MISSION IMPOSSIBLE - FALLOUT

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE - FALLOUT:  I'll go out on a limb and state for the record that this is the best film yet in this franchise.  The writing is clever, the stunts are downright amazing as well as really executed by the star.  Tom Cruise returns to the role of Ethan Hunt and it fits him like a glove.  He is an actor on fire.  Filling out the IMF team this time is Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, and Alec Baldwin (in charge).  From the CIA we get Angela Bassett and Henry Cavill.  I won't got into the plot, but it's about a terrorist group and nuclear bombs and nobody is safe.  There are lots of twists along the way and once the film really gets going about half-way through, it is non-stop adventure.  Motorcycles chases, car chases, helicopter chases and they even chase on foot! If you are a fan of action movies, this is it!   The best action film of the Summer.  Mission Incredible!

MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO AGAIN

MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO AGAIN:  A prequel?  A flashback?  I'm not really sure.  With the ads touting that everyone from the original cast is back on board (Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan, Stellan Skarsgard, Julie Walters, Christine Baranski and Dominic Cooper), I bought it and hoped for the best.   Then I'm told that adding to the mirth would be Cher and Lily James as the young Streep with Andy Garcia also (Are you with me so far?) Well, we got one big problem.   Most of the originals are now played by young actors doing imitations of what the originals would have been like in the past.  (Are you still with me?)  Meryl is only in the movie for about two minutes (unless you count the obligatory "Curtain Call" when all the characters sing and dance with each other to let your know which young actor played which old actor.)  It is all rather confusing to say the least.  Some of the musical numbers are quite rousing but the majority of the best ABBA songs were used in the original film so we get a lot of second rate tunes here...…….(They do revive the biggies and give Cher a golden moment near the end of the film.)  So....It is entertaining BUT not what I'd hoped for even though it's not a bad travelogue.  And the "Curtain Call" works so you leave thinking you got your money's worth.

SKYSCRAPER

SKYSCRAPER:   This latest outing for "The Rock" (doesn't he do a movie every other week?) is just what you'd expect:  thrills, explosions, deeds of derring do, and a few jokes thrown in for good measure.   And it all works, in spades!  Along with the aforementioned "Rock," Dwayne Johnson has the company of Neve Campbell playing his wife and I must say I was very impressed with her performance.  Real kick-ass.  He's an ex-F.B.I agent who now assesses security for skyscrapers.  On the job in China he finds the worlds tallest skyscraper on fire and he is being blamed.  As if that wasn't bad enough, it seems his family is in the building  above the fire which is spreading.   So that is the plot (in a fortune cookie) and the jolts never stop. (If you have a thing about heights, this may not be the film for you.)  CGI continually amazes me and this is one of the best so far this year.  You will marvel at how some of this footage was attained.  Breathtaking, to say the least.   It's all pure unadulterated escapism and I loved it.

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ANT-MAN AND THE WASP

ANT-MAN AND THE WASP:    What fun!  What a perfect summertime romp!  Super heroes with laughs.  It doesn't get much better than this.  Paul Rudd is the Ant-man who's been in trouble with the law and is now under house arrest when the film opens.   But help is needed.  What to do?  Make a fun-filled film with Evangeline Lilly, Michael Pena, Michael Douglas, Laurence Fishburne and Michelle Pfeiffer and stand back.  The plot is too big to go into with alternate universes and villains at every turn  but it's a blast and the CGI is flawless. San Francisco get's torn up in the process, but that goes with the territory.   You'll laugh out loud and smile from ear to ear as you leave the theater.