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Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)
NOT A GOOD MOVIE
I watched the 2017 theatrical release which was a bad movie and this is just a longer and more expensive bad movie.
It was joyless, bleak, and the slo-mo was way overused. The dialog was awful, plot points were confusing and seemed to be thrown in just for shock value and not for any logical story telling reason, & the various (and there were just way too many) protagonists demonstrated an amzing lack of forethought.
Sure, the Amazons and Atlanteans gave a llittle bit more of a fight, but the Atlanteans just left the box in a pillar out in the open and the Amazons- who were noticiblly whiter, skinnier, and more scantily clad than in WW- still did nothing but die.
Trying to connect the Mother Boxes to Clark made zero sense, and the movie twists itself into knots to make Clark central to everything but gave no compelling reason why other than he's awesome, everyone loves him, he's the smartest most powerful, the one who can save us.... I'm surprised they didn't throw in a prophecy about him just to really hammer that point home how great he is but the real reason is literally: just cuz. (Which is the definition of a Mary Sue.)
Cyborg got more of a backstory, but his storyline really needed its own movie before they brought him into this movie. There is no way to get into all of that backstory with everything else that is going on without it feeling trite and emotionally exploitative.
Suddenly adding a villain above Steppenwolf did nothing to raise the stakes or tension. In fact it make Steppenwolf look like a punk, but also made Darkseid look like an idiot and they're just doing the plot from Thor: Darkworld, which is one of that *bad* Thor movies.
Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments (2016)
Every character is a moron
I've watched a lot of shows that are of questionable quality but at least on other shows the characters aren't complete morons just to push the story forward. There isn't a single character safe from this failing. Clary is the most selfish main character ever written and she's overpowered in the most ridiculous ways.
The actor who plays Alec looks so uncomfortable every time he kisses Mangus making it painful to watch what should be an epic love story.
Side characters disappear without explanation and story lines are continually dropped without conclusion.
This show blatantly steals from so many much better (even when they're bad) genre shows but manages to make what they've stolen unbelievable trite and, yep, I'm gonna say it, mundane.
Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020)
A Complete Blast
I wasn't really sure what to expect not having seen Suicide Squad or really knowing anything about the other characters other than a vague remembrance of an episode from a TV show on The WB about a decade ago, but this was a fun fun movie. I was especially impressed with Harley's flippant fighting style.
Ewan McGregor was "the cruelty is the point" incarnate as was his instigating sidekick villain,Zsasz, played by Chris Messina. And I really wouldn't mind a sequel for the actual Birds of Prey crime fighting trio sans Miss Quinn either.
Iron Fist (2017)
It's just bad.
I wasn't that interested in Iron Fist figuring someone would give me the highlights before The Defenders was released, but I had to see if it earned the negative reviews or if critics were projecting due to the controversy that sprung up around Finn Jones casting. But it really is that bad.
The story simply doesn't make any sense, nor does any of the actions taken by a single character. The dialog is boring, the production values are cheap, and the lack of consistency was less arc and more lack of clear direction.
The series was frustrating to watch and I'm not sure how it is I managed to stick with it till the end. Even the appearance of Claire did nothing for me.
I find it interesting that the only people commenting on the negative reviews are those who liked the series and seem to feel the need to negate what anyone who doesn't agree has to say as if all other opinions are invalid. (And did someone actually try to say no one criticized the movie Last Samurai as a defense for Iron Fist? That's adorable.)
Regardless, would the show have been better if they had cast an Asian actor to play Danny Rand? Not one bit. Because it sucks. Full stop.
Sex After Kids (2013)
It's an Assenembled Comedy for the ages. ;)
I was lucky enough to attend a screening of the film Sex After Kids screened at the Royal House Theater on January 11th along with the film's director, producer, many of the cast and crew, and a room full of contributors and fans. To be fair it was a film friendly audience, but amongst the crowd were a few who went in with no investment in the movie at all and from them I found they had the same reaction as did the fans: it was hilarious.
The movie would be categorized as a comedy. But what does that really mean? According to Wikipedia, (the source of all knowledge, right?), a comedy is, "to amuse and elicit laughter from the audience." Check, check, and check. Then it goes on to list a series of types and Sex After Kids doesn't exactly fit any of them. It's a bit of a romantic comedy, but also fits some of the criteria to be considered a "black comedy" except, quite frankly, it's too sweet and earnest for the way it tackles the 'taboo' subjects to fit into that category completely.
It's a similar to ensemble comedies such as Home for the Holidays, Beautiful Girls, and Something's Gotta Give but the cast is loosely affiliated yet connected like in such movies as Love, Actually or New Year's Eve. So I'd like to propose a new category. Since it's an assembled ensemble comedy I suggest: Assenembled comedy. You heard it here first.
Sex After Kids gathers a fantastic cast of six degree separated parents as they deal with relations after having kids. In some cases the issues that are raised are 20 years after the birth of their kids. It's like a coming of age story for adults about a time in life no one ever seems to talk about. There are so many (too many?) movies about twenty-something brats transitioning from college life into being an actual adult. But what about everyone who has done that, since life doesn't stop once you give up keg parties, settle down, and have a family?
I thought the movie was funny, honest, even if some of the situations were "exaggerated for comedic effect" (thanks Wikipedia!) and ultimately sweet. Amanda Brugel is my new hero. Zoie Palmer and Paul Roger Amos made me cry. And Kris Holden-Ried did that thing where at one point he says a line but turns that line into a whole story. Also, it looked beautiful, the locations felt authentic to each character and not overly staged. And I felt like although the movie wasn't detail heavy into each character that we got a full sense of who everyone was as people.
I wish I could sum up the movie easily, but it's actually the type of movie that after you see it for days later you and your friends will be talking about various scenes and laughing again as you go through the funniest bits you can recall to the ones you suddenly remember again.
Serenity (2005)
Go see Serenity. Trust me.
I was a big fan of the TV show that it is based on, but in a way I'm jealous of anyone who is going to see the movie that wasn't already familiar with the Firefly universe because as a fan, there were certain things I was looking for and sometimes that can be distracting. The movie is very accessible to anyone who hasn't seen the TV show so if you are concerned that you might get lost because you hadn't seen the show, don't be. Go see the movie. Trust me. It had fantastic dialogue, great visuals, and gorgeous music. It was beautiful when it needed to be, ugly when necessary, funny, sad, and exciting. It was everything a movie like this should be! And most important (at least for me), it was surprising. Too many movies are so obvious you already know how it will end before it is half over. But not this one. There is a scene where Sheppard Book says to Mal, "They'll come at you sideways." Well, Joss does too. He does the unexpected and it just rocks. This isn't a warm and fuzzy action adventure. People are at risk; nothing is sacred, nothing safe. I love that. I even thought to myself more than once, 'why couldn't George Lucas do it like this?' I saw Star Wars Episode III and was (sadly) bored to tears by the opening sequence. Never once was I bored with Serenity. I was clutching my seat, gasping in shock along with everyone else in the theater. And when it was over, they audience applauded, in a movie theater. What does that tell you? Also, even as a woman I can say this without jealousy, but Gina Torres is gorgeous in this film. She needs to be in more movies. I'll be seeing it again next weekend. I suggest you all do the same.
Firefly (2002)
Worthy of the Big Screen
If there is any flaw with this show, it is that it ended way too soon. It is best when seen in the order the creators intended. That way the viewer can see from episode one the compelling characters and the fantastic fully imagined universe they exist in. Not one of the main characters is a stereotype. They all are unique and multi layered with very real flaws and a sense that there was more to each of them that would be slowly revealed as the show went on.
It had great action, sly humor, compelling drama, and utterly quotable and smart dialogue.