Both Cailee Spaeny and Kirsten Dunst were very good in Civil War, but the movie itself was meh. It didn’t know what it wanted to say or to be; it committed to nothing. There is a lot of noise and Sturm und Drang but it just has no thesis. At the same time, it’s not observant nor perspicacious enough to be a slice of life (or of death) film, either.

It just was not a good film despite the combat portions being pretty well-done. I wish it had been attempting to say something, anything, to have some history or future or meaning. Not every movie needs that, of course. But this one did.

Not recommended, unless you’re a particular fan of Cailee or Kirsten or both.

The First Omen was not that good. Kind of meandering and predictable. However, the cinematography was nice.

(That’s a shot of Margaret and her roommate getting ready to hit the town. Our girl Maggie¹ is trepidatious about going out in a dress she feels is too revealing, while her roommate applies some peer pressure for her to woman up.)

In addition to just having a great name, Nell Tiger Free is very good in the film, as are Bill Nighy and Ralph Ineson. But you spend most of your time with Nell so she is the reason to watch if you like good acting. Otherwise, skip.

1. No one actually calls her this in the film.

The Skeleton Key (2005) is such a good movie.

That is a truly solid, underrated film. It’s just a tight little gem. Nothing belabored and nothing wasted. It helped I knew little about it going in so had no expectations. Recommended.