As the Oscars grow increasingly irrelevant and a shell of it's former golden Hollywood days, the limp dick Academy has opted to create an "Achievement In Popular Film" category, as well as a shorter show time and other changes. The details and eligibility for nominations are to be announced later. As viewership continues to plummet every year, this year's being an all time low, some pointing to streaming or politics as the perpetrators, ABC and those running the show are in total panic mode. If they continue digging into their rut, they would probably have to end the Oscars completely. I am completely against adding this category and it just serves as more proof how out of touch these people are. By creating this separate "achievement," it highlights a slue of conflicts. One, they're aware they don't recognize "blockbusters" or any movies general audiences like as real films. Two, movies like Mad Max: Fury Road will now have the privilege of being shoved out of the Best Picture nomination and instead lumped into shit like The Smurfs, because, this is "most popular" film, right? The Smurfs made like a billion dollars, that means it has a chance of winning an Oscar now. This is the same shit that happened with the Best Animated Film category, masterful works of art like Loving Vincent have no shot at even touching the Best Picture award. However, if they consider Fury Road artful enough to get a Best Picture nod, people will still complain why didn't X blockbuster also get nominated? This will still cause debate about what counts as an award worthy film. Three, what the hell defines "most popular?" The box office or the critical reception? Are we going to gauge the popularity based on the extremely outdated Tomatometer:tm: or the "rigged" audience score? How about the flawed "Cinemascore" system that only weighs initial reactions of a film from literally walking out of the theater? Four, just adding this category at all is shady and screams desperate. We need other categories made first well before a popularity contest. How 'bout following The Golden Globes' footsteps and making genre based wins? Best action movie? Best drama? That way at least each type of film has a shot at getting recognition. The Oscars have always been shit, but this "attempt" at staying relevant is only going to sink them lower. Now Disney owns two wins of the night, since all the most popular movies made now are distrusted by Disney, and they always win the Animation award. No coincidence ABC, who runs the show, is owned by Disney. They've already thrown obviously endorsed lame Star Wars skits into past shows, but this is no longer a celebration of the best of Hollywood. This is a money driven popularity contest, and I hate it. Black Panther will get the win so they can scream black empowerment, even though the film is odious filth.
why are we still here? just to suffer?
Why was this not nominated for any awards? I'm being genuine, why not? There are parts of the story I would tweak (it's basically Rob Zombie's Bonnie and Clyde), but everything else is masterfully done. Phil Parmet's signature claustrophobic and dirty cinematography had me commenting how great the shots were every other second. The dialogue is sharp and on point, as usual, like, I will be quoting some of the shit in this movie for years on end, this is one of the best scripts ever written. "Boy, the next word that comes out of your mouth better be some brilliant fuckin' Mark Twain shit. 'Cause it's definitely getting chiseled on your tombstone." Zombie has made a reputation for himself of only doing "low-brow" Grindhouse type films, but there's something about them I'm hopelessly attracted to. Zombie's main goal is to entertain the viewer, and I think he excels in doing that in every project he's done. I walk away marveled at the direction, remembering the characters, and downloading the soundtrack. It is unfortunate, I will say, he doesn't take on more accessible genres, so his work gets seen by more people. Even though I loved this, I wouldn't recommend to, say, my grandmother. A shame his clever screenplays are limited to a niche genre within a niche genre. But to say his filmmaking is bad is just dishonest. You want to see a bad movie? Compare the shoot-out openings from both Texas Chainsaw 3D and The Devil's Rejects. You may not have realized it, but the difference is that huge. At least he gets enough funding from his fans and album sales to continue doing whatever he wants. So, the question, should you watch it? Depends how sick you like your horror, or if you'll like be morally conflicted about liking these psychopathic murderous leads. It's the equivalent of genuinely caring for Leatherface and not wanting to see him die. That's why I compare it to Bonnie and Clyde, it takes the side of the criminals, this movie being a huge risk, but pulls it off. There's a bearing resemblance to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid too; example, the final shot is exactly the same. It may sound weird, but once you see Captain Spaulding and Baby clamoring for Tuity Fruity ice cream, there's no going back.
this is the best fucking movie I've seen in 2018, what the fucking fuck! ! ! This is how you do a parody/children's movie/superhero genre destroying epic (if that's even a type of movie). I was smiling within the first five seconds and it carried through almost the entire damn thing. Like, I don't even watch the show and I hate the state of superhero films, but... this made me excited about superheroes. I was bopping my head to the songs, I was feeling at the feels moments, I was howling at the excellent, and actually clever, meta humor. This is one of the most original children's films I've seen in years, despite that it's plot structure is actually fairly basic and predictable. This enters the reigns of The LEGO Movie in representing a very surprising upset, coming from an joke franchise to proving itself it has worth. To all the haters detracting the movie on social media, yelling you want the original show back, go see it. There's even a surprise mid-credit scene you may like. Teen Titans GO! To the Movies is a very welcome and fun sleeper hit that will please anyone who goes and sees it, nerd, geeks, adults, children, the world will bask in it's fast paced take down that leaves no topic unscathed. It's all here, everything it could take down it does. The animation even hilariously switches depending on the film or show it's referencing, and it happens often. The amount of properties it flirts with borders on indecipherable and will require it's own wiki page. I was rooting for the characters, it gave me a reason to care, I was laughing with them on their ridiculous plights, and used a cool subtle jab at the Hollywood machine as it's invisible enemy. I loved this movie, I just wish it was longer and tried ever so slightly harder to avoid it's clichés. Thankfully, they don't detract much the entertainment value. Who wants to start an Oscar campaign for this movie? If fucking Boss Baby can get in, this can and will. Let's start that crusade, just like the Titans.
also, Back to the Future reference was a nice touch. they paid the royalties for the songs, I love it.
I'm shocked. A balls deep, nonplussing emotional, clever horror trip with some shocks and pleasant punches. It seems studios are taking a look at their failed first installments, i.e. Ouija, now Unfriended, and actually making the effort to improve upon what didn't work. I say, it's a welcome surprise. From the trailer alone, I wanted nothing to do with Dark Web, I was laughing at the concept (and screaming at the normies), but meanwhile praising the teaser of similar project Searching. I walked in this expecting to hate it, but as it slowly built up, I found myself enjoying it. Stephen Susco's directorial debut, who he previously wrote the two Grudge remakes, pulls so meaty and slick twists. I'm not sure how much research he did into the dark web, but he kept the reality faithful enough with only taking a few liberties. It still bugs me they use the glitchy static whenever something evil is "on-screen." It wouldn't distort, it would just lag and buffer. But the nitpicks aside, they go it where it counts. They even implemented Remote Desktop Control, I love it. The type of blocking Susco implements with programs being open and shit made me roll my head back smiling at how ingenious some of it was. A livestream would be open on one tab will be playing a camera from one angle, but then on another tab hidden under in the corner will start showing something moving on same stream, meanwhile a message comes up in the other corner of the screen. It's difficult to explain, this was an elaborate set up, I can't imagine pulling all these elements together, but that part where Serena has to pick between her girlfriend or her mom had me rolling. But said having said that, it could lead into one of the bigger issues with movie, and I didn't much care for the six lead characters. Oh, they sure try, they try to make me care, and it works at a few parts. But, half the time, despite how evil (and grossly unrealistic) their actions, I was rooting for the Charon's to take the step further. Come on, hacking into Aj's computer and playing a shotgun cock sound as his house is getting swatted so he gets shot? Terrible, but I was near screaming in the theater. I won't say anything else they do, but it gets way better. There wasn't as much violence as I expected (hardly any blood), but the fast pace and twisted scenarios sufficed any bloodshed. Susco outdid himself on the direction. Just a mouse cursor spinning rapidly to capture the emotions of the character you can't see on camera, little details like that make this brilliant. It's full of 'em. If you were having any doubts about this like I was, it could surprise you. A fun and stirring little experience. Based on the ending, it really should've been called Game Night. Guess they had to change it after another release came out this year.
Alright, after seeing it 7 times now, I can definitively say this is one of the best movies I've ever seen and probably the best monster movie ever created. I absolutely love every single thing about this movie. No complaints from me on any level, from the characters, the music, the performances, the visual effects, Evangelion inspired shot choices, the editing, bright color palettes, fucking everything. I can't get enough of this masterpiece. I really can't. I keep watching little parts of it on a daily basis.
I actually tear up now when I see Lt. Hank Marlow return home to his family. Such a sweet moment.
10/10 everything. I don't know how the Monsterverse cinematic movies can impress any further. They've raised the bar so high up now.
Watched it this time with my grandmother... yeah, really. To my surprise and amusement, she liked it a lot. After going on a personal marathon watching the later Saw movies, it's almost jarring how tame James Wan and Leigh Whannel's original is in comparison. Hardly any gore is shown and anything extreme is kept cut away or tastefully presented. This low budget endeavor relies a lot on the writing and fast editing from Kevin Greutert. It's already a classic, so I don't need to explain any details or make a recommendation. I remember my parents walked out of the theater, originally, in complete shock at the twist that came way out of left field. As giddy as I get at the sight of gratuitous and silly hardcore violence, I love how restrained and accessible the one that started it all is. Bring on Aquaman.
This movie... is now 20 years old... fuck, I feel old. Feels like just yesterday I was watching the DVD's for the classic Pokémon movies, I mean, before they got rid of Misty and Brock. I've since seen this movie on the big screen, watched Pokémon GO get released, and now a live action Pikachu movie go into production. The memories I've had with 4Kids, Pokémon, and Yu-Gi-Oh! are experiences I will never forget. I stopped watching after the fifth movie and 4Kids stopped dubbing, but I still look back on this with a fondness. I may grow up and mature, but I'll always hold a little place in my heart for this series. It's so weird now to refer to these movies as classic or more than ten years old, let alone twenty.
I haven't watched a movie in a couple days, just a little busy with work, but it's tradition to keep showing this classic. I'm a fan of Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin's films, as controversial as they can be, but the one everyone universally gathers around is their 1996 hit, Independence Day. A smash hit at the box office, the biggest movie in the world, about America, no, the world's independence from extraterrestrial life. While full of quips and stock characters, the action, world building, and surprisingly poignant drama has stood this movie the test of time. The sequel may have came and went, but Bill Pullman's speech will never die. May everyone have a good 4th of July, and let's just have a moment for one of the best speeches ever.
Good morning. In less than an hour, aircraft from here will join others from around the world. And you will be launching the largest aerial battle in this history of mankind. Mankind, that word should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore. We will be united in our common interests. Perhaps its fate that today is the 4th of July, and you will once again be fighting for our freedom, not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution, but from annihilation. We're fighting for our right to live, to exist. And should we win the day, the 4th of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day when the world declared in one voice: We will not go quietly into the night! We will not vanish without a fight! We're going to live on! We're going to survive! Today, we celebrate our Independence Day!
Decent little short, but the jackasses in my theater wouldn't shut up. Even during the moments clearly meant to tug on the heart strings, everyone was laughing. Have audiences become so used to jokes that they expect nothing but mind numbing stimuli when they go to the theater? I guess screw everyone who's wanting to make it big telling dramatic stories. Yes, there are parts of this short that are clearly humorous, but I'm talking the emotional climax. I was ready to walk out, it was so bad. Cinema is dead.
I say this as a life long fan of Brad Bird, and I mean watching The Iron Giant when I was five, Incredibles 2 is rushed. No, it's very rushed. This is his most amateurish work to date, including Tomorrowland, which I believe is a unfairly maligned movie. My guess as to what happened here, Disney looked at their release schedule for 2018 and 2019, and noticed both this and Toy Story 4 were supposed to come out the same year. To make sure they capitalize their profits as much as they can, I bet they pushed Bird to release it a year early. As a result, the long awaited sequel to one of the surprise underdog hits of Pixar's line-up is lacking a lot of detail and the epic heart of it's predecessor. This feels like one of those direct-to-video sequels that Disney liked to pump out incessantly from the early 90's to late 2000's. The plot has about the weight of a television episode, the characters lack a lot of the intrigue previously seen, and the direction is very stock at times. Half the time, I forgot I was watching a Brad Bird production, his usual trademarks are missing in this. Even just the wee details I appreciate, such as these two guys' cameos, are nowhere to be seen. The most Birdiam-esque feelings I would get are the brief villain moments, like the seizure inducing, literally, fight in the apartment, the monologue, and one-on-one talk on the plane towards the end. But just, I don't know, I didn't really care about anything that was going on. There's some sweet little scenes with Par and the kids, including his amending with Violet, plus the fan service of seeing the family's reaction to Jack Jack's powers. None of it's bad, but comes off swapable. A lot of it is generic family fare, just done with Brad Bird's style. You may enjoy that, but I was looking for something much more special, especially coming from the man himself in the same franchise. Where's the scene that tops Par's heartbreaking revelation that all his friends are dead? Not only that, but murdered by the villain, and he watches the screen as he sees their names marked off. There is no such scenario in this, nothing comes close. It appears they took the VERY surface level political attributes from the first movie, and just decided to make that the childish plot around that. It's like a child's understanding of what made the first movie clever and it becomes redundant. Supers were already kind of coming out of hiding by the end of the first movie. To retread that old ground, bring back up the Underminer villain cliffhanger, only to not do anything with it and not acknowledge it after the opening scene, makes this almost feel like a fanfiction like remake. The magic just isn't there. The new villain is incredibly (haha) forgettable and replaceable. She barely has any connection to the heroes, and the dinky thread she does have is copied from Syndrome, but there's no big comeuppance for her, just, nothing. She's just thrown in jail without much word about it, then the film just ends. Believe me when I say, my heart almost sank when I heard the end score play so early after the final fight. It couldn't have been over that quickly, but it was. The saving grace this sequel boasts is it's very imaginative action, adequate set pieces, and some shining little character bits. But holy wow, this needed a rewrite or two and another year of production.
Okay, I survived maybe twenty to thirty minutes before I walked out. That's the quickest I've ever bailed on a piece of shit. My tolerance level is going down sharply after the past few months of unrelenting dreck being thrown at my face. The only positive I can muster up from Breaking In, is it's a great tool for students to use in class. Every single little facet is done wrong, from the piss poor attempts at writing to lack of creativity in the direction. I've read rejected scripts in my Screenwriting class that sounded more interesting than what was approved to be shot here. Also, just a tip for producers now, and specifically Universal, if you are not even going to try creating likable characters, at least show them going out in grotesque ways. If this is a horror movie with shit characters, at least give me something else worthwhile, something I can think about on the drive home. When I see a woman getting her throat slit, and you cut away so you don't show anything, that's when I walk out.
Eh, it was fine. Appears to be like the stock "bad people in house" starter pack school project I've seen done in many others like it. The saving grace is just the couple of twists that keep it interesting, like the reveal of the family auctioning for ideal people, moreso their talents. However, a win for best screenplay? Absolutely not, I thought A Cure for Wellness did it's writing better. I compare the two because the stories are a slightly similar. I fail to see what's so amazing about this, other than Jordan Peele's direction. And no, I didn't watch expecting to hate it, nor do I hate it. It just underwhelms me a little.
Now I'm really out of stuff to say. A terribly predictable script that's held up by it's direction and score. Paco Plaza uses lots of good shots and plays with his scenes, even if what's happening doesn't advance anything. They make for good moments. An example, Verónica walking down the street, but everything's going backwards, then forwards and back. Or the trick with her walking out of bed, when she's actually standing up, is a nice transition. I've seen used in a commercial before. I just appreciate it's a visually interesting movie. The characters are likable enough that you don't want to see them picked off, but not anyone I'll be writing thesis essays about. It's your The Conjuring family again. If you happened to notice this on Netflix, it's not bad if you turn it on, but you're better off renting Lights Out or Deliver Us From Evil if you crave something more spicy.
Bill Skarsgård was in this movie and there was not one Pennywise reference. Writers, you have failed me.
Wow, I am really on the fence about this one. I don't have much to say about this, just, if you enjoyed the first, you'll be fawning all over this one. It's better. I'm not a fan of Tim Miller's original, mostly because of the constant meta humor and terrible, inconsequential story. It just didn't click with me. Making a jab at a popular movie that recently came out isn't clever writing. Deadpool 2 is exactly what you would expect of a sequel that thrives off a film built on fourth wall jokes and inappropriate gags. It's the reason you're in your seat. Thankfully, the jokes are actually more respectful this time around and not as often as expected. The Take-On Me piece is the best thing to come out of the movie; I chuckled. And Cable makes for a great character, actually much more so than the Wade Wilson. Josh Brolin nails every role he's in, which is why I wanted more of him. He's a tragic anti-hero, but unfortunately, his struggles aren't given much attention. He brushes all his reason for being there in the last scene (yes, I get what they were doing), but lacked in any satisfying wrap up for his arc. We instead have to focus on the lamest, eye-roll inducing fat kid, Russel, and his quandary at his abusive orphanage. It's so lame and not interesting, but we're forced to endure it, because it ties back to Deadpool's relationship with his wife. It's the center of the movie, and I couldn't give less of a fuck. They could've gotten a better actor, or something. Given more screen time to the horrible crimes the orphanage is committing, but just, I did not care. And at times, it seems the movie didn't either. There's a few subplots that briefly come up, only to be swept under the rug only minutes later. Whatever happened to the kids Negasonic Teenage Warhead were saving in the finale? What happened to the orphanage, or Russel for that matter, after the battle was over? It might be looking for things that aren't there, but the story felt incomplete. It's a cryptic and broken script that's copying Guardians Of The Galaxy and The Terminator, missing any kind of emotion. This should've been all about Cable, not Deadpool making dumb jokes as a guy gets cut up in a shredder. If you just want a silly action movie, with subpar work of John Wick director David Leitch, pounded together with wacky and gross humor, you will like it. It just didn't do much for me. Not going to remember it in a week.
I'm surprised this one is rated so much lower than the first. I find it better. The writers have found their footing on what they want the franchise to be, creating a genuinely interesting crime thriller, just with loads of more gore than the previous. Tobin Bell makes for an excellent character, without having to overact like other villains in the genre, but it's the twist and story that's unexpectedly fantastic. One of the better written scripts for a horror film, every element comes back in some way. This is a classic I keep coming back to every so often, the characters are fascinating to watch. The score by Charlie Clouser is chilling and classic, completing the haunting tone. On top of which, I love the color palette of dark greens David A. Armstrong and Darren Lynn Bousman chose for this one. Each film seems to have it's own colors. The first had a blue and white scheme, the third a more brown and orange, the fourth and blue and red, and so on. It's oddly deliciously appetizing, in it's dirtiness. If you somehow haven't checked this out, you should. It's much more than what you would expect.
Okay, if you've followed me for a while, you know I would never sell out my voice for money or clicks. I don't construe my feelings to be contrarian, and I've stated a number of times I don't enjoy hating. Oh sure, A Quiet Place looks fantastic in comparison to the relentless gluttony dispenser of superhero blockbusters, but what about it's own? John Krasinski creates a well crafted picture: it looks and sounds great, although it cheats by making everyday sounds artificially quieter. But, I can't help feel the short run time, and plot holes that are coins gushing out of a slot machine, more than you can carry, rot the spine of what otherwise is an intriguing concept. An apocalypse of monsters that seem unstoppable, attracted by simple noises? Having just seen the teaser, I was itching to see what could be done with a story like this. There were, almost literally, a couple seconds of what I could consider worthwhile achievements. The location and cinematography is excellent, using tricky lighting and blocking, but only serves as the means of telling a very cliched story. I don't understand it. How was it that I was bored through this? This has been done better in so many other monster movies, even from Platinum Dunes' own catalogue. What about Signs? None of the characters were interesting, which could be accounted by their lack of speaking, but even performance wise. I didn't create a connection to any of just the cast of six characters. Krasinski is the most intense, but we don't know anything about his past life. What was Emily Blunt's occupation before this? What did they like to do for fun? Have they always lived at this farm? What is the political and social ramifications of the catastrophe on the rest of the world? What did the kids do before the invasion? Where are the creatures even coming from? What sounds can the monsters pick up and why do they not attack at some of them? We don't know. I can appreciate it just focuses on the crucial events, like an old horror movie from the seventies (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre), but it's hard for me to care about a creature coming to attack when I don't care if someone is going to be killed, not even the newborn baby. If you want an example of killing a child done better, just go to the recent IT. It guts you watching Georgie get sucked below the streets, because it took the time and carefully put an emotional tie between the lead, Billy. It's tried here, but to a lesser extent. The writers have already announced a sequel, so maybe the budget will be much larger to expand the world of this universe, but money is no excuse. 10 Cloverfield Lane had nothing, and that boasted an incredible creepy narrative. I nearly laughed when Krasinski screamed and sacrificed himself, while the daughter just stared with her gaping mouth open. And, again, my issue's not the under utilization of it's possibilities, but just that I wasn't able to care about anything going on. Everyone just seemed so flat. And especially more of a problem, when the weakness is so obvious, and shown in a silly way, it makes the monsters all less terrifying. I believe, a spectacularly wasted use of a great idea, most likely just getting praise for not being a Marvel movie.
"Because I need to get off this island, to solve the Map No Man Can Read. Lucky I'm a woman."
This is an actual line of dialogue.
Quentin Tarantino Presents
A Lamer Version of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Remake
Meh, I'm conflicted. The music is surprisingly great, and it takes itself a great deal seriously, there's a section in the final act you may get emotional at. Eli Roth has an eye for visuals, and effectively builds tension, but there's not much going on that I really cared about. If you're just looking for some gore and fun, you'll get it. Quentin Tarantino, Eli Roth, and Robert Rodriguez all love this kind of shit, and I do too, but man, the characters needed work. Lack of anything going on in the second act. The only amusing segments are at beginning, and last half hour. I find it hysterical, though, Roth considered this his Kill Bill, being presented in two volumes. Will I watch part two? Probably. I'm a sucker for their shit. The Green Inferno, here I come.
I got about what I was expecting, and I like it a lot. I had my eye on this from the first time I saw the trailer; I loved the idea. Now that it's been released, and promptly bombed at the box office, is it worth spending an overpriced ticket to go see? Based on my values, I say go with MoviePass, discount Tuesday, or wait to buy it when it's less expensive. Don't let that warning dissuade you from seeing it, I'm just sick of these ridiculously high prices. Bad Samaritan has a lot going for it. It's Dean Devlin's best movie, it's David Tennant's best performance ever, and the script is incredibly creepy and interesting, borrowing a couple ingredients from Psycho and The Silence Of The Lambs. It aims for the mainstream sensibilities at a time or two, but I was happy that it treated itself seriously for the majority of it's two hours. It has an engaging concept, that employs most of it's potential. It like keeps track of everything the audience may pick out as something that could've happened, and actually follows up on it. Quick example, Tennant opens a video chat with the robber? He takes a screenshot as evidence, instead of just closing the phone in fear, or some shit. The two leads are robbers, who cleverly break into people's houses using their valet cars, but then they come across one who happens to be a sadomasochist or a murder. I totally dug this, and Devlin executed it carefully, with great editing and set pieces. The characters acted with realism, like real people. There's something about the way these actors are directed that make it leagues better than what Truth Or Dare did. Robert Sheehan pulls out an unexpected vigorous performance as the robber who feels guilt for what he's done before, and now wants to help this victim. You feel genuine sadness for this man, I did not expect this. I was just heading in rooting for Tennant to destroy everything and win. The finale in the snow is one of the better climaxes in the past few years, beautiful design. All the tension built from the past two acts encapsulates in a stand-off. The big problem is it's undercut by a totally out-of-place joke. I get what they were setting up, I even just realized that, but still doesn't change that all the tension I felt had been ruined by it. However, if you're searching an original, gravely creepy thriller that utilizes a lot of it's premise, believable performances from the entire cast, and unforgettable set pieces, seek this one out.
FUCK
So, here's the thing: I grew up with a family dog. That means this movie is automatically great, because I have a deep, emotional attachment to the character's identity on-screen. I've never told anyone this, I've never typed it before, but you're all hearing it first, courtesy of me. Let me tell you about myself, instead of informing you about the quality of the movie. I'm in college, a film student, and an inspired fan of Wes Anderson's grossly overused and distracting aesthetic. I love the colors purple and orange, I'm a great driver, and I'm working on a novel, but I'm having writer's block. Wes Anderson is all I hear about in class, which I really appreciate. He's so much better than other "filmmakers" out there, with his gorgeous CINEMATOGRAPHY, and his phenomenal DIRECTION, he's the biggest auteur in the business right now, not like scumbags like Michael Bay, who are just ruining this industry. I got emotionally connected from the first frame of this movie, when I recognized Anderson's flat and symmetrical art style. Literal chills and goosebumps. From there, it was a roller-coaster of epidemic proportions. You aren't ready for these feels. We need a movie like this, in the current year we live in. When, by executive decree, all the canine pets of Megasaki City are exiled to a vast garbage-dump called Trash Island, 12-year-old Atari sets off alone in a miniature Junior-Turbo Prop and flies across the river in search of his bodyguard-dog, Spots. There, with the assistance of a pack of newly-found mongrel friends, he begins an epic journey that will decide the fate and future of the entire Prefecture. Overall, I would recommend this film.
i'm gonna go shoot my head off now
This movie wants to be The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and humans rights documentary at the same time, resulting in a tone confused mix of emotions. There's not something glaringly wrong with Traffik, but following the theater exit, I just asked, "What was the point of it?" Supposedly, it's to spread awareness about human trafficking, but the way this plays out as almost of remake of the first The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, then to suddenly switch to an ultra serious dark, is a bold and interesting move, but nothing about this screams either enjoyable or informative. It's a weird hodge podge, is this a horror movie? I guess, but not a fun or, really, scary one. Is it a documentary about human trafficking? Not really, it just closes on a black text stating how many women are trafficked, right before the movie ends. I'm very conflicted on how I feel. This isn't bad, the characters are surprisingly likable, I never hated watching it, but man, it leaves a peculiar taste in your mouth.
It's funny, Mae's biggest fear established at the beginning of this movie, about untapped potential, perfectly summarizes the core problem here. Never read the book, never going to, I think this presents some interesting points about companies like Google, and the internet's invasion of our privacy, but that does not automatically make for great cinema. Ideas, in it of itself, doesn't suffice. Execution is key. We get disastrous levels of writing, televisual direction, and cringe-inducing performances, all take center stage in The Circle.
Was disappointing. Had the production value of a big-budget television movie, but somehow, this was released in theaters, during the 3-D gimmick era of 2009. Only saving grace are the deaths, but you get the same creative shit from the Friday the 13th series. Just don't bother.
I'M GOING TO BUY ALL THE TOYS RIGHT NOW, DON'T CARE IF IT MAKES ME LOOK LIKE A LOSER. THIS MOVIE IS SO DAMN WONDERFUL, I'M AT LOSS FOR IT'S MONUMENTOUS GLORY. THIS IS THE BLOCKBUSTER EVENT OF THE SUMMER, SCREW INFINITY WAR. SEE A NON-STOP BARRAGE OF INSANE MONSTER ON MONSTER ACTION. THE AGE OF KAIJU TAKING OVER HOLLYWOOD IS NOW.
I'm sorry Blumhouse, a big fan of yours, but people, PLEASE DO NOT GO WATCH BLUMHOUSE'S TRUTH OR DARE. A 2018 horror movie... relying on this many clichés. No attempt at writing any character development, or, well, there's plenty of half-baked ass moments to "define" this collection of sad fucks. "Oh, see look! That Asian guy is the gay one! He's going to come out to his dad! Our main character is just a super nice gal in a bad situation. She's going to do something rotten by the end. Her roommate is a stuck-up meanie, but it's just because of a misunderstanding. What's that? You don't care? You want to see them all die in gruesome and horrific ways? Sorry! This is a PG-13 movie, we're not going to show any violence. Please suffer through our god-awful script, to finally watch a character die, but you won't get to see the details!" Effectively, they made it so there's nothing here to satisfy anyone. It's all equally degenerate. The only reason you see a movie like this, is for the gore and blood, let's be real. This anal sauce is trying to act like it has a deep script or some shit, so it doesn't need violence to sell itself. I'm sorry, that's the main reason your audience bought their tickets to come see this, not watch teenagers take selfies. I love the horror genre, I seriously do, but I have standards. This is one of the worst movies I've ever tried to get through; I failed. Shame on Blumhouse for trying to parade this fecal matter around, proudly stamping their name on the cover. Of all movies, this one? I'm frustrated and monumentally disappointed.
The biggest relief I can say about Ready Player One is it works, even without the never-ending barrage of pop culture nostalgia. Upset across all social media platforms, a concern I took part in, was the movie had no identity to show for itself, that it relied heavily on better films from the 80's to sell itself. I do not think the comments I made were bad or outdated now, as it is important to criticize art, but I can happily say I did enjoy this movie's core, even without the aid of the surface eye candy. This is the most Spielberg movie that man has made in quite awhile, after such masterpieces like The BFG. It follows the standard hero's journey he's used a number of times, this closely paralleling E.T., which was a welcome return. This is the director I fell in love with, and it seems he knew how to take the disaster of a book this is adapted from, and create an entertaining blockbuster. My bigger hiccups about the picture, are one or two tasteless scenes, specially the haunted house rendition of Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. It's a crowd-pleaser moment, understandably, but something about it's total disregard for the meanings from the original film almost come off as disrespectful. It's the closest the movie touched the "Hey, remember this thing you recognize?!" predicament I was fearing before watching. I think a more shallow movie, hell Grease would've worked much better, could fix this. Any other issues I had could be pointed at it's predictability, and over-reliance on filling the run-time with references, some of which don't advance the story much. I could see what they were doing, showing Wade being smarter than everyone else in the game, but having him list off stuff like it's a references checklist is where it can get half-assed. But most of the callbacks are respectful and work, they did their research, thankfully. No cringe shit like Marvel Studios' Black Panther's, "What're those?!" Just end me. Happy to just say I've seen another blockbuster in four months that I didn't hate. I'm going to remember that opening race, good shit. And, I geeked out like hell when MechaGodzilla was fighting The Iron Giant. It makes no sense, but I understand that's the point.
I'm really struggling to give this film a higher score. It's excellently done, the slow tension is magnificent, the music is memorable, and Jason Clarke is one of my new favorite actors. John Curran nails the slow-burn vibe I crave. My chest was heavy the minute the car flipped into the water, up 'til the end titles. The 1970's production design, layering on top the acting from the entire cast is terrific. It's not an epic like JFK, that leaves the audience questioning the events long after they've left the theater, but it gets the job done. I think the one set-back I feel with Chappaquiddick is length. What brilliant presentation we're given is undercut by a short story. Some of you could say that's good, I loved what was done and just wanted more, but I seriously think the run-time hurts my overall satisfaction. Just twenty minutes more could bump this up. I still love what was done, ignoring this personal qualm. The sense of loss and personal connection to Ted Kennedy you feel throughout the film is exquisite. Definitely check it out, just expect a short, but good story.
A Cure For Wellness but not AS riveting... or striking. The camera-work is great, all the shots are made to look like they're recorded by a guy hiding from faraway or from a security camera. A couple creepy ideas, held back by derivative script and monstrously lackluster third act; just nothing too special to become a modern classic. However, certainly worth checking over other trash-fires out now.
How dare they disrespect the late Bill Paxton by titling the movie... Game Over, Man! It doesn't even make sense in context of the script, there are no references to Aliens in this. Makes me sick, we're so desperate for nostalgia bait, we're resorting to quotes from much better films. Count me out. Netflix is the new platform for straight-to-video movies. Very fitting given the level of quality being dumped onto it. There's a scene where a man eats another man's hairy ass, right on-screen, and I just felt so dirty, that I was watching it.
GnomeBusters
Gnome With The Wind
The Invisible Gnome
Gnome Night
12 Angry Gnomes
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Gnome
The Silence Of The Gnomes
Gnome And See
Gnome Alone
Only Gnome Forgives
Gnomes Of New York
Running With The Gnomes
RoboGnome
Gnomerise Kingdom
Mission Impossible: Gnome Protocal
Gnome Torino
Gnome Of Steel
Shin Gnomezilla
Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Gnome's Chest
Gnome: A Star Wars Story
The Lego Gnome Movie
Lara Croft Gnome Raider
How The Gnome Stole Christmas
Gnome In The Shell
The Gnome Who Leapt Through Time
Neon Gnomesis Evangelion
And just simply... The Gnome Movie.