The Movie Reviews & Discussion Thread

[Dagger Dias]

For the past few years I have made threads for that specific year's activity in the film industry. Instead of having a 2017 In Film thread, we should go back to having it all in one topic again. One big discussion on the upcoming releases, reviewing new films as they come out, talking about older films, as well as the part that fascinates me the most which is the breaking of financial records in film. All in one spot.

This topic will follow the same vision as the older "In Film" yearly topics did, just no longer restricted to that specific year. So if you want to review a movie, talk about the upcoming releases, predict/discuss records getting broken, do it in here. Just make sure to stay on topic and follow the forum rules.

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

I don't think I've ever had a movie discussion here at WrestleZone. That's kind funny, since I work for a big movie magazine in my country. Anyway, thanks to that work I was talking about, I caught an early screening for Martin Scorcese's "Silence" and even though it isn't going to be the magnum opus that the early buzz made it out to be, it was still a great movie.

The master has lost a step in many aspects, but there's always that little thing that's just better than anything else in the market and in Silence, more than the complexity of the script or the ideology behind it, I gotta tell you I absolutely loved the japanese's in this. This is not an official review and just a discussion with a bunch of people who love movies, so I did not look for names or anything because, seriously the drama was all set thanks to our asian friends and I mean all of them.

Andrew Garfield as the lead for this movie is actually what's wrong. He's a talented actor, but terrible miscast in this one. I would totally have bought Adam Driver a lot more as the lead. Liam Neeson just needs to be there and speak, so don't expect any awards for him too. If you're a fan of Andrew Garfield, seriously stick to "Hacksaw Ridge" or "The Amazing Spider-Man" movies. In here, he just doesn't fit even though he tried his best.

Also, I'm portuguese and I've studied the subject of christians in Japan so as an historic piece, it's an amazing experience. Americans seem to be more religious than most, so you'll probably get rilled up for the whole step on Christ's face and stuff.

My official star review would be: 3,5/5.

I'm catching La La Land tomorrow (hasn't even premiered here!) and Manchester By The Sea next weekend. Really excited for it.

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

First and foremost this movie does live up to the expectations. Amazing script, amazing score and songs. Damien Chazelle outdid his amazing work on "Whiplash" and I feel honored to have seen this movie. Absolutely my favorite so far, even though I still need to see "Moonlight" and "Manchester By The Sea".

The task of delivering an original musical is bigger than a good drama and for that reason, I do believe this one should take the Oscar for Best Picture. It's also a love letter to Hollywood's golden age and it obviously work to deliver the director's passion for jazz music in a significant way.

The movie is carried, mostly, by Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling. There really isn't secondary characters in it. It's just a good old fashion romance, filled and I mean absolutelly filled with amazing metaphors.

Go watch this movie with your significant other. I'm telling you, you'll laugh, you'll get frustrated, you'll cry and you'll be thinking about the true meaning of love. It's a very current subject or at least, a current interpretation of what love is and it's position in today's society.

Rating: 5/5.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Fences- 8/10

Denzel was on 60 Minutes a little a while ago to talk about this movie, and I remember him talking about making an adaptation that stays true to the source material and August Wilson's work. Maybe I'm in the minority, but at certain points, Fences staying within the confines of the play format kind of hurts the natural flow of the movie.

Still, Denzel is at his best here, Viola Davis delivers a strong performance, and together the collective efforts from the cast are more than enough to help Fences rise above the status of another conventional drama. I wouldn't call Fences an uplifting film, because it's all about the hardships facing Troy and his family, the struggles they go through week after week, and a family that's slowly falling apart. Troy Maxson (Denzel) has so many layers as a character, and Denzel nails each one. He's a strict father, an alcoholic, and he's an angry, bitter man, who can't let go of the past. But Troy breaks his back for his family, as a responsible working man, and he takes his role as the man of the house seriously.

Troy is a walking conundrum, because on one hand, you kind of want to feel sorry for a guy, who tried to chase his dreams, but he couldn't make it. On top of that, he might be an asshole, but he's doing the best he can do. But you also see a broken and frustrated man, who lashes out at his son, a kid, who's just trying to live his life, and Troy is haunted by his past, and the Grim Reaper's looming shadow.

 

[Dagger Dias]

2016's year in film has all but wrapped up. Rogue One and Finding Dory are still being shown. The former is currently the 5th highest grossing film of that year and could still climb further. The Secret Life Of Pets is also still being shown.

Not much going on for films in 2017 just yet though the years always start off slow when it comes to movies. The biggest release in January looks to be the third XXX film. A Dog's Purpose might also be good, I'm thinking of seeing that.

Recent & Upcoming January 2017 Releases
1/13: The Bye Bye Man
1/13: Sleepless
1/13: Monster Trucks
1/13: 100 Streets
1/13: The Book of Love
1/20: Split
1/20: XXX: Return of Xander Cage
1/27: A Dog's Purpose
1/27: Resident Evil: The Final Chapter

 

[Hyorinmaru]

Rouge One​

It's not new per say but I wanted to give my thoughts.


It was a highly enjoyable movie. I've always wondered why the put a reactor vent on the Death Star and now I know. The characters were some of the best I've seen with my favorite being K2. I loved the cameos by R2D2, 3PO & Leia. A New Hope was set up perfectly which what this movie was supposed to do. The only part that I didn't enjoy even though it was necessary was the ending which was depressing, especially after I got emotionally invested in all the characters.

My rating: * * * * 1/2 out of 5.

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

Manchester by the Sea is a slow movie. It's a great story with a great script, no doubt. It's shocking, it's depressing and somehow funny at times. To top that, you have a really great organic and natural performance by Casey Affleck who absolutely shines in one of the best characters in movies as Lee Chandler.

There's just a problem. The movie is a drag from scene to scene. The brilliant backstory of the character really holds the movie up, while the rest of it, pulls the movie down. It's not a great experience in the big screen and it refuses to tell the point of the story until 1 hour after it begins. I wasn't a fan of the score either, it makes sense at some points, but at others it's really forced to give it a somber tone.

I think if you have the time, you should definitely check the movie out. Do it at home, though. Also, do it alone and feel it to really take everything away from it. It just doesn't work with friends or the girlfriend at the movies.

Rating: 3,5/5

 

[Spidey Revivey]

The Bye Bye Man

Imagine if you will a delicious steak. It's tender, juicy, everything you could possibly want for a slab of meat. Now sit down and watch the waiter mince it up into the tiniest pieces one can detect with the human eye. Watch as the waiter throws 90% of it away. Do not look away as the waiter stands up on the table, pulls his pants down, and shits on what is left of your steak. He hands you a fork and tells you Bon Appetit. This is what the movie was like.

It starts off fairly well I thought. Jarring opening, which totally threw me off my expectations and I liked it. We get some interesting tidbits on the titular character, and how he has been a problem since the 70s. In fact, I'd argue that this would have been a decent horror film if it was a period piece. But it's not. Instead, we are thrown back into the Modern Day. Teenagers from college move off-campus in an old, pretty much haunted house. As the viewers settle in, the movie then proceeds to throw every horror movie cliche known to man at the viewer. Just think of some. They're there. When I attended the premiere, the audience that came with me laughed at the more serious moments. Why? The actors sucked at acting. Like, it was noticeable that they weren't really trying.

The monster itself was sorta interesting (minus the ridiculous way to summon it), therein lies the 10% steak. But what makes the antagonist shine is undermined by not giving the viewer any information on their uniqueness. I know this sounds odd so I'll give an example. We all know why Freddy Kreuger looks the way he does, even from the first movie. He wears a bladed glove for a reason. Even his sweater is explained. The Bye Bye Man has several little oddities like Freddy has, but none of it is explained. The closest you'll get to an answer to his quirks is that he is a Grim Reaper-like character, which is really the height of horror monster cliches.

It would seem like the movie was setting itself up as a new Horror franchise since the ending hints at it and little to no backstory on the titular character screams sequel to me. If so, fuck me.

This is just another horror movie that probably would have been fantastic if not for the PG-13 Rating. I sincerely think that's a major problem in enjoying a good scare anymore, because directors have to settle for the same setups, jumpscares, flat characters, etc. They can't all try and be The Ring.

I don't really advise seeing this movie if you plan to pay for the ticket yourself. Just wait until it's on Netflix where its rating will be about equal to mine. Too many unanswered questions really takes the viewer out of enjoying the film.

Spidey Rating: 1.5/5

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

It's the third collaboration between Peter Berg and Mark Wahlberg and the third solid movie based on true events. "Patriots Day" works exactly the same way that "Deepwater Horizon" did. It's the same style of cinematography and acting, with the same cuts to real footage of the event in question – in this case, the Boston bombings. People usually say: "if ain't broke..." and it's totally fine for this film. Mark Wahlberg was totally the best choice to play the fictional Sgt. Tommy Saunders, he's easy to relate with and he does move some of the powerful drama in it. The remaining of the cast was really solid too, specially Kevin Bacon who just has that vibe to play a FBI agent.

The best thing of the movie though is the score and sound. It's not obnoxious, it's not forced and it really helps you get into that awful situation.

The love birds, the father, the fatalities... all of it helped the all direction of the movie shine. I enjoyed it, even though it's obviously and an annoying american propaganda.

I'll give this a thumbs up, but I hope that the duo takes a vacation. I want to see Peter Berg take on another projects, I fairly enjoyed "Hancock", so who knows? He has the potential to put together an worthy Oscar movie, if given the chance.

Rating: 3,5/5

 

[Mitch Henessey]

I was on the fence with watching The Bye Bye Man in theaters, but now I think I'll wait for it at home. It's never a good sign, when a studio changes the release date (two release date changes before they settled on the January 13th date) for a movie. You know something is wrong, when they're basically backing away from competition, and after all that, they dumped The Bye Bye Man in January, the annual graveyard for lousy and mediocre horror films. The teasing for a sequel doesn't surprise me, but I'll be shocked if it happens after all the bad reviews.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (in 3D!)-8/10

Darth Vader is the main reason why I went from a 7/10 to an 8/10.

It's better than The Force Awakens, and Rogue One is one of the rare examples for a film series taking a chance on something different, or what we're used to seeing, and the changes with a more brooding tone actually working out. Jyn was kind of a flat character for me, but the hilarious banter between K-2S0 and Cassian was great, and Rogue One really works as a more emotional film. Of course, a lot of that comes from knowing what's going to happen, and how the team is basically going on a suicide mission.

A Monster Calls-9/10

I can understand the complaints about A Monster Calls trying too hard to do too much, and AMC being a messy film storyline wise, but it's definitely one of the more unique and unconventional coming-of-age films I've seen.

There's a good balance between the coming-of-age side of the movie, the dark fairy tales, and a drama about a boy, who's losing his mother, and everything blends together for one hell of a movie. It's a moving and heartfelt story about a boy, and his whole world falling apart around him. He needs to let go, and there's nothing he can do about it, but The Monster comes along at the right time to be the support system and the voice of encouragement he needs.

I'm also glad they didn't try and turn The Monster into some whimsical oaf. The Monster has a sense of humor, and the presence of a larger than life figure, but he also has his moments as a big brother for Conor.

Solid performances from Lewis MacDougall, Felicity Jones, and Sigourney Weaver, and I know I need to catch up, but so far A Monster Calls is one of my top picks for the best films in 2017 (limited releases in 2016, but A Monster Calls didn't receive a wider release until 2017).

January 20-22 & The Upcoming Weekend

Split debuted at #1 in the week-to-week charts with $40,010,975 ($45,931,560 for the current worldwide total), and that's off of a reported production of $10,000,000. Meanwhile, xXx:The Return of Xander Cage debuted in the #2 spot with $20,130,142 ($70,630,142 for the current worldwide total), and that's off of a reported production budget of $85,000,000.

I haven't seen it yet, but I'm glad Split is doing well at the box office, and the movie is receiving a fair share of positive reviews. The Visit was a good horror/thriller, and hopefully this is the start of a comeback for M. Night Shyamalan. The guy is a talented director, but his habit of building up to this big twist ending, and the big twist not delivering a satisfying payoff was getting annoying and tiresome. That, or suspending disbelief and buying into it was damn near impossible, because the big twist was so preposterous (i.e. The Village) and over the top more often than not. Also, Shyamlan directed After Earth, a dull and boring post-apocalyptic sci-fi thriller, featuring one of the worst cases of nepotism you'll ever see.

The Return Of Xander Cage is on its way to being one of the early flops in 2017, and I can't say I'm all that surprised. Honestly, it looks like another failed attempt to launch an action franchise, and the trailers and the commercials made The Return Of Xander Cage look like another random and generic action flick. You also have to believe a long hiatus killed any anticipation for another xXx film. The first film was released in 2002, and after that, you had the awful sequel with Ice Cube. That, and it's more proof Vin Diesel is not a strong draw on his own.

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter is the big release for Friday, but I can't say I'm too excited about it. The Resident Evil series is basically a guilty pleasure trip for watching gory action sci-fi/horror flicks and stylized, over the top action sequences and fights, because I honestly can't think of one film in the series that's truly good or great.

Gold will receive a wider release this week. After watching the trailers, it was easy to see Gold as an Oscar contender, but there's almost no buzz for it, and Gold continues to receive more negative reviews (a 42% on Rotten Tomatoes).

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

Barry Jenkins's "Moonlight" is one of the most wonderful stories of the year. I caught it today on the big screen (it hasn't premiered in here) and I absolutely loved it. But I mean, what IS love? Well, that's exactly the story this movie tells, without ever mentioning it's about that. In reality this movie is a life story, a shadow life, of young Chiron in three of the most important chapters in his life. You have good feelings for characters that you wouldn't normally have, such as Mahershala Ali's drug dealer Juan. You feel sad at society for being composed of morons trying to be thug, but even that Barry Jenkins ends up painting in a better light given what happens to his main character. I don't even want to talk about Paula (Naomi Harris). I hated early in the movie, but the feels later on... Damn you Jenkins!

It's a homage to love, all kinds of love, and aside from a beautiful script, you also have a beautiful score and a beautiful picture/cinematography. It's not too long like "Manchester By The Sea", so you never get bored. You get into it, more and more.

On a personal note, I don't remember ever seeing such good chemistry between an adult and a child actor like Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert's ("Little" Chiron). It was beautiful.

Rating: 5/5

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

If it wasn't for the cast, there's no way this movie would've had the buzz it had for The Oscars. Viola Davis and Denzel Washington were both great and I finally understand why Viola is dominating the award season, even though it's a stretch to call her a secondary element of the movie. Troy (Denzel Washington) may be the catalyst for the plot to move forward, but it's Rose (Viola Davis) who adds the drama for her husband's actions.

This movie is based on a play by the same name and I get it's always hard to make the transition from that genre to the big screen, but I thought Denzel Washington did his best as director to make a successful story out of it. For me, personally, the bigger message of race, religion and purpose of life didn't really came across as I believe there was a lot of plot lines and pictures with a bigger meaning, such as Gable's trumpet and his whole St. Peter shtick. I know that now, because I did some research on it, but while experiencing the movie, I was more concerned about consequences and family, which also makes it a good movie. It's more complex than what I got and I understand it and for that reason, it didn't blow me away.

It's still a good movie and Denzel's charisma is more than enough to hook you in. May not be everyone's cup of tea though and I'm totally fine with that.

Rating: 4/5

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

I haven't posted in a while and since I don't want to watch too many movies before posting my small opinion in here, today I'm going to talk about the last two I watched in the cinema.

"Hidden Figures" is the dark horse for this year's Oscars. It probably does not have the same amount of complexity or timing as "La La Land" and "Moonlight" have, respectively. It's just a great movie overall and it's an "happy" movie. It's a comedy with little drama that's sold really well. Kevin Costner really brought his A-game that I've not seen since his 1991's "JFK" and of course, Taraji P. Henson gave it all for her character. It's a criticism against racism in society ("Moonligh" isn't that, unless you count a black cast a critic to it), which could have not come in a better time and of course, it's a movie about how great The United States is, which we all know the Academy loves.

Seek it out for a good time feel in the movies. Also be in check for Theodore Melfi's work in the future. It's his second long feature and it's even better than it's first "St. Vincent" (which got his share of good reviews too).

Rating: 4,5/5

It deserves the good buzz it's getting. "Split" is the return of M. Night Shyamalan to his good form. It's 2017's "10 Cloverfield Lane", as in a small production with a small cast and overall great acting and plot. My comparison to last year's silent hit isn't a coincidence and I really urge everyone that's a fan of the director's early work to go and be amazed by it's last scene.

I usually don't spoil anything from the movie, so back on track, we gotta give a hand of applause to James McAvoy. He carried the movie through and throughout in his role as 23 other personalities (even if we don't see them all as much as the big four). He's legit funny and serious and the plot really shines around him. I couldn't have asked for a better movie myself and I enjoyed the heck out of everything. A safe bet could not exist if you plan on catching a movie with friends or that special girl and want to avoid romance or god forbid "Fifty Shades Darker".

Rating: 3,5/5

 

[Dagger Dias]

Rogue One made it to the #2 spot for 2016 and is still being shown. It's about to break into the top 20 on the all time listing. It probably won't get much further at this point though that is still impressive. The biggest releases so far this year have been "XXX: Return of Xander Cage" and "A Dog's Purpose". This week we will have a couple of big releases that will surely be at the top of 2017's highest grossing films for some time, "The Lego Batman Movie" and "Fifty Shades Darker" which is a sequel to 2015's " Fifty Shades of Grey".


Recent Releases:
1/6: Underworld: Blood Wars
1/6: Arsenal
1/13: The Bye Bye Man
1/13: Sleepless
1/13: Monster Trucks
1/13: 100 Streets
1/13: The Book of Love
1/20: Split
1/20: XXX: Return of Xander Cage
1/20: The Resurrection of Gavin Stone
1/20: Trespass Against Us
1/20: Lost in London
1/20: Detour
1/25: Sophie and the Rising Sun
1/27: Lost in Florence
1/27: I Am Michael
1/27: A Dog's Purpose
1/27: Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
2/3: Rings
2/3: The Space Between Us
2/3: Youth in Oregon
2/3: War on Everyone

Upcoming Releases:
2/10: The Lego Batman Movie
2/10: Fifty Shades Darker
2/10: John Wick: Chapter 2

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Underworld: Blood Wars-5/10

We're at a point, where the Underworld series is basically spinning its wheels now. I'm glad they finally moved past the whole "we can't trust the Death Dealer!" dilemma with Selene, because she continuously saved the vampire's collective asses more than once, but Underworld is starting to feel stale, and there's no denying it. The action sequences are still crisp and entertaining, but we're five films into the series, and you really don't get the sense they're building towards something big, or possibly teasing the grand finale, where everything comes to an end after another ambiguous ending.

And Underworld has a real problem with underwhelming villains and antagonists. Lara Pulver's Semira really works as this ruthless and power-hungry vixen, with a decent amount of charisma, but she's not the primary antagonist. Marius is the main antagonist, but he's a boring and bland character.

Len Wiseman confirmed plans for a sixth film, and Beckinsale is supposed to return as Selene. Rumors/reports about Beckinsale hesitating to return, or walking away from Underworld (before Awakening's release, and all the rumors about a reboot before Blood Wars) have popped over the past couple of years, and IF the rumors were true, my only guess is the powers that be added a few more zeros to her paycheck to straighten things out. After Awakening and now Blood Wars, it was easy to get the impression of Theo James taking over for Beckinsale as the lead in the series, but according to reports, he's out of the sixth film, so it's probably the end of the line for David.

The Founder-7/10

Michael Keaton's performance is just superb. At first, you want to feel sympathy for this poor sap, who just can't catch a break, but when Ray Kroc gets a taste of some real success and power, he turns into a cutthroat asshole with no remorse. Nick Offerman and John Carroll Lynch deliver a pair of solid performances as the McDonald's brothers, and they did a good of playing off each other as opposite personalities.

Overall, The Founder is basically a standard biopic, with some good humor, and unless you're really interested in seeing how McDonald's grew into what it is today, Dick and Mac McDonald's system for the kitchen area, or how many pickles they put on the hamburgers, it's kind of boring and the movie really drags in certain parts. Although, and I know I'm reaching here, but there's a chance you could look at The Founder as a cautionary tale for trusting the wrong people, or what happens, when you "let a wolf into the henhouse."

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter-3/10

You know something, I thought about going with a 5/10, but I couldn't stop thinking about the ending. Everyone knows this is supposed to be the the big finale or "The Final Chapter", but the ending really leaves things wide open for another series of films. My big problem with The Final Chapter is, you could easily use the ending to make another two or three films, and in the end, The Final Chapter has the feel of another sequel in the series, so I just couldn't buy into the enormity of the last stand against The Umbrella Corporation.

Although, I'll give credit where credit is due for using The Hive as the stage for the big final battle. After I watched the first trailer for this, I was kind of bummed out they were using The Hive again. Yeah, I get the "it all ends, where it began," approach, but The Hive was thoroughly explored in the original film. Adding some new traps and splitting the screen time between Wesker and Dr. Isaacs really helps, and reintroducing the laser defense system from the original film for a small dose of nostalgia was a nice touch.

The Sheik (2014)-7/10

I actually bought this from Wal-Mart a while ago, and it was sitting in a pile of DVDs, so I finally decided to watch it. It's a documentary on The Iron Sheik's life, complete with interviews from The Rock, Hogan, Jim Duggan, Jim Ross, Jake Roberts, Bruce Prichard, and others. You'll also see appearances from Bret Hart, DDP, RVD, and various wrestlers and other wresting personalities, when Sheik is going around to all the different conventions.

It's a thorough documentary, and it's sad and uplifting at the same time. You'll see what happens, when The Sheik hits rock bottom, and how he had a hard time dealing with the murder of one of his his daughters. He also falls into the category of guys, who just couldn't let go of the glory days. But Sheik was able to reinvent himself and turn his life around with some help, and the cartoon with Hacksaw and The Sheik was hilarious.

February 10-12 & The Upcoming Weekend

No real surprise, but The LEGO Batman Movie debuted at #1 in the week-to-week charts with $53,003,468, and the current worldwide total sits at $99,780,752. Fifty Shades Darker received a lot of poor reviews (a 9% on Rotten Tomatoes), but the movie has a worldwide total of $163,093,603. And John Wick debuted in the #3 spot ($51,585,359 for the worldwide total). The Fifty Shades series obviously has a strong enough fanbase to overcome a wave of negative reviews, and The LEGO Batman Movie was an easy front-runner to be considered as one of the big hits in 2017.

The LEGO Batman Movie is expected to repeat at #1 over Fist Fight, A Cure For Wellness, and The Great Wall in the week-to-week charts. A Cure For Wellness is the only new film I'm truly looking forward to, and The Great Wall looks like the type of film that might lose most of its wow-factor outside of theaters. Fist Fight? Eh, I guess there's chance for a decent enough comedy, but it's probably another one of Ice Cube's forgettable films, and the reviews are mixed, with Richard Roeper giving the movie a 0/4.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

A Cure For Wellness- 4/10

Disappointing.

A Cure For Wellness is the one horror film I was truly looking forward to this year, but it's such an underwhelming film on so many levels. Dane DeHaan playing this cold and pushy executive with an attitude (very similar to Harry Osborn in The Amazing Spider-Man 2) is on a short list of highlights here, and his descent into madness is believable.

Gore Verbinski delivers a good amount of creepy, haunting, and disgusting visuals, and A Cure For Wellness maintains an inescapable sense danger and doom during Lockhart's (DeHaan) mission to uncover the truth at the wellness center. The problem with A Cure For Wellness is, the tedious process for unraveling the mysteries at the wellness center just kills the suspense they're trying to build here, and the runtime doesn't help. A Cure For Wellness clocks in at 2hrs. and 26 min. and with the calculated pacing, you'll basically feel every minute of it.

The gross-out scenes, and DeHaan's performance can't save this one, and the big finale is anticlimactic. On top of that, the big twists and the reveals are really hit-and-miss, and one of the reveals/twists is pretty obvious, if you just pay attention. Sorry, but if you're going to make a horror film that's close to three hours, you need to deliver a good shocker, or a satisfying payoff. A Cure For Wellness has all the ingredients ( i.e. Dane DeHaan's performance) to be the perfect horror film, but it's a big misfire, and it's hard to ignore the bloated runtime.

And A Cure For Wellness joins the early lists of flops in 2017. The current worldwide total sits at $9,402,723, and that's off of a reported production budget of $40,000,000. I'm all for cerebral horror films changing the overall landscape for mainstream horror, and the promotional campaign for this one was nothing short of relentless. But the mixed reviews (a 39% on Rotten Tomatoes), and the lukewarm reception really hurt A Cure For Wellness' chances for a successful box office run.

Split- 6/10

More proof M. Night Shyamalan clearly peaked after Signs.

James McAvoy deserves credit for his versatility, completely switching gears in the blink of an eye, and he delivers one hell of a performance. My big problem with McAvoy playing more comical personalities is, the comedy stuff really doesn't mesh well with the overall tone of the story. Also, the story feels a bit convoluted at times, with Shyamalan trying too hard to be too clever.

And without spoiling anything, McAvoy FINALLY unleashing "The Beast" towards the end didn't do anything for me. For me, it's another case of Shyamalan building towards something big, and failing to deliver something worth waiting for.

With all that said, Split is a solid and thought-provoking psychological horror/thriller, with Anya Taylor-Joy realizing mind games, outsmarting, and manipulating Kevin's (McAvoy) more vulnerable personalities gives the girls their best shot at escaping, because he's too strong to fight. I'm glad Shyamalan is on an upswing, because he was stuck in a slump for a while with so many awful and mediocre films, but if we're comparing his recent films, I'll take The Visit over Split.

February 17-20 & The Upcoming Weekend

No big changes, with The LEGO Batman Movie repeating at #1 in the week-to-week charts, and Fist Fight opened up at #5 with $14,121,149 ($15,621,149 for the current worldwide total). The Great Wall debuted at #3, and it looks like the movie will fall short of any big expectations at the box office. The Great Wall has a current worldwide total of $96,214,300, and that's off of a reported production budget of $150,000,000.

Get Out could be a unique horror flick, but I have my doubts about it. Although, Get Out has a 100% on RT, and Jordan Peele is a big fan of the horror genre, so that's reassuring. He was on Jimmy Kimmel's show not too long ago talking about his love of horror movies, and you get the feeling Get Out is a project he's truly passionate about.

I have thing for action flicks with a frenetic style of pacing, and a chaotic style of storytelling (the Crank films, Domino, etc.), so Collide could be a fun guilty pleasure film.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

La La Land

Giving the movie some credit for being what it set out to be, and that is an homage of sorts to The Golden Age of Cinema. It does not let the viewer forget, with visual keys here and there in the guise of posters, paintings, quotes, mannerisms, and at times, even showing us clips of nostalgia like Rebel Without A Cause (Among one of my favorites). It is sentimental. It is bittersweet. It is Oscar bait.

I did have a problem with the flick, though. It isn't until halfway through the movie that we are introduced to a conflict. Up til then it was your usual "boy meets girl" standard that's been done to death. Yes, I totally understand that this movie was a love letter to Old Hollywood, but there is such thing as being too on the nose. It takes forever to get anywhere. That and one minor conflict is completely forgotten about, or at least never mentioned-

Spoiler

Sebastian had artistic differences with Keith. Keith wanted to make Jazz more modern, to appeal to a wider audience, while throughout the movie Sebastian's character yearned for the "good ol' days". Sebastian decided to go with Keith's idea and be a part of The Messengers, causing rifts between himself and Mia. I loved this. I found this to be a very interesting turn in the movie.

Five years later, Keith is playing music at Sebastian's brainchild, an old school Jazz club. The fuck??

Not to mention the heart breaking conclusion that is almost derailed because the director had to squeeze in more musical references at the last minute to give us that "what if" scenario the whole movie hyped up. I personally hated this, because it felt excessive. It took me away from the story and made me play Spot The Musical The Director Is Referencing. For me, that was too much.

Visually stunning, with a musical score that's not bad. Loved the fact it was in CinemaScope. But a bit pretentious for me.

Spidey Rating: 2.75/5

 

[Spidey Revivey]

Get Out

I hate doing these things right after I hit the theater. One look at a review like this and people will just chalk it off as "cinema daze" or whatever slang there is out there for people that get out of a movie and gush about how good it is until the hype dies down. I'm not that kind of guy. When I review I mean to be critical. And there is no other genre out there I am more critical about I think than horror, because it is my favorite genre and it has been diluted with bullshit scares and cliches a child could write for decades now. When a film comes along with even a trace of originality, I pay attention.

Tonight, my eyes never left the screen.

Get Out hits where it hurts, as a horror fucking should. This is a spoiler-free review, but the gist is definitely in the trailer. It is done in such a way that it doesn't treat the audience like idiots. The characters are believable with everything they do. Just about every genre cliche is either subverted or gone completely. The acting was a plus. Tension = perfect. Soundtrack takes the old horror fans back to the days of Leatherface and Norman Bates. There is so much going on with the technical side of things that I gotta squeeze in my thoughts about the story itself in its own review. It is fresh. It is topical. It is needed.

Only thing I felt lacking was surprise. They are truly few and far between. But then again after reflecting I don't think it really needed it. This movie set out what its trailer intended, and that was to give the audience something to be afraid of while remaining relevant to the social climate of today. There are no ghosts to jump at us from the screens. No boogeyman to leap out of the closet. The scare is in the person sitting next to you, and what they could be capable of.

This was Jordan Peele's first movie as a director. For fuck's sake. With the title it got it should have sucked.

Spidey's Rating: 4.5/5

 

[enviousdominous]

I enjoy learning about examples from history that are typically hidden from our schools and common media influences, especially when those examples contradict beliefs that are based on delusions.

This movie is a visual representation of James Baldwin's unfinished manuscript titled "Remember This House".

The identity of James Baldwin is of a man who finds himself being forced into a mental state of disassociation. The overwhelming sin of our society is institutionalized racism, but this movie depicts the thoughts of a man who saw beyond that sin.

James Baldwin mourns the deaths of three of his closest allies in the fight for civil rights, but he also questions his allegiance to the ideas from which his friends based their faith. I found this aspect of James Baldwin to be that of a long lost kindred spirit.

I highly recommend finding a theater near you that is screening this film and checking it out, it's worth every bit of praise it's receiving. You won't be sitting through an hour and a half of a guilt trip, this was one of those rare moments where I left a movie feeling smarter.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

The Great Wall (in 3D!)- 3/10

A movie about a war against monsters breaking out at The Great Wall Of China? A movie with that premise can't go wrong for so many reasons, but I was wrong.

Visually, The Great Wall is stunning. The movie really works as a grandiose spectacle, and certain shots look great in 3D, but that's about as far as I can go for praising The Great Wall. The Great Wall lacks any real excitement or thrills, and the more artsy and subtle approach didn't work for me. It's a dull monster/fantasy epic, and decent performances from Matt Damon and Pedro Pascal couldn't save this one.

Collide- 3/10

Collide has just about every cliche you can think of. Casey (Nicholas Hoult) wants to get out of the "life," when he meets the girl (Felicity Jones) of his dreams. Casey enjoys living a normal life with Juliette until it's revealed she has a failing kidney, and of course, Casey is lured back into a life of crime for one big job to pay for Juliette's operation. The love story between Casey and Juliette feels rushed and forced, because everything is basically slapped together in a highlight reel package during the early stages of the movie after the two meet for the first time at a club.

Usually, I'm willing to overlook cliches, if the overall final product delivers, but that's not the case here. Collide has ONE exhilarating car chase, and that's about it, if we're talking about thrills for Collide. I also had a lot of trouble buying into Nicholas Hoult's character. There's nothing wrong with his performance, but throughout the movie, Casey just struck me as someone with an incredible streak of luck, who just happened to miraculously escape near-death situations, because the bad guys aren't too smart, or because Anthony Hopkins had to waste time with the usual unnecessary speech from the villain.

Ben Kingsley's over the top performance as this crazy drug lord is good for a few laughs, and Anthony Hopkins' Hagen Kahl is supposed to bring balance to Collide. Kahl is supposed to offset Kingsley's wackiness as the primary antagonist, but Hopkins hamming it up one too many times and looking like a kooky old man really defeats the purpose.

 

[Dave]

Moonlight

After the mix up at the Oscars, I had to watch it, right?

Truthfully, I hadn't actually heard anything about the movie until the list of nominations were announced for The Oscars. And even then, I was sure that La La Land was going to take the top honour. Not that I enjoyed La La Land all that much, honestly. But it seemed to have a massive backing from the Academy and it was shocking to me that it didn't win.

Moonlight, itself, was actually something special. But really I felt as though the ending of it was enough to actually, physically, annoy me. The first act of the movie was utterly superb, truth be told. Mahershala Ali was, undoubtedly, the best character in this movie and it isn't even close. He deserved the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

That said, all of the potential in the first act is soon frittered away by the end of the third. I really liked the story that Moonlight tried to tell but I really felt totally unsatisfied after it. I get that, at the heart of the movie, this was a coming of age, watershed picture. But I felt as though it lacked any sort of punch. There are outstanding moment throughout the movie and the acting is brilliant, there's no doubt. But the final act is a total let down and basically crippled the movie. I enjoyed it but it lacked drama in the name of character evolution. An Oscar winner for Best Picture should be able to do both.

3/5

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Get Out-9/10

After watching the first trailer and reading the premise for Get Out, I was almost sure they would toss the N-word around more than once, but that didn't happen here. It's definitely a refreshing change of pace for a film about racism between white and black people, because there was no need to rely on that word to get a reaction. Get Out shows racism can come in other forms, with the white characters having more condescending, patronizing, and passive-aggressive personas.

I have mixed feelings on the big reveal towards the end, but so far Get Out has to be the front-runner for the best horror film in 2017. Jordan Peele delivers a truly special and creative horror film. Racism is the foundation for the story, but the subject never feels exploitative in the way Peele chooses to approach it. Get Out is a thought-provoking and unnerving film, loaded with so many layers, there's a good balance of horror and humor (Lil Rel Howery is hilarious), and the tension from start to finish is just excellent, because you never know what's going to happen next. Also, I think it's safe to say Get Out has one of the best opening scenes in a horror film.

Fist Fight-5/10

I was ready to trash this after the first 40-50 minutes, but Fist Fight redeems itself towards the end. One of the bigger problems for me is, the movie relies on crude humor and dick jokes way too much for the majority of the movie. Also, they felt the need to constantly remind everyone the teachers (excluding Charlie Day) are immoral loose cannons and nutcases. I get the whole point is to show Charlie Day is the only normal and respectable teacher in the school, and that's supposed to be the "joke," but it gets to the point, where the constant reminders are just repetitive and kind of annoying.

With all that said, it's kind of hard to not root for Charlie Day's character here. He's an honest and nice guy, but he's a spineless pushover, so you're just waiting for the moment, when he finally decides to stand up for himself. Day is a good foil for Ice Cube's character, playing the wimpy and uptight nerd, and I laughed a few times. Fist Fight is a so-so comedy, and the set up for the path to Andy's (Day) transformation and Andy breaking out of his shell is cliched and it's been done before, but the formula still works here.

March 3-5 & The Upcoming Weekend

No big surprise, but Logan debuted at #1 in the week-to-week charts with $88,411,916 ($300,649,174 for the worldwide total).

Logan is riding a strong wave of momentum with a lot of buzz and positive reviews (a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes), and it'll be a tight race to #1 in the week-to-week charts with Kong: Skull Island opening with the wide release tomorrow, but according to Box Office Mojo.com, Kong: Skull Island should debut at #1 after a close race. The trailers for KSI are amazing, but I can't stop thinking about the parallels between this film and Godzilla (2014): a lot of hype, great trailers, and a disappointing and underwhelming final product.

 

[Hard Hit Prince]

Oh man, I've been far away from WZ for a long time now. Been very busy working to promote some movies in my country - if anyone cares, I've been working with Anthony Hopkins, Nicholas Hoult and Felicity Jones's Collide and Emma Watson/Tom Hanks's The Circle.

Next week, I'll move to television with a great deal to promote AMC channel, that's now investing in here. Their focus in on the third season of "Into The Badlands" I've also had one-one conversations with Andrew Lincoln, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Norman Reedus from "The Walking Dead". All in all, it's been some very busy months.

I've seen tons of movies since the last update, but I'll be sure to just talk about the current highlights.

----------


The Edge of Seventeen

Absolutely loved the characters and the performance by the cast in this movie. At times it made me feel like I was watching a mix between "Easy A", "The Duff" and "Me, Earl and The Dying Girl", based on the emotions played out in it. It was funny, it was sad and it sure as hell was entertaining.

Hailee Steinfeld was outstanding in the lead role and she carried the movie alone. Her character is that one girl, that we all know, that has low self-esteem because of the scars in her life - of course somehow, someway, she thinks that dating other scared guys is the way to go. Spoiler alert, it isn't. You feel for her, of course you do, but by the end of it and specially if you are a guy and also the big brother, you specially feel sorry for her brother Darian (Blake Jenner).

It's a fun movie experience and if you have the time, give it a shot. It's a light movie even though it plays with death, suicide and betrayal subjects.

Rating: 3,5/5

Logan

Fantastic movie. I made the official review for this movie, but no way I'm going to translate it all, so I'll just leave my analogy that at the time seemed a perfect fit.

"Logan" is the car you have for some time now. You thought about replacing it but you never did, because you thought it was still good enough to go. In reality, that old car had to many memories attached to it and you just couldn't do it. It's its last big trip. The car is worned out and you don't know if you'll make it to your destination. In every turn, you feel your heart beating faster as the engine starts to fail. It somehow keeps on going. In that melancholic, sometimes boring, last trip.

"Logan" needs an open mind and a free spirit for you to enjoy what it is... that sad and nostalgic farewell of the old car - read it as Hugh Jackman's Wolverine.

(it's loosely translated for the introduction and the ending of the review, loved the movie).

Rating: 4/5

Kong: Skull Island

Flat characters. Seriously. Brie Larson and Tom Hiddleston are a waste in this movie. It's somehow a cool flick thanks to the universe they are building with the great CGI, sound effects and action sequences. I'm excited for the sequel.

Seriously, I can't really say anything more about this movie. Watched it in IMAX 3D and it's the way to go because this is totally a special effects movie that actually gets better with the best quality.

Kong is indeed king.

Rating: 2,5/5

 

[Mitch Henessey]

John Wick: Chapter 2- 3/10

I honestly don't understand why so many critics are gushing over this.

Chapter 2 really feels like a retread of the first film, and monotony is a big problem here. Maybe I'm in the minority on this, but you can only get so many thrills out of watching John Wick shooting, stabbing, and pummeling his way through gauntlets of disposable mercenaries and henchmen.

I know we're only two films in, but if Chapter 3 happens, John Wick needs a worthy adversary. Yeah, storyline wise, I get it. D’Antonio is supposed to be a powerful character, but he just comes off as another cliched, dull, and uninteresting crime lord. John Wick is supposed to be this nearly invincible and unstoppable bad ass, so he really needs someone to tip the scales, because we're two films in, and I'm already bored with the "crime lord sends a seemingly endless wave of goons to stop and kill John Wick" formula.

The fight scenes and the interactions with Common and Ruby Rose were the best parts of the movie for me, and truth be told, I would've enjoyed the film more if everything was limited to Reeves VS Rose and Reeves VS Common.

Logan- 9/10

If Logan is truly Hugh Jackman's last film as Wolverine, then it's one hell of a sendoff.

The Wolverine missed the mark, but Logan succeeds as a more emotional and gritty film. The R rating and more blood and brutal violence helps, and Hugh Jackman delivers a strong performance, easily his best in the X-Men series and The Wolverine films. The relationship between Logan and Laura and Logan going back and forth with not wanting to accept Laura is one of the main highlights here. Logan also benefits from a good supporting cast, with Dafne Keen, and Patrick Stewart portraying a fragile shell of what he used to be. And Boyd Holbrook always delivers, when he's playing the role of a skeevy asshole.

Logan has to be a top choice for the best superhero film in 2017 so far, and looking at all the trailers and the other superhero films, Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 is the only film that'll have a chance to live up to all the hype and expectations.

March 10-12 & The Upcoming Weekend

No real surprise, but Kong: Skull Island debuted at #1 in the week to week charts with $61,025,472 ($162,496,700 for the current worldwide total).

According to Box Office Mojo's predictions, Beauty And The Beast is expected to open with a big debut at #1 in the $150,000,000-$170,000,000 range for the weekend. BATB has a 67% on Rotten Tomatoes, and there's a good chance that rating will drop tomorrow and in the following days. Nothing in the trailers for BATB really interests me, but I'm glad Emma Watson has a big role in one of the more highly anticipated films this year.

The Belko Experiment has a 47% on RT, and the movie is only being released in 1,341 theaters. With TBE, it's one of those films, where I don't really care about the RT rating or negative reivews. The trailers are basically promising a brutal horror film with a lot nasty violence and bloody mayhem, and you can tell they're catering to that specific group of horror fans, who enjoy that style of horror.

 

[SSJPhenom]

I tell you what people, Logan just might be the very best film in the X-Men Cinematic Universe. (In case you don't know the XMCU includes X-Men, X2: X-Men United, X-Men 3: Last Stand, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Wolverine, Logan, X-Men: First Class, X-Men: Days of Future Past, X-Men: Apocalypse, and Deadpool)

Logan hit on and was successful at everything. It had the action, the drama, and the storyline. Not to mention that Hugh acted his ass off. Honestly, Logan is not a happy film. I don't want to spoil anything for you but it is not your typical X-Men movie with lots of humor and happy moments. This movie is sad and it is a wonderful movie. Yet another example of how far ahead Marvel is than DC in the film industry. Here's to hoping that Wonder Woman is as good as the trailers make it look.