Now You See Me, Now You Don't (2025)

The Horsemen are back and they're just as showy, obnoxious and improbable as ever. It's your basic diamond heist movie, except with magicians, illusionists and mentalists (oh my!) somehow always pulling one over on each other. It's exactly the same type of shit as the first two films, and this time you can add three more arrogant pricks to the roster. The only thing this film succeeds in doing is creating the title that they should have done for the second movie. 

1½ ace of diamonds out of 5

Note: No, I don't see the Magic Eye image above, either...

GANGSTER SQUAD [2013]

Zombieland director Ruben Fleischer brings journalist Paul Lieberman's pulp novel Gangster Squad: Covert Cops, the Mob, and the Battle for Los Angeles to the screen.
With it's impressive ensemble cast and hard-boiled Hollywoodland noir story you suspect Fleischer was attempting to replicate the success of L.A. Confidential but somehow misses the mark.  The characters are atrociously underdeveloped, the editing is terrible, the dialogue it both boring & forced and you'll predict the entire film only 5 minutes in.  As cliched as this uneven mess of a laughable film is, I can't really deny that it was entertaining as feck.  Check your brain at the door and you might find some light entertainment in it.

2½ toasty elevator rides down out of 5

ZOMBIELAND [2009]

Ruben Fleischer directs this wild zombie romp that's like Shaun Of The Dead after a 3-day cocaine bender.

Zombieland being a comedy about the living dead can't help but draw comparisons to Shaun but that's fine because it's so damned fast-paced, well-performed and funny, as a fan of the genre one can't but enjoy it. It's a bloody fun, rollercoaster of a ride and tries to be nothing more.

3½ zombie kills of the week out of 5