Review of John Dies at the End

Wait for the DVD

While John may lack actual scares, it does offer some goofy fun as well as one or two mindfucks. More condensed than the comically, trippy book, John is about John and Dave, two slackers who battle an invasion from a hellish dimension via “soy sauce,” a sentient black liquid some unfortunate characters inject into their veins; the sauce turns people into portals to this other dimension or kills them. Or both. Directed by Don Coscarelli of Phantasm, John amuses, but the final battle between the evil Korrok and John David, and Bark Lee the dog seems rushed and anticlimactic.

Review of Duplicity

Get to the theater

Tony Gilroy’s Duplicity may not be as substantial as his previous film Michael Clayton, but it is an entertaining corporate espionage romantic comedy that makes good use of its stars, fan favorites Clive Owen and Julia Roberts, as corporate spies. While never quite fully trusting each other, either professionally or romantically, these two cinematic heavyweights are nonetheless nimble at hatching and executing a plan to infiltrate two rival multinational soap corporations and steal a million-dollar secret. Somewhat confusing, featuring a jumbled timeline, and winding up with perhaps one too many twists, Duplicity is nevertheless clever and complex entertainment.