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The VVitch: A New-England Folktale (2015)
Chilling
All I can say is that this film does a brilliant job at giving you the creeps without going for cheap jump scares. And being someone who hates jump scares, that was refreshing.
The Witch is about a Puritan family in the 1600s that is banished from their village, and then moves far away to a secluded area near a forest. In the forest, of course, resides a witch that kidnaps the family's youngest infant, and continuously messes around with the family throughout the movie.
A lot of people say this film can be too slowly-paced at times, which I agree with. But I thought the slow-burn and subtlty worked really well. There were never any big moments with reveals, the way most horror/mysteries are. Little things would keep going wrong, and the suspense just kept building very slowly and painfully.
But the ending definitely could've been played out a better...there were a few plot holes. If the goat was supposed to be the antagonist all along, what was the point of having the witch terrorize the family too? Also, who's responsible for kidnapping the twins, the witch or the goat? It was all too much to swallow at once, especially since the rest of the film was so much more subtle.
And of course, Thomasin ends up killing her mother, and then joining the witch's side, which was a bit shocking but expected in a way. I guess she had no choice, since her whole family was dead. And the opening voice-over of her confessing her sins to God could've been an overshadowing of the ending--that she desired evil all along, as much as she tried to go against it. Another theory I have is that she (ironically) sacrificed herself to evil in order to pay for her family's death...since Thomasin told her mother "I love you" after killing her. These are just my ideas though; I have no idea what the director intended to say there.
The cinematography, acting, dialogue, and score were solid. I'm amazed at how the actors were able to speak in character using such old dialogue, and I think it really contributed to how real the whole movie felt. A lot of people seem bothered by the filter, but I liked it. Imagining the movie with any more color makes me cringe...the filter fits the setting and mood perfectly enough. The score was subtle, like the film itself. It popped out when necessary and wasn't over dramatic. Almost nothing in this film was over-the-top except for the young kids' acting in some scenes.
Overall I'd say this is a quality film that's definitely worth watching. It's a different kind of horror though, so know what to expect before you watch it.
American Beauty (1999)
Unexpectedly Good
I'm gonna be honest here, I clicked this movie on Netflix mostly expecting to get a laugh out of it. (A suburban dad crushing on a teenager? You're in for something interesting.) But surprisingly, this movie has some more substance to it. I kept hearing the film title but I never knew that it won Oscars, until recently. Those Oscars are well- deserved. "American Beauty" seemed to question the definition of "beauty," I think. One guy might find an empty plastic bag beautiful, while a middle aged father finds a blonde cheerleader-type teen girl beautiful. And the movie questions a lot of other cultural stuff as well, and it definitely takes a stab at the stereotypes of suburban family life, which I really liked. The film's portrayal of suburban family life was pretty authentic, and many of the issues that the family tackled were relatable. Overall, great movie! It lost a star only cause some parts kinda grossed me out, but it's not too bad, mostly.
The Giver (2014)
Better Than Expected
Since a lot of recent YA film adaptions have been garbage-worthy, I wasn't expecting much out of this one. But I don't think it was that bad. The acting was pretty good, and it was much easier to follow than the book was. I feel like some of the romance between Jonas and that girl was unrealistic though. If they lived in a world where people barely even knew what intimacy was then how would Jonas even know what a kiss is, much less how to? And I can't believe there wasn't any awkwardness. If you're gonna add a kiss scene in this movie, at least make it realistic. I think it would've been reasonable for them to have a connection, but that would be enough. Sometimes less is more. I feel like they added the kiss just to make the film more "hollywood-worthy," which is stupid.
If I Stay (2014)
Not Bad
I like the characters and the story. Being a musician myself, it was pretty relatable and fun to watch. I really like Mia & Adam's relationship too - the fact that they're both musicians but still different in many ways is interesting and makes their relationship more complex. I think this film was pretty realistic too (other than the fact that Mia gets in Juliard and Adam becomes a popstar which is a little...far fetched might I say). Mia basically had a normal life, until the day of the car crash. Shows how unexplainable accidents like this happen in real life, and there's nothing we can do to control it. What matters is how we handle those situations - that's what the film is trying to say, I think. The problem I had with this movie is that it felt slow paced, and when it was over I didn't feel particularly amazed. I was just like okay, that's it? Kind of predictable.
Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain (2001)
Okay
It's a cute movie. I thought the cinematography and editing was really uniquely creative; I love the way Amelie's imagination was depicted. The acting was great. There were some hilarious scenes as well. Amelie is a strange character at times but also pretty relatable.
The major problem I had with this movie is the plot. It was all over the place. There were too many different stories squeezed into one. I was generally confused what the point of the whole movie was. While there were great scenes, some parts were so boring that I wanted to skip over them.
Overall, Amelie is lighthearted and pretty entertaining, but I guarantee you will yawn at least twice while watching the film.
Ask Me Anything (2014)
Realistic
I actually liked this movie a lot more than I thought I would. At first glance it seems like a typical teen movie without any substance, but trust me it's not. I think the way Allison Burnett structured everything was very cool and the ending was thought-provoking.
The ending confused me at first, but after I re-watched it a few times I think I get the idea. The whole movie, we were seeing her life through the eyes of her blog-viewers. At the end, we're still her blog-followers, except that now Katie/Amy has gone missing, and her mom is writing the blog entry. Amy had been embellishing her stories. In reality, her life was much less of a soap-opera than we thought it to be. Shows that perspective changes everything.
What really goes on behind the TV, the news, gossip magazines? Probably something completely different from what we think.
Mr. Nobody (2009)
One of the best movies out there!
I just saw this movie, and honestly I'm blown away. I can't comprehend how anyone could put such a complicated philosophy into a movie, without a traditional plot, and STILL make it somewhat understandable. It was confusing in many aspects, but I felt like I was able to follow along despite that. It was so cool to see all the different possible lives Nemo could have lived...made me think about how that would work with my own life. If you haven't seen this movie YOU HAVE TO. (I know I'm gong to beg all my friends to see it.) Just...watch it, even if it seems confusing, you'll grasp onto it very quickly. (Even I did, and I suck at following movie plots)
P.S. Jared Leto is really good in this, probably his best work
Whiplash (2014)
Amazing acting; excellent movie overall
What I love about this movie is how it makes you feel exactly what the character(s) are feeling. The acting is exceptional. Andrew is a very relatable character, even if you don't do music. And don't even get me started on how phenomenally good J.K. Simons is in this, he's a freaking master. He's my new favorite actor. Also Miles Teller impressed me. I mean I saw him in Divergent & The Spectacular Now, and he wasn't bad. But damn, he was legit in Whiplash.
And one particular scene literally gave me the chills (yall who saw the movie know what I'm talking about) like it was unreal. I've never been so immersed in a scene that I forget EVERYTHING ELSE except what's going on in the scene. It's like...this film moves out of the screen into your head and messes around with your emotions and thought process...crazy stuff
Just watch it