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Persona 3 The Movie: #4 Winter of Rebirth Review

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It’s time for the end of the Persona journey. It’s definitely been fun to get to experience the story all the way from the beginning. The Persona games are super long so it makes sense that you would need 4 movies to tell the story. There isn’t as much action as you would expect for a while there but they make up for it with the climax which may be the longest action piece out of the 4 films. Hard to say if that’s the case for sure but it felt like it. This one ends the series off on a good note.

The film starts right where the last one ended off with Aegis being defeated by Ryoji. He informs Makoto that humanity is doomed. Ryoji is essentially death incarnate and the herald of Nyx. Makoto can choose to destroy Ryoji which will wipe the memories of everyone on Earth so they don’t have to dread their final 2 months and can live normally. Makoto doesn’t want to do this though and the rest of his team are also hesitant. Although Makoto is explicitly the only one who has the power to do this so he gets the final say. He just spends his final days zoning out until a visitor from another realm shows up. Can she snap him out of it?

I would say the main annoying thing about this plot is how everybody just gives up. They’ve all been through a lot of difficult challenges before so why is this any different? It feels like they all take Ryoji at face value about how invincible Nyx is and just don’t want to fight. I would even say they shouldn’t believe that destroying him would be pointless. I would have liked to see the heroes continue to fight and stay in denial if that’s what it took to keep their spirits up. At the very least they cannot just give up because that is the absolute worst thing that you can do. You have to keep on fighting for every inch for as long as it takes.

The only one who I won’t give any shade to is Aegis. She fought as hard as she could immediately and is written out for part of the film due to being broken. Otherwise she was not just giving up without a fight and if anything was dismayed to find out that the others didn’t share her energy. Aegis was ready to fight to the bitter end and that’s exactly how it should be. It’s just too bad that her sheer firepower isn’t enough to take on these big threats.

Elizabeth is the secret MVP to the film. She shows up and decides to help Makoto out even though it’s not like this was something that she needed to do. She simply decided that it’s something that she wanted to do and that is what really makes her role even more heroic. She helps Makoto see how much fun it is to simply be alive and spurs on the heroes’ final defense. Without her they would have continued to just go through the motions and lose without a fight.

Makoto may be the main character but he was pretty passive up to this point. His character is probably one that works a bit better in the game where you have hours upon hours of him doing the right things and hanging in there. I’d say what hurts him in the films is it feels like he gets depressed in every installment. I thought that film 3 would be the last time it happened until this one came in. Again, there just wasn’t a good enough reason for me on why the heroes would just accept that they couldn’t win this fight. Never trust a monologuing villain.

The animation is pretty solid as always. You could make the case for this being the best looking out of the 4 films. They really went all out with the shading and various camera angles. The final fights all look great and it is definitely a very chaotic fight. The colors are good and it’s also nice to still see the humans fighting alongside their Personas. It just makes the battles feel more personal and it is always satisfying when the humans actually land good hits in.

It was too bad that we didn’t get to see much of a fight against the enemy persona users in the last film so this time they get more of a full fight. They don’t last long against the heroes by this point in the series but I was glad that they weren’t just offscreen or anything like that. Now that would have definitely been a little disappointing. As for the final boss, Nyx is pretty impressive but doesn’t have enough time to have too much of a character. More of a final boss obstacle than a character one. Ryoji has to suffice as far as the character part goes and he looks good.

I would say he just works better as a villain than a hero with how he’s always smirking and looking like he is in control of things. That is exactly how you want your villains to act. For the heroes I have to give most of them a failing grade this time though. The kid and the dog are ironically the only ones really holding it together. Yukari and Junpei probably look the worst out of the group. Yukari goes into complete depression mode where she hides in her room while Junpei starts picking fights. Not very productive things to do when the world is ending.

Mitsuru, Akihiko, and Fuuka are mainly just staying quiet the whole time as they try and process the situation. Even though they also feel rather defeated, at least they aren’t just putting that out there. If you feel like throwing in the towel that’s one thing, but at least you can make sure not to bring anyone down with you. I’d say that’s one of the key differences between this group and the first one.

As always the soundtrack is also really good. I was still waiting for my favorite theme to show up but I suppose it might have clashed with the tone. Either way you have a good amount of action tunes in here and Persona music has a whole lot of range. This film is taking a more somber approach and the music is able to match that. It’s definitely a creative approach to ending a movie series as the final film will usually be a whole lot more lively and action packed. I guess that just didn’t work out here based on how the game was structured as well.

Overall, I’d definitely recommend checking this one out. You’ll be pretty lost if you skipped the first 3 films and of course if you watched those, why would you skip this one right? It’s a solid action title with a lot of introspection. The main characters may not look all that good here but sometimes it is hard to keep up with how high the stakes get. These guys just weren’t ready for all of that this time. As for the ending itself, I tend to interpret it as more of a happy one similar to Saint Seiya. The mission was accomplished, everyone is doing well and now the crew can all have a lot of other adventures going forward. I picture them all moving past this experience but I can see there being a lot of different theories on this. It would absolutely change the tone if the ending was more on the negative side but even on that end then you can pick a sub theory that makes it positive again. I do like when you can really speculate on an ending so that’s another point in the film’s favor.

Overall 7/10

Thunderbolts Review

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A lot of people called this film the return of Marvel and I can absolutely understand that after watching this film. Thunderbolts is a lot of fun with a solid blend of humor and action. It also knew better than to have the heroes even be close to a match against a villain that they could never defeat. Ther was a lot of care that went into this one and it ends up being a strong film across the board.

The movie starts with Yelena completing another mission but feeling like her life is rather hollow right now. She asks her boss De Fontaine for something a little more heroic than all of these secret missions. De Fontaine agrees but first Yelena needs to complete one last mission. This will be her most dangerous mission yet as she runs into a former Captain America, the dangerous Taskmaster, the frightening Ghost, and Bob. Can Yelena survive this mission and find the purpose that she has been searching for?

One of the big themes of the film is that everyone here is dealing with some issues. Well, you could say that Taskmaster may be the big exception to this. She seems content enough with her mission and goes in guns blazing. Taskmaster looks a lot more impressive than you may have expected and the fact that she was able to keep up with Ghost 1 on 1 is impressive. Taskmaster grows more dangerous as the fight goes on since she can copy your moves. It was nice to see her here and in general the opening confrontation with all of the characters was a blast. I always like seeing these initial skirmishes as the characters size each other up before banding together.

Still, I’d say the theme is consistent outside of Taskmaster. Ultimately it’s going to be hard to really find a purpose for yourself if you’re a hitman. It’s not like being a hero will necessarily solve that issue but as Alexei points out, it does feel really good to have everyone cheering you on. Each of the characters have it rough and while Yelena is confident that she would win a battle of trauma dumping, I may have to give the edge to Ghost there. It depends how you interpret her backstory but it sounded to me like she cannot even keep herself stable anymore without the body suit. That seems like it would be constantly stressful and I’d always be worried about getting into any fights.

Now, it is fair to say that this film is a bit light on action compared to some other titles. There is a climax but it’s more of a subdued one with some action in the background. It’s more about banding together and finding out how to defeat the darkness without violence. So the film’s taking a subversive approach there. It ends up working and we still get a good fill of action from the first half but this would not have worked if the writing was not up to snuff. This is a perfect example of how good writing will elevate every part of the film.

The special effects are also solid as you’d expect. The film looks good so you should be absorbed pretty well. We are also back to the classic 2 post credit scenes setup. You’ve got the comedic one and then the serious one. They’re both pretty solid but the second one will probably land a lot harder if you’re a big fan of the characters represented by the stinger. I’ve never been the most impressed with these guys, but hey it’ll still be fun to see them.

Yelena is the main character of this film and gets a lot of development throughout. One of the main reasons why she is so likable is how she is actively trying to do the right thing from the start. When Bob first shows up, Yelena is the only one who really tries to defend him and make the guy feel secure. She points out that he is a civilian and stops Walker from attacking the guy on several occasions. She feels like Bob is out of his element here and as the film goes on, Yelena can understand that the guy has been through a lot.

It’s not to say that the rest of the characters were completely unfeeling, but Yelena is the only one who was really looking out for others beyond herself. Yelena has also been holding in a ton of darkness and isn’t letting it loose on the others. She does her best to push it all down and keep moving on. She has the right attributes to be a hero and is just really fun to follow. I’d also say that her sense of humor just tends to work and she has all of the funniest moments in the film.

Then we have Bucky who has a smaller role than the others but is trying to adjust to his new life as being part of the government. It’s all a bit much for him but the guy is trying. Bucky certainly feels more at home once he’s actually helping the others in combat. Ultimately it’s not like he is much stronger than the others though so he doesn’t make a big difference in the final battle. He’s a solid enough character though. The guy has a hard time connecting to his emotions which makes for a funny plot in itself.

Then we have Alexei who has absolutely no problem being emotional. He is always incredibly proud of Yelena with whatever she is doing. I always like to see that kind of support. He has her back no matter what and is good at removing the tension in a room. As a super soldier it would be nice to see him showing off that strength more but I suppose there weren’t many opportunities for that here. He adds onto the dynamic pretty well so I was glad that he’s around.

After that is Ghost who is around a lot but we don’t delve into her psyche as much. I suppose you can understand enough about her from the bits and pieces spread throughout the film. In general I would say Thunderbolts did a great job of not just spoon feeding you mountains of exposition the whole time. You’re able to just figure things out for yourself as it goes on. Ghost’s abilities are easily the most impressive which is why ever villain in the film has a homemade sound cannon. It’s her one weakness but it just shows up everywhere. In context it makes sense though since everyone knows about that weakness.

Walker is the biggest jerk of the group but that’s part of what makes him endearing. It’s easy to see why the guy is really upset at everyone. He had to deal with Falcon and Bucky gaslighting him throughout his first days as Captain America until he was fired. Then he murdered a terrorist and everyone started talking about innocents. Walker is just sick and tired of everyone being incredibly dense and it unfortunately spilled over into his home life.

It’s hard to believe that he was ever Captain America since he is really quick to go for the kill here and is provoked incredibly easy. By the end of the film he has finally started to calm down. I would consider him to be the biggest loose cannon on the team though and that’s saying something. Walker has skills and may be the best all around fighter on the group. He could probably beat all of the other members as long as he stays cool but the others all know how to get under his skin.

I’d say he’s a great example of how everyone adds something to the table. Yes, on the surface they are all the same kind of fighter who can shoot and throw punches but they can all do this at different levels. Then we have Bob who spends a lot of the time being really nervous and everything. That’s really what Bob is known for even in the comics until he finally matured. So it makes sense but I can see why he gets on all of the characters’ nerves.

Bob means well though and is always trying to help out. It would be nice if he was more in control of himself instead of being manipulated so easily though. The guy has a lot of inner demons to wrestle with and had a sad backstory. So it’s easier said than done but I look forward to seeing when this guy is more confident. He needs to be able to just master his abilities and be able to go toe to toe with anybody. The film uses his name as a fun joke and I’d say it works really well. Bob is just a fun name to say. I was also glad that he wasn’t oblivious and could tell that Walker was using his name as an insult for a while there.

Then we have De Fontaine who is a better villain than I was expecting. For a political type villain like her, the most important thing is making her actually be a clever person. If she was panicking and messing up all of her plans then that would be lame. Instead she is actually able to outmaneuver the characters throughout. She had a great scene in the old Avengers tower where she is the one pouring the drinks and making wisecracks instead of Ironman. She was in control throughout and her last scene ends up being her best one. You always want to see a character with incredible confidence like this.

Finally there is Mel and I have to say that I initially though she was Kate, the new Hawkeye. Until they mentioned her name, she just looked similar and I assumed it was just the time passing that made her seem older. She works well as the secretary though. I like how studious she is and Mel is constantly learning more and more how to use the right terms to describe all of Fontaine’s illegal activities. Mel has some doubts on what she is doing but ultimately gets on board and learns how to be a good foot soldier.

To address the elephant in the room though, this Thunderbolts team is probably going to need to add at least one big hitter to their team so they don’t get destroyed by every possible opponent. Right now assuming Bob can’t be in control of himself, they wouldn’t be able to get past almost any of the Phase 1 villains. Abomination, Destroyer, and Loki would crush them. I think they could end up beating the Iron Monger at least but yeah we need some power ups. The army was giving them a pretty good run for their money in the opening act. It’s not like power is something a team needs to have of course but if the Thunderbolts want to go by a new name at the end of the film…they’re going to need some additions.

Overall, Thunderbolts is a great title. This is one that could hold its own with the older Marvel films. I’d definitely recommend checking it out. It can be a little darker than some of the other Marvel titles but a lot of the darkness is off screen and implied rather than shown. So it doesn’t come across as being too extreme but if you are looking for a more light hearted adventure then that’s the one time I’d say to go for another one. Otherwise I really recommend this to all action fans. It will also be my new go to example on how you do a film about a bunch of villains. I feel like most titles (Suicide Squad) mess this up completely while this is a great example of how you can make them likable without softening them up. Yes, I consider these characters to all be villains who are now going to be in the light going forward. We’ll see if the praise of the masses will be enough to keep them on the right side.

Overall 8/10

The Great Outdoors Review

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It’s time for a retro comedy adventure. Sometimes it can be fun to check out a comedy title that doesn’t really any hook going for it. This one’s just about the characters hanging out and the plot is fairly barebones so that way the film can go in any direction. Unfortunately it’s just not as funny as the film would have needed to be for this to have been a successful approach. Ultimately you’ll just be shaking your head here.

The movie starts with Chet and his family arriving at their log cabin. They are ready to have a peaceful vacation here and Chet aims to connect more with his older son. They haven’t had a lot of bonding time lately but his plans go awry when is brother in law Roman shows up with his family. Roman was explicitly not invited but he’s never one to let that stop him. He spends all of his time making fun of Chet and showing off how much more money his family has. Can Chet still have a good time or are his chances cooked?

Well this is a comedy so the film wouldn’t work if Chet had any backbone but it would have been nice if he told Roman off a lot sooner. It takes him the entire movie to finally be able to confront Roman about this and even then he is quick to fall for the next traps. Chet’s just not very smart and on the whole his family is far too passive. His wife knew that giving any money at the end was going to be a problem but didn’t speak up either. In a situation like this you need the whole family to stick together and take a stand. When that doesn’t happen then they’re all just going to be ending up miserable.

Chet’s the main character of the film and gets the most focus as he is constantly put on the spot by the other characters. Things just never seem to work out for him and he constantly gets embarrassed. I didn’t blame him for wanting to leave early on because it defeats the purpose of a vacation when you’re not having fun. He had also been hoping to bond with his son and that wasn’t going very well because his son was busy on a romance subplot.

That romance plot doesn’t go very well either because it’s just way too rushed. He basically ends up liking a girl who has had a ton of boyfriends before and they never worked out. She even brings up the fact that he’ll be gone in a few days anyway but he’s still determined to have some fun. Despite that….he ends up not arriving to their date in time while watching his father win a big eating contest. Somehow she still forgives him for that which also makes no sense. So this is a romance plot that gets a massive thumbs down all the way.

Meanwhile Roman could have made for a decent antagonist but he ends up feeling more whiny than anything. When he’s not taking shots at Chet, he’s usually complaining about the lodge and everything around it. He’s used to bigger adventures and his wife makes sure to rub this in as well. Chet’s wife sometimes counters with her own sarcastic remarks but tends to do them under her breath and so they don’t land with the same kind of power that they should.

They also have two daughters which the film uses as a running gag to show how scary they are. I didn’t think that was a particularly effective gag but like I said, the film just isn’t that funny. At one point the characters are all panicking because a bat entered the house. You figure that they will just need to capture the bat and release it outside but instead they all completely panic and end up murdering it. That was just a very odd way to end that gag because you’re expecting a much happier ending. They also end up shooting the bear that shows up. These moments feel more sad than funny because you’re rooting for the animals to win. There’s even a subplot with Racoons as they terrorize the heroes but it doesn’t really go anywhere and just feels like wasted potential.

This is one of those films where it is just easy to jump on every point and really nag it to death. There are a lot of things that you can overlook when a film is super funny because then the character flaws are written into the jokes. Since this film isn’t so funny, you end up really focusing on the characters and they just get worse and worse. Roman’s debut appearance is filming Chet and his wife trying to have an intimate moment and refusing to stop recording once they notice him. Like that’s just a really rough start.

In theory the main plot here is about connecting with the son and yet that doesn’t get almost any attention. So in the end their bonding feels really rushed because all it takes is for Chet to talk about a story from his past. It’s not as meaningful as it could have been. It’s great that they are closer now but it feels like the whole plot didn’t really need to exist. A stronger climax to the film could have also helped but by having Chet fall for the trap, it was just a bad look.

Overall, This is one of those films that I would call relatively harmless. It’s not like it’s very violent or had a lot of language in it. There’s nothing that would really make me tell someone to avoid the film. That said, there are also no real good reasons to watch the movie. As a comedy your top priority is to be funny and this film is just not up to that challenge. Furthermore, there are plenty of alternative options when it comes to comedy titles. There should be more of a hook to really draw you in. I wouldn’t mind staying in a log cabin but it’s not like it really appeals to me. This film certainly wouldn’t sway me on that and I’d sooner just stay at home.

Overall 3/10

Persona 3 The Movie: No. 3, Falling Down Review

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This third Persona 3 film definitely feels like the craziest one in some ways while also being the most slice of life. Sounds like a contradiction eh? Well we really start right away with the heroes having their final confrontation with the villains that appeared in the last film and all of the shadows were taken down essentially off screen. The threat is over and our heroes have made it to a new era of peace. That’s essentially how this film starts off so most of it is the after party. Makoto is wondering what to do next and starts drifting away from the rest of the team while a mysterious transfer student shows up and decides to be his new friend. What is going on?

I’m betting that the film just had to skip a lot of the mid parts of the game in order to get to the next events or at least that’s what it felt like to me. Not a bad thing by any means but the cutting felt more apparent. I would have liked to have seen more of the intro fight though because it was looking real interesting. I’d say there is a bit less action here than in the last film but it may have just felt like that. The movie is also a bit shorter than the last one so it may be a by default kind of thing.

The opening fight was probably the best out of the 3 films so far and it was nice seeing the whole gang get in on the action. The group is really big by this point but they still all get to have their moments. Throw in a mini climax right after that with a big betrayal and it’s like the film started out with its climax. After that there is a lull until the end so how much you like this film will depend on how much you enjoy the shenanigans in the middle.

I will say that the middle could be a bit choppy at times. I feel like Makoto going through a depression arc again was a bit repetitive. It was already foreshadowed last time with him wondering what would happen when the shadows were gone so I figured he had gotten past that. I suppose instead he had secretly been dreading it the whole time. This time the arc is seemingly over for real so that’s a good thing. Makoto was really holding them back but at least this time the others were holding their own.

Each film tends to pick 2 of the friends to get their big moments and this time I would say it was Junpei and Kirijo. You could make a case for Aigis as well though. The kid and dog from the last film definitely get the shaft though. For Junpei his big character arc is about how he is in love with one of the villains, Chidori. So he doesn’t want the team to be too harsh on her even when she was actively trying to murder them. I’m always up for a good romance but I think it was a bit much to be stopping his allies when she was absolutely evil. You could say that she was manipulated a bit and her mind isn’t quite right but those do come down to being excuses.

Junpei was captured and then severely injured during the film. It was really not his best appearance and he was also unsure of how to help Makoto when the guy was going through a lot. You need a better friend than Junpei. Kirijo spends a lot of the film being depressed because of events that happened near the beginning. I give her credit for trying to handle this internally and not making a big deal out of it. It’s certainly not the healthiest approach but she is trying to move forward in the best way that she knows. I can definitely respect that and she doesn’t hesitate when it comes time to fight. That’s something the others can really learn from.

Aigis has to deal with the fact that her mission is seemingly over and she handles it better than Makoto. She is determined to keep moving forward and stays by Makoto’s side. This makes for some pretty effective comedic scenes and she has really earned her spot among the group. As a robot her one weakness is being controlled by others so hopefully she can get more security soon. Aigis is a determined fighter though and even at the end of the film she is the first one to act. If only the others had taken her warnings more seriously.

So how about this new mysterious kid named Ryoji? Depending on what you’re expecting from the character I’d say that the film tipped its hand a little too quickly. I mean it all just feels very obvious on where they were taking his character but I guess I have watched a lot of anime before. He seems like a nice enough guy but the nonstop flirting can be really obnoxious. Definitely the kind of character that you wouldn’t want to take too seriously or he’ll just be upsetting the whole time. He should be playing a big role in the next film though and I expect he will look a lot better there.

The soundtrack is great as always. Persona always has really good tunes and this one doesn’t disappoint. They are forced to use action themes even for comedic moments like being stuck at the hot springs since a lot of the film isn’t in a tense situation. It works pretty well though and the film largely avoided having too much fanservice there. There was definitely still some though which is why you never want to follow up a beach adventure with a trip to the hot springs. That’s really just asking for trouble if you ask me.

I already talked about this before but to enjoy this film you are really going to need to like the characters. A lot of the film is about them going on a field trip, working part time jobs, etc. It’s not going to work for you if you just want the climax to happen right away so just don’t go in with that mindset. I’d probably have trimmed down the side quest stuff a little bit but it doesn’t seriously drag on. You’ll just feel some second hand embarrassment from the stoic Makoto doing all of these little tasks while presumably his friends are watching and wondering what’s going on. It would be odd for a friend to stop talking to you and then you see him hanging out with someone new and having a bunch of goofy adventures.

Overall, This was a pretty fun film. It’s really not what I was expecting with this next part. I suppose in the game it would be the calm before the storm but I wonder if this was really expanded or they cut out a lot of bosses in the middle. In theory even the calm parts would have had some night sections right? It may not have been as action packed as I may have hoped but I’m invested in the characters enough where the slice of life was still good. If anything it’s almost a bit foreboding where you are waiting for something to happen. There were a good amount of twists and turns here as well as a real body count so it’s not like the stakes got lower. These characters got to have a little more fun than most main character groups though so that’s a W in their corner. As long as you enjoy a good slice of life with some action then I’d definitely recommend this one.

Overall 7/10

Captain America: Brave New World Review

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It’s time for the 4th Captain America film. Of course Steve Rogers is dead so in this case it’s about his successor Sam Wilson who has let go of his old Falcon persona. This is a good film but definitely one that drags out quite a bit near the middle and that’s not good because this isn’t a particularly long film in the first place. The film has a running joke which I think is even a bit meta about how Sam should have taken the super soldier serum and honestly…he should have. It would have helped quite a bit.

The movie starts off with Sam and his sidekick Joaquin taking down a bunch of terrorists and securing a package that had been stolen. He is thanked by the president elect Ross. After a timeskip, Ross has become the president and he is attempting to seal a treaty with Japan over the use of Adamantium. It is a material that may even be stronger than Vibranium and would have a whole lot of uses. Ross is trying to move on from his dark past and be the best president that he can be, but it won’t be easy. A figure from his past has appeared and is attempting to sabotage all relations with Japan. Can Ross put an end to this?

It was nice to see Ross return because I always thought he was a pretty fun character. Definitely on the gruff side and he had a tendency to do things that weren’t exactly legal but he was always fighting for his country. Now as the president Ross brings that same level of grit to the job. As the film goes on he starts to look a little shakier though. After we get through all the twists and such, I can say that he definitely made one too many mistakes here. It was still fun to root for him, but he really sabotaged himself completely.

When you make a mistake you have to deal with it. Ross decided to just ignore it and naturally that comes back to bite. So he does really good in all of the present actions but that was enough to really hurt him. Meanwhile you can also say something similar for the main villain here. This mysterious villain has a grand master plan and could have easily completed it if not for his ego. This guy really wants everyone to know that he is the one behind this plot and so naturally that leads to him being captured.

It just feels a bit absurd that a so called super genius could not find a better way to do the plan without being captured in the process. Maybe he plans to escape and that’s another plan but that’s way too risky. The villain never ended up being very impressive for me and I also thought that they really messed up his design compared to what it was in the comics. That look was 100X better than this one which is really going for more of an intentionally ugly design.

As for Sam, he does a good job as Captain America here. He certainly looks better than in the Winter Soldier miniseries where it almost felt like you were meant to root against him. Sam tries to do his best to help the country out while not becoming some yes man to a guy as dubious as General Ross. Sam’s also dealing with a lot because his old friend Isaiah goes crazy for some reason and Sam needs to figure out a way to prove his innocence.

Throughout this adventure, characters are quick to doubt him as well. The villains make fun of him, Ross compares him negatively to Steve, etc. I do think it would be good for Sam to finally get past the self confidence issues though so hopefully after this he won’t be wavering anymore. It is just tough to see that he is still just a human with tech though. It works for someone like Iron-Man who is surrounded by nanotech and that’s always been his thing. Being Captain America without the actual super strength? That’s a lot tougher.

It also does limit what the film can do in terms of fight scenes. The final battle relies on an enormous amount of plot armor and nerfing the opponent so that Sam can have a chance. It’s really hard to pull off that kind of a fight without making one party look worse than they should. As for how you solve that, well you have to give Sam some serious powers. Otherwise even fighting humans can be tough for him. He was getting absolutely clobbered by one villain near the beginning of the film. Sam is only able to win with a lucky shot near the end but effectively lost that battle. Then he has a really close shave against a guy with a gun. Yeah that guy is the head of Serpent and is skilled but is technically still just a guy.

If you’re having close shaves with all kinds of normal fighters like this then you’re not really going to be able to go toe to toe with super powered villains. Joaquin made for a good sidekick and while he is much weaker since he is a human with worse tech, he does good against the side opponents. He’s not really ready for the bigtime but the film isn’t trying to put him in those situations so it works out.

We’re introduced to a new character named Ruth here who is a former Black Widow. As a result she is fairly strong and can fight well despite her short stature. Her inclusion felt a bit random compared to the rest of the characters but it’s always good to have another fighter at the ready. This film was really trying for a more grounded approach which is why you have so many street level fighters running around here. It’s also why the climax feels especially out of left field because the power levels have such a huge jump. It’s not like it’s a spoiler to say who it is since the film was advertising him a lot but I’ll still abstain there.

So we’ve got a lot of action scenes and everything. Why isn’t the film higher? Well, the writing and action are good as always and I enjoy the general tone of the film. It just moves a bit too slowly and takes some of the war stuff more seriously than is needed. For example we get a fairly long dog fight of Sam trying to chase some jets and based on the speed we saw from him early on this should be easy. Instead the chase overstays its welcome by quite a lot and just doesn’t really get that interesting.

Towards the middle a lot of time is spent on the mystery of why people are going insane. The problem is that as the viewer you know who it is early on and Sam/Ruth find out the method for the hypnosis right away. So then the real mystery is tracking down the assailant but it wasn’t a great journey to get there. None of it is bad but I feel like there really isn’t much in the way of replay value here. You’re glad you saw the film and it kept your attention but that’s about it. I dare say the film is essentially filler in terms of future developments and even the final post credits scene is rather halfhearted. It is just so vague that it is essentially meaningless. I would have gone for something a bit more hype like actually showing a guest star.

Overall, Brave New World didn’t exactly shatter the sky in terms of hype but it is a good film. I enjoyed it and the MCU always does have a fun style of banter and action scenes. The choreography is good and I dare say that was never in doubt. It’s just a fun movie all the way but ends up being a bit more forgettable and the film also has a hard time trying to balance the fun and serious moments. I dare say it should have just leaned more on the fun and being a comic book movie. We’re pretty deep in the MCU so by this point it should be able to get as fantastic as possible. I’d also say that keeping a certain guest star around for the climax would have been a really good idea because otherwise it just felt a bit pointless. We’re getting closer and closer to Doomsday so I look forward to seeing how the next films go.

Overall 6/10

Rooster Cogburn Review

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Rooster Cogburn is one of those titles where you would have no idea what the film is about. It’s such a general name but hardcore fans of True Grit will know that this is a western right away. This title plays it very safe and ends up being a decent western title. You’ll either appreciate the subtlety it is going for or you’ll end up finding it to be a bit boring. There’s not going to be much in between. For me I thought it did a pretty good job. It’s not terribly exciting but keeps your attention well enough and also avoids some of the classic western issues.

The movie starts off with Roster taking down some more thugs but he is called into court. Unfortunately the town has decided to move in a more nonsensical direction and does not want to see Rooster murdering criminals anymore. Rooster is stripped of his badge and forced into retirement which has him feeling rather bitter. Naturally the judge and the town quickly realize that they are doomed without Rooster as a group of bandits steal some powerful nitro. The town is forced to call Rooster back in for one more adventure. Is Rooster too old to deal with these guys?

Right away you can see how absurd the town is though. The fact that they were so quick to fire Rooster was crazy. Now Rooster is no saint. The guy gets drunk way too often and has slowed down a step but it would have been nice if the town could have found some real examples to call him out on. The self defense shooting we saw at the beginning of the film was completely justified. If Rooster didn’t shoot then he would have been dead. That’s just how it worked back in the wild west and the town looks naïve to think otherwise.

Rooster was right to be sore at how he was quickly fired like this. He showed no remorse and that’s a good thing because he didn’t make any mistakes there. The rest of the deputies are so scared that none of them even want to accompany Rooster so he goes off on a 1 vs 9 kind of fight. That’s basically unwinnable to be honest.

It turns out that he won’t be completely alone though as he runs into Goodnight and a kid named Wolf. They are the last survivors after the same group of thugs stopped by their house and murdered everyone. Goodnight is certainly no big fan of violence but is no damsel and ends up joining the adventure with her gun. Wolf is a bit too young to be super helpful but is still around to cause distractions as needed.

It’s a real team effort and from here we get a lot of banter with Goodnight and Rooster. The writing is pretty solid in general and their dynamic ends up working well. Goodnight is definitely right that Rooster lets himself go too much with all the drinking and tries to help him be more introspective. I don’t think it really works as I feel like Rooster really doesn’t listen to anybody but at least he warmed up to having her around.

Goodnight has a lot of brave scenes like when she stands up to the thugs as well as saving Rooster from one shot. She’s definitely a solid heroine through and through. Wolf is okay but tends to forget how young he is and tries helping a little too much. That may not sound like a negative but sometimes you really do need to take your own power level into account or you just end up getting into a whole lot of trouble.

The villains are more on the forgettable side. There is a whole lot of infighting which helps the odds for Rooster. One of the main villains is a turncoat who used to work with the sheriff. He is an expert at explosives and helps in using the nitro. He’s clearly a cut above the rest of the lackeys but at the same time is still afraid of the main villain. The main villain really has a strong chokehold on his whole group and is always threatening or murdering them. He really never stops.

There is a decent amount of action here as we get several fight scenes. They’re all handled well but it feels like the villains have a whole lot of plot armor at times. Rooster and his crew get the drop on them initially but don’t end up picking off a single one. Yes, Rooster’s first shot was a warning one since he is trying to take them in alive but after that he should have been landing direct hits. These guys are all dangerous murderers after all and Rooster has always ignored the town’s orders before. It felt like too many shots were just being missed.

I suppose that’s a factor in all westerns though. This one just felt like it stood out a whole lot though. Still we got a solid climax here and the whole film is handled well. The writing was the most important part of course and the pacing was also good. The film’s main appeal is probably for when you want to show someone a western without it being too gritty. Despite being a sequel to “True Grit” there is absolutely nothing gritty about this adventure.

Overall, This is a very safe film that doesn’t really make any mistakes. The fights are good and I liked the dynamic between the two leads. The movie could have probably given the traitor more to do which would have led up to another solid fight. I enjoyed the villain cutaways with all of the dysfunction over there but it didn’t ultimately lead to a whole lot. This film isn’t super long or anything but there was enough runtime to add on another subplot. It just doesn’t have much of a hook so the movie is good but you won’t be thinking about it much afterwards. I guess it’s the definition of a good popcorn action film.

Overall 6/10

Can’t Buy Me Love Review

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Can’t Buy Me Love is one of those romance films where you’re waiting for some kind of twist ending to save it. For example maybe something that prevents the main duo from getting together and the film decides to be a bit subversive about it all. Unfortunately that didn’t happen and this ends up being one of those films that will just have you shaking your head the whole time. There isn’t much to salvage about this one.

The film starts by introducing us to Ronald who is your typical nerd character. He’s extremely introverted and has not been able to get popular at school. He secretly wants to be like the cool guys and go to all the parties/get a girlfriend. One day he sees that his next door neighbor Cindy is in a jam because she ruined her mother’s expensive dress. It will cost $1,000 to buy a new one which is a lot of money for that time period. Ronald offers to buy it for her on the condition that she pretends to be his girlfriend for a month. Cindy is under duress right now because she’s really worried about what her mother will say, so she reluctantly agrees. This will now be the toughest month of her life.

So right away there are a bunch of problems with this premise. Yeah I get how you can get a lot of comedic situations out of this. It’s a classic type of plot that has been done many times before but this situation was not a good move. The fact that Cindy was super pressured into doing this was crazy. It’s much better done in a film like Summer Wars where one character said yes to be nice and there was no blackmail happening.

Now it does set Ronald up as an antagonist right away. He’s willing to go quite far in order to move ahead and the film will even surprise you with how degenerate the guy is. Ronald is the kind of guy who lets the power get to his head immediately. The movie also shows how he doesn’t even see Cindy as real girlfriend material because when she starts to fall for him, he doesn’t even acknowledge it. Yeah maybe he’s a bit oblivious but pair that with all of the future scenes and it makes sense.

He just wants to live a life without morals where he can have relations with whoever he wants. This is not true boyfriend material in the slightest. Ronald also betrays his friends. Not even in a subtle way like eating at a different table, but completely ignoring them, messing up his best friend’s house, etc. The betrayal is quite extreme and then he gets with quite a number of girls before the film’s over. Ronald just goes all the way in each instance and doesn’t know how to have any restraint. The ability to do anything doesn’t mean that you suddenly go and take advantage of every opportunity.

If anything the new status just exposed his true personality. So this guy was a real bad apple for sure and the ending is not deserved. He should have just been totally isolated as a repercussion for what he did. That would have evened out pretty well if you ask me.

Then you have Cindy who isn’t exactly the best character either. I do want to confirm straightaway that she is many times better than Ronald though. Cindy has a lot of status within the school as the top cheerleader and never let it go to her head. She’s just a bit spoiled like when she took her mom’s dress when she was explicitly told not to do that. So Cindy really set herself up for a lot of trouble here. There’s no reason why she should have agreed to Ronald’s demands though because she actually has a long distance boyfriend.

Now that boyfriend doesn’t seem like a great guy but you still can’t be pretending to cheat on him in front of the whole school. That’s a quick way to destroy the reputation of all parties involved. Additionally she is just way too forgiving. This is partially because of how the film had to end out but it was a real shame to see her just absorb all the abuse Ronald threw her way. He did not hold back at all in trying to make her look bad and was quick to cut her down.

He’s the kind of guy who will take anything you share in confidence and blow it up in your face. So if you have any self respect then you’re not even going to be friends with someone after that. Definitely one of the worst romances I’ve seen in a while. This also takes away from the comedic potential of the film. Officially this is meant to be part comedy and you can see all of the jokes that are slipped in but it tends to be a little too mean spirited to actually have fun with.

It’s almost spiteful with how it all plays out. This is like a power fantasy for an introverted person but written from someone who thinks that popularity is inherently bad. Ronald also comes across as being whiny here because it’s not like he was completely alone. He had quite a few friends and they would even play games together at night. They were real friends and then he had a good reputation in the neighborhood like how Cindy’s mom thought he was a responsible young man. He traded that all in and I’d say that speaks volumes about him.

There’s so much more you could say about the romance in general but you get the idea. For a romance to work you need both characters to be solid but as the title went on everyone just looked bad. The worst part is that Cindy made a good faith effort from the start with helping Ronald learn how to dress for success. Then she came up with a good cover story and everything but Ronald was quick to just take everything too far. I suppose he didn’t have great family influences. His parents let his younger brother constantly bully him but of course that whole subplot was also embarrassing for the main character. Surely he can handle some banter with a little kid right?

Overall, This is not a film that I would recommend. It gets way too dramatic and mean spirited the whole time. Definitely a film that will not go down as one of the better ones and I can see why it has been forgotten to time. The film needed major work in order to even be decent. You definitely have to start by fixing the general premise of the film so it starts off a bit lighter and then you shouldn’t make Ronald a total jerk. There are so many ways to make the film fun and you can keep him oblivious without making him a total antagonist. Then you can actually focus more on the comedy. Like there was one funny joke where Ronald’s friends try to enter the party but immediately sit back down when they’re called out. Of course it was hard to be sympathetic to them either since they were girl crazy as well. That’s got to be one of the worst stereotypes. They should be focused on games or something. If they really want to get out there, then they should be going to the gym or something. I gotta just try and focus on the comedy….

Overall 3/10

Persona 3 The Movie: #2 Midsummer Knight’s Dream Review

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It’s time for the next Persona installment! This one covers a whole lot of ground as we get more characters added to the main crew and some villains even show up. There’s also a good amount of lore here so it’s safe to say that we’re totally done with the prologue. If you enjoyed the first film then you’ll definitely like this one as it takes things to the next level.

The film starts off with the heroes taking care of a particularly devious boss that was trying to use its charm ability on the heroes. The heroes are finally able to hold their own at least a little bit without Makoto. While he was out getting charmed they were actually landing blows and dealing damage. I also wonder how long he and Yukari were under the mind control. In theory it couldn’t have been more than a few minutes or the rest of the team would have been crushed but the enemy certainly wasn’t rushing them.

Still, things have been looking up for Makoto. He has been showing more emotion lately and is really getting along with the rest of the team. That seems like a good thing at first but then some doubts begin to creep in. What will he do once the monsters are all gone? The heroes are ultimately fighting to save the world and remove this demonic hour but will Makoto go back to being a loner with no friends? That’s something that he is really going to have to contend with.

So it’s not all sunshine and flowers for Makoto this time. I admit that I do miss his more emotionless self to a degree but his character was always going to go this way in the long run. Persona isn’t the kind of title that even considers having static characters. It would go against the entire concept of the series. Likewise this movie isn’t quite as mysterious as the first film now that we’re actually getting answers to different questions like what is the 25th hour, who created the demons, etc. We even have main villains to take care of now.

So in the place of mystery we have more action and character development this time around. It’s a pretty fair trade off. The stakes are higher here as we’ve got an actual body count. The heroes are always fighting around death with how powerful the demons get but at least there are a lot of them so they can back each other up. It still feels like the others can’t fight near the level of Makoto but at least they are doing something compared to film 1 where they were borderline hostages the whole time.

I also have to give Yukari a lot of credit in particular here. She has gotten over her doubts and is a proud fighter with the rest of the team now. She no longer has any hesitations about combat and is right there on the front lines. Now her main threat is Aigis, one of the newer members of the group who is always hanging around Makoto. That’s naturally going to be a point of tension throughout.

Aigis quickly becomes one of the best characters though and as far as this film goes she was my favorite. It’s great to have someone who can effectively fight the demons even without her Persona. She is 100% focused on the mission and has a very emotionless style to her like Makoto. Aigis is helpful right from the start and doesn’t need any time to adjust to what is going on. Of course in a sense that’s because she is essentially a weapon. So in a way you could say she was literally built for this kind of job.

This movie also introduces a dog who gets to be part of the main group. I gotta admit, I’m not a big fan of including any animals with the group. This is naturally way too dangerous for any pup like this. The dog does a good job of quickly learning how to summon a Persona and everything but I still think that’s a bit much. No way to ensure his safety while protecting everyone else.

Then you have a little kid named Ken who also joins up. Even this is stretching things because he’s so young. It also turns out that he has a chip on his shoulder and some very personal reasons for wanting to help out. This leads to a pretty intense confrontation later on. I have to give Ken some props for actually wanting to take care of things on his own. It certainly wasn’t the heroic thing to do but yeah he was really taking care of business.

Finally we also have Shinjiro also joins up. He was briefly in the first film but did not want to get involved with the team. Well, they’re closing in on the goal now and convince him to help out. The guy doesn’t have a whole lot of time left though as he has a hard time controlling his abilities. There is a kind of medication that he can take in order to stave off the effects but it’s definitely more of a short term fix and not something that he can rely on forever.

He absolutely has the most tragic plot from all of the characters. It would just be hard for anyone to move on from what he did in the past and it’s easy to see why he doesn’t know how to atone. Saving the world from the demons would be a good start of course but if he messes up then he could easily just end up making things worse for everyone which would defeat the entire point. Still, I ended up liking the guy quite a bit. He was dealt a rough hand in life but played it as well as he could.

The older members get a little less to do this time. Fuuko, Kirijo, and Junpei are around the whole time but don’t have particularly big plots here. Fuuko and Junpei got their big plots in the first movie and I feel like Kirijo will get more of a focus later on. Of course we will also have to make time for the 3 new villains. These characters haven’t gotten a whole lot to do yet but they have made their goals clear. They want the dark hour to continue forever and so they aim to stop the heroes from destroying the final demons. I believe the heroes have beaten 7/12 of the dark captains needed to end the demons once and for all. So they are pretty close at this point.

The villains definitely have a lot of potential. In a title like this it’s always fun to have a dark mirror where the villains use the same kind of power sets but for their own purposes. There are only 3 of them though so for now it feels like the heroes should be able to crush them rather easily. We’ll see if they just have busted units though. In the quick skirmish their main monster seemed tough but it was too quick to call this a proper fight.

The animation was definitely solid as you would expect. The character designs are on point and the film also had a lot of great music. Persona is definitely really good at that and the movie doesn’t disappoint. There is a bit of fanservice this time around between the beach and the opening scene. Nothing too crazy but Persona had been pretty good about avoiding this before now so hopefully it can stay rather light the whole time. I’m here for the action!

In general though I’d say the movies have been good about not being too extreme. The topics are serious and the characters can take some big injuries but it never gets to the point where it feels like the film is being too try hard about the violence. It’s more like a standard shonen I’d say. At least up to this part and again, we still have the serious themes and tragic backstories so it’s not like this one’s all fun and games. I’d say that it is probably happier than the first film overall but that might be debatable.

Overall, I look forward to seeing where the next film goes. In theory Makoto should be past the biggest doubts now so I don’t expect any more backsliding from him. Additionally the other characters should all be pulling their weight without a doubt. The team is just so big by this point so they should be rolling past a lot of fighters. Naturally the last bosses will be the strongest ones but the team is up for the task. As long as you like a good supernatural action film then you will enjoy this film as well. It’s just very strong all around.

Overall 7/10

My Dinner with Andre Review

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It’s time for a very dialogue heavy film. Just about the whole movie is about a single conversation so it doesn’t really get much more dialogue heavy than that right? Well it’s a pretty interesting concept but you really need the conversation to play out more like a debate in order to be interesting. Sure, there are plenty of podcasts where the hosts agree and it’s still interesting but then the topic needs to be on point. A debate is the easiest way to go about things and unfortunately the film completely fumbled the premise.

The movie starts off with Wally heading over to the restaurant where he will be meeting with Andre. The two of them used to be close friends but drifted apart over time to the point where Wally is really not looking forward to this dinner. His fears appear to be founded as the two characters are not on the same page. Although Andre clearly seems to think that they are closer than they actually are. Andre talks about his adventures in travelling across the world and how bleak the future is. Wally doesn’t agree with some of these thoughts but how can he gets his views across? Wally isn’t the most outgoing sort of guy after all.

I think Wally’s timidity is the biggest problem here. In a good back and forth you need to have two characters who are really ready to duke it out. It doesn’t have to mean that there is any bad blood here, you just have to have some passion behind your ideas. That’s how it goes on just about any debate on First Take or if you watch any of the Youtube debaters. Most of them tend to get rather toxic but then off camera they are all hanging out.

I would have had this film be a really fiery debate between the two of them, only to have them shake hands and walk home after that. Show that they can separate the debate from their friendship. Instead Wally basically gets obliterated for the entire 2 hours. Towards the end he finally starts trying to counter Andre but gets way too nervous and is shut down in each of his attempts. This was a one sided massacre from Andre’s side and the guy really didn’t hold back.

The debate is mainly about fulfillment in life and what it takes to have a happy one. Andre for example has lived his life in an adventurous way. He travels across the planet and has had all kinds of crazy experiences. Whether you believe him or not if up to you but it has shaped his views on humanity. Nearly dying helped him see how people have just stopped trying. They don’t have drive anymore and just flow through life without a purpose. He thinks that people need to live in some level of discomfort in order to stay creative and keep on going. If they don’t then they will inevitably grow to be very weak and will not have any future hopes and dreams.

Wally leads a rather mundane life with his 9-5 and has been struggling to get a break lately. Yet, he does think there is some satisfaction to be had in this kind of life. He tries to say that maybe visiting the local drug store is the same as going to Mount Everest and while the guy is grasping at straws, I was glad to see him giving some good ideas. Unfortunately he just never ends up being all that convincing. Perhaps because in a way Wally seems to be trying to convince himself of this at the same time while Andre clearly has a whole lot of conviction in his own beliefs. It’s always going to be hard to challenge someone when you aren’t exactly sure of what you are debating.

The worst part is that I technically agree with Wally’s ideals more than Andre’s. You should be able to enjoy the modern conveniences of life and it definitely doesn’t take away from you. Andre seems to think that you have to closely inspect every part of your life each day in order to make sure that you’re still happy when that’s really going overboard. This just hurts Wally even more though because it feels like he is losing a debate when he has the winning position.

It’s like when I watch a debate where the flat earther is destroying the round earth debater. Obviously the world is round so that means the second guy has the massive advantage so to lose that debate anyway is crazy. I saw another debate recently with a big conspiracy theorist fighting someone took the mainstream perspective on what happened with the Charlie Kirk assassination and the conspiracy theorist actually won. I always feel like you lose extra points when you are defeated in a debate where you have a massive advantage right from the start.

Now a one sided beatdown can be a lot of fun but you still need there to be some resistance. So Wally is the biggest reason as to why the film wasn’t very good. Additionally I would also say that the topic just wasn’t that interesting. An existential debate like this can still be decent under the right circumstances but it ended up being more boring than anything. I was really expecting a lot more out of this one. I suppose it does show how creating a film around a long conversation like this can be harder than expected though.

At least the venue was a fancy restaurant so I get to dunk on those again. My theory that “the cheaper a food item is, the better it will taste” continues to bear fruit. Now there are going to be limits to this but this restaurant for example probably had absolutely crazy prices and the portions were small. The soup looked as clear as possible without any real flavors. Yeah that’s always going to be a big problem when you think about it. I did think that the waiters made for decent supporting characters as they got more and more annoyed with how long the two characters were taking to leave the venue.

Overall, This is the kind of film that is being very straightforward with its premise. The film is about a long conversation between a guy who lives an adventurous life and one who has settled down to lead a more ordinary one. They get to talk about their perspectives and the current state of humanity. If the conversation sounds interesting and you don’t mind one guy getting 90% of the dialogue, then it could be a winner for you. If that isn’t your cup of tea or you were hoping for something more contentious then you should skip this one. At the end of the day the biggest limitation here is that the film can just be rather boring for most of the run.

Overall 3/10

Persona 3 The Movie: No. 1, Spring of Birth Review

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It’s time to delve back into the world of Persona! I really didn’t know much about Persona 3 except for the song “It’s Going Down Now” which is absolutely generational. Unfortunately that song isn’t in this film but it still has a lot of fun tunes throughout. The movie is really fast paced so you have to keep up with it but this makes for a good watch from start to finish. It also ends off in a way where you know that the adventure is just starting.

The story starts off by introducing us to Makoto who is one of the most emotionless characters you’ll ever see. He’s walking through town when people start turning into coffins. He doesn’t have time to care about that though as he’s on the way to his dorm. When he gets there, a girl points a gun at him and Makoto just shakes his head as he gets to his room. Unfortunately giant monsters are trying to tear the place down so the ladies ask him to help out. This involves shooting himself with a gun that allows him to summon demonic entities known as Persona to help him fight. Makoto is now on a team known as SEES which fights back against these demons. Makoto will help out…because why not?

Now obviously there is a reason for his lack of emotion and the film gives us a few quick flashbacks to his past. Nothing substantive yet though, we’ll likely be getting that in the sequels. This one is really about having Makoto slowly open up to the characters around him. A part of me is going to miss how emotionless he was though. The fact that he was taking everything in stride was just really funny and I wish more characters were like that. There is a time for panicking after all but most characters abuse it.

I also like to think that the lack of emotion is part of why he is so strong. The other characters tend to get knocked around real quickly and don’t re-summon their monsters too quickly. Makoto just spam summons the Personas over and over again. This drains your soul/willpower so it’s risky but he wasn’t worried about that. Without Makoto the rest of the characters could have been crushed more than once. Which….is a knock against the others.

I’m no stranger to the concept of “The Chosen One” but it’s a bit of a stretch on just how weak the others are. It’s hard to see how they have survived at all without Makoto. They are unable to beat even a single boss without him. It seems like they never had to deal with bosses before Makoto showed up with how surprised they were though. So maybe in a way this loops around to all being Makoto’s fault. This may just be a pacing issue and with more time they could have shown off the other fighters a bit more.

The most unintentionally funny one is when the final member (for now) joins the group. Fuuko is a really shy girl who got picked on a lot and by the end of the film finally gets to fight. The problem is that she loses her first fight and seemingly her Persona’s only ability is to make a barrier which can delay the inevitable. Usually you’d expect the new character to do well in a TV show but I guess those rules don’t apply to a movie. So Makoto still had to save her even if she did help out in a support role.

I also want to see Fuuko standing up for herself more. In this case the bully saw the light and stopped picking on her but we haven’t gotten to see Fuuko confront anyone yet. It’s good that she is a really nice person but it definitely should not come at the expense of defending herself. You always have to continue to fight back and hold some kind of boundaries. Takeba is another character who is rather timid but in a very different way. She is tough around other characters but it’s more of a mask that drops when she is up against the monsters.

Takeba tends to annoy me more than Fuuko because she should be a pro by now. I do get how it would be hard to shoot yourself even if you know that it’s not a real gun though. The others are probably a bit weirder for accepting it so easily. At least Takeba is past all of that now so she should be looking better and better as the films go on. Panicking and nearly shooting Makoto was just not a good look for her.

Kirijo is one of the more disappointing ones when it comes to combat. It’s a bit of a clash in expectations because when she’s first introduced you get the feeling that this character is a bigshot. It turns out that she is another support type fighter so you don’t really see her on the frontlines. I think that was a mistake, we don’t need more support fighters. So she doesn’t really fight at all and loses off screen to her first big opponent. Just not a great showing at all. Yes at this point Makoto is really carrying the team. The others are still fun characters but in a fight they aren’t pulling their weight.

Junpei is at least another fighter on the group although he doesn’t have a ton of experience yet. In fact he is brand new to the game and immediately gets jealous of Makoto for outshining him in all areas. I was worried this would be a big plotline but it seems like the guy has calmed down for now. The stakes are too high for any infighting right now. Junpei’s the classic overconfident kind of guy so until he is able to back up the tough talk, he will be in hot water.

Akihiko is the final main member of the strike force. At least he actually seems to be powerful. The opponent was just a really bad matchup for him with how he could become immune to the elements. Without that then this would have been a very different fight. The electricity looked really sharp and he was also able to re-summon his Persona a lot. Hopefully he’ll continue to be on the front lines for future fights.

The animation is pretty sharp all the way through. I like the way they would do the colors for the characters’ hair and the fights were solid. I wouldn’t call this a high-end production or anything like that but it flows well. The songs are also really good like I mentioned before. They may not have brought out the A tier songs yet but you know that they are around. This film had a lot to cover with the character intros and nonstop action so the next one will hopefully be able to match that. In theory we need the nonstop fighting to continue in order to see more fun battle tracks.

That said, it’ll be hard for the sequel to capture the same intrigue and mystery that this one had. The film hasn’t really been addressing any questions yet so Makoto is just as lost as anyone else. Of course he’s not the kind of guy to ask about the details anyway. All you need to know is that monsters come out during an extra hour of the day that only specific people can see. It’s an interesting premise and that’s really all you need some times. With that I’ve got a good basis for the fights and there are always the classic mystery characters who appear in visions and meanwhiles. The film even had some post credit scenes which was cool.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this film. Whether you are familiar with Persona or not, it makes for a good action title. There is a lot of suspense here and the writing is good. The film’s also not very long so it really breezes right by you. It may not feel like a complete adventure but that’s normal for a part 1. It just means that you have to stick around so this will be an investment. You’ll be able to truly see just how solid it is once you have finished all of the films.

Overall 7/10