Category Archives: 8 Star Movies

Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One Review

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Mission Impossible is one of those series that always delvers high quality pictures and this one is no exception. I’ve been looking forward to Dead Reckoning for quite a while now and it’s really everything you could hope for it to be. The dialogue is very strong, there are a bunch of great characters, and the pacing is on point. Something is always going on here and there is a lot of replay value despite the length. This movie is definitely the complete package.

The film starts off with a submarine testing out some new tech but unfortunately things don’t go very well for it. We then cut to Ethan Hunt receiving a new mission, however this time he gets it with a lot of subtle threats as well. This is apparently the biggest mission of his career. He needs to recover two keys that open something that isn’t any of his business and the whole world is at stake. Ethan’s not really satisfied with that answer and decides to delve into this a bit further but this is at the cost of the whole world being after him. Every special intelligence agency in the world is on his tail now. He may be the most powerful Agent in the world but can even Ethan beat the combined forces of the planet?

Fortunately Ethan isn’t completely alone. His two steadfast allies Luther and Benji are around as always. Luther’s still great at hacking and managing everything from the control room. Meanwhile Benji always ends up getting a side mission of his own and he does well in them. These two are fun characters here as always. They may feel out of their depth in a lot of ways but it is a fact that Ethan would have been in big trouble without them.

Ethan here is a very solid main character who makes the right calls at the right times. I appreciate that he still has a strong sense of justice here and is always ready to save a friend even if it means defying orders. Ultimately that’s what you need to be able to do because if you just follow orders then you will inevitably become the villain. It’s not the first time Ethan’s had to go against the government either although I will say that it’s probably the quickest. He has to go rogue almost immediately here.

It’s another thing I appreciate about this film. The action starts up very quickly. We go to the desert and have an opening fight, after that we have an infiltration by Ethan, then a bunch of chase scenes and they just keep on going. Ethan certainly gets a lot of running done here that’ for sure but he gets to show off his intelligence and resourcefulness as well. Ethan is a fighter but the reason he is the best is because he always finds a way to win. His quick thinking in posing as a lawyer for example got him out of one jam.

The guy pulls off plans and disguises pretty much back to back and does it seamlessly. Also while the film’s a pretty serious one with an intense plot it does still make some for some good humor. There are a lot of quick lines that are really funny and all of the jokes are well thought out. You won’t be groaning at any point or anything like that here. The movie cycles through all of the genres rather effortlessly.

So it goes without saying that Ethan is the best character here. Then as the main heroine we have Grace who is a thief. A very good one at that as she manages to even pick Ethan’s pocket more than once. She causes a lot of damage and destruction throughout the movie because of how persistent she is. After a point you’ll probably just find yourself wishing Ethan would capture her already with how many times she betrays the group but ultimately that’s not how he operates. He wants to do his best to get her on his side as opposed to using force.

At times Grace really seems to act against basic survival instincts with how she handles this but ultimately she’s still a good character. She is a nice character for Ethan to have some banter with and she can actually fight which is always a plus. Automatically that helps her character out and when the chips were down she did get up and deliver so she has my respect.

Then there’s Ilsa who is another solid character. She doesn’t do quite as much here but we get to see how she’s still a really good shot and of course her close combat abilities are nothing to sneeze at. Definitely not someone you want to underestimate. Good ole Kittridge returns here as well although I can’t say that he looks too impressive. A bit of a shady fellow and while he may want what’s right for the country, his views aren’t always the best ones. I was definitely on Ethan’s side the whole time.

Alanna is one of the big villains/wild card characters here and she was a fun character to shake things up. She has a lot of connections/resources so whenever there is danger you can bet that she’s watching it unfold somewhere. I think the way she was dealt with near the end was a bit too easy so I couldn’t really buy into it but she definitely did a lot in this title.

Then there’s the main villain but it seems like the trailers avoided showing much of this guy so I won’t name him. Then the main villain has a boss that is mentioned constantly but we don’t know much about it. I’m not expecting the boss to really do anything other than get terminated in part two but the human villain has a lot to do here. He is able to fight really well and has a ton of confidence. He’s smirking in just about every scene that he is in and the guy keeps up with Ethan the whole time. This guy had to play his cards perfectly and that’s exactly what he did. Definitely not the kind of character that you can easily forget and I dare say that he may be the best out of all the Mission Impossible villains. It’s just hard to pull one over the guy.

Having a good villain like that is definitely huge for the movie. There are other villains here like one of his main minions but ultimately they’re more for the action while he is doing the thinking. They would not be able to keep up in that arena. Now if I had any small issue with the film it is that I would have liked to have seen some more factions. After all, think about it for a moment. The entire world is after Ethan so we should be seeing the CIA, M16, Japanese special forces, etc. Really the only main faction getting in on the action here are the Americans and for the most part the others are mentioned but don’t do as much.

I think in a lot of ways this should have been as chaotic as John Wick 3. You should have had people shooting from every direction and causing a lot of trouble. Of course this film isn’t a full action like that but I think you could still pull this off really naturally. I really liked the main cop who was after Ethan the whole time and think having more characters like that would have been great.

The soundtrack is really good as you would expect. The Mission Impossible theme plays quite a few times and it is definitely a catchy tune. There are a number of solid action themes within the movie as well so it never misses a beat. Of course the graphics are also really good as you would expect. The part looked very futuristic and every special effect was really clear. The series is second to none when it comes to showing off a bunch of great locations and making them all fit in.

There may be less actual fight scenes compared to some of the other Mission Impossible films but in the end you will still get a satisfying amount of action. Ethan takes a lot of fighters down and the supporting characters get to fight as well. There are also a lot of chase scenes as you would expect so you’re also getting action in that way as well. This is a very smart film so you can expect a lot of good planning too. At most you could make the case that maybe the main villain should have already won but otherwise I didn’t have any issues with the power levels or the plans going on. It all operated on a high level and had logic that made sense within the film.

It’s always a big thing when a film never gets boring and this one was really engaging the whole time through. There’s a lot more to say about the movie in the spoilers realm but I’ll let you see that for yourself. Sometimes I end up including a warning and then doing a spoiler section when there’s something I really need to dive into but in this case I would say there isn’t. Main thing to know is just that I was on Ethan’s side the whole time. The villains/antagonists and all of their goals are interesting to be sure but still not ones that I can get behind.

Overall, Mission Impossible succeeds in a big way once again. There’s a whole lot happening in this movie and it’s all balanced really well. I would say another strength to the film is how much was hidden. The trailers really didn’t touch on much of anything at all which meant there was a lot more to be surprised about. It can be a risky strategy nowadays since people probably want to see a lot to know if they’re going to theaters or not, but I would say the risk definitely paid off big time. I’m eagerly awaiting part 2 now to see if it can top part 1 and of course to see how this whole saga comes to a close. It’s going to be a long year!

Overall 8/10

Fast X Review

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It’s time to take a look at the latest Fast and the Furious film. As you can expect this one is going to be a ton of nonstop action and at this point in the series the cast is rather huge. I’d say the movie does a great job of giving everyone something to do. There are so many cutaways to different locations and it’s pretty much the Infinity War of the racing series. It’s easily one of the stronger films in the series and it really shows how this series has become consistently great ever since the 5th movie. It can now be compared with heavy hitters like Mission Impossible. Throw in the fact that this film is “Part 1” and you’re also guaranteed a fun cliffhanger.

The movie starts with a flashback to the 5th film introducing us to the new villain, Dante. He’s the son of the guy who got bumped off in the 5th movie and now he wants revenge. He has been biding his time for years now and is finally ready to make his move and take Dominic down. Specifically he wants to destroy his family first and then take Dominic down for the count. He will have to go up against an army of heroes though so does he really have what it takes? Well, time to find out.

So one of the benefits of a movie series is that you have a lot of time to introduce all of the characters and develop them over time. When handled correctly, an ambitious film 10 will always beat the oneshot adventure because you are able to make this as grand as possible. This movie brings in characters from so many films and so many plotlines that it automatically gives the film a big boost. It almost feels like a crossover to an extent even though it’s just one film. Particularly characters like Shaw and Jakob because they almost feel like they’re from different series.

The action scenes here are really on point as you would expect. The films have so many hand to hand fights now in addition to the car scenes and they all work well. The choreography is on point and it’s also nice seeing the different fighting styles. Jakob fights more like a special ops guy with precision shotgun blasts to the head, Shaw fights like an assassin using every trick in the book, Cipher fights with deadly short stabs, etc. At this point they’re all so powerful and some of these characters have to fight other established fighters which makes for a wild ride.

The pacing is also excellent. The chases and action scenes start off almost right away and from there it tends to be nonstop. The movie is long and it feels long, but in that time it still manages to cover more than you would expect. I like how the characters keep hopping across the globe into different countries. The constant change in scenery is nice and the film keeps up with the different song styles all throughout as well. The movies have always had a really solid soundtrack and I’d say this one fits right in. The songs always get your blood pumping as you get ready for more high intensity races.

At this point of course there aren’t a lot of actual races though. There are a ton of car chases and action scenes but there’s only one real race and it’s very short. It was still nice to see it for an instant though and I thought the movie did a great job of setting it up. We meet a hype character who has been winning a lot of races lately. She believes that beating Dominic will be easy, then you have Dante in his villainous car and one of Dominic’s local supporters. It had all the setup and stakes of a true race.

With this much nonstop action you may worry about it being too much but that’s not a problem. The action scenes are all different so that’s never really a concern. All of the best scenes involve some kind of action but the title never loses its heart either. My favorite moment was definitely when Letty decided to take down Cipher. Sure Cipher may be helpful in the current predicament but you can’t forget what she’s already done to the heroes so there’s no time to work as buddies. She just had to be taken out of the equation real quick.

Even with a film this great of course there will always be some issues. No movie is perfect after all. The weakest part in this one would be the main villain Dante. The film’s definitely playing him up as a super quirky villain. He has a lot of comedic moments in a dark humor kind of way like talking with dead bodies and generally acting insane. He probably laughs about as much as the Joker and Dante tries not to take himself too seriously. He’s always squealing and trying to play mind games on the heroes. So far we have not been able to really see him fight though as he folds like an omelet the instant the heroes finally get to him.

His planning is good of course and the guy is one step ahead of the heroes the whole time so you do have to give him a lot of credit. The guy is good at what he does and a true threat but I can’t say that I found him all that engaging or exciting as a villain. Personally I just was not impressed and he would be one of the weaker villains for me. His scenes tended to be the weakest part and you were just waiting for the heroes to step in. His intro scene of appearing before Cipher also had a whole ton of plot armor for him to get so far.

There’s also the one obligatory scene of Dominic driving towards a racing area where we get some random dancing and fanservice. I feel like they squeeze one scene like this into every film just for tradition even though it doesn’t actually add anything to the story. You’ll be rolling your eyes at that scene and just waiting for the next one but beyond that the rest of the film is definitely legit.

Meanwhile Cipher continues to be a great villain through and through. She really managed to overcome the odds by taking on such a large group of fighters. She was one of the big masterminds in previous films and I’m glad that she’s still got it. I did mix up her and Tess at one point because they look so similar but both are quality characters so that wasn’t much of a problem. Hopefully Cipher continues to get some more fights in the next one. Eventually they do need to take her down though, I hope all of the heroes hold a grudge like Letty and don’t just forget how evil she was.

Little Nobody doesn’t get to do a whole lot here. The guy continues to look incredibly unimpressive which is why we need the real Nobody back. I feel like this guy only exists to get styled on every single time. Tess was a fun addition to the cast though. I look forward to seeing her get to fight a little more next time but already she’s done a lot to prove that she is someone who shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Then there is Isabel who has a smaller role than most of the other characters but I liked her confidence in the race. She definitely knows how to race but at the same time if you’re Dominic you’re probably not worried. Shaw’s role is also pretty small here but I’d say in large part it’s because he would really steal the show if he was here longer. What are the villain’s really going to do against a fighter who is this skilled and prepared? Shaw is really in a different league from pretty much all the main characters here, even Dominic would likely go down against this guy. Always satisfying to see how he fights.

Roman and Tej have a lot of fun banter throughout the film as always. I tend to prefer Roman as a character because no matter how things turn out the guy always has something witty to say while Tej tries to bring the mood down. Their fight definitely felt like the most random part of the whole film though. I kept waiting for there to be a twist about how this was going to lure the villains’ out or something but I guess they actually did just need to mix it up a bit. Ultimately this subplot served its role well as the more comedic B plot.

Ramsey and Han also tagged along for the ride. Ramsey did her usual solid hacking and Han gave us a way to bring Shaw back into the mix so that was fun. In a way the characters didn’t get to do much other than just hanging out nd being themselves but that’s all you really need. Another benefit of this being a sequel, you already know the characters so it’s not like they have to be introduced again.

Then there is Mia whose appearance is small but she does well in it. She definitely still knows how to fight and gives the villains a really tough time all the way through. Hopefully they can incorporate her more into the plot again at some point. Then once Jakob shows up he really begins to steal the show in his subplot. The guy does a great job of looking after the kid for the most part and it felt like he kept a lot of the strength that he had as a villain. This guy isn’t going to go down easily and has a lot of his own contacts. Fans of the character should definitely be real satisfied here.

Letty does well as the main heroine. She is always quick to fight and did keep up with Dante for quite a while which was impressive. Whenever Dominic tries to leave on a solo mission she does not let him and that’s the right way to go. At this point they need to be a team so no running off solo like in the old days. At this point Dominic needs to be able to trust the team and she makes sure to press that point. Letty also more than justifies her own involvement since she can take care of herself.

Then we have the new government head Aimes who really doesn’t want to hear any stories and just wants to take Dominic down for the count. The guy is definitely as unreasonable as possible and doesn’t like the whole family approach. It is fun how he basically acknowledges that everyone always turns good and joins the barbeque by the end of the film. It’s the right level of awareness without actually breaking the 4th wall. In general I liked all of the callbacks here and references to different parts of the franchise. It worked really well.

Finally we have Dominic who is a great main character as always. He gives more lessons about just how important family is and never lets up on this. He goes through a lot here but always comes up with a plan and thinks things through. I really have no problems with Dominic because he’s just a stand up guy who always does the right thing and doesn’t waver. There aren’t any real flaws to point to here and that’s why he’s a character that everyone else can rally behind. As long as he has a car then he has a chance and that will always be the case here.

The film has a great cliffhanger to end things off. It takes full advantage of the fact that this is a multi parter and a two part film should never end with things appearing to be resolved. (Slight shots to the RWBY/Justice League film) This is definitely how you do it. Then you have an after credits scene which was excellent. One of the stand out scenes in the film. Now this isn’t how the film would play out but imagine for a minute if the second film only focused on the character who appeared at the end? Sort of like a redo but seeing if the strategy would work on this character. Trust me, I don’t think it will. This character does have some family weaknesses as well but he’s ready for action. The first thing I said when leaving the theatre is that the villain’s going to be in for a surprise because this guy won’t be going down the way a certain other character did.

New main character, new rules. This guy also isn’t hiding and the sheer top level confidence here was great. A super bold move would be not to bring back just about any of the characters from this film so the sequel is just the characters who were all right by the end of this one. Realistically though this is the kind of film where you’re expecting more of a full teamwork, celebration mood by the end. Nothing wrong with that either, but the possibilities for the sequel are just so good. X already set a high bar but the sequel could manage to top it and I’m eager to see how this plays out.

Overall, Fast X is a great film. It’s really got everything that you could want in an action thriller. A lot of action and a lot of thrills. Yeah that may just sound like more of the same but why fix what isn’t broken right? I would say there is probably still more action here than even in previous films though. It feels like the most nonstop out of all the films at least after watching it. It’s a perfect film for theaters in that respect as well because hearing all of the sounds and watching this on the big screen was a real treat. It may be tougher to watch if you haven’t seen the previous 9 but either way you want to catch this film before it leaves theaters because it is definitely on point!

Overall 8/10

Police Story Review

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Now it’s time for a film that I hadn’t heard of before but is apparently very big. The Police Story is a comedic thriller that works really well and I can see why people like it. I definitely had a lot of fun with it and it shows just how much you can do with a fairly small main cast and a plot that’s rather direct. There aren’t a lot of twists and turns here but the film’s fundamentals are on point so there is never an issue on that front.

The movie starts off with police officer Ka-Kui and the rest of the department getting ready to take some villains down. They have an elaborate scheme set up near the beach but unfortunately it doesn’t go too well. After a lot of destruction and mayhem they eventually manage to take down the villains and get them ready for court. It will be difficult though because the villains are as corrupt as they come and without a ton of evidence they may win the trial. So Ka-Kui is told to act as Salina’s bodyguard. She was the main villain’s secretary and so she should know a lot of secrets but of course she won’t want to sell him out. Time to trick the truth out of her but it won’t be easy since she is rather crafty too.

Right off the bat you do need to be prepare for this to be played in a very comedic angle as this is not a serious police drama. That said, I thought it worked really well because the humor is on point. You should be laughing quite a bit during the experience. At times the humor can be rather dark but for the most part it’s more on the slapstick side. Characters get beaten up in funny ways and there are a lot of fun lines as well. It’s mainly a very upbeat film which is why when characters do get really injured you can tell that things are getting serious indeed.

Unfortunately this does mean that Ka-Kui does look pretty bad at times because I do have to count some of the comedic stuff against him. For example Salina decides to prank Ka-Kui in order to make sure he loses the case by acting in a suggestive way while the recorder is on. This plan only works if Ka-Kui fumbles the ball at every corner and of course he does. For example when she offered to go to bed with him he flat out accepted which showed his true colors.

His girlfriend May has a rough time of it throughout the movie because of how thoughtless he can be but this is why she should have left by this point. If Salina wasn’t kidding then he was really ready to betray May at the drop of a hat. That’s not the kind of loyal man that you want by your side. Not by a longshot. Even if it’s played for laughs I would argue that his true colors shown through there and it was a low moment for the guy.

He is a great fighter though and of course the climax does live up to the hype. The fight is so very long and there are a lot of good moves being thrown out. I also appreciated that Salina actually tried to help at several points. She wasn’t just watching as you often see the heroines do in these films. She went out on a limb to help out and it was a great moment. She did this several times during the movie as well.

Salina made for a decent anti hero. You can absolutely see why she doesn’t trust Ka-Kui and why she set him up later on because deception was everywhere. She’s certainly no hero but Salina was caught up in a tricky place from the jump. If she crosses the villains then they’ll probably bump her off but if she crosses the heroes then they might put her in jail for any number of reasons. She really has to be careful here.

I really liked the police’s way of handling this in at least one scene to sow distrust among the villains. They kept her in the interrogation room for an extra minute but didn’t actually say anything. So when the villains confronted her later on and she said that nothing happened, it obviously makes her look very suspicious.

As I said it’s a fairly small main cast. Salina, May, and Ka-Kui are really the only main characters. Sure you have the main gangster, the lawyer, and Ka-Kui’s two bosses but they don’t actually do a whole lot beyond that. It’s part of what helps the film’s pacing flow so well as a lot of the film is just about Ka-Kui trying to be a big bodyguard and then a ton of fight scenes. The writing is good here and we even got a court case which was a lot of fun.

In fact, outside of the climax that would be the biggest highlight of the movie. I liked just how desperate the prosecutor kept getting as he tried to discredit Ka-Kui. Fortunately Ka-Kui always had a good comeback until the audio tape did him in but he was holding his own up until that point. I always like a court scene, whether it is serious or sometimes played for laughs. It’s still a court scene either way.

One thing that seals the deal here is the ending of the film. For a little while you’re getting worried that things will end on a bit of a whimper after an incredible climax. Instead that wasn’t to be and Ka-Kui comes up with one last initiative. The combo is great and the film was really good with the sound effects the whole time so this wasn’t a surprise when you felt the blows.

Finally, the film had an excellent soundtrack. The music choices were bold and popped out at you for every scene. This is how I would want more films to sound like because a lot of films tend to be more generic without many big tunes in them. This one sounded like an anime almost with how colorful the themes were and they really set the mood. It was a brilliant choice by the composer to make this film stand out even more.

Overall, Police Story is one of the funnier films that I’ve seen in a minute. It probably would have ended up being really solid even if there wasn’t action although obviously every film is better with some fighting in it. The action scenes are top notch just like the comedic ones so you’ve got a full mix here. I have a hard time picturing any of the sequels or remake matching up to this one in any way but I’d be curious to see how those turn out. This one really tackles everything, even the classic themes of betrayal and having to go against the agency. You don’t always get the complete package like that.

Overall 8/10

Knights of the Zodiac Review

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Saint Seiya has had many films and series over the years but we hadn’t really gotten the live action version before now. Well, that was all to change with this one. Interestingly it decided to go with the American name for the franchise but that one’s always worked well so it’s a reasonable move. Unfortunately the movie isn’t doing so great at the box office so the chances of a sequel are beginning to dim. It’s definitely a shame since this one sets the seeds very well but I guess it’s going to be back to the drawing board for the franchise.

The film kicks off with two fighters battling it out in the night sky. The hero manages to protect the baby Athena before he is ultimately destroyed in the process. We then cut to the present where Seiya is a street fighter who takes on all challengers although he does a lot more dodging than actual fighting. After a particularly tricky fight Seiya is attacked by mysterious warriors and so a mysterious old guy tells him that they have to hurry out of there. Next thing Seiya knows he’s in a castle where a girl named Sienna is said to be the reincarnation of Athena and Seiya has to protect her since Seiya is the Pegasus incarnation from the knights. Does he have the power to pull this off…and why should he?

A lot of the story here is about following your destiny or trying to break past it if need be. Fortunately Seiya is a hero through and through so while it may not make a whole lot of sense at first, he does get with the program and help out as needed. He doesn’t get along with Sienna very well at first but in large part this is due to her being rude the whole time so you don’t really blame him. I’d say that Seiya is a likable main character who is told to believe a whole lot of things at face value right off the bat so it makes sense that he would be skeptical.

He went from being an ordinary fighter to having to fight world ending threats over night so I cut him a lot of slack. I’d say the movie also did a good job of including a little humor to his character as well. The original show may not have had too much time for it but Seiya did have a sense of humor that would show up once in a while. Here he gets some clever one liners and insults spread throughout the film and they help to make him feel much more like a complete character.

He still has his confidence and willingness to jump into battle as well. Definitely a solid lead all around. Now as you may have heard, the rest of the bronze saints don’t appear here which is definitely an odd choice. Instead we jump right to Phoenix Ikki…who has been renamed Nero for the movie and this time he’s working for a human named Guraad. This part is more inspired by the TV show and it’s an interesting angle. Basically she believes that Athena has to die in order to save the world from a dark prophecy and Nero is helping out. You have to be careful who you trust as a villain though.

Nero easily steals the show here with his constant sarcastic wit. The guy has an answer for everything and of course he has the power to back it up. If not for all the trailers showing that Nero would get in on the action you may start to get a little nervous halfway through the film though as you hope he will get to fight here. I can tell you that skipping his fight would have really hurt the film. As it stands we get to see exactly why he is so confident. His abilities really speak for themselves.

I also thought the movie went all out with making the effects for his costume and attacks good. One of the movie’s few weaknesses is that Seiya’s suit looks really bad. It’s nothing like his classic attire and looks like something out of Mortal Kombat instead. I like Mortal Kombat as much as the next guy but it doesn’t make sense to change this when Seiya is so popular and world renown for the outfit. His Pegasus Fist was also ruined here unfortunately. It just looks like smoke to an extent and not a rapid blow of fists. So the effects could have been a lot better but Nero’s looked good.

The fight scenes were all really solid though. I knew I was in for a treat right away when I saw the shockwaves behind every hit during the Seiya vs Cassios fight. Super satisfying all the way. I dare say it may have been the best fight in the film with the only competition being Nero vs Seiya. Both very good fights but in general all the hand to hand and beam battles were good. If you’re looking for action then this film delivered.

Guraad also made for a good villain. She wants to save the world even if it means destroying all of her bonds. She even knows how to fight with her technology and aura in a pinch. She doesn’t finish very well though as this kind of villain only really works when she is determined and ready to see her goals through to the end. When you’re a super evil villain like this then that’s what you really need to do but the instant you waver then that’s no good. It’s way too late for the victims at that point and so I much rather see a villain who sees the plan through than one who has doubts.

That’s why I wasn’t thrilled about parts of her character arc here but ultimatelys he is still good. I actually prefer her by a large margin to Alman who feels more wishy washy and the guy went too far. He caused just about as much damage as Guraad and while he ultimately did stop, he certainly took his time in the past. Princess Sienna is a good character though. She’s your classic “I’m really tough” character who comes in strong with the insults and doesn’t want to let anyone get too close.

She can’t control her powers yet though so don’t expect a lot of actual wins but at least she can talk tough which is always appreciated. Seiya knows that he can’t let his guard down around her or she’ll insult him again. By the end of the film I’d say that she has finally balanced her attitude along with being a little nicer though. If the films end up turning her into a real fighter that would be great.

I also have to give the film credit for how it handled Cassios. He’s considerably better here than in any other Saint Seiya media that I’ve seen. The guy was a full character and a strong fighter even before getting powers. The guy actually dealt damage to the automatic cosmo soldiers at one point and he also has a lot of confidence. Ultimately he might let himself get manipulated a little too easily and don’t expect him to actually come out on top but he’s a villain who is very entertaining to see. I was glad that he wasn’t just a one shot joke character.

The movie does have a good fakeout involving this with Alman’s bodyguard. When the first guy shows up to get one shotted by the villains you figure that the film did him dirty but then we see the true bodyguard after that and he looks good. It’s a bit cheesy that anyone could beat a bunch of these dark knights with a sword and gun combo. I’m not really sure that I buy it at all but it did make for a fun action scene.

The story, characters, and fights were definitely good all around. The only other issue is the pacing did get a little slow during the training by Marin. I felt like the desert didn’t make for the most interesting backdrop and the training itself was a little more on the plain side. There wasn’t much to it so it wasn’t super interesting. You were just waiting for Seiya to get back already to help out Sienna and stop the villains. Eventually Marin saw reason there but she definitely delayed him. It would be nice to see Marin more in the sequel because she can fight so she should be really useful there.

Overall, It was probably a mistake to change so many things from the manga. Having the rest of the Saints show up here would have been the better decision rather than saving them for a sequel that may or may not happen. I don’t think it would have been a whole lot to juggle. Either way I am looking forward to the sequel for this film if it arrives. As far as live action adaptions of a manga go I thought this was a fairly strong one. I was entertained the whole time and while it was a different adventure, I thought it captured the spirit of the adventure. Next time lets get more of the classic music tracks in here though instead of remixes playing very silently in the background.

Overall 8/10

The Sting Review

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The Sting is a very ambitious film with a ton of moving parts so it really ends up being quite a lot of fun. I enjoyed seeing jut how intense it was with a lot of twists and a huge cast of characters. Everyone stands out too which is a good thing and the suspense will keep you at the edge of your seat. I was definitely impressed with this one. Not to say I thought it would be bd or anything like that but is was still better than I expected. If you like planning movies like this then you will definitely have a great time here.

The movie starts with Johnny and Luther suckering a guy out of a lot of money and we see that they are grifters. Basically they part people with their money and it’s actually a rather profitable business. It has its share of risks to be sure but they have really done well for themselves. Unfortunately they messed with the wrong person this time and Luther is murdered by the mafia led by Doyle. Johnny escapes and meets up with a man named Henry who is supposed to be the best in the business. Johnny asks Henry to help him take revenge and so they set up the most ambitious trap yet to take down Doyle. Can they really defeat the leader of the mafia like this?

A film like this will only be as good as its writing and characters. Fortunately both of those are quite great so there is really nothing to worry about here. The movie is long which allows it to introduce all of the characters and make them all matter. The pacing never gets slow and so you never feel like things are dragging along. All of the scenes are necessary and the film gives you enough context to always keep up but you’re also supposed to think things out and try to stay ahead of the score too. The best part is that the plan actually feels feasible. Incredibly difficult to be sure but you aren’t suspending a whole lot of disbelief here.

Now the characters can’t be perfect or you might have some questions but for the most part they always make a lot of reasonable decisions and that goes a long way. My only issue here are the mistakes that Johnny makes. Sure the guy is a rookie compared to Henry but at the same time he’s still been in the game for a long while. When he wasted $10,000 on a roll of the dice that was just not a smart move. Even if the casino didn’t cheat, odds are great that he would have lost. There is no upside to spending a bunch of cash like that since the house will always clean up.

Then just as bad is when he decides to have a one night stand with a waitress. The stakes are too high for him to be messing around right now. Keep in mind that just about everyone in the city is after him at this point so he really doesn’t have a whole lot of time. He should be hiding out and laying low right now, not making moves. He seems rather desperate for someone from the start like when he was carrying the flowers at the beginning but he should just wait a little longer until after the plan is done. Things really came close to going sideways for him there. In a way it actually helped his defense since by looking like a sucker the villains really wouldn’t suspect him but he can’t take any credit there since that was accidental.

I like that Johnny was very determined to take revenge and he did put a lot into the planning. So I’m not going to sell him totally short. The guy contributed a ton and was a really solid character who had good acting to the end. His role was absolutely crucial in getting Doyle to take the bait. Ultimately he’s also just a likable main character. I would say Henry is the one who stole the show here though. He took huge risks himself and while the situation was a lot more personal to him than he let on, he still wasn’t as personally invested as Johnny was. Still he got the gang back together and pulled off a really grand exhibition. This film was truly a team effort with everyone putting in their part.

Meanwhile Doyle made for a solid main villain. The guy has a lot of personal pride which is why he couldn’t let the heroes get away with messing with him. Additionally he was pretty smart and was not easy to fool. It’s quite telling that the characters had to go so far in order to try and stay ahead of him. Half hearted methods definitely wouldn’t have done the trick here. This guy has a lot of muscle and you can see why he was the head of the mafia. Even to the end he was always a thorn in their side and switched things up enough times where you could say he did take every precaution. Ultimately the heroes were just too prepared for him.

I also liked Snyder and Polk as more supporting characters to mix things up. Snyder being more of a two bit criminal who was one of the more corrupt cops helped to be a wild card here. Same for Polk from the FBI side. The more sides you have in any movie the better and it was always great when Johnny would just be minding his own business and suddenly one of these guys shows up to complicate matters. He was really never allowed to have any peace while on the job. No matter what he did or where he went, there was always someone around to complicate maters further and cause a lot of trouble.

Overall, The Sting is a very satisfying movie. Not only does it remain very interesting throughout the entirety of the run but the ending is very satisfying. If you stumble at the ending that ends up hurting a lot so managing not to do that was a really big bonus for the title. The characters are likable and even the villain faction are solid. There weren’t any characters here that I really disliked. Everyone had their own objectives and you have to remember that this all started because Johnny and Luther were scamming people so it’s not even like they were upstanding citizens. When you become a crook you understand the risks and so it just happened to them earlier than they were expecting. It still remains personal but at the end of the day it was also business. Both of these villain groups were just doing what they wanted to do and so it turned into this big fight.

Overall 8/10

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea Review

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Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea is a movie that already sounds pretty promising from the jump but the execution is even better. It definitely surpassed my expectations and made for a great film all the way around. The cast is really solid and the film manages to tackle a whole lot about how everyone starts to go crazy without being too extreme about it. If you ask me the film absolutely nailed the tone and atmosphere that you would expect from this kind of title.

The movie starts off with Harriman showing around a congressman and Dr. Susan the submarine that he and his team work in. The congressman throws a lot of snide remarks the whole time but admiral Harriman parries and counters them all with ease. Eventually they get that guy to leave and continue with their mission. Unfortunately it has to be aborted when ice chunks start falling everywhere and the heroes return to the surface to find out that the sky is on fire. Harriman meets with the government and it seems that the world is about to end. There are only two plans to stop this. One is to travel over a week’s journey to a specific point on the planet where they can fire a missile off to release the heat and save the planet. The opposition believes this is what would doom the planet and instead we need to wait it out as this is just a temporary planet condition. The problem is that there is no way to test both theories. You either fire off the missile at the precise time where everything is aligned or you don’t. Many of the world’s foremost scientist recommend not firing the missile while Harriman’s friend the ultimate genius says to do it. Harriman trusts him and so they go forward with the mission. As the world melts around them, members of the crew wonder if they are on the right side.

One of the most impressive things about the movie is that it is able to balance both sides of the argument without making one side look crazy or suddenly turn comically evil. In a lesser move you can bet that Harriman would have been portrayed as being completely insane. They would not have been able to resist the temptation to do this, trust me on that one. Instead in this film he makes a lot of unpopular decisions and you have to wonder if he is going off the deep end but the film keeps it ambiguous. Much like the members of the crew on the ship you have to decide if you are on his side or not.

For the record I am definitely on his side to fire the rocket. Deciding to just sit back and wait for the inevitable is never a good idea. Why would this fire eclipse suddenly stop? Sure some experts say it would but I’d rather take my chances for better or worse than to just give up. As for Harriman’s controversial calls that the team took offense with, lets break them all down. The first was to dive while people were still on deck trying to get onto the ship. This one’s obvious, he had to dive because otherwise they would have been infiltrated and the mission would have been stopped right then and there.

Yes, it was a ruthless call but there are times where you have to stand in the driver’s seat and make that call or else all is lost. Then you have him turning off the comms so people on the ship couldn’t hear about what was going on around the world. This one’s definitely a bit trickier and I would say he should have kept it on. Sure the news was disheartening but shutting it off would just make people more paranoid. You shouldn’t try to control the news that the crew is hearing. Then later on he strikes a member of the crew and of course there is no defending that one. No matter how annoying the crew member was being you should never resort to violence like that.

So Harriman was right on some accounts and wrong on others. He certainly wasn’t perfect and the film wasn’t trying to portray him as such. So it works out well and considering the stress on everyone at the moment, it’s not as if he was immune to it. It makes sense that he would also be feeling its effects and having a rough time of it. Meanwhile Captain Lee was one of the main people opposing Harriman. I give him credit for doing it to Harriman’s face unlike other members who were always scheming in the background. They had a lot of differences of opinion but I have to say that I was rarely on Lee’s side at all here.

They have another debate over splitting the crew and considering what had been going on at the time with a sabotage attempt and a near murder it makes sense to try and filter those people out. It may be breaking standard procedure but there was nothing standard about this situation. That’s why for me it just made a lot of sense. Lee also got a little too emotional at times which is why I don’t think he’s quite ready for the admiral role yet. He needs to take more time to calm down and look at things logically.

Then there is Miguel who is one of those religious fanatics who seems more interested in talking a lot than actually trying to help out. He has his moments sure but his speech to the troops about just giving up wasn’t particularly inspiring. There’s a big difference between feeling safe in your faith since death isn’t the end and just letting it swallow you whole. He really was spreading a lot of defeatism within the camp so you can see why Lee was mad at the guy.

The longer the film went on, the more everyone started to crack but it never got to a Lord of the Flies level where everyone just turned into mass murderers. Everyone here mostly stayed within reason. You had some blows thrown, insults hurled, etc. At the end of the day these were all still grownups who could reason and think for themselves. That’s exactly what you wanted to see here. The writing is also excellent as I mentioned earlier. The script is on point with every character making well reasoned arguments too. The story keeps you engaged and they really packed a whole lot into the run time here. The movie felt long but in a good way as it kept adding in new elements and expanding the story so you felt like they got every drop out of this premise. Nothing was held back.

Overall, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea is a great movie. It’s really a timeless flick that has a lot of replay value. I would highly recommend checking it out. It’s a very mature movie with a lot of characters trying to handle their disagreements like civilized people while also keeping in a good amount of humor and fun as needed. There are more than a few moments that will make you smile here and they never break the tension of what’s going on above ground. We even get some action scenes here with a force that disagrees with the main characters. Yes this is a movie that really hit all the right buttons and there’s even a mystery plot that factors into the equation later on so that’s another fun plot to sink your teeth into.

Overall 8/10

The Mark of Zorro Review

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Zorro is one of those characters who was really huge back in the day. His popularity has waned since then but it’s fair to say that most people probably still know who he is. The reputation of this masked vigilante still precedes itself after all. This is probably the best cinematic portrayal of the character because it really nails the dual identity of the hero. It has a lot of action and a good amount of fun with it as well. It’s a well balanced movie that I could recommend to anyone at any time which is definitely the sign of being a quality picture.

The movie starts off with Diego wowing the world again with his impressive fencing abilities. The guy is second to none but one day he is called home only to find out that his father is no longer the ruler of the country. Instead a guy named Luis has taken control and the place has fallen into ruins. His family’s name has also been tarnished. Diego decides to don a mask and call himself “Zorro” as he goes through the city helping the impoverished. It’s not an easy task but somebody has to do it! To keep anyone from guessing his true identity Diego acts incredibly incompetent in battle and as someone with a very pure soul who doesn’t know much about fighting. Still, Esteban the top commander of Luis’ forces is determined to take down Zorro so Diego has to keep his wits about him. Can he pull off this ultimate deception?

It’s very much a Clark Kent/Superman kind of dynamic here. I like how over the top Diego is in not being able to do much of anything. The guy has a great time acting super spoiled and I’d say he does a great job of it. You can’t help but be impressed at how he handles his appearance and mannerisms. It’s a lot of little tings that all combine to make the ultimate disguise. Diego is certainly not someone to be trifled with when he can become a different person so easily.

At first I did think he was a bit quick to anger when he first arrived though. Everyone was terrified of even hearing his father’s name so then Diego starts threatening them and you figure he is sort of proving their point there. Maybe they were right to be afraid of the family right? Diego changes once he sees the true culprit here so perhaps he just thought these guys were being rude but I was a little surprised at his first impression. From this point on there are no setbacks though and he goes on to become the legendary hero everyone loves.

He’s very much like Batman here with how he strikes fear into all of the villains and leaves behind marks of his trademark Z so that people know he was around. He’s also quite the excellent fighter which makes him a true threat. I did appreciate that the villain Esteban was an actual fighter as well though. It made for a really good back and forth fight which was exactly what I was looking for here. Not for Zorro to just steamroll everyone but for him to get a legitimate battle where he would have to pull out all the stops in order to win. The climax is fairly long with both fighters giving it their all.

Esteban in general was a great villain because he was crafty aside from being skilled. It was no fluke that the guy made it as far up the ranks as he did. His dedication and greed got him far and that’s exactly what you would expect from such a guy. He helps to be a good foil for Luis who is the comic relief kind of villain who can’t really fight or hold his own at all. That guy lags behind and has to be protected at all times. Any true villain would just roll their eyes at such a figure but of course that also means he is very easy to manipulate. So that’s basically his role there.

Meanwhile you did have the romance here with both Lolita and her aunt both liking Diego. Diego likes Lolita but as part of his plan pretends to like the aunt to sow more discord. That was probably hitting a little below the belt to be honest. You don’t feel all that bad for her since trying to start an affair while already married is already a huge taboo but Diego encouraging it isn’t great either. Definitely made for a rather odd romance and it’s good Lolita was quick to overlook this and realize it was fake by the end because otherwise that romance definitely wouldn’t have worked very well. Honestly I’d say that romance is still rather rushed either way. I think they could have bypassed that and since it wouldn’t really change the film at all, it’s best left on the shelf.

I don’t really have any issues with the film which is always a good sign. It’s just a great experience and has the right amount of tension, action, and solid characters. Each character feels well developed here which enhances the overall adventure. For example the local father/bishop was a nice supporting character who was really helpful and was quick on the uptake. Now I would have liked some kind of a big cliffhanger as the film ended in order to get the sequel lined up but it’s not like you need that one. In a way the only missed opportunity was in not having Zorro keep his secret identity from everyone but that’s probably something you’d only do if you were intending on making this a big franchise with lots of sequels. Since that wasn’t the goal here then there wasn’t really a reason to do that.

Overall, The Mark of Zorro is a really fun film. At its core it feels like a classic superhero movie and that’s a large part of why it’s so good. It really executes on each of the genres as well as the tone and feel of what this adventure should be like. It’s a very self contained story as well so you can jump in and just watch this as a oneshot while fully understanding the world around Zorro. They cover a lot of ground here and the pacing is good at each turn. The writing is on point and it’s all very believable. Yes this is definitely a title that you don’t want to miss out on.

Overall 8/10

Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw Review

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I remember seeing the trailer for this film so many times in theaters. It always looked so good. This was easily one of the most exciting looking film trailers I had seen in quite a while and fortunately the movie absolutely delivers on this. The action here is absolutely on point and we have a great cast with lots of fun banter to back it up. This movie is the all around experience and a reminder that we need this movie series to keep on going for a long time. More spinoffs would be a good idea although I wouldn’t expect any of them to touch this title.

The movie starts off with a parallel showing us the lives of Hobbs and Shaw as they go through their day. They beat up on a bunch of enemies and show why they are the best at what they do. They are then called in to team up with each other to locate a powerful virus that has seemingly been stolen by a lady named Hattie who allegedly betrayed her team. What makes this complicated is that she is Shaw’s sister and that either way he doesn’t wan to team up with Hobbs. They will have to put their differences to the side quick because a metahuman named Brixton is on their tail and he is not someone that you want to mess with.

First off the big draw of this film is the endless banter with Hobbs and Shaw. They can’t stand each other and they make no attempt to hide this. Whenever one of them is on screen you can expect a lot of bickering and name calling. They are absolutely relentless with this but again it’s just great. They can be rather creative with all of the insults and they also take this really far like when Shaw intentionally sabotages Hobbs at the airport. That could have derailed the whole adventure for the heroes but fortunately Hobbs is always very resourceful.

This does lead to a great after credits scene with Shaw getting into a little trouble. The film adds in a lot of little bonus scenes and cliffhangers in the end which was pretty cool. There is certainly a whole lot for a sequel to tackle even if it appears that a sequel is never happening at this point. Hopefully they reconsider because there’s a lot more you can do with these characters. I can’t think of any duo currently active in cinema with banter that could come anywhere close to this. It’s just not happening.

There is a whole lot of action here but less in the way of car action than your average furious film. These guys are really confident in their hand to hand skills after all so that’s what the film really focuses on. Just the two characters really knocking the life out of all their opponents. They are taking villains down by the dozen and it’s great and it’s also why they needed to have someone with super powers in Brixton because otherwise there is no normal guy who could really handle these two. The battles here all live up to the hype and at most my only issue is that Brixton is so much stronger than the other two that this fight should have been over in an instant. There just isn’t a whole lot that they could do to injure him and all he needed to do was follow through on some of his hits.

Brixton did make for an interesting villain the whole time. He clearly doesn’t like being manipulated at all but isn’t really able to do much about it. It can work as a fun misdirect though because the whole time you’re expecting him to turn the tables on the true leader and it just doesn’t happen. The true leader seems interesting but of course we haven’t gotten to see him yet since he was being saved for the sequel. In the end that proved to not be the best call since we may not see him but on the plus side that means he will always look very impressive since he may never lose in the franchise.

As always Hobbs is a great character. He constantly has comebacks for every insult someone tries to throw at him. Additionally he talks really tough even while the heroes are being zapped which takes a whole lot of will and determination. Not just anyone can continue to hurl insults and such when they are at death’s door but he’s just built different like that. He is also really great at planning ahead as we see when the film ends.

Then we have Shaw who is also a lot of fun. I still say that Hobbs is a little more skilled in the end but Shaw is close enough where it is always a close fight. I’ve already spoken about how great their dynamic is but Shaw can also hold his own on the solo scenes. It was cool seeing him take out a bunch of thugs in the apartment and I like how he tries to always work smarter not harder. He’ll take an elevator if there is one instead of just jumping down and likes coming up with smart ways to avoid a fight. He was also very quick to try and protect Hattie when he finds out she is involved and never wavers in trying to protect her. He’s just a very high quality character.

As for Hattie, she had to make a pretty tough decision in absorbing the virus early on. She can fight well and while she may give up quicker than the other characters, the odds were pretty bad so you can see why she did that. She makes for a good heroine and can keep up with the main two with all the action going on around which is great. You don’t want a heroine who is panicking or anything like that while going through so you are definitely going to be satisfied here.

Then there is Hobbs’ brother Jonah who comes off as a bit of a jerk the whole time. Sure I guess Hobbs just up and left which wasn’t good but he’s working for the government and saves the world a whole lot. You’d think he would cut him some slack. Meanwhile Shaw’s Mom was a lot more entertaining. I like how she is always prepared and no jail can ever hope to keep her. It’s part of what makes her such a fun character since she only stays at jail for as long as she wants too.

There is a new character in the franchise named Victor who was actually rather fun. Certainly a rather random character I admit and I do think some of his scenes do tend to drag on a bit long. What I liked here is that he’s so unpredictable that you do get the feeling that he’s very dangerous. Even though his scenes always tend to be comedic, you get the feeling that the only reason he can joke around with Hobbs like this is because he’s so skilled that Hobbs can’t just bump him off so easily. I’d be interested in seeing this guy appear more and see what he can do. There’s also a fun cameo for air marshal Dinkley who is fun. Now this cameo may not have had much point to it even if he does help out once but it was neat to see him.

This film actually expanded the verse quite a bit which is good for a spinoff and it made the film feel a whole lot more important than it would have otherwise been. That’s what is very admirable here. Now when it comes to the soundtrack I will say that it’s less impressive than the main films. Some decent tunes in here but most of the songs just didn’t click for me. They may have been fast so they fit with the tone of the film but they just weren’t very good. The effects are top notch as always though.

What really makes this a great film is just how much replay value it has. The movie always has a very fun tone the whole time. You get your action scenes and hype dialogue as the characters get closer to their objectives but the film doesn’t slow down. We get a whole lot of big action scenes and then the film continues to top them over and over again. The only weak point of the film I would say is the romance which feels like it is just tacked on here. I gotta say that the characters are way too busy to worry about romance right now so they should be focusing on the fight. I’d also say some general power level issues throughout the film so you are going to have to suspend your disbelief a few times while the heroes are fighting.

Overall, Hobb & Shaw is a great film that I would recommend to anyone. I would say you don’t even need to watch the older films to understand this one. It works well enough as a stand alone title and with the basic premise of the two not getting along that is the only context that you really need. I could even rewatch this film now to be honest which is always a good sign. If they do surprise us with a sequel someday then I will definitely be ready but in the meantime I’m just glad that we got this one. Of course make sure you stick around after the credits because that last scene was just epic and a perfect way to end things off.

Overall 8/10

Space Jam Review

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It’s time to revisit the original Space Jam. This film was always a lot of fun as you got to see all of the Looney Tunes running around and everyone played in a really intense Basketball game. You do have to overlook some parts of the premise since we know that the Toons wouldn’t get crushed so easily though. They would have easily beaten the Monstars even without help if you ask me so there are some power level concerns here but ultimately you still get a lot of fun. The movie balances the serious and comedic moments well.

The film starts off with Michael Jordan retiring from Basketball and pursuing a career in Baseball but unfortunately it isn’t going very well. One day while playing golf he is sucked into the Looney Tunes world. Basically Bugs has called him in because they were getting decimated by a group of alien invaders and the only way to save their lives from being eternal prisoners is to defeat them in a basketball game. It won’t be easy though as the invaders have stolen the skills of some of the best Basketball players in the world and now they’re all around 15 feet tall. Can even Michael’s skills be enough to turn the tides against them?

So of course this is what I meant about the Looney Tunes looking a bit weak here. No way they would lose to the aliens. These guys are multiverse busters who can do the impossible and yet they are on the losing side? I have a tough time buying that one even if it is a comedy so you can’t take it too seriously. We see the enemies crushing them during the game as well with raw power and they just don’t respect the power of the Looney Tunes all that much. Once the heroes go crazy they start to even things out though.

Part of what makes the movie work so well is that the Basketball game is absolutely on point. You have a lot of good plays here and a good attention to detail was put on every scene. This actually felt like a real game and I have to say that this is important. You want it to feel real (As real as it can be with the Tunes) because it adds more drama and stakes to the game. You definitely don’t have many penalty flags as the villains get to do whatever they want but beyond that they’re still following the core rules.

Each character also gets their big moment. Someone like Daffy is usually the center of the jokes but he does help by buying into the secret stuff real quick. Bugs is still the mastermind here who tends to get the last laugh the whole time. Lola looks great as she’s one of the only characters with real basketball talent who can hold her own without using Toon Force. Then you have everyone else doing their best to contribute so it’s a real team effort. They may get beat up a whole lot during the game but they keep going.

Meanwhile Michael Jordan makes for a good main character. He’s got a lot of skills and is a confident main character. Even when the heroes are losing big at half time he keeps his cool and tries to think of a new strategy to win. At the end of the day he’s just doing his best to play and save the world. It’s not like his personality is super deep or there’s a lot of character here but he executes all of his scenes really well. He’s just a guy trying to do the right thing and sometimes that’s better than trying to make things overly complicated.

Then you have Stan who is doing his best to keep his job by making Michael happy. His direction is clear, he has to make sure nobody messes with MJ and that’s exactly what he does. He’s one of the main comic relief characters here and I’d say that he does a great job of that. You’ll usually crack a smile whenever he’s on screen. He’s got a good dynamic with Michael. Then you have Bill whose role is small but he makes the most of it. You have to love his absolute confidence when he takes over the field and he isn’t worried about the monsters at all. He even had a total plan for the heroes if they were on offense but unfortunately it turned out they were on defense.

Those are just some examples of the fun dynamics and solid comedy throughout the movie. I wouldn’t say that every joke landed of course and that will always be par for the course for any comedy title but for the most part they were able to land and that’s what counts. Then it helps that the characters are just fun. The Monstars aren’t particularly notable that’s for sure but they did get a high budget transformation which was intense. They actually looked really strong so you had to respect that and they delivered on the pain.

The animation really holds up well to this day. You could tell me it came out in the 2000s and I wouldn’t bat an eye at the animation. There are some areas where you can tell that it’s a 90s film like with the song selection but in a very good way. The songs were all pretty solid and we got a lot of very fun montages here. There’s a ton of replay value to be found here and you can watch the movie several times. It’s all very fast paced with something going on at all times.

If there’s any small issue I’d have, it’s that I’d like to see the Looney Tunes get to show off their individual talents a little more. Road Runner’s speed should be incredible in Basketball after all so lets see that. Daffy may usually play second fiddle to Bugs but he’s usually still in the conversation when it comes to Toon Force so seeing him get more big moments and plays would have been nice. I do like the rivalry that they still have here though and that’s something you want to keep. Bugs gets a big moment here and there but I would like to see him dominate the court more. Of course you don’t want them to be winning too easily but I’d say you should just scale up the villains a bit more and then it all balances out.

Overall, Space Jam is definitely a very unique movie and one that knew exactly what it wanted to do. At its core it’s all about having a crazy Basketball game with the Looney Tunes and the film never forgets this. Space Jam actually takes itself rather seriously which is also very important. The stakes are high after all and then there’s even the subplot in the human world with the players trying to get their skills back after they were stolen. There’s just a lot to like here and Space Jam is a great movie all around. It’s not carried by the Basketball scenes or by the Looney Tunes, but a lot of effort was put into it. I’d definitely recommend this to any film fan that wants to watch a fun flick.

Overall 8/10

See How They Run Review

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See How They Run was a really fun mystery film. It’s poking fun at the genre a bit while also delivering on a very solid murder mystery. You’ve got solid music here and a really solid opening. Throw in the good cast and this is a movie that you don’t really forget. You don’t see a ton of mysteries compared to other genres so it’s always fun to pick out a winner. I’d definitely recommend checking this one out.

The movie starts off with Leo narrating as he talks about how the murders are always predictable and he takes a ton of shots at “The Mouse Trap” which is a play that’s being turned into a movie. The guy holds nothing back but then he ends up being bumped off himself. It made for a nice twist since the film had been leading him up to being the main character but that wasn’t the case. Instead Inspector Stoppard and Constable Stalker are the main characters as they take on the case. Yes, Stalker is actually her name which was another bit of fun by the film. Can these two solve the case or will their differing styles come between them?

The Inspector is a hardened detective type who likes to slowly gather the clues and figure things out. That’s his style and he’s rather good at it. Constable Stalker is more about quickly gathering the clues and jumping to the ending. She likes the thrill of the chase and means well but tends to jump to conclusions as a result which annoys the Inspector a lot. This makes for a fun dynamic with a whole lot of banter though so I definitely enjoyed that. A big part of why the film succeeds is because of these two characters who really steal the movie.

The Inspector has a whole lot of obstacles in his path like the police commissioner who is more worried about optics than what is actually going on. That guy is easily caught up in jumping to the end as well and gives promises that he can’t keep so he’s not exactly the highlight character here. The Inspector has to succeed in spite of him and does a good job. Even Stalker tends to get in the way sometimes but at least she also has a large list of contributions to offset that.

It was a bit underhanded that she wrote down a private conversation between the two of them and used it against him later on though. She nearly got the Inspector in a whole lot of trouble. Yes she was just trying her best to do the right thing but that’s why it’s important not to jump to conclusions. That nearly got very dicey for sure. At least she doesn’t let it get her down though, Stalker never lets her enthusiasm for the case wane.

Then we have Leo who may have died early but keeps a large presence in the film through a bunch of flashbacks. Basically every time the characters meet a suspect we get to see how this guy did something mean to them. Leo is basically as antagonistic as possible. He messes with the characters, tries to get characters to cheat with him, is full of himself, etc. He goes out of his way to antagonize every character in the movie which is impressive…but of course that is also what led to his end.

It was also fun to see Agatha Christie also get to appear here. For a bit there I thought they were going to keep her off screen throughout the movie but she actually has an active role in the climax and gets to interact with the characters. That was definitely a really intense moment and I like how she picked up a few things from her murder mystery novels. She actually came close to having the villain on the ropes.

As for the actual villain, of course I can’t say who that was, but the reveal worked well. The villain had a good motive so you can see how the villain cracked in the end and started bumping everyone off. There is something almost funny about the explanation too and how it led to all of this. It’s true that the reactions to the murders in a way incentivized them to keep on going because the intended effect wasn’t working. “The Show must go on!” is a powerful mantra that is used a lot but of course if someone is trying to stop the play then that means they will have to keep on going over and over again until it actually stops.

One thing I have to give the film a shout-out for are the visual techniques that are used here. You constantly get different boxes on screen at the same time so you see the moment from different perspectives. It’s almost like a comic book in some ways and it’s not overplayed. These moments always just help to enhance the scene and make it more memorable. It’s like going the extra mile for the actual mystery.

You also have a fair chance to try and guess who the murderer is. All of the characters have a good amount of screen time and have definitive personalities. If you’re really paying attention to the dialogue then you should have a good chance here. My pick ended up not being correct so we’ll see how it goes for you. The film is always ready to throw you a few curve balls as well.

Overall, See How They Run is a great mystery film. It’s got a lot of replay value and the fact that the movie is able to tie it into the original play while being different was very clever. The climax uses this really well and there was a lot of detail put into this one. The writing never falters and it works really well in being a bit self aware on what usually happens in murder mysteries while still taking itself very seriously. I was quite impressed with how this went and if we ever get a sequel that could be fun.

Overall 8/10