Fire Island

POSITIVES

  • Let’s be honest. For a lot of you, this is not the usual conventional romantic dramatic comedy that you normally would see. Even with that fact however, let me just say that this dramedy is worth checking out. 

  • Fire Island Pines and Cherry Grove are real places, and it’s a cliché thing for me to say, but the Island itself is really like its own character that this movie brings to life. 

  • Joel Kim Booster and Bowen Yang are excellent as Noah and Howie respectively, but it's their plot threads involving Conrad Ricamora and James Scully as Will and Charlie respectively that is the main driving point of this story that will keep you engaged. 

  • The perspectives, opinions, and commentaries made by Noah is one of the best and most fascinating aspects of this film. Love all the little factoids being shared. 

  • While it’s not exactly filled to the brim with comedy, it does have good humor and some nice running jokes. 

NEGATIVES 

  • I hate to have to say it here, but the premise is unfortunately not going to be for everybody. 

  • All that explicit language and all that sex stuff is also very much not going to be for everybody. 

  • What’s also not going to be for everybody are movies with voice over narration, and this one very much uses that story telling technique. 

  • Gotta say, the friends can be pretty annoying. 

  • The conclusion to this story may or may not work for you. 

lovedit ENJOYED IT likedititsokayitsmehitsterrible

Fire Island - watched it on HULU

ELVIS

POSITIVES

  • As a celebration of the man, the legend, the King Of Rock Elvis Presley, this is a very solid and entertaining film that fans should appreciate. 

  • Highlights some of the most significant chapters in his life, from the whole controversy regarding his leg movements, his TV comeback special, to his Vegas residency era, plus more. There’s a lot to grab your attention here. 

  • The visual narrative is super energetic and kinetic to watch, with an edit that forces you to keep your eyes glued on the screen at all times. It’s almost like a long form montage, and that’s actually not a bad thing. 

  • Austin Butler is phenomenal as Elvis Presley, and Tom Hanks really creates quite the character as Colonel Tom Parker. The two parallel stories surrounding them, and their partnership is really the cornerstone of this movie, and will keep you constantly engaged with this musical biopic. 

  • Needless to say, the soundtrack is fantastic. Elvis’ songs are presented well here, and might just make you want to get up and dance! Austin Butler even sang several of them as well with aplomb. 

NEGATIVES

  • It’s still a musical biopic and does typical musical biopic stuff. 

  • This musical biopic does take liberties. Some would say that they are an unnecessary misrepresentation of the facts, that will make some people ask “did that really happen?!” The movie doesn’t even really cover every aspect of Elvis’ history. 

  • Visual narrative just does not stop moving! It can feel a little too overwhelming to keep up at times. It’s a decently long movie too, and there’s a point when you might just feel exhausted watching it, just wanting to catch your breath for a bit. 

  • Some of the songs in the soundtrack are of the more “modern” variety, and I felt like they shouldn’t have bothered including them, as I myself wanted more even Elvis songs featured than what we got. 

  • Could this be just for Elvis fans or Baz Luhrmann fans? I’m not sure how well this would actually play for non-fans. 

lovedit ENJOYED IT likedititsokayitsmehitsterrible

Elvis - watched in IN THEATERS

The Black Phone

POSITIVES

  • Solid intriguing fascinating premise that will make you wonder how the plot is going to progress (unless you were spoiled by the official trailers). 

  • Ethan Hawke is good at being creepy, even with the fact he is wearing a mask a lot. Mason Thames gives us a finely nuanced character as Finney, who will be easy to root for. Madeleine McGraw is spectacular in giving her character Gwen such personality, and is such a scene stealer because of that. 

  • The suspenseful tense scenes will keep you on the edge of your seat, and the plot developments with Gwen Shaw’s story thread will keep you excited. 

  • With these types of films, the final act and conclusion can make or break it. Thankfully I thought it was very satisfying. 

  • A great example of a film that excels at making the most visually out of single setting. Some nice cinematic moments, and some ghastly imagery as well. 

NEGATIVES

  • It’s not a hard horror film (not cruel enough?), nor is it super scary (I think there were only about 2-3 jump scares). Some will probably be disappointed with these facts. 

  • Pacing could move just a tad bit faster, as I can imagine some people might get impatient with it. 

  • The crude language and physical violence might be too surprising to find here. 

  • One particular plot reveal might be too hard (or stupid) to believe. 

  • Actually, this is the kind of movie that will be easy to nitpick, and that could be a problem for some movie goers. 

lovedit ENJOYED IT likedititsokayitsmehitsterrible

The Black Phone - watched in IN THEATERS

Lightyear

POSITIVES

  • This is the Buzz Lightyear story you may not have been interested in, but turns out to be a very entertainingly charming movie. Multiple fun scenes, montages, action beats, and set pieces to enjoy seeing play out. 

  • If there’s one thing I’m most surprised about this movie is how funny it is. The comedy and visual gags really won me over. 

  • Give it up to characters like Buzz, Alisha, and Izzy, but wow is SOX such a scene stealer here. The character relationships and dynamics are stellar and all, but I Loved Loved Loved that robot cat! 

  • It’s Pixar, so we know the visuals look great. The cinematography is spectacular. I particularly like the designs of the tech gadgets and what they can do. I should also mention that I was lucky to watch this with a 1:43 IMAX aspect ratio and the many scenes that took advantage of it looked marvelously immersive. 

  • Didn’t expect much from what a movie like this has to say, but I really appreciated the themes and lessons presented here. 

NEGATIVES

  • Yes, it doesn’t exactly have the most original plot direction, so expect some derivative factors. 

  • All that character growth and development in such a short period of time? Typical. Tired narrative trick. You could have just given us another montage to depict more time passing! 

  • I’m just going to say it. Mo Morrison is an annoying character and unfortunately is used almost solely just to drive the plot forward. 

  • The execution of a major plot reveal arguably might feel a little too forced, maybe even too cynical. Not everybody is going to be satisfied with it. 

  • How often can you survive a close contact explosion and survive? For that matter, there are a lot of incredible feats displayed in the movie that seem way too illogical and unbelievable. 

lovedit ENJOYED IT likedititsokayitsmehitsterrible

Lightyear - watched in IN THEATERS

Hustle

POSITIVES

  • If you love Basketball, or those underdog sports stories, then this is a movie for you. 

  • Adam Sandler is perfectly casted and excellent as Stanley Sugarman. His chemistry with Juancho Hernangomez as Bo Cruz (also excellent in the role) really keeps you engaged with the movie. Shout out to supporting stars Queen Latifah, Kenny Smith, Jordan Hull, and all the NBA personalities that make an appearance in this. 

  • Gotta enjoy seeing the basketball games and the training montage shown in this movie. Good stuff! 

  • Those NBA related Easter eggs and cameos. Streetballers get to shine too. Have fun with all that. 

  • While it thematically has a rather expected message to say, it’s still a worthwhile one to tell. Gives the movie the heart and inspiration it needs. 

NEGATIVES 

  • I mean, this is a sports story narrative you've seen before. You have an idea how it's all going to play out. 

  • Speaking of predictability, certain plot elements, turn of events, foreshadowing, and tropes, are all once again pretty derivative. 

  • You know you’re going to criticize the sports stars trying to play Hollywood actors here. Even if they weren’t bad at all, it’s going to be distracting anyway. 

  • Apologies to Ben Foster and Anthony Edwards, I guess you're both the stereotypical cliché antagonists in this story. 

  • "Who is that guy?" "Is that your boy Stan?" How could you not know at this point in the movie?!! 

lovedit ENJOYED IT likedititsokayitsmehitsterrible

Hustle - watched it on NETFLIX

Jurassic World: Dominion

POSITIVES

  • Looking to see some Dinosaurs in a blockbuster movie? Curious to see what the modern world might look like with Dinosaurs in our presence? You just might find something to like here then. 

  • A huge part of the appeal of seeing this is the return of the trio of characters from the original Jurassic Park movie, and their meeting the characters of the Jurassic World trilogy. Among the whole cast however, it’s Jeff Goldblum reprising his role as the humorously entertaining Chaotician Dr. Ian Malcolm that’s the MVP of this ensemble. 

  • There are a lot of set pieces throughout the movie, but in particular the whole story arc in Malta was the one I had the most fun with, which includes a chase sequence to keep things exciting. 

  • The concluding message is worthwhile enough, and comes with a beautiful montage to close off the movie. 

  • Yes, there is a lot of fan-service and callbacks to the original Jurassic Park that you might enjoy seeing, plus some self-aware meta one-liners that you might find amusing. 

NEGATIVES

  • We get it! You’re calling back to plot elements from the original Jurassic Park movie, and you’re self-aware at how silly this all is, plus all the meta references! Can you get any more ridiculously obvious?  

  • How many close calls for our characters will it take before it starts to just be stupid silly? How many hand palms to stop dinosaurs do you have to see before you want a dinosaur to just bite them off? How many wealthy tech moguls in movies that have to look like some Steve Jobs caricature must there be before you say enough with this tired trope already? I’m sure you’ll find the answer to all that when you see this movie. 

  • Needless to say, this movie relies on too many derivative plot developments and tropes to maintain a unique identity of itself, that it really all just feels like a forgettable experience. It’s like it’s just going through the motions.

  • Many times I just wanted to yell at the movie for a lot of the nonsensical stuff that was being shown to me. This is rife for parodies. 

  • Not a fan of the fact that so many of the dinosaurs in this movie are essentially just seen as giant animals that some people just aren’t afraid of anymore. Way to underplay the scare factor of these creatures. 

loveditenjoyeditlikedit IT’S OKAY itsokayitsmehitsterrible

Jurassic World: Dominion - watched in IN THEATERS

RRR

POSITIVES

  • A spectacularly unbelievable crowd pleaser of an epic period action drama that is so earnest and has so much heart. This movie goes big, and doesn’t shy away from that fact, and then goes bigger! 

  • Story-wise, plot-wise, thematic-wise, this narrative is just so clever, engaging, emotionally moving, and so very cool. So very cool! 

  • Amazing giant set pieces. Like there’s a lot of these enjoyable set pieces that capture a lot of what you love about blockbuster films. The introduction scenes of our lead characters Raju and Bheem alone are quite the sights to behold, and there's so much more than that to come. So much more! Of course there’s a fantastic dance sequence too! 

  • The pairing of Ram Charan and N.T. Rama Rao Jr. is just brilliant. There’s an ensemble cast and all, but those two actors make this movie so incredibly entertaining. 

  • There is so much beautiful imagery here and some still frame captures that just wowed me, coupled with some awesome choreography. Visuals to die for! 

NEGATIVES 

  • Hope you’re okay reading subtitles. 

  • There's quite a bit of exaggeration that challenges your suspension of disbelief. 

  • More brutal than you might prefer. 

  • Don't be bothered too much by the obviously CG animals. 

  • The British are maybe too over-the-top cartoonishly villainous. 

LOVED IT enjoyeditlikedititsokayitsmehitsterrible

RRR - watched it on NETFLIX

Crimes of the Future

POSITIVES

  • If you’re into disgusting gory imagery and body horror stuff, then this might be something you’d want to check out. 

  • The premise of this disturbing future world and the thematic commentaries are fascinating to contemplate. 

  • Expositional stuff and jargon aside, there are conversations in this that are generally interesting to listen to. 

  • Léa Seydoux as Caprice was generally solid in this. Watch it for her. 

  • I suppose I’ll give the film credit for being something you don’t normally find in movies. 

NEGATIVES

  • Might just be too weird and nonsensical to be entertaining to watch, nevermind the disgusting gory imagery and body horror stuff. 

  • Dare I just say it? I was bored. Movie dragged on. It was indulgent, pretentious, obnoxious, and unappealing. 

  • What is up with Viggo Mortensen playing a Ninja? A Ninja that constantly coughs and clears his throat. Also take a shot whenever you hear his character’s name, Saul Tenser. 

  • Is this an advertisement to remind you to get a good bed to sleep on and a good chair to have a meal on? 

  • The mixture of retro technology and incredibly high tech being used in this future world just did not work for me. Was this a budget thing? Some attempt to appear remotely timeless?

loveditenjoyeditlikedititsokay IT’S MEH itsterrible

Crimes of the Future - watched in IN THEATERS

Top Gun: Maverick

POSITIVES

  • Fans of the original worried that this Legacyquel wasn’t going to live up to its predecessor, don’t worry, because this absolutely lives up to it! That feeling you remember from watching the 1986 film is completely replicated and even improved on with such reverence via this more modern version of that story. 

  • A lot of what makes this entertaining to watch are all those training sequences, plus that exciting third act, and it’s all thanks to those real F-18 fighter jets used in the movie to give it that authenticity and incredible attention to detail. 

  • Tom Cruise is still fantastic as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, and his interactions with the rest of this ensemble cast is great to drive the plot. Welcome to Top Gun Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller, Monica Barbaro, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell, Lewis Pullman, Lyliana Wray, Bashir Salahuddin, Charles Parnell, Jay Ellis, Danny Ramirez, plus more! 

  • As fun as the fighter jet actions are, I really liked the humor found in this, especially the ones involving Penny Benjamin. 

  • Visuals are amazing and all, but it definitely has to be pointed out that this movie still has that solid soundtrack you expect from a Top Gun movie. 

NEGATIVES

  • Probably stays a little too close to the same narrative of the previous film. 

  • Kinda wished it didn’t do all those plot cliches and predictable turn of events. 

  • Apologies to Jon Hamm and Glen Powell for the cookie cutter stock characters that were given to them. 

  • For fans of the original, there is one plot question you will be asking that will just never be answered or acknowledged. 

  • If this was supposed to be a passing of the torch to a new generation of characters, apparently Tom Cruise didn’t get the message, because this really made sure you didn’t forget that Maverick is our hero of this movie. 

lovedit ENJOYED IT likedititsokayitsmehitsterrible

Top Gun: Maverick - watched in IN THEATERS

The Valet

POSITIVES

  • It's a conventional sitcom type premise, that has heart and sweetness and all, but sometimes that's all you need to pass the time. 

  • Eugenio Derbez is great as our lead protagonist Antonio Flores, and is just the guy you want to root for here. A lot of the ensemble are generally solid in their roles as well, from Carmen Salinas, Samara Weaving, Amaury Nolasco, Noemi Gonzalez, Armando Hernandez, Carlos Santos, Max Greenfield, Ji Yong Lee, plus many more.

  • Appreciated how this movie was unafraid to have their POC characters actually speak their own language (with English closed captions) a lot of the time. A huge appeal of this movie is how it handles its POC characters.

  • Narrative moves at a careful pace, but peppers in a lot of noteworthy scenes that gives this movie life. 

  • The commentaries and themes presented aren't anything you haven’t heard before, but they are still worth repeating, which this movie does a good job at doing. 

NEGATIVES 

  • You've seen this kind of movie before. It doesn’t really add too much new to this kind of story. Not to mention that this is already a remake as it is. 

  • There are predictably stupid stuff that do happen. Prepare to roll your eyes. 

  • Conclusion takes way too many convenient short cuts with the plot than it probably should have. 

  • It takes quite a while to warm up to the character of Olivia. 

  • Movie should have had a shorter run time. It drags on in parts. 

loveditenjoyedit LIKED IT itsokayitsmehitsterrible

The Valet - watched it on HULU