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The Old Guard, a Netflix action movie, was one of the best in 2020. Charlize Theron played the leader of a team of ancient, immortal mercenaries, and the movie managed to deliver on its promise on screen. However, after a seemingly interminable delay, the sequel is a case of diminished returns. The screenwriter, Greg Rucka, returns as the screenwriter, once more adapting his own comic book series. This time it feels like too much is being juggled at once, mainly apparent through the two main antagonists. The first movie left off with the reveal that Quynh (Veronica Ngô), the longtime companion of Charlize Theron's Andy, had somehow finally been freed from the iron maiden she had been locked inside 500 years before. Now Quynh, understandably pissed after the anguish she went through as she continually drowned and then came back to life thanks to her immortality, is on a quest for vengeance against all of mankind, putting her at odds with her former friend (and maybe lover) Andy. The Old Guard 2 overcomplicates things with the introduction of a woman known as Discord (Uma Thurman), a previously unknown immortal with her own grudge against humanity. Thurman's presence feels like there was a decision made up the food chain to give this movie a bigger hook and boost of star power. The action in The Old Guard 2 is decent but unremarkable. Director Victoria Mahoney doesn't match the more stylish flair the first film's director, Gina Prince-Bythewood, brought to the proceedings, but a couple of sequences do stand out. This includes a well-done fight between Andy and Quynh and some early sequences that have some darkly comedic fun with the idea that Andy's teammates Joe (Marwan Kenzari) and Nicky (Luca Marinelli) can receive grisly injuries in battle and then be fine moments later. However, Mahoney relies more on a shaky-cam, jittery aesthetic that can sometimes be distracting and diminish the impact of the fight scenes. The large ensemble cast seems more adrift here, particularly the last film's big new recruit, Nile (KiKi Layne), and the immortals' human ally, James Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor). Matthias Schoenaerts' Booker has some soul searching to go through after he was banished by the others in the last film for a betrayal. Henry Golding also has a large supporting role as yet another immortal, Tuah, who is mostly there to explain backstory that could have been delivered in more efficient ways. At the center of it all though, Theron once more proves just what a fantastic leading lady she is, even in a weaker film like this. She continually brings such gravitas and believability to Andy - who lost her immortality at the end of the first film and is now reeling from Quynh's return - and makes the most of her character's mixture of angst, inner strength, and impressive physical prowess. Her innate talent, credibility as an action star, and movie star charisma go a long way to helping The Old Guard 2 through its clunkier moments. In conclusion, The Old Guard 2 is a less engaging continuation of its fun Highlander-esque concept and action scenes that are a step down from the first film. It's often still serviceable enough as a way to once more see Charlize Theron as an action badass, but doesn't do nearly enough with its big Charlize vs. Uma selling point and fails to give the rest of its cast enough to do before ending with a cliffhanger that is more exasperating than tantalizing.

Tyler Perry's latest film, "Madea's Destination Wedding," is a comedy that falls short of his usual standards. The film follows Madea and her family as they head to the Bahamas for a destination wedding. The story begins with Madea, her ex-husband Leroy Brown (David Mann), and their daughter Cora (Tamela Mann) being accosted at a gas station by would-be robbers. Then, the story moves to Joe and his ex-wife Debra (Taja V. Simpson), a former drug addict who cleaned up and married a rich guy, in a fancy restaurant. They are to be joined by their son B. J. (Jermaine Harris) and daughter Tiffany (Diamond White). The destination wedding has already been locked into place by Debra's rich husband, who is prepared to foot the bill for both the bride and groom's families. Brian's pride prevents him from accepting the arrangement, but Brian and other members of the family accept the arrangement and go to the Bahamas to support Tiffany. It takes half the movie for them to get to the Bahamas, check in, look at their rooms, and experience the many splendid areas of the hotel, including a casino and a huge water slide. There's a funny, purposefully overwrought sequence where Xavier invites Joe and Leroy to his bachelor party. Joe convinces the pious and clean-living Leroy that it's a gospel-themed party, practically a church service. Leroy ends up surrounded by scantily clad, twerking dancers, shrieks like a child, and sprinkles them with holy water. Perry is often a hoot playing both Madea and Joe, but there's a lot of flab in the scenes of banter and misunderstanding. Farce should be more meticulous than this. It's like Perry isn't even trying. Quality control is low even by his hit-and-miss, too-many-movies-a-year standards.

Peter Perry has been mostly disappointing for a long time, with his films being mostly machine-like and lacking in quality control. His films dealing with criminality, addiction, and any type of sex that isn't plain vanilla are shot more imaginatively than the parts depicting faith and goodness. However, Perry's films praised in this piece are melodramas, which by nature have to be intense and extreme in order to work. A melodrama can be gripping even if its values are unrefined or merely outdated.

Perry's lack of commitment to learning more about film history and technique may be due to not wanting to commit to learning more about film history and technique. Comedies like "Madea's Destination Wedding" practice a high level of craft, but it mainly has to do with the skill level needed to turn ad-lib heavy acting into something coherent when you have two or more characters played by Perry acting opposite each other in the same scene.

The Farrelly Brothers, a group of filmmakers known for their comedic works, have gained cult status in the two decades since their release of Shallow Hal. The film, which explores the concept of "inner beauty," has resonated with people of all persuasions, particularly those who are overweight or have mental disorders. The film's social commentary and withering subtext often form the basis of their comedic output, but it has often been found to be too hit and miss for personal tastes.

Shallow Hal, directed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly, has gained cult classic status in the two decades since its release. The timing of the film was perfect, landing in cinemas just two months after the September 11th attacks on New York City and Washington. However, a retrospective viewing of the film has made me appreciate just how sweet and sappy the Farrelly Brothers made this film, despite its potentially repugnant undercurrent of shame. The film tries to lean way over the mark in treating the subject matter too seriously, as it is a comedy, after all. At times, it is too silly and unbelievable to expect people to behave like this in real life. The script jacks up the dichotomy between the fantasy of "unattractive" people suddenly being supermodel-hot and the reality of those not blessed with Calvin Klein figures to such a heightened degree. The film turns Hal and Jason Alexander's Mauricio into quite unlikeable characters, turning Hal and his character Mauricio into quite unlikeable characters. Paltrow as the obese/skinny Rosemary performs the film's greatest feat of narrative sympathy. When Hal sees her in his "iner beauty" phase, Paltrow is luminously attractive, although acts the coquettish introvert in a manner that becomes quite becoming as the film goes along. This performance makes sense when we realize that Rosemary is actually incredibly overweight, bullied, and teased by her family and friends and obviously emotionally insecure (rightly so). It's when she wears the spectacularly well done prosthetic fat-suit that gasps will arise, because the effect is so well done and so well achieved that it really does make you rethink your thoughts on what constitutes true beauty. However, there are issues with the Farrelly Brothers' presentation of this modern fairy-story take with such black and white profundity, leaving no room for shades of grey. The overkill of comedic release undercuts the seriousness of the subtextual elements. Shallow Hal has moments of genuinely great pathos, such as Hal visiting a paediatric burns unity at a hospital Rosemary works at and being struck by how people's looks aren't something they can be responsible for. As is typical with the Farrelly Brothers, they pepper all manner of disabled, disfigured, socially non-attractive folks into the mix, including real-life spina bifida sufferer Rene Kirby, as Hal's four-limbs walkin' best friend. These reflective elements of humour make the spicy overarching narrative work so much smoother. Shallow Hal is pitch-perfect jabs at cultural, social, and genetic expectations while still remaining funny, if uneven, in a film that runs slightly too long and overcooks the meal. Younger fans of Jack Black might have skipped this one, and to be honest, the sour taste of modern Gwyneth Paltrow might make me otherwise turn away, but she's as palatable as she's ever been in this one. Shallow Hal is a 00's era comedy classic for a reason, and it's definitely worth checking out again.