Kung-Fu Panda 4, Ricky Stanicky, Damsel film reviews | See It or Skip It

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4) — Kicking its way into theaters is the new Kung-Fu Panda movie, but it’s not the only new release that should be on your radar.

Should you venture out for the new animated film or stay at home with a new comedy from Prime Video or a coming-of-age adventure film on Netflix? ABC4’s Film Critic Patrick Beatty shares what we should see and what to skip this weekend.

Kung Fu Panda 4

Where to Watch: Theaters

Directed By: 

Mike Mitchell, Stephanie Stine

Written By: 

Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger, Darren Lemke

Starring:

Jack Black, Awkwafina, Viola Davis, Dustin Hoffman, Ian McShane, Bryan Cranston

Genre:

Animation, Action, Adventure

Rated PG

All media courtesy of Dreamworks Animation

Jack Black returns as Po, the Panda turned Dragon Warrior and is tasked with finding a successor for him as he takes on an even bigger role as Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace.

But a new foe arrives that can take on the form of all of Po’s previous villains, threatening his friends and the valley.

I loved the first two Kung-Fu Panda films, from the excellent voice acting to the star-studding supporting cast that sadly did not all return for the 4th installment. This animation still shows the beauty and fun these films offer with the fighting and the scenery.

We have some returning characters but the new introduction of Awkwafina is where I started to lose interest. Po can work outside of his kung-fu family, but you do end up losing a lot with them and sadly Awkwafina isn’t able to differentiate her voice acting enough in the many recent roles she’s been in to make her mark here.

The biggest question you’ll likely have is “Can I take my kids to see this and will they have a good time?” I would say yes, but any other fans who have grown up with this decade-long franchise may end up being disappointed like I was.

See it or Skip it? See it (If you have kids, otherwise Skip It)

Ricky Stanicky

Where to Watch: Prime Video

Directed By: 

Peter Farrelly

Written By: 

Jeffrey Bushell, Brian Jarvis, James Lee Freeman

Starring:

Zac Efron, John Cena, Andrew Santino

Genre:

Comedy

Rated R

All media courtesy of Amazon Prime Video

Zac Efron and his two best friends have spent their entire lives placing the blame for their mistakes on a made-up friend, Ricky Stanicky. This has worked great for them until their families insist on meeting Ricky. This leads to them hiring a drunk, out-of-work actor played by John Cena to become Ricky, but will it be enough to keep the lie going?

John Cena chews up every scene he’s in and is doing the heavy lifting for the film. We have a group of characters that just don’t do enough to be very likable and allow you to look past the dumb stuff they end up doing.

Efron plays almost the exact opposite of his character from this past year “The Iron Claw”, and perhaps because of how well he played that part in it, he’s not really believable here. Andrew Santino does a good job and has some of the best interactions with all of the cast, especially Cena.

This is a throwback comedy to the days of Dumb and Dumber, Me, Myself, and Irene, and Shallow Hal. It does what it needs to do in giving you the laughs, but they’re infrequent, and the editing hurts the delivery of some jokes. Overall it’s still an enjoyable weekend watch and one I would recommend with a grain of salt.

See it or Skip it? See It

Damsel

Where to Watch: Netflix

Directed By: 

Juan Carlos Fresnadillo

Written By: 

Dan Mazeau

Starring:

Millie Bobby Brown, Ray Winstone, Angela Bassett, Robin Wright

Genre:

Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Rated PG-13

All media courtesy of Netflix

Millie Bobby Brown stars as Elodie, a damsel who finds a shot at love with a Prince, only to find out that the Prince’s family is using her to fulfill an ancient family debt.

As the poster states “This Is Not A Fairytale”, and Elodie is not facing certain death, but will she be able to escape her fate and reveal the true horror of this royal family before the next damsel faces the same outcome?

While the premise is intriguing and there are some incredible actors involved in the film, the plot doesn’t do enough to make Damsel a must-see, but ends up being overly repetitive and rife with too many CGI elements that make the danger and stakes never feel real.

For the better part of the entire first half of the film, there’s just not much to chew on other than Bobby Brown’s performance. I think she does as much as she can with the material given to her, but you can feel the wheels spinning in place as the story doesn’t end up going anywhere until the last 10-20 minutes.

It’s not a very engaging watch, but that doesn’t mean it won’t entertain you if you are looking for a fantasy adventure. For me, this is one you could easily forget the minute after you’ve seen it.

See it or Skip it? Skip it

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