michaelely-01627 Reviews

Vicious Fun (2020)

A decent watch on a cold November night

[7/10 · 11 November 2021]

What can I say, I really liked this movie. The performances were great. The cinematography was excellent. The music had that 80's horror synth vibe and I'm all about that. And the premise was pretty original. One of my only gripes, besides a few moments of subpar acting, is that the initial premise gets abandoned in the third act and the film turns into your standard slasher. That being said, I wouldn't say no to a sequel.

Eternals (2021)

Not the worst, not the best.

[6/10 · 7 November 2021]

This film makes me appreciate Endgame a bit more. Endgame showed audiences that a bunch of heroes could share the screen as long as we cared about them and they had their own point and purpose. Eternals attempts to do the same, but in it's 2 and a half hour runtime they don't manage to give their heroes enough character development, beyond the droning exposition, to equal The Avengers. The end result is a cinematic version of the old saying, "too many cooks in the kitchen". The plot and pacing are quite convoluted at times, and I, as well as many other MCU fans are growing wise and weary of these "Everything is at stake, and yet nothing is really at stake" plot lines. The acting and direction were great. Cinematography was great. But we've seen these action sequences done a lot better. We've seen these villains better done in the Hellboy franchise. The music of this film was not iconic. In the end, I was bored. My butt was sore from all that sitting, and I left the theater not really caring about what I had just watched. Most marvel films see me out of the cinema with a smile on my face, eagerly discussing what I just witnessed. Not this time, sadly.

Dune (2021)

Epic on every scale.

[10/10 · 25 October 2021]

Truly a film worth seeing on the biggest screen possible. I've been to a lot of movies in my time. Very few compare to the grandeur and artistry displayed in Dune. Denis Villeneuve has created something beautiful in this nearly 3 hour film. It is the first half of the first book of Frank Herbert's epic novel and as a fan of the series, I can say that Villeneuve's adaption sincerely holds up. I left the theater grinning from ear to ear. I couldn't believe he pulled this off so spectacularly. And can I just take a second to talk about Hans Zimmer's masterful musical score? The notes flow as easily as the Spice and in an IMAX theater you feel it in your soul. Everything about this movie is on the most grand and immersive scale I've seen in over a decade. The performances here are amazing. Timothée Chalemet has become Paul Atreides. I will admit that I had initial doubts he could handle the role. I was wrong. Wildly wrong. He's bringing the heat here. I honestly could go on and on about how great this film is. Talking for days about it. I suspect that people will be talking about Dune for years to come, the way they talk about Star Wars, or Lord of The Rings, or The Matrix. It deserves all the praise it's been getting, and I desperately hope that the second part gets greenlit immediately. Dune is why we come to the movies.

Saturday Night Live: Rami Malek/Young Thug (2021) Season 47, Episode 3

Is this even a comedy show anymore?

[1/10 · 17 October 2021]

I'm a lifelong fan of SNL, but I am sorry and sad to say that this season so far hasn't brought out a single laugh from me yet. And my sense of humor isn't hard to get a laugh out of. Weekend Update is still the only thing I really like about the show. That and Kenan, Bowen Yang and Pete Davidson are carrying the entire series now. Kate McKinnon was nowhere to be seen in this entire episode. I'm worried that this entire season is going to be trash. Rami Malek was wooden and unfunny. Daniel Craig was great though the few times they had him in sketches.

Halloween Kills (2021)

Just saw this tonight. Not too bad.

[8/10 · 15 October 2021]

The life insurance rates in Haddonfield gotta be crazy expensive.

David Gordon Green consistently holds up to John Carpenter's original classic. This movie was a lot of fun. Paid good homage to the original without feeling too heavyhanded about it. It's a more brutal film than the previous installment. A bigger cast. Bigger body count. The Shape really gets to shine. My only gripe is with some of the performances. At times the delivery of dialogue felt a little B-Flickish. Towards the end I was rooting for Michael, as opposed to the ending of the previous film when I was rooting for Laurie. The social commentary here isn't too difficult to see, but it's believable. I wanted to see this in a theater, but I already saw Venom and Scream, and Dune is next week. That's enough of my money gone to Hollywood. I caught it on Peacock. Wish they'd release it in 4K. Anyway, happy Halloween everyone. Lock your doors, and beware the Boogeyman.

Candyman (2021)

I hope Jordan Peele can do better than this.

[5/10 · 27 September 2021]

Currently watching Candyman. Visually it looks great, but story-wise it does not hold up to the original. I gave it a shot because it's written and produced by Jordan Peele and despite the (what I consider to be) failures of "Us" and "The Twilight Zone", I still have high hopes that he'll achieve greatness beyond his sophomore films. I've had him shortlisted as one of the most promising new directors currently working. Here's to hoping he gets better. You can see the love he has for this genre of film, but he's slowly showing his inexperience in writing them. I'm still looking forward to Nope, but with each new sub par entry in his catalogue, my excitement evaporates a little bit more.

Malignant (I) (2021)

So so bad

[2/10 · 11 September 2021]

It makes me sad to see James Wan putting his name on this schlock. Bad acting. Bad writing. Terrible musical score that ruins whatever mood they're going for. The reveal was done better in the Sorcerer's Stone. Supernatural plot maguffins go completely unexplained. Nothing about this movie is good, except for a ridiculous stylized action/gore sequence. Wan's direction wasn't enough to save this travesty of film. Skip it and don't look back.

Pig (I) (2021)

Give him his second Statue.

[9/10 · 19 July 2021]

Just go see it.

This isn't a campy Nic Cage performance. This is Nic Cage sinking his teeth into a role and playing it so convincingly that I almost forgot he was Nic Cage.

The Nevers (2021–2023)

Cancelled after two seasons.

[2/10 · 13 April 2021]

The dialogue is even more unintelligible than Tenet's. Use of CGI is heavyhanded and unconvincing. When they aren't smash cutting to the next action scene (which I always feel I've seen done better a thousand times over elsewhere) the show's runtime is padded by everlasting dialogue sequences meant to set up the plot, but what instead only serve to crowd the narrative with more garbage lines than The Matrix Reloaded. If this pilot is a harbinger for what's to come, I will Never watch The Nevers ever again.

Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)

The wonder is gone.

[5/10 · 26 December 2020]

I could tell from the opening that it was gonna be bad. I think about the opening of The Dark Knight and how well plotted and written and performed that was. It was an engaging piece of film that served to showcase the new villain. The opening of Wonder Woman 1984 only showcases Gal Gadot, a character we already know. Nothing unexpected or plot leading happens in the opening. Plot gets replaced by CGI. This movie is filled with bad direction, bad music, bad performances, all trying to tell a bad story. DC should have kept this one in the vault. My real issue here is, I shouldn't be falling asleep during a Wonder Woman movie. But there I was. Drowsy.

Doom Patrol (2019–2023)

DC is finally finding it's footing

[9/10 · 26 July 2020]

DC had a wildly rough start there. They had a few hits (Nolan's Batman, Shazam, Wonder Woman, and Joker) but most of the rest has been sloppy nonsense. I had begun to lose confidence in their ability to tell an engaging story, which is sad because I've long believed that DC had the best stories when compared to Marvel. Up until now Marvel has been leadinng the way with the MCU, but they are beginning to suffer from a plague of PG-13 diminishing returns. DC has realized that it has an opportunity to appeal to a more adult audience and are going toward Hard-R territory and that's smart. DC stories always felt darker, anyway. All that being said, I almost skipped Doom Patrol. My buddy insisted, however, that it was great, and I trust his judgement, so I watched it. It's great. Maybe DC hasn't fully redeemed itself yet, but they are certainly headed down the path of redemption. I read a bunch of one star reviews and shook my head. I don't know what that's about. I say, ignore all reviewers and see for yourself.

Devs (2020)

So far, so beautiful.

[10/10 · 7 March 2020]

Tight, deatiled storytelling with smart dialogue as well as an intriguing premise and baffling mystery drive this techno-thriller. Alex Garland is proving himself a master storyteller with each new project he undertakes. Nick Offerman is hauntingly creepy and convincing in his role. I have not seen a single character that seemed out of place here. I will say, I am hooked and 2 episodes in I am greedily awaiting my next fix.

Villains (I) (2019)

Great acting, tight plot, and very smart pacing.

[9/10 · 15 December 2019]

Saw this tonight and really enjoyed it. Bill Skarsgard shines in his role as does his fellow actors. The relationships between the two couples feel organic and real, not forced. It doesn't seem like they're acting. The plot is fairly simple, but it's elegantly executed and never drags. There is very little violence, but when violence happens, it feels visceral. And the dialogue is hypnotic. Scene direction and musical score is on point. My only gripe with this film is a minor one: the resolution felt abrupt, and after all that build up I would have liked to see something more. But overall, this was a damn fine movie that deserves more exposure than the small amount it has already had.

Doctor Sleep (2019)

Lives up to Kubrick's classic as well as King's novels.

[10/10 · 9 November 2019]

This film was a masterpiece that tied Stephen King's book with Kubrick's vision of The Shining perfectly. There were some changes from the original novel, just as there were in Kubrick's adaption of The Shining, but the alterations resonated beautifully with King's original ending to The Shining. Ewan McGreggor portrayed Danny Torrance with high class acting, as did each other actor. The direction, cinematography, and musical score was also near perfect. A worthy successor to Kubrick's classic masterpiece, on all counts. Fans of Kubrick's film as well as King's novel will not be disappointed.

Baby Driver (2017)

Best Car Chase Film Ever Made

[10/10 · 8 November 2019]

I won't say much, just that, don't listen to the negative reviews, the few of them that there are. This was a fun, smart movie with tense action, a good story line, likable, memorable characters, all built on a scaffolding of a kick-ass soundtrack. Edgar Wright's direction is spot on. I would have given this eleven stars if I could have.