MaXXXine (2024)

Now Exclusively in Theaters.

Director Ti West subverts so much of what his audience was waiting for with “MaXXXine” that he almost completely alienates the very people that were raring to go for the third installment in his “X” movie series. When we finally did get it, “MaXXXine” ends up being exactly what it wants to be. It’s not some gory horror movie like “Maniac” but a consciously dark and often over the top look at the terrifying battle that is fame. When we first saw Maxine Minx (the brilliant Mia Goth returns), she was a low budget porn star convinced she was going to be a star.

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Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024)

Now Streaming Exclusively on Netflix.

A lot of what counts for the success of “Axel F” is that it Keeps it all Simple. Axel Foley is no different the man he was when we first met him in 1984. That works for and against the character as while he’s still the huckster and con man that we love, it’s managed to make him someone who’s alienated a lot of the people in his life. But what makes Mark Molloy’s take on the character so very good is that it doesn’t aim for huge heights. It’s just another adventure with Axel Foley in Beverly Hills. Except this time he’s so much older and a wee bit slower.

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Beverly Hills Cop III (1994)

Now Available to Stream and on Physical Home Media.

Remember in “Live Free or Die Hard” when it became apparent that the every man we knew we John McClane was gone? In the first movie he was frumpy and nearly bleeding to death being forced to walk on broken glass. In “Live Free” he’s leaping out of exploding cars, and taking huge dives. This is Axel Foley’s ultimate undoing from the every man cop to the action figure superhero. In the first movie he’s using his wits and clever use of improv to sneak in to corners of the underworld.

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Beverly Hills Cop II (1987)

Now Available to Stream and on Physical Home Media.

The follow up to the massive Eddie Murphy star maker from 1984 is a much different film than the original. While Martin Brest had a lot more of his film tilted in to comedy action, Tony Scott tilts this sequel in favor more of action comedy. There’s the patent Axel Foley goofy comedy that we’ve seen before, but Scott also injects a lot of his own sensibilities that help his installment stand out. The usual orange and brown hazy lens are included unabashedly. There’s also a lot of Scott’s penchant for framing establishing scenes with wide shots of establishing settings.

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