ltk-76498 Reviews

Safe Haven (I) (2013)

Better than I thought

[7/10 · 27 May 2023]

Nicholas Sparks later works usually involves crazy twist in the third or last act. But the point is not the twist, it's the surprisingly well done in the details, nuisances in the characters. It is kind of downer when it starts, but the tone quietly builds up, and I enjoyed the pace it took, everything is fitting the theme of healing, and there's some comfort in watching Katie taking her time to re-establish her home and happiness. This film set out to do exactly what it planned, it does not aim to stand out, but solid all around. And all the cast acting is on point, both protagonists are believable. I kind of want to say both of the romantic leads are too good looking, but honestly that's kind of the point of the film, watch two beautiful people fall in love. And the heavy is really good, really scared me for a bit. Watch this film when you want to enjoy some relative quiet but okay time.

Teen Titans Go! (2013– )

Teen titans go! makes me smile

[9/10 · 16 April 2023]

I have not watched the original, and I don't have much knowledge on Teen Titans in general. I am not the target audience, but I have been really depressed latently, due to having a really chaotic schedule and heavy work load. I don't have enough time or heart to be invested in a show that is epic/saga, or anything serious in general. This show is the great warm blanket for my tired mind. These episodes have a consistent production quality and writing, and voice actors of the main cast did a wonderful job too. I know it is not the funniest thing ever, but there are always some very well crafted humor within every episode. If you are like me just want to get light hearted pleasure and relax, this show is perfect, lifting your spirits through silly concepts and ridiculous dialogues. The creators know exactly what this is, and delivered.

I would do a update if I finish all three hundred episodes.

Glass Onion (2022)

C'mon people

[8/10 · 25 December 2022]

It's not as good as the original, but this isn't unbearable; decent start, good build up, great middle and okay ending.

This one's more character leaning, Janelle Monáe is very entertaining to watch, and all the rest of the cast did not miss a beat. The suspense is weaker, because it is spelled out at middle acts. And I find the last act very satisfying. The narrative is less sound structurally, but a bit more laid back because of it being all over the place, and I don't mind it as much. And I always found Blanc's detective work a bit of a stretch, both in this one and the previous one anyway, so I didn't expect too much mystery. And I was right to do that.

All that being said, I could see myself watching it again because it being camp and slow pacing. This is no Knives Out (2019), but this is a worthy follow up.

The Gray Man (2022)

Good, not great

[7/10 · 25 July 2022]

I randomly clicked on this film because I knew Ryan Reynold, Ana de armas, Chris Evans are in it, and Russel Brothers directed. And it does not disappoint. But overall it feels like a blend of Cilvil War and Winter Solder, but worse. And I don't know that much about VFX, but it feels okay, the dolly shots are janky, some fight scenes are weird looking with the effects. That's it. If this is shot with 200 million, then it's not bang of the buck.

The performances used up scripts potential, and both of which is perfectly fine. It's not Casino Royal or Fallout, can compete with Specter maybe.

So yeah, watch it when you have nothing to do. It's good.

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

Solid attempt...with hard flaws

[8/10 · 23 December 2021]

Great entertainment, very creative overall. But story beats interrupted by chit-chat moment is very confusing sometimes. The lay back bits are fun, but main narrative suffers so much that it frustrates me. I don't remember endgame being this chit chattery.

Zendaya is cute, Cumberbatch is confusing but mostly believable. Tobey and Andrew fit quite well surprisingly.

Major plot points are very forced. Holland's peters incentive is so weak. May's death is so cramped in it has so little room to breath it is literally next scene the sad music stops and MJ starts to crack jokes. I mean come on, this is the most emotional scene of the movie and it just ends LIKE THAT. I know it's boring but this just robs Holland's spidey so much story. It is absurd how thin Holland's story is. As I am writing this review I realized this film is intended to be like this; well I hated it about that. I hate flat stories.

Well, worth two and half hours of my life.

No Time to Die (2021)

It's alright

[7/10 · 15 November 2021]

Seen all the current 007 films except Quantum Solace, they are all fine. The first one is the best, and it goes down hill from there.

I do think I need to give credits on some of the character writing here, and I appreciate the idea that Bond can have a family.

The plots though are really in pieces, you can't find one thing that holds everything, it's shifting between hostage and confusing poison scheme, which is really tiring to watch, one could tell the writers are really shooting ideas everywhere, which drags down the personal plot.

And because there is so much going on, the ending doesn't work; all the time spent on pushing plots and moving to places making the character sentiment really underwhelmed.

Yeah so it's alright.

Eternals (2021)

Good enough

[7/10 · 6 November 2021]

Reviews complain boring not realizing what the film is trying to pull off. While the audience is waiting heroes fighting monster in the face, some fine tuned plot is actually happening. The plots could be better, but is much more in depth than most marvels standalones, a Cilvil War scale event without any buildup. Character drama is the lesser side of Marvel; glad they are trying something here.

Mulan (2020)

Man how do they messed up this bad

[5/10 · 14 September 2020]

It's one thing to screw up parts of something, but it's another thing entirely when every bit of it is bad. This is how Mulan 2020 makes me feel; every frame has something wrong in it. What were the writers thinking when they make this up? This film's setting resembles nothing like China historically. And man they screwed up the dialogue. Half of the top billed cast can't even speak fluent English, the accents they have make no sense, particularly Mulan's little sister Xiu , who has a British accent (though she tried to disguise it with American but it just doesn't work). The setting and acting don't look real in general. And they took out Mushu, a character which I actually liked in the original.

The Wuxia reference is weird, why introduce these elements when you have no intention of expanding it, not even a bit? And blending magic into the plot just makes the whole thing more confusing.

Why Disney tries a serious tone in the storytelling is beyond me. The scene where Rouran army attacking the garrison is ridiculous, the anti-physics jump (That was cool 30 years ago), no blood shed, not even bruises, and you're telling me this is an army attack. The original did a much better job. The sudden cues of family-friendly really sickens me. Again, why try to be serious when you can't?

Onward (I) (2020)

Well Not Pixar's Best Attempt But

[7/10 · 23 March 2020]

It's surely a Pixar film, it's just mediocre in a lot of places. You can see the nods to its influences, but it barely qualifies in any of the subject it touches, since so the plot focus so little on the magic part, it becomes plot device. The bland humor, the symbolic take on violence isn't really working; and really subtle hints on feminism and LGBTQ themes deviates from the storytelling.

Looking back, Pixar was never really too good at telling teenage stories. Of course, the studio has its strong suit--family themes--the sincerity and honesty work every time. I guess the streaming helped the film to get a better score, but it is far from full potential.

The Witcher (2019– )

I refuse to see any lacking aspects

[10/10 · 22 December 2019]

I played two of the games. I read all the books. The show focuses on books. The adaptation is very faithful, and well threaded to make the whole story make more sense. The cast nailed it.

I see so many things going on in every minute, so many hints and promising build up. Season two and three is gonna blast.

(I had to admit the first scene in ep1 puts me off a little)

Toy Story 4 (2019)

I cried through the whole film

[10/10 · 16 December 2019]

Amazing. Just as you thought Pixar can't pull this one out.

Let It Snow (2019)

Little Delight

[8/10 · 24 November 2019]

I liked it. The boys are funny, the girls are real and pretty, and the parents are kind. Each individual storyline makes a lot of sense, but feels bit weird putting together.

Frozen II (2019)

Definitely a let down

[6/10 · 23 November 2019]

Guys, six years and this is what you got? Disney is really bad at sequels. The story could wrap up in a regular episode's time, and is actually a replicant of the first, with much less weight. The repeating of the structure made my eyes roll. Side characters are weak. The protagonists got no growths, Christopher's line even got cut off after the middle part.

The music is okay, can see the effort, and I appreciate the fine scores. Music not bad in general, but Disney's been better.

The visual effects and the animations of characters are great. But I know Disney is good at that. Do better on the story please!

The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019)

I cried like a baby

[8/10 · 16 November 2019]

The story starts normal and evolves into something that lasts. Great film.

Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dreaming Girl (2019)

Late review

[8/10 · 19 October 2019]

Honestly, I'm just glad that I could watch the film. I know read the vol 9 before viewing, but the adaptation goes differently from my imagination. As a light romance comedy, it's a bit stiff to take on this heavy drama, and as usual I don't entirely get the explanations. But a lot of parts worked. Scenes still hit me. I like this. Hope the college story can come soon.

Then Came You (2018)

A very heart warming journey

[8/10 · 1 October 2019]

Sure. This story is being told again and again. A teenager with cancer living the last days of her live with a boy that taking care of her, like A Walk To Remember, Now Is Good, The Faults In Our Stars. This one is no exception, the unlikely meeting, the contrast, the argument, then evolving into a beautiful friendship, or love story. Maise does a great job.

7 for the standard production. One more for the honest, warm writing.

Stranger Things: Chapter One: Suzie, Do You Copy? (2019) Season 3, Episode 1

Inadequate

[1/10 · 4 July 2019]

I mean they shouldn't make love story such a big deal. Especially when these characters are not originally built for romance.

Stranger Things: Chapter Eight: The Battle of Starcourt (2019) Season 3, Episode 8

Ending of this failing season

[5/10 · 4 July 2019]

Got to be honest, this whole season is just off balance, losing most of the established characters charm. The second season is already a bit down-hill follow up to me.

This episode restored some of the glory. Hopper's speech brought the rank higher back. All the episodes before are lack of tension and intelligence like the previous two season.

And it seems Mike and El are losing their chemistry. There were barely anything happened between them in this whole season worth mentioning. The two brilliant kids I knew from the first season became some unattractive teenagers. Too bad they ruined the characters.

This might be too low for a show at this production scale. But hey, I gave rest of the episodes one star.

Stranger Things: Chapter Nine: The Gate (2017) Season 2, Episode 9

80's Magic

[10/10 · 4 July 2019]

Brilliant ending. Just brilliant. The end when the show used Every Breath You Take, it just blew me away. God. They know how to make up for all the absence of Mike&El ship in two minutes.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)

To Help Stabilize The Score

[6/10 · 29 May 2019]

Really great vibe. Many teenage films I have watched. This one stands out in several perspective. The cast is glamorous, though Emma do look a bit old fashioned (but hey, the movies set in the 90s right? It's not like popular girls are always the same through out the years) Miller as Patrick is funny and has weight. The plot is great, even though I hear there were a lot of deletions from the books. Important characters arc are very well developed, and I have to say this is probably the furthest step a teenage film production has taken.

In many ways, The Perks Of Being a Wallflower succeeded. Delivered great messages, gags, and heartfelt moments. Go watch it!

War of the Worlds (2005)

Well made

[8/10 · 12 May 2019]

Just to be fair, this film's brilliance and shorts are quite extreme. The generally bad impression made about this movie is because of the lack of story and character depiction. To be honest, for a bored young adult like me, the horror and the disturbance delivered by this blockbuster is refreshing. Who needs a story when the world is about to experience something so chaotic and grand? I know I don't. This whole film's approach to the event is appropriate. A bit more whining from the characters would definitely bore me. And I definitely don't want to take life lessons from a action movie.

Honestly, this film serves its purpose. It was a good ride.