After all the sneak preview screenings of Marvel movies and action flicks I've dragged my understanding and always-game wife to, I owed her a chick comedy. So last night, we got in the holiday spirit extra early with a peek of A BAD MOMS CHRISTMAS. I didn't see the first "Bad Moms" movie, but I don’t think there were any massive character twists I missed in advance. Three modern Moms are doing all they can to hold their families together for the holidays when their Moms all show up unannounced much to their mutual horror. Mila Kunis is Amy, Mom to two teenagers and the daughter of the picture perfect, wealthy Christine Baranski. Amy’s mom showers her grandkids with gifts, criticizes everything Amy does and demands perfection. Peter Gallagher is very good as Amy’s Dad, bowing to his wife’s every demand to keep the peace. The always-funny Kristen Bell is Kiki, who’s widowed Mom has zero boundaries and strange perceptions of their relationship. Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm) is hilarious and twisted. She and Bell generate a lot of horrific laughs and Hines wardrobe throughout is hilarious. Kathryn Hahn rounds out the trio as Carla, a hilariously profane spa worker by day and Mom to a dim-witted teenager. When her ex-roadie Mom (Susan Sarandon) arrives, she brings zero desire to be a Mom, but plenty of laughs. Hahn and Sarandon play off each other really well, their timing is flawless. I haven’t see Hahn in anything except “This Is Where I Leave You” and her comic chops are impressive. I haven’t seen anyone throw away lines at the end of a scene like Hahn in ages. Justin Hartley (This Is Us) takes the movie to a whole different level of funny when he shows up at Carla’s spa for a waxing. His stripper/fireman Ty Swindell (remember that name-Carla does) has some of the best lines in the movie and one hell of a poker face during the wax. Hartley steals every scene in the movie that he’s in and doesn’t mind going into some very adult territory for BIG laughs, extraordinarily big... Wanda Sykes brings laughs in her one scene as a therapist for Kiki and her Mom. Her facial expressions are perfection. There aren’t too many surprises here but you’re in the hands of some superb comic actors and they all take the everyday material up a notch. Kunis is adept at weaving in some nice dramatic moments, the kid actors are all very good and the scene in the church with the elder Moms together drives LOL moments. The opposite of highbrow, it’s a pretty funny, foul holiday movie powered by a great cast. I’ll give it a B- but I’m betting that Tamara and all the ladies at the preview (who collectively hooted, shouted and clapped every time Hartley was on screen) would all give it two thumbs up.

If you like your comedy completely inappropriate and envelope pushing, BAD GRANDPA should make you laugh a lot, I sure did. Johnny Knoxville adds some great makeup and becomes 87 year old reluctant grandpa Irving Zisman. Irving finds himself with an unlikely cross country companion in his 8 year old grandson Billy, played by the hilarious Jackson Nicoll. Like a modern day adult Candid Camera, BAD GRANDPA puts these two in a lot of hilarious places with unsuspecting folks caught with hidden cameras reacting to our odd couple. The scenes at Irving's wife's funeral are laugh-out-loud uncomfortable, but are soon topped by Irving's encounters with a troop of male strippers and a seriously perverted take on a child beauty contest. Young Jackson Nicoll is fall-over-laughing funny as Billy and he and Knoxville never break character as they trap a whole lot of people in some very awkward situations. The fact that the two actually make you care about these two characters by the end of the film is quite a surprise. VERY adult, nasty, rude and funny, Bad Grandpa made me laugh out loud a lot and squirm even more. Can't wait to see these two again, please Paramount, get us The Return of Bad Grandpa asap. Not for the easily offended. Laughed my way to a very solid capital B. The beauty pageant scene alone is worth the price of admission!

Hugh Jackman is excellent as a New York school district superintendent involved in the biggest school embezzlement scandal in history in HBO’s new film BAD EDUCATION. Based on a true story, Jackman nails every tic and mannerism as the fastidious Frank Tassone, a long time widower in careful control of his appearance, his wardrobe, diet and image, soaking up admiration as his school district excels. That control does not extend to his fiduciary morals. We watch as his right hand person Pam Gluckin (the reliably excellent Allison Janney of “I, Tonya”) is exposed for tremendous graft, leveraging the school credit card for personal use on a stunning scale. The film unwinds the crimes of those involved with suspense, drama and more than a little humor as petty cheats on an expense report grow into a massive sense of entitlement. Janney and Jackman are both terrific, sparring and supporting each other in a complicated dance of ever shifting boundaries. Ray Romano (Everybody Loves Raymond) continues to display strong dramatic chops as school board leader Big Bob Spicer. Broadway actress Annaleigh Ashford (American Crime Story) nails her role as a dim-witted relative of Pam’s who’s in way over her head with these master manipulators. Geraldine Viswanathan follows up her terrific comedic debut in “Blockers” with a straight dramatic role as high school journalist Rachel Bhargava. When Frank tells her to not take any story assignment lightly, he lives to eat those words as Rachel digs into school finances and unwraps some very wicked habits. Jackman holds center court. His Frank is a fantastic mess, supremely confident and cocky, in command of his persona and in control of everything, yet spinning wildly out of balance as the cogs in his elaborate machine begin to slip. The moment late in the film in which Jackman finds himself lost in a brief moment of joy on that club dance floor, followed by the agonizing collapse in a driveway are a tour de force for Jackman. He’s a terrific actor. His self-righteous speech about the importance of his role as an administrator as the FBI tears apart the office next door is a perfect meeting of ambition & intention with consequence. The final moments are a terrific wrap of this true-life story that may make you feel a surprising amount of compassion for a man who suddenly seems to realize just how far he’s moved away from having any tangible grasp on the sheer weight of what he’s done. Jackman is fantastic and BAD EDUCATION is one hell of a lesson. It gets a B+.

Following the huge success of the original film, Robert Zemeckis and his cast shot two sequels to the film at the same time, releasing them a year apart. The first sequel released in 1989 is the lesser of the two, BACK TO THE FUTURE II. It seems that the older version of our loud villain Biff (Thomas Wilson) overheard Doc and Marty talking about the time machine when they came back from the past, so he manages to steal the Delorean and go back to the past, to give younger Biff a cheat sheet for the future, allowing he and his descendants in the future to be garishly wealthy. Confused yet? haha The biggest problem with Part II is that it hops back and forth in time so much that you end up with multiple versions of Marty and Doc and Biff in the same scene. Sometimes, especially in the last twenty minutes, that's a lot of fun and perfectly timed for suspense and laughs. But for most of the muddled middle of the movie, it just becomes a bit repetitious. We are talking a Robert Zemeckis movie so there IS plenty to enjoy. Their vision of 2015 is pretty hilarious, and Elon Musk and Steve Jobs HAVE managed to make some of what they envisioned come pretty close, but we are still a long way from freeways in the air loaded with speedy flying machines. Michael J. Fox is great, playing many versions of himself, his dad and hilariously, even his alternative future sister at one point. Christopher Lloyd keeps his energy at full tilt as every version of Doc, always explaining the timelines just enough to keep things rolling. The biggest problem of the film for me is Wilson as Biff. He is so LOUD, so over the top, so one-note, that every version of him in the film becomes grating and unpleasant. It drags the whole film down. That being said, we'll all remember the hoverboard sequence, the holographic ads for JAWS 19 (Directed by Max Spielberg) and the rousing finale chase between the airborne Delorean and Biff's vehicle in 1955. The best parts of the film are Zemeckis' visual brilliance in giving you different angles to the original from 50 yards away, or through a well placed window, giving us a whole new perspective on the original film. In those moments, its every bit as exciting as the first film. The film concludes with scenes from Part III set in the old West, which is far better than Part II. As for this first sequel, it made only about half as much money as its predecessor. I'll call that Biff Burnout and give this second installment a B-.

Back in 1985, BACK TO THE FUTURE arrived on screens and kicked off one of the most enjoyable trilogies of the eighties. Produced by Steven Spielberg and Directed by Robert Zemeckis (Contact, Castaway, Forrest Gump, Allied) its a blast from (and to) the past and enjoyable from start to finish. Michael J. Fox had his first big screen role as Marty McFly, a high school student suddenly thrust 30 years into the past and meeting his Mom and Dad as teenagers. I had forgotten just how much fun the set up was and how cleverly Zemeckis and his writers get Marty back in time. Christopher Lloyd is Kramer-hilarious as the wacky genius Doc Brown, the eccentric Crispin Glover has his most successful mainstream role as Marty's Dad, George and Lea Thompson is sweet, funny and perfect as Marty's Mom Lorraine. So many classic moments from the time-traveling DeLorean, to Marty (Is your name Calvin Klein? It's on your underwear.") dealing with his Mom's flirting, Doc's madcap plan to go Back to the future and the climactic high school dance. It's exciting, funny and a lot of fun, cleverly setting up two sequels that would appear in the following five years as the eighties came to a close. Zemeckis is one of our best directors and his ability to balance big budget special effects, thrills and comedy has turned out some of the most enjoyable movies of the past four decades. Huey Lewis's music adds to the fun and that's him in a cameo as one of the judges at the talent show. The curse of time travel movies is that you tend to spend too much time looking for holes in the logic of the story. Fox and Zemeckis give you NO time to think about logic, knocking you out with laughs and one great set piece after another in this fast moving blockbuster hit. BACK TO THE FUTURE holds up perfectly 33 years after its release and gets an A.

I'll never forget seeing Rodney Dangerfield LIVE at The Celebrity Theatre at the height of his popularity in 86/87. His energy was off the charts, sweating through his shirt as he fired off jokes at an amazing pace for his age. The man was hilarious. And so is his best film from 1986, BACK TO SCHOOL. Rodney stars as Fat Guy (this was back in the wonderful years when we could all laugh at ourselves) Clothing Magnet Thornton Melon. Hard working and rich beyond his wildest dreams, Thornton loves his job and his customers. When his son Jason (Keith Gordon) starts struggling at college, his Dad decides to attend college with him, setting up one of the funniest film comedies of all time. Thornton proceeds to expand adjoining dorm rooms into a massive bachelor pad where Oingo Boingo performs at night. His teachers range from the insane Sam Kinison "He's a great teacher. He really cares! About what I have no idea....." to sexy Sally Kellerman as Diane, the English teacher he instantly falls in love with in his first class. Ned Beatty is hilarious as Dean Martin, whose eye is on all the Melon grants to his funding and Paxton Whitehead is memorable as the stuffy business professor who Thornton one-ups at every turn. Rodney and six other writers create a fast-moving, fun comedy that gives Rodney plenty of chances to be himself while also creating a warm and lovable character that everyone will root for in every scene. By the time Rodney is doing the triple-lindy dive in the college swim match championships and cramming for a verbal exam from all his professors, your face hurts from laughing. A very young Robert Downey Jr brings plenty of laughs as Jason's twisted best friend Derek. Bob Saget was originally up for the role of Professor Turgeson, but its hard to imagine anyone but Sam Kinison in the role. Every line delivery from Sam is flawless and fall down funny. By far Rodney's best film as a lead, Back to School is a perennial favorite that gets funnier with time. A classic comedy that graduates with an A.

A cheesy B-movie script spruced up with spectacular special effects and a terrific cast, 1991's BACKDRAFT still burns bright as an action film nearly 25 years after its release. Kurt Russell and William Baldwin are the McCaffrey brothers, Bull and Brian. After watching their legendary Chicago firefighter Dad die battling a blaze, Bull grows up to fight fires with more bravado than brains. His younger brother Brian struggles with his desire to be a fireman, which is constantly at odds with the thought of facing the foe that killed his father before his eyes. When a particularly clever and nasty arsonist with a penchant for creating spectacular fires begins his reign across Chicago, the brothers are forced to work together to battle the blazes. Russell is one of my favorite actors, but Bull is one of his least likable roles, all macho bravado and self centered motives that begin to endanger the lives of those around him in explosions of beer soaked rage. Scott Glenn is great as Axe, a fellow firefighter, Robert DeNiro is very good as an arson investigator that takes Brian under his wing and Donald Sutherland nearly steals the movie as a jailed arsonist bringing Hannibal Lecter style insight into their current problem. William Baldwin is pretty damn good as Brian (whatever happened to that Baldwin brother?) but poor Jennifer Jason Leigh, a terrific actress, comes across as stiff and robotic playing the assistant to a shady politician. I'll blame the hopelessly bad dialogue and a poorly written role instead of Leigh. The story of the brothers and their macho antics are strictly the stuff of second rate movies, but Director Ron Howard and his special effects team stage the most realistic fire scenes ever filmed, making "The Towering Inferno" look like a campfire. The fire lives and breathes, roaring and exploding unpredictably and creating some terrific scenes throughout and a jaw dropping finale. Hans Zimmer's music score is an 80's classic and the photography by Mikael Salomon (The Abyss, Far and Away) is excellent. If you aren't holding your breathe in the final warehouse blaze for twenty minutes, you aren't paying attention. Cheezy drama? Indeed. Amazing action sequences and hugely entertaining? You bet. BACKDRAFT still blazes its way to a smoldering B a quarter century after its release.

In 1984, Tom Hanks hit the big screen for the first time with "Splash" and the raunchy comedy BACHELOR PARTY. Hanks has the best moments in the film as less-than-ambitious Catholic school bus driver, Rick. He's engaged to Debbie, played (acted would be an over statement) by the gorgeous Tawny Kitaen. Hanks has a blast torturing his future in-laws by being the anti-yuppie, launching tennis shots out of the court like home runs and always wearing the wrong clothes. Rick's best friends are determined to throw him the ultimate Bachelor Party, which in their mind includes a multitude of hookers, a farm animal and some serious 80's debauchery. Hanks made me smile in most of his scenes, but the only time I laughed out loud was when said farm animal ate an entire table full of drugs and goes on a wild rampage. It's written and directed by the Israel Brothers, who were also behind "Police Academy". If you found that movie funny (I hated it) then you'll probably love this one too. Kudos to Wendie Jo Sperber (1941) as the wife of Rick's brother (William Tepper), a horny dentist that sums up the early 80's with every mannerism. Porsches are ruined, boxer-clad Chinese businessmen chase women around like a Benny Hill skit, suicide becomes a running joke and somehow, Hanks escapes slightly embarrassed but unscathed, rising above the material with his emerging comic chops. BACHELOR PARTY gets a D. Without Hanks, it would have sunk even lower.

Just to prove that the ladies can be as foul, nasty, horrible and HILARIOUS as the men were in THE HANGOVER, producers Adam McKay and Will Ferrell bring us BACHELORETTE. Not for the sensitive, easily offended or faint of heart, this is a damn funny movie with a really, really dark side lurking just beneath the surface. Kirsten Dunst (with another unexpected performance after her brilliant turn in "Melancholia") is the nicest of three bridesmaids gathering for their college friend Rebel Wilson's wedding, and she is a pretty nasty person. These are not nice people, but they are pretty damn funny. With great support from James Marsden, Adam Scott and Andrew Rannels, you are SURE to cringe a LOT and depending on how jet black you like your comedy, you'll either find these ladies hilarious or despicable. Count me as being on the former. Isla Fisher is fearless and Lizzy Caplan is not your Mom's idea of a bridesmaid! They should merge the Hangover series with this one to create a tidal wave or horrible human behavior! Dunst and company party their way to a B.

One of the most original and enjoyable movies I've seen in 2017, BABY DRIVER is a fast paced, violent thriller packed with music, laughs and thrills. Ansel Elgort (The Fault In Our Stars) is Baby, a young man with an incredible talent for driving and tinnitus so bad that he lives with his in-ear headphones in place, banging out accompaniment for every moment of his life. Indebted to a brutal crime boss named Doc (Kevin Spacey having a blast), Baby is a getaway driver for all of Doc's heists. Luckily for us, the other talent in the robberies is equally entertaining. John Bernthal is Griff, Jon Hamm is superb as Buddy, Eiza Gonzalez is beautiful and lethal as Buddy's girlfriend Darling and Jamie Foxx is the unhinged and hilarious Bats. Writer/Director Edgar Wright (Shawn of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) choreographs every action scene down to the second, staging the set pieces perfectly to the music Baby has in his ears. The bullets are downbeats, screaming tires are the melody, its incredibly well done. The opening ten minutes perfectly set the tone for the film ahead as Baby proves his talents in a wild post-heist escape. As Baby fulfills his obligations to Doc, falls in love with the local waitress at the diner Debora (Lily James looking exactly like Madchen Amick as Shelly the diner waitress in the original 1990 Twin Peaks series) and wants to get out of driving, Doc has other plans. The film shares specific celluloid DNA with Walter Hill's 1978 crime thriller "The Driver" along with Steve McQueen's 1972 "The Getaway" but becomes something wholly of its own through Wright's unique vision. With over 30 songs of almost every genre burning in the background, BABY DRIVER plays its own tune. In a summer of rehashed pirates, transformers, superheroes, animated cars and minions, what more can a movie fan ask for? BABY DRIVER burns rubber straight to an A.

If you love scary movies, take the time to summon up THE BABADOOK. Single mom Amilia (Essie Davis) is haunted by memories of losing her husband 7 years ago in a tragic car accident on the way to deliver her son. Her son Samuel (Noah Wiseman) has grown into a socially awkward, strange boy, terrified of all the childhood monsters in his room. Each night his Mom shows him the closet, under the bed, all the usual night creature hiding spots to assure him there is no such thing as monsters. One night, Samuel chooses a book of his shelf titles THE BABADOOK as his bedtime story. The pop-up book is horrifying, detailing a scary creature that will enter their home and kill them. Just like that damn creepy doll Annabelle in "The Conjuring", the book can't be destroyed, it just keeps coming back. Soon, the massive dark creature begins to enter their home and Samuel and Amilia's life is turned upside down. Australian writer/director Jennifer Kent creates three dimensional characters you care about and want to survive, raising the material far above the usual horror flick. Davis is very good and Wiseman is a gifted young actor, creating a young Samuel that is quirky, bizarre and easy to root for as he tries to protect himself and his Mom from a monster that is all too real. Like nearly every horror film of the past decade, the ending is the hardest part to deliver and I can't say that the ending left me fully satisfied, but I have to give it credit for originality. Less said, the better. Just let this creepy little movie wrap its long, dark claws around you. I bet you think twice the next time you try to read a pop-up book to the little ones in your life! The Babadook gets a B.

NO SPOILERS-ASSUMING YOU'VE SEEN INFINITY WAR #DontSpoilTheEndgame #ThanosDemandsYourSilence After 22 films starting with "Ironman", this cycle of the Marvel film universe comes to a spectacular, perfect close with AVENGERS ENDGAME. The world is in chaos after the events of last year's 'Avengers Infinity War", with half the world's population and half of our superhero stable faded into dust with a snap of Thanos' fingers. Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr) is stuck in space, Captain America (Chris Evans) is feeling defeated, Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) are lost on their path and Thor (a terrific Chris Hemsworth, stealing the movie throughout) sits in a corner, silent. What I loved about the film is that I walked in with a theory on how they were going to fix the Thanos snap. I was sure I had it in hand. But directors Anthony and Joe Russo and their writers not only took my theory off the table in the first 30 minutes, they smashed it to pieces. I loved it. I had no idea where this action packed, multi-universe adventure was going but I didn't expect it to be so packed with laugh out loud moments and emotional wallops. These are filmmakers at the absolute peak of their game and everyone is all in. It's nice to see Jeremy Renner finally get his due as Hawkeye. His dark side is a very dangerous place to be. Having fun with time travel, the story basically serves up the ultimate Back to the Future homage with a hell of a lot more at stake. James Brolin is terrific as Thanos too, making the most of his screen time. Paul Rudd gets to show his dramatic skills with a more serious turn from Ant Man than we've seen in the past. Bradley Cooper nails every punch line as Rocket. What so many of the Marvel movies have got right is creating impossible superhero moments, rooted in real emotions, real people and real consequences. That continues in ENDGAME with the stakes higher than ever and the suspense building over a solid, fast-moving three hours. I'm so sick of everyone online bitching that the movie is 181 minutes long. When it moves this quickly, who cares? Just enjoy it! There are genuine moments of triumph that got the entire audience cheering and clapping as one. How often does THAT happen anymore at the movies? The last hour of the movie is flawless, topping Infinity War in scale and emotional payoff. It leaves you exhausted, happy and devastated at the same time. The filmmakers must have seen Star Trek VI too, because they copy that film's terrific final credits by allowing each member of the Avengers team to appear on screen as their signatures scroll out. It's the perfect moment to recognize each and their contribution to the incredibly successful franchise. Alan Silvestri's music score is omnipresent in all the right ways, with some HUGE payoff moments for fans. ENDGAME is the ultimate sendoff. Emotional, powerfully sad, hilarious, stuffed with fan references to the other 22 films, it's the biggest box office hit of all time with $350 million USA and $1.2 BILLION its first three days. It deserves every dollar. My expectations were very high and it exceeded every one. Thanks for the best film series of the past decade, Marvel. Keep 'em coming. ENDGAME blazes its way to an A+.