Arts & Entertainment

Movie Reviews: 'Red 2', 'The Conjuring', 'Grown Ups 2' and More

Movie reviews and movie times for theaters in the Ankeny area, including "Pacific Rim" and "Turbo". Let Patch help you decide what you're going to see this weekend.

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Movie information aggregated from moviefone.com

Red 2

"The best thing about RED 2, like its predecessor, is its lightness of tone. Too many movies with comic-book roots come on too seriously, even when the comics themselves have a loose, fast, jocular wit about them." Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly.

"Not that it isn’t entertaining, but the film's premise is certainly well past its “use by” date, resulting in another passably palatable sequel distinguished by a lack of narrative and stylistic coherence that could potentially underpin a really viable franchise." Justin Lowe, The Hollywood Reporter.

Do you plan on seeing this movie? Leave a review when you get home and tell your neighbors how it was!

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R.I.P.D.
No reviews are available at this time.

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The Conjuring
"Like the wood-grained farmhouse itself — a beautiful piece of production design by Julie Berghoff — The Conjuring has an analog solidity that makes the terror to come almost unbearable." Joshua Rothkopf, Time Out New York. Full Review

"Though The Conjuring claims to be based on a true story, in truth it's based on every horror film that's come before it." Ed Gonzalez, Slant Magazine. Full Review

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Pacific Rim
A massive, lumbering behemoth of a movie, Pacific Rim resurrects the 'kaiju,' or giant monster genre, by returning to its roots in Japanese science fiction. Fun enough during its pounding action scenes, Pacific Rim has less to offer when it comes to story and characters. — Daniel Eagan, Film Journal 

After what seems like years of convoluted megamovies whose pretzel-like twists, turns, and double-crosses confound logic and confuse audiences, it’s incredibly refreshing to watch a film where the setup is simple, the mythology straightforward, and the execution consistently clear. — Todd Gilchrist, The Verge

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Grown Ups 2
“The party’s over, fellas,” says Adam Sandler’s character, Lenny, to his buddies in “Grown Ups 2.” “We’re irrelevant.” And though the box office may disagree, his words aren’t far from the truth. The first “Grown Ups,” in 2010, grossed more than $271 million worldwide; the sequel will probably rival that amount, reaping lavish dividends for Mr. Sandler and his co-stars, many of them his fellow “Saturday Night Live” alumni. Once again Mr. Sandler milks middle age for lucre, nostalgia and clunky, ham-fisted humor. But he has cause for concern." ~ Andy Webster, New York Times

In that sense, “Grown Ups 2” may be the ultimate Adam Sandler film. It ain’t high art, as the running gag with the burpsnarts — better not to ask — deftly illustrates. But for what it is, gosh darn it, it works." Adam Graham, The Detroit News

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The Lone Ranger
"Though the story is mostly faithful to the established origin of the character, it's not until the last 15 minutes, when "The William Tell Overture" arrives in its full glory, that this starts to feel a little like The Lone Ranger. But that's too little, too late. And when The Ranger (played here by Armie Hammer) finally shouts "Hi-yo Silver," the moment is spoiled by turning it into a joke." James Berardinelli, ReelViews. Full Review

"This smart-looking but empty adventure — with a hero that looks more Tom Ford than John Ford — suffers from a shambling script, shifting tones and a surplus of villains. Clunky and drawn out, “Ranger” shoots blanks, even with the star power of Johnny Depp behind it." Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News. Full Review

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Despicable Me 2
"The minions give good mayhem and the twig-armed animation’s lovely. Despite the coolest submarine-car since Bond’s Lotus Esprit, though, Despicable Me 2 is light on gadgets – and surprises, too." Total Film. Full Review

"It falters in the middle and hesitates unnecessarily in setting up the love story, but Gru still has charm and kids will adore the Minions." Helen O'Hara, Empire. Full Review
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The Heat
"A bawdy and belligerent comedy, meant mostly for folks looking for nothing more than to enjoy a few laughs." Jeremy Legel, Film.com

"Give it up for Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy. You’ll never see them work harder at a comedy than in The Heat, a stumbling, aggressively loud and profane cop buddy picture where they struggle to wring “funny” out of a script that isn’t." Roger Moore, Movie Nation.

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Monsters UniversitySpeaking of second chances, Monsters University is exactly the rebound Pixar needed after 2011's "Cars 2" left some wondering if the studio had lost its magic. Entertainment Weekly, Full Review.

It’s easily the most enjoyable animated film so far this year, one that is visually stunning, wickedly subversive, incredibly funny (Day's character is a hoot), and (at times) lump-in-your-throat emotional. Drew Taylor, The Playlist. Full Review
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Any of these spark your interest? Springwood 9 Theaters will be playing all of these flicks.

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