roel-willemsen Reviews

Raya and the Last Dragon (2021)

Visually stunning, but lacking in execution

[7/10 · 8 March 2021]

First, this will probably be the most stunningly animated movie you are ever likely to see. The visuals and animation are absolutely breathtaking, and these alone make it worth watching the movie. Other positive points include a creative and beautifully rendered fantasy world, great overall performances from the superstar Asian voice cast, and a strong and compelling female lead with Raya.

However, there's something lacking. In my opinion, the movie should have been longer. The movie skips through the world of Kumandra so fast that viewers barely have time to both appreciate and connect to the places and people that Raya encounters. None of Raya's lovable band of misfit associates has a thoroughly worked out backstory, and the movie also don't spend enough time with any of them to make the audience truly care what happens to them.

Besides that, the movie deals with some dark and epic themes, and mostly succeeds in creating a rich atmosphere suitable for most adult fantasy movies. Then you are suddenly reminded that this is a Disney movie when a toddler and her band of thieving monkeys show up and perform some childish hijinks. In my opinion, the movie would have been better without all this, as it creates some major shifts in tension and maturity that don't benefit the plot.

The villains were also not something to write home about. The 'Druun' were a faceless and generic force without any proper motivation or explanation of their origins. They are largely forgettable and don't come of as truly menacing. Then there's the rivalry between Raya and Namaari, which would have been thoroughly compelling if not for the fact that the movie spends relatively little time exploring their relationship.

All in all, despite the flaws in the movie's storytelling and character development, it is a stunning feat of animation by Disney with a grandiose fantasy world and a compelling message of trust and forgiveness. I'd recommend you give it a watch.

To All the Boys: Always and Forever (2021)

Very formulaic, but still charming

[6/10 · 13 February 2021]

The first film in the franchise wasn't anything groundbreaking, but still felt fresh. The second installment was, in my opinion, a major downgrade, particularly in terms of character development. Now we have come to the conclusion of the trilogy, and a movie that feels just like a hundred teen romance dramas that have come before it.

The main criticism is that this movie doesn't implement anything that hasn't been done before. Really, from the second the plot of the movie becomes apparent, anyone who has ever seen a movie will be able to guess what happens. It's a simple story of 'girl loves boy, but girl receives a huge opportunity that forces her to choose between her own life and her relationship'. Some standard awkward situations follow, that could as always be so easily avoided if the characters possessed even a lick of common sense. The couple breaks up, realizes they do still love each other, and eventually decide to try and work things out. Doesn't that sound familiar?

The saving grace of the movie are still its characters however. Lara Jean is a charming, kind and positive spirit, while Peter distinguishes himself as a supportive and caring boyfriend. The Covey family dynamic, and their Korean roots, are fleshed out even further, and deservedly so. It's the little interactions between the characters that give the movie most of its charm.

The actors do a fine job, and the cinematography and camerawork deserve some applause as well. The humor in the film is fine, but also feels derivative of other teen comedies.

All in all, this movie is by no means the worst of its kind. It has its moments and several positive aspects, but it falls flat in simply providing nothing that original or new to the genre or movies in particular.

Malcolm & Marie (2021)

Flawed, just like the characters

[6/10 · 5 February 2021]

Malcolm & Marie follows an extremely simple premise of a filmmaker and his girlfriend coming home after the premiere of his movie, and then proceed to argue for almost the entire night. There are a couple of things to unpack here.

First of all, the positives. Both actors deliver. John David Washington is oustanding, and continues his run of excellent performances over the last couple of years. His character is very expressive and intense, and you can clearly see he's all for it. Zendaya's star is still rising, and she also delivers in a genre that has up until this point been uncharted territory for her. Her character leaves a little to be desired at the start, where she seems somewhat monotone and held back, but she later gets her moments to shine and totally nails them. The relationship between the two characters portrayed by these actors feels and seems authentic, with all manner of genuine relationship issues being covered and discussed. There's also John David Washington's rant on how contemporary movie reviewers tend to look for things that aren't there in movies and try to make everything political, which I just liked.

There are some issues I feel like I have to address. The movie feels too long, and most of that has to do with the dialogue. There are quiet moments, but the movie is otherwise stuffed with dialogue. The movie follows a pattern of a constant back-and-forth between the two leads, with long speeches or rants given by each one at a time. There's some impressive acting here, but this schtick does get repetitive and is not as interesting or poignant as it's supposed to be. The dialogue is furthermore very exposition heavy, which is logical given that the movie largely plays out in real time and we don't get to see any details about the characters' past. Also, the script makes use of a lot of big words and some very coherent sentencing, which to me makes the whole conversation feel a little too fabricated. There's also the fact that the movie is shot in black and white, which honestly doesn't really add anything. The camerawork and editing are still very much done in a contemporary style, so the supposed authenticity one is meant to gain from shooting in black and white is somewhat lost.

All in all, the starts deliver, but the movie's premise and execution are just not that interesting or innovative. 6 / 10

Songbird (II) (2020)

Fairly interesting premise with a mediocre execution

[3/10 · 11 December 2020]

There was some potential here, and if anything, it should have allowed viewers to perfectly relate to what the characters in this movie are going through. Sadly, this movie largely falls flat.

With the Covid pandemic as its backdrop, and a dystopian near future as its setting, 'Songbird' had all the ingredients for at least a solid thriller. The movie has trouble finding its own identity however, following several different plotlines, none of which are thoroughly worked out.

The two main romantic leads, played by KJ Apa and Sofia Carson, get the majority of the screen time, and their arc is the one that's arguably best worked out. However, their story feels bland, and very derivative of a load of other doomed romance stories. The two bad guys, Peter Stormare and Bradley Whitford, are uninspired and boring, with neither getting to do anything particularly memorable. Add some other one-off characters played by Demi Moore, Craig Robinson and Alexandra Daddario, and you have a reasonably talented cast who are not given that much to work with.

The movie's plot furthermore would have allowed the filmmaker to add some biting social critiques and maybe even some satire, but this is nowhere to be seen. The movie is a basic romance on one end, and a bland action thriller on the other. Really, aside from being a quarantine movie coming out during a quarantine, there isn't that much special about this movie.

Furthermore, I have to mention my dislike of the movie's camerawork and editing. The shaky-cam aesthetic and rapid editing can work very well for certain movies, but it feels totally superfluous and unnecessary here.

Overall, the actors' performances were solid enough, but the story and execution lacked in quality.

Palm Springs (2020)

So much better than I'd expected

[8/10 · 11 December 2020]

I didn't really know anything about this movie before I watched it. I hadn't seen any trailers or read any summaries. All I knew was that Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti were in it, so I decided to give it a watch. I expected some sort of raunchy, maybe bland, comedy with these two as romantic leads. While that was partially correct, this movie proved to be so much more.

First of all, the time loop shtick. I didn't know that was what was gonna happen, and I was slightly apprehensive at first, but it was great. After movies like Groundhog Day, Edge of Tomorrow and Happy Death Day, you'd think this trope was played out, but far from it.

This movie works extremely well, and I just have to repeat how much better it was than I expected. Samberg and Milioti work well off each other, and their comedic scenes are but one of the highlights in the movie. What impressed me the most, were the philosophical questions the movie threw in without expectation. In between the comedic scenes, acted out by two characters who literally live without consequences, there are deep questions about living, death, love and the very difficult matter of having to live in the same day on a loop...

All in all, this movie is just so much more than what it appeared to be on its surface. It's a blast from start to finish, easy to love, and very mature in its handling of its highly original subject matter.

Clouds (I) (2020)

Extremely sad, but in the best possible way

[8/10 · 30 October 2020]

I have to admit, I am somewhat positively biased towards films and TV shows that deal with serious illnesses like cancer. Even more so when the plot is based on a true story. Still, it always remains to be seen whether or not the adaptation is respectful to the real life tale and the people within it. I'm happy to say that I think that 'Clouds' does Zach Sobiech's incredible story justice.

First and foremost, this film made me bawl my eyes out, which was obviously its intended purpose. Zach, played by Fin Argus, is such a kind and spirited person, and it is both heartwarming and heartbreaking to see how cancer can so abruptly impact someone's life like it did in the film. We follow Zach as he deals with being terminally ill, and how his subsequent decision to start making music inspired thousands of people worldwide.

The film leans heavily on making its viewers as sad as possible, taking every opportunity to implement a scene that tugs at the heartstrings and can cause anyone to spontaneously burst into tears. It's a tad melodramatic at times, which kind of takes away from the stark realism in the rest of the movie, but that's only to be expected from an adaptation like this.

We get some interesting character development between Zach and those people close to him, who all deal with Zach's illness in different ways. Everyone in the cast delivers solid performances, with Lil Rel Howery being the standout amongst the supporting roles in my opinion.

Aside from the story, this movie's true star is of course the music. The songs that were actually written and performed by the real Zach Sobiech are absolutely gorgeous, touching, tragic, beautiful and all the things... It's no surprise that the movie's titular song topped the iTunes song chart for the second time after this film's release.

All in all, this is just a great film. If you need a good cry, I highly recommend it.

The Babysitter: Killer Queen (2020)

Deliberately and dramatically over the top.

[6/10 · 10 September 2020]

Just like its predecessor, The Babysitter: Killer Queen is a not so subtle and over the top horror/comedy. From absurd death scenes, an overabundance of fake blood and comical overacting, it has all the ingredients for a parody. The movie features all sorts of clichés as well, including a group of horny teenagers and even a secluded cabin at the end, and at times it is done well.

The plot is quite generic, with our leading man, Cole (Judah Lewis), again finding himself hunted by a teenage killer cult. Horror movie sequels often thread on familiar ground, but seldom is a follow-up so similar to its predecessor. Again Cole flees, hooks up with a down-to-earth girl, and manages to take his adversaries out in grisly / ridiculous ways. A few problems I had were mainly related to some of the plot developments. One of these was that Melanie (played by a not so convincingly sadistic Emily Alyn Lind) was suddenly the bad guy without any character development leading up to that. Besides that, we did see the return of the previous movie's bad guys (Bella Thorne, Robbie Amell, Hana Mae Lee and Andrew Bachelor). They all died gruesome deaths in the previous movie, and yet have somehow been allowed to return. The explanation for this was given in a throwaway line. Now, I won't lie and say that these characters aren't probably the most amusing parts of the movie. All four are ridiculously over the top, which can either be amusing or annoying depending on one's taste. A special nod to Amell, who kept his weird but funny bromance with Cole going and even applauded him at several points. One last problem was the return of the previous main baddy, Bee (Samara Weaving), who was instead suddenly turned into a literal guardian angel. Her plan, which is absolutely ridiculous, had some major holes in it which everyone just glosses over. Also, Cole seems to have totally forgotten by the end how Bee had spent the previous movie trying to literally blow his brains out.

For me, the best part about the movie were the interactions between leads Cole and Phoebe (played by a delightfully charming Jenna Ortega). These two had legitimate chemistry, and gave the otherwise totally insane movie some more grounded moments.

All in all, it's a solid sequel which I enjoyed more than the original. The plot is the main problem, due to it being generic and nonsensical at times. The actors did a solid job, with Lewis, Ortega and Amell being the standouts in my opinion. Horror comedies are rarely cinematic gold, and should just be watched to amuse oneself. Now, this movie is definitely amusing, but I wouldn't go as far as to call it good.

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Everything we could have wished for.

[10/10 · 24 April 2019]

The perfect conclusion, that pretty much sums it up. Over ten years and more then 20 movies led to this moment. Similarly to Infinity War, End Game had a lot of hype to live up to, and it did so seemingly effortlessly. The story, which on paper sounds quite simple, get the stones back and fix everything, takes some unexpected turns here and there and I have to applaud the filmmakers for making it so damn entertaining. The movie shines in being extremely funny, heartbreakingly sad and also filled to the brim with pulse-pounding action. The cast, which we know so well, all work with each other seamlessly. Special shoutout to Robert Downey Jr for giving by far his most vulnerable and amazing performance as Iron Man thus far. The climax of the film is one for the ages, similar to the final battle in Return of the King. The special effects, the score and the editing were naturally amazing, nothing less than expected from what these filmmakers have given us before. There is also plenty of fan service, sometimes a little too on the nose, but the plot and the characters are treated with the respect the Russo's have earlier shown to have for the franchise. Whatever turn the franchise takes after this, it will probably be exhilarating.

A Star Is Born (2018)

Hauntingly beautiful

[9/10 · 20 October 2018]

An absolute masterpiece by Bradley Cooper, who shines as both the lead and the director. Everything, from the cinematography to the soundtrack, was absolutely perfect to make one of the more darker and realistic musical films of the decade. Cooper nails it as a successful artist struggling with both a hearing issue and alcohol and drug addiction, successfully brought to the screen in some eerily beautiful scenes. Gaga steals the show however, with both her acting and singing talent brought to the front. She ditches her larger-than-life real-life persona and becomes someone vulnerable who is still amazingly talented. Another actor to surely be put in the spotlight is Sam Elliott, who plays Cooper's older brother. Seriously, who better than Elliott can be the voice of reason and give some heart warming speeches when everything seems lost. The soundtrack is pure gold. The concert scenes are perfect and intense and if Shallows does not at least get nominated for best original song, the academy will have some explaining to do. The story unfolds gorgeously as we follow these two people with very different lives come together to form a beautiful romance. The moment Gaga first joined Cooper on stage to perform Shallows is the definition of goosebumps. Their story then unravels, with Cooper descending into a gritty world of drugs and alcohol and Gaga getting sucked up by a slight exaggaration of today's oversaturated pop world. We as an audience can't help but grimace when she changes her beautifully ordinary look with disgusting orange hair, multiple layers of make-up and some gruesome outfits which are not to different from what current pop princesses tend to wear. We feel for both these characters as Cooper watches Gaga's manager develop her 'image', when all Cooper has done the entire film is try to convince her she doesn't need to change anything to be amazing. Every hope for a happy ending we have when Cooper successfully beats his addiction is squashed in the end with his tragic suicide, after which Gaga once again manages to blow everyone away with I Will Never Love Again, truely amazing.

Venom (2018)

If there was any potential, I can't see where it went.

[2/10 · 11 October 2018]

Overall, the film was extremely disappointing. Its positive points include Hardy's performance and the restaurant scene, one of the more uncomfortably funny scenes in a while. The pacing of the film is entirely off, starting of semi-promising, but having no Venom in the first half of the film and following it with a string of basic and bland CGI fights was not the way to go. The CGI is probably the worst part of the film, ranging from mediocre to downright awful. Especially the scene where the symbiote moves out of Eddie Brock's body to talk to him reminds of the 1997 film Spawn, aka awful. The script and dialogue are terribly basic. Michelle Williams is wasted as a love interest and is given some of the worst dialogue in the film ("I told you I could fight dirty.") Riz Ahmed's bad guy is somewhat interesting in human form, though his motives are never thoroughly explained, but in symbiote form he's downright awful. 'Riot' shows up suddenly at the end of the film as the big bad and is then promptly defeated in a boring CGI fight. Furthermore, the best thing about Venom in the comics is that he's an anti-hero, something that doesn't shine through in the film. Eddie Brock's conflict about whether or not deciding to accept the symbiote is overshadowed in the plot and I believe that the film would have profited from an R-rating. Sony should probably just let Marvel do all the work from now on. Having Hardy's Venom team up with Tom Holland's Spider-Man to take on Woody Harrelson's Carnage is a film I would like to see. To conclude, don't waste your time with this boring attempt at an anti-hero movie.