I apologize that this has taken a while to make, I have been busy, plus I have been debating what my top 50 personal favorites of the decade should be, but I eventually got this list together. I should also note that with the top 10s of the years that I did, some of those (even if they were on the top) may not have made it to this list. This is a reflection of the whole decade and not just the individual years. This was a hard list to make but still fun. Once again, this is my personal list.
50. Logan - A great way to end Wolverine's story. It is a hard movie to rewatch, but gave us a great ending to the character of Wolverine.
49. Skyfall - My favorite James Bond movie to date. The action is great, the adventure aspect is great, and some nice shots in the movie.
48. Lego Movie - Inspires creativity and just tons of laughs to go with it. Plus the way it was animated was very unique.
47. Rogue One - This is the Star Wars prequel movie I really wanted. Great story and great visuals to accompany it.
46. Ford V Ferrari - Awesome movie based on a true story with amazing race sequences. Plus great performances as well.
45. Secret World of Arrietty - A Studio Ghibli movie that is gorgeous and takes you to a world of wonder.
44. Dunkirk - This was the most intense movie going experience for me, and was just amazingly put together.
43. Only the Brave - A true story on firefighters, made me really appreciate their bravery and skill. Plus I really liked the cinematography.
42. Tron Legacy - Story may be lacking, but the visual and audio experience is just incredible, a dream come true.
41. X-Men Days of Future Past - My favorite X-Men in the Fox series with great cast of characters and great use of time travel.
40. Pacific Rim - The giant robot battle sequences are excellent, and just a ton of fun to watch, and benefits from watching on the big screen.
39. Captain Phillips - Great movie from Paul Greengrass. The last 10 minutes of the movie were very intense.
38. Wreck It Ralph - A great movie about the video game world, that featured great cameos, and also had a great story.
37. Scott Pilgrim Vs The World - One overlooked movie that so uniquely put together and just a blast to watch.
36. Coco - For those that are looking for a great movie about family history, this is it. The world of the dead is colorful and amazing, and has great emotion.
35. A Quiet Place - I am not big on horror thriller movies, but this has such a unique concept and idea that made the movie so engaging and worth revisiting.
34. La La Land - A musical that was very engaging and kind of brought me back to the musicals of the 50s, very stylistic.
33. The Social Network - I thought a movie about Facebook was a very bad idea, then I saw the movie and I was extremely surprised, plus it's one that's worth rewatching.
32. Limitless - A very unique concept behind the movie, a pill that can increase your intelligence, and intriguing to see how it's presented.
31. Wolf Children - Director Mamoru Hosoda is one I have been keeping an eye out for. I really liked his previous efforts, this was the one where I wanted to watch anything from this director. This has many beautiful sequences.
30. Rango - A western animated movie from the director of Pirates of the Caribbean that is very bizarre but incredibly intriguing, the world we are taken to was kind of fun to explore, and some of the animation is pretty. Even has a few great sequences.
29. Edge of Tomorrow - The advertisement was intriguing but mainly got me to the door, but when I walked through the door I discovered so much more than I was expecting. This is an action science fiction oriented Groundhog Day, and some of the ideas and concepts made me think.
28. Prisoners - Didn't know anything about Denis Villeneuve until I saw this movie, I saw clips of this and was intrigued by this movie. It is a very dark and very disturbing movie, but there are things about this, especially how it came together that was somehow fascinating. The experience is both disturbing and intriguing.
27. A Silent Voice - This is not an easy movie to watch, but the story is beautiful and there is so much to it. I discovered this through an add on Facebook one day and I am surprised this has had such an impact on me ever since. One of those Japanese animated movies that I think just about everyone should see at least once.
26. Zootopia - Not just a movie about a city of all types of animals, but an allegory of how we can place labels on groups of people that are different from us. I am trying to be a better person each day, and this is one of those movies that helped me be aware of my words and actions towards others. Plus this is really funny in parts.
25. Thor Ragnarok - With many Marvel movies coming out that grabbed my attention, this was not one of them. Wow did this movie surprise in so many ways. I was laughing so hard throughout the movie, and I was blown away by the visuals, they were so unique, it was very unique.
24. Interstellar - Christopher Nolan did it again, gave us an epic space movie. The ideas behind it were very intriguing, and very pretty to look at. The performances were great, especially the actress who played young Murph. Also, I think this is probably the best score by Hans Zimmer.
23. Knives Out - I really like Rian Johnson's movies, and yes, even The Last Jedi, but this is one that I probably like the most. I really loved the murder mystery vibe, but what stood out more was that as you pulled the layers back you get a very intriguing family drama. There were also plenty of twists and turns that kept me invested, especially when I thought I figured out the whole movie.
22. Kubo and the Two Strings - Studio Laika had my attention for the previous movies from them, but this is the one that stands out the most. I really like the story and the visuals are just gorgeous. This was just an amazing movie.
21. Paddington 2 - I was very surprised by the first one, it was a charming movie. I didn't think the second one would be as good, and wow I was very much surprised when I saw this. I was sad to see this got ignored, and I try to tell people about it and hope more people discover this, as it is a hidden gem.
20. Captain America Winter Soldier - This was one of those movies that changed everything for me in the MCU, with how Iron Man 3 and Thor The Dark World turned out, I figured I knew everything, and then this movie changed everything. The twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat, and the action was amazing.
19. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 - I wasn't the biggest Harry Potter fans, I enjoyed them, but then when The Half Blood Prince came out, that one got me invested in the overall story somehow. This movie was a grand experience, preparing by rewatching all the previous entries before seeing this, and just loving this final entry and how everything came together. I also enjoy rewatching this and catching all those things I missed the previous viewings of the movie.
18. The Martian - A story of someone being lost on a planet for a very long time, you would think this would be depressing, but I was laughing and I really liked Matt Damon's enthusiasm and optimism in the situation. Gives me the courage to try to be a bit more enthusiastic and hopeful in difficult situations. Plus the shots on Mars are great.
17. Your Name - One of the most beautiful animated movies I have ever seen. Seriously, there are many scenes in this movie that I could take and frame onto my wall, they are so gorgeous, director Makoto Shinkai's movies are very pretty to look out, but this also gets further props by giving us great characters, I was so invested in seeing the two main characters ending up together.
16. Secret Life of Walter Mitty - Something about this movie really stands out to me, the biggest thing is I really relate to the main character Walter. I really love the progression of the movie, especially when you start in dream sequences and then all of a sudden you end up in Greenland. This was an awesome adventure movie from someone that you would think wouldn't end up in one.
15. Blade Runner 2049 - The first Blade Runner is intriguing, I caught it years ago, and one I need to rewatch to better understand. Anyway, this was very stunning visually, and just the whole world is very intriguing. It also has a story that kept me invested, but the world created was the biggest highlight.
14. Mad Max Fury Road - My first experience with Mad Max was Beyond Thunderdome. I heard they were trying to do a sequel for a very long time, I didn't think they would even make it even better than what we got before, but this was just an amazing experience. The action sequences are just amazing.
13. Star Wars The Force Awakens - I know there are many that have quarrels with the new trilogy and anyone would think I am crazy for putting this in my list, but this is a movie that had a huge impact on me. This brought back the nostalgia from the original trilogy when I thought we wouldn't get anything that felt like the original trilogy, and also gave enough new mysteries to get me thinking and wondering. This was a totally fun Star Wars movie.
12. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - The trilogy as a whole is worth seeing, but if I were to single out any of the entries, this is the one I would single out, it was a totally mind blowing experience. The story and the characters kept me very invested, and also the world we got was amazing. I think Caesar is an amazing character, which kept me invested in the final entry as well. This is a trilogy that I strongly recommend checking out, but if not the trilogy, this is still an excellent movie.
11. Gravity - I got to see this on the IMAX screen in 3D, and this is one of those movies where that large screen experience with the 3D really had an impact on me, it was visually gorgeous, all those shots in space. This is one of those movies that after experiencing it, I don't have a desire to be an astronaut because of all that goes wrong, but the beauty is enough to make me rethink that decision.
10. Mission Impossible Fallout - Seriously, when you get an entry this far, there is no way the movies would get better, but this is in fact one of those movies that was the best in the series, I would say this is my favorite if it weren't for the one I put above it. Not only are the action sequences amazing, but the cinematography is beautiful. Plus how some of the details linked to the previous entries, this is one to not be missed.
9. Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol - Yes, Fallout is an amazing movie and probably the best in the series, but I have to say that I really liked this one a hair more, keep in mind the word hair, but this one slightly edges out Fallout, I really love the team in this one, and some of the action sequences are amazing, as well as the use of humor in certain sequences, and the adventure aspect is the big highlight for me here.
8. Guardians of the Galaxy - This entry put us in a new part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and helped to expand it. This was a totally fun space movie, I get complete joy by rewatching this one. Plenty of moments that I busted out laughing and the chemistry between all the main players is fantastic.
7. Inside Out - Pixar hit it out of the park with this one. This one led me to experience all the emotions, plenty of moments where I laughed so hard, and moments I nearly got teary eyed. This movie has a unique concept, and one when I rewatch I catch some new things. This left a huge impact on me. Easily in my top 5 Pixar movies of all time.
6. Spider Man: Into the Spiderverse - I really like Spider Man, but I was tired of all the reboots of the character. But when I saw the first teaser in 2017, I knew I wanted to see this. I got to go to an early sneak peak of the movie and I was blown away, and this movie is one I enjoyed more and more when I rewatched it, the visual style is so unique and awesome that it's hard to look away, plus it's accompanied by a great story and great characters.
5. Arrival - A movie about aliens coming to Earth where Amy Adam's character must make contact with them and find out why they are there. There is a lot more to the movie than I was expecting, mainly the themes present in this movie, like establishing common ground in communication, learning to come together. Also, the cinematography and visuals in this movie are just excellent in this, and the story unfolding is great, which has benefited from multiple viewings for me.
4. Avengers Infinity War/Avengers Endgame - I am going to cheat here, yes these are two movies, but they come together to tell one large story, and I still can't say which one I prefer, as they are both excellent. This was the big finale for the first saga (known as the Infinity Saga) in the MCU. So many satisfying moments, from crowd pleasing moments to small emotional moments. These were huge epic movies that I figured wouldn't be the same for multiple viewings, but they only got better for me with each viewing.
3. How To Train Your Dragon - With the title, you would think this wouldn't be a good movie, but the trailers got my attention and I went to see it, and I just fell in love with the movie, and this is another movie that has gotten better with time. The characters are excellent, especially Hiccup and Toothless, and this was a movie that was totally worth experiencing in 3D. The animation is gorgeous, it is one of those worlds I would love to go to. The sequels are also great as well, and I strongly suggest seeing them all.
2. The Avengers - When Iron Man debuted in 2008, I learned they were working to this. When I saw the first trailer, it looked exciting, but wasn't sure how it would turn out. This one blew me away, it was amazing and funny and all. This was one I really wanted to rewatch immediately after it was over. This is the first MCU movie that I felt I could get an idea of how big this universe was, or so I thought until future entries showed how big this universe really is. All the ideas and concepts were totally fun as well.
1. Inception - In my opinion, this is Christopher Nolan's masterpiece. This is in my favorite movie of the 2010s. It has a very unique concept, yeah I am sure there were movies that attempted entering people's dreams, but this was still done in a unique way, also it is one of those movies you can enjoy the simple narrative the first time through, and then with multiple viewings I would figure out new details that would lead me to see the movie in a different way. Even with the ambiguous ending, I would rewatch the movie to find a way to support if Cobb was still in the dream world or not. This was a superb science fiction movie with a cool look to it.
The 2010s had excellent movies, even more that I couldn't include here, I was originally going to do 20, but I wanted to include more since there were so many great movies. I will continue to do more postings in the future and more reviews.
Saturday, February 15, 2020
Thursday, January 2, 2020
My 20 anticipated movies of 2020
It's now 2020, a brand new year, a brand new decade, so it's time to look at what's coming this year, and I would like to talk about the 20 movies that I am most excited for this year. Unfortunately we don't have one like Avengers Endgame, but that doesn't mean we don't have good movies coming, we have plenty of movies that look like they could be excellent. So let's go through my 20 movies I am looking forward to in 2020.
20. Infinite - I was going through what is coming out this year and the premise of this movie caught my attention. I don't know too much about it beyond that but it has a solid cast. I am intrigued to learn more.
19. Free Guy - This looks like it could be a fun movie, there is something about Ryan Reynolds that he can get a few laughs out of you.
18. Dolittle - The trailer caught my attention a couple of months ago, it looks a lot better than I thought it would look. It also looks like it will be fun to see Robert Downey Jr playing a different role than Tony Stark, he did a great job as Sherlock Holmes so I look forward to see what he does with this role.
17. Jungle Cruise - At this point, anything with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson will be entertaining at the very least, even if it's not a very good movie, I can guarantee it will be a fun time at the movies, and this looks like it will be a fun time at the movies, plus it seems like him and Emily Blunt have good chemistry in this.
16. Bill and Ted Face the Music - I don't know much about this except it's being made, and that the first Bill and Ted movie from 1989 is very good, it is a ton of fun to watch. Keanu Reeves has been on a roll recently. I look forward to seeing him revisit one of his earlier roles.
15. Raya and the Last Dragon - I know nothing about this movie, this probably should be lower on the list for that reason, but the fact that it's a new Disney animated movie that looks to take place in China, and some of the concept art I saw looks kind of good.
14. Godzilla Vs King Kong - The latest movie was very enjoyable for me, I was very entertained especially by the battle sequences, I also really liked Kong Skull Island, some of the shots were gorgeous. I am excited to see how it all plays out when they come head to head in November
13. Fast and Furious 9 - We have gotten plenty of good Fast and Furious movies recently, yeah they are dumb fun, but I enjoy dumb fun. I don't know what this will involve this time but I look forward to seeing what we will get out of this when the first trailer debuts soon.
12. Soul - One thing I missed from Pixar recently was the abundance of original movies, that was how they made a great name for themselves, and we get two original movies from Pixar this year, this being one of them. I don't know too much about it but the first trailer we got was very nice. Count me very intrigued.
11. The Eternals - As we get into Phase 4 of the MCU, I hear things are suppose to get weirder and more interesting. I have heard very interesting things about this property. This being an entry of the cosmic realm, I am excited to see what this brings.
10. A Quiet Place Part 2 - A Quiet Place was a huge surprise for me in 2018, and now we get a sequel for the movie. I don't know how it will turn out, but the trailer we recently got has me very intrigued. Plus with John Krasinski back in the director's chair, I am excited to see how he advances the story.
9. Mulan - With so many Disney live action remakes, I am not too excited about them anymore, there are a few that I would like to see happen though, but I am very intrigued by this, that recent trailer we got made the movie so epic, and seems to shake things up a bit that I am excited to see this and see what they do with it. I just hope it's not a disappointment.
8. Onward - Again, I am happy we are getting original Pixar movies again. This totally looks like it will be fun, the premise totally seems like a ton of fun. Plus they have an awesome voice cast, I am curious who they will get to voice the father of the boys.
7. Wonder Woman 1984 - The first was a surprise, I was concerned with how it would be because of DC's track record, but this came and surprised me. We got the first trailer recently and I am officially pumped for their latest movie. Plus I am very curious how Chris Pine's character is back.
6. Black Widow - Time for Phase 4 of the MCU. I really like the character of Black Widow so I was interested in this no matter what, even with the events that occur in Endgame and this takes place before Infinity War, but the trailer caught my interest and this just looks like a ton of fun, and I can tell I will be entertained regardless.
5. No Time to Die - Daniel Craig has been a great James Bond, I have enjoyed his movies in this era of Bond, even the ones that were weaker, my favorite has been Skyfall thus far. The trailer we got about a month ago looked amazing, and with that trailer my intrigue went from interested to extremely excited.
4. Ghostbusters Afterlife - I am a fan of Ghostbusters. I was excited to learn of this coming, and the trailer that we got a month ago didn't just get me intrigued, but I can't wait to see this. I am use to the idea of knowing the Ghostbusters formula, but this looks like it could shake things up a bit and I like where it could potentially go.
3. Top Gun Maverick - The original Top Gun wasn't something I really grew up with, I did watch it once and maybe parts of it here and there, but that's it. What grabbed my attention was the director, Joseph Kosinski, who directed Tron Legacy and Only The Brave, plus a solid cast. Then I saw the trailers and the aerial shots looked gorgeous, and then my excitement only grew from there.
2. Dune - My only exposure to the property of Dune is the 1984 movie, which was alright, but why this is so high on my list is director Denis Villeneuve, who has become one of the directors that I look forward to seeing what they make next. I have heard amazing things out of the book, and everything I hear about this movie just sounds amazing and I can't wait for it to debut in December.
1. Tenet - One director that I get pumped for no matter what is Christopher Nolan, when the news broke last year that he was developing a new movie and didn't announce the title, I didn't care, I would have bought a ticket to the movie without a title, everything I have seen from Christopher Nolan has blown my mind, or at the least has intrigued me very much, plus he knows how to make an epic scale movie. I don't know a whole lot about the movie, but I like not knowing a whole lot, and I am excited to see everything unravel before me. Day 1 on IMAX!
There are plenty of other movies that I am looking forward to, but these are the ones that I am the most intrigued in. What are your most anticipated movies of 2020?
20. Infinite - I was going through what is coming out this year and the premise of this movie caught my attention. I don't know too much about it beyond that but it has a solid cast. I am intrigued to learn more.
19. Free Guy - This looks like it could be a fun movie, there is something about Ryan Reynolds that he can get a few laughs out of you.
18. Dolittle - The trailer caught my attention a couple of months ago, it looks a lot better than I thought it would look. It also looks like it will be fun to see Robert Downey Jr playing a different role than Tony Stark, he did a great job as Sherlock Holmes so I look forward to see what he does with this role.
17. Jungle Cruise - At this point, anything with Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson will be entertaining at the very least, even if it's not a very good movie, I can guarantee it will be a fun time at the movies, and this looks like it will be a fun time at the movies, plus it seems like him and Emily Blunt have good chemistry in this.
16. Bill and Ted Face the Music - I don't know much about this except it's being made, and that the first Bill and Ted movie from 1989 is very good, it is a ton of fun to watch. Keanu Reeves has been on a roll recently. I look forward to seeing him revisit one of his earlier roles.
15. Raya and the Last Dragon - I know nothing about this movie, this probably should be lower on the list for that reason, but the fact that it's a new Disney animated movie that looks to take place in China, and some of the concept art I saw looks kind of good.
14. Godzilla Vs King Kong - The latest movie was very enjoyable for me, I was very entertained especially by the battle sequences, I also really liked Kong Skull Island, some of the shots were gorgeous. I am excited to see how it all plays out when they come head to head in November
13. Fast and Furious 9 - We have gotten plenty of good Fast and Furious movies recently, yeah they are dumb fun, but I enjoy dumb fun. I don't know what this will involve this time but I look forward to seeing what we will get out of this when the first trailer debuts soon.
12. Soul - One thing I missed from Pixar recently was the abundance of original movies, that was how they made a great name for themselves, and we get two original movies from Pixar this year, this being one of them. I don't know too much about it but the first trailer we got was very nice. Count me very intrigued.
11. The Eternals - As we get into Phase 4 of the MCU, I hear things are suppose to get weirder and more interesting. I have heard very interesting things about this property. This being an entry of the cosmic realm, I am excited to see what this brings.
10. A Quiet Place Part 2 - A Quiet Place was a huge surprise for me in 2018, and now we get a sequel for the movie. I don't know how it will turn out, but the trailer we recently got has me very intrigued. Plus with John Krasinski back in the director's chair, I am excited to see how he advances the story.
9. Mulan - With so many Disney live action remakes, I am not too excited about them anymore, there are a few that I would like to see happen though, but I am very intrigued by this, that recent trailer we got made the movie so epic, and seems to shake things up a bit that I am excited to see this and see what they do with it. I just hope it's not a disappointment.
8. Onward - Again, I am happy we are getting original Pixar movies again. This totally looks like it will be fun, the premise totally seems like a ton of fun. Plus they have an awesome voice cast, I am curious who they will get to voice the father of the boys.
7. Wonder Woman 1984 - The first was a surprise, I was concerned with how it would be because of DC's track record, but this came and surprised me. We got the first trailer recently and I am officially pumped for their latest movie. Plus I am very curious how Chris Pine's character is back.
6. Black Widow - Time for Phase 4 of the MCU. I really like the character of Black Widow so I was interested in this no matter what, even with the events that occur in Endgame and this takes place before Infinity War, but the trailer caught my interest and this just looks like a ton of fun, and I can tell I will be entertained regardless.
5. No Time to Die - Daniel Craig has been a great James Bond, I have enjoyed his movies in this era of Bond, even the ones that were weaker, my favorite has been Skyfall thus far. The trailer we got about a month ago looked amazing, and with that trailer my intrigue went from interested to extremely excited.
4. Ghostbusters Afterlife - I am a fan of Ghostbusters. I was excited to learn of this coming, and the trailer that we got a month ago didn't just get me intrigued, but I can't wait to see this. I am use to the idea of knowing the Ghostbusters formula, but this looks like it could shake things up a bit and I like where it could potentially go.
3. Top Gun Maverick - The original Top Gun wasn't something I really grew up with, I did watch it once and maybe parts of it here and there, but that's it. What grabbed my attention was the director, Joseph Kosinski, who directed Tron Legacy and Only The Brave, plus a solid cast. Then I saw the trailers and the aerial shots looked gorgeous, and then my excitement only grew from there.
2. Dune - My only exposure to the property of Dune is the 1984 movie, which was alright, but why this is so high on my list is director Denis Villeneuve, who has become one of the directors that I look forward to seeing what they make next. I have heard amazing things out of the book, and everything I hear about this movie just sounds amazing and I can't wait for it to debut in December.
1. Tenet - One director that I get pumped for no matter what is Christopher Nolan, when the news broke last year that he was developing a new movie and didn't announce the title, I didn't care, I would have bought a ticket to the movie without a title, everything I have seen from Christopher Nolan has blown my mind, or at the least has intrigued me very much, plus he knows how to make an epic scale movie. I don't know a whole lot about the movie, but I like not knowing a whole lot, and I am excited to see everything unravel before me. Day 1 on IMAX!
There are plenty of other movies that I am looking forward to, but these are the ones that I am the most intrigued in. What are your most anticipated movies of 2020?
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
(UPDATED) Top 10 of 2019
We came to the end of another year, in fact another decade. So it's time to do another top 10 personal favorite movies of 2019. I will also do a top favorites of the decade, I think it will be my top 30 of the decade, but I am still thinking about that, but I will post that within a week at the latest.
Please note, I have not seen all the movies this year, there are plenty that are being haled as the greatest movies ever, but I haven't seen them, I may at some point, but this reflects my favorites of the year. Anyway, without further adieu, here are my top 10 favorites of the year:
10. Yesterday - What if you woke up one day and one of the biggest things in the world was forgotten and was gone. The world goes through a weird power out and the music of The Beatles disappeared and only one remembers who The Beatles were, this had such a unique concept that it grabbed my attention. Just FYI, if this happened, I wouldn't be able to bring back the forgotten music into the world.
9. Peanut Butter Falcon - One of those movies I wasn't planning to see, but everyone kept talking about it that I decided to check it out. It had a very good story, for those that don't know what it is, it is about a man with Down syndrome who lives in a senior home and escapes so he can meet his idol, a wrestling pro back in the day on TV. He accompanies a man played by Shia Lebeouf who is running from the law. It's got great cinematography, and a good soundtrack. This was one of those very pleasant movies that I just enjoyed taking the adventure.
8. Apollo 11 - Taken from footage shot during the Apollo 11 mission in 1969, Todd Douglas Miller took the footage and put it all together to tell a story of the mission. It was such a cool experience, I saw First Man last year that dealt with one man's emotional journey to space, this dealt with the mission as a whole, and just seeing the footage from this perspective was just awesome, plus the film was in excellent condition, especially being 50 years old.
7. Klaus - So this was a movie I discovered on Netflix, but I believe it did have a very limited theatrical release so I would consider this one worth putting on the list. This is another story of the legend of Santa Claus and how Santa came to be, and it's told from the perspective of a mailman. This movie brought back a ton of nostalgia from animated movies back in the 90s, mainly from Disney, and no this isn't a musical. And this has a great story about a town that is transformed because the good deeds that were done. This is one I will be watching each Christmas.
6. Ad Astra - I remember hearing about this when I was trying to figure out my anticipated list for the year, but I chose not to include it since I didn't know anything about it except it had Brad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones and it took place in space. This was a visually gorgeous movie and had a great score, I saw it on IMAX and it was so worth it. For me, there was more to it that stood out, I listened to Brad Pitt as he was on his journey to confront his father and all that going through him made me think about those that I personally struggle with and how would I react to those that you aren't sure how it all will turn out. This is a movie I could see evolving over time as well.
5. JoJo Rabbit - What if I told you this movie was about a boy in Nazi Germany that has Hitler as an imaginary friend and it's somewhat of a comedy, would you go see it? That premise is very bizarre that I think the premise alone would not progress the movie to be completed. I don't know how Taika Waititi did it, but this was a very brilliant movie, and the premise is the beginning of the movie, but the boy soon finds a young girl living in his attic who is a Jew and he comes to know the girl and that changes his perception on the world. Without giving too much more away, let's say that the movie evolves as it progresses and there is more emotion than you would anticipate. This one is totally worth seeing.
4. How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World - Cool part, this trilogy began with the beginning of the decade, and it concludes with the end of the decade. Did they stick the landing, yes I really thought they did. We saw Hiccup and the rest of the characters grow with each new entry, and see Hiccup become a man here. This is a beautifully animated movie, the scenery is just gorgeous, and once again I wish I had a dragon. I also really like how they handle the love story between Toothless and the Light Fury, those moments where they communicate without dialogue is just charming and so well done. Also, I have to say John Powell did an excellent job with the score, the first is still the best, but this is such a wonderful entry and I am thankful we have such a wonderful trilogy of movies.
3. Knives Out - This was first announced late in 2018 and was surprised to hear this would come out this year, all I knew is that it was directed by Rian Johnson and starred Daniel Craig, This was a brilliant movie. It is a murder mystery movie that also has plenty of humor. I think of the movie Clue when I first watched it, but there is so much more to it. I don't know how to explain the movie without giving too much away, but lets say with the death in the family, some of the true colors of some of the family slowly come out. It kept me on the edge of my seat during my first viewing, the second viewing helped me catch what I missed, but even the third viewing I caught more I didn't notice before. I feel I should do a post about this movie and talk about aspects of the movie that really stood out because it's hard to talk about this movie without spoiling too much. See it if you haven't seen it yet.
2. Ford V Ferrari - I am not much of a sports person, but I can admit that one of the sports I enjoy watching is racing, like car racing and bike racing. So that was an aspect that grabbed my attention for this movie and why I really wanted to see it. Plus the cast and a great director, I was excited for it. This was an excellent movie, it had a good story about the small people overcoming the odds of a corporate company. Plus the race sequences were awesome, they were shot in a way that I really felt part of the action, I also watched this in a big theater with Dolby Atmos which enhanced my experience of watching the movie. Both Matt Damon and Christian Bale did an excellent job in their roles, and it was cool to see them work to build a race car to compete against Ferrari and seeing them looking at all aspects of the car to get it to the point it could compete. It was hard when I got out of the movie late at night to not drive my car like a race car. This is so worth seeing.
1. Avengers Endgame - When Iron Man came out in 2008, I never thought we would end up here, I knew shortly after the movie came out they were working on a team up movie, but I figured The Avengers would be the biggest they would go, wow was I wrong. After the ending of Avengers Infinity War, this was on my most anticipated list, and that anticipation only grew as it got closer to release. I saw the trailers and I heard the good reception, but that was all I knew regarding the movie, and this movie blew me away in so many ways. This was a movie for the fans and it all paid off in glorious ways. I remember the concerns coming up with the movie being three hours (I wasn't worried since the Lord of the Rings movies were 3 hours), but this was a movie that did not feel 3 hours at all, and the last 40 minutes of the movie was mind blowing. I don't know what to saw that hasn't already been said, this was a rewarding experience for me. And for those that still haven't seen it (I would be surprised if you haven't seen it yet), please do yourself a favor and see it. This was a wonderful time at the movies this year that I got very involved in, and this was my top personal favorite of the year.
So that does it for 2019, there were a lot of great movies this year. There were plenty of great movies this decade, I will do that list as soon as possible. I will also do a list of my top 20 movies I am looking forward to in 2020.
Please note, I have not seen all the movies this year, there are plenty that are being haled as the greatest movies ever, but I haven't seen them, I may at some point, but this reflects my favorites of the year. Anyway, without further adieu, here are my top 10 favorites of the year:
10. Yesterday - What if you woke up one day and one of the biggest things in the world was forgotten and was gone. The world goes through a weird power out and the music of The Beatles disappeared and only one remembers who The Beatles were, this had such a unique concept that it grabbed my attention. Just FYI, if this happened, I wouldn't be able to bring back the forgotten music into the world.
9. Peanut Butter Falcon - One of those movies I wasn't planning to see, but everyone kept talking about it that I decided to check it out. It had a very good story, for those that don't know what it is, it is about a man with Down syndrome who lives in a senior home and escapes so he can meet his idol, a wrestling pro back in the day on TV. He accompanies a man played by Shia Lebeouf who is running from the law. It's got great cinematography, and a good soundtrack. This was one of those very pleasant movies that I just enjoyed taking the adventure.
8. Apollo 11 - Taken from footage shot during the Apollo 11 mission in 1969, Todd Douglas Miller took the footage and put it all together to tell a story of the mission. It was such a cool experience, I saw First Man last year that dealt with one man's emotional journey to space, this dealt with the mission as a whole, and just seeing the footage from this perspective was just awesome, plus the film was in excellent condition, especially being 50 years old.
7. Klaus - So this was a movie I discovered on Netflix, but I believe it did have a very limited theatrical release so I would consider this one worth putting on the list. This is another story of the legend of Santa Claus and how Santa came to be, and it's told from the perspective of a mailman. This movie brought back a ton of nostalgia from animated movies back in the 90s, mainly from Disney, and no this isn't a musical. And this has a great story about a town that is transformed because the good deeds that were done. This is one I will be watching each Christmas.
6. Ad Astra - I remember hearing about this when I was trying to figure out my anticipated list for the year, but I chose not to include it since I didn't know anything about it except it had Brad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones and it took place in space. This was a visually gorgeous movie and had a great score, I saw it on IMAX and it was so worth it. For me, there was more to it that stood out, I listened to Brad Pitt as he was on his journey to confront his father and all that going through him made me think about those that I personally struggle with and how would I react to those that you aren't sure how it all will turn out. This is a movie I could see evolving over time as well.
5. JoJo Rabbit - What if I told you this movie was about a boy in Nazi Germany that has Hitler as an imaginary friend and it's somewhat of a comedy, would you go see it? That premise is very bizarre that I think the premise alone would not progress the movie to be completed. I don't know how Taika Waititi did it, but this was a very brilliant movie, and the premise is the beginning of the movie, but the boy soon finds a young girl living in his attic who is a Jew and he comes to know the girl and that changes his perception on the world. Without giving too much more away, let's say that the movie evolves as it progresses and there is more emotion than you would anticipate. This one is totally worth seeing.
4. How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World - Cool part, this trilogy began with the beginning of the decade, and it concludes with the end of the decade. Did they stick the landing, yes I really thought they did. We saw Hiccup and the rest of the characters grow with each new entry, and see Hiccup become a man here. This is a beautifully animated movie, the scenery is just gorgeous, and once again I wish I had a dragon. I also really like how they handle the love story between Toothless and the Light Fury, those moments where they communicate without dialogue is just charming and so well done. Also, I have to say John Powell did an excellent job with the score, the first is still the best, but this is such a wonderful entry and I am thankful we have such a wonderful trilogy of movies.
3. Knives Out - This was first announced late in 2018 and was surprised to hear this would come out this year, all I knew is that it was directed by Rian Johnson and starred Daniel Craig, This was a brilliant movie. It is a murder mystery movie that also has plenty of humor. I think of the movie Clue when I first watched it, but there is so much more to it. I don't know how to explain the movie without giving too much away, but lets say with the death in the family, some of the true colors of some of the family slowly come out. It kept me on the edge of my seat during my first viewing, the second viewing helped me catch what I missed, but even the third viewing I caught more I didn't notice before. I feel I should do a post about this movie and talk about aspects of the movie that really stood out because it's hard to talk about this movie without spoiling too much. See it if you haven't seen it yet.
2. Ford V Ferrari - I am not much of a sports person, but I can admit that one of the sports I enjoy watching is racing, like car racing and bike racing. So that was an aspect that grabbed my attention for this movie and why I really wanted to see it. Plus the cast and a great director, I was excited for it. This was an excellent movie, it had a good story about the small people overcoming the odds of a corporate company. Plus the race sequences were awesome, they were shot in a way that I really felt part of the action, I also watched this in a big theater with Dolby Atmos which enhanced my experience of watching the movie. Both Matt Damon and Christian Bale did an excellent job in their roles, and it was cool to see them work to build a race car to compete against Ferrari and seeing them looking at all aspects of the car to get it to the point it could compete. It was hard when I got out of the movie late at night to not drive my car like a race car. This is so worth seeing.
1. Avengers Endgame - When Iron Man came out in 2008, I never thought we would end up here, I knew shortly after the movie came out they were working on a team up movie, but I figured The Avengers would be the biggest they would go, wow was I wrong. After the ending of Avengers Infinity War, this was on my most anticipated list, and that anticipation only grew as it got closer to release. I saw the trailers and I heard the good reception, but that was all I knew regarding the movie, and this movie blew me away in so many ways. This was a movie for the fans and it all paid off in glorious ways. I remember the concerns coming up with the movie being three hours (I wasn't worried since the Lord of the Rings movies were 3 hours), but this was a movie that did not feel 3 hours at all, and the last 40 minutes of the movie was mind blowing. I don't know what to saw that hasn't already been said, this was a rewarding experience for me. And for those that still haven't seen it (I would be surprised if you haven't seen it yet), please do yourself a favor and see it. This was a wonderful time at the movies this year that I got very involved in, and this was my top personal favorite of the year.
So that does it for 2019, there were a lot of great movies this year. There were plenty of great movies this decade, I will do that list as soon as possible. I will also do a list of my top 20 movies I am looking forward to in 2020.
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Fall/Winter movies 2019
As I did last year, I wanted to take the time to talk about some of the releases that are coming out the rest of the year, some I am really looking forward to, others I have a little interest in either seeing or seeing how they turn out, so I will give each movie a rating based on how excited I am for it. Now keep in mind that this list won't reflect all the movies coming out, there may be some on this list that are on here but I may not end up seeing but I have my eye on them, waiting to see how they turn out, enjoy this list.
Ad Astra (September 20) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: I heard about this movie last year, all I knew was that it was a space movie and there was Brad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones. I became very interested in seeing a trailer. When the trailers finally dropped, my expectations for the movie really grew as I couldn't help but get vibes of 2001, Interstellar, and Gravity. These are all movies I enjoy and I hope that this movie delivers, regardless, I will be seeing this on IMAX during opening weekend.
Abominable (September 27) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: I have this down because this is created by DreamWorks. There are times they release great movies, like the How To Train Your Dragon movies. I saw one trailer and it looks intriguing enough for me to be on the lookout for, it could be a fun story that if done just right, so I will wait to see what the reviews say when I see them
Joker (October 4) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: Yes, this is more likely on everyone's anticipated list, and it's not hard to see why, but this is not on mine. Yes, I like Batman, and yes I like the Joker, I think the Joker is an iconic villain. However, I really like the fact that his origin story is a mystery. I hear this movie has great buzz towards it, so I am curious on how this turns out.
Gemini Man (October 11) - Anticipation Level: High
Thoughts: Earlier this year, we got very impressive de-aging effects in Captain Marvel with Samuel L Jackson looking like he was taken from 1995 and filmed for the movie. Based off the trailers for this, the younger version of Will Smith looks like he came from 1990 and shot in our day. The action sequences in the 2nd trailer look rather good. This is on my radar to see when it comes out.
Addams Family (October 11) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: Okay, so maybe medium anticipation is a little high here, but I am kind of curious about this. It is always nice to get a family friendly halloween movie, and with that Are You Afraid of the Dark movie not happening anymore since it's a TV series reboot instead, this might do. Good voice talent attached, so I hope it's at least enjoyable.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (October 18) - Anticipation Level: Low
Thoughts: I liked the first Maleficent movie, it wasn't a favorite, but it had a decent story and the visuals were very nice to look at. I don't see a reason for this to happen, plus when Disney did a sequel to their live action remakes lately (Alice and the Looking Glass), it wasn't very good. This could surprise me and I might like it, I will wait for the reviews and maybe check it out.
Zombieland: Double Tap (October 18) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: The first one a decade ago was a ton of fun, I got plenty of laughs out of it. When I saw the trailer for the new one, I don't think it got me on board as others, but I certainly hope that it was just a trailer I wasn't very impressed with but the movie puts a big grin on my face. The fact they brought the cast back is a big win.
JoJo Rabbit (October 18) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: What an interesting idea, a really bizarre one from Taika Waititi. Basically this kid has Adolf Hitler as an imaginary friend in the time period where he was rising to power. I am sitting here and wonder if it's worth checking out and if the idea is justifiable. I am uncertain at this time if I will see it or not.
Terminator: Dark Fate (November 1) - Anticipation Level: Low
Thoughts: I really like the first Terminator movie and the second to me is a masterpiece. So why is this low, well the sequels afterwards weren't all that great, I enjoyed Salvation more than the other 2 sequels that followed Terminator 2: Judgement Day. But after Genisys, I was just turned off towards the franchise as a whole. Could this save the series, I will wait to see.
Midway (November 8) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: To me, this almost looks like it could be a Michael Bay movie, a big blockbuster take on a big historical event, the action sequences look really good in the trailer, but will the emotional story match the big set pieces. Director Roland Emmerich is a hit or miss for me, I really liked Independence Day and Stargate and The Day After Tomorrow, but I didn't really care for White House Down, or Independence Day Resurgence at all. I am intrigued enough to keep an eye on it and see how it turns out.
Charlie's Angels (November 15) - Anticipation Level: Low
Thoughts: We had an adaptation of the movie based on the TV show back in 2000, I really enjoyed it and also the sequel that came a few years after that, yes they were cheesy but enjoyable. So far, the trailers we got haven't really got me interested. But they have Naomi Scott as one of the angels and I think she could be good here as she has been doing really good so far, I guess we will have to wait and see.
Ford V Ferrari (November 15) - Anticipation Level: High
Thoughts: One sport I really like is racing, and I think car racing is pretty cool. I also think this movie has a ton of great talent, from director James Mangold who directed Logan a couple of years ago, and then actors Matt Damon and Christian Bale. With all this in mind, this movie really has my interest and I look forward to checking it out when it comes out, plus it got very good reviews recently.
Frozen 2 (November 22) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: Do you remember Frozen back in 2013? If you don't, then I would be surprised and would think that you have been living under a rock. Actually if you haven't heard of it, you must have been living under a rock these last 6 years as I feel Frozen has almost been everywhere. I think the movie is pretty good, the hard part is I feel it's been everywhere to the point I have become exhausted of it. Personally I would rather have a sequel to Tangled instead, or Big Hero 6. That being said, the trailers have gotten my interest and I plan to check this out.
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (November 22) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: Last year we got a great documentary based on the life of Fred Rogers. I watched an episode of Mister Rogers Neighborhood here and there as a kid, but it wasn't one of those I would watch consistently but there are certain sequences that stood out and were iconic, seeing his values help shape the show was really cool. I am very curious how this portrayal will turn out, I am sure Tom Hanks will do a great job, but I am curious where they will focus the story. Regardless I look forward to seeing this.
Knives Out (November 27) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: Regardless of how you feel about The Last Jedi, you got to admit that this looks very entertaining, and kind of has vibes of Clue released back in 1985. I remember hearing this movie being worked on late last year, and it kind of caught my attention. So far, the reviews for this have been outstanding. I look forward to checking this out when it comes out. Also, it looks like another role that Daniel Craig will have a blast playing.
The Aeronauts (December 6) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: I only discovered this movie recently. So far my anticipation is medium since I don't know a whole lot about it, but the trailer looked kind of nice. I think this might have a very limited theatrical release but this is suppose to debut on Amazon Prime two weeks afterwards so if this has very good buzz, I will probably check it out on Prime when it debuts there.
A Hidden Life (December 13) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: My only exposure to this is one trailer, but I have to admit that based off the trailer, many of the shots featured in the movie are very gorgeous, and just off that I want to check out this movie. It is directed by Terrace Malick who has been known to doing gorgeous looking movies but the story tends to be a bit experimental, so we will see how the movie is. I remember seeing Tree of Life years ago.
Jumanji: The Next Level (December 13) - Anticipation Level: High
Thoughts: When I first heard about this sequel, I was a little concerned as the 2017 original sequel was a surprise movie that Christmas. I was concerned with this sequel until I saw the trailer and then my concerns were washed away and I got plenty of laughs. Dwayne Johnson as Danny DeVito and Kevin Hart as Danny Glover, I am pumped for this.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (December 20) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: There are many that aren't a fan of The Last Jedi two years ago, I personally really liked it, it was gorgeously shot, but I can understand the concerns behind it, and I agree that it has it's problems. Regardless, my excitement hasn't diminished for Episode 9. What adds is that JJ Abrams is back in the director's chair. I really liked The Force Awakens as that re-ignited my interest in more Star Wars movies which I wasn't too keen on after the prequels. So with that in mind, I am excited to see what we get with this last movie, plus this is suppose to be the last movie in the Skywalker saga, and I hear that JJ Abrams plans to tie all the movies together, so if this fails, it will fail with glory and ambition in my books. Regardless of the outcome, I can't wait till December 20th.
Cats (December 20) - Anticipation Level: Low
Thoughts: Are you scared? No worries, so am I, these cats look kind of freaky. There is a great cast behind it, from Rebel Wilson to Judi Dench to Idris Elba, and the director has done some pretty good movies before, so I am hoping that we get a decent movie here. Anyway, even if not, we will at least get an interesting freak show here.
1917 (December 25) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: I did not know about this movie until I saw Hobbs and Shaw and we got the teaser trailer for this, and I was just stunned by how great this movie looks. There seems to be a great cast as well, and the director is the same one that did Skyfall, so this one has my full attention. Count me in on Christmas Day for this.
Spies in Disguise (December 25) - Anticipation Level: High
Thoughts: Will Smith and Tom Holland lending voices in an animated movie, yeah sure. What gets me is that the characters they play seem to fit who I would envision them as, so for that reason I am really looking forward to seeing this movie. This could be a fun movie to watch on Christmas, so I hope this delivers and doesn't crash and burn.
So these are the movies I am aware of, with many I am very excited for, and some that might gain my interest based on how they are received. I look forward to seeing how the rest of the year turns out for movies. When I can, I will try to do review posts on some of these movies. Stay tuned.
Ad Astra (September 20) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: I heard about this movie last year, all I knew was that it was a space movie and there was Brad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones. I became very interested in seeing a trailer. When the trailers finally dropped, my expectations for the movie really grew as I couldn't help but get vibes of 2001, Interstellar, and Gravity. These are all movies I enjoy and I hope that this movie delivers, regardless, I will be seeing this on IMAX during opening weekend.
Abominable (September 27) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: I have this down because this is created by DreamWorks. There are times they release great movies, like the How To Train Your Dragon movies. I saw one trailer and it looks intriguing enough for me to be on the lookout for, it could be a fun story that if done just right, so I will wait to see what the reviews say when I see them
Joker (October 4) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: Yes, this is more likely on everyone's anticipated list, and it's not hard to see why, but this is not on mine. Yes, I like Batman, and yes I like the Joker, I think the Joker is an iconic villain. However, I really like the fact that his origin story is a mystery. I hear this movie has great buzz towards it, so I am curious on how this turns out.
Gemini Man (October 11) - Anticipation Level: High
Thoughts: Earlier this year, we got very impressive de-aging effects in Captain Marvel with Samuel L Jackson looking like he was taken from 1995 and filmed for the movie. Based off the trailers for this, the younger version of Will Smith looks like he came from 1990 and shot in our day. The action sequences in the 2nd trailer look rather good. This is on my radar to see when it comes out.
Addams Family (October 11) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: Okay, so maybe medium anticipation is a little high here, but I am kind of curious about this. It is always nice to get a family friendly halloween movie, and with that Are You Afraid of the Dark movie not happening anymore since it's a TV series reboot instead, this might do. Good voice talent attached, so I hope it's at least enjoyable.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (October 18) - Anticipation Level: Low
Thoughts: I liked the first Maleficent movie, it wasn't a favorite, but it had a decent story and the visuals were very nice to look at. I don't see a reason for this to happen, plus when Disney did a sequel to their live action remakes lately (Alice and the Looking Glass), it wasn't very good. This could surprise me and I might like it, I will wait for the reviews and maybe check it out.
Zombieland: Double Tap (October 18) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: The first one a decade ago was a ton of fun, I got plenty of laughs out of it. When I saw the trailer for the new one, I don't think it got me on board as others, but I certainly hope that it was just a trailer I wasn't very impressed with but the movie puts a big grin on my face. The fact they brought the cast back is a big win.
JoJo Rabbit (October 18) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: What an interesting idea, a really bizarre one from Taika Waititi. Basically this kid has Adolf Hitler as an imaginary friend in the time period where he was rising to power. I am sitting here and wonder if it's worth checking out and if the idea is justifiable. I am uncertain at this time if I will see it or not.
Terminator: Dark Fate (November 1) - Anticipation Level: Low
Thoughts: I really like the first Terminator movie and the second to me is a masterpiece. So why is this low, well the sequels afterwards weren't all that great, I enjoyed Salvation more than the other 2 sequels that followed Terminator 2: Judgement Day. But after Genisys, I was just turned off towards the franchise as a whole. Could this save the series, I will wait to see.
Midway (November 8) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: To me, this almost looks like it could be a Michael Bay movie, a big blockbuster take on a big historical event, the action sequences look really good in the trailer, but will the emotional story match the big set pieces. Director Roland Emmerich is a hit or miss for me, I really liked Independence Day and Stargate and The Day After Tomorrow, but I didn't really care for White House Down, or Independence Day Resurgence at all. I am intrigued enough to keep an eye on it and see how it turns out.
Charlie's Angels (November 15) - Anticipation Level: Low
Thoughts: We had an adaptation of the movie based on the TV show back in 2000, I really enjoyed it and also the sequel that came a few years after that, yes they were cheesy but enjoyable. So far, the trailers we got haven't really got me interested. But they have Naomi Scott as one of the angels and I think she could be good here as she has been doing really good so far, I guess we will have to wait and see.
Ford V Ferrari (November 15) - Anticipation Level: High
Thoughts: One sport I really like is racing, and I think car racing is pretty cool. I also think this movie has a ton of great talent, from director James Mangold who directed Logan a couple of years ago, and then actors Matt Damon and Christian Bale. With all this in mind, this movie really has my interest and I look forward to checking it out when it comes out, plus it got very good reviews recently.
Frozen 2 (November 22) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: Do you remember Frozen back in 2013? If you don't, then I would be surprised and would think that you have been living under a rock. Actually if you haven't heard of it, you must have been living under a rock these last 6 years as I feel Frozen has almost been everywhere. I think the movie is pretty good, the hard part is I feel it's been everywhere to the point I have become exhausted of it. Personally I would rather have a sequel to Tangled instead, or Big Hero 6. That being said, the trailers have gotten my interest and I plan to check this out.
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (November 22) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: Last year we got a great documentary based on the life of Fred Rogers. I watched an episode of Mister Rogers Neighborhood here and there as a kid, but it wasn't one of those I would watch consistently but there are certain sequences that stood out and were iconic, seeing his values help shape the show was really cool. I am very curious how this portrayal will turn out, I am sure Tom Hanks will do a great job, but I am curious where they will focus the story. Regardless I look forward to seeing this.
Knives Out (November 27) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: Regardless of how you feel about The Last Jedi, you got to admit that this looks very entertaining, and kind of has vibes of Clue released back in 1985. I remember hearing this movie being worked on late last year, and it kind of caught my attention. So far, the reviews for this have been outstanding. I look forward to checking this out when it comes out. Also, it looks like another role that Daniel Craig will have a blast playing.
The Aeronauts (December 6) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: I only discovered this movie recently. So far my anticipation is medium since I don't know a whole lot about it, but the trailer looked kind of nice. I think this might have a very limited theatrical release but this is suppose to debut on Amazon Prime two weeks afterwards so if this has very good buzz, I will probably check it out on Prime when it debuts there.
A Hidden Life (December 13) - Anticipation Level: Medium
Thoughts: My only exposure to this is one trailer, but I have to admit that based off the trailer, many of the shots featured in the movie are very gorgeous, and just off that I want to check out this movie. It is directed by Terrace Malick who has been known to doing gorgeous looking movies but the story tends to be a bit experimental, so we will see how the movie is. I remember seeing Tree of Life years ago.
Jumanji: The Next Level (December 13) - Anticipation Level: High
Thoughts: When I first heard about this sequel, I was a little concerned as the 2017 original sequel was a surprise movie that Christmas. I was concerned with this sequel until I saw the trailer and then my concerns were washed away and I got plenty of laughs. Dwayne Johnson as Danny DeVito and Kevin Hart as Danny Glover, I am pumped for this.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (December 20) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: There are many that aren't a fan of The Last Jedi two years ago, I personally really liked it, it was gorgeously shot, but I can understand the concerns behind it, and I agree that it has it's problems. Regardless, my excitement hasn't diminished for Episode 9. What adds is that JJ Abrams is back in the director's chair. I really liked The Force Awakens as that re-ignited my interest in more Star Wars movies which I wasn't too keen on after the prequels. So with that in mind, I am excited to see what we get with this last movie, plus this is suppose to be the last movie in the Skywalker saga, and I hear that JJ Abrams plans to tie all the movies together, so if this fails, it will fail with glory and ambition in my books. Regardless of the outcome, I can't wait till December 20th.
Cats (December 20) - Anticipation Level: Low
Thoughts: Are you scared? No worries, so am I, these cats look kind of freaky. There is a great cast behind it, from Rebel Wilson to Judi Dench to Idris Elba, and the director has done some pretty good movies before, so I am hoping that we get a decent movie here. Anyway, even if not, we will at least get an interesting freak show here.
1917 (December 25) - Anticipation Level: Ecstatic
Thoughts: I did not know about this movie until I saw Hobbs and Shaw and we got the teaser trailer for this, and I was just stunned by how great this movie looks. There seems to be a great cast as well, and the director is the same one that did Skyfall, so this one has my full attention. Count me in on Christmas Day for this.
Spies in Disguise (December 25) - Anticipation Level: High
Thoughts: Will Smith and Tom Holland lending voices in an animated movie, yeah sure. What gets me is that the characters they play seem to fit who I would envision them as, so for that reason I am really looking forward to seeing this movie. This could be a fun movie to watch on Christmas, so I hope this delivers and doesn't crash and burn.
So these are the movies I am aware of, with many I am very excited for, and some that might gain my interest based on how they are received. I look forward to seeing how the rest of the year turns out for movies. When I can, I will try to do review posts on some of these movies. Stay tuned.
Wednesday, September 11, 2019
Summer 2019 Review
We have come to the end of another summer full of movies. There were a few that were amazing, some that were good, and a few that were disappointments. Today I am going to take the time to rank the movies I saw this summer and how they all fit in to the categories below.
Top 5 of the Summer
1. Avengers Endgame - I don't think this is a surprise to anyone, but if this a surprise for you...umm well SURPRISE. This movie was a mind blowing experience with so many great surprises and wonderful moments that range from laugh out loud to heart warming. What was so great was that this movie was basically kept under wraps, some predicted a few things but not the whole movie, which made the experience a very pleasant surprise. We live in a world today where it feels like everything is given away in the previews. I am so glad everyone went to great lengths to keep this under wraps and beg not to spoil the movie, at least until opening weekend. This was the epic comic book movie I didn't know I really wanted and the movie that I didn't know would be possible but I am extremely grateful we have.
2. Toy Story 4 - When I heard about a 4th Toy Story being made, I thought why, the 3rd ended perfectly that I felt we didn't need one. But this came out and I saw it and I was very surprised on how well this continued the story for these characters, and how this gave a great conclusion to Woody's story. This felt like a nice adventure movie with plenty of laughs, especially from Duck and Bunny, and Duke Kaboom. The one that gave me the biggest laugh (besides from Duck and Bunny's plans to get the keys) is when Buttercup suggests to frame the dad so he goes to jail. I still think Toy Story 3 is the best, but this proved that the Toy Story world can continue with a great movie.
3. Yesterday - How would you react if you woke up one day and your favorite band disappeared from off the face of the earth? You remember the music but no one else knows what the disappeared band is. This concept is brought up in this movie as one aspiring musician decides to take this as an opportunity to present the music as his own. This is a very entertaining and original idea. The actor also does a great job at performing the songs. One of my favorite bands is U2, if they disappeared, don't turn to me to bring the music back since I am not very good with performing music.
4. Spider Man: Far From Home - After an epic adventure in Avengers Endgame, it's hard to imagine where the MCU could go, but this movie gives us a world on what would happen after the events of Endgame. As well, this was a nice palette cleanser. We get a very compelling villain with Mysterio. There is one sequence that was really mind blowing visually, talking about it in detail would be a huge spoiler, so I will just say it's mind blowing and hope you get to check it out as soon as possible, it is amazing what special effects can do these days. There are plenty of surprises, and after the movie was over I wanted to rewatch the movie with the new angle I was given.
5. The Farewell - A movie I heard about but never bother looking up a trailer for, but I heard nothing but great things about, and so I went to see it and this movie was really good. This had a story that made me think about what I would do in that scenario. For those that don't know, it's about a woman who has her grandma get diagnosed with cancer and the family chooses not to tell the grandma about it, and this is supposedly how China culture functions. This had some good laughs here and there, and great performances, especially from Awkwafina, who I have known from comedies, so it was good to see her attempt something a little more serious.
Other great movies
Hobbs and Shaw - Somehow after 8 movies, I have become a fan of the Fast and Furious movies. I did not care for the first few movies, I say the 5th movie was when things got very interesting. So we are with this spin off, and this movie was a blast to watch. Even the few cameo additions really added to the fun. Even if you aren't a fan of the series but enjoy dumb action movies, you will have a ton of fun watching this and don't have to see the other movies to enjoy it.
Detective Pikachu - I didn't grow up as a fan of Pokemon, I did watch some of the episodes of the first season and was aware of the games. Each trailer I saw for this just painted a very fun movie, and that's what I got when I saw the movie, a very fun movie where the world that was created was just fun to explore. Plus, Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu, that was perfect casting.
Enjoyable
Aladdin - This was a movie I had no anticipation to see whatsoever, if you review my list of anticipated movies, I included Lion King and Dumbo, but not this at all. I ended up enjoying this a lot more than I thought I would, this was one of the biggest surprises of the summer. Yeah, we didn't need this movie, but I feel they handled this movie very well. Props to casting Will Smith as the Genie and allowing him to put his own spin on the character instead of trying to personate what Robin Williams had done before.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters - To properly enjoy this movie, watch it on the big screen, I understand this isn't in theaters anymore, I mean watching it on a big screen TV or projector screen. This is a movie that was made to be experienced on the biggest screen possible, even on your biggest TV you have at home, and a very good home theater set up. I saw this on the IMAX screen and many of the shots of the movie were so epic, and the monster fights were enhanced by experiencing it in that way. Also, don't go in expecting a deep story, just go in for awesome monster fights and you will have a fun time.
Scary Stories to Tell In The Dark - I don't have many experiences with the books this movie is based on. I might have heard a couple of the stories, but I don't have a strong connection to the stories. I went because I had a few friends that invited me to join, and I was curious enough to check it out. I ended up enjoying the movie more than I expected to. This had the right amount of scares for me. I was entertained, and this could end up as one of those movies that I might put on my list of movies during the Halloween season.
Watch once, then move on
The Lion King (2019) - Let's describe this movie as the photorealistic version of Lion King. It is suppose to be live action, but since it's done on a computer it's basically animated but it's animated in a way it's suppose to represent real life, so I consider it photorealistic. I didn't have high expectations, but I did have hopes that this would be more different than it turned out to be. The big disappointment for me was this was a movie was done better in traditional animation, and I understand the reason, the creators were trying to trying to go for a realistic approach, and since lions don't show emotion in real life, they didn't emote here and that became a distraction for me. However, the visuals were still incredible, and the story is still good. This was just one of those I wished they did something a little more different with, kind of like Aladdin.
Men In Black International - Ever since I saw the trailer in December, I was excited for this, it looked like it was going to be a fun movie, I ended up being really disappointed with it. However, once we got past the first half of the movie, it got better and I enjoyed it more than the first half, so I walked away with a smile on my face at the end of the movie. However it wasn't enough for me to make this a repeat watch, which is sad because the first movie is one I can watch quite a bit and also the third one as well.
47 Meters Down Uncaged - This should probably be in the major disappointments below, but the thing is, I wasn't disappointed...because I had no expectations going in at all. Did this excel my expectations then? No. But I certainly got plenty of laughs out of this, one could almost say this was one of the best unintentional comedies I saw this summer. The decisions made were kind of baffling. But hey, you want a dumb shark movie and want stupid unintentional laughs, this movie is perfect, but I would wait for Netflix.
Major disappointments
Dark Phoenix - I really think they should have ended the Fox X-Men saga with Logan, that was a perfect ending, also, X-Men Apocalypse ended the prequel trilogy just fine, we didn't need a continuation. So with all this in mind, I had no expectations when I saw the first trailer debut last year. My expectations didn't grow overtime, but I decided to see it regardless. Even with no expectations, I was surprisingly disappointed because I realized there was potential with the movie and it could have been somewhat fixed with a different director and made different choices.
So these are the movies that I saw this summer. There are some I didn't see this summer that I would like to check out soon, and if they blow my expectations away, I might include them on my top 10 at the end of the year. Anyway, I will be back later with a list of my most anticipated movies of the rest of the year. See you soon.
Top 5 of the Summer
1. Avengers Endgame - I don't think this is a surprise to anyone, but if this a surprise for you...umm well SURPRISE. This movie was a mind blowing experience with so many great surprises and wonderful moments that range from laugh out loud to heart warming. What was so great was that this movie was basically kept under wraps, some predicted a few things but not the whole movie, which made the experience a very pleasant surprise. We live in a world today where it feels like everything is given away in the previews. I am so glad everyone went to great lengths to keep this under wraps and beg not to spoil the movie, at least until opening weekend. This was the epic comic book movie I didn't know I really wanted and the movie that I didn't know would be possible but I am extremely grateful we have.
2. Toy Story 4 - When I heard about a 4th Toy Story being made, I thought why, the 3rd ended perfectly that I felt we didn't need one. But this came out and I saw it and I was very surprised on how well this continued the story for these characters, and how this gave a great conclusion to Woody's story. This felt like a nice adventure movie with plenty of laughs, especially from Duck and Bunny, and Duke Kaboom. The one that gave me the biggest laugh (besides from Duck and Bunny's plans to get the keys) is when Buttercup suggests to frame the dad so he goes to jail. I still think Toy Story 3 is the best, but this proved that the Toy Story world can continue with a great movie.
3. Yesterday - How would you react if you woke up one day and your favorite band disappeared from off the face of the earth? You remember the music but no one else knows what the disappeared band is. This concept is brought up in this movie as one aspiring musician decides to take this as an opportunity to present the music as his own. This is a very entertaining and original idea. The actor also does a great job at performing the songs. One of my favorite bands is U2, if they disappeared, don't turn to me to bring the music back since I am not very good with performing music.
4. Spider Man: Far From Home - After an epic adventure in Avengers Endgame, it's hard to imagine where the MCU could go, but this movie gives us a world on what would happen after the events of Endgame. As well, this was a nice palette cleanser. We get a very compelling villain with Mysterio. There is one sequence that was really mind blowing visually, talking about it in detail would be a huge spoiler, so I will just say it's mind blowing and hope you get to check it out as soon as possible, it is amazing what special effects can do these days. There are plenty of surprises, and after the movie was over I wanted to rewatch the movie with the new angle I was given.
5. The Farewell - A movie I heard about but never bother looking up a trailer for, but I heard nothing but great things about, and so I went to see it and this movie was really good. This had a story that made me think about what I would do in that scenario. For those that don't know, it's about a woman who has her grandma get diagnosed with cancer and the family chooses not to tell the grandma about it, and this is supposedly how China culture functions. This had some good laughs here and there, and great performances, especially from Awkwafina, who I have known from comedies, so it was good to see her attempt something a little more serious.
Other great movies
Hobbs and Shaw - Somehow after 8 movies, I have become a fan of the Fast and Furious movies. I did not care for the first few movies, I say the 5th movie was when things got very interesting. So we are with this spin off, and this movie was a blast to watch. Even the few cameo additions really added to the fun. Even if you aren't a fan of the series but enjoy dumb action movies, you will have a ton of fun watching this and don't have to see the other movies to enjoy it.
Detective Pikachu - I didn't grow up as a fan of Pokemon, I did watch some of the episodes of the first season and was aware of the games. Each trailer I saw for this just painted a very fun movie, and that's what I got when I saw the movie, a very fun movie where the world that was created was just fun to explore. Plus, Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu, that was perfect casting.
Enjoyable
Aladdin - This was a movie I had no anticipation to see whatsoever, if you review my list of anticipated movies, I included Lion King and Dumbo, but not this at all. I ended up enjoying this a lot more than I thought I would, this was one of the biggest surprises of the summer. Yeah, we didn't need this movie, but I feel they handled this movie very well. Props to casting Will Smith as the Genie and allowing him to put his own spin on the character instead of trying to personate what Robin Williams had done before.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters - To properly enjoy this movie, watch it on the big screen, I understand this isn't in theaters anymore, I mean watching it on a big screen TV or projector screen. This is a movie that was made to be experienced on the biggest screen possible, even on your biggest TV you have at home, and a very good home theater set up. I saw this on the IMAX screen and many of the shots of the movie were so epic, and the monster fights were enhanced by experiencing it in that way. Also, don't go in expecting a deep story, just go in for awesome monster fights and you will have a fun time.
Scary Stories to Tell In The Dark - I don't have many experiences with the books this movie is based on. I might have heard a couple of the stories, but I don't have a strong connection to the stories. I went because I had a few friends that invited me to join, and I was curious enough to check it out. I ended up enjoying the movie more than I expected to. This had the right amount of scares for me. I was entertained, and this could end up as one of those movies that I might put on my list of movies during the Halloween season.
Watch once, then move on
The Lion King (2019) - Let's describe this movie as the photorealistic version of Lion King. It is suppose to be live action, but since it's done on a computer it's basically animated but it's animated in a way it's suppose to represent real life, so I consider it photorealistic. I didn't have high expectations, but I did have hopes that this would be more different than it turned out to be. The big disappointment for me was this was a movie was done better in traditional animation, and I understand the reason, the creators were trying to trying to go for a realistic approach, and since lions don't show emotion in real life, they didn't emote here and that became a distraction for me. However, the visuals were still incredible, and the story is still good. This was just one of those I wished they did something a little more different with, kind of like Aladdin.
Men In Black International - Ever since I saw the trailer in December, I was excited for this, it looked like it was going to be a fun movie, I ended up being really disappointed with it. However, once we got past the first half of the movie, it got better and I enjoyed it more than the first half, so I walked away with a smile on my face at the end of the movie. However it wasn't enough for me to make this a repeat watch, which is sad because the first movie is one I can watch quite a bit and also the third one as well.
47 Meters Down Uncaged - This should probably be in the major disappointments below, but the thing is, I wasn't disappointed...because I had no expectations going in at all. Did this excel my expectations then? No. But I certainly got plenty of laughs out of this, one could almost say this was one of the best unintentional comedies I saw this summer. The decisions made were kind of baffling. But hey, you want a dumb shark movie and want stupid unintentional laughs, this movie is perfect, but I would wait for Netflix.
Major disappointments
Dark Phoenix - I really think they should have ended the Fox X-Men saga with Logan, that was a perfect ending, also, X-Men Apocalypse ended the prequel trilogy just fine, we didn't need a continuation. So with all this in mind, I had no expectations when I saw the first trailer debut last year. My expectations didn't grow overtime, but I decided to see it regardless. Even with no expectations, I was surprisingly disappointed because I realized there was potential with the movie and it could have been somewhat fixed with a different director and made different choices.
So these are the movies that I saw this summer. There are some I didn't see this summer that I would like to check out soon, and if they blow my expectations away, I might include them on my top 10 at the end of the year. Anyway, I will be back later with a list of my most anticipated movies of the rest of the year. See you soon.
Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Tenet teaser - a nice treat
I went to see Hobbs and Shaw last Thursday when it opened and it was a ton of fun. But I got one surprise that I wasn’t expecting, a teaser for Christopher Nolan’s next movie, Tenet. It was about a minute and only gave glimpses of the movie and not enough to put together a narrative or to give us an idea of what kind of movie to expect, but the vibe of the trailer reminded me of the teaser for Inception which debuted about 11 months before the movie came out. This teaser was a special treat and gave me a nice taste of what to expect and I can’t wait for the full course meal next year.
After the debut of the teaser, I realized I didn’t find it online earlier that day, or afterwards at the time of writing this. I don’t get as excited about seeing teasers or trailers on the big screen because I can find them online or there are so many that I tend to think “not another one”, but this was a treat. It also got me thinking that it would be cool to make the teaser and/or trailer available in theaters first before dropping them online. I don’t think this needs to be the case for every movie, but certain ones. What do you think?
Thursday, June 13, 2019
Toy Story 4 - Excited or concerned?
Nine years ago, we were given Toy Story 3, the conclusion to a great trilogy that was part of our lives for 15 years, the first movie was a phenomenon, as it was the first computer animated feature length film, then the second one was a great follow up, and then the third gave a fantastic conclusion to this great trilogy....or so we thought. I don't remember when it was announced, but soon we found out that there would be a Toy Story 4. My first reaction was why, we had a great conclusion and we don't need a follow up, I was guessing that they had success with the shorts that featured Woody and the gang in Bonnie's house, so my thought was that they wanted to capitalize on that success and make another one, my initial thought was that they wanted more money, and of course that would be the reason for most of these movies in the film industry, but then I wondered if they had another reason behind it, I didn't think about that until recently.
Each time I see a trailer for the new Toy Story movie, there was nothing that really got me excited to see it, it seemed like a movie that was created just to get more cash for Pixar and that was it, it seemed like a new adventure with no real reason to continue the series. So that is the trailers, but then I started looking into the articles that talked about the movie where they interviewed the principle actors of the main characters, mainly Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. I first read that Tim Allen got emotional when he came in to record the final scene for the movie, he said it was tough for him to get through. At this time, I have no clue what that exactly means. Not too long ago, there was another article where Tom Hanks talked about being warned by Tim Allen about recording the final scene and how it was a tough one, and Tom Hanks admitted it was tough for him to get through. Based on this, it sounds like it's more than just the realization that this would be the last time these characters would be playing these iconic characters, but that there was more to this final scene. The next piece I heard is that when Toy Story 4 was proposed, many shot it down because there was already a conclusion to the series, and then it was stated that Toy Story 3 was a conclusion to Andy's story, but that they should do a conclusion to Woody's story.
So with all this in mind, am I excited or concerned? I prefer to say that I am intrigued. I heard reports that this was suppose to come out a while back so it appears that they took their time to get this right, so I think it's safe to assume that this movie will probably surprise us. Either way, I will go see this opening weekend and will try to share my impressions of it as soon as I can.
Each time I see a trailer for the new Toy Story movie, there was nothing that really got me excited to see it, it seemed like a movie that was created just to get more cash for Pixar and that was it, it seemed like a new adventure with no real reason to continue the series. So that is the trailers, but then I started looking into the articles that talked about the movie where they interviewed the principle actors of the main characters, mainly Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. I first read that Tim Allen got emotional when he came in to record the final scene for the movie, he said it was tough for him to get through. At this time, I have no clue what that exactly means. Not too long ago, there was another article where Tom Hanks talked about being warned by Tim Allen about recording the final scene and how it was a tough one, and Tom Hanks admitted it was tough for him to get through. Based on this, it sounds like it's more than just the realization that this would be the last time these characters would be playing these iconic characters, but that there was more to this final scene. The next piece I heard is that when Toy Story 4 was proposed, many shot it down because there was already a conclusion to the series, and then it was stated that Toy Story 3 was a conclusion to Andy's story, but that they should do a conclusion to Woody's story.
So with all this in mind, am I excited or concerned? I prefer to say that I am intrigued. I heard reports that this was suppose to come out a while back so it appears that they took their time to get this right, so I think it's safe to assume that this movie will probably surprise us. Either way, I will go see this opening weekend and will try to share my impressions of it as soon as I can.
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