Tag: stephen lang

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH – Review

Varang (Oona Chaplin) in 20th Century Studios’ AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2025 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Director James Cameron is back with a third installment of his AVATAR franchise, which continues to deliver astounding visual effects and world-creation at the highest level. In the first film, a human expedition looking for resources to extract is sent to world called Pandora, a place with an un-breathable atmosphere and inhabited by tall, blue, technologically less-advanced people, dispatches a Marine, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), in the form of an avatar that looks like the forest-living Na’vi people, to learn more about them. But after falling in love with a Na’vi warrior woman, Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), Jake switches sides and leads a rebellion against the humans. The second film takes place some 15 years later, as Jake, wife Neytiri and their kids hide out from the human among some beach-dwelling peoples, pursued by Jake’s nemesis and fellow Marine, Quaritch (Stephen Lang). This third one, AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH, takes place shortly after that second film.

The main reason to see AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH, are the spectacular visual effects and it’s breathtaking world-building. The 3D visual effects are immersive and beautiful, with one breathtaking vista after another. AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH continues to astonish with innovative visual effects that combine motion-capture and digital effects, like the first film, and now including 3D like the second one, but the effects are even more fully integrated, allowing one to entirely be enveloped by its imaginary world. The impressive effects even continue in the scenes with regular non-CGI or motion-capture actor, creating a seamlessly believable world.

Since the outstanding visual effects are the major reason to see this film, the best way to do that is in a theater, on a big screen with 3D capability. If you watch it on a small screen at home or on a phone, you will be missing out most of the reason to see it at all.

The reason why that matters so much is, despite all that visual effect artistry and technical dazzle, the characters and story do not reach that same high level, remaining familiar figures from a classic hero’s tale, with the addition of a historical tale of a colonial or corporate power moving in on a less-technological indigenous one. These indigenous people are aided greatly by that fellow who switched sides, which sets up a David and Goliath / underdog tale.

Action is plentiful and looks great but the story adds more and more characters without expanding on the ones already there. The main characters remain underdeveloped, being either noble good guys or evil bad ones. The story focuses on battles and those breathtaking new vistas but that can hold audience interest forever.

The effects are 3D but the characters remain 2D. It is not the fault of the cast, but the writer. The characters are written to be simple: Worthington’s Jake is noble and brave, Saldana’s Neytiri is emotional and protective, Stephen Lang as Jake’s enemy is relentless, while Giovanni Ribisi’s corporate boss is greedy and heartless. If the story is familiar, the audience has to care about the people in the story to maintain interest, and that means making them more real, more rounded and full-developed.

This story introduces new peoples on Pandora, with peaceful trading peoples who travel through the air in ships attached to blip-like floating creatures. There is another, less peaceful group too, the raiders/pirates known as the Ash People, who prey on the traders and others less warlike folk.

Quaritch, now also using an avatar body, sets out to make contact the war-like Ash People, with the aim of forming an alliance. He hits it off with the Ash People’s fierce, fearless, blood-thirsty queen Varang (a splendid Oona Chaplin, granddaughter of Charlie Chaplin), and a deal is struck.

Meanwhile, Jake struggles with getting the Na’vi and water-based Metkayina Clan to consider using human weapons that he retrieved from the water after the last battle, rather than just bows and arrows. Jake and Neytiri, in addition to their own kids, have adopted two more: Kiri (Sigourney Weaver), the Na’vi child of the avatar of the scientist played by Sigourney Weaver in the first AVATAR, and a human boy nicknamed Spider (Jack Champion), the biological son of Jake’s enemy Quaritch, who needs a special mask to breath the air, a mask that has to be continually replenished to keep him alive.

Stephen Lang’s Quaritch and Oona Chaplin’s Ash queen are by far the most interesting in this one, but if left undeveloped, will just join the crowd of cookie-cutter characters. The story is packed with action and battles and so full of twists (and new characters) that there isn’t much time to do much with this growing cast of characters anyway. But failing to develop the characters beyond the two-dimensional means that maintaining interest in the familiar tropes of this tale will become increasingly challenging.

Reportedly, director/writer James Cameron has two more of these visual effects extravaganzas in the planning stage but unless he starts creating depth to this characters to sustain this hero tale, he is likely to see waning audience interest, something already underway. It can’t just be pretty pictures.

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH opens in theaters on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025.

RATING: 2.5 out of 4 stars

BARRON’S COVE – Review

A scene from BARRON’S COVE. Courtesy of Well Go USA

The intense drama BARRON’S COVE opens with the gruesome death of a young boy, Barron, when the prank pulled by a couple of his “friends” goes horribly awry. The perps deny any knowledge of what happened. Caleb (Garrett Hedlund) is the grieving father who smells a cover up when the local authorities dismiss it as a suicide, so he starts going all Bronson on those who oppose his efforts to uncover what really happened. His ex-wife blames him for failing to pick their son up after school. He blames his uncle (Stephen Lang) who runs the construction supply business that employs Caleb as hired muscle for collections and contract ”compliance” among his clientele. That’s who demanded he perform one of his typical bullying tasks that made him late for his son.

Caleb demands the truth from one of the playmates, Ethan (Christian Convey) – a wretched brat who happens to be the adopted son of the politically ambitious scion of the region’s most powerful, influential family. Caleb goes off the rails over the lack of answers, spurred greatly by Ethan’s rather psychotic response to all questions. Desperate for answers, Caleb kidnaps Ethan to scare the truth out of him. It does not go smoothly. As the hostage hiding and sweating situation progresses, a raft of dirty secrets, side deals and betrayals unfold. Violence occurs; more is threatened.

Hedlund gives an excellent performance, showing the thuggish and sympathetic sides of Caleb’s nature convincingly throughout his emotional roller coaster of discovery. Convey starts out as thoroughly despicable before showing what may or may not be an element of vulnerability. He keeps us guessing. Lang is his usual hard-nosed evil self; he does boss-bully as well as anyone in the biz. Hamish Linklater turns in a very credible stretch from his usual nice-guy roles.

Cruelty towards children – however well-deserved it may seem in context – will be hard for many to watch. Otherwise, it’s a fast-moving, suspenseful action tale that navigates those waters capably.

BARRON’S COVE debuts on Blu-ray and DVD through Amazon from Well Go USA on Tuesday, August 5, 2025.

RATING: 2 out of 4 stars

Win Passes To The St. Louis Advance Screening Of AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER

Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, “Avatar: The Way of Water” begins to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure. Directed by James Cameron and produced by Cameron and Jon Landau, the Lightstorm Entertainment Production stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang and Kate Winslet. Screenplay by James Cameron & Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver. Story by James Cameron & Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver & Josh Friedman & Shane Salerno. David Valdes and Richard Baneham serve as the film’s executive producers.

Get tickets now: www.fandango.com/avatarthewayofwater

The St. Louis screening for 20th Century Studios film, “AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER”, is on Tuesday, Dec. 9th, 7pm at Marcus Chesterfield Cine. James Cameron’s highly anticipated, first follow-up to his Academy Award®-winning “Avatar,” the highest-grossing film of all time, opens in theaters on December 16th.

The screening will be filled on a first come first served basis, so we encourage you to arrive early. Seats will not be guaranteed. Rated PG-13.

Enter at the link below for the chance to win a family-four pack of passes.

SWEEPSTAKES LINK:  https://gofobo.com/WayOfWaterGeeks

Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) in 20th Century Studios’ AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. ©2022 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.
AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER

MORTAL ENGINES – Review

As the last few days of the year float past, the studios want to give us a glimpse into the next few years. And, surprise, things aren’t looking good. Could the reason be this new film’s source material? Why, well it’s from the “young adult novel’ section of your local bookstore (or more likely, website). Most works of that genre could have a similar subtitle: “back to the bad ole’ future”. As usual, the world’s gone “down the tubes” thanks to the oldsters and its only hope is a group of determined teens (frequently attracted to each other, of course). This movie year began with the (thankfully) last entry in THE MAZE RUNNER series, then stumbled in the Summer THE DARKEST MINDS (first and last hopefully). Now, this literary adaptation has some heavy hitters involved: the New Zealand studio behind THE LORD OF THE RINGS and THE HOBBIT trilogies. Will these box offices champs bestow their “golden” touch on MORTAL ENGINES?

As mentioned, this takes place many years from today, after much of Earth and its resources were destroyed by the devastating “Sixty Minute War”. Now mobile cities, literal towns on tank tracks, known as “predators’ look for food and fuel. As the story starts, one smaller city, Salzhaken, is chased and swallowed uphole by a much bigger predator, the vast remains of London. Thaddeus Valentine (Hugo Weaving), head of the Guild of Historians, has made Lord Mayor Magnus happy with the new prize. But what Valentine doesn’t know is that one of the tiny town’s citizens is the wanted young woman named Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar), who has vowed to kill him. And she almost succeeds, wounding him with a blade. Luckily a junior historian, Tom Natsworthy (Robert Sheehan) tries to apprehend her, but they are both swept out of the city and must team up to survive the harsh wastelands known as the “Great Hunting Ground”. After the duo team up, they are captured by scavengers and put up for auction as slaves. Luckily Hester’s old friend Anna Fang (Jihae) rescues them and takes them in an air glider to the outlaw floating city of Airhaven, an outpost of the “Anti-Traction League”. Meanwhile, Valentine is told of a captured stalker, a zombie cyborg named Shrike (Stephen Lang), who screams Hester’s name. To eliminate his attacker, Valentine travels to the sea-based prison and releases Shrike. But that’s just part of Valentine’s plan. Tom and Hester learn that he wants to use one of the old weapons from the great war, a city destroyer named MEDUSA to take down the Shield Wall that protects the Asian Hunting Ground. Naturally Hester has the tiny device (a “goober” as Peter B. Parker would say) that will shut down MEDUSA. But can these plucky young rebels stop Valentine’s quest for world domination? And more importantly, will Tom and Hester reveal their true feelings to each other?

The cast of fairly new film faces is led by a couple of veterans who give their best effort with the trite turgid script. Weaving, fairly disguised in his flowing locks and thick bushy beard (I really thought he was channeling 1980’s Rip Torn in his first close-up), furrows his brow and pontificates as though he were in a Shakespearian tragedy. his professorial stance can’t hide his evil intent (it’s a wonder that he wasn’t called on to twirl the mustache of his beard). Lang hides a bit better in his motion-capture performance as the shambling Shrike. And though he’s to be the unstoppable living dead killer, he somehow makes the doomed droid the story’s most complex character, evoking the pathos of classic screen ghouls like the Frankenstein Monster or The Mummy (even some Phantom of the Opera’s sadness and longing). Actually, the flashbacks telling his tale are more compelling than the hoary rebels versus the state plot. Adding to Lang’s work is the design of Shrike, with rotted flesh pushing against rusted metal, green eyes blazing he seems to have escaped from Mike Mignola’s Hellboy books. As for the “newbies”, Hilmar’s expressive eyes are put to good use in the film’s first scenes with Hester’s lower face (and nasty scars) hidden by a bandana, perhaps ready to rob a stagecoach later. Sheehan is a nerdy goofball, whose charms jsut can’t break through Hester’s ice cold demeanor. But he toughens up when his Tom discovers his talents as a flying ace (right outta’ left field). Jihae as Fang with her Eraserhead-inspired ‘do either sneers or barks out commands (“Move!”, “Get going!”, “Leave him!”,etc.), but isn’t allowed to be a compelling character. The rest of the ensemble is comprised of very photogenic young model-types (lots of make-up and hair product in this desperate world) or leering grotesques.

The only real reason to see this drek is the stunning, imaginative art direction. Via the latest film effects, they’ve made a most believable “retro-futuristic” world with lumbering, rumbling cities straight out of a “steam punk” fan’s dreams. Towering buildings fold in on themselves to pick up speed, looking as though they could break apart at any bump in the road. This mobile London sports all the familiar landmarks with St. Paul’s Catherdral an essential part of the finale with its endless spiraling stairways and hidden-passage laden crypts. A lot of thought went into the costuming with the high classes sporting long robes and dusters, almost as clever as the guards whose derbies and beefeater togs clash with their machine guns. The design work of the film will make a gorgeous hardcover “making of” tome one day. On the other hand, the great art is in the service of an overbaked, ridiculous script. We knew we’re in trouble early on when Valentine is stabbed in the gut, but instead of rushing off for medical attention, he joins the chase for Hester. Yeah. Forbidden romance is hinted at, but never acted upon. Instead different characters exchange smouldering looks as if posing for paperback covers. The story lurches from one badly edited action sequence to the next, trying to work up a sense of urgency. To generate some sort of excitement the bombastic score by Junkie XL (so great on MAD MAX: FURY ROAD) is amped up to ear-splitting levels, without a respite from the pounding percussion. First time feature director Christian Rivers loses the fight to bring the meandering script from Fran Walsh, Phillippa Boyens, and Peter Jackson (really), adapting the Phillip Reeve novel, to cinematic life. These MORTAL ENGINES needed a complete overhaul before they stalled out and crashed at your local multiplex.

1.5 Out of 5

MORTAL ENGINES Trailer Steamrolls In – From Producers Fran Walsh And Peter Jackson

Hitting theaters on December 14, 2018 is MORTAL ENGINES. The Universal and MRC adaptation is from the award-winning book series by Philip Reeve, published in 2001 by Scholastic.

From producers Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, check out the new trailer.

Thousands of years after civilization was destroyed by a cataclysmic event, humankind has adapted and a new way of living has evolved.  Gigantic moving cities now roam the Earth, ruthlessly preying upon smaller traction towns.  Tom Natsworthy (Robert Sheehan)—who hails from a Lower Tier of the great traction city of London—finds himself fighting for his own survival after he encounters the dangerous fugitive Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar).  Two opposites, whose paths should never have crossed, forge an unlikely alliance that is destined to change the course of the future.

MORTAL ENGINES is the startling, new epic adventure directed by Oscar®-winning visual-effects artist Christian Rivers (King Kong).  Joining Rivers are The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogies three-time Academy Award®-winning filmmakers Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, who have penned the screenplay.

On board as producers are Zane Weiner (The Hobbit trilogy), Amanda Walker (The Hobbit trilogy) and Deborah Forte (Goosebumps), as well as Walsh and Jackson.  Ken Kamins (The Hobbit trilogy) joins Boyens as executive producer.  Universal will distribute the film worldwide.

www.mortalengines.com

WAMG Giveaway – Win the ISOLATION DVD: Stars Tricia Helfer and Stephen Lang

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Inspired by true events, see what happens when a couple vacationing in the Bahamas is hunted by a group of modern-day pirates in Isolation, available on DVD at Walmart, Digital HD and On Demand April 18 from Lionsgate. Boasting an all-star cast including Luke Mably (The Prince and Me, 28 Days Later), Tricia Helfer (TV’s “Lucifer” and “Burn Notice”), Marie Avgeropoulos (TV’s “The 100,” 50/50), Stephen Lang (Don’t Breathe, Avatar), and Dominic Purcell (the upcoming “Prison Break: Sequel” and “Legends of Tomorrow”), watch the film JoBlo.com calls “suspenseful and unpredictable” with a “killer ending.”

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Now you can own the ISOLATION DVD. We Are Movie Geeks has four copies to give away. All you have to do is leave a comment answering this question: What is your favorite movie beginning with the letter ‘I’? (mine is INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN!). It’s so easy!

Good Luck!

OFFICIAL RULES:1. YOU MUST BE A US RESIDENT. PRIZE WILL ONLY BE SHIPPED TO US ADDRESSES.  NO P.O. BOXES.  NO DUPLICATE ADDRESSES.

2. WINNERS WILL BE CHOSEN FROM ALL QUALIFYING ENTRIES.

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Hoping to restore their flagging marriage, Lydia (Tricia Helfer) and Creighton (Luke Mably) journey to a remote island in the sun-drenched Bahamas. One drunken night, they return to their cabin to find it ransacked. Will nearby couple Max (Dominic Purcell) and Nina (Marie Avgeropoulos) offer them help — or harm? Also starring Stephen Lang, this seductive, sinister thriller shows that trust can be a dangerous thing.

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ISOLATION – Starring Tricia Helfer and Stephen Lang Arriving on DVD, Digital HD, and On Demand April 18th

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Inspired by true events, see what happens when a couple vacationing in the Bahamas is hunted by a group of modern-day pirates in Isolation, available on DVD at Walmart, Digital HD and On Demand April 18 from Lionsgate. Boasting an all-star cast including Luke Mably (The Prince and Me, 28 Days Later), Tricia Helfer (TV’s “Lucifer” and “Burn Notice”), Marie Avgeropoulos (TV’s “The 100,” 50/50), Stephen Lang (Don’t Breathe, Avatar), and Dominic Purcell (the upcoming “Prison Break: Sequel” and “Legends of Tomorrow”), watch the film JoBlo.com calls “suspenseful and unpredictable” with a “killer ending.”
isolation-2-1225x550
Hoping to restore their flagging marriage, Lydia (Tricia Helfer) and Creighton (Luke Mably) journey to a remote island in the sun-drenched Bahamas. One drunken night, they return to their cabin to find it ransacked. Will nearby couple Max (Dominic Purcell) and Nina (Marie Avgeropoulos) offer them help — or harm? Also starring Stephen Lang, this seductive, sinister thriller shows that trust can be a dangerous thing.
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The Isolation DVD will be available for the suggested retail price of $19.98.

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DON’T BREATHE – Review

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With a minimum of narrative set-up, the home invasion thriller DON’T BREATHE hammers away with a harrowing scenario that will connect with anyone who has spent time in a dark house alone. Ruthless in its intensity and single-minded in its purpose, this is a first-rate genre exercise with a perfectly-cast Stephen Lang as its central villain. It’s a bit disappointing that EVIL DEAD director Fede Alvarez couldn’t match his bravura execution of the material with a little more depth, but when DON’T BREATHE works, which it often does, it’s hard to complain.

DON’T BREATHE centers on a trio of burglars; young single mom Rocky (Jane Levy), her hooligan beau Money (Daniel Zovatto), and Alex (Dylan Minnette), who pilfers house keys from his dad’s security firm so they can rob the homes of his clients. At first they stick to swiping items instead of cash to dodge more serious charges if they’re caught, but when Money hears about a helpless old blind dude sitting on a six-figure cash settlement after his daughter was run over and killed by the daughter of a wealthy family, they decide to go for some dough. While their target (Lange), who resides in a particularly shabby area of Detroit, may be sightless, he’s far from defenseless. His house is heavily reinforced, his drooling Rottweiler would love to tear someone to pieces, and he may not be ‘home alone’ after all. Victim becomes predator and it’s a long deadly night for the trio who soon realize they picked the wrong house to rob.

Alvarez displays an impressive mastery of camera movement, framing, and editing that turns every almost scene in DON’T BREATHE into a nerve-fraying exercise. The director gooses the audience with the soundtrack, which wavers from silent stretches to nerve-wracking atmospheric sounds (gunshots, a burglar alarm). DON’T BREATHE is relentless, with plenty of jump-in-your-seat moments usually abetted by shrieking music. It’s nothing new but when done this well it’s effective. Alvarez uses darkness for long stretches, I guess to establish the sensory experience of a blind man though the many scenes set in almost pitch blackness, illuminated only by the occasional gunshot, may be too unnerving for some. DON’T BREATHE leaves a lot of questions hanging, many involving a surprise fifth character’s involvement that doesn’t make much sense. There are no supernatural elements to the story (except that farfetched moment when the Detroit PD shows up in this crappy neighborhood mere minutes after a 911 call!) but Alvarez establishes Lang’s The Blind Man (as he’s credited) as a classic horror movie boogeyman. He has extraordinary strength and stays a step ahead of his prey, able to suddenly pop up when least expected. DON’T BREATHE makes it easy to root for the villain. A war vet we’re told was blinded by a grenade in Iraq and who’s lost a daughter generates plenty of sympathy especially while protecting his home from a trio of crooks. Even the midway twist revealing secrets he’s hiding seems more misguided than depraved. “I’m no rapist!” he insists while wielding a semen-filled turkey baster  – the most revolting horror movie armament since Grampa’s poopy diaper in THE VISIT! The film’s ace is the terrific physical performance from Stephen Lang. Best known as Colonel Quaritch in AVATAR, Lang has always displayed ferocious intensity even in non-villain roles dating back to LAST EXIT TO BROOKLYN. We’re effectively introduced to The Blind Man suddenly sitting up in bed while a TV playing home movies of his daughter runs nearby. With his muscle shirt, facial hair, and scarred eyes, Lang cuts a frightening figure but doesn’t overdo it and keeps things real. While none of the young actors make much of an impression with weak and unlikable characters, I still wish there had more of them to kill. I want a sequel! Heck, put ‘The Blind Man’ in the next SUICIDE SQUAD movie….with his dog Cujo and that turkey baster, he’d the most impressive villain on the screen!

4 of 5 Stars

Dont-Breathe

Win Passes To The Advance Screening Of DON’T BREATHE In St. Louis

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“This house looked like an easy target. Until they found what was inside!”
You’ve been warned! DON’T BREATHE is rated R for terror, violence, disturbing content, and language including sexual references!

Jane Levy stars in Screen Gems' horror-thriller DON'T BREATHE.

Rocky, a young woman wanting to start a better life for her and her sister, agrees to take part in the robbery of a house owned by a wealthy blind man with her boyfriend Money and their friend Alex. But when the blind man turns out to be a serial killer, the group must find a way to escape his home before they become his newest victims.dont-breathe

We Are Movie Geeks invites you to enter for the chance to win TWO (2) seats to the advance screening of DON’T BREATHE on August 23 at 7PM in the St. Louis area.

TO ENTER, ADD YOUR NAME AND EMAIL IN OUR COMMENTS SECTION BELOW.

OFFICIAL RULES:

1. YOU MUST BE IN THE ST. LOUIS AREA THE DAY OF THE SCREENING.

2. No purchase necessary. A pass does not guarantee a seat at a screening. Seating is on a first-come, first served basis. The theater is overbooked to assure a full house. The theater is not responsible for overbooking.

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SLIFF 2015 Review – BAND OF ROBBERS

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This new feature film brings up an interesting question: are literary icons timeless? Aside from science fiction tales, are they strictly a part of the era in which they were created? Ian Fleming’s James Bond began in the midst of cold war paranoia, but has been re-imagined and re-booted countless times to conform to more current concerns. This is certainly the case with Arthur Conan Doyle’s master sleuth. Sherlock Holmes, Victorian-era detective, has had great acclaim in modern times via not one, but two TV incarnations: “Sherlock” on the BBC and in the US with “Elementary” on CBS. Well, how about a couple of American grown literary icons, hey maybe the most American duo? Of course, that’s Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer, creations of Mark Twain. Oh, and to make things a bit more interesting, let’s see how they fare in their early twenties. Such is the story of BAND OF ROBBERS.

The film starts with a flashback from a dozen or so years ago, when the boys were a tad younger than in the novels. They enter a house in search of treasure when the police arrive. Tom escapes, but Huck is nabbed, leading to years of lawlessness. When we bounce ahead to now, Huck (Kyle Gallner) is being released from his (hopefully) last correctional facility. And who’s there to pick him up, but ole’ pal Tom (Adam Nee), now a city police officer in his spiffy cruiser. Later that night, the two of them join some childhood buddies for a homecoming party. But Tom stuns the revelers with his plan. Bitter at being stuck as a lowly patrolman while older brother Sid (Eric Christian Olsen) is a detective, Tom wants them to form a “band of robbers”, a crew that  steals from local criminals. He’s throughly mapped out the first caper for the next morning. They’ll grab a briefcase that may contain that long ago treasure from a shady pawn shop. Huck balks at this idea, being just hours away from the slammer, but when he can’t talk them out of it, he agrees. Needless to say, the intricate plan goes awry, and soon Huck and the fellows are on the run from the fearsome “Injun” Joe (Stephan Lang), while Tom tries to evade his fellow officers, particularly his brand new, very eager, by-the-book partner, Officer Becky Thatcher (Melissa Benoist).

After the fizzled heist, the film develops into a manic comedy of errors often evoking the classic RAISING ARIZONA, with the frazzled leads quickly trying to improvise them selves out of arrest or violence. Adam Nee juggles triple duties as star and co-writer/co- director (with Aaron Nee) and keeps the farce moving at a brisk pace. The cast standout may be Lang as the sinister Joe, who explains the reason behind his politically incorrect nickname in a clever bit that satirizes modern sensibilities. There are a few other familiar faces in the ensemble. many from several popular TV shows, aside from Benoist, now caught in the midst of sudden fame as TV’s newest super-heroine. Oh, and the name of the hotel where much of the climax takes place is a nice touch. BAND OF ROBBERS is a zany, spirited modern re-visit with some beloved characters from some of literature’s most beloved, famous adventures.

BAND OF ROBBERS screens on Monday, November 9 at 7 PM at Landmark’s Tivoli Theatre as part of the 24th Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival. Purchase tickets here

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