initial thread content
First movie i seen this year was Last Year's AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER.
I came in expecting to hate this but I really enjoyed it. it's fun, it's got interesting and good characters and it's a delight for the eyes. Easily a good movie.
Already ready to forget about it, though.
8/10
Another trans formers movie.
I liked it better than i thought i would. it's got a decent plot, Optimus Prime starts off really angry and shitty then becomes a leader again. the leads were charismatic and it felt like a nice adventure.
Kinda sad that Cheetor and Rhinox had, like, a line each. and no Rattrap. That said, it felt like this one had a pared down cast compared to the Labeoufian and wahlbergian ones (i missed Bumblebee). I appreciated that. It's a lot less confusing.
Also I love Arcee. She's trans, and she's strong, and she's my friend.
Extra note: The pre-credits reveal made me groan and the little brother was talking about beating Bowser on the gameboy, but both Mario games on the gameboy have Mario face Tatanga and Wario respectively.
7/10
A very interesting movie. I'm not sure what to make of it, but i did enjoy it a lot, it's fresh, it's funny, it's unique... all in the best way.
i don't know Wes Anderson very well but this? This I liked. between the framing device, the surreal aesthetic and the fact that the movie sticks to itself so much... It's just real good. one of the standout movies i've seen this year.
9/10
What a fun movie. poppy and anti-authoritarian and touching and it's got a queer romance.
Genuinely baffled this exists (in a good way), genuinely loved it.
It's a bit un-surprising at times but it makes up with havign good heart and some moments that made me cry.
9/10
Well, they learned the right lessons from Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
I quite liked this. the antagonists being """ex"""nazis living in the US was pretty meaningful, the setpieces were fun but not overdone. The CGI didn't look too obvious. the Harrison Ford Revivification effect didn't look awful to me. The Cameos were meaningful. It had some good emotional beats here and there.
it was not amazing but a good solid blockbuster.
7.5/10
So, Mission: Impossible is one of those franchises where i've seen many episodes, they kind of slip off my brain every time but i enjoy them fine while watching them.
This is no different. good stunts, good action, but between the AI gone rogue plot in this ostensibly reasonably grounded universe and the fact that they don't go to the edge with the conceit i wasn't super engaged.
One exception: Pom Klementieff's Paris was absolute platonic ideal Pixel-bait. Wish i had known about her before going in.
Still, i'm probably going to see Part Two and enjoy it just fine. Mission: Impossible. It's just fine.
7/10
So, this is docked the habitual 1 point for being a biopic, which is a genre i don't really respect much due to how often it outright lies and how most people are unaware of it and will consider them The Truth.
Honestly, this is a dry movie. Very apt considering where the Manhattan Project was developed. That said, i quite enjoyed it. They did add some nice flourishes at times and I certainly can empathize with Oppenheimer's moral qualms with being responsible in a way and the face of the atomic bomb.
Also the bit where Albert Einstein's conversation is revealed is real good. In the end, it's an enjoyable movie in a genre i don't like much.
7.5/10
So, this movie was funny, thoughtful and while it did not end Patriarchy, i think it ultimately has a good message.
The second half of the movie was surprising to me and the comedy was solid. I love the character of Alan (of whom there's only one) compare to Ken. While the solution in the movie is........ well, extremely simplistic, it still works within the fiction of the movie imo.
The original song(s?) were pretty good as was the rest of the soundtrack. The Snyder Cut dig made me chuckle knowingly.
9/10
I have not a lot to say about this one. it's a movie, actors were in it. events transpired and only one sex pest cult leader was in a major role as far as i know.
Honestly, i didn't really want to see that one, it looks as disappointingly meh as it was. It just happened that Talk to Me was at an inconvenient time.
to go in more detail, the movie isn't boring per se, just..... dreadfully uninteresting and uninspired.
5/10
A Quebec movie again!
This was lovely, a woman is given the following task by her mother after she passes: find my 5 ex-husbands, and let them scatter some of my ashes somewhere special to them.
Elsie, the daughter, is not in a great place in her life, dealing with alcoholism while working as a barmaid and a lot of resentment over her biodad.
Honestly, lovely movie, great photography where it counted (Especially since the protag is an aspiring photographer), and i cried at the end.
Only issues is that it kinda needs a content warning for Incest (Step-siblings) which, uh, i found uncomfortable.
8/10
So, I guess someone looked at Dracula and was like "What's a fresh angle for this? Oh, I know, i'll adapt just the bit on the ship".
I guess it works? IDK, i have no clue how much of this is in the novel since i never read Bram Stoker's Dracula. Or seen a movie about the events of the book (I did see the Renfield movie tho.)
Still, it was fine. It wasn't too spooky, but it was insultingly stupid. The fire VFX looked a bit off for some reason.... I liked the Nosferatu / Dracula suit and he was portrayed by all-star monsterman Javier Botet so his movements were great.
I don't think i'll be thinking of this movie in a year's time... but for what it is, it was good. Corey Hawkins and David Dastmalchian both came out really well. The other sailors were a bit samey but had personality... Also goddamn, i was wondering where i saw David Dastmalchian recently and he was in fucking Oppenheimer..... And in The Suicide Squad.
7.5/10
Well, this movie had heart and family. I liked it a lot, I think it managed to do what it set out to do well. It was maybe a bit too jokey at times but that's modern comic book movies.
Genuinely, this is second only to The Suicide Squad as far as DCEU movies and will probably be more memorable than a few Marvel movies to me.
Good performances overall, hateable villain and a couple scenes that sucked tears from my eyes. there's a particularly touching one later that was pretty damn beautiful.
I don't know if we'll see more Blue Beetle, but I think that's one of the few (along with Pattinson Batman) DCEU heroes i'd like to stick around.
8.5/10
So, i'll be honest, i expected it to be dogshit. like, asbsolute ass. It's actually a nice movie. it has a good heart and it is decent at showing it off. It's not going to win awards, i don't think, but the emotional hits hit well and the scene where a dad tells his son he's proud of him is jerked some tears from me.
I mean, it kinda played the "Wow, gamers can also theoretically be racecar drivers (If someone wealthy is convinced)" a bit badly, but it does the "sports movie" thing really well aside from that.
Some people have clowned on it for its ending (which i won't spoil) but it makes a lot of sense in context.
8/10
This thread is unwieldy and probably annoying. I'm moving this to a tag called "Weekly Movie" instead.