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Comparisons between Chernobyl 1986 (aka Chernobyl: Abyss) and HBO's landmark miniseries are inevitable. However, that's like weighing loaded hot fudge sundae against a vanilla cone.

Those who saw Chernobyl - the definitive depiction of the disaster and its aftermath - might recall the episode where several rescue workers volunteer for what's essentially a suicide mission: To venture below the nuclear plant's reactor and open the water valves before the exposed core hits it, which would render most of Russia radioactive.

Chernobyl 1986 (aka Chernobyl: Abyss) is a fictionalized retelling of that mission, which in and of itself ain't a bad idea for a feature film, especially since this one is actually a Russian production. A film about history's worst nuclear disaster, told by those whose own backyard came within a hair's breadth of being a wasteland? That's an interesting prospect.

The movie, however, is dull, laborious and criminally overlong. The entire first act is focused on rescue worker Alexey (Danila Kozlovsky, who also directed) trying to rekindle a relationship with former girlfriend Olga (Oksana Akinshina), who gave birth to their son 10 years earlier. Alexey comes across as a self-absorbed douchebag and we're given no reason to care whether or not Olga takes him back. Unfortunately, he's the main protagonist.

Interest level briefly picks up when - finally! - disaster strikes. The initial Chernobyl explosion and the immediate response by Alexey's team is gripping and intense. Afterwards, however, the narrative keeps dropping the ball by repeatedly returning to Alexey's interactions with Olga. It also turns out his son is mostly just a plot device to goad Alexey into action. He and a team of marginally fleshed-out characters eventually venture below to try and release the water valves...more than once.

Since the outcome of the operation is a foregone conclusion, one would naturally expect to become invested in who lives or dies. However, Alexey's the only character given much background, meaning the rest are little more than fallout fodder. And unlike the miniseries, the film self-consciously steers clear of any incendiary particulars surrounding the disaster. So while the climactic operation is well-staged, it's seldom very involving.

HBO managed to depict this chapter of the Chernobyl saga in a fraction of the time and never relied on manufactured melodrama to pad things out. Chernobyl 1986 tells a watered-down version of the same story, adding nothing new or revelatory - not even interesting characters - which makes its existence is sort-of superfluous. And why settle for a simple vanilla cone when a scrumptious sundae is available?

The smartest move DC ever made was to quit concerning themselves with cinematic world building and focus on making (mostly) standalone films that were simply entertaining...and didn't require a master's degree in Snydernomics to appreciate.

Their second smartest move was nabbing James Gunn for The Suicide Squad, and not just because the first film was terrible. Material like this needs Gunn's flair for irreverence, clever dialogue and, most importantly, instilling characters with engaging personalities. He may not have created Suicide Squad, but this adaptation has his stamp all over it.

And for the first time since his directorial debut, Slither, Gunn is unbound by the restrictions of a PG-13 rating, something else the material really needed. Hence, the film is vivid, violent and vulgar, yet at the same time, seldom feels pandering or gratuitous. Punctuated by gobs of gags and hilarious dialogue, the movie earns its dismemberments and f-bombs along the way. In fact, the whole thing plays very much like Guardians of the Galaxy without a filter.

And like Guardians, it's ultimately the characters that matter. Ironically, the one we're most familiar with - Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) - is the least interesting, perhaps because she's already been established with two previous films and there isn't much more Gunn could do with her. But everyone else is wonderfully realized and played perfectly by the ensemble cast. As Bloodsport, the de-facto leader of this new team, Idris Elba strikes the right balance of stoicism and uncertainty, while John Cena (as Peacemaker) once-again demonstrates he's more adept at comedy than pure action. Polka-Dot Man (David Dastmaichian) and Ratcatcher 2 (Daniela Melchior) are also fun, each with amusing backstories. But King Shark steals every scene he's in, a perpetually hungry manfish who manages to be both monstrous and endearing (and a role Sylvester Stallone was born to play).

With the exception of Task Force X director Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), the antagonists are perfunctory. Their plan, however, is gloriously insane; the dictator of Corto Maltese plans to wipe out America using a 30-year-old experiment gone wrong: Starro, a giant extraterrestrial starfish that spawns face-hugging offspring to re-animate & control the dead. This leads to a final act that's as hilarious as it is grotesque, aided by amusing visual effects.

Unlike the first film - which was mostly just bells & whistles - The Suicide Squad is the complete package, delivering an abundance of action, humor, violence and well-realized characters. James Gunn's playful approach is just what was needed, making it the best - and maybe the smartest - DC film since Christopher Nolan hung up his spurs.

If nothing else, Reminiscence looks incredible. Taking place in the near future, climate change has flooded coastal cities and the days are so sweltering that everyone's forced to live more-or-less nocturnally. In addition to the obvious film noir aesthetics, this future dystopia is a triumph of production design, which is as visually impressive as the significantly more lauded Dune.

But depicting Miami as a waterlogged urban jungle has little to do with the actual story. Hugh Jackman plays Nick Bannister, a war veteran who makes a living with a machine that allows people to relive their memories. He becomes romantically involved with new client Mae (Rebecca Ferguson), a sultry lounge singer who mysteriously disappears a few months later.

To the chagrin of his beleaguered assistant, Watts (Thandiwe Newton), Nick becomes obsessed with finding Mae, repeatedly using the machine to search for clues to her whereabouts. Meanwhile, the police enlist his help to interrogate a suspect with connections to a New Orleans kingpin who deals a designer drug called Baca. When Mae shows up in one of those memories, Nick realizes she's not the woman he thought she was. Mae might also be connected to the murder of one of his other clients, a young woman who was having an affair - and had a son with - the city's most powerful land baron.

There's actually a lot more plot than a film like this really needs, compounded by too many antagonists, some who arrive pretty late in the film. Interest level rises and wanes with all the numerous story twists - some surprising, some not - but the film noir elements are wonderful. In addition to a dark, neon-lit atmosphere and narration straight out of a pulp novel, Jackman is effective as the cynical, streetwise protagonist who gets in over his head, while Ferguson makes a fetching femme fatale. But Newton gives the most earnest performance, serving as Nick's moral compass.

So while the narrative isn't always compelling, the special effects, production design and homages to classic film noir hold our attention. Perhaps that's not enough to warrant repeated viewings, but it's certainly worth checking-out at least once. Reminiscence kind of came-and-went with little attention when first released, but here's hoping it'll be remembered come Oscar time, since its technical aspects deserve a few nods.