Archive for category Film
Movie Mayhem – Knives Out
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on December 1, 2019
Murder mysteries have been a staple in storytelling for as long as storytelling has been in existence (or at least it seems). Why? Humans are a curious lot, so pretending to be a master sleuth for a couple of hours as we attempt to figure out what happened before the big reveal can be quite an exhilarating experience. When it’s done correctly, the pieces are placed perfectly throughout as to throw us off the scent, even when the clues are right their in clear daylight. When done poorly, you don’t have to be an eagle-eyed viewer to know who did it ten minutes into the story. Rian Johnson’s new film, Knives Out, slips somewhere in the middle — although the big reveal feels a bit anticlimactic, the ride getting there sure is a blast.
Read Full ReviewMovie Mayhem – Frozen 2
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on November 24, 2019
Back in 2013, Frozen became a cultural phenomenon that led to a series of short films that didn’t quite live up to the majesty of the full-length feature. To put all of it into perspective, Disney was sued for one of the shorts that mirrored another animators story, and another was ridiculed for its length; apparently twenty-one minutes of Olaf (voiced by Josh Gad) running around doing stupid things is too much when your kids are anticipating the day of the dead. As a lesson to be learned from the disaster known as Minions, side characters like Olaf are so much better when they aren’t the focus of your movie. So it was nice to enjoy a return to Arendelle with Frozen 2, a film that doesn’t surpass its big sister in quality, but stays on par with with the magic we all expect from the franchise.
Read Full ReviewMovie Mayhem – Last Christmas
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on November 10, 2019
I like me a good brainless rom-com every now and again, and with Emma Thompson both writing and co-starring, Last Christmas was poised to be an enjoyable couple of hours. Thompson has written some very good movies in the past and has the ability to raise what could be subpar material to a new level with just her mere presence. However, with Christmas, something got lost in translation.
Read Full ReviewMovie Mayhem – Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on October 20, 2019
If you’ve been reading my blog since the beginning, you may have read my review of Maleficent way way back in 2014. In that review, I was very critical of the film in many aspects, including the watered-down — or non-existent — relationship between Maleficent (Angelina Jolie) and Aurora (Elle Fanning) that was supposed to be the crux of the plot, as well as the lack of character development to make the whole idea behind telling the story of Sleeping Beauty from Maleficent’s perspective. The film was okay, and there was a lot to like, it just felt flat and uneven because it wasn’t executed to its full potential.
Changing things up behind the scenes was a good start for Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. Joachim Rønning takes over the directing reigns from Robert Stromberg and lifts the energy of the film to a new level, even while falling into many of the same traps the first film setup because everything on-screen is exactly the same.
Read Full ReviewMovie Mayhem – Jexi
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on October 13, 2019
I wasn’t all that excited to see Jexi. With Adam Devine and a overlay of raunchy humor in the driver’s seat, for all I was concerned, the film could have been relegated to direct-to-DVD or on demand status. Or better yet, buried on some obscure streaming service to be seen by insomniacs browsing their feeds while high. But, CBS Films and Entertainment One decided to release it in theaters, and as I always say, you never know when a movie will surprise you. So I went to check it out. And boy, did Jexi surprise me.
Read Full ReviewMovie Mayhem – Joker
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on October 6, 2019
Thirty years ago, Tim Burton introduced us to not only Michael Keaton as what many still say is the quintessential Batman, but to Jack Nicholson, considered for a long time as the perfect choice to play the manic, high-octane Joker. That is until Heath Ledger (who, much like Keaton, was originally criticized for being a poor casting choice) blew us away with his Oscar-winning turn as the deranged psychopath in 2008’s The Dark Knight. It didn’t seem like anyone would live up to Ledger’s unhinged frenzy, especially after Jared Leto’s utter butchering of the beloved character in Suicide Squad. Luckily, Joaquin Phoenix dispelled those fears by delivering yet another Oscar-worthy performance as the titular character in the gritty, dark character study, Joker.
Read Full ReviewMovie Mayhem – Don’t Let Go
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on September 1, 2019
Back in the year 2000, Frequency, a small film about a cop who begins to speak with his deceased father through an old ham radio, debuted in theaters. The movie was an intelligent, suspenseful, unique sci-fi thriller with terrific turns by Jim Caviezel and Dennis Quaid, who found a compelling chemistry together despite having no screen time together. Nineteen years later and we find our way back to a similar premise with Don’t Let Go, another smaller film that understands how to work within the bounds of the idea, but doesn’t know how to build the necessary suspense to sustain any amount of intrigue.
Read Full ReviewMovie Mayhem – August Movie Roundup
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on August 25, 2019
For three weeks at the end of July/early August, there were a whopping three (count them – 3!) wide releases in theaters. How do the studios make up for that? Release 13 films over the next three weeks! To honor the glut of riches at the movieplexes, here are some quick reviews for all of the films I’ve seen in the last two weeks. Enjoy!
Read ReviewsMovie Mayhem – Brian Banks
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on August 11, 2019
All you can control in life is how you respond to life.
Jerome Johnson (Morgan Freeman), from the film Brian Banks
The quote isn’t just a powerful message for the new inspirational sports drama, Brian Banks, but relates, on a much smaller scale, very well to this very review. Upon finishing my first draft, something happened and the entire review was wiped from existence. Like anyone else, I was angry at myself for not saving, and was angry at WordPress for not auto-saving and acting weird. The easy thing to do would have been to give up on the review altogether. Instead, I took a deep breath, recollected my thoughts and started anew. This has nothing on the major incidents of the film itself, however, it’s still relevant to the importance this movie’s overall message means for true happiness in life.
Read Full ReviewMovie Mayhem – Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw
Posted by Bryan Caron in Entertainment, Film, Movies, Reviews on August 4, 2019
You can parachute cars out of a plane; you can have a chase sequence between a slew of supercharged cars and a submarine in an icy tundra; you can jump a sports car from one hundred-story tower to another; you can have a guy rip the cast off his arm with his bare hand; heck, you can even defy gravity to save someone’s life and no one would expect anything less. But introduce your audience to a transforming, self-driving motorcycle and you’ve suddenly gone too far.
Suspension of disbelief is a tricky thing. There are certain expectations that come along with being able to set reality aside and enjoy whatever is being thrown at you. Ever since The Fast and the Furious franchise veered off from centering around fast cars and hot women to becoming what amounts to an international spy series, you’d think the whole thing would have broke down on the side of the highway. Fact is, the franchise only became better as it became more and more absurd.
It only makes sense, then, that as the franchise grows more popular, producers would want to milk it for all its worth. Best way to do that? Spin characters off into their own wild and crazy franchises. The first choice, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, is the smartest choice, as it highlights two very bankable stars (and fan favorites since their respective introductions into the franchise) in an effort to see if this type of offshoot will work.
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