These ladies are HILARIOUS! I really enjoyed watching this. I laughed out loud a whole bunch of times and really love the actors in these particular roles. I can already see several long-term quotable lines coming from it. Chris Hemsworth was also a riot.
While it's probably technically a remake, this movie has its own original plot and its own original characters. I'm glad for that. I loved the nods to the original without (always) hitting you over the head with it. Keep an eye out for some old friends.
Having said that, the movie does drag a bit around the 2/3 mark before kind of getting its mojo back for the finale. And make sure you stick around through the credits (which go by surprisingly quickly)!
There are going to be people who will hate this no matter what. But don't pre-judge this movie based on the trailer. Give it a chance and you may laugh as hard as I did.
HIGHLY enjoyable and the standard by which all future TV show reunions should be measured. A great mix of now/then, reminiscing, reappearances and behind-the-scenes video and stories. I originally wanted to see a scripted reunion, but I found this to be far more satisfying. Well done!
Fun movie!
As a comic book fan (and long-time reader/collector), I appreciated the nods to the comic version of the character, but like they did with all the other Marvel Cinematic Universe characters who've appeared on screen so far, the story is original and I think it can be followed and enjoyed by those who know nothing about Ant-Man before the movie starts.
I won't post any spoilers, but I will say I was satisfied how this character fits into the rest of the MCU and really enjoyed the special effects. The filmmakers did a good job of poking fun at some of the ridiculousness of tiny people fighting each other without it actually detracting from the story. The movie keeps a real sense of humor, which is one of the things I enjoy most about the Marvel movies. I'm interested to see how and what role Ant-Man will play in "Captain America: Civil War" next year.
Paul Rudd does a great job and is actually believable as a title character in an action film, (he's really come a long way from Clueless, huh?) and I love that bigger-name actors like Michael Douglas are all getting on board with these superhero movies. Evangeline Lilly, who already proved she can do action with the "Hobbit" movies, gets to kick some butt in this movie as well. I don't know anything about Corey Stoll, but he makes a pretty good bad guy.
Marvel seems to have figured out how to handle movies like this (ones where most of the mainstream audience knows little-to-nothing about the character.) Put them after most, if not all, the HUGE blockbuster movies of summer, but make them so fun that word-of-mouth will get people to come out. It worked with Guardians of the Galaxy last year, and I think it'll work with Ant-Man this year. For what it's worth, I liked Ant-Man better. I'd give this movie 3 out of 4 stars.
I was surprised how much I liked this movie! I thought "Alice in Wonderland" was a weird, nearly incoherent movie. But "Through the Looking Glass" actually has a plot that you can follow the ENTIRE way through, and it's a fairly entertaining story involving regret, time-travel and family relationships. A lot of chuckle-worthy moments spread throughout, and it's great to hear Alan Rickman's voice one last time in a film.
I recommend this movie much more highly than the first Alice (perhaps due to the fact that Tim Burton is only a producer & not the director this time). It's family-friendly and visually impressive. And in my opinion, it's worth the extra $$ to see it in 3D for the time traveling sequences alone.
This is the most enjoyable animated movie I've seen in a long time. Funny, touching, great message, clever, somehow formulaic and yet unique at the same time. Enjoyable for kids all the way up to adults.
I found this movie to be very charming... and I'm not even a pet owner. Easily as good, if not better than "Zootopia" and "Finding Dory" this year, and FAR better than "Angry Birds". I laughed a lot at this movie and my 7 & 9 year old kids thought it was "awesome". Great voice talent involved and the animators do a great job creating the idealized New York City (i.e. clean, beautiful, & full of happy people).
The two biggest tests for movies obviously aimed at children are these: 1) Is it too long? & 2) Will the parents go nuts with boredom or irritation watching it with their kids? To that I can answer, 1) It's only 90 minutes & 2) I think there might be more things for adults to enjoy in this movie than kids. I was thoroughly entertained & fully expect to add this one to our family movie collection later this year.
There's also a Minions animated short at the beginning that is slow to get going, but pretty hilarious by the end.
Might be my favorite of all Eddie Murphy's movies. Great lines, great idea, "Soul Glo", McDowells, the guys in the barbershop, just great execution altogether. I'm chuckling just thinking about the scenes again.
Gotta give him credit. He didn't shy away from the negative stuff that both happened to him in his life and the negative stuff that he caused to others. Not having Maria Shriver or any of his kids in it at all as interviewees feels like a loud commentary on how she still feels about him and all of that. Nevertheless, I learned a bunch of stuff I didn't know and enjoyed the series overall.
Credit Kevin Smith for figuring out that when Adam says he's the "defender of the secrets of Castle Grayskull" in the opening credits of the original cartoon, the writers back then never really ever mentioned or dealt with what those secrets actually WERE in the episodes themselves.
Whether you like or dislike what happens in this episode of "Masters of the Universe: Revelation" (and through the series) it seems that an earnest effort was made to actually move the characters along (on both the good side and bad side) and give them some depth instead of just starting over with a reboot/reimagining like they've tried once or twice before. That alone I applaud.
This is one of my favorite movies of all-time. It has everything I want in a movie: heroism, beauty, sword-fighting (which I consider to be the best form of movie combat), chases, daring, humor, great actors, compelling story, good vs evil, revenge, mystery, romance, excitement... I don't know what more it could have.
Antonio Banderas is excellent in the role of Alejandro/Zorro, taking him from a drunk to a dashing hero, Anthony Hopkins adds class as Diego de La Vega (the original Zorro), Catherine Zeta-Jones has never looked more beautiful--but she's not just some damsel in distress, as her duel with Zorro in the stables shows. Don Rafael and Captain Love make great villains.
I just LOVE this movie.
This movie isn't too bad, but I'll be surprised if it gets a lot of positive remarks from critics. It's got funny moments and great voice talent, but it just didn't grab me as a parent seeing it with my 7 year old. I did play Angry Birds quite a bit back about 5 years ago, even going as far as looking up internet videos as to how to get 3 stars on each level if I couldn't figure it out myself. I liked seeing how they incorporated the birds' in-game attributes into the movie.
The best things about this movie to me: It's only 90 minutes, and it's a movie that you're safe to take your young kids to. We're running out of those kinds of films these days. My 7 year old thought it was "awesome!"
Bottom line: Worth seeing once if you have kids who really want to see it (and 3D was kind of fun), but I'm pretty sure it won't make it into our personal home video collection.
I wasn't a huge fan of this movie the first time I saw it back in theaters as it was very confusing and to be honest, without the understanding about how it fit into the overall story, it was kind of boring. However, I also hadn't read the book at the time, and that would have helped me a lot.
I just rewatched the movie yesterday after reading the book to my children and liked it a LOT more. I was actually impressed how the filmmakers took the 800+ pages of book story & made it fit into 2 hrs & 15 mins of screen time. Sure, it's not perfect & the kids were a little miffed at what they left out from the book story, but it gave me the chance to explain about choices filmmakers have to make when adapting a story that people know so well. Besides, all that stuff they liked was STILL in the book...it's not like it is erased from existence.
Having said that, even not having read the book, the character Dolores Umbridge was done perfectly. In my opinion, she is one of the great villains I've ever seen even though she's ignorant of her own villain-ness [villainity?]. I wanted to punch her in the face when I saw the movie, and only wanted to do it more after reading the book. That's a good character.
Favorite part of the movie: The duel between the Death Eaters & Order of the Phoenix. Would have liked the Dumbledore/Voldemort showdown to be a little longer or have been able to include more verbal back-and-forth between them.
But, if you're ONLY watching the movies without the added depth of the information in the book, this is one of the weaker chapters in the series.
This was a fun little bit of retconning. The 2008 Incredible Hulk post-credits scene was originally intended to continue the setup of the Avengers being formed to go after the Hulk (which was actually a plot line from the original Avengers comics in the 1960's--in fact, the Avengers chasing the Hulk was how they discovered frozen Captain America in the comics). But once the story for 2012's Avengers became the invasion of New York by aliens they needed to explain why the heck Tony Stark would show up to talk to Ross at all, let alone in a bar. So like I said, a fun bit of retconning.
I left this movie with strangely mixed feelings and every time I tried to define exactly how I would describe the film to someone else, I found myself hedging every positive statement with a "but..."
I liked it. BUT... it didn't leave me with the same excited feelings that the other X-Men films did when I left the theater (Yes, that includes the much-maligned X-Men The Last Stand)
I thought the action was cool, even amazing in some parts. BUT... it takes a LONG time to get to the action.
I liked the direction they took the story. BUT... it's a lot of story (see the action item above). As a comics fan I didn't mind because I like the characters already and enjoy spending time in their world, BUT... I don't know if the average fan will enjoy the long stretches of exposition. It's a story that I think fits the continuity they've created in the films... however it is not the "Age of Apocalypse" storyline or really any particular one I recognized from the comic series.
Having said all that... it's not a bad movie. It's certainly not the worst entry in the X-Men film canon. I think it's box office take may suffer by being the third big superhero movie released in 2.5 months after "Batman v Superman" & "Captain America: Civil War". I love superhero movies and I just think I might have enjoyed this one more if it were released in February or August.
SOME SPOILERS BELOW
Other random thoughts:
Weird to think that it's Poe Dameron underneath all the Apocalypse makeup. You'd NEVER know.
I was excited to see Psylocke join the movie-verse but I'm confused with how they used her. Who was she? For what she ACTUALLY does in the film (SPOILER--pretty much nothing other than a bit of fighting), why have her at all?
I kind of wish the arrow that (SPOILER) Erik's (SPOILER) would have been fired intentionally. I think it would have made his choices after that a little more relatable (at least he didn't have to watch his family burned alive in a house like he did in the comics, I guess)
Apocalypse didn't do much. He could crumble people & buildings with no thought but he needed all the others to do stuff? For as powerful as he was, he didn't seem to try very hard.
They keep upping the destruction levels in these movies... the Golden Gate Bridge (X3), the football stadium (DoFP), what felt like half the world (Apocalypse). Where can you go after this, blowing up the entire planet Earth?
A few fun easter eggs for fans: seeing Jubilee, Caliban, Blob, a funny joke about X3, a couple of nods to X2, & Mystique's outfit at the end of the movie.
--SPOILER--It was cool to see Wolverine in his "Weapon X" phase. Wish they hadn't given that away in the trailer though. Would have been more fun as a complete surprise. His whole scene is quite bloody, but it does give a possible explanation for Wolvie's attraction/connection to Jean.
Wow. It is an amazing feat of writing to make the most pathetic and annoying character in the original cartoon (Orko) into a nuanced, sympathetic character. Congrats to Smith & the writers on that!
Will Poulter will never, EVER have a moment, not just in his acting career, but in his entire life that will top making out with Emma Roberts and Jennifer Aniston at the same time. Good for him!!!
I have missed this version of Jim Carrey SO MUCH! For the first time in a long time, he's back to being the crazy, elastic, physical comedian that he once was in "Ace Ventura" & "The Mask". Overall, "Sonic the Hedgehog" is so-so as a movie and I'd almost rather they had animated EVERYTHING instead of just Sonic, but Carrey is like a living cartoon when he's on his game, and James Marsden does a pretty good job of being funny too. I've liked Tika Sumpter in everything I've seen her in. Also glad they fixed how Sonic looked...although based on the story in the movie it at least makes a bit of sense as to why they originally animated him to look a little more human. Kids will definitely enjoy this one (my 10 & 6-yr old sons sure did).
This was probably my favorite episode of the series. Not the funniest...but my favorite. That ending...
This was the first time in my life I remember being so tense watching a movie that I was literally gripping the armrest of the chair in which I was sitting. It was the scene in the alley where the goons are beating up De Niro and Nolte is hiding and watching
Of course, the Simpsons parodied this movie to perfection with an episode featuring Sideshow Bob. This was a great mixture of tension and slightly disturbing scenes. Well-directed by Scorsese.
One of my five favorite comedy movies of all time. It is quite dated now, but it will always be one my favs. I laughed out loud the first time I even saw a commercial for the movie (Jane telling Frank, "Everyone should have a friend like you!" while Nordberg rolls down the stadium steps in a wheelchair and launches airborne.)
The first time I saw the movie (as a 13-year old), I laughed through the whole thing, but when it got to the part where he "sings" the national anthem, I was laughing so hard I was crying & having trouble breathing. The whole entire baseball game sequence is top notch. The mic left on when he goes to the bathroom at the televised press conference, all the quotable lines, Leslie Nielsen at the top of his game...just superb.
Surprised this movie isn't as remembered or revered from the 1980's pop culture as others. It was a very big deal back when it was released. Still the only time Bugs Bunny & Mickey Mouse have appeared on screen together--even though both studios (Warner Bros & Disney) were so insistent that one character not get more time than the other that had to appear in the scenes together, just to make sure (same thing with Donald & Daffy Duck--that's how we got "dueling pianos".)
I liked this movie when it came out. Still has tons of good quotable lines, memorable original characters (Roger, Jessica, the weasels, Bennie the cab, Baby Herman). The only reason I can think of that this movie isn't more ingrained in pop culture is that it was just a little too adult for the youngest viewers at the time it came out, which wouldn't make much of a difference in today's society, but it did then.
Still, it has Mel Blanc (it may have been one of his final movies), Frank Sinatra, the original voice of Betty Boop...the original voice of Megatron from "Transformers" (Frank Welker) as Dumbo, some hilarious easter eggs, and is a great sendup of the films & cartoons of days gone by. (Bonus: Bart Simpson's voice was the voice of the squeaky toon shoe that gets "dipped")
In some ways, this movie was ahead of its time. I kind of see some parallels between "Roger Rabbit" & "Ready Player One" in its homage to past pop culture but also sending it up a little bit at the same time.
This has been the funniest episode of the season by far. I laughed out loud so many different times. Krieger's outfit, the insults, every time Ray wanted to double the bet... good stuff.
This movie is still fun, all these years later. Watched it with my kids last night and they laughed at a lot of it. Even my littlest twins (3 yrs old) found some funny parts. A little crude at some moments and the premise is a little more disturbing in this day & age than it seemed at the time, but it's a good reminder of how fun Goldie Hawn & Kurt Russell were to watch in their prime and the chemistry they had together.
This, to me, is the funniest episode of the entire series and the height of the show's writing, plotting and execution. The "surrogate", the "mole", the suit, the Japanese investors, Gob's plan, Rita's "secret", everything just came together and paid off perfectly. I love this show.
I HATED HATED HATED this movie. I was 10 when it came out and my friend and I saw it on opening day. When Optimus Prime was killed (at the beginning of the film, no less!) I kept waiting for him to come back. And waiting. And waiting. Then the movie ended and my friend & I went home & couldn't believe he was dead. It was a very emotionally-scarring experience easily on par with "Old Yeller". As a result I've never watched it again. Turns out I wasn't the only one with a bad reaction to that. I've read since that Mattel killed Prime off in the movie as a way to introduce the new toy line. They were planning to do the same thing to Duke in a "GI Joe" animated movie that same year for the same reason, but the reaction from kids & parents to Prime's death was so negative, they scrapped the idea of killing Duke and never released the GI Joe movie to theaters. They rewrote/animated it and released in a "made-for-TV" movie instead. Oh, if only they had figured that out before releasing Transformers! Did they not do ANY test screenings of this film with kids (their main target audience) beforehand?
(sigh). OK. I'm good now. I've been waiting almost 30 years to vent that.
Woof. Parents & grown-ups beware, this one is for the kids only. Felt like a soft launch for a Saturday morning cartoon series. Ties into characters & moments from the film series but seems to be missing the actual fun & funny from the movies.
Easily the biggest superhero movie ever made. Every… single… one… of your favorite Marvel movie heroes come together to battle a villain bigger than they’ve ever faced before. Can any movie live up to this level of anticipation?
Well, speaking as a comic book nerd, when I finished this movie the word that kept going through my mind was “WOW.” What directors Joe and Anthony Russo have managed to pull off with this movie is remarkable. “INFINITY WAR” is the culmination of 10 years and EIGHTEEN other movies, with everything coming to a head in this film as the powerful purple bad-guy Thanos (played by Josh Brolin) attempts to gather all the infinity stones, (which if you didn’t know, are powerful gems that will allow him to wipe out half of the universe’s population.) All the superheroes, including the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, Doctor Strange and even Spider-Man will try and stop him. Needless to say, there’s a LOT going on. But, to avoid spoiling anything (and there are MAJOR story points that can be spoiled), I’ll stop there.
Here are some things I liked: I LOVED seeing all the heroes in the same movie. I was impressed with how the directors were able to get everyone at least a moment, and most of them get meaningful moments, in my opinion. But what’s even better is that each cool moment actually seemed to fit naturally as part of the story--nothing really felt forced. In this movie, the team-ups and character interactions are very often hilarious, sometimes emotional, but always in service of the story, something very important in a movie that is as long as this one is because you can’t waste screen time. "Infinity War" was very entertaining and had me feeling lots of different emotions. Finally, they really have a great villain in Thanos. He’s not a mustache twirling old-time bad guy. He has his reasons for what he’s doing and they are compellingly presented—plus, he’s powerful enough to raise the stakes to a level that justifies bringing all the heroes into the same movie.
But, there are a few things I should warn you some of you about… especially if you have younger kids. The questions I’ve been asked most often since seeing the movie is “Does someone die? And who?”. Obviously I’m not going to answer that second question, but the answer to question 1 is YES. And if you planned on taking younger kids, you need to be aware of that. Remember, we’ve spent years getting to know these characters, so if something bad happens to any of them it will be emotional for those of us who are invested in them. So be prepared. And the flip side of having all those heroes & actors in the movie, is that it makes it run longer, in this case 2 & 1/2 hours! Keep that in mind because you don’t want to miss the end of this movie--so plan your soda intake accordingly. And finally, you can’t just jump into the series in this chapter like you can with several earlier Marvel movies. You HAVE to watch at least some of the other Marvel movies…and the more the better. And finally, not everything is resolved by the end of the movie--it kind of leaves you feeling like you did the first time you saw "Empire Strikes Back" (but I mean that in a good way).
But those warnings aside, I LOVED “Avengers: Infinity War”. It was fun, funny, exciting, shocking and emotional. It was an epic payoff for all the time and investment I’ve put into the Marvel Cinematic Universe over the past decade. If you are excited about this movie at all, I believe you will leave the theater satisfied. I give this 4 out of 4 stars for Marvel movie fans. For everyone else… well, it really doesn’t matter because you can’t (and honestly, probably WON’T) see this movie without having watched other Marvel movies first.
And a suggestion: Go see it as soon as possible to avoid having the best moments spoiled for you—accidentally or otherwise.
This episode made me laugh, no doubt, with the meta joke being that Nellie (who MIGHT be Michael's sister) is played by Jason Bateman's real-life sister (Justine Bateman--famous for playing Mallory on "Family Ties"). This creates a funny, but very uncomfortable will-they-or-won't-they dynamic in this episode.
"Away. I'm sure you mean 'she blew everyone away'."
This might be my favorite western movie of all time. A stellar cast, a great story...it even made me believe that Kevin Kline could be a cowboy, and a pretty kick a** one at that! Great musical theme by Bruce Broughton that I can still listen to and enjoy 30+ years later. Worth taking the time to watch it!
Just watching Ryan Reynolds sing "I Swear" in a fat suit is worth the watch. The hockey scene with all the kids, while over-the-top, still laugh-out-loud funny. This movie rings true for anyone who has ever been put in the "friend zone".
