movietoovie - Tumblr blog

[movietoovie]

wreck-it ralph

I really liked Wreck-It Ralph

  1.       Like all childrens movie plots, it was predictable in the 2/3 of the way through, everyone is sad kind of way. And then of course they win the fucking race.

2.       Sarah Silverman’s character was interesting because she wasn’t without flaws. She lacked empathy, because the king/turbo gave Ralph pretty good reasons as to why her character couldn’t be in the race. Although I think it mostly had to do with lack of communication.

3.       The script was just so cheesy and cute. The visuals were STUNNING. It was totally engaging. The concept of video games was great.

4.       The difference in movements for characters—Jane Lynch versus Fix-It Felix—just great. Amazing!

[movietoovie]

widows

I loved this movie. In a weird way. There were moments when it dropped but when it was going it was really going.

  1.       I was entirely confused about their motivations. Why were they doing anything, like robbing money? Like, Liam Neeson stole $2million from Yale Guy and Yale Guy wanted it back. But then Viola Davis found his book of heists and she found his next job, for $5mil? Which turned out to be at Colin Farrell’s house? But then it looked like Liam Neeson stole money from Yale Guy and gave it to Colin Farrell, so really he stole from himself? Or something?

2.       There wasn’t enough climax. The actual heist scene was SO boring. Except for the bit where they kill Daniel Kaluuya. There wasn’t enough prep-montage, which threw off the timeline for me. They said a month, then 2 weeks then 1 but the time in between was iffy.

3.       Oh Daniel. The movie’s grim reaper. The bowling scene where he stabs the wheelchair guy was absolutely horrifying. Also there was a moment later where the wheelchair guy looked at somebody after calling Viola. WHO WAS IT! The way the movie plays you’d think they’d cut to it.

4.       My gut just felt, like, uncomfy. And unsafe. It was so, like….uuurgh. What a great feeling!

5.       Colin Farrell. God bless that man. But he is too damn funny for his own good. He’s a character actor. BUT HIS AMERICAN ACCENT WAS SO DISTRACTING! ESPECIALLY in the beginning. I felt like he and Daniel Kaluuya warmed up into their characters. I couldn’t understand Daniel at first. But when Colin was in it, damn! He was in it. But when he wasn’t in it…..SO distracting. Also what the hell is the dad? I hated the dad. Not in a character way, but in a why did you make those choices as an actor kind of way? Sure as hell not intimidating. I didn’t get any tension relationship at all between them. Could’ve been so much more.

6.       The scene in the car where they go from the empty lot to Colin’s house. Damn. Good.

7.       The logic of the movie made no sense overall. Cynthia Erivo was GREAT! But also what’s the point of her character LOL.

8.       There was so much political jargon that didn’t really do much to further the dramatic action. At one point Colin Farrell goes to Manning and is like LOL btw u can win but I can be in the shadows. Like? Where is this coming from? Commit to political movie or just be a heist.

9.       Who the hell is the guy from LV? That was random and terrible.

10.   This movie was so close to being a comedy.

11.   When Michelle Rodriguez goes to the architect and almost fucks him. What the hell? That was pointless.

12.   The twist was so boring. Once again, the cool actiony parts really fell flat. Liam was great, though.

13.   It just seemed as if there was a lot everywhere, and could’ve tied in to each other much better. The blonde chick was great but her line delivery drove me nuts sometimes.

[movietoovie]

The lobster

The lobster is so FREAKING FUNNY, and I can’t tell if it’s because I’m shitty at dating and it hit home for me, or what.

1.       I see now why colin Farrell is considered a good actor. He just seemed so small and full of love and sad. Especially with the mustache.

 2.       Rachel weisz’s narration was a bit grating, but the odd, unaware, emotionless tone she had really added to the oddness of the movie.

 3.       So the idea of this world is this: you need to go through life two by two. If you are an adult and single, you go to a hotel where you have 45 days to fall “in love”. If you find a mate, you move on to a couple’s suite and then a yacht, after which you hopefully go back to the city and get married. Or are just together? In the meantime, you can drink and dance and do lots of fun single stuff. Then at night you shoot runaways and if you shoot 1 person=1 extra day. 4 people=4 extra days. Should you fail after the 45th day, they turn you into an animal for the rest of your life, set you free, and then I presume you get shot and die somehow.

 4.       Olivia colman is in it! She’s actually very beautiful and a great actress.

 5.       The funniest scene is when the girl is reading the other girl the fun shit they used to do, and the girl slaps her.

 6.       There is some animal cruelty. The Heartless Woman kicked David’s dog dead.  

 7.       The whole point of two people being “in love” is that they have something in common. I’m assuming for David’s wife it was that they both wore glasses. He pretends to be equally as heartless as the Heartless Woman (which is heartbreaking—he kicks his friend’s daughter, he lets her choke until she stops pretending to choke, he pretends to be OK after she kicks his do-brother to death. For me personally it’s when he almost kisses her while they’re fucking, but especially when he turns away to sleep, and then the next day he turns towards her. He also lies about being a light sleeper because of the woman that jumped off the first floor, because then he says he’s a deep sleeper).

 8.       But going off of 7, yes the idea is that you have 1 thing in common with the other, with Rachel they are both visually impaired. And at first it’s cute because he’s like I’ll get you rabbits, blah blah nobody else can. But then when she’s blind they’re both trying to figure out what they have in common and they have NOTHING in common. It’s a great allegory for the presentative way people act in relationships—WE HAVE SOOOO MUCH IN COMMON, etc—and then you realize like, wow, did they really even like each other.

 9.       But also I don’t think anybody really liked anybody else—the guy shot his wife, etc.

 10.   Overall I REALLY liked this movie—and I didn’t think it went too slow.

 11.   At the end, when she was blind, he went to go blind himself. We never see him come back. For some reason, I don’t think he blinded himself. I think he came back and pretended he did. Or dipped, more likely. But then where would he have gone?

 12.   Again, LOVED this movie. It’s dark, but it’s FUNNY dammit. And shallow in the best way.

13. the title references David wanting to be a lobster if he transforms--he has a love of the sea, and he expresses this multiple times, in front of the loner leader's parents, and this is how the loner figures out they're having an affair--as they find a journal of Rachel's about the Italian sea. I don't understand why the loner's parents were there, but those scenes were a great indicator of transition in relationship.

[movietoovie]

bodyguard

EPISODE 1 

I hated the beginning, because it enforced the stereotype of muslim extremists, but it did give way to the concept of using innocent people being used in big talk politics--collateral damage as mr rob stark said. also he hates his boss, but a big thing that the camera work gave away is that there are a lot of weird, suspicious people out there. it looks like the main character has a lot of issues though, so it could be paranoia? at least, i hope ? who knows. im intrigued. 

EPISODE 2 + 3

the guy's kid's school gets almost blown up. the thing is that the Madame Sekretry knew what school it was before the bodyguard told her. *dun dun* now it's getting confusing, because they started fucking (KNEW IT) and then he kinda got roped into it by her, but like he also needs to keep it up because she's hiding terrorism link information from the police department. Also, BG's veteran friend turns out tried to kill Madame Secretary but killed himself before bodyguard could. police are onto BG. looks like he may be a suspect if they piece it together. Also, one of MS assistants bombed her speech.

[movietoovie]

Mary and the Witch’s Flower

This movie did not impress me. 

1. There was so much of the beginning they could’ve cut or changed, like Mary’s friendship with Peter. 

2. I think they wanted to follow the traditional popular style of Miyazaki, but the issue was that Miyazaki is trying new things, he’s moving on he doesn’t dwell on overdone tropes. 

3. I thought this was Miyazaki. I think it was. 

4. No it wasn’t. They’re copycats. 

5. So much was taken from Studio Ghibli. The sparklers of the flower reminded me of Howl’s Moving Castle. The devotion to the sky and flying is like The Wind Rises. The platonic friendship of girl and boy. They assist each other and help. The concept of magic and a Special Fat Lady Who Owns The Place like in Spirited Away. The Animal BFF. The non-living BFF (broom). 

6. It was too simple. It wasn’t dynamic and the character didn’t grow at all. It was story-based and the characters served the plot but the plot was too simple. 

7. Literally some flowers grow on earth and then some girl finds it and gets magical but then goes to witch school, they find out she’s a con then abduct her friend to get them in an experiment to be the most magical beings on earth, no it doesn’t make sense to me either. 

8. the animation was great but for some reason it didn’t impress me, especially the school. It wasn’t beautiful. 

9. the music was creepy and eery and really make me uncomfy. 

10. the weasel-broom guy seemed out of place for some reason and i think they only added him for the very end. 

11. g ma was a witch. i wish we saw that sooner, it would’ve been more interesting guessing what would happen. 

overall, 5/10

[movietoovie]

Outlaw / King

I’m writing it like that as it was stylized in the opening sequence, but it is technically called “Outlaw King”

It’s a story about how Robert the Bruce was unhappy with English rule over Scotland and ascended to the Scottish throne and retook Scotland. Chris Pine is Robert.

Robert’s wife, Elizabeth, is really something. She comes off as older/mature even though she’s my age. Really made the character stand out. Also, had enough chemistry with Chris to make the loving arranged marriage thing work.

The performances, overall, were what made this so enjoyable. The guy who played Douglas was GREAT. Thought he would betray Chris at some point but didn’t!

The dramaturgy on this was GREAT! Everything from the hideous haircuts to the outfits to the marriage scene where they’re under a blanket of some kind. VERY well-researched.

The time is so medieval! Because it is, but the little carriage Elizabeth rode in stood out to me because I’m used to seeing the fancy stuff.

If I have to critique it, I’d say there’s too many characters. I had no idea who was attacking who, WHO IS WILLIAM WALLACE, then there’s the moment where he kills the rival in the beginning and then….nothing? Seemed a little weird.

Apparently the director cut about 30 minutes of it. He shouldn’t have done that. I liked it because it was unpredictable, and you weren’t sure what was going to happen, but then I got lost trying to keep up with the characters.

The Prince of Wales was almost farcical in his character. It was ridiculous.

Chris Pine’s voice really threw me off. Why is he mumbling and jumbling? He had a nice Scottish accent there was no need. BUT this was the performance of his I liked the most.

THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE MOVIE WHERE THEY ALL PLEDGE THEIR LOYALTY AND THEN CHRIS DECKS IT OUT WITH THE PRINCE WAS ALL ONE CIRCULAR SHOT AND I LOVED IT AND I WISH HE KEPT IT GOING FOR THE REST OF THE MOVIE.

Yeah but I was completely lost for the first half.

There were a couple too many battle scenes for my liking because I got lost, but once they gained momentum and started winning I liked it. Also the one at the very end in the muddy trenches was a GREAT ONE.

Yeah I just really liked it. Definitely want to watch again. 8/10.

 EDIT: Forgot to add -- the music was great in this. But it was ridiculous that the only time music ever happened was when Something Big was gonna happen. I know that's customary, but it was to the point that when music played I knew a battle was coming.

 Overall, just wanted them to dig deeper into the characters and actual events that occurred.

[movietoovie]

Boy Erased

This movie was good. Great, even. But it didn’t hit as hard as I hoped it would. I don’t know why either.

  Joel Egerton took it upon himself to write, produce and direct this very important piece of film. It’s about a boy who goes to gay conversion therapy over the summer during college after being forcibly outed by his sexual assaulter. His parents are two good Southern Christian people—his dad a pastor. So when they find out, they are very upset. The movie goes between him discovering his sexuality with his assaulter, and later “Xavier”, a European artist guy who is far superior in my opinion—to him going to therapy and discovering what they are making him do.

1.       I think a big turn off of the film was that Joel was able to get Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe (two big Hollywood hotshots) to be the parents. Everyone paled in comparison. It felt, often, as if they were yelling AT each other instead of having a charge.

 2.       Especially the main guy. He just seemed like he wasn’t fully present, or was thinking about how he was supposed to react. Really threw me off.

 3.       What is Troye Sivan’s accent. What was the main guy’s accent.

 4.       There was no reason to film the assault scene in its entirety except to make a spectacle of it. That was traumatizing.

 5.       The main guy and Joel yelling at each other was really the highlight for both of them. Really could feel the energy of the room.

6.        I wish they dug a little deeper into the ensemble. What’s their deal? Aside from being gay.

 7.       It’s interesting that the therapy was based mostly on blaming the parent and their family, rather than blaming the child for straying from God. This was fortunate, because at least the child can be bitter toward the parent rather than themselves. And also it was nice at least the parents still loved the son very much, and hoped to change rather than punish. I know that sounds terrible.

 8.       Flashbacks were a little wonky. I wasn’t sure what was happening in the beginning. Then I got used to it a little.

 9.       I liked the close-up shots of everyone’s faces in the church.

 10.   The tone and the perspective of the film was interesting, because I could feel Joel trying to empathize with both sides of the story. It worked and it didn’t. I could see why these parents thought that gayness was a disease and it was bad, and that the therapy was really for the good of the child. It was not necessarily pro-conservative, but I could definitely sense the empathy, for both the parents and the institution.

 11.   To be honest I wanted something more from the main kid. I didn’t get the sense that he hated himself, or that he hated what was happening. I honestly didn’t even know how he felt about his own gay-ness. Was he embarrassed? Repressed? In a diluted way, I don’t think he hated his gayness, but I would’ve liked to get a stronger sense of that.  And when he said he wanted to change—who is he making believe that? Himself, or them?

 12.   I did cry a lot. I was happy that it wasn’t too preachy, but did have a message to send.

[movietoovie]

Florence Foster Jenkins

Why did I hate this movie so much? I don’t understand. It was a set-up for success. Hugh Grant, Meryl Streep, and the guy from Big Bang Theory.

 Premise: Tone-Deaf Socialite of New York decides to play Carnegie Hall for the troops, against her husband and pianist’s wishes, as she is a laughing stock and she has syphilis.

1.  This is actually the most impressive acting I’ve seen from Hugh Grant. You knew he really loved Meryl’s character and he dropped all of his typical Hugh Grant acting mannerisms. Really a warm character that I truly liked. He actually had GREAT chemistry with Meryl, which I was surprised about.

2.       The pianist annoyed the living shit out of me. I can’t tell if it was because of the character or the actor, but it felt too real to be a character mannerism. Stop forcing yourself to laugh. Say phrases like a normal person, instead of sounding like a singing off-pitch parakeet. He sounded like he tried to be 40s Mid-Atlantic chic. It was frustrating.

3.       This is the least impressed I’ve ever been with Meryl’s acting. Was she lovable and sweet? Yes. But I saw Meryl acting, instead of Meryl being the vessel for the character. I saw too many Meryl mannerisms that she has in other movies. She’s a great actor, but she really just seemed like An Actor Acting in this.

4.       Why was the blonde sugar baby suddenly in love with Meryl’s character? It came out of nowhere. I know she turned out to be a nice person according to Hugh’s girlfriend, and she probably realized how mean she looked when she laughed, and then heard all the other guys laughing. And I guess she saw her again because her boyfriend wanted to appear cultured. Again, still confusing.

5.       And yet, after all that griping about acting, I felt like this was the inverse of Zodiac: I preferred the acting over the stylistic choices of the design and DIRECTING. Direction was nil. Barely did anything. Research?????? Where is the dramaturg they must’ve only had a good costume one. The set was OK but for some reason Meryl’s house seemed very awkward to me. The room set-up was weird. Sam with Hugh’s apartment.

6.       I had no idea where the story was going in the beginning. I wish we saw that Hugh and everyone was trying to protect her from early on, because I felt like he looked a little cold and then eventually we realize oh he loves her. Like, I had no idea why they were hiring McMoon. Then they were like LETS GO TO CARNEGIE.

7.       I feel like there wasn’t a tone. What was the tone? The mystery fell into frustration. Was it a comedy? Or was it supposed to be light-hearted? Because the lady literally carries her will around in case she keels over. That’s pretty sad. I did like that everyone tried to protect Meryl until the very end. Was it a dick move? Possibly, but this was the rare occasion where I don’t think that’s the case. She really wanted to perform and be loved and hold “300 people in the palm of her hand” like that one opera lady she saw. And the people she loved wanted her to do it. Also if people hated her then she might like…die.

8.       Also what was up with that opera trainer? For a second I thought she was having an affair with him, but he seemed super shady and never showed up again.

9.       I feel like the issue was that there were some major script issues. They focused on too many people, but ended up not focusing on specific issues with those characters and left them hanging. What’s McMoon up to ???? Where did the ex go? She should know that Meryl’s got money lol, she pays for the apartment! If you’re only going to focus on Meryl’s timeline, COMMIT TO HER TIMELINE. What is she like when she’s alone?

10.   Of course she dies dramatically right after Carnegie. I mean I think that’s true for the most part, but it was so predictable. You could tell which parts  were true and which parts were added for dramatic effect.

11.   Hugh reciting poetry before bed made me wonder if Meryl actually liked him. Didn’t feel like it. Also, he was an actor and then he wasn’t? What happened.

There were a lot of questions that needed answering far faster than the director decided to answer. Logic was secondary in this movie. What's strange is I'm not sure what needs to be cut out, because I got very bored but it was all very needed to push the plot, except maybe it was the pacing that made it so terrifically boring at times.

Overall, really disliked it. Script sucks 6/10.

[movietoovie]

Zodiac

Wow. There are some movies out there that just…grab you by the balls and don’t let go. Zodiac is that movie. I’m not sure if I liked it because it’s about the San Francisco serial killer, but that also played a huge part.

Premise: serial killer known as “the zodiac” kills about 5 people and forces San Francisco newspapers to publish threatening letters about how the zodiac wants to kill specific demographics—couples, students on a school bus, etc. Paul Avery (Robert Downey Jr) is the reporter on the case, Dave Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) is the actual police on the case with his partner, and Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhal) spends an obsessive amount of time on the case. Also Dermot Mulroney (New Girl DILF) is the chief of police. So the movie reenacts the actual cases that went down with the zodiac killer, as well as an on-air therapy session with A Very Rich Important Old Guy that ends with the zodiac breathing and saying something is wrong and go to this address but it’s totally wrong. A big problem they face is that the zodiac reveals information about the murders to the newspaper, news only that police know, but then they also reveal information several days after news has been published. Paul Avery is a big deal because he’s the one revealing information to the public, Dave Toschi can’t crack the case because he can only find circumstantial evidence on the guy, and Robert knows cryptography because of the boy/eagle scouts, so he becomes crazy obsessed and Avery is interested in this. Eventually he gets published in the paper that Robert is on the case, and somebody calls and accuses Rick Marshall. He goes over to the house and asks about who writes the movie posters (some person who matches the most closely with the handwriting) turns out the person he’s talking to writes them. Somebody else is in the house, he freaks out and dips. So Robert kind of figures out (through obsessively keeping newspaper records of the killer and also interrogating actual police people in the case) that the killer is Arthur Leigh Allen. The issue is: it’s all circumstantial evidence, and the handwriting doesn’t match. He matches the demographics, but that’s it. But Toschi is very happy because at least in the movie, he thinks it's Allen but can't prove it. But, at the end, the first stabbed guy points out Allen as the murderer.

Thoughts:

1.       Robert Downey Jr. just played Robert Downey Jr.

2.       Apparently this movie was made in 2007! Which is wild because that was before Iron Man.

3.       Mark Ruffalo was less Mark Ruffalo, but still a lil Ruffalo. VERY ENTERTAINING CHEMISTRY. His wife was Tynnyfer from Parks and Rec!

 4.       I felt like Jake did the most homework on his character. You could see him putting in the different mannerisms.

5.       I didn’t realize the zodiac killer was terrorizing the city as much as he was. In a way, it was more to get attention rather than murder, because they could only prove he killed 7-9 people. He claimed he killed 37.

6.       This movie is LONG. Around 3 hours long. But DAMN was I entertained the whole time. The level of research on this was CRAZY GOOD.

7.       The cinematography was also amazing. Loved the shots and the vibe and architecture of the sets.

8.       It wasn’t weird, but it was an interesting idea that popped up. I felt like at some points both Graysmith wife and Avery thought that Graysmith was the zodiac killer. Just the way they vibed around him.

 9.       I also felt that Movie Poster Basement Guy was …… well, I felt like the director was implying that he was the killer. In a way you do have to make a decision about who is the killer, but also tone-wise that scene was very horror-movie and not really a part of the actual movie. But it felt as if they thought he was the killer. It also introduced more paranoia for Graysmith, which I feel like they either had to commit to or drop, like they did in the movie. Or drop entirely. You know what I mean.

 10.   I liked the ending. Or the beginning of the end. It was still satisfying because they were still able to point a finger.

11.   BUT THE ZODIAC KILLER IS STILL OUT THERE. Apparently Toschi doesn’t think it’s Arthur Leigh Allen.

12.   Because also Arthur Leigh Allen died shortly of a heart attack, so they’ll never get a testimony out of him. Like a real one.

 13.   The time line was a little hard to follow, but that’s what you get when the story is based on fact and not a screenwriter’s ideas.

 14.   Also I’m curious to know what was written for the screen and what wasn’t. Toschi was accused of writing a zodiac letter (true)and ended up getting kicked out of his department and tried not to help Graysmith anymore. I loved the bits where he told but didn’t tell Graysmith where to go, reminded me of when Shane died and the CHP basically told us to go through his stuff to see if he was the one that died. Also Robert Downey Jr’s alcoholism? What was his purpose later in the film? To motivate Jake to write the movie? Also they didn’t really care to emphasize what brought Jake and his wife together to make babies, but at the same time I liked their scenes together.

 Overall 10/10. I was more interested in the research, cinema, direction, costume above all. They got some great actors who were in the secondary cast, but the main cast was just barely not as good as everything else was. Love Ruffalo and Jake though.

[movietoovie]

Venom

I really liked this movie. The action sequences were difficult to follow, but if it became unbearably unclear, then the director took time to walk you through it, like when they all become absorbed into Riot the alien and go up the rocket ship. I felt like Michelle Williams and Tom Hardy warmed up to being in love, they didn’t really have any chemistry in the beginning but somehow after he got super sweaty and gross she like fell back in love after 6 months of being apart. I really wished Jenny Slate didn’t die so quickly. I was hoping she’d have a better arc. or fall in love with Tom Hardy oooOOooh. The guy who played Drake (Riz Ahmed) was very handsome, very Elon Musk-esque.

The concept of the movie is that you know earth is dying and we only have like 30 years left of normal living. So Ahmed-Drake’s team go off into space and encounter a comet that possesses life-forms that can have a symbiotic relationship with humans, with humans as the host. So his team brings 4 over, and the spaceship burns/crashes in one of the layers of the atmosphere. One goes missing, the other 3 come to San Francisco, where they test to see if they can “match”. The issue is that if the life-form cannot properly bond with a human, then the human dies. Dr. Jenny Slate freaks out cuz a bunch of poor people are dying because of this*

*before this all happened, Tom Hardy/Eddie Brock was a journalist known to expose people and events and he exposed Drake in a non-broadcast interview because of a file he saw on Michelle William’s computer, both getting himself and her fired. He’s also been unemployed for 6 months. And he gets dumped.

*SO Jenny comes and asks him to expose Drake, but when they go to the lab he sees a hobo he’s friendly with and tries to free her, thus getting attacked by the symbiote thing, who is Venom. Turns out that they’re a great match. So Tom Hardy gets all sick and sweaty and hungry because of this. And also Drake finds out so he tries to come and get him with the squad. Michelle Williams finds out and since he’s a neutered wimp they go to the hospital, Michelle realizes the symbiote is good, so they like all team up to stop Drake/Riot (who has come from Malaysia to find his symbiote-squad)  from launching into space and finding more symbiotes to bring back. Which they do.

 I feel like Venom followed all of the typical action-superhero movie conventional plot points, but also didn’t hit as hard for some of them. Tom Hardy is “friends” with the security guard, but there wasn’t much visually present evidence to back that up. Mrs. Chen was probably the closest to a friend, which was nice. But then also you’d anticipate Venom being evil and torturing Tom Hardy, but they actually have a great buddy-cop-bro vibe going, as they’re both losers. They didn’t have any hockey-quick-jokes that superhero movies typically have, but the real humor came from Venom’s egging on Tom Hardy, like when he called him a pussy. It also needed to be longer, it went too fast making a lot of relationships seem rushed or ingenuine, and events that were shocking didn’t hit as hard. Overall, definitely would see again, and definitely a better anti-hero marvel movie. 8/10

[movietoovie]

Set It Up (Netflix)

What a great rom-com. And as much as I would’ve loved to say it was completely predictable, it wasn’t, and very sweet. The concept of the movie is that 2 executive assistants set their evil bosses up to fall in love, but in reality end up getting set up to fall in love with each other. Very cheesy, very cute.

Overall, I couldn’t tell if it was the script or the chemistry between Glen Powell (Potato Peel Pie Society – American Boyfriend who’s kind of a rich asshole) and Zoey Deutsch (Off-Brand Ellen Page) that made me cringe a little too much at times. Zoey’s acting was too “I’m SO cute and SO quirky” for me, but she felt very genuine and honest and you can tell she did the best she could with a cheesy-nonsense script (even though if I must be honest I think she’s not a very good actor at all). Glen Powell gives me a very specific awkward-rich-Republican guy vibe who’s trying his best even though he kind of judges. He too, did the best he could with a cheesy nonsense script. The most cringe was when they set their bosses up to kiss at a Met’s game and everybody boo’d for them to kiss. It was a little much. Lucy Liu was a sassy, bright, and committed boss. She was SO GOOD. Just really bought into the character’s nonsense. Taye Diggs had a great drunk-dancing scene, although I wish we would’ve figured out he was cheating sooner. I mean, even though their executive assistants set them up, they spent time alone together. How did they not figure out that somebody else was acting on their behalf sending alcohol and flowers? I also wish Taye Diggs didn’t appear to be a total asshole (although you could probably tell he was trying in his drunk confession scene). Pete Davidson’s moments were great, but I also wish we saw Glen Powell’s desire for power a little sooner as well. Overall, the biggest issue of the movie it seems is that there were some drop-and-pick-up-again character moments, like is Taye Diggs a good guy???? The argument scene between Zoey and Glen felt the most honest and real out of all of it. And the pizza-scene was just…too pushed. In total: very cheesy, very ridiculous, not very funny, and definitely made me want to move to New York. 8/10

[movietoovie]

Rumor Has It

Ok so. Apparently The Graduate was based on a true story. So a guy had an affair with an older woman, then dumped her for her daughter. The daughter has a fling with him and then goes off an marries another guy. The affair guy has a friend who writes about him – AKA the graduate. So this movie is based on a woman who figures out that that’s her family.

I thought that’d be the entire plot, but no it was not. Firstly, casting was AMAZING. Kathy Bates? Was in it. THE GRANDMA WAS AMAZING!! Couldn’t get enough of her. Jennifer Aniston was such a good big sister, and her and Mark Ruffalo’s chemistry was so sweet and so good. I loved them together. Also, the plot plus the cast plus the writing made for a predictable plot made enjoyable. I still wanted to know what happened next even though I knew what would happen but I still couldn’t be sure. The dad-screwing bit was just….a lOT. Especially when the son came to visit. But it was just so gross from start to finish. Like she literally thought he was her dad and then they….do it!!!??? And THEN HE wanted her to LIVE WITH HIM. It was so reminiscent of what her mother did lol so predictable but so bad in the good way. My FAVORITE part is when the sister is freaking out and Sarah came back to Pasadena and the grandma and dad are on the phone together and everybody was freaking out. LOL. That was a great moment. The bit at the very end where she asked for him back. Like. UGH. She DEFINITELY didn’t deserve him and they all knew it. But at the same time we all knew they were meant to be together, and thankfully they did get married even though she got major cold feet. He is too good to her. I kind of forgot the movie was funny, because there were these ridiculous moments that felt too good to be hokey. Like the blunt testicular trauma. It was a great tribute to SF, to LA, to NYC—especially the vineyard scene where he asks her to live with him and they eat lunch. For some reason 90s movies are obsessed with those cities. 9/10 Definitely would watch again.

[movietoovie]

tinker, tailor, soldier, spy

This movie was…. a lot to consume. The issue that I had was that you truly had to be at the front of your seat the entire time to really appreciate what it had to offer. It was dark, mysterious, unsettling. Gary Oldman drove me a little crazy sometimes but I felt the character to my core. Benedict Cumberbatch and tom hardy drove me a little crazy because regardless of what guise you put them in they will always look like themselves. It was hard to follow until it wasn’t, it kept giving hints about what was happening you felt like you knew what was going on until you didn’t. who were these characters they kept going on about that you never saw? What is a mole? Why did smiley get fired immediately? I definitely need to see this movie again, because I always felt like it was just too darn smart for me. Were colin firth and the teacher in love? Why did he betray him? Because what I thought happen was this:

Guy gets shot in the beginning. Nearly starts ww3.

Gary oldman’s character gets fired, along with another guy that’s dead.

There’s this thing called “witchhunt” that british intelligence uses to spy on the soviets with to leak to the americans, so they can get information they want.

Turns out somebody in the core four is a double agent, BUT WHO!!

They all seem like double agents, because they all have ulterior motives (witchcraft)

The big forehead guy consistently speaks with a Russian spy, but the one lady in the movie realizes that the russian spy seems to be…working for Russia instead of them

She leaks this, then gets fired.

Tom hardy wants to get to know a guy but gets to know his wife instead and falls in love.

Wife reveals that somebody in the core four is a double agent.

I think the dead head guy knew that one of them was a traitor but who. Or he was the traitor.

Guy who is shot turns out to have lived and teaches kids. He reveals some truths I think.

Benedict is gay

Gary oldmans wife has an affair with colin firth, gary hates this, turns out colin is the double spy and the guy in hiding kills him

Tom hardy is alive and in hiding, but then reveals himself.

^not in order

Overall though, I was very interested. I LOVED the cinematography. As good as moonlight. The colors, the vibe, the set. It reminded me of a sad, indie, eastern European film. It was so good.

[movietoovie]

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

I truly thought this was going to be a cheesy and romantic movie, but it was that and so much more. It was about secrets, fear, hiding truths from the enemy, about family, about losing loved ones to the politics of higher-governing bodies that are out of one’s control. It’s set just after world war 2, and it focuses on a writer who learns about a hidden-turned-not-so-hidden society of island people who read, eat, and live together under the german occupation. it’s clear that it was meant to reflect hope unto the seemingly continuous dark-thoughts of people today, as government seems to be further from our control. it was a movie of finding home in strangers, in learning to trust and love our neighbors, and realizing that what we may exoticize is exactly what is most like home to us. e.g: don’t go to guernsey, turns out she loves it. it is a beautifully cast ensemble of people, people who are equally important and each have their own stories about how the war has affected them: wishing to find a lover, trading secrets to the enemy, and losing dear family members. these people all learn to read and entertain each other when resources are scarce, which is something we can all either learn from or relate to. it is truly such a sweet movie, touching and meaningful beyond words. the island is stunning, makes you want to sit under the english sun and roll around in the grass all day. 8/10

Edit 10/31/2018: Sorry, I just liked this movie so much and it just tied so well into itself. It was a meaningful history lesson that tied so well into developing the plot with the missing woman. The camera sitting in front of the entire scene, like when they are sitting observing the manuscript really just let the actors exist. It passed the bechdel test I think, or if not then at least the main woman was more interested in figuring out who the missing woman was than falling in love. The concept of anne bronte and how she went against Victorian marriage tied in well with the main character’s struggle of balancing the mourning of the past versus the financial merit of the future, and subsequently decides to dump all that and live in a cottage on an island. Some ptsd flashbacks were cheesy, but really helped the audience’s understanding of the main character’s empathy of the islanders.

[movietoovie]

Sleepless in Seattle

I don’t wanna say that I hated this movie, because I don’t. It is absolutely cheesy in the greatest way, and if it weren’t cast full of top-notch actors it would’ve totally fallen flat. But really, the plot is a woman who is very good at cyber-stalking finds a man who she thinks she’s in love with and sets up a time to go meet him. And of course, at the end when they finally meet they don’t even need to talk to know that they’re the one. It’s like the Love Actually before Love Actually. Solid Gold Shit. Always referencing one movie, this one called an Affair to Remember, and always bringing back one specific line--in this case: It’s a sign. Of course it’s a sign. People are always repeating lines, like it’s more likely to be killed by a terrorist than to fall in love after 40. This is what makes the movie absolutely ridiculous, but also what makes the movie have the lovable humor that only a romantic comedy can bring. the kid was great, tom hanks is amazing, and meg ryan is brilliant. the music was nostalgic, everything you would want in a romance. and the 80s obsession with new york and seattle was spot-on. it had that 80s warm nostalgia that makes you want christmas to come around and sit under the tree with your loved ones. 

[movietoovie]

The Duchess

I saw the Duchess yesterday, Kiera Knightley was the main character, Ralph Fiennes was her husband, and a beautiful big-boobed woman was her BFF. I liked it, but I also felt it pushed some things too hard. There was a lot of prolonged close-ups to Kiera’s face during moments of distress. Honestly, she looked like she was trying too hard to look like she was feeling something. Ralph Fiennes was great. He always looks like he’s on the brink of a depressed, silent melt-down, and this weird character was great for him. He was truly evil, but also understandably so. The guy from Mamma Mia played himself, which was also great and very seductive. The sorting hat from Hogwarts played Mr. Fox, which was cool. I wish I could’ve seen more disapproval about Kiera Knightley’s bad habits, as she didn’t really seem to face any consequences. Like, she clearly was drinking A LOT! What about a public meltdown, or FAS in her children? Otherwise, great, sad movie. I watched until the end because I needed to know what was happening. That’s always a good sign. 7/10.

[movietoovie]

A Star is Born

I have a lot of feelings about this movie. I think, firstly, that the soundtrack is absolutely amazing. It was a raw, patient movie. At first I didn’t like Lady Gaga’s approach to the character, but I found that her sort of sweet, nearly fake bubbley character was truly just a shadow over her honest character. I wish my friend didn’t spoil the ending for me, but the ending is not for the faint of heart. I also really don’t think Bradley Cooper’s character actually loved Lady Gaga’s character. Also, Ron from Parks and Rec was GREAT! I loved him. The character-main actors being surrounded by earthy, strong characters like Ron and Res? Jes? Roz? Really made it seem like a genuine, real-life thing. I really liked it, but it’s not something you watch for the sake of enjoyment, you watch it so you really FEEL something. 8/10.