the @popcollin reviews

It’s hard to think of a recent movie that seems more concerned about award nominations than this Oscar-bait family drama set in the white-trash hills of Kentucky… but don’t be fooled. Amy Adams and Glenn Close are phenomenal, sure, but the movie itself is an overwrought mess that tries way, […]

Here come the holiday films! Netflix welcomes Christmas three weeks before Thanksgiving with this uneven Hallmark knockoff. Of course, the impossibly beautiful male and female leads hate each other at first, and of course, they wind up basking in the glow of each other’s love. The tropical setting is a […]

The latest unnecessary and ill-advised remake of a classic is as forgettable as they come. The suspense is non-existent, and the filmmakers seem more intent on making every frame look like a spread from Vanity Fair. Skip it, and watch the 1940 Hitchcock version instead. Or, better yet, read the […]

News Flash: The American political system is corrupt, driven by greed, and fueled by money. If you need further proof, ex-Daily Show anchor Jon Stewart’s Irresistible (which he wrote and directed) spells it out for you with all the subtlety of a ball-peen hammer to the skull. Couched as a political satire, Irresistible […]

If an Adam Sandler movie drops on Netflix, and his face never appears, is it still an Adam Sandler movie? You may find yourself pondering that (along with many other things) as you watch The Wrong Missy, the latest uninspired Happy Madison production to stream for the masses. Indeed, everything in […]

Pedophilia. Homosexuality. Racism. Not exactly the fodder for the world’s smartest comedy, but don’t tell Shane Mack. The first-time screenwriter thinks they’re all hilarious, and even more so (apparently) when the jokes come from the ridiculously foul mouth of a 12-year-old. Coffee & Kareem, the latest Netflix original, tries so hard […]

It’s been 20 years since author Jerry Spinelli introduced the world to Stargirl, the quirky, manic pixie dream girl who descends on an Arizona high school and then disappears just as quickly, without anyone really appreciating her impact. Though the inherent lessons about individuality and not buckling to norms remain […]

Michael Cristofer’s resume includes a Pulitzer and a Tony (for 1977’s The Shadow Box), and awards from the Writers Guild (for the 2009 TV movie Georgia O’Keeffe) and Director’s Guild (for the 1998 HBO film Gia). After sitting through The Night Clerk, though, you may find yourself wondering why. Sure, everyone has an off […]

Following up his taut 2018 political thriller Beirut, director Brad Anderson has decided to join the growing throngs in offering up his latest feature on Netflix. Good thing, since it saves you from plunking down a ten-spot (or more) on Fractured in the theater and then grappling with the lousy feeling that those […]

For his first foray into his brave new post-Avengers world, Chris Evans goes on a based-on-a-true-story mission to rescue Ethiopian Jews in the early 1980s in Gideon Raff’s The Red Sea Diving Resort. The mostly shrug-worthy, paint-by-numbers Netflix film certainly gives a powerful (and largely unknown) story its moment in the sun, […]