2 Best Movies to Watch by Niccolò Senni

When a plot is centered around women learning about self-respect, it’s usually a cliche, but it can be a fun and harmless story that we can enjoy, if it has enough heart. Still Fabulous has this general plotline, with a raunchy twist in the form of a porn star guardian angel, but the way the film plays out just misses the mark. There are fun moments, but Maddalena doesn’t do the work to find the things about herself that she actually likes about herself, possibly because the film isn’t as interested in her as it is with Valentina Nappi. Instead, even when the message is to love and appreciate one’s body, they have a body double for the stunning Diana del Bufalo, and even when it’s pointed out to her how she depends on external validation, the film ends with a relationship to validate Maddalena. Pensati Sexy sabotages itself the same way Maddalena does.

Genre: Comedy

Actor: Alessandro Tiberi, Andrea Dianetti, Angela Finocchiaro, Camilla Filippi, Diana Del Bufalo, Esther Elisha, Fabrizio Colica, Jenny De Nucci, Niccolò Senni, Raoul Bova, Valentina Nappi

Director: Michela Andreozzi

While at first it seems like this third installment in Antoine Fuqua's series of Denzel Washington star vehicles is setting itself up to be a more serious and thoughtful story of personal absolution, it gradually becomes clear that The Equalizer 3 has no story to tell. Very, very little happens in this movie, and all the time we spend with Washington (still somehow compelling, even when he's on autopilot) drinking tea and chatting with locals doesn't lead to any character relationships worth caring for. Fuqua and screenwriter Richard Wenk seem to want to create a sense of familiarity with this Italian town, through which we should ideally see the things Robert McCall grows to value in his violent life. But even the prettiest landscapes (shot by Robert Richardson) can't make up for how empty and misjudged the writing is.

There are approximately two short action scenes in The Equalizer 3, neither of which has the clockwork precision of the fights in the first film, or the environmental inventiveness of the climax of the second film. And while an action movie can aspire to something beyond its action, the fact that this installment has abandoned it completely is a genuinely perplexing choice.

Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller

Actor: Adolfo Margiotta, Agostino Chiummariello, Andrea Dodero, Andrea Scarduzio, Arcangelo Iannace, Beatrice Aiello, Bruno Bilotta, Dakota Fanning, Daniele Ornatelli, Daniele Perrone, Danilo Capuzi, David Denman, Dea Lanzaro, Denzel Washington, Diego Riace, Eugenio Mastrandrea, Gaia Scodellaro, Gianluigi Scilla, Giovanni Scotti, Lucia Zotti, Luigi Catani, Marco Giuliani, Mariarosaria Mingione, Marta Zoffoli, Mauro Cremonini, Melissa Leo, Niccolò Senni, Remo Girone, Salvatore Ruocco, Simona Distefano, Sonia Ammar, Valerio Da Silva

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Rating: R