Mank

Seeing as Mank is a film directed by David Fincher, it shouldn't be any surprise this is a movie that comes together excellently from a technical perspective. It's very well directed and acted, something that I naturally come to expect from Fincher as a director. With that said, this is not a movie that's going to appeal to everyone. A small niche of people will probably enjoy it. For starters, Fincher makes a lot of call-backs to Citizen Kane. It makes sense because this movie is about Herman Mankiewicz as he writes Citizen Kane, and navigates 1930s Hollywood. One of the main criticisms I have seen levied against this movie is that the pacing often feels a bit too slow. This is something I have to agree with. As I have already hinted at, the performances really do deserve props. As usual actors like Gary Oldman and Charles Dance are in top form. Amanda Seyfried might at her best in this movie. The one person who doesn't entirely feel like they belong to me is Bill Nye as Upton Sinclair. He isn't awful, necessarily. But, Bill Nye also is not an actor by trade. However, I should note that he really isn't in the film very much. This is a film that was written by David Fincher's late father. Naturally, this film was a passion project for Fincher. Overall, as a fan of David Fincher's work, I am glad I saw this film. It's not one that I think will go down as one of his best, nor do I see this as one of Fincher's more rewatchable movies. I enjoyed my time with Mank, but won't need to seek it out multiple times in the long run.

7 / 10    

Girl

 

Girl stars Bella Thorne in the title role as a young woman who makes her way to a small town with a score to settle. It doesn't take long before she learns that not everything is what it seems. Going in to this, I only knew the basic plot. I had an idea of what I expected the movie to be. So, when the plot beat I saw coming happened within the first third, I had reached a point where I wasn't entirely sure how things were going to progress. That said, there were still some pretty predictable elements to the movie's plot. Some of the more obvious plot beats are kind of where I would like to start. These moments are the main issue I have with the movie, though they are few and far between. I knew right away who was going to be the villain as soon as the character was introduced, and not just because of the actor playing the role. The movie's greatest strength is the acting, particularly Bella Thorne in the lead. Initially, I was a little bit worried. Those worries were put to ease as the film went on. Overall, Girl works because of its performances, and some legitimately good tension. It isn't a movie I see going down as a modern classic or anything, but it did keep me invested as I watched it. 

7 / 10  

Gremlins 2: The New Batch

Gremlins 2 is pretty bonkers. The movie takes place a few years after the events of the first film. Billy has a new job in New York, and is in a committed relationship with his girl Kate. Billy also reunites with Gizmo after the mogwai's home is destroyed. Of course, things go awry and the gremlins wreak havoc on the skyscraper. This movie is just a ton of fun. It has some pretty damn entertaining meta jokes, including a moment where the movie flat out stops until Hulk Hogan threatens the gremlins. It is a bit more light-hearted because Joe Dante wanted the movie to be a different animal from the first movie. The cast is a lot of fun too. Aside from the returning cast members, we also have Christopher Lee in a small role. The movie's biggest flaw is that the horror elements are probably toned down a bit too much. If you're not into movies that are willing to go to really weird places, this probably is not the movie for you. If you do like some of those kinds of movies, then I would definitely recommend checking out this movie. 

7 / 10  

Pet Sematary (1989)

Louis Creed (played by Dale Midkiff) moves with his family to Maine because he takes a job. Before too long, tragedy strikes the Creed family, and Louis takes desperate measures when their neighbor, Jud (played by Fred Gwynne) tells him about the pet cemetery. I really enjoy this movie. It has something of a dated 80s charm to it. It probably helps that the script was written by Stephen King himself. The acting is pretty hit and miss. Fred Gwynne as Jud is easily the best part of the movie. On the other hand, I don't care as much for Dale Midkiff in the lead. He's not awful or anything. He just doesn't do much for me in the movie. I will say that I kind of love how quotable this movie is. I can't tell you how many times I have randomly said "Never get out of bed again," just as an example. Some of the effects are a bit dated by today's standards. I'm not saying that is a negative in the case of this movie, as I feel it adds to this movie's dated feel and charm. This isn't a perfect movie, nor do I consider one of the best King movies. However, I do think it's still a decently fun watch. Check it out, especially if you are a fan of Stephen King movies. 

7 / 10 

Creepshow 2

 Creepshow 2 was not directed by George A. Romero this time around. However, Romero did write the movie. The stories also are based on stories wrtten by Stephen King, even though King didn't write this movie himself. The stories this time around are still pretty inventive, even if there are less of them. The best of the three stories in this film is easily the third and final one. Among the stories are a wooden Native American statue that seeks revenge against a couple killers, a sludge monster stalking and killing a group of college students looking for a swimming getaway, and a woman being haunted by the ghost of someone she accidentally killed. The one thing I definitely think was weaker this time around was the framing in between the stories. It isn't bad. It just isn't as good as the framing in the first movie. Once again, the cast is pretty damn good too, even if it is a bit odd that a white actor was cast as a native American in this movie. I will admit though; I think I preferred the cast in the first movie a little bit more. Overall, Creepshow 2 was a fun enough sequel. Do I prefer the first movie? Yes. But, that doesn't take away from the fact that this is still pretty damn entertaining. If you're a fan of the first movie, give this movie a watch.  

7 / 10 

A Babysitter's Guide to Monster Hunting

Teenager Kelly Ferguson has to find her charge when he is kidnapped by a monster on Halloween. This is a movie I could easily see kids getting a kick out of. There are some moments that I think work well enough to creep younger audiences out a little bit. Looking at this movie as an adult, I saw mostly as a fun little Halloween watch, nothing more. The best part of this movie is easily Tom Felton as the main villain. The man just seems like he is having a ton of fun. I do think there is something of an 80s vibe to it. There is some stuff in this movie I thought was actually pretty imaginative. I will say that the main character is just okay as a character. I actually think one of the supporting players would have worked better as the lead. She has a more interesting backstory, and a better tie to the main villain. The CGI isn't really anything special. I did find it to be less distracting as the film went on. Overall, I think this movie had just enough imagination to keep me interested while I watched. I also could see this being a decent gateway movie for younger kids trying to get into horror. 

7 / 10 

Deep Rising

A cruise ship on its maiden voyage finds itself attacked by a creature lurking in the deep. A team of mercenaries along with a hired ship crew also make their way on to the ship for initially devious reasons. Soon, the mercenaries, the cruise ship's surviving crew members, and the sole surviving passenger must do their best to survive in their current predicament. The first thing I will say is that the CGI is pretty rough. I can't necessarily speak to how good it might have looked when this movie came out in 1998. But, looking at it in 2020, it is not good. The movie doesn't always flow together super well. The mercenaries are there because the man who designed the ship wanted to sink it on its maiden voyage to collect insurance money. It feels there might have been a script involving that, and ended up being meshed together with a script for a monster movie. The result may not have been good, per se. But it was fun. This movie's greatest strength is its cast. In particular, I actually really Famke Janssen in the movie. She plays a jewel thief. But, she really works off of every one else amazingly well. Again, Deep Rising was fun, but flawed. 

7 / 10  

The Old Guard

The Old Guard is a Netflix action movie starring Charlize Theron. The movie follows a group of immortals who find themselves exposed by a CIA agent and pharmaceutical CEO. Before I go any further, there are some minor spoilers. Read at your own risk. The action is fun enough. But, what makes this movie work for me is the character interactions. These characters feel pretty damn human to me. Even the movie's villain has a decently understandable motivation. He wants to test the immortals to figure out how to create a medication that will lead to longer life. That said, his methods are what make him a villain. However, the immortals are my favorite characters. I genuinely buy the history these characters have, and I honestly love that they have an "I don't give a shit" attitude. This is especially true of Charlize Theron as Andy. I should also say that I appreciate that this movie still has some stakes. I won't any further than that. Having a film where the main protagonists are immortal can sometimes be tricky. But, it really does work in this movie. Overall, I found The Old Guard to be a genuinely fun watch. It has some good action, entertaining characters, and interesting lore that I really think lends this movie to a potential sequel. It isn't anything groundbreaking, but I don't think it set to be, or needed to be. If it looks or sounds interesting, give the movie a watch. 

7 / 10   

Scoob!

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Scoob! is an animated reboot of the theatrical Scooby-Doo franchise. Scooby and Shaggy must team up with the Blue Falcon and Dyno-Mutt when Scooby finds himself in the crosshairs of the villainous Dick Dastardly. Let's start with the negatives. First, the mystery aspect of the movie is inconsequential. It isn't the main focus of the movie, which is a bit odd because this is a Scooby-Doo movie. Second, I didn't love Will Forte as Shaggy. He's not bad. It just feels odd to me when Matthew Lillard has been the official of the character since 2009. Third, I don't necessarily think the movie always knew what to do with Fred, Daphne, and Velma beyond having them in the movie. I wanted to get those out of the way because I legitimately really liked this movie. Now that I've seen it a couple of times, there are things I didn't notice on my first viewing. For the most part, I really loved the voice cast. My personal favorites were Jason Isaacs as Dick Dastardly and Mark Wahlberg as the Blue Falcon. I genuinely loved a lot of the film's writing as well. There are some great jokes that poke fun at the Scooby-Doo lore. The movie does serve as something of a set up for a larger Hanna-Barbera universe. This is something that isn't going to work for everybody. Personally, I kind of like the idea, and I have seen attempts at doing this that are much worse by comparison. So, yeah. I really did enjoy this movie quite a bit. It's not going to go down as one of my favorites of the year. But, I don't think it needs to. The movie does its job. That's about all I can say on the matter.

7 / 10 

Sonic the Hedgehog

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Let me start this by saying this: Thank God they fixed the design. My reason for saying this is because now that I've seen Sonic the Hedgehog, I can safely say that I genuinely enjoyed it. I will say that I don't necessarily think this is a great movie. That mostly comes down to plot. It's not terrible, but it's nothing spectacular either. You have seen this kind of plot before. There's also some moments that kind of date this movie because these jokes so rooted in the now. For example, Sonic does a Fortnite dance. Okay, the characters, performances, and action are really why I enjoy this movie. Ben Schwartz does a solid job voicing the titular Sonic. So, I touched on the redesign a little bit already. The redesign they did for this movie is so much better. He looks like Sonic. Jim Carrey is awesome in this movie as the villainous Doctor Robotnik. He plays this character who is super intelligent, and is incredibly arrogant because of it. Thus, he treats everyone around him as lesser. The action is a lot of fun. Okay, it's not like this is on the level of something like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. But, it works well enough. I feel like I don't really have much more to say. This is just kind of a fun hour and 40 minutes to pass the time. This will entertain kids easily. I should also say that adults won't hate themselves, and will probably get something out of this movie too.

7 / 10

Sleepwalkers

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Sleepwalkers is an interesting movie. It is most definitely terrible by most conventions. Yet, it is entertainingly insane. The movie is directed by Mick Garris (who has also directed the miniseries adaptations for The Shining and The Stand). and written by Stephen King. The plot is about two incestuous vampire-like creatures that are trying to suck the life force out of a teenage girl, and they have a severe fear and hatred of cats. Even writing the plot of this movie sounds insane to me. But, I have seen Sleepwalkers and it is perhaps one of the most fun experiences I can think of. The cast is interesting to me. The main antagonist of the movie is played by Alice Krige (the borg queen herself). You also have a small supporting role by Ron Perlman. That's not even mentioning the plethora of random cameos littered throughout the movie. I also kind of think a lot of the actors kind of know the type of movie they are in. Alice Krige and Ron Perlman are perhaps the best examples of this. There are so many times where I feel like these two are just hamming it up on screen. Of course, I should also mention Glen Shaddix as this creepy high school teacher. If you don't know, this is the same guy who played Otho in Beetlejuice, Bob in Demolition Man, and the reverend in Heathers. This movie also has one of my favorite death scenes in a horror movie ever because I find it so gloriously stupid. In fact, gloriously stupid feels like just the right description for this movie as a whole. 

7 / 10

Jumanji: The Next Level

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Jumanji: The Next Level is one of those movies that came out last year that I missed. Well, I rented it on demand a couple days ago, and got a chance to watch it. After the events of the previous movie, Spencer (played again by Alex Wolff) has recovered the game, and has been attempting to repair it. His friends find out, and enter the game themselves. However, the game is still broken and pulls Spencer's grandpa Eddie (played by Danny Devito) and Eddie's former friend and business partner Milo (played by Danny Glover) into the game as well. One of my favorite aspects of this film is seeing the actors who played avatars in the previous film show off different personality traits. The action is still pretty fun, and the cast's chemistry is still really strong. The movie also has a similar flaw to the previous film in its antagonist. The villain this time around is still pretty weak. I like Rory McCann as an actor, but he feels underutilized. I would have to say that I think Jumanji: The Next Level is about on par with the previous film. It's a fun time that's worth a watch. It's not amazing, but it's some solid popcorn fun.

7 / 10 

Noelle

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Noelle is a film currently available on Disney+. The film follows Santa Claus’s daughter (played by Anna Kendrick) as she is forced to find her brother (played by Bill Hader) when he abandons his post as the next Santa Claus just before Christmas. Anna Kendrick is incredibly committed to her role in the film. She portrays Noelle as charming and naive, while giving her own charisma to the role. Bill Hader also does a good job, even though he feels underutilized. The film isn’t hilarious or anything, but there are a handful of solid laughs, and the film actually has some charm to it. Granted, a lot of the reason this movie works at all is Anna Kendrick. This movie isn’t perfect, by any stretch of the imagination. The ending is actually pretty predictable. Some of the effects are pretty spotty. The sets border on looking cheap. This is one of those movies that I did kind of enjoy. This certainly isn’t a movie I see myself watching every year, but I won’t begrudge anybody who does choose to make this a permanent staple. It’s not a bad movie per se, but I also don’t think it’s really anything special either. Give it a watch and see for yourself. 

7 / 10 

Frozen 2

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Three years after the events of the first film, Elsa (voiced by Idina Menzel) begins hearing a voice calling out to her. When something begins to threaten the kingdom, she, Anna (voiced by Kristen Bell), Kristoff (voiced Jonathan Groff), Sven, and Olaf (voiced by Josh Gad) travel into an enchanted forest to find a way to save their kingdom. Once again, I really do have to compliment the animation and the voice actors. The characters actually feel like they are a little more evolved. Olaf is actually beginning to question things about existence. Now, I will say that it really is the stuff between Anna Elsa that works the best. Their relationship feels like it genuinely grown. A lot of the comedy actually worked for me. I appreciate that the film will take a minute to have some heart when it’s absolutely needed. As I dive into the things about the film I didn’t care for, know that I actually did enjoy this film. The music is a bit of a mixed bag. None of it is awful, but the weaker stuff is just kind of forgettable. Some of the story aspects didn’t always work for me either. I will give credit that the movie did subvert some of the story beats I expected it to deal with. It was interesting to me that this film didn’t really have a villain. The reason for me is because this almost feels like a story that would lend itself to having a central villain more than the first film. Overall, I think Frozen 2 will definitely work for kids. But, I think parents will actually like this film fine as well. It’s not as good as the first movie, but it’s still a decent flick. 

7 / 10 

Halloween (2007)

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This 2007 remake was written and directed by Rob Zombie. The film has the daunting task of trying to stand out against the original classic. Starting things off with the positives, I actually appreciate that the film tries to do something completely different from the original, at least in the first half. The film explores Michael's backstory. I understand that it is a very divisive choice for fans of the franchise, but I do think it's that first half I like a little bit better, especially when we get to the hospital segment. In my eyes, a remake that offers nothing new is one of the worst things a filmmaker can do, because it automatically renders that remake pointless. Rob Zombie's Halloween doesn't do that. A lot of the acting is actually pretty solid. Tyler Mane is excellent as Michael Myers. The guy is gigantic and gives Myers a sense of terrifying brutality. Brad Dourif and Danielle Harris are also really good in their roles as Sheriff Brackett and his daughter Annie respectively. While I don't love all of the choices they make with Doctor Loomis, I do have to give credit to actor Malcolm McDowell. He genuinely gives the part his all. The director's cut has perhaps one of my least favorite scenes. I feel like I have to bring this moment up because the director's cut is the more widely accessible version of the film. It's a moment I genuinely just find unpleasant. To be fair, that may also be the idea, as that is largely Rob Zombie's gimmick. Overall, I do enjoy this movie. I definitely recognize that it's got some problems, but I still genuinely enjoy it.

7 / 10 

Halloween II (1981)

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Halloween II immediately follows the events of the first film, and sees Michael Myers stalk Jamie Lee Curtis's Laurie Strode through an empty hospital while she recuperates. Meanwhile, Doctor Loomis (played by Donald Pleasance) continues to hunt Myers down, intending to put an end to the shape once and for all. The first thing I need to note is that Halloween II is much more of a standard 80s slasher movie. The body count is higher, and the film adds more gore. The twist involving Michael and Laurie's relationship is fine. It's not really something I've ever really had strong feelings about one way or the other. I actually don't think Laurie Strode is as a strong of a character in this film as she is in the first film (or some of the later films to come). She doesn't really feel like an overly active protagonist. Loomis (and Donald Pleasance's performance) is once again in top form as character. It feels like the longer he pursues Michael, the more he seems to slip into madness. The rest of the acting is fine. It's not really anything spectacular, but it's better than a lot of the acting slasher films tend to offer. The hospital setting actually works really well, making for one of the film's most effective aspects. Is it realistic for a functioning hospital to look this empty? No, but it works for what the film is going for, and I can't really fault the movie for that. Overall, I think Halloween II is a fine enough sequel. I can't say it's one of my personal favorites of the franchise, but I definitely can't say it's one of the worst in the franchise either.

7 / 10