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Creed II (2018)
Predictable, but with a bigger heart and everything you want in a Rocky film
While this film is the eighth in the Rocky franchise, it is very predictable from start to finish. It is hard for the eighth film to do something completely different in a loved franchise and end up like...you know, Rocky 5. So this movie has a very modern take on what made the original Rocky's so beloved. Stallone also gives one of my favorite performances as Rocky, and Michael B. Jordan continues to impress on the screen.
What stands out about this movie the most is how much it focuses on family and loved ones. Creed II has arguably the biggest of all of the movies prior.
With everything fans love about the Rocky films, and the biggest heart of the franchise, Creed II is easily one of the best movies of the franchise, top 3 at least.
A Star Is Born (2018)
A breathtaking tale of love and struggle
A Star is Born was a wonderful journey to follow with its characters. Bradley Cooper gives the best performance of his career, and delivers a movie directed so well it's hard to believe this is his debut as a director. Lady Gaga was just a HAIR less impressive than Cooper, but she was unbelievably great. Every moment from the fun moments to the dark moments audiences will be glued to the screen and excited to see what happens next.
And all the music is original and incredible.
This film also takes a very real and eye opening take on addiction that feels more real and even more genuine than other films do when they contain some sort of addiction.
A Star is Born is a must see, and quite possibly my favorite movie of 2018 so far.
First Man (2018)
Chazelle and Gosling round 2
If you're going into First Man wanting to see a cool story about the Apollo 11 moon landing, you will be disappointed in this film.
This is a brilliant, almost documentary style film about the life of Neil Armstrong. He experienced a lot of tragedy, which evolved him into a quiet man who chooses to keep his emotions bottled up, rather than opening up with friends and/or family.
Ryan Gosling displays this with subtle acting in his dialog and emotions and the outcome is incredible to see.
Gosling's terrific performance, along with Chazelle's remarkable eye behind the camera (as expected), makes for a very good film that you can expect to see nominated this Oscar season.
Hereditary (2018)
Arthouse, yet mainstream
Hereditary was twisted in the best of ways. A slow burning Arthouse style of tension that screen junkies love , with some mainstream horror bumps in the night for the average movie goer. LOVED IT!
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Wow ALL that just happened, and somehow I'm only slightly overwhelmed
Infinity War is a jam packed movie with tons of action and story balanced for a nonstop Marvel experience like never seen before. Infinity War managed to cram a solid story, countless characters meshing together, and fun action all in one film that should have been 4 hours long to fit everything in. Seeing the Guardians finally interact with Avengers characters is one of the most satisfying elements of Infinity War.
My only flaw WOULD BE that soooo much is jammed into this film. However, the Russo brothers managed to pull it off as effectively as anyone could. The Jam packed film worked and didn't feel like "too much" as much as it would if anyone else had Done a film like this. Loved it, go see this!
A Quiet Place (2018)
*whispers* "wow"
A Quiet Place was unlike any movie I have ever seen. Krasinski has shown his creativity and skill behind the camera and screenplay. There were moments where I found myself tensing up at the slightest noise in fear of the creatures who attack the noise, and simply because the film was purposely done in a way where the smallest noise seems like a shriek to the audience.
I have ZERO flaws with this movie, other than the gentleman in the theater behind me eating what sounded like rocks.
Do yourself and everyone else a favor and DO NOT eat during this movie.
Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)
Risky, but rewarding
Last Jedi was wonderful for everyone who didn't take a deep dive into theories on the origin of characters. Phasma, Snoke, and Rey's parents didn't have significance to them like fans had hoped. Johnson took the risk by not making everyone "someone" in the Star Wars universe. But Phasma is no different from beloved Boba Fett. Rey's parents are no different than Anakin's parents. Star Wars fans have recently bathed themselves into the idea every character needs to somehow be connected to another to be significant.
If you don't feel that way and love seeing the story unfold, Last Jedi will be a film you'll watch over and over. Also, Johnson has taken the powers of the Force to a new level , past just mind tricks and moving rocks. With the Force, users are capable of much more than we ever expected. Stop watching YouTube theory videos, and you can't have much to complain about with this fun and gorgeous movie
Parallel (2016)
Fresh, and intriguing
This review will be a little different, as Alexander Cooper, this film's producer, reached out to me personally and asked me to review this film. It is a great honor, and I hope he takes my review's "negatives" as constructive criticism. And its "positives" as reassurance and motivations his future work.
I will start by getting the "negatives" out of the way first. I really only have 2 gripes with this film. The sound was very poor at times. It was very inconsistent with loudness and muffled sound. This was not as much of a problem until the second and third acts of the film, where it became very noticeable and hard to ignore.
My biggest gripe with the sound was when there was music in the film that was setting the tone and build up of scenes. The music was wonderful and well placed, but it muffled out the dialog tremendously, to the point where it was difficult to hear the characters' lines when they were very important to the tone of the scene.
My second gripe is minor. There were only a couple (2 to be exact) of scenes where dialog was far too long and it really dragged out the scenes. I was already invested in the scenes and think the overall selling of the scenes could have been done with about a third of the dialog.
Those downsides to the film out of the way, this piece has a lot going for it. I found the overall concept of the film extremely fresh and interesting. The third act hit me with many unexpected outcomes I did not see coming from a mile away. This screenplay, especially the third act, was clever and unpredictable in the best of ways.
My favorite and most surprising piece to this film was the directing and editing. Major props to this part of the crew!! With independent films, I always fear an over-usage of camera pans, with a serious lack of multiple takes from close ups to wide shots. I found this movie's directing and editing from shot to shot and take to take was executed with tremendous fashion. I couldn't have asked for a better job, honestly.
I strongly appreciate and respect independent filmmaking, as I would love someday to be involved in these types of projects. I found Parallel to be a very interesting, well directed, and wonderfully edited independent film. It is one that I will not forget my first viewing of on Amazon Prime. If you enjoy independent film, Alexander Cooper's Parallel is one you will certainly enjoy.
-Baby23
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)
Dark, yet warm
Three Bilboards, with a fairly short running time, throws the audience directly into the plot with the opening frames. This film does an excellent job showing both sides, McDormand's character and the general public, equally as they are. A grieving mother seeking justice and answers, and the Chief of Police who feels he's done his job to the best of his ability. McDormand's blunt, rude, vulgar, and uncensored character is extremely charismatic. The other characters (one in particular after some major character development) are very charismatic as well. This film takes the audience on a very dark journey where nothing "expected" or "predictable" really happens. We become very invested in a brilliant story with direction we are fools to think we can foresee. Viewers will feel a surprising warmth to this dark tale, and find the very shocking (and very common) inappropriate dialog either funny, or just plain wrong. The brilliant storytelling and extraordinary performances make Three Billboards a must see for all audiences.
95/100
-Baby_23
The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)
Original, unique, touching
The Place Beyond the Pines suffers from no movie clichés, regardless of genre. A very original screenplay that takes the audience on a journey they'll be very emotionally invested in. Ryan Gosling is absolutely electric! The entire cast's performance was A+ quality, with Gosling leading the charge with one of his best performances. Sit back, and tag along for this tale that is highly original and extremely unpredictable.
85/100
-Baby23
Baby Driver (2017)
Must see
Baby Driver comes through in the clutch, proving that fast paced action can be brilliantly achieved, not with shaky camera sequences, but with masterful directing and editing. With the help of great visual storytelling, stellar performances, and a killer soundtrack, Baby Driver races to the top without looking back. Other than a fairly rushed love interest, Baby Driver is seemingly flawless. So buckle up, crank up the stereo, and slam your eyes and ears into gear for yet another Edgar Wright masterpiece.
95/100
-Baby23
A Ghost Story (2017)
Original. With a capital "O"
A Ghost Story is as original as a film can be. Showing a chilling and disturbing tale of how cruel emotional attachment can be , in life, and perhaps even after life. It serves as a great metaphor for learning to let go of things before we can truly move on to the next step in our lives, or our afterlife.
90/100
-Baby23