Monday, May 30, 2016

X-Men: Apocalypse (3D)

I absolutely loved Days of Future Past. I beleive it was even in my top ten list that year. So it should come as no surprise to anyone that I was excited to see Apocalypse. Despite what some critics are saying, I didn't think it was that bad. Sure it had a lot of issues and it's definitely the weakest of this new trilogy, but it was still enjoyable. 

Here the X-Men must once again reunite- this time to stop Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac), the worlds first mutant, who wants to wipe out mankind and start over again. 

Let's start out with some positive things. First of all, I loved a lot of the action/fight scenes. Some of the special effects were questionable but still bad ass. I like how director Bryan Singer didn't sugar coat things. You see quite a lot of blood and people getting crushed. He really pushed the PG-13 rating here. 

Just like Days of Future Past, Quicksilver (Evan Peters) was one of my favorite things about the movie. He stole every scene he was in and provided some much needed humor. The whole Sweet Dreams scene was amazing. Almost as good as the Time in a Bottle scene from the last movie. 

The movie focuses a lot on, a little too much at times, Charles/Professor X (James McAvoy) and Erik/Magneto (Michael Fassbender). Erik's story involving what happened to his wife and daughter is absolutely heartbreaking, although you can see it coming from a mile away. And they pretty much told you in the trailer what would happen so no need for anyone to get pissed because I didn't post a spoiler warning. Anyway, Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy have really good chemistry and I enjoyed seeing their relationship play out. Their characters need to just hurry up and fuck already. 

My biggest complaint has to do with Apocalypse. No offense to Oscar Isaac. I think he did the best he could with what he had to work with. The problem is the character itself. He's so over the top and cartoony. And he looks like one of those villains straight out of the 90s Power Rangers tv show. The writing/dialog for him was terrible. His whole motivation is this- he sees how fucked up the world has become in his absence so he decides to wipe out humanity and start over again. Gee, that's never been done before. If it weren't for Apocalypse I probably would've given this a much higher rating. 

I ended up seeing this in 3D only because the showtime worked out better. I'm not going spend any time talking. About that other than to say it's barely noticeable and so not worth the extra money. If you see it in theaters, definitely go to a 2D showing. 

Oh and before I forget, yes, there is a scene after the credits. I'm still a bit confused as to what it was about though. I'll admit, I'm not as familiar with the X-Men as I am The Avengers or Batman. 

Do I recommend you see Apocalypse? Sure.  Especially if you've already seen First Class and Days of Future Past. I wouldn't rush out to see it or anything, but it is a movie that should be seen in theaters. 

My Rating: 7.5/10

Friday, May 20, 2016

Money Monster

Because tomorrow is my birthday, I really don't have the time to right an actual review. But I can't leave you guys with nothing so here's my notes. Normally I'll do this on my iPhone right after I see a movie and then the next day take it and elaborate. Anyway, I promise I'll be back to my normal reviews next week. 



Plot-
Lee Gates (George Clooney) is a popular financial tv host. One day he and his producer Patty (Julia Roberts) are put in an extreme situation when an angry investor named Kyle (Jack O'Connell) takes over the studio. 

Pros:
•Strong performance by George Clooney
•Set mostly in real time
•Jodie Foster is decent director. Especially when it comes to thrillers.
•Leaves you on the edge of your seat. 
•George Clooney dancing to hip hop. Twice. 

Cons:
•Tone was all over the place. Mainly in the first half. 
•Apart from the three main leads, characters could've used a bit more development. 
•Predictable 

My Rating: 8/10

Saturday, May 7, 2016

Captain America: Civil War (IMAX)

I think the best way to start off this review is by taking a moment to say to the Russo brothers- THANK YOU! THANK YOU! A million times thank you. This is how you're suppose to do a super hero movie. HOLY SHIT!! I'm just blown away by how amazing Civil War was. 

Fearing for the safety of everyone after the recent events involving the Avengers, the government wants to pass a registration act which would limit when and where they are used and have to be approved by them. This causes tension and divides the group. Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) is for the act while Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans) is against it. Things escalate and it leads to all out war between Team Cap and Team Iron Man. 

From the moment that the movie began I knew I was in for a treat. It opens with a jaw dropping action sequence. Hell all of the action in this is so well choreographed. I honestly teared up while I was watching this I was so happy. This is how you do a superhero movie! 

But it's not non stop action the way a lot of these types of movies are. That can get tiring when that's all there is. The Russo brothers do an amazing job balancing it out with plenty of humor and drama as well. And they present both sides of the argument well. Going into this I was 100% Team Cap. I mean fuck Tony. Everything that happened in Age of Ultron was his fault. But now that I've seen the movie I can definitely see his side of things. 

They also get the characters right. I can't even begin to tell you how nice that is to see, especially after a certain movie left a very bad taste in my mouth *cough*BatmanvSuperman*cough*. 

Despite having a lot to cover, each character gets a moment, or several, to shine. One of my favorite parts of the movie was Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman). He's so bad ass and has a nice little arc which was good since going into this I didn't know a whole lot about his character. It sets things up for his solo movie which I'm very excited for. 

Of course, I have to talk about Spider-Man (Tom Holland). I won't say much other than he steals every scene he's in. It's a small part in the story but I swear Marvel does more with Spider-Man here than Sony did in all five of their movies put together. Sony just needs to back the fuck up and let Marvel handle things from now on. 

If you have a chance to see this in IMAX it's well worth the price. And if they have a 2D IMAX version like my theater did that's even better. I can't stand 3D in most movies these days and will only choose that format if I have no other option. 

I really don't know why I bother with this since you should all know by now, but- STAY DURING THE CREDITS!! There's actually two scenes- one kind of in the middle and one at the very end. 

So do I recommend you see this? Hell yeah I do! I never thought it would be possible to top the first Avengers movie or even Winter Soldier but Civil War has. It is now my favorite Marvel movie. I will be seeing this multiple times. The Russo brothers have done a fantastic job. I can't wait to see what they do with Infinity Wat. 

Now if you'll excuse me, I need time to recover from the massive orgasms I had while watching this. 

My Rating: 10/10