As someone who dislikes 95% of horror films nowadays, I was very pleasently surprised with It. The film uses pychological horror rather than jump scares and it's effective in all the right ways. The sequences where Pennywise is tormenting each kid with their biggest fears where all very well realized. Speaking of the kids, they where all great. It's also an 80's coming of age movie as well as a horror film, and the 80's feel to the film was another huge plus. All the kids did fantastic jobs and they felt like real kids with real dialogue. The more the film goes on the more you get attached to them and care about them when certain clown peril comes later on. Overall IT was a fun ride in the cinema, especially for me who dislikes most horror films. Bring on Chapter Two!
Kingsman 2 is a step down from the first film with numerous elements that bog it down. Poppy was a weak villain, the lack of advertised Statesmen (Channing Tatum especially) the added subplots involving Eggsy's girlfriend and Harry's return/recovery added nothing in terms of emotion or weight to the story and the action scenes that rely on special effects are unfortunately very noticeable. Besides these issues, Kingsman: The Golden Circle is still a reasonable entertaining film in it's own right. It just doesn't come close to replicating the wild ride of the first film.
War for the Planet of the Apes cemenets this Apes trilogy as one of the best of our time with a powerful and moving story accompanied by breath-taking visuals and a mezmerizing performance, once again, by Andy Serkis.
You go to a King Kong movie for the spectacle of Kong himself, and when the ape shows up in Kong: Skull Island it's a sight to behold. The CGI is well realized and when he throws down with these skull crawlers it is VERY fun! The climax especially was amazing big screen eye candy. The human characters are bland and uninterestiing, which is more of a bummer considering the cast assembled, but if you just want to see Kong in all of his glory then you'll be satisfied with Kong: Skull Island. Good escapist blockbuster entertainment.
The Lego Batman Movie continues the Lego Movie franchise's success with yet another fast-paced blast! The action is exciting, the animation is spectacular and, perhaps most of all, the film is hilarious! The in-jokes of Batman lore, DC and even other movies are clever and very rarely don't hit their mark. What a way to kick off the 2017 blockbusters! Everything is still awesome with Lego.
Every single thing this film has going for it is all James McAvoy. His performance(s) are excellent and completely makes the movie. It's a shame the stuff around him aren't as great, the supporting performances are kinda generic (particularly the girls he kidnaps) and minus the last 20 minutes it's not always that interesting. It's still a decent thriller and a not so bad way to kick off the year's movies.
Both an inspiration story of faith and staying true to your beliefs and a genuinely frightening portrayal of the horrors of war! Hacksaw Ridge showcases Desmond Doss's amazing story with fantastic acting and terrific action sequences that are directed brilliantly and effectively.
I am not big on romance, and even less a fan of musicals. So the fact that I adored La La Land is saying something!
Gosling and Stone play likable characters who you latch on to and root for from beginning to end, the direction and cinematography is perfect and (thankfully) the music is phenomenal. This'll be yet another 2016 movie soundtrack I'll be playing on repeat. The film also has a refreshing old-timey feel to it with the music and some certain scenes, it's a perfect blend of old-timey in modern day. Simply put, La La Land is a wonderful, euphoric, feel-good movie that I cannot wait to watch over and over again. In my opinion, the best film of 2016.
Lion's astounding true story and excellent performances (from Dev Patel and Sunny Pawar especially) elevate it beyond the cliches and the predictability. And then the ending comes, and the film bombards you with feels and emotion (in the good way) and you'll want to cry. See it so you can learn the story, and definitely see it if you want a good cry.
Spider-Man has the quips and sarcastic sense of humor that was missing from the Sam Raimi films, making him a more likable hero here. Add in the excitement and great visuals you expect from a comic-book movie and you got a solid, entertaining experience.
After Batman & Robin, this franchise really needed something. Anything! Then along came Christopher Nolan, and now we have the Batman we deserve. Gritty and dark in all the right ways, a great origin story, fantastic action and film-making on display and phenomenal performances from the main cast. In terms of how bad the previous film was, Batman Begins might be the best reboot movie in recent memory.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is brilliantly edited like Edgar Wright's Cornetto trilogy and has unique visuals and fight scenes that really dazzle. But the film's humor doesn't land for me personally, which is surprising given that Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World's End are some of my all time favorite comedies.
Home Alone - what can be said that hasn't been said already? It's memorable in every way from the characters to the dialogue to the musical score by John Williams to the last act with the booby traps! It drags on in parts, but apart from that Home Alone is a Christmas classic that is an essential watch each and every Holiday season.
The tone is kinda depressing but it fits the world and the characters of the story. The Lobster has a unique and original premise that engages you throughout, even if the last act drags a bit.
You're sitting there waiting and waiting and waiting for something interesting to happen. And when something finally does in the last 15 minutes, it's too little too late and it feels very rushed.
Horror junkies looking for a scary experience (in the fun way) will be disappointed. But if you're up for a compelling, brilliantly acted, amazingly filmed family drama that happens to have a supernatural element - this is the film for you.
Pixels is undoubtedly, unquestionably one of the worst films of 2015...maybe even the decade. The humor is non-existent, the acting is bad, the characters are awful and VERY ANNOYING (I'm looking at you Josh Gad). Avoid this film at all cost, I'm begging you.
YES, kids will enjoy it because you know - colors and stuff. But the parents who'll be forced at gunpoint to watch it with the kids will want to take the gun and shoot themselves in the face upon witnessing the overly ridiculous antics of the characters and the tired, cliched and overdone plot points.
The Bourne Legacy is a very uneventful ride. Barely anything of intrigue or surprise or suspense unfolds throughout the run time, and there is no evolution in the plot. I was shocked when it ended because I thought there was another 20 minutes left to go. If you're going to cling on to a franchise and replace it's lead star, then give us something cool and interesting.
Jason Bourne reverts back to what made the originals a hit in the first place. An intriguing plot with a likable hero in entertaining, yet shaky, action sequences. And in my opinion it worked, it was a LOT better than The Bourne Legacy and a nice return to form for the series.
Seeing Arnold back as the T-800 is great but there's nothing else worthy of praise with Terminator Genisys. The acting is poor, the effects aren't terrible but not great either, the action while well done is not memorable and there's a lot of attempts at humor that fall flat.
Does Jurassic World have the magic of the original classic? No. But there's still enough awesome crowd pleasing moments and terrific visuals to keep you watching and entertained. And since that is the film's goal, it's a success.
Harold and Kumar has an extremely simple premise but it's self aware tone and humor make it worth wile. Don't watch if if you're hungry **** might be a tough watch.
I praise the creepy atmosphere and setting of the suicide forest. Everything else = your typically boring, cliched, predictable and, above all else, not-scary modern day horror film.
I understand what this film is trying to do, it's trying to be fun and entertaining. But it didn't do it for me thanks to the awful acting, terrible CGI and lack of anything really interesting. TMNT fans might like it.
Picture every single horror cliche, element and character trope imaginable - you have The Darkness. An extremely boring, predictable and stupid waste of time.
London Has Fallen tries to be bigger in scale and scope than it's predecessor, and because of that it contains scenes of destruction and exploding buildings containing really bad visual effects. I understand this isn't a big budget movie so it obviously not going to have the great effects, but if that's the case then why try use them when they're just going to be bad?
Deepwater Horizon sheds a light on the events of the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill that I was unaware of. These men and women went through a brutal and shocking catastrophe that's very intense and well directed. It's definitely one of the better disaster movies of recent memory.
Passengers features fantastic production design and impressive visual effects. However, this is a romance film. And the romance between Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence was hit and miss. You care about the couple at parts, and since the whole film is riding on this it really sinks the whole thing as the film doesn't fully deliver what it sets out to achieve. Add this to the list of disappointments in 2016.
The World's End rounds out the Cornetto trilogy in stellar fashion. The cast is fantastic and they work well together, the script is well written, the editing is superb especially in the action sequences and most importantly - the film is hilarious! What a film, what a trilogy!
Elf is jam packed with Christmas spirit, making it an instant must watch for the holiday season. It's also heart-warming, hilarious, quotable and (thanks to Will Ferrell) lovable.
The Hateful Eight is near 3 hours long, yet not once does it ever drag thanks to the captivating dialogue that is brilliantly written and expertly delivered by the great cast. Add in an interesting mystery, good humor and incredible musical score and you got **** movie!
A complete blast from start to finish. Kingsman: The Secret Service is one of the most flat out entertaining action-comedies in recent years thanks to the cool characters, over-the-top yet awesome action sequences and the irresistible fun that's just non-stop. And the soundtrack just adds to the fun and bad-assery, look out for a particular church scene.
The Good Dinosaur might just be Pixar's best looking film to date with it's incredibly lush animation. The story and characters are fine but nothing on the level of their previous classics.
Not as good as Finding Nemo (as expected) but Finding Dory offers a really fun adventure lead by layered and lovable characters both familiar and new. Plus the animation is unsurprisingly amazing.
It's a bit slow and choppy at the start, but Ant-Man quickly picks up with amazing CGI work and a nice smaller scale story that shows Marvel knows they don't need to make every film bigger than the last. This is a heist movie, a superhero heist movie. And a pretty good one at that.
This is how you do a sequel! More emotion, more (better filmed) action and a more interesting plot. Pretty much everything about Catching Fire is better than the first film, and I liked the first film.
If you're riding the fast paced, energetic thrills of Catching Fire then you might be let down by Mockingjay Part 1. It's slower and more plot focused, thus there's barely any action in it. But if you're up for a more propaganda heavy focus at a rebellion, the film completely delivers on that aspect.
Merit to this film range from the terrific visuals to the entertaining action. Faults with it are in the plot and structure. The pacing is all over the place and there's a lack of focus thanks to all the interwoven plot points.
Batman V Superman was not as good as I wanted it to be unfortunately (and no I don't have an anti-DC agenda and I wasn't paid by Disney for you idiots who believe that BS). I thought Ben Affleck was great as Batman, the rest of the cast did fine but Jesse Eisenburg was really over the top (in the bad way). The film feels disjointed at times, the writing was lazy in some bits (Martha) but the visual look of the film looked straight out of a comic book and the fight with Batman and Superman was great. Mixed bag for me personally. I don't hate it, I don't even fully dislike it, it's just not as good as I wanted it to be. And I LOVE superhero movies, so I'm bummed out about this.
Deathly Hallows Part 1 is a much slower paced film compared to it's predecessors, but the story it has to tell is engaging enough to compensate as well as the three leads who all get to shine even brighter here given their bigger focus.
The Harry Potter franchise ends in the most spectacular way possible. Deathly Hallows Part 2 answers all the questions raised in the previous films leaving you satisfied there, but does not skip on the epic, franchise concluding action you where promised. It's a completely fulfilling experience to a 10 year epic of films. One of the very best battles between good and evil to ever grace the big screen.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey takes a while to fully kick in to adventure mode, but once it does it's a visually pleasing and exciting return to Middle-Earth.
It has a tonne of noticeable CGI, bad humor and some cheesy moments here and there. But apart from that, the final installment of The Hobbit trilogy gives you the epic battle you've been waiting for in mostly spectacular fashion.
Is it more or less the same plot as the first film? Yes. Does the film know this and use it as a comedic advantage to give us big laughs? Absolutely. 22 Jump Street is even funnier than the first film and Tatum and Hill once again shine as a duo with excellent comedic chemistry.
Despite the whole "cutting away from the epic fight just before it happens" stuff, Godzilla is a big screen spectacle that's worth watching for the final act alone...yeah that stuff is EPIC!
Utilizing a one continuous shot filming style, Birdman captures the backstage vibe of a theater production and gives us fantastic realistic performances, a great musical score and an interesting look at the state of Hollywood today.
Gone Girl grabs you almost from the start and doesn't let go until it cuts to credits. From the mystery surrounding the disappearance of Pike's character to the realistic portrayal of "suspects" through a media/TV news perspective, the film constantly interests and engages you despite it's long run time.
Arrival offers a vastly different experience than you usually get in the alien invasion genre. By replacing explosions and action with captivating dialogue and conversations, it gives us arguably the most intriguing film of 2016.
J.K Rowling's Wizarding World is back, only this time we see a whole new side of it. Seeing the workings of the American wizarding community was fascinating and I can't wait to see more of this world expanded in future films. On top of that we get an entertaining yet simple story populated by likable characters and terrific visuals. Welcome back to the Wizarding World folks!
