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patsteves
Reviews
To the Stars (2019)
Moving historical character study
To say too much about this movie would reveal some late story twists/reveals, but it really does a great job of capturing a time period and pulling you into the friendship between to seemingly opposite teenage girls (one confident and one shy/awkward). Not always an easy story to watch, as it shows the dark underbelly of a time period that we love to look at with such nostalgia and romanticism.
Gemini Man (2019)
Big budget action silliness
Big budget action fare, but it's one of those movies where you continually find the actions of the characters to be unrealistic or silly. After a point, you start to lose interest because you're really just watching spectacle instead of story. Will Smith can do better than this!
Richard Jewell (2019)
Well done! Engaging!
This is a really well-done character drama with the high stakes of a thriller. Richard Jewell, the awkward security guard who found the Atlanta Olympics bomb minutes before it detonated, is the agency's #1 suspect. Stellar performances by everyone in this movie. A true story that will keep you engaged from start to finish.
The Fanatic (2019)
Too uncomfortable to be enjoyable
I didn't really personally care for this movie to the point that I turned if off halfway through, but that doesn't mean that it isn't well done for what it is. It's an uncomfortable train wreck of a story, and if you're looking for something unusual, maybe try it...
The Exception (2016)
Excellent WWII Drama/Romance
I wasn't sure about this movie as it started out with a somewhat distasteful first encounter between the lead male and lead female, but as the story unfolded, you get pulled into the drama of all of the characters. The gray area it shows about WWII and Nazis and spies and leaders is well done. By the time the climactic end comes around, you are on the edge of your seat.
Jasper Jones (2017)
Starts strong
Hmm... This started with a very dark but intriguing premise as a mysterious teenage character (the title character Jasper Jones) pulls our adolescent protagonist out of bed in the middle of the night to "help" him. He leads the boy to a teenage girl who is hanging dead from a tree on his property. But slowly the movie loses momentum and ends in a very unsatisfying manner with lots some unanswered questions and emotional letdowns. Strong setting and strong performances with some good individual scenes but overall, it's weak on story.
Hush (2016)
Good lead actress
Good lead actress. Well done element of her being deaf. The intercutting between the sounds of the world and the lack of sounds in her world worked well. Ultimately though I found it to be a little slow. The film is basically a cat and mouse game of her trapped in the woods while a psychotic killer toys with her.
The Secret Scripture (2016)
Bleak yet hopeful
This movie has plenty of darkness and sadness, but luckily it's punctuated with an element of hope as well, because otherwise I think it would just be too sad to watch. It's a story of a woman in a mental hospital and what brought her there. She's now very old with an addled mind, so the story cuts between past and present to unveil the circumstances of the story. Rooney Mara turns in a strong performance as the younger version of the main character and Theo James - who is normally the hero type - is a creepy priest. Nice to see him in a departure from the norm.
A Quiet Place (2018)
Entertaining with interesting concept
This was good. Great cinematography and performances. Overall I liked it. The only reason I'm docking from an 8 or 9 to a 7 is because while it had scary things occurring, it never actually scared me in any real way. Entertaining but not exactly a true scary movie.