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Reviews
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 (2023)
3rd Time's Not A Charm
Loved the first two, but this installment lacks the charisma to bring the story arc to a close. The humor misfires an numerous occasions. The direction and editing are sort of all over the place, likely suffering from too many plots/subplots. It just never really focuses on what's important.
On the positive the group is reunited once more, this time on the shores of Greece which makes a great backdrop. New characters make their mark and add to the laughs, particularly Alexandra. Overall, this will make a great rental some night where you want something light and fun that doesn't tax your brain. 6/10 stars.
Wednesday (2022)
What's new is great, and not so great
The Great: Jenny Ortega's performance here brings a little more depth to the character than we've never seen before. It's as if she was born to play Wednesday. Production value from design, costumes, props and the like are all top-notch. Excellent score from Danny Elfman, of course.
The Not so Great: Fairly predictable story arc, some plot holes, most of the supporting characters are two dimensional and serve no other purpose other than to be a foil to the main character (they really have no life or backstory). Lastly, the mother/daughter rift between Wednesday and Morticia just didn't sit well with me. The Addams always was, and always should be a close knit family.
The Ick: The dialogue. Really, does every single sentence Wednesday say to a male character have to include: patriarchy, mansplaining, toxic masculinity coupled with threats of bodily harm? I get it, she's all about girl power but it gets really cringey after the 50th time.
Result: A solid 7 and worthy of a second season.
Champions (2023)
It's Heart is in the Right Place
Fairly good if not formulaic feel-good movie starring Woody Harrelson as a smart, but somewhat self destructive basketball coach sentenced to community service after a DUI crash with a cop car. Harrelson does great character work playing people who are simultaneously lovable, yet loathsome. He does not disappoint here.
The best nod goes to Kaitlin Olson as Alex who owns the screen every minute she's on it. Loved the complexity of her character and she delivers a nuanced and hysterical performance.
The ensemble of actors was a mixed bag. It's a delicate tightrope to portray developmentally disabled characters without coming across as cartoonish or maudlin. This movie might have had the makings of a disaster under Farrilly's hands, but he did alright. I admit I was disappointed in the Cosentino girl's dialogue, which every line was just a sound bite "sass" for a cheap laugh. She was a pretty good actress (the montage of her other activities, including ballet was touching). They could have done so much more with her.
Lastly, Cheech Marin was criminally underused.
Overall, a solid 6/10.
Cyrano (2021)
Not sure why all the hate?
Beautifully filmed period piece and retelling of the classic play with some changes. Dinkledge gives a heart-wrenching performance as Cyrano (obviously his stature is substituted for the big nose), supported by a mostly decent cast. Lots of reviews here bemoan the musical aspect of the film and I will agree I didn't expect it to be one. However, I thought the music and lyrics were fantastic, with such raw emotion pouring out (I dare anyone not to get a lump in their throat at the soldiers singing their farewell letters song). I give this film a 8/10 for its music, risk taking and emotional gravitas.
Enola Holmes 2 (2022)
A Decent Sequel
Pretty good sequel to the first and acting was great. A decent thrill ride once you get past a few plot holes and just suspend your disbelief. Will people complain about some forced, anachronistic wokeness? Yes. Will some complain about the lazy writing, and stereotypical box checking of the bad guys? Yes. Just enjoy the ride.
What I liked best was the interweaving of a true piece of history into the story and how it affected that portion of society. The story did a plausible job of the "whodunnit" aspect and kept you guessing the entire time. I did have a bit of a problem with Enola's demeanor toward her love interest, Lord Tewksbury. Whenever she's with him, she's a condescending grouch. Then in a microsecond when he talks to any other woman, she turns into a green-eyed teenager. I thought we were supposed to see her as strong and independent? I have no idea what Tewksbury sees in her, really.
Jurassic World Dominion (2022)
Been There, Done That.
This latest Jurassic installment doesn't bring much did the table that we haven't already seen before. While it was nice seeing the original characters reunite, the film lacked any sort of charisma compared to the previous films. Not even O'Neill, Dern or Goldblum could elevate the material. Lastly, the dinosaur "battles" felt pedantic and uninspired. Overall, no great Spielbergian "Whoa!" moments. 6/10.
Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
A very worthy sequel
Just enough nostalgia from the original 1986 movie, retrofitted into 2022 to make everything seem familiar. An older and somewhat wiser Maverick faces new challenges, ghosts from the past, and heroic opportunities to be himself. Best role for Cruise in quite a while, really brought some depth to the character. Very touching to see Val Kilmer reprise his role. You'd swear these two had really been friends for 35 years. And Jennifer Connely was excellent as well. Lastly, the aerials were probably the best I've ever seen. A big thumbs up.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
Now That's How Yo Do a Sequel !!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you Jason Reitman! Great movie that interweaves the old with the new, while giving homage to the original. Great blend of comedy, action and drama. Highly recommended.
Coming 2 America (2021)
Oh, Where to Begin ...
After seeing the previews for Coming 2 America, I was so excited for a trip down memory lane. All in all, the film did a fine job of reconnecting the old with the new, with an abundant supply of flashbacks, déjà vu jokes, and recurring characters to fulfill your craving for nostalgia. Unfortunately, The movie ultimately fell flat in many ways ...
What was good: seeing everyone return to reprise their roles plus a few new characters (LOVED seeing Wesley Snipes back at it again in his over the top performance was reminiscent of Demolition Man). Tracey Morgan and Leslie Jones brought their "A" game as well and stole almost every scene they were in. My favorite character in the entire story was Meeka, the eldest daughter of Prince Akeem, wonderfully acted by KiKi Layne. Clearly, she was the best person to rise to the throne only to be left out to dry because Zamundan law requires a male heir to take over the throne. She played the role with dignity and grace, even helping her half-brother succeed in his quest to become prince. She places the needs of her country above her own, and in the end, she ultimately takes her rightful place to reign.
The not so good: some blatant wokeness that is shoe-horned into the story that serves no purpose to the plot (did we really need that Colin Jost scene?). All female characters are represented as strong and wise, juxtaposed against most every male character that is goofy or clueless. Why they wrote Akeem to be such a weak simp is beyond me. In the first movie, he was mature beyond his years, principled, and had a quiet strength. Flash forward and now he's browbeaten by his dying father, threatened by a neighboring warlord, and pontificated by his wife who has enjoyed all the luxuries of being a princess without having to bear the burdens of making any tough decisions. This brings me to the last point, Princess Lisa. Wow... did the writers ever make her character annoying. The plot has Akeem caught between a rock and a hard place. She never once comes to his defense, or supports him in any way. She only castigates him for his failures as a husband and a father. Even when she learns that Akeem fathered a son before he even met her, she became petty and accused him of "lying" (he had only found out about the situation hours beforehand). She then tosses out she's slept with men before she ever met him, in a very passive-aggressive way as to get back at him. She kicks him out of HIS BED. Really??? He's trying to avert a war, albeit not in the best way, but at least he's trying to do something. HE'S BEING PLOTTED FOR ASSASSINATION FOR F-K'S SAKE.
After all that, he simps back with a string quartet and a choir about what a queen she is. So frustrating.
American Underdog (2021)
Formulaic but Inspiring
There's nothing here that we haven't seen many times over, the underdog "rags to riches" story of an athlete to refuses to give up. The movie centers on the story of Kurt Warner's trials and tribulations trying to make it to the NFL while also cultivating a relationship with his future bride to be. Overall, I thought the story was done rather well. You see the good, the bad and the ugly of how many obstacles he had to overcome to achieve his dream. I appreciated that nothing was sugarcoated. The acting was pretty good for a Lionsgate film.
I am a bit surprised that many of the comments by other raters are commiserating about the film's more "Christian" aspects of the movie. Anyone who knows Kurt Warner knows he is a pretty spiritual guy. Why so many people seem perturbed about it is a mystery to me. It's like watching a World War II movie and coming to the conclusion "Wow, that Hitler guy was a real jerk!"
Turning Red (2022)
We expect more from Pixar
One of the things I find annoying about the recent trend in animation is substituting humor with constant screaming and hysterics. Pixar has fallen prey here with Turning Red. In what could have been a meaningful and interesting story to tell, across any cultural background, is the relationship between mothers and daughters and the unintentional burdens we place on kids (who just want to be kids). Instead we're given a bit of shallow, two-dimensional characters that checkmark all the usual boxes: Asian tiger mom (check), quirky friends who are quirky for the sake of being quirky (check), boys or men who are inexplicably mean/dumb/dreamy with no background story (check). Lastly, I found the animation looked rather rudimentary and plasticky.
Some of the more physical comedy was pretty clever and entertaining. But all in all, Turning Red will not be remembered in the Pantheon of Pixar greats.
Little Italy (2018)
A Lighthearted, Fun Watch.
A fairly formulaic rom-com with some great supporting performances and enough laughs to keep you going. Love, family, friends and forgiveness are the central themes.