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Reviews
Tyler Perry's Divorce in the Black (2024)
Tense Sometimes Predictable, But Very Well Done
I'm not necessarily a fan of Tyler Perry's work, but this film got the job done. With the exception of the lead actress, all the actors in the film did an excellent job. This would have gotten a higher rating from me if she had been a stronger, and more believable character. Her husband and his family, in particular his mother were outstanding in their despicable personalities and actions. The preacher and his wife were also a highlight of character acting. In the film, as you struggle along with the lead actress in her life, we watch various people do things that seemed natural and often had really bad outcomes. Just like real life. There were also moments we were both saying "oh come on...don't do that!"
The movie has guts and overall a tense ride with real people doing real things and somehow getting through it all. Recommended!
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)
Lots of Action, Total Nonsense
The movie starts out promising. There are good interactions between the characters, and we meet interesting people. The dialog makes sense, and the movie builds on showing technology and Kong. Then we get to see Godzilla and ultimately, we know they will meet. All good thus far. Then Kong comes up out of Hollow Earth and has a toothache. It becomes both annoying and unbelievable at this point. We meet "Crocodile Dundee mixed with Dr. Doolittle." A most annoying character. The movie has moved into the stupid and unbelievable for even sci-fi. By the halfway point, 40,000 giant apes and other assorted creatures of "Hollow Earth" have materialized and then spend the next 90 minutes creating havoc, noise, and fighting for goodness knows what reason. Somehow Kong gets a yellow steel device added to his right arm because he gets hurt. How they devised it and got it there is of no consequence to the movie, nothing else makes sense, so why worry about that?
At some point my brain disconnected from all that was going on and the images just flashed across the screen in their nonsensical dance of idiocy. For some reason Mothra appears and fights for whatever side Mothra was fighting for. It was never clear to me who or what was on which side and how any of the creatures knew who was who or why and whom they were fighting. It was loud, and it was filled with action. If that's what you want to see, well then watch the movie.
It would get one star if it wasn't for the initial 20 minutes of the movie, which would make for a much better movie than what we got if they had just carried that style forward.
The Bear: Ice Chips (2024)
Jamie Lee Never Shuts Up
This episode is, like the episodes that preceded it, mostly about one main character. These are not "The Bear" as we have enjoyed it in the past. In this episode, Jamie Lee Curtis over acts, over talks, and overwhelms the screen. Never have we thought of just turning an episode of "The Bear" off, but this was one of them.
It is highly rated because Jamie Lee Curtis fans have blanketed it with 10s. This is by far the worst of "The Bear" episodes in a thus far dismal 3rd season.
We so looked forward to this season of "The Bear" and that we've gotten all these disjointed shows is more than a disappointment. I've reviewed it and rated it 4 stars because it truly is a bad episode and Jamie Lee Curtis gave me a headache.
Wonka (2023)
It's a Musical
First off, this is a musical, regardless of what the official word is on it. Second, most of the actors can't really sing, they are OK, but they aren't singers. The filming of it is rather spectacular in its colors and cinematography, but there seems to be nothing funny, only a bit bizarre and oddball. Not sure what they were attempting to do with this movie, but it falls flat in my opinion. I was squirming in my seat after the first 30 seconds. I admit I didn't watch the whole movie, I would not have been able to stand it. Studios need to stop making sequels, prequels, and redos of movies that have been successful. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was brilliant. This movie is not, it's not even close to the second try at it. Gene Wilder is still Willy Wonka. I was kind with giving it five stars. It deserves two.
Monsters of California (2023)
Unwatchable Stupid
We watched it for about 20 minutes and it was one scene after another with a combination of bad acting, dialogue, and direction. The three main characters are so clueless they couldn't even do what they set out to do. Ostensibly because they were stoned. One apparently took multiple doses of LSD. If a movie promises some kind of story, we'll struggle through until the end, hopeful of redemption. This movie promises nothing. Example: There was a little kid in a scene at the dinner table. She wasn't saying a word. Now, this can be hysterical if the child can act at all, because they can make faces and draw us in. This one looked like she was watching a slow-motion ping-pong match, looking back and forth with just a blank look on her face.
It's not funny, it's not well acted, it's not worth your time.
Last Sentinel (2023)
Tedious
The title says it all. This movie drags on from one unclear moment to the next. After spending nearly two hours with it, I think it could have made an interesting short, not a feature length movie. To its credit and the actors' credit, they were fully realized and animated people. Very good character development and done very early in the film. But to what purpose? There are movies that leave open questions that one can think about and were created to good effect. In this movie, it leaves too many open questions that one can't resolve. In the end, I didn't care about the characters, I didn't care what they did or why they did it. The movie left me completely flat and disappointed I spent money and time to see it.
The Ritual Killer (2023)
Slow start with a bad ending, but thrilling in the middle
My two criticisms of this movie are the slow and confusing start and the very end. Ultimately the beginning makes sense, but it isn't terribly clear so bear with it for 15 minutes or so. I only looked at the IMDB rating for this movie after renting it to stream. I was ready to give up on it based on the first 10-15 minutes and those ratings. But once it gets going, it's an entertaining movie that tells a tale and has some unexpected plot twists and tension. Vernon Davis's performance was particularly striking. The character he plays is largely without dialogue, but his physical performance both athletically and just his facial expressions at times are chilling. Give it a try, I'd recommend it without hesitation.
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
Frenetic activity and Subtitled so you can't watch the action
While I know a lot of people really liked this movie, it's one major flaw is that for those who don't understand Mandarin and Cantonese have to read the subtitles. Since the action is all over the place, having to look at subtitles to be able to understand what is being said keeps you from being able to watch the movie to see what is happening. It's a terrible combination.
I found that after watching for about 45 minutes, I was exhausted and completely disinterested in watching any more of it.
They took a high-level topic of a multiverse and made a stupid movie about it. The activities were stupid. Their meeting with the IRS agent was stupid. Virtually everything in the movie was stupid. Not funny, not interesting, just frenetic, stupid, random activities.
I'd give it negative stars if that were a rating.
I'm glad we saw it for free, so I didn't waste anything but 45 minutes of my time on it.