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The Matrix (1999)
Will never forget the feeling of seeing this the first time
It's been 25 years and it's still an incredible movie that holds up well. Not just the story, pacing, dialogue but the special affects as well.
I barely knew anything about this film before going to see it other than Reeves was in it and to say I got my mind blown away is an understatement.
This was as enjoyable a time that I've ever had in a theater. Reeves, Fishburne and Moss play their characters perfectly. "I know Kung Fu" is just a great line.
From the literal beginning where we listen in on a phone call to the last minute of Neo telling the AI entity how it's gonna go, it's brilliant. It's amazingly rewatchable.
War of the Worlds: Episode #2.4 (2021)
No idea what what this show is doing.
Outside of Bill and Catherine, I don't know what anyone else's point is here. They serve very little contribution, if any, to the story. This includes Emily and the horrific Sacha character that are supposed to be unique but their negative characteristics smothers any remote interest in seeing what they might do to help the story.
And while we are on Sacha, this is the most hated character I've come across in a while. I mean if he was up against the warden in Shawshank Redemption, I'm pro warden. At least the warden and other hard characters like him serve the story. Sacha is the massive embodiment of a spoiled brat that is okay with people dying. It's painfully obvious he's a jerk (keeping it PG) yet everyone doesn't even bat an eye in his direction.
The best purpose he serves is distracting from the poorly written Emily character. Despite the fact she tried to murder Bill, everyone forcefully defends her after Bill admits to experimenting on her in an effort to literally save the world. Somehow everyone forgets she tried to off him. The best part about this episode is at one point Emily is being chummy with Sacha and says "I don't think anyone trust me." Gee you think?!!!
And the habit of this show just casually killing kids adds to its collection in this episode. In a manner that's confusing as it has nothing to do with the plot, Catherine and friends hear a scream while driving, pull over to investigate just to see a family has been killed and stand there and watch a little girl be brutally killed by an alien robot dog. We've seen multiple kids killed already and it's become a morbid and disturbing fixation by this show.
It will be a minor miracle if I finish this season at this point. We'll see.
Godzilla (2014)
Still the best one.
I liked this film when it came out but have come to appreciate it much more with every new debacle they come out with in the Godzilla\Kong universe.
The latest one (Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire) has gone to such insane levels of absurdity that it makes this one directed by Gareth Edwards look flat out realistic by comparison.
Human characters are just fill-ins in monster movies but they were at least tolerable in this one. Looking back more and more it bugs me they killed of Cranston's character so quickly. Watanabe and Hawkin's characters help as well ( and then are promptly discarded in next Godzilla film) so they were solid supporting characters.
It's not a perfect film but it actually let the monsters be the stars and kept the plot relatively simple.
People who would actually prefer The New Empire over this one are way to gullible for eye candy. It's alright to have a movie be a spectacle but make you think. The New Empire doesn't even come close. This one does.
World War Z (2013)
Just criminally underrated
It was nice to have a movie about zombies that wasn't just another horror entry that was just from an isolated group's perspective. Some zombie movies\shows work and others don't of course but they always use the same setup. We see it solely from from the view of an average Joe or Joes.
This was refreshing to see how government and military could legitimately try and handle it. This wasn't done just for simple scares. It wasn't about how much ridiculous gore and blood they could push. It was about how intelligent people would try and work this out. I mean don't get me wrong there are plenty of intense scenes but they fit in the story. It's not just for the purpose of showing more blood.
And how it's done is actually believable. I know this is based on a book but it's just a refreshing take on the genre to see people earnestly trying to fix it. Not just more scenes showing nothing except how bleak can we make it.
Pitt plays the part well and the narrative makes sense. Some have criticized how the 3rd act goes but I don't get that. It makes sense why the focus is at the W. H. O. Location.
It's truly a bummer the sequel never happened and that this movie seems to get more criticism because it had production troubles so that automatically equates to poor quality. A lot of times it does but this film worked. It's done really well and needs to be recognized as such.
Oh and by the way, make sure you watch the unrated version. The PG-13 version released in theaters is still okay, but just okay.
Argylle (2024)
About 20 minutes too long
Spoiler alert right off the bat here:
After Elle\Rachel learns she is a spy who got amnesia, they should've had her end everything by having her being the spy she remembers that she is now.
But instead it goes on and on and on with her being a double spy and then a triple spy and then she is hypnotized and then there's a incredibly long oil skating sequence (yes oil, not ice) that has her doing one ridiculous stunt after another. One time was fine, maybe two, but after a half dozen times of twirling around in oil (that somehow never gets on her dress) while easily knocking off henchmen with multiple guns, I was screaming for the love to just move on please.
It beats you down with an ending that, as frenetic as it is, gets boring. The whole colorful shootout sequence made me think of the colorful ending of Kingsman. It looks like they copied same scenario, minus heads being removed of course. Vaughn apparently really liked it.
I don't remember enjoying a film initially and then just wanting to end within one viewing. It felt monotonous by the end. Not any mystery why I'd didn't do better in the theater. Just an incredible waste of an impressive list of talent.
The 'Burbs (1989)
Forgot how dumb this was
Saw this when it came out or shortly after if did in late 80s and just remember it was a pointless, humorless, annoying, obnoxious flick. Just saw it again probably for first time since then and that opinion has been reinforced.
It is awful and every character minus Carrie Fisher is irritating and bizarre. Including Hanks and the other neighbors. Everything that happens is pointless and just odd as heck. I don't know if there's supposed to be good guys because they are just constant spewing a fingernails-on-chalkboard act.
This is barely memorable and what is, is for the wrong reasons. Just a waste.
Echo 3 (2022)
A new worst ending of a show
Like a lot of people I thought Game of Thrones ended terribly but the worst show finale for me has been Dexter.
Well step aside. This moronic attempt at some sort dramatic, deep character wrap up is the biggest turd of an end I have ever seen. Everything through first 9 episodes was solid enough. Some weak moments but still engaging.
But what we're they thinking when "fleshing" out Amber, our main female lead? She's got a somewhat annoying quality about her throughout the series but in the last episode, it is amped up by a factor of 10.
After her husband and brother literally risk everything to rescue her, she is immediately ungrateful and even insults the husband like he's a deadbeat. At one point, she blames him for letting her get kidnapped. I mean what the serious heck?!
Husband still tries but she dumps him immediately after he saves her and the show ends with them in a boat heading back.
Seriously that's it! Her entire schtick in that last episode practically invalidated the entire story that was the entire series up to this finale. She's an massively horrible person and we were better off leaving her in the prison.
I've never seen a show crapped on by it's own creators and producers. The show creator (Mark Boal) directed the finale and it's clear he made the focus of the show's ending based on some miscalculations.
I mean holy mercy that was an god-awful ending. The show never had intelligent dialogue at any point which makes this falling-on-face ending so painful.
And by terrible dialogue, let me tell you: Our 2 heroes are talking to a reporter and the brother says something is classified. The husband, with a straight face says, "yeah we can't tell you because that would be illegal". Did he think the reporter needed that explanation? Did the show creators think some exposition was needed because nobody knows what classified is? Just a mindless consistency to empty words. Ugh!
Skip this show.
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters: The Way Out (2023)
What a wasted episode
For some reason they decided to spend an entire episode on the 3 most annoying characters. Anyone not Cate, May or Kentaro would be far more interesting but the show runners keep pushing these 3. Kurt Russell should be main character along with, and this will sound crazy, the Monarch organization.
But the emphasis on these 3 is confusing. They are not compelling at all. Don't give a crap about any backstory for them and they bring nothing to the story. None of them are interesting individually so collectively they are cringeworthy more often then not.
The flaw in any Godzilla\King Kong monster movies is usually the people. So in a series, they unfortunately have too much time now and spend way too long on unnecessary, forced "character development" that adds nothing.
Too many shows think spending time on a character automatically equates to adding depth to the show. Too many times it is instead a detraction and it is even more so here.
This story would hook people more if Russell's character was pushing this show. But he doesn't and these shallow characters are boring.
Get the focus right.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022)
There is no doubt this is the worst Marvel show
If you can't admit that, or at least admit it doesn't at least rank with the worst, you have zero ability to be objective.
There is legitimately no plot. One episode focuses on fashion and dating. Another one on a unrelated wedding. Another one is copyright issues? I mean in when I say there was no story arc.
Jennifer Walters is constantly the dumbest person in the room. She's easily fooled, taken advantage of or talked down to condescendingly and she either doesn't get it or brushes it off so quickly.
Blonsky, Hulk, Wong and Daredevil are all wasted to incredible degrees. They are all neutered to some extent.
I'm not sure who the villain is. There are a bunch of jerks but there's nothing for She-Hulk to fight. Titian's is........weird. I guess she's supposed to be some kind of super villain but I'm not sure why or how.
And then the 4th wall crap. Its clear they think it's cute but it doesn't bring anything to the show and makes Walters more grating than adorable. They add nothing. But then they go all in with the gimmick in the finale. I mean she stops the finale to demand an amazingly uneventful ending. Seriously nothing happens. It just ends. It feels like they couldn't figure out how to end it so they used that as a basis to create a pointless finale.
Give this one a pass. I heard Daredevil was in it and I thought there might be something leading up to the next Daredevil series but you can literally skip this and be fine catching it separately when it comes out.
Disney has done what probably should've been obvious with Star Wars and Marvel. They are average-at-best stories trotting around as cash grabs masquerading as an elite IP that is a ghost of the original. New minds need to be involved.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law: Just Jen (2022)
Good lord this show is dumb
And I mean dumb in the purest sense of the word. This stupid wedding episode along with the previous episode that was about fashion and dating, feels like Sex and the City where Carrie turned green once I a while. I have no idea why she was invited to the wedding and the "drama" that happens there is nauseating.
She-Hulk does nothing and I'm beyond feeling sorry for Walter's poor situations because she lets it happen by being a push-over and just simply not that bright. She's a lawyer but it always feels like everyone else in the room is smarter than her.
I would say these episodes have done nothing to move the story along but I have no idea what the story is so far. Anyone who claims they like this show can't even tell you what the story is.
When it started with Blonsky I was looking forward to it but this strayed into something that is indescribable. Like I legitimately don't know what they are accomplishing and whey they are aiming for.
Maslany is talented and incredibly wasted in this role. Gonna finish it but expectations are massively low right now.
Star Trek: Picard: Monsters (2022)
Season 2 has gotten ridiculously boring.
Season 1 was much more enjoyable and way more engaging. Story was vastly better. Oh and it actually took place in space!!!!
Season 2 has decided to go into overkill mode with the heavy-handed, overly-philosophical, deeply dramatic (of which none are paying off) plot points that drag along.
They go back in time which I assumed would be for a couple episodes. Now it's been 6 and not even sure what they're trying to do anymore. Most likely they just wanted to go cheap in the budget. I mean they could've wrapped up the story in past earth in 3 episodes at most. Nothing is happening. But way less special affects needed I guess.
Rios' thing with the doctor is pointless. Except to generate (or attempt to) a political point here and there.
But if you started watching this season from the end of episode 2 and on, you'd might forget this is a sci-if show.
I mean good grief, it's just scene after after scene of blah, blah, blah. So tired of Picard being clueless of what's going on and repeatedly having eureka moments like he's solving a puzzle. But not before we throw in another meandering convo on deep secrets of the universe or something.
And Raffi, definitely likable in season 1, has become fingernails on chalkboard with constant juvenile whining.
Let the grownups start writing episodes again. Cut your losses on this season and move on.
Star Trek: Picard: Watcher (2022)
Where did the Star Trek part go?
Because this episode was something else. It wasn't Star Trek but a meandering, pointless attempt at making a political statement but comes across as forced regurgitation. It was a nauseating episode.
First there's the big old meanies at ICE. They're clearly just a bunch of doo-doo heads picking on nothing but innocent and perfect angels at the clinic. That's why every ICE agent is a white, probably heterosexual man.
FWIW I worked as contractor at an ICE facility and it's nowhere close to like that. Like at all. They're frustrated with how they're portrayed and only go after bad guys. You have to do something bad to get on their radar. They do not raid clinics like this.
But even besides that, Raffi, likable in season 1, is now unlikeable in season 2. I mean I really liked her but now would be fine if she was gone.
Producers can't take 1 second from trying to shove down our throats how badass Seven is supposed to be. She feels forced is almost all her scenes. Like you could remove her and nothing about story would change. Her and Raffi together are getting tiresome.
Rios was fascinating in season 1 but has become boring which is anything but what he was in first season.
And Elnor, the most intriguing but underutilized character is wasted. I mean I would pick about any other 6 characters to get rid of first.
Overall, the story is not progressed at all in this episode but the story this season is massively weaker to begin with so that's not saying much.
The whole Guinean thing is......weird. Not much is accomplished with her but as mentioned before, that could be said for this entire episode.
Enjoy if you can.
Halo: Inheritance (2022)
It's so annoying.........
...when writers\producers fool themselves into thinking they've got a compelling character on their hands. They bought into their own creation before actually considering the big picture.
Kwan was already wearing thin before this episode but then they go and give her a whole episode? What were they thinking? Kwan's passion\bravery actually comes across as whiny teenager at this point. At least they had enough sense having Master Chief drop her off a couple episodes In because it's easy to imagine how much this character would have dragged things down.
We get an intro into some random tribe or something out in the desert but they are all-wise so they're important I guess. Burn Gorman's character was a bunch of nothing in the end.
Oh and nothing here has anything to do with the story arc for this season.
Echo 3: We Reject Your Influence (2022)
What a waste of an episode
This is one of those episodes that stops everything and attempts to do a deep character dive and give a overly dramatic, deep thinking, lots of anguish type of deal. It instead is boring and tedious. The story does not progress in the slightest. They really did pause the story to try and give us a "thinking" episode. But nothing is accomplished. You could see it coming early into it that at the end we are literally right back where we started. This episode could've been told in about 15 minutes.
We can start with removing half the dialogue between Amber and Hilde. And I mean easily half of it. Then they show more than necessary of Amber braving waterfalls and rough terrain considering it was all going to be moot.
Maybe 20 minute episode stretched to 60. We never see Bambi or Prince so the pace is mind-numbingly slow.
Do I still like the show overall? Yes I do. But this episode wasn't nearly as "powerful" as they clearly thought they were doing. An unnecessary detour. Get back to the story. Let's go.
Jack Ryan: Ghosts (2022)
Weird logic gap in episode but still good season
This might be my favorite season so far. Like the pacing and enjoying the story but.........there is a part in the climatic action scene that makes zero sense.
Ryan has idea for military convoy to leave last truck in tunnel to prevent\block suicide bomber following them trying to catch up to them. But the rest of the convoy drives away so the 2 soldiers in that last truck get out once they stop and have to run rest of way out of tunnel.
Ryan realizes they won't make it out in time, commandeers one of the other convoy vehicles as they come out of tunnel, goes back in to get them and barely makes it out.
So the obvious question is why didn't another vehicle in convoy stay with that last truck and just pick up those 2 soldiers and take them out with them? Could've easily given them a ride but our major plan is reliant on these guys just running?
We need Ryan to be a hero sure but seems like a dozen better ways to come up with that would have made way more sense.
Like I said still like this season and overall this episode was good, but that glaring gap in common sense drops it a couple notches to 6.
The Witcher: Blood Origin (2022)
Why do they keep doing this?
You have a bad starting point when your production falls under the category of "things no one asked for". The Witcher is a fantastic show and very loved (for now but that may change) so to try to abuse that buy trying to sell a bill of goods with a weakly made, poorly connected new show, it shouldn't work and it doesn't.
No one was clamoring for Solo, 3 Hobbit movies, 14 Home Alone sequels, The Book of Boba Fett etc. Yet so many times they try to take advantage of a well established, fairly well liked property and pour mud on it because they phoned it some aspects of the production relying (knowingly or not) on the name attached it to make it "successful".
Blood Origins is just......a whole lot of nothing. You have to have a commanding leading character which The Witcher does (or did) but very forgettable characters here. This is just weak stuff. It just begs for you to not watch it.
And I hope like myself, you get tired of reviews here that start with "Ignore the haters....." because ironically they are the ones to not take seriously. They are either trolls, blindly loving fanboys or paid plants. They're just annoying.
There is very little to find to compliment here. I mean it's hard not to like Yeoh in something but she's not given much here. The rest of the show doesn't seem worth it. Just because you already have Netflix doesn't translate to you might as well watch it. Just leave it be.
Memory (2022)
That's how it ends?
Oddly enough the actual memory issues our protagonist experiences take away some enjoyment of the movie. They're intended to add to the drama and it's a retraction instead.
Nonetheless it was still enjoyable until our hero (Neeson) suddenly decides to go suicide by cop. Why? It doesn't make sense why then and there. But before he does our other hero (Pearce) realizes he had given him a clue before his strange death. He finds a flash drive because of it only to be told it's pointless now because our hero is dead.
Well WTH was the whole point of this? So our good guys decide to take matters into own hands and take out main villain off the books. So now it feels like everything done up to that point to get evidence that our hero strangely and unnecessarily gives up life for was rendered moot. Feels like whole time was wasted.
Still give this a few stars because it's always good seeing Neeson kicking some ass. Even if it's just a little bit.
Ambulance (2022)
Dumb enough to think Michael Bay might actually change.
Bay has become beyond cookie cutter. Horrific camera movement, dumbass juvenile humor, annoying and immature characters, non-sensical action and plot, way too long run time (for the story), ridiculous direction changes etc.
He's got to have the dumbest directing style out there. If you saw Bad Boys or The Rock, then you've seen everything he's about. It's literally the same thing today. I have no idea how I even got through 3 Transformers movies.
Only thing that's can be considered change is Bay has unfortunately discovered drones. Holy crap the number of fly by shots was insane. If you took them out, might cut film by a third.
But I would say his constant abuse of cringy middle school humor does make this very hard to make it through. Not even one joke lands. But I can see Bay chuckling behind the camera every time one gets spewed out. Just dumb.
And I apologize to all middle schoolers for insulting you. You didn't deserve that.
The Operative (2019)
What happened to rest of the ending?
My rating is almost based entirely on the abrupt ending. She's meeting with her contact, leaves knowing they are being watched, he decides to try and stop them going after her by literally tackling a guy, she enters train station, they subdue him and..."written and directed by Yuval Adler". WTH?!!!
Where's the last 10 minutes of the end scene? Did the editor get away with accidentally cutting the last portion of our ending and no one realize it? Did she get away? What happened to him after being subdued? What's next? In no way was the story done being told. I kept thinking I must've missed the "to be continued" flash on the screen.
Story was okay, nothing spectacular, up to that point but holy crap. Even though this was based off a book it has a feel of one of those films that began production without a completed script and it shows in the final result.
Whatever, hardly the first film to waste good talent. Freeman and Krueger do solid here with a middling story.
Locke & Key: The Premiere (2021)
Well that's a change.
Enjoyed seasons 1 for the most part but Netflix gonna Netflix. Somehow this series evaded the woke monitors there and they clearly got the mandat to fix that. The uncle, who was in the first season, shows up again here and immediately we see he's gay. No hint of that last season. And even better, his fiancé is black so we are definitely making up for it.
Good for them I guess? Anyhow another......odd scene is we here thumping in the house only to find out the youngest is trying to move a couch through a doorway by himself (because he found a key that gives him super strength) but it doesn't fit and for some reason he keeps trying to ram it through. Clearly we supposed to see the "fun" of the scenario of a kid lifting a couch by himself but all I could think was "hey stupid, how about turning the couch for a different angle or something?" No he just hits the doorway about a dozen times. There is magic in this show so maybe he thought it would magically get wider? Whatever.
Anyhow, one episode in season 2 and it's clear to see we're done. Hopefully we'll see Netflix let a show be what it needs to be and not push its agenda onto it forcing awkward pacing.
The First: Collisions (2018)
So done with the frickin daughter!!!!
Why are they spending so much time on her?! Six episodes in and she's served no purpose. We get it, she's messed up and our main character has home issues (like literally every main character created today) but she is nowhere near worth the amount of time they've taken away from our actual main story to give to her. This isn't adding incredible emotional drama, it's abrasive to watch\hear at this point. She's become fingernails on chalkboard.
Let's actually figure out Mars for a change and let her go to the background where she was meant to be. Instead they've put Mars to the background and I'm not even sure what is trying to be accomplished with that anymore.
This is after they literally spent the whole previous episode on their past including what happened to the mother\wife. Then this episode immediately starts with more daughter drama. The drill test at the lab and the boss's conversation with the reporter are way more interesting.
There's only 2 episodes left. Get the focus right.
Oh and Sean Penn is pretty buff now apparently.
The Goldbergs: The Rose-Kissy Thing (2021)
Losing it's way.
The actual Adam Goldberg left the show couple years ago and it just shows. It seems like Beverly has regressed and is getting harder to watch. Despite her terrible antics she ends humbling herself somewhat in the end........until this one. She bullies the school principal (yes again because I guess that's not old yet) to a poor awards show to involve non-athletes so Adam will be recognized so SHE will be recognized as that what the athletes. At no point is that ever pointed out and in fact Murray even "advises" Adam to remember she is always doing things for him.
That's just it, this is entirely selfishly motivated. She forces this so she will be recognized and Adam is merely a means to her own self-centeredness being satisfied. She's arrogant and never gets held accountable.
Losing George Segal definitely hurt the show but it's clear the original Adam is gone (no more original home videos). It's lost charm and getting harder to root for these guys.
Midnight Mass (2021)
Worth a watch
I kept waiting for this show to get stupid and veer away from its point but it seemed to stay on track. It still left me with a couple questions (why is Bev still doing what she's doing at the end, why is Father Paul suddenly questioning everything when it it seems it's going exactly the way he directed it) but it kept a good pace and story developments fit in overall picture. The sheriff seemed to spend more time defending being a Muslim instead of bothering to check on issues. This is a small island town yet the fact a few people are missing doesn't even register a slight finger lift to do anything. I still think it was a good character, just too slow to react to situations a sheriff should clearly look into.
But again a very intriguing story and good characters to move it along. I recommend.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: One World, One People (2021)
Our "epic" finale is dedicated to a preachy lecture?
This probably represents the current state of Disney today better than anything. This series should have been an absolutely thrilling series of action and impactful character decisions but they killed that to get an unbelievable bore of a speech by Wilson. Thankfully he had the cliche white men in power to throw it to. What a waste of a final episode.
Our main antagonists set off bombs that killed innocently killed civilians and felt zero affect by it but Disney has Falcon hold her lifeless body at the end as if she's the victim. She was no victim. Regardless of her cause. I mean are you out of your stupid mind?! At no point did I ever feel she was just a poor victim of life circumstances. She needed to be stopped and they decided to make Sharon Carter appear a bad guy for doing what Wilson was gutless to do. Never got a feeling Wilson was worthy to take the shield. Bucky deserved it more.
At least the way Disney played this series out he did. Felt forced that Sam just HAD to be it. So poorly written.
Shadow in the Cloud (2020)
What the turd was that?
This is one of those where you don't even know where to start. From the ridiculous fact that she dangles outside of a B-17 for a decent chunk of time while holding a package that has a baby in it and they are at least a few thousand feet in the air. Then there's a ridiculous thing where she falls out of a plane but luckily a Japanese zero blows up below her that blast her right back in the plane. Luckily this causes not even a scratch on her. This is one of those things where you swear you can't make it up and yet they obviously did. But then you realize there's a reason no one else has made it up because it's so dumb ass you don't even know where to start.
Then there's the gremlin. Which I think is the focus? Or it's the horrible treatment she gets from the crew? Or maybe it's the baby. Who by the stays relatively calm despite the all the bullets they plane gets riddled with, despite the case the baby is in being thrown and shaken about despite the plane shaking all over.
What's weird for me is I think the most pathetic and annoying part is the horrible music used for this. It's bizarre EDM or something. Absolutely does not fit this film at all. Detracts from what is going on. If that were the only thing wrong maybe it'd be salvageable but my god this thing is a dumb crapfest.
Just makes your eyes bleed. And not the good kind.