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Reviews
Ford v Ferrari (2019)
The Perfect Lap
FORD v FERRARI
RATING: 4.9/5
Yeah, Ford v Ferrari is definitely my favorite movie of the year. It's been years since i felt like i was watching actual movie stars on the big screen. It was great to have that feeling in the theater again, thanks to Christian Bale and Matt Damon. Same goes for the supporting actors. There were no phoned in performances, everyone showed up to play, even the kid. Not to mention, the 2 1/2 hour run time just flies by, as the film jumps from situation to situation. The story is tight. No subplots, no fat to really trim. This movie knows exactly where it's going and the road it needs to take to get there. No detours, probably because it's based off the true story of when Ford beat the dominant Ferrari at the prestigious 24 hour Le Mans race back in 1966. The movie is actually called "Le Mans '66" in some countries. It's considered the Super Bowl of racing, for many race enthusiasts.
Anyways, the film takes place in the 60s but it feels very modern because they spend all their time either racing or working on cars, giving it almost a timeless quality. I was iffy on the musical score but after watching the movie twice, i noticed the score would get me anxious during the race scenes (4DX is the preferred way to watch this movie). My leg would start shaking and I'd get this feeling that i had to go fast. As someone that likes driving fast, that's pretty impressive, so the score definitely does a great job of immersing you in these races, and not overpowering the scenes. Cinematography is spot on. There's a moment where they're racing at night, in the rain, and it just made me super anxious. If you've ever driven in hard rain before, going 60 mph or more, you should be able to grasp the concept of how dangerous it is going over 150 mph, with other cars trying to pass you. This is a great looking movie.
I'm really struggling to find negative things to say about this movie, so I'm going to address some of the negative things I've heard in reviews I've seen.
- TOO MANY WHITE PEOPLE:
- NO CHARACTER GROWTH:
- CLIMATE CHANGE:
Ultimately, even if someone is not into racing, i think the concepts in the movie are extremely accessible. There are so many themes going through this movie, you're bound to find one that you can get behind. The story of man and machine, creators v. big business, innovation against time, being the best versus being a team player, etc... there's a lot of commentary going on just beneath the surface. The movie is a great snapshot of the American Spirit. It takes place around the time America landed on the moon. Around the time when American exceptionalism was arguably at its height. The Ford GT40 is practically a representation of the American Spirit, America potential. The impossible made real. It's magic, and so is this movie.
SIDE NOTE: Ford decided to go back to Le Mans in 2016, for the 50th anniversary of the Ford GT40 win in 1966, and they won! Like i said, that car, that racing program, is simply magic.
The Lighthouse (2019)
Just a Black Mirror episode
THE LIGHTHOUSE
RATING: 3.2/5
This is kind of a hard movie to rate because it really doesn't play like a movie. The film was released in a 1.19:1 aspect ratio, which i think is the biggest offense the movie makes. It's honestly not meant to be seen in theaters, THE LIGHTHOUSE is a movie that plays as is if it was meant to be seen at home on the small screen. Like really small, we're talking CRT televisions. They say the 1.19:1 is supposed to help with the claustrophobic feel, but i saw the movie BURIED and this didn't get anywhere near that level of claustrophobia, and it was full screen. Granted, Ryan Reynolds spent the entire movie buried in a coffin, but it's hard to feel claustrophobic when your characters are surrounded by ocean on all sides, no matter what aspect ratio you use.
Anyways, Robert Pattinson puts on the performance of a lifetime here and yet somehow manages to get overshadowed by Willem Dafoe. It's really kind of tragic in that way. Willem Dafoe just has too much charisma for Robert Pattinson to match, but he tries his hardest even though he comes up short. It doesn't help that the movie is filled with piss and fart moments for him to react to, or were they jokes? I'm not sure what it was supposed to be, but i didn't find it funny and it honestly undercut some scenes and Robert Pattinson's performance.
By the time you get to the end, the black and white theme, the madness storyline, having only two leads, being stuck in one location it, it all feels like one big cheat to keep things super cheap and under budget. Upon doing some research, it turns out the budget was around 4 million, and it really shows by the end. There is a moment in the 3rd Act where the film has the potential to venture into cinematic territory, but it stops itself and stays in "Made for TV" land. The Lighthouse is definitely not a movie worth watching in the theater, because again, it plays as if it's meant to be watched at home. I walked out of the theater not thinking about the performances that i saw. Instead, i left with this nagging feeling that I just paid over ten dollars to watch a classic episode of the Twilight Zone on the big screen. In the end, this really should have just been an episode of Black Mirror, or been simply tossed up on Netflix.
Gisaengchung (2019)
Unexpected
PARASITE
RATING: 4.7/5
Heard a lot about this movie, so i finally decided to check it out. The name implies a possible horror movie, hell, even the main poster feels horror-ish. In reality, it turns out to be a twisted dark comedy that comments on the disparities between rich and poor families, and even how the gap between them keeps widening.
You're following this dirt poor family who struggles to just get by. However, there's no doubt that they all love and support each other. Miraculously, the son gets a job tutoring English for this rich family's daughter, despite not really having the qualifications. At this point, the son starts scheming up ways to get his family involved in taking advantage of this rich family, and hilarity ensues.
The first half of the movie is a straight up comedy as this poor family takes advantage of the rich family, that clearly doesn't know any better. My theater was laughing up a storm, regardless of the subtitles. Reviewers, and the director, keep saying that a twist happens in the 2nd Half, which should be kept secret. However, i thought it was just par for the course, and was not surprised at all when the supposed twist happened. As you enter the 3rd Act, things start getting kinda serious and questions start being raised about who's in the right. You have a rich family that's out of touch with the world around them. On the other side, you have a poor family doing whatever it takes to survive. There's even a small discussion about how easy it is to be nice when you have tons of money.
This movie has layers upon layers in what it says about the rich and the poor. Where Joker held up a mirror to society and said "You are to blame for what happens," Parasite presents the good and bad between the families and kind of asks the audience, "Who's worse?" Yes, the rich family has it easy and seems to have it all together, but they fake almost everything about their life and are borderline disconnected from each other, and society, while even looking down on others, and not realizing it. The poor family is tight knit, but you start to wonder if they keep each other down because of how close they are. Even when the idea is presented that the brightest family member could easily transition into the rich lifestyle, the movie makes you ask if they should, as that world has a tendency to chew people up and spit them out. There's even a moment where someone in the poor family tries to make an emotional connection with the rich family, after going through a traumatic life changing experience, only to be reminded that they're nothing more than a lowly employee.
Honestly, this movie is great. It can be interpreted in so many different ways, and you wouldn't really be wrong, no matter what you took from the movie. This is a high recommend from me. If you hate subtitles, suck it up because this is a movie that's definitely worth watching.
Rambo: Last Blood (2019)
Just an aging soldier
RAMBO: LAST BLOOD
RATING: 2.9/5
You'll be glad to know that there's no sign of Rambo chanting, "Build that wall" in this movie. LOL This is definitely not a pro MAGA movie the way some critics would have you believe. People seem to forget that Rambo has killed people all around the world. He's an equal opportunity killer. There's nothing racist about taking out a bunch of Mexicans that deal in human trafficking and prostitution. I mean, the cartel have been generic bad guys in film for decades. People acting all shocked and offended almost speaks to their ignorance of bad guys in film and Rambo movies in general. I don't know what else to tell you. At most, i guess you could get offended that some of the people in Mexico dress like those HOMIES toys they used to sell in the 90s. 🤣
Anyways, storywise, this isn't the best Rambo movie. After the last film, he's pretty much settled down on a farm, living with a Mexican niece and her Gramma. Things are pretty slow until the niece decides to go see her absentee father across the border before she finally takes off for college. Rambo and the gramma warn her against it but she goes anyways and winds up getting kidnapped. Once Rambo gets the call that she's been kidnapped, it's time to jump into action and save her.
Once in Mexico, it's all pretty generic and by the numbers. There's some story elements that are introduced, like a Mexican journalist, that never really goes anywhere. She only serves to keep the story moving forward and doesn't have any kind of real story arc. I thought she was wasted. You see the police that seem to just stand by and let the bad guys do what they want, implying that they're on the take, but it's never explored. It's weird how many elements don't get fleshed out considering how much exposition the movie feeds you gearing up for the big action sequence in the last 20 minutes of the film. It literally turns into the movie HOME ALONE but with Rambo, and it gets pretty gruesome.
Rambo: Last Blood is really just for diehard fans of the character. They know what they're there to see and so does Stallone... kinda. Weird thing is, with a few tweaks to the script here and there, they could have had something with a little more meaning. As is, it's fine. Average at best and that's mainly because the final action sequence drags it into average territory, but i have a feeling that's all some fans need. If they do make a sequel, hopefully they'll put some real thought into it and give Rambo a more proper sendoff.
Vuelven (2017)
Modern day Monkey's Paw
TIGERS ARE NOT AFRAID
RATING: 3.6/5
So right off the bat, let me say that this movie is definitely not like Guillermo Del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth. Yeah, there's kids, the movie is in Spanish, and there's a supernatural element, but that's where the similarities pretty much stop. If anything, this is a modern day adaptation of The Monkeys Paw more than anything else.
This movie pretty much lives and dies depending on whether you like these homeless kids, because the special effects just aren't enough to really keep your interest since they're used so sparingly. That being said, the kids aren't bad. They're homeless because their families have been either murdered or kidnapped by the cartel, and they have no one else but each other. They have a camaraderie that carries them through the life they endure, which mainly entails scavenging and avoiding being kidnapped by the cartel. The main character joins these kids because her mom ends up missing one day, after she gets home from school and she doesn't know where else to turn. You'd think she'd tell her school teacher but instead, she turns to the homeless kids she sees in the neighborhood, and the story kicks into gear from there.
If i had to say anything bad about the film, it's that i don't think the lead actress is as strong as the supporting cast, nor as interesting. The boys kinda run circles around her as having more depth and charisma. Outside the monkey's paw she carries, which is 3 pieces of chalk for 3 wishes here, she doesn't really offer much else as a character. Her first wish opens her up to small supernatural omens which she can't make sense of until the end. It's a little predictable in that way, but then the kids get into legitimate danger with the cartel, adding a new element that stops things from getting too predictable. Oh, and occasionally the English subtitles wouldn't quite capture what was really said in Spanish, so some jokes didn't translate over, but the gist of it was there.
Overall, the film's okay. Nowhere near the level of Pan's Labyrinth, but still enjoyable for what it is. You definitely don't have to rush to see this, but if one day you find yourself with some free time on your hands, i don't think it's a movie you'd regret watching.
Bitch (2017)
Definitely different
BITCH (2017)
RATING: 3.4/5
The Netflix summary for this movie is pretty misleading, even though it's not exactly wrong. It's listed as a Dark Comedy, but the description sounds like a cheesy horror movie, and somehow the movie manages to be neither. Even the title ends up not being the main focus of the film, even though it's kind of the inciting incident for the whole thing. Who woulda thought a movie called "Bitch" would be about a guy learning how to be a better husband and father, once he realizes how much he took his wife for granted.
This is a tricky movie to categorize, the whole premise sounds kinda goofy but the film plays it all pretty straight. There are very few funny lines and situations, because the movie isn't trying to be a comedy. You have a mom who gets so overwhelmed by what her life has become, raising 4 kids, married to a cheating husband, who's never home, that she tries to commit suicide and fails. Not really a spoiler, its like the opening scene. Following that, she mentally shuts down and starts acting like a dog. The rest of the movie is the family and relatives trying to find a way to deal with/help the mom, with a primary focus on the husband and what a self centered person he is.
It's a peculiar movie, but i found it to be a breath of fresh air, considering all the sameness we get in movies these days. It won't knock your socks off, but if you like indie -ish films, you may find this entertaining to watch, if you have some free time.
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
There was a Ragnarok?
THOR: RAGNAROK
RATING: 3.7/5
The first action scene, is something I'd been waiting to see for years now, Thor literally swinging his hammer around like a badass in fights. It was perfect, and felt right out of the comics. Loki is as Loki does, so not much to say there. Jeff Goldblum was Jeff Goldblum as the Grand Master, so take it or leave it. Valkyrie was good but she left something to be desired IMO. With the backstory they gave her, and how it tied into the overall story, it felt like a missed opportunity for that character.
Seeing Doctor Strange's cameo was fantastic, i loved everything about it because you could see that he had gotten a lot better at using magic, compared to his own movie where he was struggling. Hulk was good and I wish we had gotten more information about him and how he's been, but alas it's not his movie. Visually the movie is fantastic, it's a Marvel Studios movie, so you know the production value is gonna be there. The score is pretty forgettable, as usual, but the trade off is that they use Led Zepplin's "Immigrant song" from the trailers.
I guess my main gripe would be that the movie has the word RAGNAROK, in the title, but it never feels like it. Everything is so lighthearted and jovial, that even when serious scenes happen, they don't resonate long, if at all. The film moves so fast, that it ends up becoming emotionally unbalanced. Any time the movie tries to be emotional, the scenes either fall flat or are undercut by a joke. Almost every time Anthony Hopkins was on screen, it got on my nerves because he felt so out of place visually with the rest of the movie, if he didn't wanna dress up, he shoulda just stayed home. If he wasn't so important to the story, I'd say the movie would have been better off without him. Cate Blanchet looks incredible as Hela, and she's a villain you really want to like, with kind of a tragic backstory, but she's almost completely wasted as a villain here. The revelations about her origins and the significance they hold for all of Asgard, are practically buried under a mountain of jokes and pretty visuals. It was a little frustrating to see so many great story pieces on the board, and then slowly realize that they were going to waste every single one of those opportunities.
Ultimately, this movie had a lot of good to great ideas going on, that it chose not to use to their full potential. That being said, Thor honestly feels reinvigorated as a character here, and the movie feels like the start of a new beginning for the franchise. If any Marvel character deserves a 4th movie, I'd have to say, it probably should be Thor. In the end, THOR RAGNAROK is a fun and colorful, but pretty flawed, popcorn movie, that chose to be funny, instead of epic... still, i am definitely interested to see what the future holds for Thor. :D
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012)
It's fine.
SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD
RATING: 3.5/5
I swear, Keira Knightley never ages; nice to see her out of period piece movies for a bit though. This was kind of a smaller movie despite an extinction level event being on the horizon. Its really a movie about, i guess, making peace with dying, forgiveness, getting over past regrets, and living in the now. It's a nice little movie, no crazy, goofy Steve Carrell here either, thank goodness. He can be a good, serious actor when he's given the right roles. The jokes are on the subtle side and that's a good thing given the subject matter. And I think the final message about love and the fear of dying alone, succeeds in the context of this movie. I mean, it's not great but it's likable ^_^
The Nightingale (2018)
Misery, misery, misery.
THE NIGHTINGALE
RATING: 4.5/5
The Nightingale is a movie i heard about because someone saw it at a film festival and said they were carded to see the film. Apparently, since movies aren't rated at festivals, being carded for this one movie was out of the ordinary. After watching it, i can definitely see how this would trigger people and make them uncomfortable.
Heres a heads up on the main triggers, minor SPOILERS ahead. The movie starts off with a rape about 5 to 10 minutes into it. While you're watching, you think this is the inciting incident, and that it's there for nothing more than shock value. Then, about 20 to 30 minutes in, you get another rape scene, along with some other heinous actions, that officially kick off this revenge journey. Then, about halfway through the film, another rape happens, and you realize this is just the world these characters inhabit. The villains deserve a lot of credit for really selling how terrible and scummy these English soldiers really are. By the end, i couldn't wait for the bad guys to get theirs. However, by the way the movie plays out, and the world the characters inhabit, you start getting this feeling that justice may not exist in this reality and the bad guys might get away with everything they've done. It's a feeling i don't get in many movies or TV shows these days. Beware, there's also racism in this film but it's just very matter of fact as opposed to, in your face trying to preach to you about racism. It's insinuated that the Irish are also second class citizens but it's hard to tell because many are ex-convicts, which also makes them less than human, but still above the Blacks, of course.
The Nightingale is a long movie, 2hrs 16 min. A lot does happen in it though. Parallel to the main character's story of revenge, you also have her guide, a Black, aboriginal, man named Billy, who has been taught the ways of the English, but is still considered sub human. Oh, did i mention the protagonist is an Irish, ex-con, who is also considered sub human. They both start off with this hate and distrust of one another, purely based off the race and stereotypes that I'd assume existed in that time period. Seeing their relationship grow from a necessary business transaction to a shared pain and deep understanding of everything the English has taken from them both, it works really well here. If I had to say anything bad about the film, it's the nightmares the main character has. One may have been fine, but she has about three, I believe, and they just really overstay their welcome. The film is so straightforward and serious that the dream sequences just feel out of place and un-needed. I think the movie would have been leaner and meaner without them.
The film takes place in 1825, so they're all playing by a way different set of rules than we do today. There's a lot of unfairness and cruelty if you're not a white man, but if you're not the right kind of white man, that comes with its own set of issues too. If you don't have the right profession, that can also count against you. There's just a lot of pain and suffering to go around in this film, so you need to be ready for it. With all that being said, there's a shared beauty in these two different cultures reaching this mutual level of understanding over each other's plight. The revenge which they seek takes their relationship into a special place not known by many in their time period. The last shot of the film is even imbued with a painterly quality, as their journey finally comes to its conclusion. It shows how far apart they both are culturally, but yet are still able to share in this one quiet moment of beauty together. This is definitely a recommend from me, but like i said before, be prepared for what you're getting into.
Wonder Woman (2017)
Tripped at the finish line
WONDER WOMAN
RATING: 3.4/5
Well i have to say, Gal Gadot really owned the role of Wonder Woman. She did a great job and i think the character is totally safe in her capable hands. This movie had a really solid, arguably great, start. Finding out about the Amazons and their warrior origins, was super interesting to me. The 2nd Act, shifting over to the World War 1 stuff, was pretty good and i actually wish they did more with that, but somewhere along the way, you could just feel the suits in Hollywood get involved. The 3rd Act literally devolved into nothing but excessively bad CGI and explosions. It was kind of sad to see because the movie was on its way to being great before getting totally derailed.
The quiet moments in this movie, where the characters were allowed to just breathe and be themselves, is where this movie shined IMO. Chris Pine did a solid job as Steve Trevor, definitely well cast, you could feel both characters struggle trying to work with and understand each other, coming from different worlds. The villains weren't built up very well, and that normally wouldn't be that big a deal, except the way they were used at the end, meant that they needed to be fleshed out more for it to really resonate with the audience the way it was supposed to.
The movie is by no means bad, it's just painfully okay, you could even argue good and that would be totally fine, but the fact that it was headed toward being great, is what's really getting under my skin here. I feel like this movie was just outright robbed of how great it could have been, and that's a crying shame... guess i can find solace in owning the animated Wonder Woman blu ray, that one's pretty great ^_^
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Way better than expected
Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse
RATING: 4.4/5
This movie puts the last 10 years of Disney animated features to absolute shame. It's crazy how overly stylized this movie is, it really just oozes creativity. The offbeat frame rate is a stylistic choice that really helps sell the fact that you're watching a comic book movie, and it doesn't take long to get used to it either IMO. I saw it in IMAX 3D and at first I thought there was something wrong with the film quality but it turns out it's actually all colored like a classic comic, dots and everything.
The movie does move kinda fast but it does take the time to explain all the different Spider-Man characters you're seeing. Interestingly enough, it brings up how long each different Spider-Man character has been doing the superhero thing too. By doing that, you get to see the difference between a character who just got their powers and doesn't know how to use them, versus one who's been doing it for years, or decades, and is a veteran who's seen it all. It's a great contrast, with my favorite being the older, very jaded, Peter Parker that they show in the trailers. He's been around the block so many times that he knows villain plots by heart, so he's very nonchalant about everything. It's a pretty fresh, and funny, take on the character. The star here is Miles Morales, of course, and I have to say he's handled quite well, even his family.
If I had to say anything negative about the film, it's that not every character gets used to their full potential. There came a point where I just noticed there were a lot of spider people fighting villains that hadn't really been fleshed out at all. The film could have probably used another 10 to 15 minutes just to doll out some basic characterization to some of the villains, and even some of the spider characters. The spiders all have their own personal issues, but the only one that really gets addressed is the older Peter Parker. Something even happens late in the film that is presented in such a way that it implies something significant just happened. However, the ground work is never properly laid for it to mean anything to the audience, so the moment just kind of awkwardly lingers.
Outside those minor complaints, this is definitely a good, you could even argue great, movie that deserves to be seen on the big screen. There's a level of craftsmanship and creativity here that you just don't see in movies in general anymore. The film has a lot of heart, you can tell the creators really cared about what they were making here, and it wasn't just a cash grab. Be warned, you may get hit with some emotional moments in this film, even Stan Lee's cameo was sad, despite it being funny as well. The film has a very positive message about being good and doing good that I think the world needs to hear more of these days. Definitely one of the best films of the year.
Oh yeah, and stay until after the credits. There's a pretty clever Spider-Man joke at the very end.
Aquaman (2018)
At least it's pretty
Aquaman
RATING: 3.2/5
This movie has no business being 2 hours and 22 minutes long for being as dumb as it is. I really don't get how Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse can have more characters and tell a more cohesive story in less than 2 hours, and look way better doing it, while Aquaman trips all over itself. People try to excuse the stupidity of this movie by saying it embraces it's comic book goofiness, except that's a lie. The movie is a mess and it never fully commits to itself. Some characters play it super straight, but their dialogue is so bad that it comes off as generic, over the top, and just dumb.
The movie gives you two villains, Ocean Master and Black Manta. The problem is that they're two of Aquaman's biggest villains and they could each hold their own movies as the main antagonist. Black Manta's intro is something that could have been very powerful and character building for both Aquaman and Black Manta, but the garbage dialogue deflates the entire scene. As the movie continues, Black Manta just fades into the background as Ocean Master takes center stage. However, it makes no sense because Black Manta gets the origin setup and Ocean Master doesn't. Mera and Aquaman have zero chemistry, so when they get this epic kiss, it's practically meaningless. And there's a lot of moments like that where something will be presented as a big deal, visually, but will have piss poor setup and thus have little to no meaning behind it. For example, they literally show you dinosaurs in the background of somewhere they go to, with no explanation whatsoever, and no reaction from the actors. It's just poorly thought out. This is Aquaman's first real venture into this world of Atlantis and the 7 Kingdoms, but you wouldn't know it by the way he acts. This whole movie is really about distraction. They hit you with something shiny and pretty to distract from the fact that the story doesn't add up, and the dialogue is downright stupid most of the time. Character development be damned. Jason Mamoa does his best, but there's only so much he can do with the charisma he has.
As for the positive stuff, the special effects are fantastic. There's one underwater scene that looks really cool, mainly because Wan gets to go all horror movie director with it, and it works to great effect. And then the story starts happening again, and you remember how dumb everything is. Smh.
Atlantis looks gorgeous, better than Wakanda in Black Panther, that's for sure. However, you're not there long enough to get any sense of what Atlantis is, or the people, which Aquaman constantly repeats he has no allegiance to. In fact, they just have Mera beat you over the head with exposition which you can take or leave with her generic acting. The action scenes are solid, nothing super memorable but solid. The big fight between armies at the end is all but forgettable, just a big CGI mess. Not as bad as Wonder Woman's 3rd Act though, Aquaman's still looked gorgeous, but despite the stakes, you just don't really care because you know how everything's gonna turn out. There's no mystery or anything because of how generic and predictable it is.
In the end, yeah it's a gorgeous film but it's story is borderline asinine and it's almost 2 and half hours long, which I will admit, you don't really feel because everything moves so fast. If the movie didn't look as good as it did, and move as fast as it does, this would be an average film, maybe even less. As is, the craftsmanship manages to drag it into above average territory, but just barely... note, this is nowhere near close to the Aquaman in the current comics, but you might have fun with this Aquaman movie, if you don't think about it too much.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
Pleasantly Surprised
JUMANJI: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
RATING: 3.7/5
Well that was a pleasant surprise. Definitely turned out being a lot better than i thought it would. Kevin Hart and The Rock are a good comedy duo, that are probably not going anywhere anytime soon. Jack Black was pretty good, and i actually wish they would have done more with him. Karen Gillen has the potential to be a good comedic actress, if she gets the chance. I remember how good she was on her "Selfie" TV show, so i know she has potential, and it's nice to see it used here to a degree.
For those that don't know, i majored in Game Design, so it was really interesting for me to see how this movie played with video game tropes. They did a pretty solid job, especially for a video game with no tutorial or instruction manual. For people that don't play video games, this is a pretty decent introduction into the medium, and what you can expect from video games. It's even interesting how you see the characters use the games rules to their advantage, it's actually used in a clever way. Being that Jumanji is a video game, you also get a generic video game bad guy, which was fine because he wasn't the point of the movie. The whole point of Jumanji is to beat the game and get home, so the villain is really just a tool for the game to throw at you.
I think what surprised me the most, was the movie's meta narrative choices. It had something to say about your strengths, weaknesses, team work, life. I think the one that hit home the most was the narrative about making the most of the life you have, considering the characters had 3 lives in the game. Yeah, it was semi obvious about it, but it never dwelled on it long enough for you to get annoyed or roll your eyes either. The message really hit home by the time you got to the end of the movie.
I never laughed out loud or anything, but i did get some good laughs here and there, and the overall message was definitely a good one. If you want to have a good time at the movies, this holiday season, Jumanji might be the movie for you.
Logan (2017)
Almost perfect
LOGAN
RATING: 4.5/5
Not gonna lie, i shed a tear at the end. 17 years of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, comes to a close in all its bloody glory. Same goes for Patrick Stewart as the iconic Professor Charles Xavier. There's times in this movie where it looked like a horror movie to me with all the slashing and blood being spilt, which is exactly what a Wolverine movie should always look like. Plus, after all these years I finally felt the rage come through the screen, and i really appreciated that. I noticed i was clenching my fists during all the fights, the blood really adds a whole new dynamic. Kinda sucks that it took the last movie to finally get it right. This really felt nothing like a superhero movie and it's all the better for it. Gonna have to pour one out for Logan.
Damn, i need a hard drink after that. :'(
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Not really Spider-Man
SPIDER-MAN HOMECOMING
RATING: 3.2/5
Okay, so i didn't hate Spider-Man Homecoming, contrary to popular belief, but i went into it with the mentality that all the MCU stuff is probably gonna be good, so I need to focus on the Spider-Man stuff alone. I'm sorry to say, but as a Spider-Man movie, Homecoming fails and it kinda fails hard.
We all knew Michael Keaton was gonna show up to play, so he made for a great villain as The Vulture but everything else was a bust. Outside of Peter's best friend Ned, the high school kids were worthless, in fact the entire high school setting didn't even matter in the end. Marisa Tomei was nothing more than eye candy as Aunt May, totally worthless, the connection was so superficial, it was a joke. Peter's intelligence is dwarfed by the A.I. suit he wears telling him what he should do. That's not Spider-Man.
Honestly, if you took out all the Marvel Studios stuff, Tony Stark, Happy, the Captain America PSAs, the Karen A.I. for the Spider suit, the Avengers, the movie cannot stand on its own as a Spider-Man universe movie. That's where Sam Raimi's Spider-Man movies win in spades and even the Amazing Spider-Man movies to a degree.
Yes, Tobey McGuire and Kristen Dunst may have been cast wrong in the Sam Raimi films, but everything else in that universe was perfect, even the extras. Those movies had real vision. The Amazing Spider-Man movies were worse but as far as the Spider-Man universe went, Sally Field as Aunt May, Emma Stone as Gwen Stacey and Dane Dehann as Green Goblin, that universe was in pretty good hands outside a bad script and mediocre director.
Homecoming didn't bring enough to the table to be a great or even good Spider-Man film, but because of all the Marvel Studios sugar coating, it passes, barely.
Deadpool 2 (2018)
Still pretty good
DEADPOOL 2
RATING: 3.8/5
I think the thing about these Deadpool movies is that you can tell Ryan Reynolds really cares about the character, so you know that he's not gonna phone it in. Honestly, Deadpool feels like this generations "The Mask." Yes, he doesn't have all the crazy magic powers Jim Carrey had, but his inability to die gives him a Looney Tunes quality about him. He literally comes back from every fatal injury imaginable like if he's Wile E. Coyote, which lends itself to some interestingly funny scenes.
I guess my main issues are the CG, and the action choreography. A lot of the CG is just bad, really bad. With all the money they made off the first movie, you'd think they would put in the money to have the CG look great, especially if they're gonna use so much of it compared to the first film. It took me out of the movie every time. A lot of the action feels a little on the generic side and not very creative unless it's played for laughs. It feels like a step back from the first Deadpool. Case in point, Dominos super power is luck, but it's portrayed like a Final Destination movie. The director must not have known that there's been 5 Final Destination films because the scenes here are pretty forgettable by comparison.
Overall I'm left with this feeling of unfulfilled potential with this sequel. The pieces are there for something greater than the first one, and although it may be funnier, story wise it isn't really that great the way things play out. For all the Domino controversy about her being Black, she's really not that big a character, hardly gets any development, and left me feeling pretty "meh" about her in the end. Cable is pretty great but he only gets bare bones development too. Every time he was on screen, i wanted to know more about him, and the future he came from, but they just never really deliver. The kid in the film is whatever, despite all the screen time they give him. Almost every character in the first movie gets relegated to the background this time around, and that just did not sit well with me cause i really liked the first one. Rather than building on the first film, it felt like they semi-scrapped it.
In the end, it comes down to what you find funny and what you'll accept, on whether this sequel is going to be better for you or not. For me, the laughs weren't as good as the first one but that's just my personal taste, and i would never really ding it for that. It came down to the bad CG, uninspired action scenes, and lack of development for everyone else but Deadpool, that kept lowering it's score from "great" and put it in "pretty good" territory. The first Deadpool is a better crafted movie overall, but the sequel is still entertaining, despite all its flaws.
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)
Almost there
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
RATING: 4.3/5
The movie starts off at a good, steady pace, and then escalates little by little as it progresses. You're presented with this mother, who's daughter was raped and murdered, and the case has gone unsolved for months, so you think it's a murder mystery. As the movie goes on, you start to notice that you're following some pretty angry characters that don't know how to deal with the reality that has become of their lives. Yes, the murder is there in the background, but what you're really seeing is how this deep loss and anger affects the lead character and the people around her. Hell, she even drags some people down into her own anger as you watch them try to deal with situations in their own angry ways, and see how it ripples across the small town they're in. Once i realized that, the movie became pretty interesting to me, since their actions became more and more self destructive, and i wanted to see how far they'd take it.
This is very much a character driven piece and there's a lot of great acting going around. I honestly can't think of a single bad performance. There are some black supporting characters in the background, but they're really only there to establish that the town is a little backwards with some racist undertones. There's no KKK and the movie isn't trying to preach to you about race, it's just trying to let you know more about the town itself. They're small scenes and pretty subtle for a movie like this, but i can see how someone might take offense at first by jumping to conclusions.
I went into this movie cold and ended up leaving pleasantly surprised and a little disappointed at the way the whole thing ended. That's really the only negative thing i can say about it without nitpicking. The film ends on this ambiguous, typical indie style movie ending, and you just kinda feel cheated. You've been with these characters, seeing their anger and their actions grow and grow. You think it's all coming to a head, something that was looking to be a really satisfying ending. I was so onboard with what was about to go down and then the movie just ends. I was left sitting there thinking, "Where the hell is my payoff???" That's probably the films biggest mistake that stops it from being a great movie, and leaves it in "really good" territory. That being said, I think it's definitely worth a watch, for the great performances alone, if you get a chance.
Widows (2018)
The real Oceans 8
WIDOWS
RATING: 4.7/5
Saw this on a recommendation and I gotta admit, I was thoroughly impressed. I was a little worried at first because the director came on before the film, which is usually a bad sign these days, but it was pretty solid. Think of it as a better version of "Oceans 8" with the All Women Heist stuff, just a lot more serious with a much better story.
The movie takes a lot of time to establish the characters, where they're at in their lives, and why they have to go through with the heist, once they lose their husbands. In that regard, it can be a little slow but the characters are interesting enough to keep the whole thing moving forward at a good pace. Not to mention, the movie sets up a lot of players, but somehow manages to keep the film feeling personal, due to how much time it spends setting up the protagonists. Despite all the players, the film never feels crowded, no matter how much is going on. The film even occasionally takes a time out to remind you that these women are still grieving, despite everything they're having to plan and set up for the heist. I thought that was a smart thing to show.
When you finally do get to the heist, it moves pretty fast compared to the rest of the film. It also feels very grounded because you've been with these women through all the prep work, which I very much liked. If I had to say anything negative about this film, other than a few nitpicks, I wish they had an epilogue or some kind of wrap up, at the end. There are so many moving pieces in the film that when it ends, you're left wondering what happened to some of the characters, on a personal level. The aftermath of these widows heist has some pretty big ramifications that really should have been shown. A news report on a TV, in the background no less, just doesn't cut it. Other than that, I'd say WIDOWS is definitely a film worth seeing.
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
Where's the team work?
Ant-Man and The Wasp
RATING: 3.1/5
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Wasted Potential, that's what this movie should be called. I really thought director Peyton Reed was going to be able to cut loose without being constrained to what Edgar Wright had already laid out in the first Ant-Man, but clearly i was wrong. All the action scenes are literally in the trailers, why would you ever do that? It's so bad, that even part of the final post credit scene is briefly in one of the trailers, it's like a total slap in the face after sitting there waiting til the very end. You have Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Michelle Pfeiffer, Laurence Fishburne, Evangeline Lilly, for all intents and purposes, this is an All Star cast who are given almost nothing to work with. Oh, and you can forget about any of the previously established science working like they said it did. Hell, they even establish something in this movie just to contradict themselves later on. The screen writers and directors need to be let go because they clearly aren't interested in making a good film about the Ant-Man and Wasp characters, on almost any level.
Let's talk about some of the good stuff. The Quantum Realm is pretty amazing looking, its a little similar to the Dark Dimension in the Doctor Strange movie but with a lot more going on. It feels like you're in another reality that has actual life in it, something i wish they had explored more. The action scenes are pretty good but again, you've already seen them all in the trailers, so there's nothing new to see. The beginning of the movie really plays up the fact that Scott Lang is a dad, who just happens to be a superhero. It helps to frame Scott as kind of an every man, a real underdog, and i think that's where the character's strength lies. Scott even manages to remain friends with his ex-wife and her new husband, cementing what a good guy Scott is. His daughter is a pretty level headed kid and you get a good sense that she really believes in her dad when almost no one else in the movie really does. That dynamic really should have been paralleled better with Hank and Hope's father, daughter, relationship, but again, another missed opportunity. The Wasp is as badass as we were led to believe in the first film. In fact, she's such a badass that Ant-Man feels dumbed down and sometimes even pointless when he's with her... might as well get into the bad now.
I remember this movie being sold as a romantic comedy at one point, well it definitely is not. The chemistry between Hope and Scott is non-existent, and they're not really funny together either. Despite the badassness of The Wasp, character wise, Hope really isn't given much to do emotionally. I kept waiting for some sort of personality or genuine emotion to shine through, but Evangeline Lilly was given nothing to work with. You could argue the movie is about family, but everything is set up so poorly that you just don't feel emotionally invested in the search for Hank Pym's wife, Janet, or even the well-being of Scott's own makeshift family. The villains are practically throwaways. Rather than getting a main villain and a sub villain, you're given two sub villains that don't amount to anything in the end. Ghost had real potential to be a solid villain, they show you her backstory and what she used to do and you think she may be a real credible threat. Nope, all the cool stuff she does is in the trailer, nothing more to see. Hell, i saw a tweet saying that Walton Goggins villainous character should have been replaced by Sam Rockwell's Justin Hammer, and i have to agree. Hammer is an established, main, villain, which most fans like, and his weapons are apparently far reaching as they've appeared in the Marvel Netflix shows on the Black Market. He's the most organic choice for a villain with the story they have here, but again, this film is about wasted potential and missed opportunities.
Ultimately, the film isn't terrible, it's just painfully average, with a lot of poorly thought out story choices. Average wouldn't be bad except that the last 3 Marvel Studios movies were Thor: Ragnarok, Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War, all movies that are working on a whole other level, whereas Ant-Man and The Wasp just reminds you what Marvel Studios used to be, and not in a good way. It almost feels as if Ant-Man and The Wasp got held back a grade or something, while everyone else graduated and moved on to the next. Maybe if i hadn't seen all the action scenes in the trailers, i would have had a better experience, but that doesn't change the fact that the story is spread way too thin despite having a simpler premise and way lower stakes. Hell, the stakes are so low that you're never worried about them not pulling it off in the end. As it stands, there's not much else here outside the action scenes. This really does feel like a step back for Marvel Studios, they're better than this now. Ant-Man and The Wasp is simply unacceptable at this point, and they need to go back to the drawing board if they plan on making another one... painfully average. Smh 😒
Incredibles 2 (2018)
Elastigirl: The Movie
INCREDIBLES 2
RATING: 3.2/5
Honestly, this should have been called "ELASTIGIRL: THE MOVIE" because she's really the main star. The rest of the Incredibles family takes a back seat to her, so much so that you barely even get to see the family suit up, much less work together as a real team. Dash suffers the most out of the family in that regard. If you're looking for character development, it's not really here outside Mr. Incredible learning how to be a stay at home dad, and even that's questionable. Frozone gets more screen time, so he's not just the token Black guy this time around. The villain is pretty meh by the end of it, and if you give their evil plan more than a passing thought, it ends up being pretty dumb and pointless overall.
This film is basically a time capsule, being that it takes place pretty much right after the first Incredibles movie. After 14 years, 3 Presidents, and 10 years of Marvel Studios superhero movies, Incredibles 2 needed to be way more than just a run of the mil sequel. This may have worked when they were at the top of the superhero mountain in 2004, but they've been lapped by so many other superhero movies now that this really doesn't cut it in 2018. Add to that the fact that they're still on the whole superheroes being illegal thing, which Captain America Civil War covered much, much better, and Incredibles 2 just ends up feeling outdated.
The score is pretty fantastic though. It's loud, it's bombastic, very 60s James Bond but with a superhero flair to it. The voice acting is solid with Mr. Incredible being the MVP with all the range of emotions he has to go through. The animation is great, no surprise there from Pixar. The action is pretty fast paced and serviceable, but for some reason, i just wasn't impressed by it. I really don't know how many other ways Hollywood can shoot a runaway train scene. It also didn't help that the first fight just reminded me how much of a Fantastic Four ripoff The Incredibles are too. I chuckled twice during the whole film, but my theater laughed a lot, so the jokes were clearly working on some level.
One of the other issues is that there are really no clear positive male figures in the film. Mr. Incredible is relegated to a stay at home dad, and he can't even figure that out on his own. Mrs. Incredible though, she can apparently do it all. In fact, almost every female in this film is infallible, while almost every male has some character flaw or has messed something up somehow. It's really weird. Like, the movie props up the women at the expense of the men, which i think sends a bad message.
If you're looking for a few laughs, action, and to go back to 2004, you'll probably have a great time with Incredibles 2. If you're looking for a good story, good villain, balanced positive male and female figures, and a superhero team that actually practices teamwork, then you should probably look elsewhere. Outside the animation, music and jokes, the movie fails on almost every other front and that's just unacceptable after 14 years. Beware the hype with this movie, cause it simply does not live up to the first Incredibles, at least not for me, not by a long shot.
Alita: Battle Angel (2019)
Alita wills it
ALITA: Battle Angel
RATING: 3.2/5
This movie's kinda weird cause it actually starts off pretty good, with a nice solid pace, and then at about the halfway mark the movie starts tripping over itself. The film is 2 hrs 22 minutes long, and it still feels as if entire scenes are missing from parts of the second half. It just tries to do way too much and almost feels aimless, to a degree. Like you're trying to figure out what the goal of the film is and when you finally get one, it changes... and then it changes again, and then it loops back to the first goal, and you're just left asking, "What are you trying to do movie, what is the main character's goal?" The film even feels as if it ends on the 2nd Act, or halfway through the 3rd Act, which is ridiculous considering how much stuff the film throws at you, and how long it is. This honestly should have been a 3 hour film just so they could tell a complete story. Instead, we get sequel baited and you're just left feeling like "Okay, I guess I gotta wait till the sequel to see how this all plays out" and that's just unacceptable.
Anyways, Alita is a pretty good character. She really does carry this film, so kudos to the VFX Department on making a CGI character seem so realistic, as well as the lead actress. If I have any issues with her it's that she's a borderline Mary Sue, like she can do anything and everything. The movie tries to play it off as if she's just an every girl, but that couldn't be further from the truth. She's literally on another level than everyone else and once this is established, trying to pretend as if she's in any real danger is kind of a joke. There's one fight that happens towards the middle of the film that kind of breaks the movie, and any sense of danger you may feel for the character. Her interactions with the world around her are good too because like the audience, she's seeing and experiencing everything for the first time. The one problem with the world is that everything is so bright and sunny that it doesn't feel like anyone's really suffering in this dystopian cyberpunk world. They tell you that everyone wants to live in the floating city in the sky because it's so terrible on the ground, but you never really see it. The streets are crowded in the day with everyone just living their lives like nothing, no suffering. The city literally contradicts the story's narrative.
As far as everyone else goes, outside Christoph Waltz, they're all pretty much wasted here. Jennifer Connelly had a role that could have been compelling, but she's not given much to work with despite her goals and backstory. The Male love interest could have been any generic guy, since he doesn't really bring anything to the table. Mahershala Ali feels neutered as a villain, utterly wasted. Jackie Earl Haley makes for an interesting villain, but the way his story arch goes, he might as well be generic villain number 7. Ed Skrein is probably the only other real standout as an antagonist, but that's only because of the charisma his character oozes. And that's the main issue right there, I literally just listed off 4 villains, and there are still more in the film. With this merry go round of villains, nobody gets enough screen time, so none of them really get fleshed out properly.
Honestly, the longer I think about this movie, the lower the score goes so I'm just gonna quit here. The action is good, the first half is good, the special effects are great, but don't go in expecting a complete story. Alita almost single handedly will's this movie into being better than it should be, but at the same time, the audience member next to me still fell asleep, so there's that. The 3D was great at the start, but as the movie went on, it kinda just got less and less until it faded out. If nothing else, you should have a good time with the special effects and the action scenes, but just remember, it's almost 2 and a half hours long, so be prepared
Hereditary (2018)
Uneasy
HEREDITARY
RATING: 3.7/5
They really need a sub category for these kind of so called "horror" movies because this is the same thing that happened to "mother!" Apparently, HEREDITARY was marketed as the "scariest movie ever," which it is not, by far. There is horror imagery and an uneasy feeling throughout a lot of the film, but there's never anything really scary, and I'm not just talking about the lack of a single jump scare. Guess you could just call this kind of movie "Horror Lite," where they're not really hitting you with jump scares but you're probably not gonna leave the theater feeling happy go lucky either... i guess if ghosts make you uncomfortable, you might find it scary, but that's on you, cause the film definitely ain't trying to make you jump out of your seat.
The film is pretty long too, for the amount of story you're getting, it's over 2 hours. They could have tightened up some things and maybe picked up the pace a little. Apparently, the director left 30 scenes on the cutting room floor and the original cut was 3 hours long. 1 hour cut from the film, and a lot of it still felt like setup, setup, setup, so it could then lose its mind in the 3rd Act the same way "mother!" did towards the end. The overall message of the film feels lost. If I had to guess, you could argue that the message is, you can't escape your family's history, even after they die, unless you're willing to completely let them go. Or something along those lines perhaps, but it doesn't feel earned, and that's the problem.
On the positive side, the acting is pretty solid. The family does a pretty good job of portraying their grief and dysfunction. They do it so well in fact, that for a little while i forgot that i was technically watching a horror lite film. It's like they stepped into some depressing indie film for a bit, until they were forced to come back to the horror genre. That probably wouldn't have happened if the film was paced better. The music also does a good job of accentuating the uneasiness throughout.
The more i think about the film the more it just doesn't hold up to scrutiny as a horror film, and i think that's what's hurting it the most. Hereditary falls under the horror genre but it doesn't feel like it's trying to scare you for the majority of the film, it just wants to make you feel uncomfortable, like really uncomfortable. If they were gonna cut an hour off the original cut, then it needed another two or three passes to work out all the kinks. I'm honestly curious how different the 3 hour cut is, but as it stands now, Hereditary is not a very scary movie despite the horror elements in it. Be warned though, despite it not being very scary, some of the imagery may stick with you because it is a well crafted movie. If you do decide to go see it, just know what you're getting into so you're not blindsided and disappointed by the lack of jump scares.
A Quiet Place (2018)
Stressful
A QUIET PLACE
RATING: 3.9/5
Gotta admit, don't think I've been that stressed in a movie in a long time. It's a really slow burn though, as the film slowly builds up the tension. You're following a family that has been surviving in this world for almost a year and a half, so they're not gonna screw up unless something big and unexpected happens. Enter, the pregnant wife trying to give birth, that they've been showing in every trailer the studio has put out there, so it's not a spoiler. Once the movie gets to that point, it sticks with it to the bitter end. Things get intense, as the family just tries to survive this one childbirth. You really don't know where the movie's gonna go at that point, and that's one of the film's strengths. Every time i kept thinking it was over, damn thing would keep going. That monster was relentless, the smallest sounds would bring it over. It was a great movie monster, compared to everything we've had from Hollywood lately.
For the majority of the movie, it's kind of a "slice of life" film, as you're introduced to this family and how they live their day to day lives in this desolate world. It's great because you get a real sense of what it's like just living in this world, where making loud noises can get you killed, almost instantly. You start wondering if you could survive in that kinda world, it's actually done pretty well. The main issue for me is really with the family you're following; they end up being such ciphers, that they don't have any real depth to them. You get nothing more than surface level characteristics for each of them, which is fine to a degree, but they don't give you anything to really latch onto. The end result is that you end up feeling for the family and the terrifying situation they're in, but you don't really care that much for them individually.
I can't quite jump this movie to a 4, because i think there needed to be some real character development in it. Even if the director meant for the family to be blank slates, there's just too much time where nothing happens, for them not to get any kind of real character development. The last issue might be a nitpick, but the final shot feels completely out of place with the entire film. This movie has such a serious tone to it the whole time, but the last shot comes off as something out of a corny action movie. It just doesn't fit, and I think it was the wrong note to end on. The entire movie sets you up to feel one way, and then the ending takes a slight left, but it's just enough to make you feel like something is off. They could have done the same scene and just played it serious, like the rest of the movie, and it would have been great. Even so, i think this is a movie worth checking out, even if you just do a matinee.