cardsrock

I had a fun time watching this film! Not sure if people were expecting Citizen Kane, but I feel like this delivered on the laughs and enjoyment anyone could want from this. Cena is a true comedic powerhouse and this might be Awkwafina's best role since The Farewell. I usually find her fairly annoying, but she was solid here.

There haven't been a ton of great studio comedies in recent years, and yes this isn't top tier, but it's no worse than most of the bankable comedies from the mid 00s. Paul Feig has a great track record and he hits another single (double?) with Jackpot! I hope people give this a shot, as Cena really goes all out and commits with his comedic roles.

Fair Play banks on its compelling setup to entertain viewers and while it does for most of its runtime, I cannot help but feel there was another gear this film could have gone into in order to really make a lasting impact. I loved the interplay between sex, power, and competition, I just wish their was a little more of each of those. This was a nice reprieve from most of the typical Netflix schlock and is still a fairly high quality film. The acting is strong and carries the middle chunk of the film where not as much happens.

It does become a bit farfetched in regards to what some of the characters do near the end, but it doesn't go off the deep end. Fair Play is a fun, albeit light, thriller that mostly succeeds in its goals.

While this ain't the most acclaimed series in the history of cinema, The Expendables movies have a nice niche in the action genre. There's a certain level of quality the first 3 films have maintained. Even the worst film 3, is at worst mediocre. This new film on the other hand, is far below mediocre. Between the cheesy lines, rough even for these films, and the unbelievably bad CGI, this movie really sets a new low for the franchise.

It just really feels like they're going through the motions here. The action is lackluster other than a few Staham fight scenes and the plot is as generic as it gets. When you're resorting to 50 Cent to bring some new life to your franchise, you know you're in trouble...