Jason Bourne Review (2016)

Jason Bourne

  Holy crap, I've been waiting for this movie to come out ever since the Bourne Ultimatum ended! I'm not one of those people who hated the Jeremy Renner Bourne movie, but I can't say I wasn't happy to see Matt Damon in the role again.

  So, what did I think? Well, this movie is definitely entertaining, fun, and cool, but it lacks one thing that the original trilogy had. That is cleverness. Nothing here feels new or fresh, and that was part of the big appeal of the other films. 

  I've never been a huge fan of Paul Greengrass's directing stylistically, but it never bothered me so much as it did in this film. The overuse of handheld camera in action scenes made it feel like they didn't have anything that good to shoot and so they went for the whole chaotic feel Gary Ross's Hunger Games had. Another thing, was the extreme closeups. It was unnecessary and took me out of the film instead of bringing me into it.

  I'm gonna talk now about some of the new cast; Alicia Vikander and Riz Ahmed. I've had my eye out for both of them after seeing Nightcrawler and Ex Machina. There is no doubt they can act. However, Alicia's accent was all over the place in this movie and Riz just seemed like his character didn't have much to do. 

  I know it sounds like I've been hating a lot on this movie, but in all honesty it isn't bad at all. There is a really cool car chase and some cool hand-to-hand combat. A lot of what they tried to do with the narrative, worked well and was effective on a small scale, but not so effective when they tried to go bigger. For me, I'd give Jason Bourne a 6 out of 10 stars. (Worth Ticket Price)

 

Swiss Army Man Review (2016)

Swiss Army Man

 

  *cough cough* well that was the weirdest movie I've ever seen...

  Swiss Army Man is the story of a young man (Paul Dano) stranded on an island and about to hang himself, when a dead body (Daniel Radcliffe) washes up ashore. Hallucinating from starvation, he befriends the corpse and tries to find his way home. 

  Swiss Army Man had quite the reaction at Sundance, half of the audience walking out before it even ended and the other half declaring it the best movie of the year. Obviously I had to see it and now that I have, the response totally makes sense.

  This movie is absolutely ridiculous, but it is also ridiculously self aware. It's whimsical, aesthetically pleasing, original, and charming, all the while exploring the concept of loneliness, madness, and love. The beautiful, quirky directing style and fantastic soundtrack, reminded me of a Spike Jonze film. THAT is never a bad thing.

  Paul Dano is one of the most underrated actors working today and he really gives a soulful performance in this film.  I kept thinking that he reminded me of a young Joaquin Phoenix, the way he can make almost any character sympathetic. 

  This movie isn't for everyone or even the majority of people, As I mentioned before, it's intentionally absurd, crude, and often times diverts to the lowest common denominator of humor. At times, Swiss Army Man's ambitious, unconventional storytelling packs a powerful punch, and other times it's quite heavy-handed and even a little pretentious. That said, I still found myself thoroughly engaged. If you see this movie, I suggest watching it alone so you can take it in for what it is without fear of being judged. 7 out of 10 (Very Good)

Finding Dory Revew (2016)

Finding Dory

 

  Ellen DeGeneres is back as one of the most endearing Disney fishes of all time in Finding Dory!

  I really liked this film for a lot of reasons. Not only was this a movie that kids and parents alike will love, but it really shined in areas of animation and voice acting. 

  There are funny moments, there are heartwarming moments, sad moments, and best of all, a charming quirkiness that is hard to forget.

  Unlike Finding Nemo, this film tends to play it a little safer in the areas of thrill. There are no scary sharks or deep sea angler fish, however they still manage to engage us emotionally and mentally. 

  If I were to say anything negative about this movie, it would be that they really make you wait for the payoff and a part of me was getting impatient. Because it was more geared for kids, it can also feel a little redundant. 

  In the end, Finding Dory is a good time for a family outing, but it doesn't quite reach the originality or emotional grandeur of Finding Nemo. 6 out of 10 stars (Worth Ticket Price)

The Conjuring 2 Review (2016)

The Conjuring 2

  The first Conjuring movie was one of the best horror movies I've ever seen. Not only was it relentlessly terrifying, but it also had a surprising amount of depth and character development. James Wan has a way of taking cliches in the horror genre and flipping them on their head. 

  As you can imagine, I was pretty stoked about The Conjuring 2 and from the trailer it looked even more scary than its predecessor. But was it?

  Yes and no. There were three different ghosts in this film and to me, only one of them worked really effectively with scares. The chilling cinematography and solid acting from the cast made the Conjuring 2 quite good, but there were also some really campy moments. Unfortunately, it was moments like these that took me out of the film and brought the scare factor down. I feel like if it had been more understated like the real life footage, then it would have stayed with the audience better. 

  Overall, The Conjuring 2 is better than your average horror movies, but its fault is that it thinks it's scarier than it actually is. 6 out of 10 stars. (Worth Ticket Price)

X-men: Apocalypse Review (2016)

X-men: Apocalypse 

  Days of Future Past was my favorite Marvel movie since Iron man 1. What does that mean? It means I was stoked for Apocalypse. 

  In this new instalment to the X-men series, we are introduced to several new characters. Storm, Arch Angel, Nightcrawler, Jean Grey, Cyclops, and of course Apocalypse, played by my man, Oscar Isaac. 

  What I really love about the X-men series is it's storytelling and the parallels between the mutants and humans to real life. Compared to the other marvel movies, X-men just seems more grounded in reality and more layered. 

  While Apocalypse started out good, it starts to feel a little underwhelming once Apocalypse starts collecting Mutants to be his four horsemen. The plot and the tone didn't add up from that point and everything seemed so much bigger than it felt.

  Despite this, I still found myself quite enjoying the film. Quicksilver had another awesome scene and a lot more screen time, which made me happy. Wolverine had a cameo, which made me happy. ANDDD we got to watch Magneto put in some work, which always makes me happy. 

  Can I also talk about how underrated James McAvoy is as an actor and to this series. Whenever he cries, all the sudden I'm a sympathetic crier. I also wanted to give a special mention to Tye Sheridan as Scott Summers. He seriously nailed that role so well that I thought for a moment James Marsden had returned to the screen a few decades younger. 

  Even though I'm a big Oscar Isaac fan, I found the way Apocalypse was written to be somewhat cliched. He simply wasn't menacing enough to go up against such an overflow mutant heroes. Unfortunately this brought the movie down a bit. It was ambitious, but couldn't quite grasp what it was reaching for. I give X-men: Apocalypse a 6 out of 10 stars. (Worth Ticket Price)

 

Captain America: Civil War Review (2016)

Captain America: Civil War

  Before I begin this review, I must admit that I'm not a Captain America fan and so my opinions on the movie are based on my personal feelings for the character. 

 That said, let's talk about the new additions to the Avengers.

  Chadwick Boseman as black Panther. Let me just say, that super suit was baaaad. (I mean that in a good way).

  I've been impressed with Tom Holland since 2012's disaster drama, The Impossible. If there was one thing motivating me to see this movie, it was definitely Spidey. Turns out, it was for good reason. Spidey was exactly how his character should be. Young, geeky, and with corney jokes. He was my favorite part of the film by far. I"m really looking forward to his solo movies.

  Let's continue to the plot. I like the way they set up both sides of the "war" and gave reasonable arguments. At some points in the movie you really don't know who's right or who to root for. This was cool because it engages the audience and they can actually partake in the story.

  My problem was with Bucky Barnes. I don't care if he's Cap's best friend, the length Cap went to defend him seemed ridiculous and frankly a little bit gay. There's a reason #givecapaboyfriend is going viral on twitter. At one point, Bucky even asks why he's doing this. Honestly, that what I wanted to know.

  As in every marvel movie, there are some funny quips and good actions, but also like other marvel movies, it's very shallow. Every film just feels like a long trailer for the next film and eventually they all start to blend together and feel like the same movie. 

  Am I saying it's bad? No. A lot of people enjoyed it as well as critics. However, if I never saw this movie again, I'd be okay. 4 out of 10 stars. (One Time See)

Jungle Book Review (2016)

Jungle Book

  Disney has done it again, bringing cartoons to life in their latest achievement, The Jungle Book. I'd seen versions of the Jungle Book as a kid, but I can't actually remember seeing the original cartoon. That said, I had no real remembrance of the story other than a kid in the jungle who talks to animals. 

  There was a lot of hype for this movie and I can see why because it is a visual feast. Not only are the animals beautiful and real looking, but the entire forest is made of CGI as well. Andy Serkis's motion capture studio takes us to a whole different world and it's gorgeous! 

  Another thing I really liked about the movie was the voice overs, especially Christopher Walker as King Louie, Idris Elba as Shere Khan, and Ben Kingsley as Bagheera. 

  The way they incorporated a couple of the songs into the film was really cool as well and gave it that Disney charm. In fact, I just loved the whole soundtrack in general and the way it added emotion to the scenes.

  As most of you know, I have a real hard time with child actors. Considering that the main character is a child, here's what I thought on the newcomer Neel Sethi. For his first film ever, going up against literally all green screen, I'd say that Sethi did quite a good job. However, there were times where the greenness of his performance took me out of the film.

  While I could go on nitpicking some of the minor things tone wise in the movie, we still have a very solid, heart-felt film that works on a lot of levels and is great fun for the whole family. I give Jungle Book a 6 out of 10 stars. (Worth Ticket Price)