New Jack City (1991) ****

I recently re-watched this classic, and I have to say that I would consider it one of the essential gangster movies.

Wesley Snipes plays Nino Brown, a street-level, Harlem drug dealer whose friend and partner, Gee Money (Allen Payne) introduces their business to the possibilities of a new form of cocaine, crack. The drug sells like, well, like crack, and soon their gang, the Cash Money Brothers, are taking over a housing project, manufacturing their own rock, and making millions. It's a classic rise-and-fall gangster story, in the tradition of Greek tragedy, a tale of hubris and greed.

It's amazing how much star power this low-budget ($8 million) production brings together, and how many careers it launched. Mario Van Peebles acts and directs (his debut as a film director). Judd Nelson plays a cop with attitude, actually pretty much the same character as his famous thug in “The Breakfast Club.” Snipes is magnetic as Nino, borrowing a bit from Pacino's Scarface and De Niro's Capone, but grounding his character in the streets of Harlem.

Ice-T is now known for his acting, after years of movies and TV cop shows, but in 1991 he was a gangsta rapper. His infamous song “Cop Killer” hadn't come out yet, but he definitely wasn't anyone's idea of a boy in blue. Casting him as an undercover detective was a stroke of genius and a risk. Legend has it that he got the role when Mario Van Peebles overheard him talking shit in a nightclub bathroom, and realized that was the perfect voice and attitude for his movie. He absolutely owns the role, and it's easy to see why his acting career took off after “New Jack City.”

It's Chris Rock, however, who makes the biggest breakthrough in this film. His portrayal of crack addict, Pookie, is chilling and heartbreaking. I imagine his performance kept more kids off crack than a dozen “Just Say No” speeches.

For that matter, this film may have done more than the news media to bring the reality of the crack epidemic home to middle America. I can't vouch for the veracity, but the film hits you in the face with the scope of the problem, while humanizing it.

As a gangster movie, New Jack City is not nearly as tightly-crafted as, say “Miller's Crossing” or “Goodfellas.” The plot frequently dips into the improbable, until finally flirting with self-parody. Significant suspension of disbelief will be required, but it's worth it for this essential film of great performances, great style, and a bangin' hip-hop soundtrack.

4 stars out of 5

La Familia (2017, Venezuela) ***1/2

In this first feature from writer/director Gustavo Rondon Cordova, we see the struggles of desperate people trying to keep their heads above water in a collapsing economy. In Caracas, Venezuela, single-dad Andres hustles several jobs to scrape together money that buys less every day. He returns home exhausted each day to catch a little sleep before going out to hustle some more. He and his 12-year-old son, Pedro, barely cross paths. This leaves Pedro to grow up like a weed on the streets, learning to fight, curse, and harass girls.

As poor as Pedro's family is, the people from the nearby favela are even poorer, and gang violence runs rampant there. One little thug from the favela, a gangster-in-training, tries to rob Pedro. In the ensuing struggle, the gangster boy is killed. When Andres finds out, he immediately realizes that the favela thugs will come looking for revenge, so he and Pedro go on the lam. For a few desperate days, the two hide out in the city while Andres tries to get together enough money for them to flee the city entirely.

This is a very low-budget, handheld camera kind of film. Much of the story resides in what isn't shown on camera, like the murder of Pedro's friend, and what isn't spoken aloud, like Pedro's thoughts as he gets a look at how hard his father works every day. We are never even told what happened to Pedro's mother. Fortunately, the expressive faces of these excellent actors tell us a lot about the inner turmoil they carry. Giovanni Garcia, who plays Andres, is particularly compelling. I never knew there were so many ways to look worried. Reggie Reyes, who plays Pedro, is remarkable in his first role ever. The kid was literally picked from the streets to play the role.

“La Familia” is rough around the edges, and it doesn't have the kind of clear, satisfying narrative arc that makes for a satisfying movie. In theme, it reminds me somewhat of 2009's "Sin Nombre," but it isn't nearly as well-rounded a story as that film. “La Familia” is more of a sketch, very much film-festival fare, but it presents a director and a couple of actors who I think have promise.

3.5 stars out of 5

The Shape of Water (2017) ****

Mexican director Guillermo del Toro tells fairy tales for adults. His credits include 2004's excellent "Hellboy" and 2006's "Pan's Labyrinth", which is a truly beautiful and creepy tale. He has had a few mis-steps (cough-cough- "Pacific Rim"), but fortunately, “The Shape of Water” is not one of these.

Set in the cold-war 1950s, the film tells the tale of Elisa (Sally Hawkins), a mute cleaning lady in a secret, government lab. She lives a quiet, regimented life, with her only friends being her gay next-door-neighbor Giles (Richard Jenkins) and her co-worker Zelda (Octavia Spencer). One day, Elisa's ordered world is turned upside down by the new “asset” brought into the lab. It's a humanoid water-creature (who looks somewhat similar to the fish-man from “Hellboy.”) The scientists and government agents treat the creature like a beast, but Elisa intuits that he has a soul, and soon she is sharing snacks and music with him. Next thing you know, the two have fallen in love, and Elisa recruits her two friends to help him escape.

You have to remember with this movie that it's a fairytale. Let yourself get taken along for the ride, and don't judge the story literally. Enjoy the striking color palate and the beautiful love story. Ignore the somewhat broadly-drawn nature of the characters and just savor what is truly the date-movie of the year.

4 stars out of 5

Wind River (2017) **1/2

“Luck don't live out here.” This is how federal wildlife officer Cory Lambert (Jeremy Renner) describes the cold, brutal, beautiful landscape that is Wyoming. On the Wind River Indian Reservation, while tracking mountain lions, Cory discovers the frozen body of an American Indian girl, a local teenager. She appears to have been raped, and then to have frozen to death while fleeing across the frozen wilds. FBI agent Jane Banner (Elizabeth Olsen) is dispatched from Las Vegas to investigate. Woefully unprepared for the cold and the lack of police resources on the reservation, Jane enlists Cory's help. Together, they mine the underbelly of the reservation to learn the truth.

“Wind River” is written and directed by Taylor Sheridan, who also did "Sicario."  Like “Sicario,” I enjoyed “Wind River” while watching it, but found that it fell apart a bit at the end. The characters start doing things that make no sense. Watching the movie, I was mostly awed by the gorgeous scenery and Jeremy Renner's cool-ass tracker character, but afterwards quickly found myself annoyed by some of the plot holes.

This is a problem I have mentioned with some other films. When a book or movie is truly well-written, the action is character-driven. By that, I mean that the writer creates a set of characters, places them in a situation, and the action that flows is what those characters would naturally do in that situation. When a writer gets lazy, they make their characters do things that make no sense, in order to short-cut the plot where they need it to go. “Wind River”suffers from that, and it ruins what should be a great murder mystery, with great actors in a great location. As it is, the film has some entertainment value, but for me it's just a bit too trite, too outlandish, and, like a guy named Sheridan making a movie about Wyoming, a bit too on-the-nose.

2.5 stars out of 5

Logan's Run (1976) ***

Part “Brave New World,” part “Planet of the Apes,” “Logan's Run” mixes dystopian sci-fi and action, with some titties thrown in to distract us from the low-rent special effects.

In a post-apocalyptic future America, people live in giant domes for protection from the blasted outside landscape. Technology provides them ample energy and food, and they live lives of hedonism and leisure. But every utopia demands a sacrifice. In Logan's world, population and resources are kept in alignment by allowing people to live only to the age of 30. At that point, people are sacrificed in a fiery ritual called Carousel. Theoretically, Carousel can renew you, allowing you to reincarnate, but many citizens instinctively disbelieve this, and when their time comes, they run. Logan (Michael York) is a Sandman, a policeman whose principle job is to catch and kill runners.

Logan and fellow Sandman Frances (Richard Jordan) are happy in their jobs. Then Logan is selected by the city's supercomputer for a special mission: to track down and destroy a rebel stronghold for runners called Sanctuary. In order to go undercover, Logan will have to pose as a runner, so, against Logan's will, the computer speeds up his life clock to make it look like he is turning 30. The computer also lets slip that Carousel is a fraud. Combined with the years of life the computer stole from him, this gives Logan a lot to think about as he embarks on his mission by contacting Jessica (Jenny Agutter), a member of the Sanctuary rebels.

“Logan's Run” feels like someone kidnapped the cast from a hard-core porno set and forced them to act in a soft-core porno, then cut out the juiciest bits. In fairness, I don't think these are exactly bad actors (except for Farrah Fawcett, who really makes the least of her small role), I think they just weren't sure what to do with the ludicrous material they were given. Still, the poorly-written story and uninspired acting manage to elevate the visual effects, which are so low-rent, they make “Dr. Who” look like “Star Wars.”

While we're on the subject, “Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope” came out only 1 year after “Logan's Run”. On a budget of $11 million, “Star Wars” managed to create a universe of planets, aliens, robots, and spaceships that looked real enough to take you out of your theater seat to a galaxy far, far away. For its $7 million budget, “Logan's Run” manages only to look like a joke. The cityscape is depicted using miniatures that your accountant could have built in his basement on weekends. Other effects look like they were rejected by the original “Star Trek” tv show, including a ludicrous-looking robot named “Box.” Come to think of it, “Star Trek” is one of many sci-fi productions from the 1960's that look better than 1976's “Logan's Run.”

And yet, despite all this, “Logan's Run” has a certain charm. Like that girl who is more confident than her appearance, this movie presents itself so boldly that you find yourself drawn in, wondering if “Logan's Run” is better than you are able to appreciate. Even now, I find myself wondering if I'm the problem. Looking around at reviews of the film, many of which tie themselves in knots trying to praise the schlocky special effects, it strikes me that others are feeling the same effect. You want to like this movie! I say go with it. Give up on the theory that this is actually a good movie and just enjoy the trashy ride. There are explosions, floods, orgies, you-name-it. Michael York and Richard Jordan manage to make bad acting look good, and Jenny Agutter is so adorable in that little, silk kimono that I'd watch her read the phone book!

3 stars out of 5