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josh-hensel
Reviews
Scott Pilgrim Takes Off (2023)
If you want the movie's story, watch the movie.
I was pleasantly surprised by the Netflix anime adaptation of Scott Pilgrim. It started out much the same as the original story and then the show provided a great zinger.
It opened up a lot, let the characters breathe, and explored what things would he like in an alternate universe where Scott didn't dispatch the evil exs one by one.
I really don't think this was a bait and switch, because it is, at the heart of it, still a story about Scott and Ramona. The show is weird and quirky, but so is the original story.
The fact that Edgar Wright, Brian Lee O'Malley, and all of the original actors from the movie were on board with this should really tell you everything that you need to know about the show. Watch it and decide for yourself.
Totally Killer (2023)
Serviceable, fun slasher / time travel movie
Totally Killer was basically a mashup of Hot Tub Time Machine and The Final Girls. I don't really feel that it was totally derivative though, because it had its own identity.
This movie was pretty fun and had some decent moments of suspense. It was pretty twisty, filled with red herrings, and they kept the killer's identity under wraps until the end. I know I called it a slasher in the title, but it was really more of a whodunnit.
The movie was pretty witty, had good acting, and they were able to keep the story pretty fresh, considering time travel and slasher tropes are beyond overdone at this point.
I read another review on here about the protagonist being whiny. I would assume that many teenagers from 2023 that were dropped into 1987 would probably react that way, though. It was a different time, and many of the things considered problematic now weren't really seen as an issue back then.
While I found the movie enjoyable overall, I don't really think that it has much rewatch potential, since I now know who the killer was. I don't really feel that it has the staying power that most older slashers have, and that's probably more due to nostalgia than anything.
This movie is definitely worth a watch.
Love at First Sight (2023)
Enjoyable, short rom-com
We didn't have any expectations going into this movie, but it turned out to be very decent. One of the better Netflix offerings that we've watched lately.
While parts of the movie are absolutely predictable, there are other parts that caught us both off guard. Since this is a spoiler free review, I won't make mention of these reasons. I will say that the movie was quite sentimental though and it did hit me in the feels a few times.
I thought that Jameela Jamil's character was mostly unnecessary, although she is basically a human embodiment of fate and does help to push the plot along.
I would agree with one of the first reviews that I read that the movie should have been titled differently. They had mentioned "Love at First Flight", but I also think that "Love in Plane Sight" would have also suited it nicely.
If you've got 90 minutes to kill and are looking for a perfectly serviceable rom-com, I think this is worth checking out.
Florida Man (2023)
The show's concept is fun and interesting, but the acting isn't great
The show is pretty interesting, and it has a lot of suspense and intrigue. It has a crime noir feel to it, which is contrasted by its bright and sunny locales. At times, it feels like Outer Banks in that they're searching for a fabled centuries old treasure that had actually never been found, even though there are gold doubloons washing up on the shore left and right.
I can suspend my disbelief, but only so much. Where the show started to lose me was in the acting. It feels like the two leads are struggling to stay in accent the entire time. Edgar Ramirez's latin accent is so thick that it's hard to understand what he's saying half of the time and Abbey Lee's Australian accent always shines through. I couldn't tell if she was trying to pull off a New York accent, which is odd since her character is from Chicago, or if she needs to find a better accent coach.
The acting nitpick aside, I was still invested in the show and found it to be enjoyable and entertaining overall. It's honestly a good rainy day binge, even though it probably won't be winning any awards.
Dead Heat (1988)
One of my favorite buddy cop films
This is one of my favorite buddy cop films. Sure, it's a little hokey, but it is a lot of fun.
This movie has pretty much all of the buddy cop tropes, such as a comedic sidekick in Joe Piscopo and a Police Captain that is always angry... but it also has what most buddy cops don't have: a good dose of horror and black comedy.
It has excellent make-up, great action, and a story that's better than serviceable. The wildest part about the movie is that it's so upbeat and lighthearted, even though just about every single person in the movie is dead in the end, or shortly after the credits roll.
It's worth a watch if you're into cop movies, dark comedies, and/or zombie flicks.
Firefly Lane (2021)
Excellent show
While I'm more into action adventure movies and shows, I must say that this show is excellent.
The acting is incredible and the writing is too. I really appreciate how well they do the jumping around of decades and I'm really impressed with how well the de-aging CG looks in the 80s segments.
One other impressive note with the writing is how they manage to tie every decade together and have them all parallel each other thematically and also in terms of story beat.
The show has quite a few cliffhangers and twists, but everything has a resolution. And the show is sad. As my first sentence states, I'm more of an action adventure guy, but this show manages to pull heart strings at every corner.
I highly recommend it.