Tag Archives: Drama

In From The Night Review

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It’s time for another really dramatic Hallmark title and I’m afraid to say that this one is going a bit too far into the dramatic territory. They make the kid a little too unlikable for most of the film and there isn’t much room for resolutions when even with 20 minutes left in the film we’re still dealing with issues. It takes too long to arrive at the happy ending which is a problem that drama films tend to have at some points. It needed to lighten up a bit.

The movie starts by introducing us to Vicky who has been working on a book for 10 years but has serious writer’s block. She has finally been invited to a really prestigious author’s retreat though where she will be paired with an experienced mentor. The only thing she wasn’t counting on was her nephew Bobby showing up unannounced. He seems to have had a tough time of things as he can barely speak and suffers from large nightmares. Vicky needs to find a way to help him but this could end up destroying her career. What can she do?

The film definitely lays out how it can be difficult to navigate the family circumstances here. For starters, Bobby’s parents were insane from the jump and were never fit to be parents. At one point it got so bad that the rest of the family had to show up and take Bobby out of there but eventually they returned and took him back. Many years passed and the damage was done but the parents can still come back at any time. Vicky knows good and well that the parents will have the edge in any custody case so she has to be careful not to provide Bobby with any false hope while trying to keep him safe.

The time factor is also difficult as Bobby is nearly at college age so when you’re dealing with years of abuse, it’s not like you can fix it in an instant. Vicky does her best though and from the start I would say she handles it well. She quickly consults with a lawyer to deal with the legal stuff and on the family level she also makes sure to work on the resources that she has on hand with helping him feel comfortable at her place. When getting him to other nice relatives doesn’t work, she is quick to take him back to her home.

So I have no issues with Vicky. She’s a great lead character. The romance plot perhaps moves a little too quickly with the other author but the film doesn’t dwell on that much at least. Then we have Bobby where unfortunately most of my issues go. Obviously he’s been through a whole lot of abuse so it’s expected that he will be a bit off. He doesn’t have many social cues and makes his share of mistakes in terms of not knowing what to do. That is all fine, but where my issues come in is where he makes a bunch of friends with the wrong crowd. It just didn’t add up to me that he let a bunch of randoms crash at his place. You’d think that would just make him feel even more uncomfortable.

Then he lets them trash the place and also plays loud rock music at times. It’s lucky that there were no close neighbors to cause a problem. It felt like this just didn’t have an obvious correlation with what he endured as a kid so I didn’t know why he was acting out like this. I would have expected him to be really quiet or something which would make sense but standing out in all of these ways just felt weird. It takes him a long while to finally get back into control. So long that we’re at the end of the film by then.

That leads to another issue which is that the film doesn’t have much time for happy scenes. The movie is basically over by this point and so the film definitely lived up to the drama subplot but there isn’t a whole lot else. As a result, the film just isn’t a whole lot of fun to watch and certainly has no replay value. I would have cut out the plot with all the random toxic friends and probably would have removed the rock music as well. Have him be really quiet until Vicky is able to break through to him.

That just seems like it would make the most sense. I also think the subplot with his parents could have been handled better. Vicky’s mother continues to believe that they aren’t that bad and that Vicky should talk to them while Vicky wants nothing to do with them. Vicky has the correct position, especially after we see what they did with Bobby. The film awards too much sympathy to the father where he is broken down by the end and wants Vicky to talk to his wife. There is just no way that should ever happen and I also don’t give the father any slack here. He could have stopped the abuse at any point if he wanted to and yet he did nothing. He’s really just as guilty here.

I would have preferred if Vicky had just told him to get lose and reaffirmed that she would never see the wife again. Both of them just seem absolutely crazy and are well past the point of no return. Yeah they’ve got serious issues but they’re adults and could have taken steps to correct this. The instant they went after their son and gave him such a rough upbringing, the idea of any sympathy towards them was completely gone.

Overall, In from the Night is a film about how tough it can be to rebuild a life once it has been thoroughly broken down. It’s a film that is tackling a rather tough subject. I wouldn’t say it tackles the subject super well though and definitely stumbles to the finish line. There are a lot of things I would change with this film but ultimately the best thing to do is probably to skip it. This one isn’t going to hold a candle to the average Hallmark film. Those tend to be a lot more fun and have the right balance that this one lacks. This one is just too dreary for most of its run.

Overall 3/10

Big Fish Review

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It’s time for a film about how tall tales can eventually cause people to fall apart. Too many of those do wreck your chances of really getting to connect with people after all. When it’s overdone it can even seem like you’re just lying all of the time. That said, the stories tend to be the most interesting part of the film and you don’t want to go back to the real world for the drama parts. They just don’t work out quite as well as the fantastical stories.

The movie starts with showing us how William’s big celebratory wedding gets taken over by his father Edward who begins talking about the day William was born. The lead doesn’t like this story, not just because it isn’t true but because he wanted the day to really be his. He feels like his father has always been an overwhelming presence in his life and so he breaks off ties with him for several years. Well, now his father is dying and so it is time for William to try and reconnect the relationship. Edward is still committed to his stories to the very end though so William will have to learn to accept this or not.

I suppose my biggest problem with William is the fact that this just doesn’t feel like a big deal. Stories are how his father talks and so William just needs to accept that. He comes across as extremely ungrateful considering all that his father has done for him over the years. He seems like he was a really good person and so William should have embraced the stories. Even to the very end of the film he spends most of his time complaining and so he will quickly become your least favorite character in the movie. There just isn’t any saving him.

Fortunately his wife Josephine is a lot more understanding and has the compassion to hear Edward’s stories with a good amount of enthusiasm. This gives him a chance to tell all of the stories one last time. She knows that they all carry a lot of exaggertions but the guy is dying so why not let him have a little fun on the way out right? She’s realistic the whole time while William just can’t get himself to understand this. It’s not a tough concept either.

Edward’s wife Sandra doesn’t get a whole lot to do in this film but she was important through the stories as we see how hard Edward worked to get to her. He really had to go through a whole lot of adventures and put his best foot forward. While Edward was never one to face reality, I don’t see why he should need to. Real life can be rather boring at times so spicing up your memories is the way to go. The way the film handles this is to show us the actual stories which makes for a fun subplot.

I suppose if you are really looking forward to the real-life confrontations then this might hurt a bit but the stories are the best part like I said before. It’s fun to see Edward bravely stand up to every challenge and show why he is the most powerful fighter around. He gets a lot of great lines throughout and you can really feel his determination. He is definitely not the kind of guy to go down without a fight, that’s for sure. Now with the romance angle, it is a bit iffy to go after someone who is already engaged. It’s not at the same level as someone who is married of course but while this one has a happy ending, that would usually not be a good idea. He got off rather easy on this one.

As the film starts to come to a close, we learn a bit about how true some of the stories were. Most of the lies are fairly easy to see based on how supernatural they are but Edward did a good job of keeping the message straight in each situation. Additionally, he was a good family man to the end and never let himself get tempted into going down a dark path. Now that was a really good look for him since other characters would have definitely faltered at one point or another.

The film can run a bit long at times and probably could have done well with cutting out some moments. You could probably shorten the circus if you needed to as one example. It was a good way of showing Edward’s determination, but it was the most expendable. We also didn’t need the Werewolf plot in general which came out of nowhere. I mean a lot of the dreams/stories came out of nowhere but yeah that didn’t do anything to enhance the plot at all and if anything would only hurt since the film did reference the werewolf eating several animals. At the end of the day, it’s a solid title though and so I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good time. The main character is annoying but aside from him the rest of the characters are pretty good. It’s a solid title about remembering to treasure your connections while you can because everyone dies eventually. You may think you have a lot of time left to talk with someone and then they’re gone in the blink of an eye.

Overall, Big Fish is a film that does well in balancing the fictional and the real. If I would make a change here it would be to never really show any of the real world parts. Don’t actually let the lead find any evidence and just have him learn to trust that at least part of his father’s stories were true. Or have him decide that it just doesn’t matter in the end and he becomes a good sport either way. I would say that either option would end up working out just fine so you don’t have to do anything crazy. That would probably bump it up a star. Either way this isn’t really the kind of story that’s meant to have a lot of replay value but it works as an initial watch.

Overall 6/10

Blind Spot Review

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It’s time for a Hallmark movie but it’s definitely one of those more dramatic ones that doesn’t quite live up to the Hallmark standard. The characters end up being super annoying for the most part and keep on making bad decisions. There are some bad decisions that you can overlook but in other cases it is just too much. When your bad decisions start to affect others, then you have absolutely lost the plot.

The movie starts with Nell working on her cause to promote the dangers of Global Warming. She has been telling people about this for years and has been moving up the government rankings. Unfortunately, her son in law dies in a tragic car accident which also injures her pregnant daughter Phoebe. What’s even worse is that apparently he had been doing drugs the whole time and her daughter had even been in on it different times. Phoebe even has drugs right before giving birth so now that’s something her kid will have to deal with for a whole lifetime. This threatens not only Nell’s relationship with her daughter but also her relationship to her husband Simon. Will she be forced to put her career aside to mend this family?

I would say off the top the biggest thing that limits the film itself is that it’s hard to be too sympathetic to Phoebe here. Taking drugs is an awful thing to do at any age and the fact that she was doing this as early as 12 is not a good sign for her character What’s even worse is doing this while she was pregnant. Now you’re harming your own child and then Phoebe ditches her newborn baby to go on a drinking spree. She continues to double down on her mistakes throughout the movie and is always quick to blame Nell.

Phoebe isn’t even able to take responsibility for her own choices and has a victim mindset the entire time. It’s important to never blame other people for what has happened to you. It’s the easy way out and a total cop out. At the end of the day you have to take ownership for what has happened and make a conscientious decision to change yourself. If you don’t do that then you’re only going to continue down the rabbit hole because you can always say that it’s someone else’s fault.

Even by the very end of the film it doesn’t feel like Phoebe is out of the woods. She still had a drink and was close to breaking down. It’s good that she’s self aware about it but it would have been nice if the film could have had a more wholesome ending. Then we have Simon who has the same issues of blaming others Every time something happens with Phoebe, he is quick to throw some pot shots in at Nell. It felt like he would never waste an opportunity and then it was back to the blame game back and forth. I tended to agree with Nell here that at the end of the day he would agree. He seems to try and say that he only did because she pressured him into doing so but that’s a real weak excuse. He knows good and well what he says each time and so he has to either own it or not say anything.

Yeah I really didn’t like very many characters here. I guess I liked Nell’s agent who was good at damage control but that was about it. As for Nell, she was better than the other main characters but was portrayed as far too dense at times. Constantly interrupting in the meeting with Phoebe to try and give her own answers the whole time just wasn’t smart. Then wanting to have Phoebe go in front of the world to talk about being a drug addict? That’s incredibly tone deaf and it takes a very long time for Nell to get with the program.

She shouldn’t let herself be gaslit into being upset that she has worked so hard on her job but she should be self aware enough to see the damage it has caused and not try to prop it up the whole time. This is one of those drama films where it feels like the drama has absolutely been played up a whole lot for the adventure. As a result the film makes sure that none of the characters are likable by the end.

It also means that the film can move on rather slowly since the pacing dies early on. It just won’t end up being one of your favorite films at the end of the day and it is lacking in the fun factor. It’s why drama films need some other genre in there to spice things up like being part comedy or something. A pure drama film is going to usually end up being way too dramatic at the expense of everything else. That comes at an absolutely huge cost.

Overall, Blind Spot was not one of my favorite films. It had some interesting ideas I guess but it’s usually going to be hard to make a film about drug addiction be all that enjoyable. It is a serious vice and one that can be hard to conquer. It’s why interventions are important and often times you will need help to break it. The best thing to do is to never start with it in the first place. If you can stay away then that will mitigate the temptations and obviously you should also make sure not to have friends who are really into drugs. No matter how much you say they won’t get to you, it always remains as a possibility. Why even put yourself in that situation? Well, unless you enjoy seeing the blame game be put on constant display, this is a film I would recommend skipping. It’s definitely not on point compared to the average Hallmark film, I can say that with confidence.

Overall 3/10

Crimson Tide Review

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This review is of the TV-14 edited version of the film. All thoughts below should be addressed as such as a review of the unedited version would be more negative

It’s time for a film about war time situations and how it can be tough to agree on a proper plan of action. The stakes have never been higher for any of the characters here and it makes for a really suspenseful watch. The story and characters are both really good and the film moves forward at a really good pace. I didn’t really have any major issues with it and was invested the whole way through.

The film starts out by explaining that a Russian extremist has taken ahold of some nuclear facilities and is threatening to fire them off if he is provoked. Captain Frank is told to assemble his troops and go underwater to set up counter measures. If ordered, he is to launch a pre-emptive nuclear strike at the enemy. He picks Ron as his second in command and they head underwater. The big problem here is that communication gets knocked out early on after an order is given to attack based on certain conditions. When the conditions are met, Frank is ready to attack but Ron wants to find out more information. This threatens to tear the unity of the ship’s crew apart. What can they do about this?

The problem with a disagreement like this is that neither party is likely to back down. Too many lives hang in the balance and many will die if either one is wrong. Frank’s point is that they already have their orders and the fact that they cannot receive new ones does not mean that they abandon the old ones. Every second they wait is a second that something bad could be happening on the outside. It’s imperative that they take out Russia as soon as possible. On Ron’s side, if they attack now and the threat has already been averted, then they will be triggering a world war for no reason.

For me I would definitely side with Frank here. You have to go with the preemptive strike. It’s the whole reason you’re out here and the stakes are too high to stand back. So while he takes some rather drastic steps towards this end, they were completely justified. You just have to do this if you believe yourself to be correct. You’ll have to watch the film to see how it plays out but it’s a decision where hindsight can’t factor into it. So you have to choose a side and then just proceed with no regrets.

I imagine there will be a ton of hard feelings between the crew long after the events of the film have ended. There is quite a bit of violence here after all and that’s something you never really forget. No matter what the cause was, if you’re attacked or pushed around then you’re gonna remember it. The film develops a few of the side characters who each have to take a side by the end. One of them in particular is rather wishy washy with how he picks his sides but everyone else picks a side and sticks to it.

It also shows how easy it could be for a revolt to happen within a ship because there are so many people there with their own tasks that you can’t possibly keep track of them all. So if one guy is missing you probably won’t notice and by the time you notice 8 guys have left their posts, they’ll be in front of you with guns. You’re also completely stuck underwater so there is absolutely no escape. It has to be the scariest part of being in a submarine. I don’t even like being in a train that goes underwater for that same reason. If something happens then you’re basically doomed.

While I don’t tend to love war films, I do really like submarine stories and so that part of the balance won out. This is really a thinking man’s film where the thriller elements are in the strategy. Yes, there are some real fights here like with the enemy subs but this is still more about each character’s ideology. The top two certainly had very different ways of thinking which appears in the film right from the start. The contrast is set up really well for when the main disagreement happens.

The film does a good job of not making either one of the characters look insane either. You could probably make the case that it is leaning towards Ron as the main character here but it’s not too heavy handed. You are still able to make your decision on who you feel was right in this case. A weaker film would have definitely been throwing in not so subtle jabs the whole time.

Apparently a sequel is being worked on so it’ll be interesting to see how that one plays out. I imagine that the story will be a whole lot different for the next one. A sequel for a film like this is always going to either be hit or miss because the story doesn’t automatically lend itself to a sequel and if you don’t have too many returning characters, it will feel like they’re just borrowing the title for money. Well, we’ll come to that bridge when it happens but it will definitely be difficult to surpass this film.

Overall, Crimson Tide is a very good film. The writing is really solid and the situation feels very realistic. You never know how someone will react when a situation like this pops up and even close friends have to end up going at it. You can have as many plans and procedures as you want but when the situation actually happens, people aren’t necessarily going to listen to what is said in the book. They’re going to do what they think is right at the time and you just have to hope that it is close enough.

Overall 7/10

Imaginary Crimes Review

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It’s time for a dramatic film that incorporates a lot of second hand cringing. You can really sympathize with the tough spots that the main heroine was put into here. It’s definitely a tough situation for the kids and a general reminder that it’s okay to have dreams but you have to be responsible about them. If not, then you are really just setting yourself up for defeat. It definitely will not end well and the longer you put off your reality check, the bigger the consequences will be.

The film starts off by introducing us to Ray who has had to raise his two daughters Sonya and Greta by himself after his wife passed. Ray has always been a bit of a dreamer. He doesn’t want to work a standard 9-5 job, he acts as if this is beneath him. No, he’s going to get super rich and is quick to mention this at all times. None of his plans have worked out yet but he knows that they will at some point. He’s been conning people for years and lies as he breathes. Now he has managed to get Sonya into school but the lies are starting to catch up to him. Is he about to ruin everything?

Right off the bat I can say that you don’t feel too much sympathy for Ray. It’s one thing to be ambitious and want to do things your own way but the instant you start becoming a chronic liar about it, then you are knowingly doing something bad. By around the halfway point you start to doubt that Ray is as insane as he appears and instead it really seems like he just enjoys spinning his stories. He had to know where it was going and yet he kept on doubling down over and over. If anything he is incredibly lucky that he didn’t try that in a worse neighborhood or he would have been thoroughly beaten up a long time ago. You just can’t get away with these kinds of actions for very long. He had plenty of outs and at the very least could have kept the situation from snowballing out of control. Unfortunately he did not make that choice.

Meanwhile for Sonya, this often meant that she had to take care of her little sister Greta which limited the amount of free time she had on her own. She wasn’t able to be a kid in the ways that she should have been allowed to. Then Sonya is also old enough to know that her father is lying about everything which is super awkward for her. It’s not like she can do much to stop him and in the meantime has to just keep her head low and try to make the best of the day. Even when she does her best to try and cut Ray off or prevent him from making the lie worse, he just ignores her.

She definitely has the wort situation out of the group by far as a result. Fortunately she does her best and I give her full credit for taking care of her sister since that wasn’t always easy here. In the end she also makes the right decision to look to her future instead of taking the easy way out and making for a new location with Ray. You have to face up to things eventually after all and the sooner she gets it over with the better. She also met a nice teacher at the school who really helped her out by polishing up her writing abilities and looking out for her. Even having just one ally helps out a lot and in general the town seemed like a very nice one. That’s why it was a real shame that Ray was cheating them out of money.

One last fault for Ray is that he also appears as a very unreasonable guy. We get a flashback where his wife won some nice plates from a local raffle and he immediately starts insulting them. He seemed to take it very personally that she got the plates from somewhere else instead of him being able to provide for her. It was just in such a childish way that it makes him look so petty. She had always been patient enough to put up with his endless boasts and promises that would never come to fruition. The least he could do is be happy for her when she finally won something.

Additionally, during the films we see Sonya’s stories that she would submit to the school which were loosely based on her life. They were intentionally exaggerated so you don’t know exactly how much was true or not but in those stories we see Ray quickly rebounding with other women and generally looking like a rather terrible guy. So even if only a little bit of that was true, it just makes him look even worse. The problems that he created were all of his undoing and that is why it’s hard to feel bad for him. I just felt bad for the kids who had to deal with the consequences of his actions.

Overall, Imaginary Crimes does a good job of getting across that feeling of how hopeless things can be when you’re a kid and you know that something is not right. The main problem is that no matter how much you know, there’s not much a kid can do. I can’t really say that they could have done anything differently here. That’s why it all comes down to the father’s failure here because he needed to provide for his family. That’s the top priority and it has to come before pride and his visions of striking it rich. By this point he had to know that wasn’t going to happen and to continue trying for it would just be plain irresponsible. It was not a good idea. I’m not a big fan of the film but it’s not a bad title either. If this sounds interesting then you should check it out.

Overall 5/10

Bang the Drum Slowly Review

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Usually you expect a Baseball film to be a rather happy one. Some kind of slice of life or really competitive sports title. Well, this one decides to switch things up a bit by being more of a dramatic, sad affair. The tone manages to still stay light for the most part but there is something looming over you the whole time. I would say how much you enjoy the film may come down to how sad you find it.

The movie starts with Bruce finding out some bad news, he is dying. He has a rare disease that is quite fatal and will begin to deteriorate his body over time. Only Bruce and his best friend Henry know about this and they decide not to tell anyone. Although naturally that begins to be a hard secret to keep for very long so eventually more and more people find out. How will Bruce handle his impending death?

Nobody knows the exact point of their death and that’s why it can always be an interesting topic. If you know that you will most likely die within the next year, how would that affect your life? I imagine for some people it would be a little liberating. For others it would be rather scary. It depends on what you believe happens after death. As a Christian I’d be rather excited since that means I’ve made it to the end of the road. Of course you’d rather not deal with the pain and all but there’s nothing scary about death. If anything it can be seen as something to look forward to, although of course you can’t rush it.

If you don’t have a solid future to look forward to, then of course it’s going to be sad and depressing. The film is definitely banking on this being a really sad affair and so that’s where I’d say it doesn’t land quite so effectively. It’s not a bad film by any means but I’d put it near the middle. It has some pretty funny scenes and I actually thought the humor was really on point when it would let the jokes fly. If anything this film would have been a really good comedy and they could have just had the doctor show up at the end and say it was a false positive. Of course it’s just not that kind of film but that would have been an interesting way to go about it.

Throughout the film, Henry shows himself to be a great friend. He helps Bruce out a lot with getting everything straightened out and also doesn’t let the guy get taken for a sucker by a lady with big ambitions. It would have been nice if he could have gotten Bruce to really understand what was happening a bit more but when love is involved that can get really tricky. In the worst case, you could blow up the friendship right when Bruce needs it most. So Henry made the tough call and things worked out well enough.

Even though Bruce was the one dying, Henry certainly had to endure a whole lot on his end as well. He even crashes out at one point which is fairly obligatory in films like this but still more on the annoying side. That was a whole lot of property damage after all. Meanwhile Bruce wasn’t the smartest guy around but he did his best to always be a nice guy. By the end he even started playing a little better and everyone started being nicer to him. So at least he got to end things off on a high note.

Meanwhile there is a subplot where the coach is trying to figure out what is going on and keeps on getting closer to the truth. I really liked how determined he was and no amount of lies could keep him away. It’s why he was a good coach, he knew his players inside and out. It can be tough to call out a lie but he never backed down. The scenes are also played up quite a bit with the humor and they end up being quite funny.

The writing is solid throughout and the pacing is pretty good as well. On a technical level I didn’t really have any problems with the film. It will just have a hard time keeping your attention the whole time because there just isn’t a whole lot to it. It feels like the film is missing something and it’s hard to say exactly what that would be. One possibility would be to have continued the film after Bruce’s death and now Henry has to fight that one lady in court. That could have been a pretty interesting climax even if it would be a bit far away from Baseball at that point. Alternately maybe more Baseball scenes? I’m not quite sure if that is what would really take things all the way through to the next level but just some things I’d throw out there as possibilities.

Alternately maybe a first act to see more of Bruce’s dynamic with the team before he actually gets really sick. That could work as well and really show us more of a contrast on how they all act after they find out that he is dying. We certainly have less screentime of the original dynamic compared to the new one. The team never really struck me as bad guys either. Yes there was quite a bit of ribbing but that seems normal for any kind of sports team. Maybe I’m just too used to it at this point but for example nothing in the film felt particularly malicious. They did their best to walk on eggshells later on and be extra nice but for some, they’d probably prefer to keep going with the banter and act normal.

Overall, Bang the Drum Slowly is a reasonable film. It doesn’t have a whole lot of replay value and could have probably either focused more on the humor or added another subplot to keep you engaged. That said, it’s a very unique kind of Baseball film so you could definitely check it out on that basis. It’s certainly not trying to be a clone of anything else or being generic in any sense. There is even a sad song that plays at one point during the film to try and drill the message home.

Overall 5/10

Stranger on the Run Review

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It’s time for a western that I can’t say I had heard of before. It’s a pretty interesting tale about what happens when you go into the wrong town. You’ve probably watched or at least read some stories with a similar premise but usually it’s more for a short adventure and not the full length movie. You have a bit of a mystery going on here as well and then eventually the chase starts. It’s a good film although I do think the main character could have been a lot more solid.

The film starts off with Ben arriving in a own looking for a lady. Nobody wants to talk about her though and it’s clear that something shady happened. Ben isn’t super quick on the uptake about this though and keeps on asking questions to the point where he is beat up. He eventually gets someone to spill the beans and so now the whole town’s posse is after him. Can he manage to stay alive and take them to justice or is he doomed? Fortunately he will not be alone on this adventure.

Ben is a nice enough guy but the fact that he shows up drunk does not put him in the best shape to fight these guys off. He is too quick to go into the beer bottle and it also seems to make him not really notice the danger of his situation at times. These villains aren’t exactly subtle after all, they act extremely shady right out of the gate. Ben has to be prepared to take them all down if he wants to get his answers because otherwise he will be the one in a messy grave.

I’d say something the film does really well with the long runtime is developing the characters. You actually get to know just about everyone in the town rather well. You have the Sheriff who initially seems rather reasonable compared to the others but definitely has a dark side and really likes the power that he possesses. You’ve got his deputy who is on the older side but wants to still prove that he can fight with the best of them. There’s a kid who looks up to the posse and wants to be like them when he grows up, which always causes his mother to worry a lot.

The mother is mainly kept out of the loop on things but tries her best to keep her son on the straight and narrow. Then you have a few other members of the posse who are basically just thugs that really like to abuse their power. Long story short, you really don’t want to come to this town. The lady who went missing certainly didn’t pick a great place to go. The story doesn’t portray her as the nicest character around either but even so that’s no excuse for the other brutes going after her.

In a rough town like this it feels like you either make friends with the strongest one and stay relatively safe or you have to get out of there fast. It’s one of the scarier parts about the olden days since you couldn’t just drive out of there in your car. Walking would likely not be a good idea either so in the end while you’re waiting for the train anything can happen. Particularly when you have no friends to help you.

We do get the obligatory gunfight near the end in a rather prolonged gunfight. I’d say we mainly have two pretty long gunfights here and as always you do wonder how they don’t hit each other a bit sooner. There are times where the characters have no cover and still manage to come out on top. I suppose accuracy wasn’t all that back in the day so I can cut that a bit of slack. I tend to enjoy gunfights either way even when there isn’t a lot of connecting. It’s just fun to watch.

The action is on point here. I would say the only thing holding the film back is that it can feel a bit long at times. The mystery isn’t super captivating because you basically know how it’ll play out from the start and you’re just waiting for Ben to find out. The movie actually tricked me in that sense as I thought someone was dead from the start when that wasn’t the case. Ultimately it doesn’t really change things though. A better main character would make a world of difference since he wouldn’t just be running the whole time.

The title is appropriate since the second half is all about Ben running. Even by that point he’s asking for why he won’t be put on trial and that’s why I say he’s slow on the uptake. It’s pretty obvious that even if there was a trial, it wouldn’t be a fair one. At least he is a good shot and can fight once the dust is finally settled and he knows what is going on. It took some time but at least it did end up happening.

The most annoying character was the kid though. He froze up during the first gunfight, never really knew how to make his own decisions, and was easily manipulated. When you think about an annoying kid in any form of media, this is the kind of kid you’re thinking about. He thinks that he’s a man but doesn’t have the skills to back it up.

Overall, Stranger on the Run is a good film. It’s not the best western that I’ve seen but it certainly does beat a lot of others. It gets more right than wrong which is always the most important thing. It would be nice if Ben could have been a bit stronger and able to hold his own here against all of the thugs but realistically the numbers were not exactly in his favor. If he played his cards right he could have bumped them off a few at a time but of course that would be risky and ultimately he would be known as an outlaw. Ensuring there were 0 survivors and 0 witnesses would be really tough.

Overall 6/10

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. Review

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Coming of age stories are always a very hard sell for me. They tend to be a bit more dramatic than needed and also make the characters look very whiny. Look, coming of age isn’t particularly hard. Being a kid is fun. Being a teen is fun. And yeah being an adult is fun too. Each part tends to have its high points but as a kid you can still be a high quality character yet these films always portray kids as being the most annoying characters possible. You just shake your head every time they show up.

Margaret is the main character here and the film starts with her family letting her know that they are moving over to New Jersey. Margaret has been a lifetime New yorker and so she isn’t happy about this. To her, NYC is where it’s at but the parents take her along to start the next chapter of her life. The next door neighbor shows up and announces that they can be friends. This girl is really outgoing and Margaret is just glad to have a friend so quickly. This girl has several other friends so all of a sudden Margaret is in a clique. It all feels fun but there is something empty about this life and she also begins to realize that she may be a pat of the bully squad. How can she get out of this?

Another source for drama here is that her father is Jewish and her mother is Christian. Naturally both religions are completely incompatible and she will need to choose one at some point. They made a joint decision not to pressure her one way or the other but the stakes are naturally high. Only one of them can be right after all and the wrong one will be going to hell by the end. Can Margaret really afford to take it slow right now? In a way the parents decision to not pressure her also means it’ll be tough for Margaret to ask either one for help so she is really on her own here.

This one mostly only starts to become a big deal by the climax of the film when the family gets involved and naturally escalates things. You want to say that everyone can just get along but I dare say this is a bigger deal than if your family has opposing politics. Opposing religions is literally a matter of life and death based on the outcomes according to each type. It’s why if you intend to have kids, I would argue you should not marry if you have different beliefs. It will only lead to problems down the line and you also have to consider that it is easier to be dragged down than to bring someone up. So if you marry thinking that you can convert your partner, think again. That is a massive risk no matter how you look at it.

Back to Margaret though, a big problem with her character is how easy it is to cause her to act cruelly towards the other kids. She believes rude rumors about a tall classmate right away and never even stops to think that this could be a lie. So she is hanging out with the bullies and never suspects a thing. She also allows them to convince her to do crazy things and never utilizes her freewill. She is just too desperate to fit in the whole time. It would have been nice if she could have confided in her parents more instead of just hiding things. Her mom in particular tried doing her best to help out but when the secrets are kept, there is only so much that the adults can do. They were basically frozen out.

Margaret is also just a kid so it’s a bit early for her to be thinking about crushes and stuff. The parents definitely needed to make sure games like spin the bottle and the closet of doom weren’t being played. Fortunately those are games that don’t really get played as much nowadays. I like to think most people have seen the problems with them but even for back in the day it’s crazy to think those things were happening. I would view the film in general as a good cautionary tale to be careful who you hang out with.

Everyone thinks they can be the exception but if you hang out with troublemakers then you will probably become one yourself. You’ll just learn too many bad mentalities and habits over time. It’s why it was hard to even root for Margaret the whole time since you kept seeing her on the wrong side. Also the film’s idea of what the kids would talk about tended to be more on the annoying side. It’s not that the writing was bad per say. It might even be slightly realistic although I have my doubts. It’s just that the script is not engaging as a result so the pacing really drags on.

I’d say the only main character who was holding it together the whole time was the teacher. He was trying to be funny and help everyone out as much as he could. I would have said the mother too since I mainly enjoyed her character but she did allow herself to be used a bit too easily at the school. I was glad she got past that though. The grandparents on the father’s side felt very manipulative so they get a thumbs down. The grandmother on the mom’s side was perhaps a bit aggressive but I cut her more slack since she was there the whole time and had a great relationship with Margaret. So she earned more credit in advance. The father was decently solid too for most of the film, I was glad that he didn’t make a fuss about there being no furniture and just made himself comfortable anyway. It’s always good to be easygoing and just let the chips fall where they may. Unfortunately he crashes by the end of the film for having crazy magazines in the house, I thought Margaret was bluffing the whole time to fit in so I was shocked when she actually found them. Yeah that was a terrible look for the guy, he doesn’t seem to be living the most moral of lives.

Overall, This film definitely wasn’t up my alley. It’s just not all that interesting and often times when characters are written to be “super realistic” they tend to just be unlikable the whole time. This film badly needed better characters and maybe even more of a plot aside from the whole themes of growing up. That’s just not enough for a whole film and you still need something really interesting to catch your attention.

Overall 4/10

The Black Stallion Review

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How much you actually enjoy this film will definitely come down to how much you enjoy the main kid. Will you find him annoying or endearing? For me he tended to be a bit more on the annoying side and so ultimately that didn’t help the film. The first half just takes way too long for anything to happen. The film gets significantly better once we are back to civilization but you really don’t feel yourself pulled into the movie. Instead you are on the outside wondering if the climax can save it all.

The film starts off by introducing us to Alec who is a bit of a quiet kid. He’s on a voyage with his father but unfortunately a big storm hits and he gets stranded on an island along with the Black Stallion. Alec must quickly learn how to fend for himself and stay alive. It’s definitely not an easy task for a little kid to handle so I give him props there. He also uses the time to get closer to the horse and it makes for a solid friendship the whole time. Once they make it back to civilization, Alec finds out that his horse is a great runner. Perhaps he can even be the best?

Technically I wouldn’t even say there is a ton of plot in this movie. Certainly not to the level you would expect to see in a movie that is around 2 hours. That is because a lot of the character development is really told through silent actions. Not a whole lot happens when it’s just Alec trying to survive on the island for example. Seeing him slowly get close to the horse can be emotional for some but for me I was really ready to get past this part. It’s why this is the crucial make or break point for the film. Me personally? I would have liked to have skipped to the civilization angle because to me that’s when the film really begins.

So that whole first half is basically dead time and while the film didn’t do anything wrong, not capturing my attention did hurt its chances of going up. Additionally in order to get to that point we had the horse get stuck and nearly drown early on. It felt like the horse was in a lot of distress throughout the movie which is always unnerving to see. The stallion was a very strong horse but I still didn’t want to see it get put through any hardships. This horse deserved a very happy life throughout. That’s absolutely what you want to see here.

As for once we get to civilization, I enjoyed the character of Henry. He helps a lot in training for the race events and just seemed like a nice guy. He was very supportive of Alec the whole time and really had his back. Without him, the racing would not have been possible. Alec and Henry certainly did put a lot of stress on Alec’s new guardian though who was understandably very hesitant to let him ride a horse. That is a dangerous profession and no amount of gaslighting can really get you around that fact.

Sure enough, the horse actually gets injured near the end. We still have an uplifting ending and things go well but yeah horse racing would not be the sport for me. In general I can do human racing but when you bring the animals into it, there are too many maybes for me. Are the horses all being treated right? What happens to the horse in last place? Working with animals is a very delicate field and not one that you want to get too mainstream because a lot of people are not really up for the task.

We’ll assume all the best in this film of course but even so there just isn’t a whole lot for me. At its core this is a film really about the kids and he’s just not good enough to hold the whole film. Kids rarely are, I always end up needing an adult to really liven things up. Since the bulk of the screentime is for the kid, it means that most of the film ends up being boring. That alone is enough for me to keep this film from making it into the green because it’s not a film that I would watch on my own.

I probably wouldn’t have made it past the opening 20 minutes on my own because I would be completely checked out. So I appreciate what the film is going for and I do appreciate there being good films aimed at the kids. This just isn’t one that suits my particular interests. At the end of the day, I certainly prefer to dislike a film based on the plot rather than on the content. So there isn’t anything particularly objectionable about this one. If you really like the idea of a kid surviving on his own in a proper coming of age story, then you’ll like this one.

Overall, I’d say parents will get the greatest amount of joy in this film. Seeing this kid take everything on with good cheer is definitely uplifting. You have to be really invested in that part of the story to make it to the race later on. That said, if you’re not a big fan of kids then it’s not like this film is really going to change your mind. The kid isn’t getting involved in a ton of banter or anything like that. If anything, he’s still fairly quiet even by the end of the film. Oh, he definitely has a lot more confidence but he certainly isn’t a big braggart. A sequel taking place 10 years later would probably be a whole lot more interesting to me. Not sure exactly where you would go with that one but it would solve my biggest issues with the film. So that was the Black Stallion, I can still safely say it beats the average animal film which tends to fall into bigger holes than simply being uneventful.

Overall 4/10

Joy in the Morning Review

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They say that the best relationships involve two people who are friends as well as lovers. After all, you want to be able to hold a conversation together and should have some common interests right? Well that’s where things start to get rocky here because it just doesn’t feel like these two would be friends, let alone be married. There is basically nonstop drama here with both characters going quite far to the point where you can’t picture things going well. They’re just way too sensitive.

The film starts off with Annie and Carl messing around under the stairs where they are caught by her folks. They decide to quickly get married and dash off but things will not be easy. Carl isn’t financially sound quite yet and is having to work multiple jobs here in addition to his studies. They have a nice place to live but are very low on spending money. Meanwhile Annie wants to do her best to be a good wife but can be a bit naive and also succumbs to peer pressure like wanting to fit in and wear nice things. Soon the tension starts to climb up and the two characters will have to find a way to make things work.

Now when you’re broke and in a relationship, it’s only going to work if both people know what they’re getting into and are fine with it. The problem is that often they will say that they are okay and won’t actually feel that way. A good example is when Annie gets Carl a gift but he doesn’t have one for her. He even says that they talked about it and she admits that she lied about not needing a present. Definitely a bad look on her part there because that was the arrangement. Then there’s another instance where she spends money on a new outfit when it could have been put to use on more practical things. On the other hand Carl takes a job where he will be away all nights so now Annie will be by herself. Yeah it helps with the money but that’s another case where it’s better to be broke.

On the whole I was typically more on Carl’s side than Annie’s but they both made their share of mistakes. I’d say the problem is that most of their issues felt like things they should have discussed prior or could have discussed in the moment without it becoming such a big deal. Annie became friends with a local flower guy for example and Carl was super jealous so he would cause a scene right away. Causing a scene there wasn’t cool but he absolutely would have had a valid case for explaining to her afterwards that this friendship was trouble.

I’m not going for the Hollywood approach that guys and girls cannot be friends because that’s crazy but it was clear that she was being naive about the whole thing. She would let him get way too close like taking her shoes off and basically giving her a massage while they talked. Cmon now, that is an accident waiting to happen. So Carl has every right to be worried when she is acting like that but again, talking would have been a good first step here. Then Annie is dealing with a lot of trauma due to some rough events from her past and they come up on several occasions as she feels like she basically can’t be with Carl at times.

It comes and goes and it can be hard to predict when this will happen which is the roughest part for Carl. There’s no easy way to get past that but it would definitely continue to be a huge stumbling block in their marriage until it can be figured out. There are just so many problems they have throughout the film and by the end it really feels like they went past the point of no return. If anything the ending just tells you that things are going to get a whole lot worse because throwing another life into the equation is often just going to expand the range of issues.

The core problem for both characters is that they are way too emotional. Again, Carl isn’t quite as bad about this but he still does have the problem. Until they can properly talk like grown ups, the issues are only going to keep on coming. The parents get a sudden 180 character shift for the ending to give the appearance that things will go well but I get the feeling that will change again before long. They did not seem like the nicest of people on either side and that doesn’t tend to change.

At the end of the day, a big problem for the film is that because of all these elements, it’s just not a very fun title. For the most part it’s dramatic in a sad way where there isn’t going to be much of a happy ending over the horizon. The film’s tone just doesn’t seem to match the actual ending. It felt like the couple’s futile attempts at having a happy ending and for this kind of film to work it definitely needed them to reconcile a whole lot sooner. They’re at odds for almost 80% of the film I would say and only get a quick happy ending in the last minutes. Not sure how I feel about the flower guy being around as well. Yes in the end he turned out to not be a bad guy and we the audience know it, but Carl doesn’t. The film would have needed some scenes to show them becoming friends first. In a way that circles back to the earlier point which is that the film is too dreary. So scenes like this could have absolutely helped to fix that.

The writing is good enough and on the whole it’s not like this is a super hardcore dark film. It just feels like the film mistimed itself on the pacing. Maybe there should have been more time at the school. Cut out the plot about the heroine working for the rich folks with all of their moral bankruptcy struggles. You don’t really need that and the whole speech she gave about how sometimes people do bad things because they have a reason was a full miss for me. We don’t need those weak justifications. So skip that and use the extra time for some positive messages.

Overall, This film shows off the importance of not rushing into anything. Dating and courtships are around for a reason and that’s so you can get to know the other person first. Marriage can run purely on love but it’s not always going to lead to a happy outcome. By getting to know the other person for a while, you can at least make sure you have common ground on the things that matter. A film like this can try to show off a happy ending but with what went on during this adventure, most times it would not end up going quite so well. So that’s really something to keep in mind here. I’d definitely recommend watching something a bit lighter toned like Jingle All The Way.

Overall 3/10