MoVTie Critic

Hallmark Movies and Mysteries channel continues their summer mystery event before heading into the four part Garage Sale Mysteries in August. Aurora Teagarden is back with her newest mystery that hits close to home. Candace Cameron Bure reprises her role as the librarian/inquisitive sleuth Aurora Teagarden. Who finds herself in search of her cousin Phillip who has disappeared along with his friend Josh after they were suppose to meet her and her mom Aida (Marilu Henner) for a birthday dinner celebration. When they go to look for him, they find that Josh's girlfriend Tammy dead in the street and no sign of the boys. As Aurora tries to find her cousin, the clues begin to piece together leading Aurora and company to believe that the boys did not leave on their own and that their lives may be in grave danger. A pulse-racing story with more twist than a winding road. Aurora Teagarden Mysteries continue their reign of complex enigmas that result in surprising and life or death su...

Alien movies have been growing in popularity and no longer consider something only nerds are into. With shows like Star Trek and movies like Independence Day and the Star Wars franchise making aliens the thing to watch, we find ourselves looking up towards the universe and thinking that we might not be alone. Yet we also wonder, what would happen if our worlds collided? For the last thirty years Wyatt (Tim O'Leary) has protected the last survivors of an alien race that came to Earth since he was a boy. Now sheriff of the small town, he keeps their whereabouts secret in order to protect them and the people of the town, even from his new deputy Lucas (Chad Crenshaw) Yet when he finds one of them has killed a young girl, everything changes. The alien race he has given his life to protect are no longer content with hiding in the shadows. As he begins to learn what they're capable of, Wyatt finds that there is a link to them and a teen named Blake (Nathan Varnson) and his new ...

It's no secret that human trafficking is among one of the world's worst problems and one of the most lucrative illegal businesses currently going on. Yet many of us never see the signs when we come across it until it comes after us with its violent, and often deadly force. Brea (Paula Patton) a passionate journalist and John (Omar Epps) a talented mechanic with a knack for restoring cars are your typical young couple in love dreaming of their future lives together. On their way to a quiet romantic weekend in the mountains, they encounter an aggressive biker gang and a strange woman in the bathroom that seems to be hiding a dark secret. Alone in the mountains with their friends Darren (Laz Alonso) and his girlfriend Malia (Roselyn Sanchez) Brea discovers a satellite phone in her bag with encrypted numbers and disturbing photos of women. Before they can do anything, the mysterious woman shows up at their front door and she is not alone. In an instant, they find themselves...

Ever find one of those films that seem to take two top box office ranking films mash them together and see if it sticks? People just love to jump on the band wagon to other's success and see if they can come away with some of their own. Sometimes it works and they get a cult classic and other times they're just trying too hard. This latest film seems to take "The Hunger Games" and the "Jurassic Park" franchises and roll them into one with a hint of "Gamer" thrown in to make it interesting. In a near future, the yearly Jurassic Games is a worldwide television event where ten death row inmates compete for the chance to have their records wiped clean and walk out free in a virtual reality game where they try to survive dinosaurs, and each other as the world watches. One of these inmates Tucker (Adam Hampton) has been wrongly convicted of brutally killing his wife and is using the games for the chance to see his family again, but others don't ...

As I've mentioned in previous post, Hallmark Movies and Mysteries Channel has some of the best mystery movies that captivates audiences and brings out the sleuth in you. The Signed, Sealed, Delivered series is no exception and one of the longest running with multiple films featuring four great characters that do whatever it takes to make sure their letters get delivered. In this chapter, we find Rita (Crystal Lowe) and Norman (Geoff Gustafson) are days away from walking down the aisle and Shane (Kristin Booth) and Oliver's (Eric Mabius) relationship becoming more serious. When Shane tries on a wedding dress in an undelivered package that is going up for auction, she discovers a hidden pocket with a letter from a mother to her daughter who seems to have a secretive life. Taking on the last minute challenge The Postables set out to track down the owner of the dress using only the few clues the dress, letter and package can provide leading them on an unlikely journey to reu...

Some days it seems like anyone can make a movie. Whether that film turns out to be captivating or just plain over the top is all up to our perception as well as those who create it. The Sharknado movies are a fine example of being over the top, yet still having a loyal cult following and getting big names to come on board despite these never going to be in the running for an Oscar. One thing I believe in as a movie critic is to each is own and that a film is a work of art that not everyone is going to appreciate, good or bad and Party Bus to Hell is an excellent example in this case. In the opening, we find the character of Darby (Tara Reid) running through the desert having escaped from something horrific and demonic that proves to harm anyone that it comes across. Meanwhile in Las Vegas, Lara (Stefani Blake), a young woman making her way from town to town takes the offer for a free ride on a luxury bus to Burning Man along with other individuals looking for a weekend of sex, d...

Welcome to another "Movie Verses" where here at MoVTie Critic two films with similar themes go head to head to see who will come away with the top rating on the Green Mountain Stars scale. I was fortunate enough to come across a double feature at Redbox recently and saw this as the perfect opportunity. So without further to do, let's get started. Up first is "Turtle Tale" which you would think would center around turtles and their adventures. Yes there are talking turtles, but they play a minor role around the story happening around them. Calvin (Noah Schnacky) is a fifteen year old with aspiring dreams of becoming a professional skater, but his life takes a dramatic turn after he learns one of his friends cheated for him in a skate off without his knowledge which causes him to lash out in anger and break the car window belonging to the parents of young Kyle (Isaiah McCaffrey) who recently moved to Florida with his family. Sentenced to community service at ...

Ghost stories have terrified and fascinated people for centuries. The famous hitchhiking ghost story can be traced back to the time of horses pulling wagons on lonely dirt roads. Children spirits are especially popular because they died so young and innocent, but when malevolent forces have a hand in the haunting, youth and innocence soon turn to terror. Albert and Rose Poe (Reid Doyle and Cari Moskow) have been morning the loss of their daughters Addie and Jade (Arielle Breslerman and Ariana Baron) who died on their birthday a year ago. They bought the house they live in seven years ago with the promise from real estate agent Fred (Donny Boaz) that it was the perfect place to raise a child or two. Now they see it as painful memories, but on the anniversary of their death Rose begins to hear the voices of her daughters and begins behaving oddly as if they were still there. It starts to become clear to Albert along with the advice from Dr. Connor (Devin McGee) that this house is ...

From Romeo and Juliet to The Twilight Saga, young romances that struggle over obstacles have captured our attention long before the age of cinema. Mythical creature romances in particular whether they're witches, vampires, fairies or even sea creatures have taken on a great popularity in recent years and have influenced many artist and authors to create their own work. "Sea Change" being one of the latest books turned movie to join the club. Miranda (Emily Rudd) has recently moved in with her estranged mother who left when she was very young following the death of her father. She soon learns that the community is divided by the high and mighty wealthy and the looked down upon working class, one in particular Leo (Skylar Maxon) catches her eye that doesn't sit well with some of her wealthy new friends like TJ (Keenan Tracey) who also has interest in her. Along with learning about her new home she comes to learn of a legend of half-man, half-sea creature known to...

Many of us have our idols growing up. Singers we strive to be like, athletes that we aspire to be just as great one day. Many of those hopeful dreams start out when we're very young and if we're lucky to make it big, we look back on fondly and pass the inspiration along to those young dreamers. Yet many of them don't appear to us by magic, unless you're like the girl in this story. Reagan Wills (Siena Agudong) is a young pre-teen dreamer aspiring to be the next great soccer player like her idol Alex Morgan (playing herself) that she has a life-size poster of in her room. Yet after losing her spot on the top ranking team in town that her rival Claire (Jessica Treska) gets to play on and having to deal with her parents Joe and Anne (Jim Klock and Chuti Tiu) focusing more on her older brother Logan's (Matt Cornett) college recruiters for a potential football scholarship leaving them little time to notice her soccer efforts. In a moment of doubt, Reagan hits her ...

We've heard their names in bible school, but never were told their stories as to how they lived. Paul is among those many names we've heard in church but know very little about, until now. Once known as Saul and for his persecution of Christians, Paul (James Faulkner) saw God's light and converted to Christianity spreading the word of God in a time where the Roman Empire reigned supreme. Now an old man, Paul has been imprisoned for his preaching and sentenced to death by Emperor Nero because of his potential threat to the empire. As he awaits his execution, Christians hide in fear for being killed for their beliefs and look for a way to leave Rome to avoid persecution that has been witnessed by so many. Until then, Luke (Jim Caviezel) visits Paul in prison to write down the Acts of the Apostles that the church will come to follow as Paul's last words which catches the interest of prison prefect Maritius Gallas (Oliver Martinez) who is curious as to how one man ca...

Whether its Annabelle (the real one or the one from the movies) or crazed possessed serial killer doll Chucky, horror fans have been fascinated by the innocence of the childhood toy and the possibility that they can show a dark sinister side. Mandy is the newest to join that category and she's far from a simple play thing. Amber Ross (Phoebe Torrance) has just been released from prison and wishes to make a fresh start with her life, but when her sister Carly (Amy Burrows) and her boyfriend Neil (Manny Jai Montana) talk her back in to the life of burglary and have a job where she will pose as a baby sitter for a woman's daughter Mandy in an attempt to case the place, she reluctantly agrees hoping it will be last score they will need. After being given a list of strange instructions such as not to let Mandy cry or go up into the attic and left in charge without ever seeing Mandy, Amber tries to take on the job responsibly in the hope they can just get what they came for an...

Happy 4th of July everybody! Sorry its been a while. We all get busy during the summer with so much to do and so many movies to look forward to. One in particular I've spent the last 14 years looking forward to seeing if it would ever come out since its original film. You know them, you love them Pixar's Incredibles. Picking up immediately where the original leaves off the Parr family Bob/Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson, Helen/Elastigirl (Helen Hunt) Violet (Sarah Vowell) Dash (Huckleberry Milner) and Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile) find themselves living in a hotel since their house was destroyed and in trouble with the law for saving the city from The Underminer (John Ratzenberger). Feeling lost with no government assistance and an uncertain future, Lucius/Frozone comes to them telling them that he's been approached by billionaire Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk) and wants to meet with them. Learning from Winston and his tech-savvy sister Evelyn Deavor (Catherine Keener) that ...