Weekend Box Office Report (October 19th - October 21st)

Weekend Box Office Report (October 19th - October 21st)

Disclaimer: Every Monday, I will post the top five movies that grossed the most money DOMESTICALLY (in the United States), with some brief thoughts about each film. 

1. Halloween (2018) ($77.50 Million): Michael Myers is back with a vengeance. The horror reboot came into theaters this weekend and raked in over 75 million dollars, surpassing any expectations that anyone ever had for the film. Because of the positive word of mouth, the film will look to maintain its box office success in the coming weeks, as it has already broken even by a mile. 

2. A Star is Born ($19.50 Million): The Bradley Cooper, Lady Gaga musical is continuing to do well, landing in the number two spot. The film, pushing more for awards buzz rather than box office, will continue to thrive in the coming weeks as well as little competition will enter the ring come November. 

3. Venom ($18.05 Million): Despite the poor critical reception, the audiences have spoken and have propelled this film to be profitable. Sony will consider this a huge success as the film continues to make money, and this will serve as the catalyst to launch the shared Sony Spider-Man-Less-Verse. 

4. Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween ($9.72 Million): While the first movie didn't make a whole lot of money, it was clear that there was an audience for these kinds of films, and so a sequel was announced with a new cast, save for Jack Black returning as R.L. Stine. And while the film hasn't performed as well as the first, it has made a little bit of money to justify its existence. Don't look for this film to lead to a sequel though. 

5. First Man ($8.57 Million): An early Oscar contender, First Man sees Damien Chazelle and Ryan Gosling return to headline the film about NASA sending the first man to the moon. This film will not make a ton of money, nor does it need to as it pushes for the major Oscar categories come next spring.

How Did I Do (Weekend Box Office Predictions): N/A

Suicide Squad - Spoiler-Free Review (Reposted)

NOTE: This is a review drafted on 12/31/2016 on a different blog that is no longer in use. I decided to transfer content from that website to this to maintain consistency. 

Suicide Squad - Spoiler-Free Review

Directed By: David Ayer

Starring: Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney, Viola Davis, Joel Kinammen, Ben Affleck, Cara Delevinge, Jay Hernandez, Karen Fukuhara, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Adam Beach

Blurb/Synopsis: Figuring they're all expendable, a US intellignce officer decides to assemble a team of dangerous, incarcerated super villains for a top-secret mission. Now armed with government weapons, Deadshot (Will Smith), Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Captain Boomerang, Killer Croc and other despicable inmates must learn to work together. Dubbed Task Force X, the criminals unite to battle a mysterious and powerful entity, while the diabolical Joker (Jared Leto) launches an evil agenda of his own.

Expectations/Background: With the release of Man of Steel and Batman v. Superman both receiving mediocre to low critical reception, Suicide Squad looked to either cement the DCEU's darker tone or turn it around. The first images of the Suicide Squad themselves looked insanely accurate and good, The first image of Joker was the trigger that caused the entire world to pause for a moment and wonder what exactly David Ayer and Warner Bros. were doing with their extended universe. While controversial, Jared Leto's Joker was not the only piece of promotional material that caused the fans to wonder. The trailers themselves were highly contradictive. The original comic con trailer was dark, brooding, gritty, and everything that DC had promised from its cinematic universe. However, once Batman v. Superman was released, DC did a double take and released another trailer to Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, which was also met with huge fan approval. And then rumors began to circulate that this film was undergoing heavy reshoots, and David Ayer was having to fight Warner Bros. for control over his own movie. However, I myself remained super hopeful that this film would be the one that would right the ship. And I clung on to hope that the superb cast of Will Smith, Viola Davis, Jared Leto, and Margot Robbie would make the DC Cinematic universe come into the light with the critics.

The Movie: This movie was a disappointment. There are certainly great elements of a film, but they are buried in a pile of dead weight. The cast (going to that later) was decent, but a lot of them were very forgettable. The plot was lazy, it was boring, and it was confusing. The character's motivations were either not told, or written off in about five seconds. The characters were flat, boring, and the motivations were just awful. Exposition was told like nobody's business. The dialogue was poorly written, and after reading that the script was written in something like a month, I understand why. Without spoiling anything, lines like, "We're the bad guys" are said over, and over, and over again. I understand that the characters are the bad guys, but please, do not beat that over my head with dialogue; show it with the actions of the characters. Taking a break from complaints for a second, let's go into some good things. The visuals are mostly on point, with some interesting locations and sets. The squad itself look great, and there are a couple action sequences that are great. There is also a little bit of humor in the film, which if the film did not have, would have cost the movie the little bit of gravity and levity. Again, the performances are good for the most part, and they carry the entire film, and the plot, while confusing and boring, was not terrible. It was not like X-Men Origins: Wolverine or Green Lantern, and held up decently enough. Going back to negatives though, this movie looked exactly as the reports had said; it looked like fifty different people and studios came in and each edited about 10 minutes of the movie, leaving about 500 minutes of footage, and David Ayer had to take the movie and cut it down to 130 minutes. The editing was choppy, at times it looked like a YouTube video, character's backstories are written across the screen in giant neon letters, it's just not a good way to orient a film. In short, this movie was flat, boring, had terrible character motivations, terrible dialogue, some great visuals, some great characters, and a whole lot of potential.

The Music: This is a new category that I'm adding to the reviews because as a musician myself, the music can either make or break certain scenes. And let me say, the music in this film was awful. Because it was mainly not a soundtrack, it was a mashup of a bunch of recent and older pop songs mixed together. I could clearly see the editing committee was trying to copy the music from Guardians of the Galaxy, but the difference between these two films was that Guardians had a singular vision by James Gunn who thought that inserting the music would create a unique new flavor in the film. This film inserted the music so randomly and so all over the place just because they felt it. The music selection was not warranted, at all.

The Cast/Characters: With ensemble casts like these, what I like to do is rank the characters from best in terms of the character and acting from best to worst. And the ranking is:

1. Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn

2. Viola Davis as Amanda Waller

3. Ben Affleck as Batman

4. Will Smith as Deadshot

5. Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang

6. Jared Leto as Joker

7. Everyone Else

8. Cara Delevinge as the Enchantress

There's something to be said about the performances, because some of them are actually very good. Margot Robbie stamps herself as a top-tier actress by taking a lunatic and a terrible script and making it believable enough. Her character was the most clearly developed and was the best part of it. Viola Davis also did everything that she could to play the central government figure head/puppet-master. Ben Affleck. For a guy who was the best part of Batman v. Superman but was in this film for a total of less than ten minutes, he stole the show. This is the definitive Batman, and under the right direction, and also with a lot less killing, Ben Affleck's Batman is perfect. Will Smith does everything he can as well, bringing the charisma that Will Smith can (also a great idea to skip out in Independence: Resurgence, but this film was not much better). But surprisingly, Jai Courtney was good in this film! For a person who was given a lot of bad talk for certain films that he's done, he was great for what his character was in the film. And Jared Leto's Joker was...interesting to say the least. He was barely in the movie to begin with, and that in itself is a sign that we didn't get to see enough of his character. But there were good and bad sides to his performance. There are certain scenes where he feels truly menacing, or like a psychotic maniac who has a brilliant mind, but there are other scenes where he seems like a man trying to look insane in white makeup. I don't know what direction that he was given, but it was truly weird, in all the worst ways. The rest of the Squad were forgettable, but oh my, Cara Delevinge. Her character of the Enchantress was given much more screentime than I had expected but that was not a good thing. Going from modeling to acting, it was truly bad, and very much cringe-worthy.

The Villain(s): The villain was garbage. I will not spoil anything because the marketing does not really reveal much about the villain. But the antagonist is truly awful. I had no idea where the storyline with this character/thing was going, but when it finally came to a head, I groaned, I moaned, because it was the same exact climax in every single movie, and the villain was just not necessary. **MINOR SPOILER ALERT** The Joker was not the main villain of the film, but he should have been. Given a clearer storyline and arc, I think Jared Leto could have pulled off a memorable performance as the Clown Prince of Crime. **SPOILER ALERT OVER** But instead, we get this villain, who was just truly atrocious to watch. I would even put this thing/person/whatever it was lower than Doomsday to be perfectly honest, and that is saying something.

The Verdict: The one thing I will say about Suicide Squad is that David Ayer was cheated out of his film, and there is truly a great deal of potential with the movie. But, with the film that we got, the final result is a mess of characters, backstories, editing, and flashbacks the all come to a head in the most generic climaxes that this superhero/supervillain film could have done. There were some great performances, and there were some awful ones, and I would not recommend watching this movie to anyone, even those who want to see the Joker. Just look up his scenes on YouTube and decide for yourself. Letter Grade: C-. Number Score: 5.5

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Spoiler-Free Review (Reposted)

NOTE: This is a review drafted on 12/29/2016 on a different blog that is no longer in use. I decided to transfer content from that website to this to maintain consistency. 

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Spoiler-Free Review

Directed By: David Yates

Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Colin Farrell, Ezra Miller, Fine Frenzy, Dan Fogler

Blurb/Synopsis: The year is 1928, and New Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) has just completed a global excursion to find and document extraordinary creatures. Arriving in New York for a brief stopover, he finds himself entangled in a plot to recapture all his escape creatures after No-Maj (Muggle) Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler) lets some loose.

Expectations/Background: Everyone new that J.K. Rowling couldn't stay away from the Wizarding World forever, and alas, here we are, at the newest film in the "Harry Potter" franchise. After having heard that this movie was being released, I did some research, and having read the Harry Potter books, I was familiar with the fact that Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was a textbook read by Harry Potter at Hogwarts. And again, after watching the trailer for the movie, I thought that this movie would be fine. There seemed nothing special, and it seemed to be banking heavily on the nostalgia factor, which was slightly worrying. But there was nothing in the marketing and the promotional material to make me overjoyed to see this spin-off. And when news came out that J.K. Rowling wanted 5 total films in this franchise, and that she had already written a screenplay for the sequel, which had already been greenlit, I had doubts that this was going to be a good standalone film rather than a sequel setup.

The Movie: This was a very interesting movie indeed. On the whole, I considerably enjoyed it, and it was the kind of film that when you left the theater, you felt like you had a good time. But I wasn't so sure. Because thinking back on it, I remembered being bored for the first hour, because a lot of it was set-up, and a lot of it was set-up about characters that you had no idea what their motivation was, or set-up about plot lines that eventually went nowhere. But the second part of the movie was brilliant, emotional, action-packed, and character-driven, so when I left the theater, I felt so torn between the two sides of that coin. Letting it sit for a couple hours, I decided I enjoyed the movie overall for what it was, but needed to see it again. And upon second viewing, my thoughts were cemented: I was bored the first part of the film, but thourghouly enjoyed myself the second part. And this is not a knock against the film-making, because the film-making was masterful, with great shots and scenes between characters. And the acting itself was driven, although there was not much of it to begin with. It was unclear who the antagonist of the film was until later on in the movie, by which point, the movie does a bait-and-switch. The characters themselves were decently fleshed out, with a couple of them being characterized more than others. The acting was quite good, more on that later, but it serviced the plot and characters that they were given. Overall, I felt that this movie suffered from too much exposition and dragged the first hour. A lot of it was reliant on "Look! Remember this nod to Harry Potter? We hope you do!" However, watching the last hour again, there is a real sense of stakes to it, and the emotional punch at the end serves the story well. I'm going to say I enjoyed the positives more than the negatives, but I can say that there are scenes that I could pick out of the movie and not watch, or even cut them out if I were an executive.

The Cast/Characters: The cast that J.K. Rowling assembled was very, very good. Eddie Redmayne plays a whimsical sort of wizard, Newt Scamander, who is caught up in an adventure he had no intention of joining. Katherine Waterston does a fine job as a counter-point to Newt, as does Fine Frenzy, but the standout performance in the film was Dan Fogler. Dan Fogler's character, Jacob Kowalski, was like the lens that the audience used to see into this magical world. We never really had that with Harry Potter because everyone was at Hogwarts and believed in magic, but this was the first time that we had seen a non-magical character interact with wizards. And he has a couple scenes where there are just some gut-punching emotional moments that you see coming, yet hit you like a bullet. As for Colin Farrell and Ezra Miller, their storylines don't really device their characters. However, both of them play the part that they were told to play, and that is enough said about them, as they are both excellent actors.

The Villain(s): Without giving anything away, I will say the antagonistic force/person in the film is a little confusing, and a little contrived. One of the main villains is trying to recapture the beasts that have escaped Newt's custody, which is fine, but it evolves into something much greater that I think was a little too big for the first movie. It does distract a little from the third act, which otherwise was fantastic, no pun intended, and the buildup for the antagonist is very forced, and jarringly so. Coming into this movie fresh and not knowing anything about this subplot, it took me by surprise, and took me out of the movie. While not awful like in certain movies, the villain was not what it seemed, and was rushed, almost forced into the film.

The Verdict: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is an enjoyable film. There are moments of the old films that so adeptly capture the wonder and charm of Harry Potter, and there are others that feel as if it belongs in a completely different movie. The film suffers from heavy exposition, and a boring, dull first act, but picks itself up to deliver a gut punch and show that the magic is still in this franchise. Letter Grade: B-. Number Score: 8.0

MCU Ranked (Pre-Doctor Strange) (Reposted)

NOTE: This is a review drafted on 9/19/2016 on a different blog that is no longer in use. I decided to transfer content from that website to this to maintain consistency. 

Marvel Cinematic Movies Ranked

Introduction

With Marvel's Doctor Strange hitting theaters soon, I thought it was about time to release my list of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies ranked! Keep in mind that this list is completely subjective and completely my own. Enjoy!

1. Captain America: Civil War (2016): The first movie in the franchise to have. a plot that pits hero against hero, this movie kicked off Marvel's Phase 3. The actions scenes directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, and the cast delivered on every single scene. And the inclusion of Spider-man elevated the movie to a truly amazing superhero movie. 9.7/10

2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014): Before Captain America: Civil War, we had the visceral action that nobody saw coming. The directors, Joe and Anthony Russo, who had directed TV shows (Community) did not raise Marvel's fans hopes in terms of lifting the decent first movie. And then they delivered, not only with the action, but also with the acting, the heart, and the soul. Who knew that two movies about a buff guy wearing an American flag would be two of the best superhero movies ever. 9.6/10

3. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014): This was the biggest surprise ever. This movie was supposed to die in production and limp into theaters, becoming the worst Marvel movie ever created. And then, during San Diego CC, the trailer was shown after two weeks of filming. TWO WEEKS. And it suddenly spiked the excitement level for the movie, and by the time the first trailer made the rounds, everyone was on board for this movie. And this movie was the exact breath of fresh air that everyone had hoped for after the amount of superhero movies that had been coming out and had been announced. This band of misfits have planted themselves in pop culture, and have warranted its sequel. 9.4/10

4. Iron Man (2008): The first movie in the Marvel Cinematic universe, this was before anyone knew how big Kevin Feige's plans were. Nobody had any idea, and after the credits appeared, everyone just sat in the theater realizing they just loved a movie about a C-list Comic Book character. And then Nick Fury, played to perfection by Samuel L. Jackson appeared and everyone instantly realized what was going on. This movie revolutionized special and visual effects, mixing it with practical effects. Robert Downey, Jr planted himself into the role, and has since become the flagship for the rest of the Marvel Universe. 9.2/10

5. The Avengers (2012): There is going to be no replication of the level of awe and wonder when the Avengers formed their circle shot. The realization that so many of the best, but underrated until that point superheroes were sharing the screen, and fighting like a team. Although there were some inherent flaws in Loki's schemes, no one can deny the charisma oozing off of Tom Hiddleston as he played the God of Mischief. This was the culmination of everything that had come before it, and it had done it to near perfection. 9.1/10

6. Ant-Man (2015): Paul Rudd made the perfect ex-con, Scott Lang, as he charms his way through this enjoyable movie. The laughs are there, and it's enough to make you ignore the fact that this is a movie about a superhero based off of an insect. Michael Douglas plays the perfect Hank Pym, and Evangeline Lily was good in what turned out to be a serviceable love interest for Scott. Considering the backstory behind the production of this movie, it was a true masterpiece, and the visual effects when Ant-Man shrunk was truly amazing. 8.8/10

7. Iron Man 3 (2013): What has turned out to be a very divisive movie, and this being my complete subjective list of movies that I like and I find enjoyable, I was on the side of liking this movie more than everyone else did. Did it have flaws? Absolutely, and they were glaring. Regarding the Mandarin twist, I do wish we had gotten the Mandarin from the trailers that was promised to us, but based on what we did get, I did find it funny. Ben Kingsley doesn't get enough credit for what he did in that role, for transforming so quickly from a menacing force to be reckoned with to a bumbling actor. This movie is also funny, and it doesn't get enough credit for being funny. The humor that Robert Downey, Jr and the rest of the casts, as written and directed by Shane Black, is very pertinent. Overall, a serviceable movie. 8.4/10

8. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011): This is another movie that I am on the other side of the coin. Even though it's number 8 on this list, it is not a testament to how poor this movie is, but rather a testament to how good the preceding movies are. And I enjoyed this movie. Did it become cheesy and predictable and bloated in certain places? It absolutely did. But it provided the origin of Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes fighting against a very well cast Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) and the beginnings of one of the best superheroes to date. Again, it is not my favorite incarnation of Captain America (in fact, my least favorite next to the Avengers and Age of Ultron incarnations) but I did enjoy the film. 8.1/10

9. Thor: The Dark World (2013): As I am writing this, I now realize how much I am in unpopular opinion. I like this movie more than people do. People call this one of the worst superhero movies ever made. I would humbly disagree. The flaws in this movie are so visible. And I think the problem with this movie is that it takes itself too seriously. The only thing that saves this movie from being an utterly terrible movie is Loki. The scenes with Chris Hemsworth and Miss-I-Hate-Marvel Natalie Portman were so awful. But when Loki appears, and he is in it for a decent part of the movie, the chemistry between him and Chris Hemsworth's Thor is very enjoyable to watch. Again, the ending battle, the forgettable villain, a boring Thor, an annoying Kat Dennings, and miserable Natalie Portman drop this movie very much, but overall, it is not as terrible as it seems people make it out to be. 7.5/10

10. The Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015): This is an interesting movie. The first time I watched it, I thought I enjoyed it a lot. Then I watched it again, and again I thought that it was an enjoyable movie. Then, my brother would watch it once every two weeks, and I stopped to watch it every once in awhile while I was stopping by the living room. And every single time I viewed part of the movie, I liked it less and less, and began to cringe at Ultron's dialogue, and his ridiculous plan. The new characters are serviceable, the action scenes are bloated, save for the Hulk versus Hulkbuster fight, and the quips just got out of hand. This is the perfect example of a movie that the director did not intend to make, which is not Joss Whedon's fault. I am positive that he had a vision (no pun intended) when beginning pre-production, and when he watched the movie that the rest of the world would watch, I am positive that he was not happy with the final product. No, this movie will not hold up. 7.1/10

11. The Incredible Hulk (2008): This movie is not bad, and honestly, every single one of these movies is not bad, per se. No, this movie is just bland. Very bland. Edward Norton can hold up his own movie, but the truth of the matter is, when you have a character who, quote Mark Ruffalo, "...doesn't want to do the exact thing everyone wants him to," (referencing turning into the Hulk) there really isn't nothing that anyone can do to right that ship. Liv Tyler is the most cliche love twist, and General Ross, who luckily got his second chance in Civil War, is just a military leader who likes to antagonize people. Overall, like I said, this movie is just boring. 6.8/10

12. Iron Man 2 (2010): People may say that this movie is the worst of the bunch, and that's fine, that's your opinion, but I would like to humbly disagree. I believe that this movie is funny, in the wrong ways, but more than just being bad, it's bloated. And the tone is wildly inconsistent. Sam Rockwell's Justin Hammer talking about birds with Mickey Rourke's Whiplash, War Machine fighting a drunk Tony Stark who just had an accident in his pants (suit?), Pepper Potts becoming the new CEO of Stark Industries, the introduction of the Black Widow, and you have yourself a highly bloated, and somewhat enjoyable, forgettable superhero movie, which was vastly disappointing, as this was the sequel to the vastly superior movie, Iron Man. 6.5/10.

13. Thor (2011): Again, going against popular opinion, who thought that this movie was a revelation to this movie industry, I believe this to be the worst Marvel movie thus far. Why? It's annoying, boring, and bland. The plot is the classic fish-out-of-water plot that has been tried and true. Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman are the most boring couple next to the laughably bad Hayden Christiansen and Natalie...oh hmm, maybe there is a correlation. At any rate, their chemistry is forced, and Loki is not allowed to unleash his full potential and is relegated to the whiny younger brother who wants attention from his father. This movie is nowhere near the quality of the other Marvel movies, and I hope that this is the worst that the future Marvel movies become. 5.9/10

The Jungle Book (2016) Review (Reposted)

NOTE: This is a review drafted on 4/30/2016 on a different blog that is no longer in use. I decided to transfer content from that website to this to maintain consistency. 

The Jungle Book (2016) - Spoiler-Free Review

Release date (US): April 15th, 2016

Rating: PG

Starring: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Christopher Walken, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Giancarlo Esposito

Blurb/Synopsis: When a young boy living in a jungle named Mowgli (Neel Sethi) and his wolf-pack are threatened by the sinister tiger Shere Khan (Idris Elba), Mowgli must leave the pack and travel with the black panther Bagheera (Ben Kingsley) in search of his home.

Expectations/Background: Going to be completely honest, when I first heard they were going to make a "live-action" version of the Jungle Book, I laughed. How could they pull that off? That's insane! It's like right now when Disney is saying they're going to make a movie about the Jungle Cruise or The Little Mermaid. I'm still skeptical about how they can manage to pull that off. How were going to manage a giant brown bear and a child walking through the jungle together. Then the first trailer came out. Well, before that, at D23 (Disney's own little Comic-con), they released footage of the film. And apparently it was incredible, but to be honest, I still didn't believe it. I just couldn't wrap my mind around it. But when the first railer came out, I was blown away with how absolutely incredible it looked. I thought to myself that they must have traveled far and have gotten real animals. Then I did some research and found that the only thing real in the entire movie was Mowgli, and that blew my mind even more. A couple of concerns I did have with the trailer was that when the animals talked, it did feel a little odd, as if the sounds of their voices were coming not from their own mouth, but from somewhere far away, but I put that aside. But the Super Bowl trailer is what really won me over, because in my opinion, it is one of the best trailers ever released. My goodness is it brilliant. It starts out rather weakly, but as the trailer reaches a climax and the orchestral version of The Bare Necessities starts playing, that's really when I was sold. And entering the movie, I could not have been more excited to see the movie, especially riding off of the super positive reviews that it was being given.

The Movie: I cannot stress enough how absolutely floored I was by this movie. This movie was amazing. Incredible, no other way around it. Riding those high expectations, I was not let down at all. This movie was full of heart and reminded me of the old Disney animated classics, like the Lion King, and more recent Pixar films such as Finding Nemo (well, fine, it wasn't that recent). Jon Favreau manages to inject so much heart into this movie, it's incredible that there was only one real actor on the sound stage during filming. Talking about the plot, the plot was not a very complex one, but at the same time, it really didn't need to be. This was a movie that was riding on how connected you were to the characters, and by the end, I cared about each and every one of them, even Shere Khan, to a certain extent. More on the cast and characters later, but they were absolutely phenomenal. I cannot say that there was one bad performance in this movie, none. Major props to Neel Sethi, who did amazingly acting to nothing. And this movie is engaging. There wasn't a moment where I looked at my watch, and by the time the movie ended, there was a sense of fulfillment. Yet, even with that sense of fulfillment, I just wanted more out of this world, this jungle, and these characters. And speaking on more positives in this movie, the settings of the movie are gorgeous. The entire movie, there is not a single moment in the film where you think to yourself that this movie takes place in a sound stage. Because everything is so realistic. And all the animals' movements are so organic, that it's almost like the crew got real animals and had them move around, which would have been impossible. Although this movie is nearly perfect, there are just a couple things that I did take issue with. One of them was one plot point that occurred in the middle of the movie. No spoilers as this is a spoiler free review, but the plot point in itself was rather jarring and took me out of the movie a tiny tiny bit. Adding to the fact that it was never resolved, and I felt that it could have been handled a lot better, and could have added a lot of extra emotional depth. However, the mere fact that people who have actually seen the movie may not know what I am talking about is a testament to the fact that it is a very very minor flaw, and could have easily passed by the casual moviegoer. The only other complaint I really have is music. And I'm not talking about the actual soundtrack, which is absolutely brilliant, and I think fits the tone of the movie in absolute perfection. No, I'm talking about the songs that were included because...well they kinda needed to be. There are two songs in the movie, and one of them is not seamlessly integrated, and since it needed to be there, it was welcome. It wasn't a full blown song anyways, but more of a back and forth. However, the second song was almost like it came from a full blown musical movie. All of a sudden, the orchestra begins to play and a character bursts into song, and that's rather jarring as well. This also leads me into another point, which isn't quite negative, but not quite positive. It's just a thing I noticed, I suppose, and it's that there are several moments in the movie that I thought, from a critical standpoint, did not need to be there at all, but needed to be there at the same time because they were such integral parts of the original movie, which I will touch on a little bit more in the cast and characters part. Regardless, I just felt that to make a good movie, objectively speaking, there could've been a couple parts removed, but overall, this was still a beautiful, amazingly crafted, well-rounded film.  

The Cast/Characters: Perfect. Absolutely perfect. There is not a single character that I didn't care about. The highlights of the film were easily Bill Murray as Baloo, Idris Elba as Shere Khan, and Neel Sethi as Mowgli. Baloo comes into the film, and right away, you just love the character, and I can easily all the laugh out loud moments came from his character. Idris Elba came off as a truly frightening and menacing villain, which I did not expect at all. Seriously, if you told me that a completely CGI tiger in a 99 percent CGI movie was going to be actually a good villain, I would've laughed. And Neel Sethi was just perfect as Mowgli. This guy needs more work, and I truly believe that he will have a bright future ahead of him. The other characters are not to be ignored either, as Ben Kingsley turns in a magnificent performance as Bagheera, and he and Baloo clash on how to live life, one very rule-abiding and the other very rule-breaking. The wolves, Raksha and Akila were also very good, and Lupita Nyong'o sold her one emotional scene with Mowgli very very well, and her deep calming voice was very appropriate. Giancarlo Esposito was very good too, but he really didn't have much to do and came off as a plot point. Even Christopher Walken was very entertaining to watch as King Louie, but a little more on him later. The one character that confused me was Kaa, voiced by Scarlet Johansson. I'm not discrediting the voice, because she was voiced perfectly, but she was one of the elements that I felt did not have to be there. I was surprised at how little she was actually in the movie, considering she was featured heavily in the promotional material. And I felt honestly that her scenes could have been cut entirely, and the movie would have been just fine. Overall though, complete home run, amazing cast, and amazing characters.

The Villain(s): As I said, Shere Khan was truly menacing. There was a small backstory involved with him, which wasn't quite nearly as strong as it could have been, but at the same time, it wasn't really a selling point to his villainy, The climax was truly amazing, and Idris Elba sold his lines absolutely perfectly. Again, the motivation for him going after Mowgli was a little weak, but it really was not a problem, because you could understand where his anger was coming from. I could not have asked for a better villain for an amazing movie. And then we come to King Louie, and honestly, he's not really a villain, more of opposition. And Christopher Walken plays his role perfectly. There really was not a better person to voice the role, and you could see the motivations behind him. His role was small, but overall very enjoyable. 

The Verdict: This movie is truly a testament to how far CGI has come. It is truly stunning how accurate it is, and how consistent it is. The actors and characters all come to play, and they all bring something to the movie. Mowgli, Baloo, and Shere Khan especially stand out, and as the movie keeps going, you feel Jon Favreau's love for this film show through. The heart of this movie completely overpowers the minor flaws I have with this movie. Amazing movie, which I highly recommend within in the theaters on a huge screen (this movie might even warrant 3D GASP). Watch it at least 3 times. Letter Grade: A Number Score: 9.6 **quick side-note** GASP you rated this movie higher than Star Wars: The Force Awakens how dare you. Let me say, that these two movies are entirely different movies. I had entirely different expectations and an entirely different "rubric" if you will, for Star Wars versus this movie. For the expectations I had for Jungle Book, it met them at the score I gave them, and Star Wars met its expectations according to the score that I gave it. 

Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice - Spoiler Review (Reposted)

NOTE: This is a review drafted on 3/27/2016 on a different blog that is no longer in use. I decided to transfer content from that website to this to maintain consistency. 

Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice - Spoiler Review

**NOTE** This is my first spoiler review so a quick rundown of how this is going to work. My non spoiler reviews all follow a consistent template. These will not. For these, I will go in depth on anything and everything that I feel needs discussion. You will be given plenty of time to click away before reading the review, so you have no reason to blame me for spoilers.

SPOILER WARNING

Still here? Let's do this

Lex Luthor: I really hated this guy. Can I make that clear? And no, I did not say I hated Jesse Eisenberg, I respect him truly for his work. But I hate this iteration of Lex Luthor. The scenes where he's talking to Senator Finch were really disturbing, because I got a clear stalker vibe from him. And the scene where he was talking to a government official and he pops a Jolly Rancher in the guy's mouth, I nearly gagged. That was almost as bad as it got, until I reached the scene where he's giving a speech at his own party, just atrocious. Also, when he's in his jail cell going insane, it was so bad because this insanity coming from an actor like Jesse Eisenberg was absurd to watch.

Superman: Let's talk about the big spoiler. And that is a clear warning, if you have not watched the film, don't care about spoilers and want the movie ruined, you do not want this spoiler ruined for you. Still here? Either you don't care at al about spoilers, or you've seen the movie, in which case, hey. So Superman dies. The famous scene from "The Death of Superman," is recreated when Doomsday is killed at the same time as Superman. And I thought this was a bold move, and the right move. And I wanted him to stay dead. Not forever obviously, but I wanted him dead for Justice League Part 1. The whole mission of Justice League Part 1 should be to get the members and defend against a villain (Darkseid) while trying to revive Superman, which they do at the end of the movie. But no, they leave the movie off with him obviously alive, and that bothered me. They had the guts to go through with that move, but they couldn't finish it off.

Justice League Set-Up: I really didn't like the way that they set-up the Justice League through those emails that Bruce sent to Prince. Of course, the scenes which showed Flash, Cyborg, and Aquaman were amazing, and the new photo of Wonder Woman was cool, but the e-mail was so blatant as to have the logos for the new characters on their files. It's not like we were that stupid as to not realize that a guy with a trident underwater in a DC movie is Aquaman. I really felt it could have been handled much better.

Third Act: I mentioned in my non-spoiler review that I enjoyed the third act of the movie so much, or the last hour. It really was a delight to see Batman and Superman fighting, and seeing the Trinity onscreen together was just a sight to behold. One of the things that bothered me obviously was Doomsday, but that did not bother me because, as mentioned in my non spoiler review, the Trinity was way cooler. However, the other thing that I hated was the resolution to the fight. The way that the word Martha suddenly made Batman and Superman best friends was rather ridiculous. More on that in a little bit.

Martha Kent and Martha Wayne: I honestly really liked the beginning scene where Bruce's parents are killed (minus when Bruce is flying in the air surrounded by bats). I really thought that it was handed well, especially with the pearls falling to the ground. However, I hated how the fight ended so abruptly with Batman's foot on Superman's throat, and Superman only having to utter the word "Martha" to get him to snap. It was a very anticlimactic way to end a very short fight.

Lois Lane: Lois Lane struggled to remain relevant throughout the entire movie. The whole subplot with the bullet was completely and utterly extraneous and could be taken out of the movie without anyone caring. And the whole thing about the Kryptonite spear was also stupid. She dumped the spear into the water, then while watching the battle between Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Doomsday, suddenly realized that she had to go grab the spear. Unfortunately for her, as soon as she dives into the pool, rubble begins to fall on her and Superman has to go save her. She was a useless character, and honestly I could've done without her completely save for her being Superman's love interest. 

Kryptonite: The subplot with the White Portuguese I felt was only there to shoehorn in Batman's detective abilities. It was an extraneous way for Bruce to retrieve the Justice League files and find out that Lex is trying to get the Kryptonite at the same time, which could have been done in much more clever ways. The way Batman crafts the Kryptonite into weapons was fantastic however, and I really believe that it showcased some of his skill. 

Doomsday: What can I say, this guy's a mess. I really did like when he and Superman had a brief fight in space, because it showcased a new arena where Superman and his opponents could fight in, as well as being visually stunning. All the destruction that he caused was completely unnecessary, and it showed Zack Snyder learned nothing about how to handle all the destruction from Man of Steel. And yes, he did evolve, by growing spikes out of his back from being a smooth rock monster. Which is not saying much at all. He was like Venom from Spider-man 3; completely irrelevant and only for fans, and the fans didn't even want him in this movie. I hope Darkseid isn't like this. 

Conclusion: Yeah this movie was a mess from start to climax, and there were lots of components that were completely unnecessary, and should've been taken out. However, that does not make this movie unenjoyable, and I strongly believe there is a good movie hidden in this rubble. 

Man of Steel Review (Reposted)

NOTE: This is a review drafted on 3/24/2016 on a different blog that is no longer in use. I decided to transfer content from that website to this to maintain consistency. 

Man of Steel Review

Release date (US): June 14, 2013

Rating: PG-13

Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, Russell Crow, Diane Lane, Kevin Costner, Laurence Fishburne

Blurb/Synopsis: In the pantheon of superheroes, Superman is the most recognized and revered character of all time. Clark Kent/Kal-El (Cavill) is a young man who feels alienated by powers beyond anyone's imagination. Transported to Earth years ago from Krypton, an advanced alien planet, Clark struggles with the ultimate question - Why am I here? Shaped by he values of his adoptive parents Martha (Lane) and Jonathan Kent (Costner) , Clark soon discovers that having super abilities means making very difficult decisions. But when the world needs stability the most, it comes under attack. Will his abilities be used to maintain peace r ultimately used to divide and conquer. Clark must become the hero known as "Superman," not only to shine as the world's last beacon of hope, but to protect the ones he loves.

Expectations/Background: I'm not going to pretend I watched this movie when it came out, because I didn't. I saw it come out, but as I was younger and caught up in the Marvel wave, I didn't bother watching. And I knew that I could not watch this movie objectively until the Marvel craze had died down, and all the DC hate had subsided somewhat. And since Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice comes out this weekend, I thought what better time to watch the predecessor, Man of Steel, to fully know what was going on in the universe. And I had heard a lot. Some people really liked this movie; lots of people really hated this movie. There were some that were mixed about it, and I really didn't know what to expect. I knew what the climax was going to amount to, since I had read other reviews during the three years that have passed since its release. But I just didn't know what to expect. I wanted to watch this movie as objectively as possible, and as clear-mindedly as possible. And that's exactly what I did.

The Movie: **note: Since this movie came out three years, I will spoiling major plot elements. You have been warned.** What can I say, this movie is an enigma. After watching it once through, I sat there, thinking, pondering. I really don't know what to make of this film. Let me try to break it down: there are quite a few things that I rather enjoyed, and quite a few things that I hated. Henry Cavill's Superman was excellent, fitting this modern age as well as Christopher Reeve's fit his era. I just felt that he was muted a little too much. I'll discuss the cast in depth in the next section, but my overall opinion was that there were hits and misses. The tone of the movie was very dark, and very unlike the other Superman movies, which strayed too far into campiness. This movie strays a little too far into the dark side. At a point in this movie, I really would have appreciated a joke or two to lighten the mood, but none came. After finishing the movie, something felt incredibly off, and I thought for a long time, and came to the conclusion it was ultimately the pacing. The pacing was incredibly off. Telling the story of Clark Kent in flash backs was very smart, rather than telling a straight origin story. However, the way they were placed, and the way that they enacted felt so different than the rest of the movie that it took me out of it. I would also like to touch on Jonathan Kent's death; it felt way too overdramatized. And I'm not saying it because in the comics he dies of a heart attack, I'm saying that there really was no need for him to stand there in the middle of the tornado, hand outstretched, while Clark just stood there. It lacked real emotional weight. Then, moving from Lois Lane to Clark Kent, to Faora, to Zod, to a flashback, it ruined the whole tone and feel of the movie for me. Going back to some positives, Krypton was amazing; it was truly incredible to see the world where Clark lived and where he grew it. Truly beautiful. I enjoyed most of the sequences between Shannon's Zod and Crowe's Jor-El. However, I thought that when Zod destroyed the ghost Jor-El, it felt way to abrupt, and it was skimmed over very quickly. The scene where Superman snaps Zod's neck is great actually. That's not where I take issue. I take issue in what takes place afterwards. When Superman has Zod in a headlock, and Zod is trying to kill the family, it was really great, and Cavill shines as he shows the conflict he feels afterwards. And the scream of anger, frustration, and mourning that he emits is truly power. But a couple scenes later, he's bantering with military officials, as if nothing happened. I really would have liked to see some emotional depth and struggle in Superman, and as I hear it is addressed in Batman v. Superman, that's great, except a lot of it in this movie would have been appreciated. The whole arc with Lois Lane and the World Engine and Jor-El was fine, I just think that she could've been relegated to a much smaller part, rather than having to run around with Superman all the time. When Faora randomly requests that Lois come with them on the ship, it took me completely off guard. Why in the world do Kryptonians want a human aboard their ship? It made little to no sense. The action was brilliant as well. The way the hero and the villains fought were absolutely amazing and stunning to behold, but there was too much. When Superman tackles Zod and mows him down through a field, punching him over and over, and they blow up a gas station, and they ram into buildings, it felt like too much. The cherry on top was when the world engine grew tentacles and began to fight Kal. Where in the world did that come from? However, we shall close out with some positives; the movie is stunning. It's an absolute masterpiece to behold in terms of visuals, and I am not surprised at all because this movie is directed by Zack Snyder, known for flashy scenes and amazing sights. From Krypton, to when Superman first learns to fly, to when Superman and Zod are flying through Metropolis, it's truly stunning. And I would be amiss if I did not mention the music, because the score by Hans Zimmer was inspiring, yet grounded at the same time. They allowed me to buy into the action set pieces and the emotional moments that much more, and for that, I give major props to Zimmer.

The Cast/Characters: As mentioned above, there are lots of hits, and there are lots of misses. Let's talk about the hits: I loved Henry Cavill's Superman. He was brilliant in his portrayal of Clark Kent, when he realized he was Kal-El, and when he embraced his role as Superman. I just think the film and the writers muted him; he didn't get many lines at all to say. The first time when he actually talked to someone was around 30 minutes into the movie, and it confused me because although his line delivery wasn't Oscar-worthy, it wasn't terrible, which made me question why the film-makers wanted to mute him most of the time. Lois Lane, however was completely unnecessary. Amy Adams performance wasn't George Clooney Batman awful, but it was by no means good either. Overtime she came on the scene, she took me out the movie; she certainly is a believable journalist, but I do not feel she is a sufficient love interest to Superman. I felt she was like Mary-Jane Watson in the Spider-man films actually; their performances were quite similar. However, Russell Crowe, Diane Lane, and Kevin Costner as Kal's parents were amazing. Russell Crowe really brought a gravitas that was needed for the father of Superman, and his performance really elevated the film. Diane Lane and Kevin Costner delivered as Kent's parents, making it believable that this couple would adopt someone who had fallen out of the sky. However, Michael Shannon's Zod did not fit into this movie, as I will explain more in the next segment, but his performance took me out of the movie completely.

The Villain(s): Zod was intimidating, and he needed to be, but he was so completely wooden in his line delivery, that it was almost funny. His presence was scary, and you felt the weight of a great villain, but as soon as Shannon opened his mouth, the wooden and monotone lines just poured out. And the next minute Zod would scream something and it would be almost funny to watch the whole thing. However, his fights with Superman were excellent, I just wished that he had a little more heavy presence in the movie, because the line delivery did not help. It also didn't help how starkly his American accent contrasted with Russell Crowe and the rest of the Kryptonians' English accents. Faora was truly amazing to watch as she would tear through the cities try to get Clark Kent, but ultimately, she was a henchman to Zod. She served her purpose, which was to distract the audience for a little bit before the final smackdown began. 

The Verdict: Man of Steel had many great things going for it, and it left me really wanting a Man of Steel 2. I felt that with some help, Snyder could really craft a beautiful sequel which expands on the Superman mythos. But he decided to go with Batman v. Superman, which I felt was way too soon to do, and was a mistake. This movie looked beautiful, felt off, was paced wrong, had very good and very bad performances, and the villains were not nearly as intimidating as they could have been. Would I recommend watching this once? Yes, because I feel that after watching this, I can be a little more invested in Batman v. Superman, but after one viewing, don't watch it again unless you really want to. Letter Grade: C+ Number Score: 6.5 - Out of ten, I really feel that this is not a 7 movie, because 7 movies are films that I think are decent and I could watch a few more times. 6 is the range where I think it's good, but I wouldn't watch it again more than once. However, it is not a D movie by far, and It's just slightly above average when everything is factored in. **please note: the letter grade and the number score may not match 100 percent, although they mostly will, and when they do not, I will give an explanation**

The Empire Strikes Back Review (Reposted)

NOTE: This is a review drafted on 12/26/2015 on a different blog that is no longer in use. I decided to transfer content from that website to this to maintain consistency. 

The Empire Strikes Back Review

Release date (US): May 21, 1980

Rating: PG

Starring: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Peter Mayhew, Anthony Daniels, James Earl Jones, David Prowse, Billy Dee Williams, Jeremy Bulloch, Frank Oz

Blurb/Synopsis: After the rebels have been brutally overpowered by the Empire on their newly established base, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) takes advanced Jedi training with Master Yoda (Frank Oz), while his friends are pursued by Darth Vader (James Earl Jones/David Prowse) as part of his plan to capture Luke.

Expectations/Background: There weren't really any expectations for this because I was not alive for this movie. I was not alive to see this movie in the theaters, but I have heard that people have lined up in front of the theaters to see this new movie because of the success of Star Wars (we are going to ignore the episode numbers). However, I will tell you about my experience. Unfortunately, I was introduced to Star Wars in the worst way: with the prequels first. Fortunately, I was young enough to not realize how bad they were. I saw all of the prequels first and thought they were brights, loud movies, which is all I had really wanted from any movie when I was young. However, a little later, I did see the original trilogy, and then I did realize how amazing they were. Again, unfortunately for me, I was under the misconception that the prequels were also great movies because they were the only memory I ever had of them, so I lived a happy 5 years leading up to the announcement of Lucas selling Star Wars thinking that every single one of the movies in the saga were great. Then, I had the displeasure of watching the prequels again, and I saw how they were just so bad. I watched other movies reviews for those movies, other spoofs and just realized how much they paled in comparison to the original trilogy. After having watched the Force Awakens, I wanted to revisit the Empire Strikes Back, it being the supposed best of the original trilogy, and so I rewatched it the day after Force Awakens expecting to be blown away.

The Movie: **FULL DISCLOSURE: Since this movie came out in 1980, there will be heavy spoilers, so if you have not seen this movie, SPOILER ALERT** As I was watching this movie, I kept thinking to myself, oh my gosh, how amazing is this movie on its own. And then, when I put into account that this movie was released in 1980, a good 35 years ago, it made me even more stunned and amazed to think about it. This movie is incredible. The characters have compelling arcs, motivations, and depth. The settings and set pieces were jaw-dropping, especially compared to the prequels, who relied so heavily on CGI. When watching the Empire Strikes Back, you look at the ships and the sets, and you feel engaged in the world of Star Wars because nearly everything is a model and is practical. Han Solo and Leia's chemistry and romance together, as well as their banter is gold. And yes, there is the weird incest kiss between Luke and Leia, and at first I thought it would be okay because I was willing to forgive to Lucas due to the fact that the reveal was in Return of the Jedi. However, rewatching the movie, Yoda gives the line, "No, there is another." Since that kiss had no repercussions in the following movies other than to make Han jealous, which really doesn't make that much of a difference since they confess their love at the end of the movie, I don't really know what Kershner or Lucas was thinking, but it's a minor, minor thing that bugged me a little. Han Solo is back to trying to get out of this mess, only to be caught up in the adventure yet again. Leia really is not given much to do, but Carrie Fisher's portrayal of this strong female character is phenomenal. We start out the movie watching Luke on a mission, and watching him train and develop with Yoda (more on him in a minute) adds an extra layer to him, showing that he is not ready to face Vader. It's completely satisfying because in Star Wars, Luke is a whiny teen looking for power converters but trying to harness his power. In Empire, we see him training to harness the power, and in Jedi we see how much he has grown over the events of all of the films. And Yoda, oh my goodness, Yoda. Now for some reason, I don't remember Yoda that well from when I saw Empire when I was younger, but when I watched the Empire Strikes Back, I realized just how funny Yoda actually was. There were genuine laugh out loud moments from Yoda. "Looking? Found someone you have I would say hehehehe." And when Yoda was just going through Luke's stores and grabbing food, you couldn't help but loving this little thing that popped out. And of course, when that little thing turns out to be the grandmaster Yoda, he takes on a more serious air. My one singular complaint about Yoda is that he seems way too serious once it is revealed that he is Master Yoda. I would have liked a little more humor just to show that it was that same little creature, but that's really nothing. It shows, how much the prequels made him dour and uninteresting and boring, which is a shame. Darth Vader is taken to a completely new level, with the reveal that he is Luke's father. Questions start popping into your head, like who's the mother? How long has Vader known this? All of this was the point of the prequels, which failed spectacularly, but I will perhaps write a separate article about why the prequels suck in a different post. Even fan-favorite characters like Boba Fett are introduced. And personally, just personally, I know this isn't the popular opinion, but my favorite ship is not the Millennium Falcon, but rather Boba Fett's Slave I. The Slave I is just such a cool ship, but more on that in a separate post. We also get our first taste of Emperor Palpatine, who appears in a hologram. He has the right amount of mystery surrounding him that it gives him intrigue. The Imperial March makes its debut here, and it immediately became one of the singular most iconic pieces of music ever. The cliff hanger ending was so great, because it sets up Return of the Jedi so well with the notion that Han is frozen, Luke is still untrained and weak and has to finish his training, and that there is another Jedi out there. The plot drives forward as the characters find themselves in different situations as the Millennium Falcon is broken the entire movie. Some people may have found this annoying, but I honestly thought that the whole gag of C-3PO being ignored by every one the whole movie was actually rather funny, although I had no idea why he had to be broken into different pieces at the end; that was the most random part of the movie. Lando Calrissian is alright, he was just there to have some friend of Han Solo betray him to give it a little more emotional oomph, although it felt a little bit rushed because we are introduced to him at the very end where Han mentions he has a friend in Cloud City. The Battle of Hoth is amazing, where the AT-ATs are walking around and where the snow speeders are flying around trying to destroy these giant walkers while the other Rebels are trying to evacuate. One small nitpick I did have was that Luke kinda did leave the other X-Wing fighters to die, did he not? I know he said that they were not going to rendezvous with them, implying that they had their own place to meet, but still, he kinda just ditched everyone to go to Dagobah, but still. That being said, this film, on a whole, is amazing. 

The Cast/Characters: Each cast member adds even more to their character. This extremely talented cast, including Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, James Earl Jones, Billy Dee Williams, Peter Mayhew, Frank Oz, and Anthony Daniels. Every single character has more added to them. Solo has that cockiness and confidence that only Han Solo has. Leia remains that strong cornerstone for her female character. Luke grows more as he trains under Master Yoda, played (puppeted?) brilliantly by the wonderful Frank Oz. You can find a character to relate to, whether it be Yoda, the teacher, or Luke the student who just can't do what his mentor is asking of him. Each character from Star Wars is built upon and each character remains outstanding.

The Villain(s): Darth Vader continues to be the most intimidating villain in cinema ever. In Star Wars, we are introduced to this menacing villain who is willing to do anything to get what he wants, with James Earl Jones personifying the evil but calm persona so beautifully. But in this movie, we see several new layers added to him. We obviously see that he is Luke's father which adds a complete level of humanity to Vader, because it puts him into perspective. He is a father, like so many people, and in a sense, he wants what's best for his son in his eyes. He wants his son to join him. You can see this when the Emperor informs him that he is Anakin's son, and Vader suggests turning him to the dark side rather than killing him. You also see one quick scene where his helmet is coming on his deathly pale head, which adds another level of intrigue to Vader. You also see how powerful he is when he chokes the Admiral through the screen, as well as when he is confronting, as well as toying with Luke. Palpatine, as mentioned above, is a mysterious figure, as is Boba Fett, which add new characters to an already amazing mythology. 

The Verdict: This movie was everything that I had expected it to be. Lots of people say this is perfect. And, to be completely honest, I would not label this movie as "perfect." Rather, I would label this movie as "as near to perfect as I possibly wanted." It is not a movie where my brain just exploded with the amazingness of the movie, but it was just so perfect in terms of technical design and in terms of story. At some points, I wondered why characters said certain things because in real-life scenarios, they wouldn't say that. That being said, again, it is as close to perfect as I need or want it to be. Letter Grade: A Number Score: 9.9 **please note: the letter grade and the number score may not match 100 percent, although they mostly will**

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Review (Reposted)

NOTE: This is a review drafted on 12/20/2015 on a different blog that is no longer in use. I decided to transfer content from that website to this to maintain consistency. 

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Review

Release date (US): December 18th, 2015

Rating: PG-13

Starring: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Gwendoline Christie, Peter Mayhew, Anthony Daniels

Blurb/Synopsis: Thirty years after the defeat of the Galactic Empire, the galaxy faces a new threat from the evil Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and the First Order. When a defector named Finn (John Boyega( crash-lands on a desert planet, he meets Rey (Daisy Ridley), a tough scavenger whose dried contains a top-secret map. Together, the young duo joins forces with Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to make sure the Resistance receives the intelligence concerning the whereabouts of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), the last of the Jedi Knights.

Expectations/Background: As a person who was not alive at the time of the original trilogy, I was not there to experience the magic of those movies in the theaters; however, having said that, I did rematch those movies over and over and over again. The prequels came, and to my disappointment, lacked the magic that the original trilogy had captured so beautifully. So when it was announced that Lucas had sold Star Wars and Lucasfilm to Disney for over 4 billion dollars, my first reaction was shock and immediate skepticism. Fresh off of the prequels, all that I, and anyone I talked to had in mind was "So, Disney is going to ruin Star Wars. Only question is, how?" Although Disney is a great company, making quality films, something about Disney and Star Wars did not mesh together well, like putting pizza and ice cream in a blender. So fans waited for any bit of news to confirm or deny the fact that Star Wars Episode VII would suck. Then we got it; JJ Abrams was going to direct. Immediate reaction from me, "So now Disney's going to take the director of Star Trek and bring him into a Star Wars movie run by Disney. Great." This again didn't make sense to me because while I did like Abram's directing and visual styles, mixing yet another pop genre director who directed essentially the other side of the coin to Star Wars didn't make sense. So we waited. Then the title was revealed: "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." Interesting enough...better than Attack of the Clones at least. So we waited some more. And slowly, as the original cast was confirmed, and newbies John Bodega, Daisy Ridley, and Oscar Isaac were cast as Finn, Rey, and Poe respectively. Doesn't have the same ring as Luke, Han, and Leia, but at that point we were 2 years away from the release of the film. Then, the first teaser dropped. And it was...well a bomb of nostalgia, seeing the Millennium Falcon dive in and out of Tie Fighters. And slowly, with more promotional material, we began to see how very well this film was being marketed. So, standing in a 3 hour line on opening night, I could only hope this film would be good. 

The Movie: Star Wars: The Force Awakens is everything that I wanted it to be. First, I'm going to start with the positives of the movie. Every single performance was exceptional, but more on that in the cast and characters. The story kept pushing forward, the story was exceptional, and the chemistry and dialogue was outstanding. Were there negatives? There were, yes, but there aren't so many that the movie experience was not amazing. Sitting in the theater, when the famous Star Wars theme and the logo jumped onto the screen, everyone in the theater knew that we were safe. And we were. There really isn't much to talk about because if I do, I would spoil the movie probably. But, here is what you need to know. The villain, Kylo Ren is menacing, but very human, as with every single other character. They are all relatable, and they are all given relatable and understandable backstories. There are a couple plot points where you wonder, "Wait, how did _____ happen?" And I stopped in the middle of the movie when the first of those incidents happened to wonder what happened. But, I quickly realized, that if I stopped to wonder how something happened, the plot would leave me behind. And there are quite a few moments when you wonder how something happens, but if you ignore those and enjoy the movie, knowing that this movie is spectacular, you'll be in for a fun ride. The action scenes with the space fights are amazing. The old and new characters all have great chemistry together, and the new characters especially are amazing. Some other people have ranked the characters in the order of their favorite performance, and I think it would be a good idea to do that too, to get a general idea, but we shall get to that in the character list. John Boyega's Finn and Daisy Ridley's characters are dripping with charisma, as is Oscar Isaac's Poe. And the old cast...oh my goodness the old cast. Harrison Ford's Han Solo and Peter Mayhew's Chewbacca are exactly as advertised. Han Solo is Han Solo, except you can feel that he has experienced certain events for thirty years since. And Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia is also exactly as advertised, with a tinge of sadness. However, one of the negatives are the CGI characters. JJ Abrams said that he and the crew wanted to go away from CGI, and it shows. But, the two CGI characters, Maz Kanada and Supreme Leader Snoke look very cartoonish. They look completely out of place, but both of them are not integral parts of the movie. JJ Abrams' direction is awesome, and it feels exactly like a Star Wars movie. 

The Cast/Characters: Wow. Every single performance was amazing. Ranking each of the main characters, this is what it would be.

1. Finn
2. Han Solo
3. Rey
4. BB-8
5. Poe
6. Kylo Ren
7. Chewbacca
8. General Leia
9. Captain Phasma
10. General Hux
11. Max Kanada
12. Supreme Leader Snoke

Now, I'm purposely leaving out Luke Skywalker for a certain reason, which we shall get into in the spoiler review, coming out soon. Every single character oozes charisma. Finn and Rey are just spectacular new additions to the Star Wars franchise, as well as Poe, who is not in the movie as much as I'd like him to be, but when he is, he is the coolest character on the set. Kylo Ren and the rest of the villains we will get to in the villains department, but Maz Kanada was an interesting creature. I found the way that they took her was very odd, and she didn't quite fit in to the overall narrative, but she was not in the movie for very long. And BB-8, as well as being so cute, was hilarious and an integral part of the plot. Han Solo, Chewie, and Leia were, as mentioned above, great. They were just like they were before, except they had aged 30 years.

The Villain(s): The villains in this movie are Kylo Ren, Captain Phasma, and General Hux, as well as Supreme Leader Snoke. Now Kylo Ren is everything that I had hoped he would be. He has a very human side to him, and could even be compared to Darth Vader in certain ways. He has a very human side to him, which makes him a relatable villain, and he does things that you understand why he's doing them. Now, if you're going to this movie just to see Captain Phasma or General Hux, you're going to be highly disappointed because they do about nothing in the movie, and are wasted greatly, which really didn't take away from the film since Kylo Ren was such a competing villain. Supreme Leader Snoke, as mentioned before, looked out of place, but was menacing, although slightly disappointing. 

The Verdict: Star Wars: The Force Awakens was the perfect return to the galaxy far, far away, setting up for a new audience and a new generation. The action, characters, and plot pushed this movie forward, and although the nostalgia was there, it didn't hamper the film down. An excellently directed film by JJ Abrams, Star Wars: The Force Awakens was extremely enjoyable on first viewing and warrants at least another. Letter Grade: A Number Score: 9.4 **please note: the letter grade and the number score may not match 100 percent, although they mostly will**