Puss in Boots (2011)

Antonia Banderas as Puss in Boots was the best gag in the latter “Shrek” films, boring affairs that smelled of hastened scripts and all eyes on boosted 4Qs at Dreamworks. Luckily, the stand-alone film of “Puss in Boots” – the Latin Lover kitty stars, with no ogres or talking donkeys about – stands on his own four legs despite the studio curse of all jokes and flimsy story. Puss teams with Humpty Dumpty to score the golden goose from “Jack and the Beanstalk” fame. Salma Hayek voices a femme fatale, and Billy Bob Thornton and Amy Sedaris play a redneck Jack and Jill. A flashback is dull, Jack and Jill are after-thoughts, and Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis) is a shell, but the writers clearly love cats, and they pitch gags galore as Puss breaks his cool to chase a light or give himself a bath at the most dramatic moment. The “camera” has fun as we weave around this CGI world, over a bridge, and later up a beanstalk. Cat nip for feline lovers. B-

Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever (2002)

“Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever” contains massive explosions, each bigger than the last, and insane car crashes where the hero is thrown 50 feet across and is only bruised upon hitting pavement. It’s over-the-top to the point of hilarious irony. And, it’s all utterly boring and cheap looking, with an ugly script, too. The entire thing is an absolute misfire. Even the title isn’t even accurate. Yes, Ecks (a disillusioned FBI agent played by an equally sour Antonio Banderas) battles Sever (a super Chinese assassin played by Lucy Liu) for 20 minutes, but then they join forces against a rogue U.S. agent (Gregg Henry) who meets with his minions at deserted city parks at night. Not for sex, but to kill them. The setting is Vancouver, but American law enforcement endlessly run amok. Was Canada annexed? Liu – so wicked in “Kill Bill” - can’t carry her inept role, which inexplicably turns sympathetic after she kills 30-plus police men. The director’s is named “Kaos.” The movie is dull. D-