Lady in the Water (2006; written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan)

Filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan called this goofy fantasy a “modern-day fairy tale.” And sure, it could technically be called that, as it has a water nymph (Bryce Dallas Howard), creatures called Scrunts and Tartutics, giant eagles, and a mystical quest to find someone that will help save humanity. But it makes zero sense, even by Shyamalan’s standards of clunky writing. Still, his usual flashes of visual brilliance make the experience somewhat tolerable.

Rating: **

Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018; written by Edmond Wong and Chan Tai-lee; directed by Yuen Woo-ping)

The fights are pretty cool – despite some added VFX – and it’s always nice to see Michelle Yeoh kicking ass in a fight scene, but this spin-off of the popular Ip Man film series is pretty forgettable. From it’s unconvincing 1960s Honk Kong sets to the paper-thin plot and characters, you might be better off revisiting the original Ip movies.

Rating: **

Karate Kid: Legends (2025; written by Rob Lieber; based on characters created by Robert Mark Kamen; directed by Jonathan Entwistle)

And speaking of average martial arts flicks, Karate Kid: Legends does nothing to bring back the charm of either The Karate Kid (1984) or the reboot from 2010, as teen Li (Ben Wang) moves from China to NY and tries to beat the requisite local bully/karate champion. Plus what’s up with the decision to have Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan return in what amount to little more than cameos?

Rating: **

All That Jazz (1979; written by Robert Alan Aurthur and Bob Fosse; directed by Bob Fosse)

Legendary choreographer Bob Fosse directs this semi-autobiographical musical about a theater choreographer/director (Roy Scheider) whose creativity is fueled by an endless stream of drugs, women, and booze. The highly stylized narrative supports the main character’s ego-driven flights of fancy, setting it apart from your standard film of this nature. Scheider is solid as usual, playing somewhat against type in a role that could’ve gone to a more intense actor (Richard Dreyfuss, Gene Hackman, and others were considered first). And the dance numbers are all memorable – watch out for Ann Reinking and Erzsebet Foldi delightful performance of Everything Old Is New Again.

Rating: ***

Rocketman (2019; written by Lee Hall; directed by Dexter Fletcher)

Interestingly, I followed All That Jazz with a biopic directly influenced by it, Rocketman. The film covers the rise to stardom of musician Elton John (played by Taron Edgerton) with stylized fantasy sequences that serve to highlight his self-destructing tendencies. Director Dexter Fletcher delivers another dynamic rock portrait (he previously directed parts of 2018’s Bohemian Rhapsody when original director Bryan Singer was fired) and the end result, while somewhat formulaic, is still quite entertaining.

Rating: **½

Carlos I. Cuevas