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Latino movie news, reviews, trailers, and festival coverage

Close-up headshot of actor Jay Baruchel looking at camera
Jack Rico
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2010/01/22 at 12:00am

Movies

Exclusive interview! Jay Baruchel quits acting

01.22.2010 | By |

Updated March 2026

I was invited by Dreamworks Studios this week to watch never-before-seen footage from three of their upcoming animated releases for 2010… one of them was ‘How To Train Your Dragon’ starring Jay Baruchel. After the screenings, Dreamworks took us to a restaurant at the Time Warner Center in Manhattan to discuss the films. One of the publicists at the event asked me if I could chat with Jay to get to know him better. I said sure. Read More

Shrek holding hands with family at dinner table in animated scene
Shrek shares a warm moment with his family at the dinner table.
Jack Rico
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2010/01/21 at 12:00am

Movie InterviewsMovies

Shrek Forever After

01.21.2010 | By |

Updated April 2026

I was invited by DreamWorks Studios this week to watch never before seen footage from three of their upcoming animated releases for 2010: 10 minutes of the superhero spoof comedy Megamind starring Brad Pitt and Tina Fey, 30 minutes of Shrek Forever After with the old cast, and a full screening of How to Train Your Dragon 3D with America Ferrera, Gerard Butler and Jay Baruchel.

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Dwayne Johnson in Tooth Fairy
Scene from 20th Century Studios official trailer
Jack Rico
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2010/01/21 at 12:00am

Movie ReviewsMovies

Tooth Fairy (Movie Review)

01.21.2010 | By |

Tooth Fairy

I didn’t really know what to expect of the latest family film ‘Tooth Fairy’ starring Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson. At one point I thought it might be the same fare as his 2007 ‘The Game Plan’, which was #1 at the box office for two weeks in a row, but no, this was nowhere near as charming as that one. ‘The Tooth Fairy’ was just bad cinema. The Rock is a simpatico guy, but with a ludicrous plotline, uninspired dialogue, the worse camera editing I’ve seen in years and a paltry supporting cast, there was no way he was saving this sinking ship.

Here’s the story. A bad deed on the part of a tough minor-league hockey player (The Rock) results in an unusual sentence: He must serve one week as a real-life tooth fairy.

He wears a ballerina dress when first becoming a fairy and instead of it being a funny moment, it was a bit embarrassing. I’m wondering why he needs to be working these types of films. Could you imagine what his wrestling buddies must be saying? His body of work isn’t so bad at all. His previous roles in films such as ‘Race to Witch Mountain’ was great family fun potpourried with thrills, chills and action. ‘The Game Plan’ was a touching and charming movie that makes grown men cry when they see it.

Director Michael Lembeck, mostly a TV director, shouldn’t be doing movies. His camera shot selections were not flattering to the actors and showed the many audio dubbing flaws caught by the lens. Just intolerable. Adding to the demise of the movie was seeing a New York legend Billy Crystal in a pajama like costume regurgitating screenwriter Lowell Ganz’s stale and infantile dialogue.

Do not spend your money this week on ‘Tooth Fairy’. If you want the same family vibe with lots of smiles and warm, fuzzy sentiments and a tear or two, see ‘The Game Plan’ on DVD. You’ll be grateful I recommend it to you.

Close-up headshot of Mark Wahlberg looking off camera indoors
Jack Rico
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2010/01/14 at 12:00am

Movies

Mark Wahlberg to do ‘Four Brothers’ sequel

01.14.2010 | By |

Mark Wahlberg to do 'Four Brothers' sequel

I remember seeing Four Brothers and laughing so hard. I know it wasn’t a comedy, but there are some lines in that movies that are just LMAO funny! That’s when I knew that Mark Wahlberg was one of my favorite actors (see my 1:1 interview with him here).

So now I get word that he might involved in doing a sequel to it. Here’s the article we got from THR.com.

Paramount is developing a sequel to its 2005 thriller “Four Brothers,” bringing back many of the creative team for “Five Brothers.”

Mark Wahlberg, the star of “Four Brothers,” hatched the sequel idea with that film’s writers, David Elliot and Paul Lovett.

The original movie, directed by John Singleton, revolved around four adopted brothers (Wahlberg, Tyrese Gibson, Andre Benjamin and Garret Hedlund) who come together to avenge their mother’s death in what at first appears to be a random robbery. Although not a massive hit, it still grossed a tidy $74 million at the domestic box office.

Plot details are being kept under wraps, and it is not clear which of the other actors, if any, would return. Hedlund would appear to be out, as his character was killed in the first movie. Wahlberg stars in Peter Jackson’s “The Lovely Bones,” which opens nationally on Friday, and appears in the upcoming “Date Night” with Steve Carell and Tina Fey.

Denzel Washington in The Book of Eli
Jack Rico
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By

2010/01/14 at 12:00am

Movie ReviewsMovies

The Book of Eli (Movie Review)

01.14.2010 | By |

The Book of Eli
Movie review scene
Ted Faraone
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2010/01/14 at 12:00am

Movie ReviewsMovies

The Spy Next Door (Movie Review)

01.14.2010 | By |

The Spy Next Door

If Jackie Chan did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him.  His latest vehicle, “The Spy Next Door,” fits neatly into his array of comic action films suitable for children and their parents.  The 92 minute, PG-rated effort from helmer Brian Levant and screenwriters Jonathan Bernstein, James Greer, and Gregory Poirier, offers a little something for everyone.  That’s not to say that it is flawless.  It sticks pretty closely to the unassuming geek as martial arts master formula which Chan has perfected.  Add to the recipe a little “fish-out-of-water” and season with elements from the “Get Smart” series and you have a tasty frittata that should satisfy all but the most finicky.
 
Chan stars as Bob Ho, a Chinese intelligence officer on loan to the CIA.  That preposterous premise sets the tone for rest of pic’s hijinx.  His cover is a geeky, suburban pen salesman.  The “Next Door” part of the story involves Amber Valetta as Gillian, single mother of three impossible kids, and Chan’s love interest.  Plot centers on Ho’s desire to retire from spying and marry Gillian.  Her kids’ opinion of him is the first hitch.  He’s just not cool enough.  The second hitch is a sort of comic version of Al Pacino’s famous line, “Every time I try to get out they drag me back in.”
 
In this case, the drag back is a Russian plot to unleash a bacterium on all the world’s oil supply — Russia’s excepted — which consume anything made of petroleum and then vanish as quickly as they appear.
 
Pic is played over-the-top to excellent comic effect.  Magnús Scheving’s Poldark, Ho’s arch enemy, is a marvelous caricature of a bad guy.  Another standout on the Russian team is Katherine Boecher as Creel, a slinky blond sporting tight black outfits, Jimmy Choos and a mean kick.
 
What brings all the elements together and creates pic’s best action sequences — as well as most of its jokes — is a sort of contrived plot point in which Gillian leaves town to look after her injured dad and puts Bob in charge of her three unruly brats.   To Bob, this is his chance to make the kids like him.  It’s also his fish-out-of-water moment.  Spies have some learning to do where raising kids is at issue.  Of course, Bob has to win the kids over — and he does so in part by accident.  Gillian’s 11-year-old, Ian (Will Shadley) is as much a geek as Bob appears to be, a would be rocket scientist, who downloads the Russian’s secret bacterium formula from Bob’s home computer thinking it is a video game.  This puts the Russians on Bob’s tail and consequently on the kids’ tails.  The sight of Bob kickboxing Russian spies is just too cool for words.  Ian is won over.  So is four-year-old Nora (Alina Foley).  Farren (Madeline Carroll), Gillian’s 13-year-old stepdaughter, is the toughest nut, but even she cracks.  The kids join the fight against the Russians with undisguised glee in scenes reminiscent of the “Home Alone” series.  Thus far, the formula works.
 
Gillian is another story.  Furious at the revelation that Bob is a spy and that her brood has been endangered, she gives him the shove — permanently.  Since this is a comedy, however, the final reel offers a slapstick climax, which includes a Russian spy wearing a television as a hat.
 
Special mention goes to recording artist Billy Ray Cyrus as CIA good guy Colton James and comic George Lopez as the Russian’s mole in the CIA.  Choreography is as good as one has come to expect from Chan, and lensing by Dean Cundey frames it all to good effect.  Soundtrack includes familiar “Secret Agent Man” and Blondie’s “One Way Or Another”.  One nit to pick is Chan’s accent.  He can be a tad tough to understand at times, but since editor Lawrence Jordan leaves no loose ends, a lost line or two can be imputed from the context.

Movie review scene
Namreta Kumar
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By

2010/01/09 at 12:00am

Movie ReviewsMovies

Wonderful World (Movie Review)

01.9.2010 | By |

Unfortunately Wonderful World feels too much like a tired film to represent the revival at the end.  It is made memorable only by the concept of cynicism and its witty remarks. Josh Goldin’s Ben Singer (Matthew Broderick) has a thin layer of charm, however his actual cynicism begins to border on pathological at points. Read More

Young woman touches young man's forehead in close outdoor scene
Jack Rico
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By

2010/01/06 at 12:00am

Movie ReviewsMovies

Youth in Revolt (Movie Review)

01.6.2010 | By |

*Updated November 2025

Nick Twisp (Michael Cera) is a bookish teen who falls hard for Sheeni Saunders (Portia Doubleday) and, at her urging, invents a rebellious alter ego, François. His “refined” tastes collide with terrible decisions, leading to mayhem, property damage, and a brush with the law, all in the name of love. Read More

two women in rain, one woman distressed and shouting
Rain-soaked intense moment with two women battling the elements
Mack Chico
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By

2010/01/05 at 12:00am

Movies

Final Destination: Death Trip 3D

01.5.2010 | By |

Rating: 2.0

Rated: R for strong violent/gruesome accidents, language and a scene of sexuality.
Release Date: 2009-08-28
Starring: Eric Bress, Jeffrey Reddick
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country:USA
Official Website: http://www.thefinaldestinationmovie.com/

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Close-up of a blue Na'vi woman character from Avatar movie
A detailed close-up of a Na’vi woman from the 2009 film Avatar.
Pau Brunet
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2009/12/28 at 12:00am

Movies

‘Avatar’ is #1 at the box office, again

12.28.2009 | By |

'Avatar' is #1 at the box office, again

The estimated $278 million in weekend box-office revenue broke the previous record of roughly $253 million set in July 2008, the weekend “The Dark Knight” was released.

A diverse group of films drew throngs to the multiplexes: James Cameron’s “Avatar” pushed strongly into its second week while “Sherlock Holmes,” “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel” and “It’s Complicated” all opened.

“Avatar,” the 3-D epic, topped them all, earning $75 million for 20th Century Fox, according to studio estimates Sunday. Remarkably, that was only a 3 percent drop from its opening weekend total of $77.4 million. (Blockbusters typically drop 30-50 percent in the second weekend.) In its 10 days of release, “Avatar” has made $212 million domestically — and could be on its way to a worldwide gross of over $1 billion.

“This thing is going to be playing and playing, I can tell you that,” said Bert Livingston, 20th Century Fox distribution executive. “There’s a lot of business out there. Everybody’s got good movies out.”

In second was “Sherlock Holmes,” Guy Ritchie’s reboot of the franchise with Robert Downey Jr. starring as Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective. The Warner Bros. film opened with a weekend total of $65.4 million, including a record Christmas Day debut of $24.9 million.

It was a start that seemed sure to pave the way for sequels. Dan Fellman, head of distribution for Warner Bros., called the result “sensational.”

“Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel,” which opened Wednesday, took in $50.2 million on the weekend and $77.1 million in its five days of release. The film, also from Fox, earned an impressive $18.8 on Wednesday alone. The strong start suggested that “Squeakquel” was likely to surpass its 2007 original, which made $217 million.

Also opening was Nancy Meyer’s “It’s Complicated,” the romantic comedy from starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin. With an audience 72 percent female, the Universal film took in $22.1 million, a solid debut.

The buffo Christmas weekend results spelled good things for all the films in release in the coming week — one of the most lucrative of the year.

“We all know what next week means to the industry. This is a huge,” said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution for Universal. “Christmas is past us. No more shopping, no more returning. College kids are home. … I’m so optimistic about what the next weekend holds for us.”

Said Livingston: “Starting this Monday, every day is a Saturday.”

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. “Avatar,” $75 million.

2. “Sherlock Holmes,” $65.4 million.

3. “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel,” $50.2 million.

4. “It’s Complicated,” $22.1 million.

5. “Up in the Air,” $11.8 million.

6. “The Blind Side,” $11.7 million.

7. “The Princess and the Frog,” $8.7 million.

8. “Nine,” $5.5 million.

9. “Did You Hear About the Morgans?” $5 million.

10. “Invictus,” $4.4 million.

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