JAWS (1975)

 JAWS (1975)

A great white shark becomes an unstoppable predator, and three men must stop it.

IMDb

7.8/10

Rotten T.

84%

SPOILER-FREE SYNOPSIS

Police Chief Brody discovers a great white shark hunting swimmers off the coast. He teams up with a shark hunter (Quint) and a marine biologist (Hooper) to kill it. The combination of Spielberg’s directing, John Williams’ score, and stellar acting from Richard Dreyfus, Robert Shaw, and Roy Scheider come together to create magic.

THE GOOD

Steven Spielberg’s Directing: The direction creates an effective thriller.

John Williams’ Score: Makes a stellar contribution to the film.

Stellar Acting: Richard Dreyfus, Robert Shaw, and Roy Scheider deliver strong performances.

CONTENT WARNINGS

Sexual Content: Implied nudity and scantily clad women.

Language: Some cuss words.

Violence & Gore: Lots of gore and frightening intense scenes.

Age Recommendation: 14+

FINAL VERDICT

After 50 years, only the mechanical shark effects look dated. A classic that holds up.

Available to rent or purchase on Prime (affiliate link): https://amzn.to/4aSmOfA

RATING

🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈 out of 

🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈🦈

Get faith x fandom merch here:  

Bigger Boat Collection - Corraled Custom Tees

Bigger Boat Christian apparel: Jaws × Luke 5:7 faith designs. T-shirt, hoodie, and gift items available.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991)

Directed by Michael Pressman | Starring Paige Turco, David Warner, Michelan Sisti, Ernie Reyes Jr., and Vanilla Ice

Cowabunga—this sequel knows exactly what it is, and it doesn’t apologize for it.

I caught this one at our local drive-in’s 35th anniversary screening (shout-out to Kingdom Media Club for putting it together), and with a beautiful sunset as a backdrop producer Kim Dawson gave a Q&A before the movie which really drove home how much heart went into keeping this sequel fun and accessible.

Here’s the thing: if you’re thinking about letting your kids watch this, or if you’re feeling nostalgic yourself, you’re not going to run into anything that’s going to blindside you. The turtles are fighting bad guys, cracking jokes, and being goofy—which is pretty much the whole point. The fight scenes are genuinely well-choreographed and fun to watch. There’s no blood or gore to worry about, no sexual content (just a quick joke with a Michelangelo poster that lands and moves on), and the dialogue is playful without being annoying.

Yeah, you’ll hear some name-calling (“stupid,” “idiot”), and there’s one bit of crude humor, but it’s mild stuff. One character smokes, so that’s worth noting. The action gets a little chaotic when the bad guys tear through the city, but it’s the kind of mayhem that feels like controlled chaos in a superhero movie—not gratuitous.

The acting is deliberately over the top, and the dialogue has puns that land more often than they miss. Michael Pressman directs the whole thing with this self-aware energy that says: “We know this is a movie about talking turtles, so let’s have fun with it.” And they do.

If your kids are 7 or older and you want something that doesn’t require much thinking but delivers genuine entertainment—and honestly, if you want something the whole family can enjoy together without cringing—this is a solid choice. It’s the kind of movie that knows its place and does that place really well.

Available to rent or purchase on Prime (affiliate link): https://amzn.to/4pE2Wmj

🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢 out of 

🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢

X-Men: Days of Future Past – The Rogue Cut (2014)

X-Men: Days of Future Past - The Rogue Cut (2014)

This expanded cut restores meaningful character arcs that the theatrical version overlooked, offering superhero action with real stakes and thematic depth.

SPOILER-FREE SYNOPSIS

In a dystopian future, mutants face extinction hunted by Sentinels. Wolverine is sent back to 1973 to prevent Mystique from assassinating the creator of these robots. To succeed, he must unite the fractured younger versions of Xavier and Magneto—ideological enemies—and prevent a war that will doom the mutant species.

The Rogue Cut restores deleted scenes that flesh out supporting characters and add emotional weight to key story beats. This isn’t filler; it’s restoration of purpose.

THE GOOD

Spielbergian Direction: Bryan Singer crafts intelligent action sequences that serve story over spectacle. The pacing feels earned, not rushed. High-concept time travel has philosophical weight rather than existing as plot mechanics.

Powerhouse Performances: James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender deliver career-best work as younger Xavier and Magneto. Their ideological conflict feels personal and earned. Hugh Jackman grounds the film with Wolverine’s raw humanity.

John Williams-Level Score: The film’s music enhances without overwhelming. Sound design creates tension through implication rather than assault.

Thematic Depth: The film explores fate vs. free will, the cost of survival, and whether the future is predetermined. It asks serious questions while maintaining blockbuster entertainment.

Restored Footage Matters: Unlike most extended cuts, these additions don’t pad the runtime—they complete character arcs and deepen relationships.

CONTENT WARNINGS

Violence: Significant sci-fi action violence.

• Multiple hand-to-hand combat sequences
• Gunfire and mutant powers used destructively
• Character deaths (some emotional, some brutal)
• One intense execution scene
• Explosions and property destruction

Language: Moderate profanity. A handful of strong words scattered throughout, not gratuitous.

Themes: Discrimination and genocide (Sentinel program targets mutants), moral ambiguity, betrayal and redemption.

Sexual Content: Minimal. One scene of brief partial nudity (non-sexual).

Other: Characters use cocaine in a 1970s-context scene (historical, not glorified). One implied sexual encounter.

Age Recommendation: 13+ (strong content; parental discretion for younger teens unfamiliar with X-Men)

FINAL VERDICT

Days of Future Past - The Rogue Cut proves that extended cuts can genuinely improve films when they restore character work rather than add fluff. The film teaches that our choices matter, redemption is possible, and unity despite difference is stronger than division. It celebrates the X-Men’s core message: acceptance of difference as strength.

Who will enjoy it: Longtime X-Men fans, viewers who felt theatrical cut was rushed, character-driven sci-fi fans, teenagers interested in superhero narratives with stakes.

Why it matters: This is one of the strongest entries in the X-Men franchise, and the restored material is essential viewing.

RATING

❌❌❌❌❌❌❌ out of 

❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌ 

X-Men: Days of Future Past – The Rogue Cut (2014) - Available to rent or purchase on Prime (affiliate link): https://amzn.to/4aV6yKL

Doctor Strange (2016)

Doctor Strange is the most recent journey into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It tells the tale of doctor Stephen Strange and his journey from being only part of a man to realizing his full potential. As a solo film, this movie deals with many of the same themes as Iron Man: brilliant man in his field taking his gifts for granted until an accident forces him to look inside himself for strength and answers to overcome his demons. The casting of this movie couldn't be more perfect. Benedict Cumberbatch was an excellent choice for Doctor Strange and really added a depth to the character that few other actors could have brought. This movie greatly benefitted from 8 years worth of previous films so that audiences knew that suspension of belief was critical coming in. By now, we are well aware that there are things in the MCU that don't exist in our realm and they've made magic feel as much a part of that world as a man in a robotic suit or a god from Asgard. Fair warning: there are many scenes of violence and the movie also deals with demonic forces. With this new addition to the slate of Marvel films, it will be interesting to see how Doctor Strange interacts with the other heavy hitters of the MCU. Enjoy and see you at the movies!

Overall, I'd give this movie
                               out of

Jurassic World (2015)

7.5/10


Jurassic World is the quintessential summer popcorn movie. You have the action, the adventure, the thrills with just a touch of love interest thrown in.  Isla Nublar is back and better than ever with a re-envisioned park that shares the same feel as the original from 22 years ago, but ramped up to 11.  If, while watching, you get a bit of déjà vu, you're not alone. Many of the plot points (two kids roaming the park by themselves, new dinosaur, raptors doing what raptors do, etc.) are repeated in this movie.  They're tweaked just enough to enjoy, yet familiar enough to put the audience at ease.  There are several newly introduced dinos this go round.  They do not disappoint.  Chris Pratt has found a niche for himself on the big screen as the "it" summer blockbuster hero.  He's surrounded by another great cast with Bryce Dallas Howard, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Judy Greer among others.  I would recommend this as a great action summer blockbuster! Enjoy and see you at the movies!

Overall, I'd give this movie
 
out of
 

The Expendables 3 (2014)

For the third installment of the all out action series, the Expendables 3 leaves a little to be desired. Most of the movie is spent getting a new team together for no apparent reason. So with a good chunk of the movie getting a new "band together," there's not much time left for great action and blowing up stuff. I thought that having the cheese-fest of constant quotes from the last movie was bad enough, but I'd take that again for the third if that meant it'd be a better movie. The cast is fun. The old crew is the same group we've come to know from the other two movies. The new crew adds nothing and seems quite bland in contrast to the rest of the crew. The exception to this is Antonio Banderas. He is almost single-handedly the humor in this movie. Kelsey Grammer, Mel Gibson, and Wesley Snipes are all good additions to the cast. Harrison Ford's performance, on the other hand, seems a little lack luster. It seems that he'd rather be on any other set than this one. This makes me kinda apprehensive about his performance in the upcoming Star Wars movie. When the action finally does come, it doesn't disappoint. I just wish there was more of it. As you'd expect with an action movie, violence and language are the main "objectionable materials" in this movie.

Overall, I'd give this movie
                                  out of