-foot HALO jump out of a plane — and did a reported 109 takes to get it just right — and put a year and a half in learning to fly a helicopter), equally as impressive is the thrills that emerge from tried-and-true devices like foot pursuits and motorcycle chases throughout Paris and London. It’s great to see that Cruise and his frequent collaborator, writer-director Christopher McQuarrie, still find ways to not only make these sequences exciting, but have them rival the all-time great chase sequences like Gene Hackman’s frantic romp through New York City in “The French Connection.”
Better yet, despite the gloriously-staged action, “Fallout” never loses track of the story, even if its stretched to the point of ridiculousness (a 15-minute timer that’s running on a bomb that needs to be diffused seems to go on forever, hence the film’s overlong run-time). Thanks to some well-plotted twists, perhaps the greatest feat of “Fallout” is that it staves off any hint of predictability, apart, maybe from its ultimate outcome.
VIDEO: Click to see Tim’s review of “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” with Adrienne Broaddus on KARE-TV.
Perhaps the most amazing aspect of the “Mission: Impossible” franchise is how it continues to improve as the it grows. True, “Fallout” probably falls short of the greatness of the fourth film, “Ghost Protocol” and last one, “Rogue Nation,” but it’s still a top-notch thriller. Even though Cruise broke his ankle leaping from one building to the next during filming (the footage of which remains in the film), there’s clearly no sign of the actor slowing down. And with the perfect team of McQuarrie and the film’s supporting players in place, it will be interesting what impossible mission the adrenaline-fueled actor takes on next.
Lammometer: 8 (out of 10)
AUDIO: Click to hear Tim’s review of “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” with Paul Douglas and Jordana Green on WCCO’s Radio’s “Paul and Joranda.”
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for The KQ92 Morning Show,” “KARE 11 News at 11” (NBC), WCCO Radio, WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere.
