This movie is a mess. It's a pretty mess, but still a mess. Far too many plotlines are completely dropped for an unrealistic one, and it never really explores or explains the virtual world it presents. There are tons of ideas, but they are all hindered by poor execution. Character motives don't make a lot of sense, the world seems empty despite there being over five billion people registered into the app, the laws of the app are broken and the writers don't seem to understand how apps work, and it all just kind of falls apart once you think about it too much.
I'd go into specifics but it isn't worth it. Even as someone who usually doesn't notice plotholes, this one is legitimately full of them, and to go over them all would take tons of time and effort this movie doesn't deserve.
It's just mediocre thanks to some awesome visuals, some creative ideas, and a nice enough soundtrack.
A misunderstood masterpiece. I laughed so hard it hurt to breathe. It's one of the worst movies I've ever seen and yet I want more.
Didn't work for me. The plot is non-existent, the music is annoyingly repetitive and oftentimes oddly placed, and the entire movie rides on Tom Cruise's shoulders. I genuinely liked Goose more than Maverick and thought Maverick was kind of an awful guy beginning to end. Yet again, a movie I was told is a "must-see" disappoints. Maybe it's just not my cup of tea.
This episode was a let-down for me. I've been really digging the old school sitcom vibe and while I knew it had to end eventually, I'm sad that this wasn't reserved for the end of the series. Personally, I don't want all the answers - I love to theorize and to try and come up with what's going on, and this episode spoiled too many of the questions I had and confirmed too many of my suspicions. I really hope it goes back to the sitcom stuff next episode!
I started "The Boy" with low expectations regarding the overall quality of the story. Being that the film is on Netflix, I pretty much assumed that it would simply supply my need for a quick Halloween flick that wasn't R-rated. I expected a few jump-scares here; a female scream there, and a doll that moves on its own.
Thankfully, the film exceeded my expectations. Disregard the reviews that say it is a complete bore - if you're fond of slow movies that carefully wait to crawl under your skin, you're going to love this film. It's a very interesting concept, and while the film does drag at times, the ending has a twist that, while I didn't really understand at first, turned out to be one of the most unpredictable plot twists I've seen in a while.
I'm not sure I'll watch it a second time, but it was well worth the wait for the first sitting. I've seen over 400 movies, and I still was surprised by this show's ending. For that, my hat goes off to the creator - he did a really good job here.
I'd like to preface this review by saying that I know this movie does not deserve a 2. In a world devoid of morals and of ethics regarding filmmaking and the making of art, I would give it a 10, but we live in a world where the mere existence of such an atrociously sinful film means that quite a bit of sin was committed during it's making.
While those who are not religious may strongly disagree with me and I too may look back on this review and wince, I simply do not believe that the message this movie sends was worth depicting brutal, sadistic, and graphic rape. I both am grateful and regret the fact that I have seen this film and I feel dirty having watched it and rightfully so.
Much of the material Kubrick presents on screen during this film amounts to little more than sadistic porn. Nudity is gratuitous and I violence is painted over with disturbingly artistic flair. What Kubrick misses the opportunity to do is to allow the audience's imagination to fill in the blanks instead of forcing people to carry out the acts on screen. The book this film is based on succeeds in that it is horrifying without needing people to act it out.
I realize that this is a terrible review, but for your sake and for the sake of others who will have to live with your mind after this film, urdge you to not watch this. They say it is a masterpiece and it is - but it is one that requires prolonged exposure to the worst of humanity in ways that are simply unjustifiable.
Surprisingly cute, sweet, and all around entertaining, Noelle is a well casted, surprisingly well written Christmas comedy in the same vein as Elf. It is one of the few G-rated movies to come out in recent years and is completely devoid of any and all content issues, making it a great choice for families during the Christmas season. Despite being definitely oriented at kids, Noelle's humor manages to elevate the movie significantly, even when questionably shoddy CGI and its predictable plot threaten to lower its quality.
Expertly casted and refreshingly earnest, Noelle more than earns its stay among other modern Christmas classics, and I personally hope it receives more attention in the years to come.
"Venom: Let There Be Carnage" has got to be one of the worst superhero movies I have ever seen, especially from Sony. It exists solely to capitalize off of Tom Hardy's buddy cop romantic chemistry with Venom, and yet this time around, it's no longer funny - it's just gross. Venom is incredibly abusive to Eddie simply for trying to keep him from murdering whoever he wants, and the film expects us to accept that Venom is somehow in the right.
Furthermore, the script is an atrocity, filled with terrible one-liners and terrible pacing. Nothing in this movie feels authentic. Even Michelle Williams is put to shame during this film. The acting is horrendous because the script gives them nothing to work with. The cinematography is also terrible - It has some interesting ideas and settings, and yet it's always zoomed in on the characters' faces, preventing us from witnessing the cool scenery.
But hey, at least the final fight is better than the first movie's.
Utter trash; could have been written by a fifth grader.
This is the first episode of the series to make me cry. I have a feeling there are going to be a lot more, but this one sticks out in how heartbreaking it is. Good stuff.
A mediocre movie that pretends to be an empowering female lead movie but ends up just being kind of dumb. Anything I was actually interested in was glazed over, there is no clear villain or even a satisfying climax, and I honestly found Jude Law to be more interesting than the main character. The problem with Brie Larson's character is that she doesn't have a lot of personality traits other than she's "strong" and sarcastic. She is uninteresting, and her awesome helmet is barely used. She doesn't even appear to need it. Since I can't spoil anything else, I'll end this review here, but yeah. It's a movie that is being praised for its mediocrity simply because the title character is a woman. Anyone who dislikes it is suspected to be a hater or a toxic white male, and the point of the movie is that the world is holding women back. That might not seem bad until you remember that there are two genders - male and female. If the oppressed people are women in general, then that makes everyone else (aka men) the metaphorical enemy. It's uncomfortable to be a guy watching the movie, even though I've wanted a good female lead Marvel movie just as much as everyone else. Not all men are sexist. Perhaps if they had taken a page from Wonder Woman's book and created a character that both men and women could genuinely look up to, we'd have a better movie. But alas, I found myself praying that Jude Law would make it to the end of the movie. Carol just isn't that interesting, funny or even likable.
Easily one of the best movies I've seen this year.
I found myself on the edge of my seat, nearly in tears because of how stressful the movie turned out to be. It made me care about an objectively awful character, and I knew where things were going, yet didn't want them to happen.
It's a shame it went up against Spider-Man. People have no idea what they missed out on. Having seen both, "Nightmare Alley" is the better movie, but fewer people are going to see it. That's probably a good thing in that I wouldn't recommend this to most of my friends. That being said, for those who are okay with graphic violence and dark material, there's a lot to sink into here.
Yes, it's unrealistic. Yes, it's corny. But then the plot twist happens. And it hit me hard. I felt like I was watching a much better movie during than the last twenty minutes or so. Without spoiling anything, if the first part of the film had been like the last twenty minutes, it would have been considered a gem.
That being said, it's an oddly nostalgic product of it's time with surprisingly witty dialogue, excellent, excellent special effects - mostly due to the fact that they used live animals during the filming process. This movie has none of those CGI abominations we have today - it looks realer than even Jurassic Park. The theme, though repetitive, is beautiful and somehow manages to not be intrusive, even during the most dramatic and heart wrenching scenes. Anthony Hopkins is on his A-game as usual, and he manages to make a somewhat bland character likeable, though the talent if the scriptwriter does aid in this at least somewhat. Alec Baldwin is surprisingly loveable as well, and eventually, you become quite attached. Additionally, the sets and locations are beautiful and the sound design is excellent.
In conclusion, this is an unrealistic yet heartfelt survival movie that works well as simple entertainment while delivering some heartfelt moments. Definitely worth a watch.
Encanto is an incredibly overrated movie. Why this has such a huge fanbase, I will never know. That being said, it's still a good film.
I just never want to hear about Bruno ever again thanks to the fanbase.
Home Sweet Home Alone is the sixth film in the disgraced Home Alone franchise. If the cover isn't enough to tell you not to watch this movie, than this review is. Because let's face it - you predicted this.
There is nothing sweet about Home Sweet Home Alone. It is a dreary, ugly, criminally unfunny trudge through a tired, worn out franchise, having long lost the charm and heart that made the original film so special. Gone is the adorable Macaulay Culkin and the wholesome beauty of the original. Gone also is the creativity and imagination of the original traps. What we have instead is a pair of poor parents trying to reclaim a doll that is rightfully theirs from an insufferably spoiled brat on Christmas Eve in order to save their house from being sold before the New Year. That's right - the kid is the villain in this situation. And boy, is he hateable.
The key element that is missing from this film is a heart. Whereas the original had an underlying message about valuing your family despite their flaws and extending love towards them while you still have them around, this new film completely and utterly lacks any of those sentiments, instead replacing it with a borderline cruel sense of "humor." The term humor feels almost inappropriate, however, as this movie is one of the most joyless productions I have ever laid eyes on.
Ultimately, there are two funny jokes during this dumpster fire of a film - a running gag involving the burglars having too many cartons of milk in their fridge, and a moment of self awareness from the burglar's obnoxious (cousin?) who loudly declares that Hollywood needs to stop remaking the old classics.
I, for one, agree.
And yet, it's not unbearably bad, nor is it good. Instead, it exists as a hollow cash grab written by people without a single funny bone in their entire body. Forced, ugly, and frustratingly mediocre, this is a Christmas film you should probably skip. Just go watch something like "Frozen" or "Noelle," or even better - just watch the original.
While not necessarily heavy as far as content goes, there is plenty of violence and cursing to go around, earning its R rating. It isn't the worst Christmas movie I've ever seen, and yet it's nowhere near "great", partially due to the lack of chemistry between the characters as well as the lack of self awareness the movie possesses - it plays its gimmick far too straight, saving what little combat there is for the last half an hour of the movie.
In essence, the idea is here, but the execution is worse than bad - it's uninteresting. Mel gives a great performance as "Chris" Kringle, but aside from that, this movie is a bust with no underlying theme or satisfying conclusion. It's, to put it bluntly, a waste of time.
Also, there's an off-screen Santa sex scene with him and his wife that I didn't want to think about.
This ironic thing about this film is that it is about how a one dimensional background character develops into a real person, yet almost no character development takes place during the film - all of his changes are external. Furthermore, his journey from loser to hero happens almost overnight, resulting in a bland CGI mess with a single beautiful shot about halfway through.
There is no chemistry, the characters are mediocre, and while it's charming in some ways, the villain alone is atrocious. Anyone who knows anything about video games can see how out of touch these writers are with reality, and although reality would make a boring movie, it's laughable how much is unrealistic.
That and Ryan Reynolds is playing himself. Again.
Hauntingly beautiful yet terrifying to watch in a silent theater. If you don't know anything about this film, please go in blind like I did. You won't regret it!
I like that it's heading back to the sitcom format but I hate that it's beginning to explain things as well. It's only episode 5 and there are still 4 episodes to go. I don't want answers yet! That being said, this week's ending was a killer, though.
Without going into a complete analysis of this film, the thing that makes this horror picture stick out is that it's about love and the unconditional bond that lies within a healthy nuclear family.
There's something indescribably beautiful about seeing a family hold on to each other the way they do in this film - some people might call it corny but personally, it makes gives me a little hope in humanity.
It's a rare horror film in that it doesn't focus solely on effects or scares - it's a ghost story that hones in on having a soul to begin with.
To be fair, “gimme some sugar” has very different connotations in my head, so no - I would not take Don up on that offer.
There are a few interesting ideas and shots, and the chemistry is nice, but the plot is predictable and at some points laughable. With a better soundtrack, more implication, a shorter runtime, and more joy and conflict between the families, this could be much better film than it is.
This episode borders on a 5. It's corny, rushed, stupid, the concepts are all introduced through dialogue, this is all happening way too early in the series, and there's very little chemistry. Worst of all, it isn't fun - something the first couple episodes were.
Also - what the heck is up with Angel? I'm sure this gets better later on down the road, but I'm laughing. I get that I'm not the target audience, but like I said - the first couple episodes were fun. Then they had the mantis episode and the hyena episode and now...this. I prefer this to the other two episodes I disliked, but still. Garbage.
Far superior to the 2016 abomination.
It surprisingly lacks a lot of the humor of the original. Although the film is overall well done and enjoyable, it's more of a quirky, surprisingly frightening take on the Ghostbusters franchise, and while it can still be fun and goofy in certain places, the script plays if straight for the most part, respecting the scarier elements of the original.
There's a few timing issues, as well as a severe lack of Paul Rudd. Despite being marketed as a Paul Rudd movie, his character Gary doesn't get as much attention as the kids do. The mother is slightly unlikable and there are some missed opportunities when it comes to interacting with ghosts, and yet the movie likely would have been longer had they gone ahead and done so.
This is really a movie about the young female lead, Phoebe, which was surprising, though not in a bad way. Podcast is the real breakout star, though. He's fantastic.
At the end of the day, they did a good job on this one and I'm pleasantly surprised.
Despite being more of a stage play than a movie, this oddly titled film managed to capture my attention for its entire duration. It is a character study, mainly of Ginny, played by the incredibly talented Kate Winslet. Kate Winslet knocks this movie out of the park, and although she is a very unlikable character, her acting chops are on full display and her character's writing is complicated and morally grey. The film is really about her more than anything, and if it was a play, I have a feeling it would have been met with praise.
The colors and sets in this film are also something to behold - the cinematography is top notch and the color correction and lighting is on point.
I remember when this episode came out and I really hope I still have the original VHS tape my parents taped this episode on downstairs. It's such a great episode and the music is especially on point this time around. Ahoska gets schooled, the sense of danger is high, and it's great to see all of the characters get their own moments to shine. An all around great episode!
One of the worst movies I have ever seen. Truly incoherent and downright surreal, as well as inconsistent. I have no idea who the target audience was.
"American Beauty" is yet another film that is thought-provokingly well done and masterfully crafted, yet too blunt for its own good. This film would be nearly perfect if given a dose of healthy implication. Its best scenes are scenes in which subtly reigns and where things are shown without being shown. The nudity and overly foul and sexual language make it a weaker film in my humble opinion, and had the writer held back a bit, an equally chilling yet not so morally compromising film may have been created. In essence, it's a work of art - unfortunately, it's one that I simply cannot recommend due to the brief yet damningly objectionable moments scattered throughout.
This episode seems to be getting a lot of flack but I genuinely enjoyed it. It takes us back to a familiar setting and introduces a great female character in the form of a hard-working, greedy, yet amusing and sly mechanic. I gave an extra stat just for her; I want to see more of her in the future even if it won't happen.
I don't know why people are saying the battles are uninspired. A couple moves seemed off but it I really liked the lighting and the aesthetic of it all. Was a lot better than the AT-ST episode.
Didn't like this episode. It's not because of Cara Dune - I think she's brave for posting her own opinion on Twitter and I think she doesn't deserve the hate she's getting right now. However, this round was literally just Seven Samurai in space. We already have an anime adaption of that. It's called Samurai Seven. This episode was ultimately useless and the raiders had some of the worst strategies. The plot armor was thick, no doubt.
I think the AT-ST was stupid and I think the red lights at the top looked dumb, although I know they need to have light inside of it at night. It just looked like such a stereotypically evil color and I thought it was funny how blatant it was that the creators were trying to make it look like glowing eyes in the forest.
As a twenty-year-old adult, I had trouble staying quiet as I ugly cried in a theater full of people. It's heart wrenching, but in a sweet, beautiful way.
The animation is fantastic, the music is phenomenal, and the world the script is set in is completely coherent and explainable to the point where I was able to debunk common "plot holes" people point out just by paying attention to the details.
Be warned however - it's a sad movie that makes you want to cry beyond the credits.
