The Northman

           Director and co-writer ( with Sjon) Robert Eggers brings his unique vision to this Viking tale of revenge. Set in AD 895, the film, while filled with its share of violent battle scenes, is more metaphysical and mystical in nature.

           The film stars Alexander Skarsgard as Amleth, a warrior prince, Oscar Novak as the young Amleth, Nicole Kidman as Amleth's mother and Ethan Hawke as his father. When his uncle Fjolnir (played by Claes Bang) kills his father and takes his mother as his queen, young  Amleth escapes by boat plotting revenge. We meet him years later as the adult Amleth, who after a visit by a seer (played by Bjork), seeks a mystical sword in order to slay his uncle. Along the way he befriends Olga (played by Anya Taylor-Joy) when they both become slaves to Fjolnir, who is unaware of Amleth's true identity. The film also co-stars in small roles, Willem Dafoe, Ralph Ineson and Kate Dickie, all veterans of Mr. Eggers earlier films.

          The majority of the film is set in the barren wilderness of Iceland. Devoid of much color or life, the harsh landscape becomes a character unto itself. Mr. Eggers brings a true sense of realism to the stark and violent world of these characters. You can almost feel the blood and dirt on your skin as you watch the story unfold.  He has an uncanny way of creating a familiar story in a fresh and unique way. 

          Don't expect a full-blown Viking adventure with a cast of thousands but rather expect the unexpected and be rewarded with a surprising tale of blood, sweat, and a single tear. 

Fantastic Beast: The Secrets of Dumbledore

 

       The third film in the "Fantastic Beats" series finds most of the original cast back for a new adventure. Eddie Redmayne returns as Newt Scamander as does Dan Fogler as the "muggle" Jacob Kowalski. Albus Dumbledore is played again, with great charm by Jude Law in an expanded role from the previous film. Also returning are Ezra Miller, Alison Sudol, and in what amounts to a cameo, Katherine Waterston. Jessica Williams joins the cast as Professor "Lally" Hicks. A welcome addition this time out is Mads Mikkelsen as Grindelwald, replacing Johnny Depp. He brings more depth and menace to the role than Mr. Depp. 

        Directed again by David Yates from a screenplay by J.K. Rowling, the film moves along at a calm almost leisurely pace (even the action sequences seem calm and lacking a real sense of excitement) with an engaging story, that at its core, is about a rigged election. The most exciting sequence involves Newt rescuing his brother, Theseus from a wizard prison. The CGI work is impressive creating a sense of magic throughout the film.

        The series was originally planned as five films. This film does have its charms (pun intended) and a clear ending in case the decision is made not to move forward with more films.

Ambulance

        

       I can't imagine any director other than Michael Bay going near this ridiculous script.  Apparently he turned it down the first time it was offered but after CoVid shut down any production, he was anxious to start directing again. The film is based on the Danish film of the same name and I suppose Danish audiences were less forgiving. In typical Michael Bay fashion, logic and depth of character are replaced by pure adrenaline and explosions.

       Jake Gyllenhaal and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II star as brother Danny and Will Sharp. Danny took up the family business of robbing banks while Will became a Marine. Now faced with a desperate need for cash, Will agrees to help Danny with a $32 million dollar bank robbery. When things go wrong very quickly, they find themselves stealing an ambulance with an EMT (played by Eliza Gonzalez) and a wounded policeman (played by Jackson White) still inside. The remainder of the film is basically one long chase through the streets of Los Angeles. Garrett Dillahunt and Kier O'Donnell play the Swat leader and FBI agent pursuing them.

      Mr. Gyllenhaal is in manic mode as the desperate bank robber. Mr. Abdul- Mateen II is the sympathetic brother who wavers between surrender and getaway. Ms. Gonzalez steals the picture out from everyone as the tough talking EMT.  But the real star of the film is the camera work, filming the action from every angle sometimes at dizzying speed. Mr. Bay's bombastic direction is fast, furious and loud. He makes it easy to forget how ridiculous the story is, including reality defying surgery performed in a moving ambulance.

      Exciting at the start, the mind-numbing chase grows weary until the script throws in a Latino gang with a clever ruse to help the brothers. While injecting some fresh action, it's too little too late. Suffice to say, Ambulance runs out of gas and coasts to an inevitable ending.

Morbius

         Marvel Studio's next crack at a superhero franchise comes in collaboration with Sony Studios and those cross studio films are never quite as good as pure Disney/Marvel creations. Case in point, "Morbius", based on the Marvel comic, "Morbius, The Living Vampire" is much darker in tone (and I would think pretty scary for a younger audience) and lacking the  perfect balance of humor and drama found in the other films.

         Jared Leto stars as Dr. Michael Morbius, a scientist with a rare disease who finds a cure mixing human DNA with vampire bat DNA. However, to stay healthy with enhanced strength and skills, he must drink blood every few hours.  Being the hero of the film, he has successfully created artificial blood so he needn't seek out human victims. However, someone else has stolen the cure and doesn't really care where they find a blood source.

       Mr. Leto is a fine actor, usually known for more serious roles but for whatever reason, he has hitched himself to the Marvel bandwagon. He does the best he can, swallowed by tons of CGI and other special effects that are fair at best.  The film co-stars Adria Arjona as a fellow scientist and love interest for Mr. Leto, Jared Harris as a mentor and father figure doctor, and Matt Smith as Lucien/Milo, Morbius's surrogate brother. Tyrese Gibson and Al Madrigal are FBI agents trying to solve the riddle of  multiplying dead bodies drained of blood.

        This is your typical origin story where the stakes are not that high but will set up a definite sequel that ties the character tighter to the Marvel universe. Stay for the mid-credit scenes for a familiar character and important reference to events from a previous Marvel blockbuster.