Mike Poulos

Des Plaines

Contributor at Journal & Topics

Featured in: Favicon

journal-topics.com

Articles

Creepy ‘Bring Her Back’ Raises Some Hairs

3 days ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

Sally Hawkins and Jonah Wren Phillips in "Bring Her Back". “Bring Her Back” (103 min, Rated R for strong disturbing violent content, some grisly images, graphic nudity, underage drinking and language) 5 out of 10For mainstream film reviewers such as myself, there’s no hiding from the combined horror-occult-satanic-supernatural genre. It’s a sure-fire box-office filler between the gargantuan seat-filling films like “Mission Impossible” and “Jurassic World.” What used to be seasonal releases has ...
‘Karate Kid Legends’ Swings, Misses

3 days ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

Jackie Chan and Ben Wang in "Karate Kid: Legends". “Karate Kid Legends” (94 min, Rated PG-13 for martial arts violence and some language) 4 out of 10After its tepid remake in 2010, “The Karate Kid” has now been rebooted in 2025, over 40 years after its debut film in 1984 that was successfully followed with two decent sequels in 1986 and 1989, all three films featuring Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita. But that’s not where “The Karate Kid” ended, followed by a brief animated series, two more movies ...
Performance By Sadeghian Frees ‘Bound’

1 week ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

Josh Alscher and Alexandra Faye Sadeghian in "Bound". “Bound” (102 min, Unrated but contains violence, sexual content, language and drug material equivalent to an R rating) 7 out of 10Shot in 2022 and playing the film festival circuit in 2023, winning several awards, “Bound” was finally released on video-on-demand on May 16. Small independent features like this just don’t get the financial backing for distribution -- and this one deserves mention featuring an outstanding performance from its le...
‘Lilo & Stitch’ Steps Up For Cute Disney Remake

1 week ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

Chris Sanders (voice of Lilo) and Maia Kealoha in Disney's remake of "Lilo & Stitch". “Lilo & Stitch” (108 mins, Rated PG for action, peril and thematic elements) 7 out of 10For several years now the Disney Studio has been pumping out what they’d like to call reimagined versions of many of their classic, or not so classic, animated films into live-action remakes. I’m not sure if it’s to reestablish a new fan base or to simply reengineer these films with a new coat of paint. Some of them...
‘Final Destination’: How Far Can You Go?

2 weeks ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

Rya Kihlstedt, April Telek, Alex Zahara, Tinpo Lee, Richard Harmon, Teo Briones, Anna Lore, Owen Patrick Joyner, and Kaitlyn Santa Juana in "Final Destination Bloodlines". “Final Destination Bloodlines” (110 min, Rated R for strong violent and grisly accidents, and language) 4 out of 10There’s only so far you can run and only so many places you can hide before death comes-a-calling for its victim…you. When your name comes up, it’s your fate to comply and meet your maker. And the grim reaper alw...
Last Hurrah For ‘Mission Impossible’?

2 weeks ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

Tom Cruise in "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning". “Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning” (169 mins, Rated PG-13 for sequences of strong violence and action, bloody images, and brief language) 8 out of 10Even though “Thunderbolts” got the ball rolling, “Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning” signals the actual beginning of summertime nonsense at the theaters. There’s plenty more coming in June-July-August, but this one, to me, at least, represents the cream of the crop with anticip...
Processing Action-Packed ‘Prosecutor’

3 weeks ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

“The Prosecutor” (117 min. Unrated, but contains violence, language and drug references equivalent to an R-rating) 7 out of 10Like Jackie Chan, presumably his mentor, Donnie Yen has been tearing it up in the Hong Kong chop-socky market for decades. And both of these legendary martial-arts icons have heavily flourished in foreign markets before coming to the states. For Chan, now 71, and Yen, now 61, they have entered the final stages of their prolific action careers. How they can continue to pe...
‘Fight Or Flight’ Hard To Fight

3 weeks ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

Josh Hartnett in "Fight or Flight". “Fight or Flight” (101 min, Rated R for strong bloody violence, pervasive language throughout and some drug material) 7 out of 10Having been screened in 2024 and now making its way to theaters is “Fight or Flight,” a rather unflattering title for a campy action thriller that pays, in some ways, homage to “Snakes on a Plane” in which all the action takes place inside a passenger jet airliner. However, after seeing this film, a more appropriate title would be “...
Movie Review: ‘The Last Spark Of Hope’

3 weeks ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

“The Last Spark of Hope” (84 min, Rated R for language and some violence) 6 out of 10There are simply too many post-apocalyptic dystopian-themed movies to keep track of on TV, both in on-going network series and streaming channels, and theatrically as well. The film industry is obsessed with the fate humans face in the future given the advancements in technology that for all practical purposes spell gloom and doom for human civilization. Adding to this anxiety and worry is the uncertainty of ou...
‘Drop’ Logs You In, Like It Or Not

1 month ago | journal-topics.com | Mike Poulos

“Drop” (95 min, Rated PG-13 for strong violent content, suicide, some strong language and sexual references) 5 out of 10Everyone seems to be in a lather over how good “Drop” is as a techno-action-romance-drama, but if one takes pause to the multitude of convolutions and improbabilities in this stylishly-made thriller, one should take a step back and take measure of what’s on the screen.