Tag Archives: Drama

Harry and Tonto 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
Harry and Tonto is a movie with a fairly basic premise. The two of them are going on a big adventure and getting to see the world. Nothing wrong with that in the slightest of course but I would say the execution was not very good at all. It ends up being rather boring a lot of the time but the writing is always very weak. It reminds me of some Woody Allen films from a while back where it’s just the characters talking but the script is so bad that it falls on its face. That’s pretty much what happens here so you don’t even have that to keep the film afloat.

The movie starts by having Harry get mugged again. The neighborhood used to be good but it’s really been sinking a lot. So he goes to move in with his family but it’s rather tense there as the place is really small. One of his grand kids has taken a vow of silence for some reason and only his son is glad about him staying. So Harry decides to go on a journey with his pet cat Tonto. Along the way they run into a girl who ran away from home named Ginger. The initial goal is to find more of Harry’s family members and even an old flame before he decides where to stay but along the way it just becomes more about experiencing life.

A movie like this can only survive if the characters and writing are both really great. That would probably be the case for a 50s or 60s film but one this late in the game has more of an annoying dialogue style than anything else. When the conversations aren’t about mundane things like the weather, you have Harry being shocked at how depraved the world has gotten. He’s able to hook up with a random girl during one of the drives for money and the runaway Ginger is not shy about just stripping down. Other characters talk to him about when the last time he had an affair was and it’s like nobody ever grew up here.

The romance that we do get later on in the film is more of a cringeworthy affair. Then to show us that Harry can never really be happy, he’s thrown for another loop near the end. The world is moving fast and just won’t let him catch up. In theory he’s good now but this rollercoaster had too many pitfalls. By the end I wouldn’t say there are any real likable characters. Harry’s son would be the best for sticking by him the whole time. The rest of the family wasn’t too helpful like the guy who lost all his money, the son’s wife who wasn’t subtle about wanting him to leave, the daughter who didn’t even try, etc.

Harry was definitely on his own. Harry was a prideful man too so it’s not like he tried super hard though. He did the best he could to keep his old place but once that was gone then it was pretty much all over for him. Tonto was good the whole time though. He always ended up making you nervous though when he’d run off in general because this was the kind of film that wouldn’t pull its punches.

I think Harry may have ultimately had a better time staying in his neighborhood. Sure it was fairly dangerous but at least he knew everybody there. I’d say the best moments were when the film would slow down to actually let him enjoy the adventure. Like going to the casino and trying to play dice for a bit. At least there he got to have a little more fun before unfortunately not being able to make it to the bathroom in time. The crazy adventure with the chieftain in the cell was certainly something that’s for sure.

Maybe Harry needed to have a dog for some more fun Hijinx. But there really isn’t a lot to the film so it does come down to the human. Harry just wasn’t interesting enough to lead his own film. I dare say that he needed to be a little younger to have an easier time of it. Otherwise you have to be super charismatic and likable which didn’t really work here. Having Harry be a very confident guy who figures he’ll have a new place in no time flat could have been a good angle to have here.

As for the writing, maybe you needed more of a solid hook. If not, I think some humor could have gone a long way here. Yeah, this time I would say throwing in some jokes would not have hurt. It would be a good way to keep the adventure light and also give the characters some more substance to talk about. Just something to make it be a lot more interesting because otherwise you’ll be falling asleep here. Also, they probably shouldn’t have written Harry as having a wife who ultimately died before him because it just makes him look even worse when he is still interested in other women and messing around. At his age he should be all over that and definitely not going for a rebound. That’s really it, just live the rest of your life with a lot of fun and enjoyment but not trying to start another relationship like that.

Overall, A film can certainly get by without having much of a focus or a plot but to do that you need to be very funny or wholesome. One or the other can certainly do the trick but when you’re neither then that is going to be a really big issue. This film never ended up getting interesting. It’s a shame because a journey movie will usually be good even if just to see all of the various sites along the way. Maybe if that guy who was with Ginger could have stayed longer then he would have been a good addition to the party. Could have added something to the dynamic I suppose. A subplot that wouldn’t end tragically like Harry finally getting to meet the girl who liked him way back in the day.

Overall 3/10

Jailhouse Rock Review

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I haven’t seen a whole lot of Elvis so this was a good chance to see him in action. It’s a very retro kind of film that is entertaining but I wouldn’t say it’s one of the greats. The movie does avoid one major source of drama that I was expecting so that was impressive though. It actually threw me for a bit of a loop there and I appreciated that. Either way you’ll have a good time here.

The movie starts off with Vince murdering someone that was bothering a lady at the local shop. He’s taken to jail as a result and there he meets Hunk, the prisoner who pretty much runs the place. The main currency here is cigarette packs. If you have a lot of those then you’re in good shape but otherwise you’re in for a rough time. Hunk teaches Vince how to play some music and explains that this is the best way to get rich. They end up doing really well on a show together, although mainly it was Vince who was the hit. Hunk figures he can leverage this into some success down the road so he has Vince sign an agreement that they will team up in the future with Hunk getting a 40% cut.

Well, Vince heads out into the world where he meets a girl named Peggy who is a bit of a records agent. She gets the music to the people who need to hear it. It’s a long road to the top but Vince does rather well for himself. The only trouble now is that it’s starting to get to his head and he’s taking Peggy for granted. Additionally Hunk shows up and wants his cut. Will Vince be able to get out of this in one piece or has he doomed himself already?

I can’t say I liked Vince much at all here though. The guy was always acting rather aggressive and antagonistic for no real reason. Like when he got to meet Peggy’s parents he jumped right into being defensive and landing a bunch of insults. He keeps this up throughout the entire movie and can never seem to have one conversation without immediately attacking. Even the scene where he murders the guy early on is because he doesn’t know when to stop during the fight. He just keeps going and gets himself into trouble. He’s lucky that his fight at the prison didn’t end up setting his return date back in a big way because that could have been bad.

Vince seems to think he can cure all of his problems with a kiss and unfortunately that tends to be true. For both Peggy and the actress he was working on in the latter scenes, he just acts as mean as he wants because then whenever they start to tell him that they’re leaving, he just pulls out the moves and they’re okay with it. Because of that he doesn’t feel any real need to change and so he doesn’t. I think the film could have been a little tougher on him or at least made sure that things didn’t go Vince’s way all the time. Would have made for better character development.

It also hurts the other characters a bit like Peggy. It’s hard to see what she sees in him as a result. She should have laid out better boundaries here and once he cut things off, I’d say the romance should have been off the table too. He was just too greedy and wanted everything without giving anything up in return. That’s not the right way to kick off any relationship.

Now I did appreciate the part in the film where Hunk confronts Vince with his blackmail but is quickly defeated. Vince wisely checked with his attorney first and confirmed that the contract was not going to hold up. I liked this because usually what would have happened is that this would have been a whole big mess as Hunk keeps blackmailing him into doing a lot of stuff like giving Hunk more commercials and it would have all been pretty sad. Instead this was stopped at the jump. Vince still gave Hunk a chance to play live but when that didn’t work out, that was it. He gave Hunk a side job and called it a day. That was the right way to handle this but it’s just so rare to see that I ended up being surprised. Most impressive I would say.

So I may have had my issues with the film like the main character and the weak romance but at the end of the day it was still fun. It doesn’t drag on and the film is really quick. It also handled Hunk in the right way. He’s a greedy guy who wants a lot of money and all but he ended up not being comically evil. Once he got a good deal then he was ready to be supportive. That’s absolutely what you want to see here.

Really if Vince wasn’t determined to be awful at every turn then he really would have been mega rich. Why would he be slacking on the records of all things? That was his first big career move and it felt like music was his passion. I guess in the end relaxing and just enjoying his spoils was really the most important thing to him. Definitely a shame.

As for the music, well I wouldn’t say I’m a big Elvis fan but the songs were catchy enough. I can see why they would have gotten big back in the day. They’re certainly easy to dance to and that’s really the main ingredient you want to see in a song. The country song was a little slow but as Hunk was doomed to fail that was probably intentional. The songs properly enhance the film without taking it over so I would also say that the balance was on point here.

Overall, Jailhouse Rock is a good movie. It’s one that probably could have been better but either way I’d recommend checking it out if you want to have a fun ole time. There’s a good amount of replay value here and it’s just an uplifting movie from start to finish. Even when things get serious like at the ending, it’s never for very long so you can go back to grinning and cheering again. I’ve certainly got another Elvis film coming up so we’ll see how it stands up to this one.

Overall 6/10

Hacksaw Ridge

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Hacksaw Ridge is a war movie based on a true story where a soldier was able to stand his ground and help out a lot without firing a single shot. It went against his beliefs in the Bible to take another life under any circumstance. As you can guess this would really be put to the test in war since your life is constantly in danger. It makes for a pretty intense film and you really see the many struggles the lead had to go through.

The movie starts off with introducing us to Desmond who is all set to join the military. He falls for a girl named Dorothy and the two of them end up getting together fairly quick but she isn’t thrilled with his decision to join the army. His father isn’t pleased either but Desmond ultimately decides to go forward with this and then begins to get hazed by the rest of the army recruits. They all take it very personally with his deciding not to take up arms and feel like he’s also judging them to an extent. The hazings only continue to get worse to the point where Desmond may as well be in an enemy camp.

One thing about this film is that you’re quickly not going to like Desmond’s fellow soldiers at all. Sure, they eventually start to get better but the sheer degree to which they would attack Desmond and make his life as painful as possible is not something that you can forget. The fact that it was allowed to happen at all is pretty awful and the bosses were in on it as well. They showed that the army had no tolerance for Desmond whatsoever.

You can understand their being worried if Desmond is the guy who is backing them up and they could be in a dangerous position but it doesn’t mean you should go around beating him up yourself. It’s almost like turning their fire to a civilian. It defeats the whole purpose of fighting in the war right from the start. It’s just unfortunate that there weren’t some more good men in the squad to have had his back. Desmond had to fight for everything tooth and nail.

The film is suitably very somber and dramatic as Desmond tries to stay true to his convictions the whole time. Ultimately the army never succeeds in breaking him and so Desmond stays true to the path. This certainly comes in handy to the army during the iconic battle at Hacksaw Ridge. Desmond had to survive in a really brutal environment for quite a long time so that was as impressive as it gets. In a way I guess he was used to being in hostile places.

His skill at tying knots and maneuvering around the battlefield came in handy as he saved many lives without having any true form of backup. Nobody could deny his ability by that point. So he’s definitely a great main character. You couldn’t ask much more from him than what he delivered because he really did everything. Meanwhile Dorothy and his father may not have been thrilled but both of them did come up to bat for him when he needed it. From appearing at the court martial to giving him encouragement all the way through. They definitely helped out quite a lot.

By the end of the movie you like to think that the companies will be a little more understanding next time there’s someone who enters in but doesn’t want to fight. Ideally you would hope that the next guy would be treated well even if he doesn’t have such a big chance to prove himself.

You don’t want the results to be what made the difference here, but the concept itself. A good deal of the film is about the hazing though so if you’re not up for a rather cruel affair with everyone being awful to Desmond then you’ll want to re think watching this one. It feels like they put a lot of effort and research into this so I’m betting that the facts are fairly true to what happened but that won’t make it any easier of a watch.

It’s not like the war scenes are going to be very happy either. Quite a lot of people die there as America was completely outgunned on the ridge. Surviving at all amidst the bomb strikes and reinforcements was really difficult. If not for Desmond it really would have been a total wipeout there. The larger firepower just wasn’t as effective since it kept missing or not downing all of the enemies at once.

The only part of the film that’s really light would be some of the opening scenes as we see Desmond’s life before the army. His town seemed nice enough and he had a good gig there so it was impressive that he would risk it all to serve his country. At the end of the day he wanted to do his patriotic duty to help out and he certainly lived up to that.

Overall, Hacksaw Ridge is a really intense film. It’s not really going to be a film that you end up rewatching as it’s not the most pleasant title out there but if you don’t want to read the Wikipedia entry on the battle, this is a good way to get a lot of the facts and events in one solid package. Then you’ll be able to follow along when you see people talking about this battle. I’m not sure if it’s an item of everyday conversation wherever you are but you never know when it may be brought up at some point.

The Hurt Locker 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

The Hurt Locker really goes in depth with how dangerous it can be to try and disarm bombs in hostile territory. At times the film moves a little too slowly so pacing is an issue here but it’s still a good movie all around. It’s got a lot of good qualities to it and tells a solid story. It probably could have benefited from some more fight scenes but it’s not really that kind of movie.

The movie starts with Sanborn and his squad investigating another bomb. They have to disarm it and quickly leave. Unfortunately the robot malfunctions so one of the squad members has to go in personally and he dies in the explosion. His bomb suit didn’t really help at all this time. So in comes the replacement, William. William is one of those guys who doesn’t mind making a lot of splash plays and is eager for thrills. He has a very reckless nature about him and tends to disregard orders rather easily. This of course does bring up a lot of tension within the group and he’s also putting them in danger. Sanborn may have to make a difficult choice about this.

Unlike most war films, this isn’t about a squad on the front lines. For the most part these guys come in afterwards to disarm the bombs and make sure the general area is safe. They have to be prepared to fight at any point but that isn’t their main purpose. It’s an interesting angle to focus on but that also means that it won’t be nearly as exciting. For example, there’s a very long scene where the characters are just walking down a street towards the bomb. William then has to put on the suit to go there but it’s hard to move in that thing so it’s all very slow. The scene just drags on and on for a good while before he gets there.

You’ve also got a stand off where there are two guys in a building so the heroes have to prep a sniper rifle and watch from their vantage point. This stand-off lasts for a long while but it’s more on the boring side since nothing’s actually happening. Of course it’s easier said than done to try and storm the base but that probably would have been a lot easier. The Hurt Locker consistently takes any scene and then drags it on quite a bit. That’s its biggest weakness in a nutshell. It’s really my only big weakness for the film but it’s one that destroys any replay value. This is definitely a movie that you only watch once.

As for William, he’s a fun main character but does go too far on the rebel stuff. Throwing away his communicator was a big mistake and likewise running into a demolition field because he forgot a glove is a bit much. You can see why he really tests everyone’s patience here and it nearly costs him everything. Even Sanborn thinks about bumping him off at one point. That would have definitely been a huge mistake even if William was annoying though.

William’s job is the most dangerous as he has to be around the bombs so much so you do cut him some slack, just not enough for all of his actions. It’s definitely a job where there probably aren’t a lot of people lining up for it so I could see him getting away with a lot. As for Sanborn, he’s a solid leader. Definitely a lot more by the books and he can’t wait for this deployment to end while William is happier to be here. I can definitely sympathize with Sanborn a lot.

He’s doing his job so he’s not backing out or anything but he’s doing it because it’s the right thing to do, not because he actually wants to be here. It’s a really big difference. It certainly does help really paint Sanborn as a good character because he’s contending with a lot of fear throughout. Then you have John who isn’t even a combat guy but ends up going onto the field at one point. Things don’t go great for him but he did live up to his words that he would go onto the battlefield as needed. He didn’t shrink away from his responsibilities for a moment.

There’s a kid named Beckham who ends up being a rather important player here. Not so much because of what he does but what is seemingly done to him. It’s an understatement to say that not too many people are thrilled about the division being around so the heroes always have to be on guard but this kid enjoyed their company at least so William starts to grow attached to him which gets a little tricky with his duties.

Ultimately one of the tough parts about being in this squad would be minding your own business. It seems like a lot goes on here and someone could take out a gun at any moment. You can’t pro-actively just start attacking because there are a lot of innocent people here so you’re forced to be reactive. The amount of stress that comes with that has to be absolutely crazy. For sure everyone here probably had their wills written down before going on the mission.

Overall, The Hurt Locker is a film that really goes into detail on what being in the field is like. It’s well written and all seems pretty accurate to me. I think it could have just moved things on a little quicker and sped all of the scenes up. That would have helped a lot with the pacing and I think you could still get the tense atmosphere across even with that. The setting itself already helps a lot with that plus with this kind of film you know that the characters aren’t completely safe. They could still be destroyed at any possible moment.

Overall 6/10

Cells at Work! Review

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Fun fact on this one, while I reviewed both anime seasons a while back, I actually completed the manga before watching the shows. It just so happened that writing those reviews was a bit quicker than writing the review for the manga. In general the anime reviews can be easier sometimes but I would say it’s case by case. At the time of this writing it’s completely balanced with 5 manga and 5 anime left to review with this one out of the way. It’s kind of cool how that ended up working out. A lot of my pros and cons for the manga are similar to the anime so lets dive right in.

The story mainly revolves around 2 cells, a white blood cell and a red blood cell. Red is always getting lost around the body as she tries to deliver nutrients. Meanwhile white blood cell’s job is to go around destroying viruses and any harmful bacteria. He may seem like a very intense guy whose only thoughts are of murdering his prey but he’s a nice guy once you get to know him. The two cells hit it off as good friends and the manga follows their adventures. I would say the manga is 90% slice of life with the occasional big plot threads like when the cancer cell shows up. To date I do think it’s fitting that the cancer cell would end up being the big threat here because that is typically known as the most dangerous disease out there.

A slice of life title like this is really carried by the characters and setting. For me this is where the series is a little weaker than it could have been otherwise. For example, the characters live inside of the human body because that’s the entire premise of the series. It’s not like they could just leave it at any point, that wouldn’t really make sense. So logically they have to always be in the same kind of areas but it isn’t a very visually interesting setting. It all looks a bit bland and personally I would have liked a little more variety. Maybe make it so that some parts of the body actually do look like cities and such. It may not have been super scientific but it’s not like the series takes no liberties so this definitely could have worked.

Then for the characters, I’ll get into them more in detail in a minute. The cast is good but there aren’t a lot of exceptional characters here. Also, they just aren’t as funny as some other slice of life casts. The series is part comedic but I wouldn’t say it ever gets as funny as some of the top titles like Nisekoi or Kaguya Sama. It’s not boring or anything but these are the things that keep it from taking the jump to the next level. Cells at Work! is a good title, it’s just not a great one.

Neutrophil is definitely one of the best characters and someone who always dominates the scene that he is in. He’s really got a very focused approach towards tackling any issue and I can definitely appreciate that. The cancer cell tries to have a philosophical debate with him but Neutrophil is really built to destroy his enemies and so he can’t do that. I thought it was an interesting approach to have him be so by the books that he can’t see the gray area. Everything is black and white to him because that’s how he is designed. The very world of Cells at Work is interesting in that way because there are a lot of implications in having each cell be sentient and I would say say that the series handles them well. It’s not a constant theme and don’t mistake this for being a deep series but at least you get an inkling of how this would play out.

Then you have Red who is always fun. She doesn’t really get any big action scenes since she can’t fight but she is always striving to be better. By the end of the series she may still get lost but not as much as she once did. Red also has several scenes where she is really able to prove herself and stay strong even when everyone around her is giving up. She has a lot of determination and you definitely want to see that in the main heroine.

Another big character is Killer T and he’s fun enough. The guy definitely loves to battle but he isn’t quite as smart or nuanced as Neutrophil. The guy also doesn’t seem as strong if you ask me. He’s not as quick to Neutrohpil could probably outmaneuver him. Killer T has a decent backstory and gets a bigger role as the series progressed. It was good to have another fighter to help Neutrophil out against the enemies so his presence was certainly appreciated.

Macrophage is a helpful character. She may not appear to be too deadly at first glance but she can certainly fight with the best of them. Then you have Helper T who is more of a support role. Apparently he can fight based on his flashback but just doesn’t do that nowadays. With how the cell system works, you just have to stay in your lane at all times even if you have the ability to help. So sadly we never get to see him do much.

Regulatory T actually does get a role but unfortunately it’s a bad one. She ends up betraying the heroes to help out the cancer cell which was a really bad move. She may mean well but if following the rules means betraying your friends then it’s time to go off script a bit. The fact that she didn’t do this is ultimately what got her into a really big mess here.

Eosinophil was one of the better characters though. She could fight really well but her weakness is that it depends on the opponent so she did get mocked a lot initially. It’s got to be tough to only be able to fight against some opponents but she makes the most of her opportunities and gets a good win at the end of the day. She should only get more powerful as she goes on.

Memory Cell is one of the more annoying cells. The guy’s whole purpose here is to use memories from previous attacks to let the others know how to fight the opponents and what the best course of action is. Unfortunately he tends to forget this when it counts which is really not a good look. You’re counting on him to do something but he almost never lives up to his role. Considering that this is literally his only task, it is a really bad look for him.

Basophil is a very mysterious cell who is always talking in riddles. I think this does have some potential of course but ultimately it just doesn’t work out. Mainly the issue is because his words don’t actually amount to much. If you really pay attention to what he’s saying, it’s usually abstract things without a real meaning behind it. I like technobabble and ancient prophecy type speeches as long as there is a point but if it’s just the character trying to show off to an extent then it doesn’t work. Trying to sound smart and actually saying something which is smart are two very different things.

Then there is the normal cell and he just wants to have a good purpose. Right now the only thing that he has to do is make more clones of him. It’s a rather boring job and there just isn’t much to keep him occupied. I do sympathize but it gets to be a bit much when he’s getting in the way of the other heroes and actually teaming up with a villain at one point. Each job there is very necessary to keeping the body operational so messing around for no good reason is not a good excuse at all. It takes away from his sympathy points.

There are other supporting characters as well since there are tons of different blood types in the body. You’ve got the red blood cells in training called the platelets and then some more obscure types. You’ll probably have a hard time remembering all of the names but the series certainly doesn’t skimp out on the details. If there is a blood cell then you can bet that it’s in here somewhere.

As for the villains, most of them are rather nameless. You do have the coronavirus, flu, and a bunch of bacteria but for the most part they just get a quick appearance before being shredded. The Cancer Cell is the only exception to this. He’s a very smart cell who tries to think outside of the framework. It makes him an interesting villain because he’s someone who brings up a lot of valid points. Why does he have to be destroyed just for existing? After all, he didn’t choose to be born a cancer cell and it’s an interesting dynamic because this is a perfect example of what I was talking about earlier with the implications of each cell being alive.

A cancer cell by definition has to be destroyed even if he wasn’t doing anything. It’s not like the heroes can just spare him because as long as he’s alive then the system won’t work. In almost any other series you could see him being the sympathetic hero with that case or more of a moral discussion but Neutrophil has to end him because he recognizes that there is no way around this. It’s one of the most interesting parts of the manga even if they aren’t able to delve into this too much. It’s just nice food for thought.

I thought he made for an excellent antagonist and someone who couldn’t be brushed aside so easily. His abilities were also handy, he fought like a symbiote with how he could stretch his arms and turn them into shapes. That’s not something you could see a lot of other characters do. This title also didn’t have too many prolonged fights like this so it was definitely cool to see. You’ll certainly be satisfied with the fight as a whole.

In general I would also say that the artwork here was solid. It may not be amazing or anything but you can certainly follow the action without getting lost at any point. It’s easy to read through the pages and get to the end so I have no complaints here. The characters also have very different designs so you aren’t likely to mix them up. I still thought at first that each chapter would have a different white blood cell and red blood cell since there are billions or trillions of them running around and looking the same. Would have made sense in a way because the odds of the two cells meeting each other again seems slim at best. I assume it didn’t happen because the author would either have to think of an excuse to have them get along each time or just drop the dynamic entirely which would have made for a very different series. Ultimately this was the only way to keep their bond all the way through.

Another plus for the series is definitely that you may be able to learn a thing or two as you read through it. The series does use the science name for each of the cells and so you may learn some things about the body. Biology was definitely never my thing so I can’t say that I remember too much of the science but it’s a nice element to throw in there. It certainly doesn’t hurt anything.

In general it’s not like the manga makes any big mistakes either. It’s biggest weakness to me is that you never get super invested. It’s a fun read but I wouldn’t exactly call it a page turner. The characters just don’t have enough energy to really keep every moment dynamic and since the series is more of a slice of life style, the characters are needed to kick things up a notch. It’s still fun but you are less likely to re read the adventure. I think that’s the biggest difference between a 6 like this and a higher 7.

Overall, Cells at Work! is a very unique manga. I wouldn’t say this is a premise that most people would think of right off the bat. Usually dealing with the body like this could be a recipe for disaster as it could get a bit gross but this series never takes it like that. The areas also don’t look like parts of the body which I think is a good thing. I still would have liked more variety in the corridors but this’ll get the job done. If you’re looking for a manga to spend some time on, this will still get the job done. At less than 10 volumes it makes for a quick read.

Overall 6/10

Mr. & Mrs. Smith Review

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Now you may be thinking of the newer action film when you see this title, but this one’s going for a very different vibe. There isn’t any real action to speak of this time as it’s more of a romance comedy. I feel like there’s definitely better ways you could have executed this plot but all in all it’s still going to give you a decent time. It’s one of those films that is right in the middle. It’s not particularly good or bad so you’ll have your share of good and bad times with it. Mainly I’d say it’s that there are a lot of missed opportunities and you sense that it could have been something more.

The story starts with Mr. Smith and Mrs. Smith having another one of their big fights. They have a rule where neither one of them can leave the room until they have made up. Apparently this can sometimes result in their spending 8 days inside the room. Mrs. Smith has a whole lot of rules with this being one of them and you can tell that Mr. Smith is not too thrilled with them to the point where he says he would not marry her again if given the choice. Of course it was purely hypothetical…until he is told that the marriage actually wasn’t legal since there was an issue with the borders. Now Mr. Smith is being given the second chance he had just considered and is determined to make the most of it.

Mr. Smith decides not to tell Mrs. Smith about this as he is now relishing his freedom but little does he realize that she has also been told this and is quite steamed about the whole thing. Will they end up getting remarried or will this event be the trigger to their doom? One thing’s for sure, they are no longer Mr. & Mrs. Smith but have returned to David and Ann.

It’s certainly an interesting angle here. You like to think that for 99% of instances the couple would just walk to the office and get remarried in a heartbeat. I could see some deciding to make a fun party/event out of the ordeal or maybe even relive their first date. More in the manner that Ann was expecting with David to propose again. Of course we wouldn’t have a movie if that were the case and so this ends up being a whole big deal for both of them. While we mainly saw Ann’s faults from David’s perspective at first, we then get to hear Ann’s list of complaints later on. They certainly had a lot of issues with each other.

The film also reverses course a bit as initially David is the one who seems to not really want to remarry Ann but then when she decides not to get back together David is the one playing the Uno reverse card. Effectively it seems to me that David just wanted a few weeks of being single again and probably would have told her eventually but to Ann that was already a massive slight and so she decided to have a permanent split here. To her defense David definitely should have come clean from the start. There should be no hesitation in wanting to get remarried to bring things back to how they were. It doesn’t help that he had just responded to the hypothetical question earlier that day so she saw his true feelings.

Meanwhile on Ann’s side, she was way too quick to go on the rebound. Now initially she was just messing with David presumably but she actually gets serious about his best friend Jeff. This hurts her quite a bit because it shows that she was actually willing to go all the way to marriage with this guy just to spite Jeff. There’s a limit to how far you should go in a moment like this and she goes well beyond it. At that point it feels like the marriage can never be the same again. Once the rebounds are in play then all bets are off.

So I wouldn’t say that either of the main characters were particularly good. David getting Ann fired was also rough just as she was trying to start things off again. Meanwhile Jeff was no good too. Deciding to actually go through with this and have an affair with Ann was awful. Sounds to me like he was interested in her the whole time even while she was married and just made a move now that she was back on the market. This is another thing that you can absolutely never come back from. Once your feelings are out in the open like that, well that’s it. You can’t put it back in the box so to speak.

He wasn’t very smart either as he didn’t try harder to see through David’s deceptions. The ole pretending to be sick routine really shouldn’t be working like that either. C’mon now, it’s obvious that he was faking with all of the over acting. Jeff seemed to suspect at first but then started to weak on that. Additionally, the scene of Jeff getting drunk was also rather painful to get through. His final straw was in not defending Ann when David put her in a chokehold. Sure, by then he saw how manipulative she was, but it still wasn’t a good look for him.

I guess by the end we see that Ann actually enjoys some roleplay with Jeff as they mess around and presumably have their happy ever after but it’s hard to see this working out. The film has some solid writing and a good script which is all well and good but the characters needed to be a little better in order to make it to the next level. I think this plot really had a whole lot of potential to do something amazing and it just never reached that point. It really could have been more fun than it was. The direction was a little different than what I expected.

Overall, Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a film you aren’t likely to forget because the plot is really original. I actually think this is one of the rare times where a modern remake could actually improve on it a bit. It just feels like a comedic goldmine for potential. I would also increase the time frame so they’d have been married for 10 years or so instead of 3. Adds to the drama of the whole thing and you could really play up how each character and their supporting cast takes it. Give their families a bigger role since their “helpful” advice could also really help add to the dynamic.

Overall 6/10

Jeepers Creepers 2 Review

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This is a review of the edited TV-14 version of the film. All thoughts below should be addressed as such as a review of the unedited version would be more negative
Looks like the Creeper has returned! The first film was not exactly my kind of tea and I wouldn’t say that the sequel is much better. The setting of being trapped in a bus is better than being in the middle of nowhere but we don’t have the big police vs Creeper fight this time around. The Creeper also seems a little less durable with how easy it is to stab him here but I suppose he tends to resurrect quicker which maybe balances things out. Either way if you’re in the mood for a slasher title then this will fit the bill, but otherwise you may want to give it a timeout for now.

The movie starts with a family farming as they have some lighthearted bickering. This gets serious though when the Creeper shows up and kidnaps one of the kids, who ultimately ends up getting murdered. The father (Jack) decides to take vengeance and prepares himself for war. We then cut to the actual main characters with is comprised of a basketball team and some cheerleaders. Their standard trip home runs into trouble when the bus tires start giving way. The issue is that this doesn’t appear to be an accident as throwing stars pierced the two tires. Minxie gets thrown into the dream realm where she talks with the guy who died in the first film and the one from the intro. They explain that the Creeper is here to eat them all.

See, the Creeper vanishes for 23 years, then he comes back and has 23 days to murder as many people as possible before restarting the process. The good news is the heroes just have to make it to the next day and he’ll go away since this is the final day he has left, but the bad news is that they are only human while this guy has super strength, speed, regeneration, and flight. The team will have to try and band together to beat this guy, but they don’t have as much unity as they may have once thought.

Naturally with a film like this you can bet that the characters aren’t very smart or likable. They’re constantly bickering and fighting among themselves instead of actually focusing on the Creeper. This puts them in a really bad spot right from the jump. Also, there is one action they keep on doing which made me cringe because it is a textbook bad decision all around.

So the Creeper punches a hole through the top of the bus and he can now grab people through it. Sometimes he just pulls their head off or he’ll kidnap them entirely. So…don’t go under the hole right? I mean, he could probably punch more holes through but either way you should avoid the one that is already there. Well, that sounds logical but the characters don’t actually pull this off. One kid in particular constantly walks under the hole and gets caught twice as a result. The second time proves to be fatal, but what was he doing?

It’s pretty easy to make sure you’re not standing directly underneath the hole and yet that keeps on happening with various characters. The Creeper doesn’t always take them out, but regardless it’s not a good idea. It stands out the most because while the situation is pretty much unwinnable the whole time, that’s still got to be the absolute worst decision you could possibly make. Beyond that I don’t mind if you decide to stay in the bus or make a run for it. Both options have their weak points.

It’s more important about trying to stay with a partner as you make a decision so you can watch each other’s back. The Creeper seemingly can be overpowered to an extent if you have enough people but a lot of times the body being grabbed may not hold up anyway. Jack is the best character by far because he actually gives the Creeper a good run for his money. The guy came prepared with some really solid weapons and I thought the movie actually had some good effects here with how the shots played out. You see just how fast the hook fires and how it hits the Creeper before he has time to dodge. It may not have been fatal hits with the first two attacks, but it did show that Jack was able to catch him off guard and deal some serious damage.

The characters aren’t as opportunistic as in the first film though with kicking the Creeper while he was down. In the first film they kept running him over which I thought was a really good idea even if he ultimately regenerated but here when he seemingly dies on the roof they waste so much time bickering again. He just wakes up and by then it’s too late. This group really couldn’t get it together. While I didn’t like any of them all that much, I will give a special shoutout to the main jock for being the worst. I believe his name was Jake but basically he was jealous about not getting to play a lot and thinks he’s better than the other players around.

The reason he’s pretty bad is because he is the one to first suggest sacrificing some of the other kids. That’ always a really bad point to me because it escalates the tensions for no good reason. He’s basically turning the team against themselves. Jake puts a lot of stock into the dreams and prioritizing his own safety when they should just fight as a team. Look at how good Jack did against the Creeper. Surely the teens could do even better if they all paired up so betraying them all was an awful idea.

As for the Creeper, I still can’t say he’s a particularly interesting or good villain. The guy definitely goes for the creepy vibes as he even sticks his tongue out at the group but there’s nothing cool about him. Scenes like that just make you shake your head. In general this film wasn’t quite as out there and over the top gritty as the first one though. You don’t have as many body horror kind of scenes even if they are mentioned. The film still does get very violent for sure but it’s all a bit toned down from the first. It’s also not nearly as scary since the film is going more for thriller moments than horror ones at times so it balances out.

I was glad that we got very solid continuity nods to the first film. I always think a sequel needs to fully acknowledge the original because that’s how you build a strong continuity and I was satisfied with how that was handled here. I also thought the film really had a good ending here. It was really satisfying for one character at least. While the odds may not be in his favor going forward, you like to think that maybe he can secure the win at least for the next cycle. He’ll need a new plan for the one after that but fortunately there is plenty of time to do so.

Overall, Jeepers Creepers 2 is a step up from the first film but it’s in no way a good film or even approaching that level though. It still has a whole lot of weaknesses. The film deserves some credit for actually giving the Creeper some weaknesses so the heroes have a way to win. Even if you know a bunch of them are probably not going to make it, at least there is a path to victory so the whole adventure doesn’t feel pointless right from the jump. If anything it makes me think that the characters from the first film could have both survived if they kept running the Creeper over instead of the guy telling the main heroine to stop for some reason….he wasn’t very smart throughout the movie though so it lines up.

Overall 2/10

The Killer is Loose Review

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With a title like this you know that the killer is going to break out of jail so you’re waiting to see how that plays out. This is a solid thriller film and I’d say that it did a good job of keeping you entertained all the while. It’s a bit hard to see how this guy got so far, particularly since he’s not a master criminal or anything like that. I guess it just came naturally to him.

So the movie starts with a classic bank robbery. One of the employees named Leon tried to stop the crooks but he got served up. Well, it turns out that was all an act so when Sam and the other cops show up to arrest him, Leon fights back. In the skirmish Leon’s wife is shot and he loses the will to fight back but promises that he will be back to destroy Sam some day. Fast forward a few years and Leon suckers everyone into letting him onto a vehicle where he murders the cop and starts his trail of revenge. Will he be stopped in time or is it all over for them?

Now Leon is playing the blame game from the start but it’s all his fault when you think about it. The cops were going to go in without firing their guns, but of course Leon had to shoot first which forced them to respond in kind. They understood that the room was empty and didn’t know his wife was present. Again, Leon should have been the one to either let her know to stay back or yell to the cops that he wasn’t alone. It’s possible that even he didn’t realize that she was there but even then that’s just another point against him. Either way, to say it was Sam’s fault at all is a huge stretch. I suppose villains tend to be insane though and that works out for this guy.

Leon isn’t a very intimidating villain though. While that is partially the point, it also means that you have a hard time believing that the cops haven’t taken him out yet. He’s just a mild mannered guy with glasses on the run from a whole country of cops. This should be an open and shut case right away but he manages to finesse them at every turn. They really need to work on their trapping skills in order to stop this guy, that’s for sure.

As for Sam, he’s a solid main character He’s done his best in each case and has to put his life on the line again for this one. I think he could have been a little more up front with his wife Lila on the plans though. Sure, she tends to panic a lot but in theory she’ll panic more when she hears things second hand instead of direct. I’d argue that this is exactly what happened here if anything. She doesn’t look good in a lot of the scenes because she is always panicking but a big chunk of that is also because she had to find things out the long way.

Sam still did take a lot of risks though and I liked him as the lead. As for Lila, while things ended well with her, I do wish she could have been a little more reasonable at the start though. That wouldn’t have been too much to ask for and it would have been beneficial to both of them to have been on the same page. I liked seeing all of the unity between Sam and the other officers too. Everyone was trying to catch this guy and nobody was giving this a half effort. They were all the way in with this plan.

It’s a rather direct film story wise as you know the villain is coming closer and closer as the film goes on. There aren’t really any twists and turns here, what you expect is what you’ll get. So the execution is important and I would say that was good as well. The writing was solid as expected and the pacing was good. The film never gets boring and the cast was solid. You do feel bad for any character that runs into the main villain though as you know they’re doomed.

There was one guy who was kind of friends with him but always used a nickname that Leon didn’t really appreciate. It didn’t feel like there was a whole lot of bad blood there but Leon is definitely the type of guy to take things extremely seriously. So as soon as Leon enters the house you know things aren’t going to go very well. It’s why I have to say that you need to make the first move if you’re held at gunpoint. Lunging at the gun is likely a better idea than just standing there. If you let the owner of the gun have all of the initiative then you’re basically dead already unless they decide to spare you. That’s not something you want to wager your life on though so a better idea is to make your play. Either you get the gun or you don’t but that’s it in an instant.

Overall, The Killer Is Loose is a good film about teamwork on the heroes’ side. They all used every method and asset possible to take this guy down. Even then it was ultimately super close and Lila got to play a much bigger and more dangerous role than Sam would have wanted. So if they didn’t all jump on this right away and get set, that would have made the situation even easier for Leon. Hopefully the town rethought their good behavior policy a bit. Of course you want to have one but at the same time you gotta use it within reason or villains will just pretend to have a change of heart like this guy and we see how that went. The whole fields area was a bit too relaxed the whole time.

Overall 7/10

They Drive by Night Review

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This was definitely a solid film all the way through. It almost feels like 2 movies with how the plot changes quite dramatically mid-way through but as long as you like driving and a solid drama then this is the title to check out. You won’t be bored at any point in the film since something is always happening and it’s just a solid all around title.

The movie starts by introducing us to Joe and Paul who are in the trucking business. It’s a rather difficult job that always has you on the go since the deliveries have to get to their spots without a delay. That means driving through all of the elements and even in the dead of night. Their boss ends to squeeze their profits away though and Joe has finally had enough. He aims to get in ahead of this with his brother Paul by having them own their own trucking business instead. To do this they will have to go and find items that people will need to instead of waiting for someone else to give them the things to ship, they’ll cut out the middle man.

Of course this isn’t easy. If it was then everyone would be doing it right? You’ve got the loan shark Farnsworth who is running around trying to get their truck. In fairness to him, the law is on his side at this point since the brothers are so behind on payments. Meanwhile you have Ed’s wife Lana who keeps trying to mess with Joe even though she is married to his friend Ed. Finally you have Paul’s wife Pearl who has been trying to get him out of the trucking business for years. Can she pull it off?

It’s hard to disagree with Pearl here as you see what the drivers have to put up with. You drive super long hours and even then you may end up getting the rug pulled up from under you. Some drivers end up crashing because they have to drive so late at night and get tired. It’s a very high risk job that ultimately seems to be low reward. Now if Joe can get his way and have them own the company then it could work out but it’s clear that this is a longshot so Pearl isn’t holding her breath there.

She does her best to support Paul all the while and is a solid heroine. She doesn’t make a fuss about it even when he disagrees. Paul is a solid character for the most part. He does go through quite a lot though and it does hurt him a bit in the second half as he doesn’t always take things too well. Paul is a very emotional kind of character, there’s no doubt about that.

As for Joe, well he is a very solid main character all the way through. He knows how to stick up for himself and puts up a good defense when someone tries to take him out. Throughout the movie you have Lana trying to seduce him but Joe stops that from happening at each turn. So in the end he’s a classy guy who did his best to make his dreams come true. Even with the deck stacked against him, Joe didn’t waver.

Then you have the main heroine Cassie who ends up getting roped into all of this. Joe can be a bit desperate the whole time so you couldn’t blame her if she decided to ditch him though. The romance is all rather fast so I wouldn’t say it works all that well. The real standout character here is Farnsworth though. The guy knows the law and his rights so he isn’t afraid to talk tough to the truck drivers. You actually feel a little bad for him the whole time because everyone gangs up on him.

Being a loan shark is absolutely not a popular job and the characters consistently let him know this. At one point he is even thrown out of a bar just for trying to do his job. Ultimately he does get his money but nobody makes him feel good about it. It’s a shame to be doing your job well like that and everyone’s still attacking you. I was rooting for him all the while because the circumstances aren’t really something he should need to consider. He’s just gotta get the funds.

Another character I liked a lot was Ed. So in a way my favorite characters weren’t even from the main pairs. Ed probably put up with way too much from Lana and their relationship was never going to be great but he’s really amusing to have on screen at all times. No matter how many insults she threw his way, Ed never backed down. He would just keep on laughing and taking it all in stride. It’s nice to see a character like that who was just unshakeable. He unfortunately just wasn’t very smart.

Lana is rather desperate as an antagonist so I wouldn’t say I was a big fan of her. For the antagonist you need to have a very strong motive after all and good ole jealousy doesn’t work so well in that arena. She also really fumbled the bag in the end since she really had a shot to do some major damage. Ah well, better luck next time and all but she’s not going to get the drop on Joe. He’s just too solid all the way through.

As I mentioned earlier, you’ve almost got two films here. You have the first bunch which is about the dangers of driving at night and you have a lot of solid drama here. Then in the second half it becomes a little more intense as Lana keeps trying plan after plan to get at Joe. I definitely enjoyed seeing the courtroom scenes that came in since that’s always fun. It’s a fairly quick plot point but still appreciated.

A film like this has to have really good writing in order to succeed and that was not an issue here. The writing was balanced from start to finish and I had no issues with it. The story was interesting and the characters were good so that was enough for me. It’s a film where the story naturally changes and adapts as you go through it so it makes for a fun watch with a good amount of replay value.

Overall, They Drive by Night is definitely a pretty good movie and one that I would recommend checking out. Whether you want a more low key film or just enjoy some solid drama, there’s a lot to like here and very few negatives. I wish things could have gone better for Ed since he’s a lot of fun but that’s why it’s always important to keep your guard up 24/7.

Overall 7/10

Dark of the Sun Review

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Dark of the Sun is a pretty terrible movie and you want to get that out in front as soon as possible. It goes for the ultra dark/gritty vibe right out of the gate and it succeeds but at the expense of being a solid movie. Early on you figure this could be a rather classic adventure film with a group of guys being recruited to do a solid job. There are some red flags but it seems all right. Then the film gradually begins to fall off of the rails before self destructing entirely.

The movie starts with President Ubi of the Congo hiring Bruce as a mercenary to get a bunch of diamonds that are currently stranded in a town behind enemy lines. Of course officially the mission is to save the people there but unofficially they all know that the diamonds are what is important. They need them in order to get more weapons and back-up to fight off the other side. This mission must be completed within 3 days or the Congo will fall. Bruce and his friend Ruffo will have to grab some of the best people for the job but options are limited. So they end up with a drunk doctor Wreid and the nazi Henlein. Will they be able to get the diamonds and save the town?

So remember I was talking about those red flags? Yeah the biggest one was the fact that a Nazi would be on the team. One who still proudly wears the insignia and all that so he is clearly evil and insane. Why even let this guy on? I feel like they should have taken him out early on or something because this could only possibly come back to haunt them. In no way would this ever end up working out and sure enough he causes a lot of problems down the road.

It certainly works as shock value to have a character like this in the mix but I’d rather they have just bypassed this guy altogether. As I mentioned though, the first half isn’t bad. It’s like the Magnificent Seven as Bruce rounds up his team only this time we only have a few real characters and the rest are mostly unnamed soldiers. They need a full battalion to fight off the enemy after all and even use a train to get to the town. It’s rather defenseless against planes though and they lose a lot of men just trying to fight one off. It seemed like a rather petty move by the UN since Bruce explained their mission but they wouldn’t hear of it.

There is some decent banter here and the characters keep it moving but then they run into a lady named Claire who is one of the only survivors from another attack. She is let on the ship so she can be safe there but naturally Henlein is still around and trying to make things difficult. He keeps on trying to attack her and fortunately Bruce was around to stop him but the guy still gets off easy.

Heinlein is actually the one who attacks Bruce and very nearly murders him but when Bruce finally turns the tables he is interrupted by his friend Ruffo right before he can finish the job. Of course murdering the guy is going too far but they should at least have arrested him or tied him to a tree until they got back. Not sure if they have handcuffs so tying him up would be best. We now know that he is willing to murder and assault his comrades so why keep him free at all? There’s no way he will actually be someone that you can trust and the argument that they need him is outweighed by these facts.

Every scene with Henlein is annoying and the characters just give him way too much freedom. This really comes back to bite them too. It’s not even a hindsight thing because even in the moment you feel like they’re making a massive mistake. This just ends up getting worse and worse as the film goes on. Sure none of these guys are big heroes but there’s a big difference between being rough around the edges and actually trying to murder everybody.

It’s too bad we didn’t focus more on the political part because President Ubi seemed like a quality character. A lot of the best dialogue was between him, Bruce, and the rich guy. I could have a lot of fun with that being the main plot and there’s a lot of ways to keep that interesting all the way through. Instead we cut to the adventure and all the grit. The film really goes overboard when the heroes are unable to save the village and we see them all get tormented to death. The whole scene is definitely very disturbing and goes on for quite a while. Some people off themselves to escape this before it happens while others don’t get off so quickly.

While you understand the gravity of being caught by the enemy side and the suffering that it entails, you never want to actually have that on screen. If anything you don’t want it to be implied either since you already know it. The film is all about its shock value and being rather violent but all it does is weaken the movie as a whole. Even to the end the final fights here are really brutal. You can definitely see why Bruce did what he did, but it could have been handled in a lot of ways to have been less savage.

Bruce is a solid lead for the most part who knows how to command a crew and stay alive but he definitely didn’t handle this situation as well as possible. Likewise Ruffo is a good friend and ally the whole time but he also should have handled the Henlein situation a lot better. Some things shouldn’t be waved away especially when you don’t know the context like how he handled Henlein. I didn’t care for the doctor much though. Wreid was always drunk and while his big moment helped try to make him heroic, it also felt like it was too little too late. Hopefully things worked out for him but he put himself in a rough spot too.

Claire is good and you feel bad for her because she went from one life threatening situation to another. She’s really had a rough time of it but does her best and doesn’t complain. There’s a bit of a romance that the film starts to set up there but there isn’t really any time for that so the movie puts it on hold. I would have actually preferred we get a romance plot instead of how it all unfolded. This could have been a classic adventure film which may have been a bit generic but still executed well.

Overall, This film is just way too gruesome the whole time. The second half destroys all the goodwill that the first half brought. The characters also aren’t smart at all in letting a Nazi join the group. Full stop. If they had not done that then the film could have been completely different so they only have themselves to blame for that one. Next time you command a team you want to make sure you don’t have any clearly evil guys on your squad from the start. Sure there could be traitors but at least reduce your odds of that being the case from the jump. Either way you definitely want to stay far away from this film. It’s got a lot going on, but a lot that you can afford to miss.

Overall 1/10