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Bruno1033
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Merry Little Batman (2023)
Very Beginning Could RUIN Christmas for Children
WARNING TO PARENTS - the very first line of the opening song could ruin a very major aspect of children. I can't believe they used this song in a kids' Christmas movie. Most kids would probably gloss right over it because it's so quick, but I have a daughter with a disability who watches everything with captions on - luckily I caught it before she watched this movie. I have "blocked" it (using the "hide video" feature) across all our Amazon accounts. I was really excited to watch this with my youngest son, as there are so few Batman shows/movies that are good for toddlers, but we have a range of ages in our house and are very protective of Christmas magic. Do better Warner Bros., and Amazon, take this off your service. No parent who wants their kid watching a Christmas movie wants their kids to hear that song.
Knock at the Cabin (2023)
Almost so good
Basic premise - a couple is vacationing in a cabin with their young daughter, when four strangers with visions of the apocalypse appear and present an untenable choice: sacrifice one of your family, or the world ends. The book was amazing. I read a bit more Paul Tremblay and was never as impressed as I was with this story.
If you've watched or read, you'll note I didn't reference the story being about a "gay couple". If that's a point that stands out in this story, you've missed the point. The movie was so true to the book until the end, and the end was what made it so great. The end of the book made it so it didn't matter whether what the four strangers were saying was "true" or not. The movie, on the other hand, gave a lackluster, "tie it up in a bow that made the sacrifice worth it" ending. That is to say, the movie missed the point as well.
Sixth Sense was good, and I loved Unbreakable, but no part of me loves MNS movies. This took an amazing book, nailed it almost to the end, then took a cowardly way out. Still, the acting by Bautista (which had you almost rooting for one of the alleged psychopaths) was amazing, and the story is enough to make this one with watching. 7/10.
In the Shadow of the Moon (2019)
A Movie About Divisive Politics Spawns Divisive Reviews
First, I know a lot of people say this, but I rarely take the time to review a movie.
Initially, my thought was that this movie was an incredibly original time travel movie mashed up with a gritty cop movie. Then I realized just how similar it was to Terminator - which I LOVE.
People have complained that this movie is paradoxical. I challenge anyone who has said so to find a time travel movie that isn't.
The movie was well acted and written to address one of the key issues facing our times - growing divisiveness. Ultimately, the question the movie addresses (though not explicitly) is the idea of whether you would go back in time to kill Hitler. (Read Stephen King's The Dead Zone for more on this). You will note that the vast majority of the reviews rate this movie as garbage, because the reviewers disagree with the political ideology of the film. And, about all we know of the war that was trying to be stopped in the movie is that it was fueled by white supremacy, so take those reviews and the aggregate rating with a grain of salt.
I really enjoyed this and think it is one of the gems of Netflix. See also, The Discovery, Otherlife, and Coherenece. Is there a political message? Sure. Are there paradoxes? Of course. But there is good drama, good action, and good acting. If you like time travel and aren't going to get ruffled by a message against white supremacy, you'll like this movie.
Ink (2009)
Weirdest. Movie...no, Film. Ever.
This was far and away the weirdest film I have ever seen, which includes Nightwatch, the Cube trilogy, and so on. I read all the reviews that were shocked that this wasn't picked up by a major Hollywood studio. If you watch it, and you're not completely delusion, you should have no problem seeing why. The acting was bad, the story was bizarre, and the ending was predictable once you got past the tripiness enough to figure out what was going on.
That said, it was beautifully shot, and the music is perfect, but these two elements alone were not enough to. Ake me glad I watched it. One of the characters is so odd and obnoxious that it completely disrupts the feel of the movie. If you're into really triply indie films and can get past the bad acting that often comes along with it, you'll enjoy. Otherwise, I'd pass on this one.