The Batman

POSITIVES

  • If you wanted to have a film noirish story, mixed with an unraveling mystery of a serial killer, with a little bit of torture puzzles, plus a super gloomy investigative vigilante that’s dressed like a Bat, and it’s a three hours long movie, then definitely check this out. I myself thought those three hours moved pretty well. 

  • Best thing about this is honestly anything to do with Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle AKA Catwoman. She is fantastic, and absolutely livens things up. I liked Jeffrey Wright playing Batman’s sidekick too… 

  • There are some solid action beats in this movie, like the ones where Batman beats people up, but that Batmobile set piece in particular was a pretty awesome highlight. 

  • Appreciated the thematic message that this narrative ended up with, and it’s one that’s absolutely worth bringing up now. 

  • Has some beautifully shot visuals and imagery that really knows how to use those shadows. 

NEGATIVES

  • There are certain characters that you just don’t get to spend as much time with as you might have hoped. Then there are certain ones that you want less time with. Just saying.

  • How much of Batman brooding can you take? Because Rob Pattinson is really good at that. Oh, you want more emotions coming from Batman? How about just slightly less brooding? Or contemplative brooding? There’s a lot of brooding. 

  • It’s a three hours movie! So it must be filled with so many thrilling action sequences to eat up all that time watching this right? Right? Right?! No. Not really. Don’t get bored now. 

  • One thing kinda really bugged me. There is one moment during the third act where there is a big fake out that happens. Sorta felt like the movie was just effing with the audience at that point. Didn’t really appreciate that. 

  • In the end, does this new interpretation really add anything significantly new to the Batman mythos that justifies its existence and that three hours runtime? No. Not really. Hope you’re okay with this direction. 

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The Batman - watched it IN THEATERS

Catwoman: Hunted

POSITIVES

  • From set piece to set piece, this animated movie about heists and colorful adversaries, makes for an entertaining watch to pass the time. 

  • Elizabeth Gillies is fantastic as the voice of Catwoman. Plus she sells her corny jokes and puns pretty well. 

  • Fun action sequences move things along decently well. 

  • Anime style visuals and jazzy soundtrack is really cool. 

  • Fans of the comic books should enjoy the easter eggs and cameos. 

NEGATIVES

  • Plot is as basic as it gets. Don't expect anything truly noteworthy. 

  • Very straight to home video direction. Definitely not cinematic. Plus the CG animation can be a little too obvious at times in a negative way.  

  • Evokes anime, but doesn't quite get what makes anime actually look and feel like anime. 

  • Several of the voice actors seem like they are just phoning it in. 

  • The bad guys are just so dumb. It's stupid. It’s stupid dumb.  

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Catwoman: Hunted - watched it on VIDEO ON DEMAND

No Exit

POSITIVES

  • It's got a solid premise for a thriller that's all set in one location. 

  • Havana Rose Liu is excellent in the lead here, and the rest of the cast are also solid, which includes Dennis Haysbert, Dale Dickey, David Rysdahl, and Danny Ramirez. They work well together. 

  • There are some plot developments that keep things exciting. 

  • Play on your emotions into thinking of what you would do if you were in their situation. Which is a fun exercise to do. 

  • That game of Bullshit. 

NEGATIVES

  • Stupid decisions can make the movie seem stupid. 

  • Prepare to get frustrated during some parts. 

  • At one point you'll be thinking "how much longer can they stretch this out?!" 

  • Some plot conveniences will help stretch things out. 

  • Addresses some seriously dark topics, but it only has them included in a sort of superficial kinda way. 

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No Exit - watched it on HULU

Studio 666

POSITIVES

  • If the idea of the rock band The Foo Fighters playing themselves, in a haunted house type story, done in a dark comedic manner, is something fun you'd like to see, then go watch this movie! 

  • A huge part of what makes this movie enjoyable is it’s sense of humor of not taking itself too seriously, having some fun banter, cheesy moments, and just happily embracing the silliness of it all. At the same time it has a serious direction of having some solid horror sensibilities with some legitimately scary imagery and bloody gore. 

  • So much kudos to Dave Grohl for really throwing himself into this version of Dave Grohl that he is playing. He is fantastic! Gotta appreciate the self-deprecating sensibilities that the band has in this. 

  • Part of the fun of watching this movie are the pop culture references, the meta-ness, cameos, and easter eggs. 

  • That killer epic super heavy song that the Foo Fighters are working on here sounds so good. 

NEGATIVES

  • Nandi Bushell might be too young to be watching the graphic visuals and language found in this. Not to mention those who generally mind those Rated R things. 

  • Okay, we know. They are not professional actors, and it shows. 

  • Yes, the movie also shows some limits to not being as visually cinematic as it could be, especially when paired with the fact that it’s all set in one location like a bottle episode. 

  • Plot-wise there are just unbelievable moments that you are just going to have to forgive. 

  • Unfortunately “Love Dies Young” doesn’t really live up to that killer epic super heavy song that Foo Fighters were working on in the movie. 

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Studio 666 - watched it IN THEATERS

Fistful of Vengeance

POSITIVES

  • Fans of Wu Assassins will appreciate the continuation of that story with this movie. 

  • Iko Uwais, Lewis Tan, and Lawrence Kao, are still cool as our protagonists. 

  • That mix of supernatural elements with martial arts action is a solid idea for a premise. 

  • The big action thriller set piece set in that one building was exciting enough. 

  • Bangkok, Thailand is a nice choice for location. 

NEGATIVES

  • Have to say that if you haven’t watched Wu Assassins, then you might be a little lost.

  • Felt like it was just going through a check list of familiar plot tropes, cliches, and wish-fulfillment. 

  • Certain characters and plot developments just felt rushed. 

  • Action sequences felt uninspired or were just average. 

  • Coincidental lack of bystanders or background people during the big set pieces kinda distracted me too much. 

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Fistful of Vengeance - watched it on NETFLIX

The Tinder Swindler

POSITIVES

  • To anybody who meets strangers online, you should probably watch this fascinating cautionary tale. 

  • Interesting narrative that should hook you until the end. It only gets even more gripping as more and more details are revealed. 

  • Satisfying third act. Satisfying. 

  • Interviews felt very personable and just sucks you into their stories. 

  • Loved the use and integration of media and apps into the visual direction. Plus a lot of good B-footage used.  

NEGATIVES

  • Knowing what you know about this documentary, it might just make you super frustrated. Oh you're going to roll your eyes a couple of times. 

  • Considering the narrative there can be a bit of confusion with some of the details or lack of.  

  • There are a couple of people that I wished the documentary would have been able to get some statements from. 

  • Don't know about you, but seeing the lavish lifestyle displayed on screen makes me disgusted. 

  • It's still an ongoing story, so the final conclusion in the documentary may not be as satisfying. 

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The Tinder Swindler - watched it on NETFLIX

Texas Chainsaw Massacre

POSITIVES

  • If you're looking for some bloody gory violence with the return of Leatherface, congratulations! 

  • Has some solid suspenseful moments here and there for you scary horror movie fans. 

  • There's that one social media joke that I chuckled at. 

  • Some of the commentaries mentioned are at least thought provoking. 

  • It's not a super long movie. 

NEGATIVES

  • It'll probably be better if this derivative movie was even shorter. 

  • Overall a disappointing attempt of yet another "requel" to the 1974 original. 

  • What's more frustrating in a slasher movie than seeing people do the most stupid things possible that gets them killed. 

  • It's hard to care if the characters die or not, if the movie doesn't make much of an effort to make me care for the characters. 

  • It threw in all the popular triggering social issues into this movie just to be embarrassingly provocative just for the sake of it. 

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Texas Chainsaw Massacre - watched it on NETFLIX

Uncharted

POSITIVES

  • If you're looking for a treasure hunting action-adventure, that has good pacing, and a compelling enough narrative, then this is a perfectly solid movie to check out. It knows what it is, it's limits, and does a fine enough job being entertaining in doing what it’s doing. 

  • Tom Holland is charming as heck playing Nathan Drake, and I really enjoyed seeing him do all those parkour moves on screen. Sophia Ali as Chloe Frazer is also a fun character to watch here. Plus Tati Gabrielle makes a fine antagonist as Braddock. 

  • This movie has several good set pieces, from the heisting, the chasing, the clue finding, to that big action sequence during the third act. 

  • I overall liked the lighthearted tone and humor of this movie, and those smart ass lines. 

  • Fans of the video game franchise that this is based on will have fun with the easter eggs and references. 

NEGATIVES

  • Doesn't exactly add anything remarkably fresh to the table in the treasure hunting want-to-be-Indiana-Jones genre of movies. You would think there are some inspired and ambitious themes and ideas here, but there really isn't. 

  • Still falls for the same mistakes most movies in this genre make. We in the movie watching audience actually want the chance to play along with the clues to finding the treasure. Characters in the movie solving the puzzles simply because the plot demands it are just not as engaging as they should be. 

  • Are a lot of the things that happen in this movie a bit unbelievable or too convenient? Yes. 

  • Mark Wahlberg continues to just play the usual derivative character that he plays, complete with the seemingly forced banter and nonchalant attitude because he thinks that's supposed to be ssoooo entertaining to watch. 

  • The deaths and murdering of people here all seems a little too casual. Especially when the most remorse you'll get from our protagonist is a “sorry.” 

loveditenjoyedit LIKED IT itsokayitsmehitsterrible

Uncharted - watched it IN THEATERS

Death on the Nile

POSITIVES

  • If you're a fan of Murder on the Orient Express, then you probably will want to check this out to see what mystery Hercule Poirot has to solve now. That's the only reason you really need to see this. 

  • Actually there’s another reason. Kenneth Branagh as Poirot is the best thing in this movie. Although I do like Tom Bateman reprising his role as Bouc as well. The rest of the cast are generally solid in their roles. 

  • You can tell a lot of money was thrown towards the production of this film, because it is visually very grand and extravagant to look at. 

  • I liked that one of the themes and commentaries made in this story fits perfectly with why this ended up being released during Valentine’s Day weekend. 

  • There’s a lot going on in this film, and I think some movie goers will enjoy the denseness and intricacies of the characters and the mystery. 

NEGATIVES

  • This is a traditional murder mystery complete with those plot tropes, narrative conveniences, and familiar archetypes. It just doesn’t have the more enjoyably fun modern takes of the genre. It is what it is. 

  • You just might get impatient and frustrated with this movie, because it takes its sweet long time before it gets to the crux of the mystery. You know, the thing you actually signed up for. 

  • It’s hard to be completely invested with the mystery when I don’t particularly like so many of these characters that are involved in it. 

  • The movie ridiculously lays out all the clues and expositions in such an obvious way that it can get kinda obnoxious. Yes, we get it! Those are the suspects! Quit having the camera continually highlight them like we have to constantly see the line-up. 

  • I seriously feel like this is definitely one of those stories that should just be retold as a limited TV series, instead of trying to cram so much into a two hours time frame. 

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Death On The Nile - watched it IN THEATERS

The Sky is Everywhere

POSITIVES

  • Fascinating look into grief through the lens of a confused and awkward teenage musical prodigy. The narrative goes places with a lighter tone than you would expect from a movie that's focused on so much sadness. 

  • Grace Kaufman is absolutely earnestly fantastic as the grief-stricken lead Lennie Walker. Jacques Colimon as Joe Fontaine is just so cool and awesome. Solid supporting cast which includes Pico Alexander, Cherry Jones, Havana Rose Liu, Ji-young Yoo, Jason Segel, and more. 

  • Stylized visuals, bright colors, and graphical tricks, to give you all that constant eye candy. 

  • Love the musical interludes that go into fantastical imaginative segments like the "Air on a G String" by Johann Sebastian Bach sequence. 

  • Really happy with how the final act plays out, plus the overall message of the story. Rewards you for seeing through the movie. 

NEGATIVES

  • Probably way too quirky and precious, mixed with that teenage angst and melodrama. Not for everybody. 

  • If you find artsy kids annoying, then stay clear away from this movie. 

  • Hope you don't mind all the voice over monologuing, because it can sound pretentious at times. 

  • It's like the camera never stops moving and it can be a little much. 

  • AUGH they went there with that embarrassing cliche of a plot turn. You don't have to do that just to create a complicated conflict!  

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The Sky Is Everywhere - watched it on APPLE TV+