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jonatan_juntunen
Reviews
The Grudge (2019)
Might be a cure for insomnia
The director seems to have had a cool idea about the execution of the story, having interconnecting storylines, but either that was to much for him - because believe me, this movie is nothing but a snoozefest.
I went in with incredibly low expectations, having seen all the reviews. Still this movie managed to disappoint in every single way possible. Shame honestly, since the grudge on her own would have been scarier then this sleepingpill. Just stop doing remakes and do more original content. Just a bunch of pointless scenes that lead to a lame predictable jumpscare. I would rather watch any movie (sadly) then this again.
Doctor Sleep (2019)
Really good - a bit anticlimatic though
This movie, while being really good, and probably my favorite movie this year alongside the joker, does have some elements that stops me from giving it a 10/10. Lets start with the amazing director Mike Flanagan, who, in my opinion, may have pulled of a task that many - including me thought was impossible. Make a worthy sequel to the shining.
The casting is seriously great, i loved Ewan Mcgregor as Dan.
Lets get to the bits where i did think it falls short though. It would have needed to be a tiny bit longer. The ending felt like it became a bit rushed, mostly with the climax with the villain. Also, instead of recreating scenes from the shining, why not use the real deal? I didnt see a bigger reason for any of the scenes that DIDNT feature a recreation of the shining for them to be in there at all. I think that could have been done differently, but i understand that the filmmakers wanted to flourish some nostalgia. Otherwise then that - Mike Flanagan, you goddamn genius. And to my favorite author, Stephen King, you remain a legend.
It Chapter Two (2019)
The best they could have done
The movie was really amazing - love the cast, everything. However, it sure does get complicated with everything for those who have not read the book. It simply does not have enough screentime to make that possible - and thats funny, seeing how the movie already runs close to three hours.
The movie is looooooong. Is that a bad thing? Nope. The screentime is well deserved, but no kidding, when i left the theater it felt like i had spent 27 years there already. Again, the movie sure does need this, even though it can feel very longstretched at some bits. It does also heavily rely on the first chapter. While it was exciting seeing the young cast, it did not bring anything new into the movie except some new scares and also some refreshing for the adult counterparts. The movie does rely on quite a lot of cgi, and i cant push this enough. This movie would have been so much more effective without the cgi. Use practical effects. You do not hire someone like Javier Botet and then still rely on cgi.
But again, this movie is still amazing, and is a great addition to both the first chapter, but also the steven king universe in general. Wait, was that a Stephen king cameo i saw? Thats just flipping awesome. Now go watch this movie, but expect to spend atleast 27 years there.
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019)
An enjoyable flick - but more then that? Nah
It was ok. Seriously tho, this movie was not bad, but it was not very good either. Its a completely enjoyable flick, but doesnt really bring anything new. There was not one scene where i even felt a twinge of fear, so if you are there for the horror, look somewhere else. Cgi was ok, could have been done practically, but to no surprise they didnt choose that route. The movie feels very slow phased at some moments, something that led me to yawn several times. When the climax finally happens, it - wait a minute? What climax? There wasnt one.
Crawl (2019)
Nice visuals, storywise -? Meh
Let me start off, this movie has amazing visuals, it fits well into the movie and doesnt know what it can or not do. The atmosphere is also great which is a huge plus. However the story kinda falls apart when you try to fit 2 hours of footage into 30 minutes. Movies tend to do this, only making the movie feel rushed and a bit messy. It has a very simple layout, and does not answer the questions it causes to rise. The ending reminded me of pet sematary, a very quick and fast phased ending to a slow phased movie. The audience is just waiting to get above the surface, and when it finally does, 90% of the movie is already lost to the basement scenario. It just doesnt hold up, and would have needed to be longer to work. The characters stupidity in this movie amazes me, even though they were good in terms of like-ability, they do make some very dumb decisions at some points, which causes frustration for the viewer. This is very sad, because they seem smart, but do the absolute worst decisions to get themselves into danger. In other terms, the movie is still okay and enjoyable, but would have needed more final touches and a realistic aspect of writing.
The Lion King (2019)
Remakes are needed to make us appreciate the sourcematerial
Isnt it a bit hypocritical to see people complaining bout this remake? People are always whining about how a remake should always stick to the sourcematerial, and when it doesn't people whine. Yes, this might be a moneygrab, isnt that quite obvious? But in the end, who the f- cares? This movie was a masterpiece, it was bound to be, since its a shot by shot near remake. Yes, the animated will always be the original, but if we are honest, this is a new era, updating the movies is a must for future generations, no matter if you like the fact that classic animation is dying. This movie is also animation, and a revouloutionary one aswell. Also, sometimes remakes are needed for us to appreciate the original. Now - Enjoy this masterpiece, an updated version of a story that was a good one. Thank you for bringing back my childhood. And mostly, thank you for not ruining it.
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
So great - until the ending?
Let me start with this - the movie overall was conjuring quality, something none of the films has really achieved then this movies prequel, annabelle creation. The humour works great, and together with the tension built it makes the perfect movie. Perhaps the biggest letdown of this movie was the ending, which felt very thrown together. Im starting to see a pattern in these horror movies, they seem to start off good, and settle on a rushed and empty ending. The last scene with the demon somehow sucking the soul out of Judy felt so out of place, i felt so lost watching it. The same goes for the werewolf, it was a cool idea, but rather then create a horrible cgi monster, rather use a real wolf which makes for an even creepier villain. The movie is still great, but the clearence of the demon in these movies need to be more looked through. Showing the entirity of a demon takes away that it's there for - horror. I think Gary Dauberman did a great job though, but the ending + the werewolf, and i cant say this more clear, was the only thing stopping me from submitting a 10/10, and also calling this the best spinoff of the conjuring universe. Does this mean you should not see it? Absolutly not, the movie is great, and a enjoyable flick with a nice tribute to the real life lorraine in the end. Way to go, Gary.
Aladdin (2019)
What we needed
After all the dumb remakes we have gotten, this is by far the best one. It really takes the story and makes it its own, together with a ton of laughter, cries and enjoyment. This movie was a perfect get away movie for the summer, and if you loved the first one, you will most likely love this one aswell. The movie has some flaws, where at one point its sped up. I dont really know what they were trying to achieve with it, but i gives a messy look to the opening and does not fit into the movie at all. Otherwise i really enjoyed it, and i will most likely see it again.
The Curse of La Llorona (2019)
Not the best, but far from the worst
Of all the conjuring movies, i would say this places above some of them, however, it is not the best, something that probably could be blamed on the writers. It seems to be problems with the script, as it seems like the director choice was excellent, however, the script could be greatly improved. The maincharacters play very well, and you do actually care about them, something a sadly couldn't say about it's counterpart, the nun. And yes, it does use the same conjuring formula, as the critics have stated, but that does not in any way make it less entertaining. Somehow this movie got a freecard for that one, because lately it has become very predictable, but this one still manages to keep up. I now have faith for the Conjuring 3, don't disappoint us, Michael Chaves.