The Nutcracker is fine, but that's it, it's just.... fine.
It feels like the movie doesn't know what it wants to be. It starts in Victorian London, then goes to what is essentially Narnia. It does have a "nutcracker", but he is just like all the other soldiers, except black. There's a ballet montage, a "battle", and family conflict. There's a very intelligent girl, who's the poster child for girls getting into STEM, which was cool.
But, honestly this feels like The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe shoehorned into something vaguely resembling The Nutcracker Suite, but not as good.
With all the live-action remakes that Disney is making, I was hoping for something a whole lot closer to its namesake.
Again, it's not terrible for what it is, but even for what it is, it's just not that exciting or compelling.
The Fabelmans is a great movie. While Sam Fabelman is the main character, this is still an autobiographical story of Spielberg's childhood, his family, discovering movies, and his growth in making films. Spielberg wrote, produced, and directed the film, and it is a masterpiece of direction, sound design, and editing. While I'm not a huge Michelle Williams fan, she was amazing as Sam/Steven's mom, giving an amazing performance in a very physically and emotionally wrought role. Plus she shows off her real piano playing skills.
John Williams did the music, so the sound design and editing of the music with the scenes in the movie, and in Sam's films is beautifully done.
Well worth the watch just as a movie, but all the more for anyone who is a fan of Steven Spielberg's and would appreciate how he came to love making movies.
I like Mila Kunis, but this is a terrible movie. I empathize for why the main character is a terrible person, but she has no redeeming qualities. And, there is no character arc or growth; she's a terrible person at the start, and an equally terrible person at the end.
I don't understand why a movie like this was even made. It's not liberating, or empowering, much less entertaining.
We the fans waited 19 years for an Indian Jones movie, and we got Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
We the fans waited 18 years to see our captain in action again, and we got the equally disappointing Star Trek: Picard.
This could and should have been a decent made-for-tv movie at 90 minutes, but at over 7 hours, it got lost in it's own bloat and moved at a glacial pace.
Sure, it was nice to see Jean-Luc being a captain again, for 3 minutes in the last episode. And, we got to catch up with a few TNG characters. But, by the last episode, when the climax was ramping up, I really didn't care about any of the characters, or worry about their fate. The epic final battle promised was neither epic, nor a battle. And, when the titular character has a terminal condition as a plot point, I was mostly annoyed at how they drug out his death scene when anyone could see the "big twist" coming a mile away.
I'm sure there will be another season, but not for me.
Sadly, this is a laughably bad ending to the Rambo saga.
This movie has several major twists, which helps it stand out as somewhat original. My problem with it though is, while it tries to have a Funny Games vibe, it doesn't earn the dread that it was looking for. It went too middle of the road between trying to be funny and wanting to be taken seriously that it missed both.
I really do appreciate the attempt, but with some different writing it could have been really great.
The timeline is jacked unless there are carolers out at 1 in the morning. There's no way a 12-year-old could have physically subdued 2 teenage jocks. And how she survives is impossible considering she couldn't move.
I saw a rough screener, and it was rough.
Despite the fact that only 25% of the animation was actually complete, and almost 20% was just story-boards with audio, the story is pretty weak.
Without getting into spoilers, an emoji goes on an adventure through various apps on a phone. While the different worlds of the different apps was entertaining and some of the humor was fun, the plot was generic and lacking.
There is nothing about this movie that makes it worth watching.
This a a really fun movie. It has some hilarious moments, and some great fight scenes. Betty Gilpin was fantastic and needs to get some major props for her performance.
This movie is a satire, it is not supposed to be taken seriously. There are jokes at the expense of all sides of the political spectrum. If you're easily offended, or can't laugh when a joke is made at yours, and other's expense, then this is not the movie for you.
However, I found it to be highly enjoyable. The production value is great. The writing is smart. And, the action scenes are done really well, no stitching together 30 cuts in 2 seconds so you have no idea what's happening.
If you want to see a funny, brutal, satire, I recommend this.
While I enjoy 90's action movies with a some cheesy dialogue and cartoonish action, this is a sad imitation that falls short on almost all fronts. The R-rated violence was fun, and it was nice seeing Phylicia Rashad and Minnie Driver again, Jeremy Irons did the best job with his character.
You could have this on in the background, or make a drinking game of every time someone says "Beekeeper", but don't spend any money to see it..
How is this a "Christmas classic"? This is a terrible, boring movie.
Is this on par with Toy Story 2, no. Is it a well told, true story that the whole family can enjoy, yes.
The animators did a great job with Stubby's expression and mannerisms. He was adorable without distracting from the story of preparing for, and going to war. The relationships and story arcs were all well written. And it's the true story of what a real dog really did.
Over the Hedge did this same plot way better, 8 years before.
