Hi everyone! I hope you are having a great summer and enjoying some fun at the movies. I have a few reviews to catch you all up on but make sure you are following me on instagram and on youtube to catch my out of theater reactions and more.
So let’s get started on the reviews:
Bride Hard
https://youtube.com/shorts/iVIdT_zxHlY?feature=share
I’m a huge fan of the original Pitch Perfect film. I love pretty much everything about it including the cast. The sequels are more mixed especially the 3rd but they had their moments. It is for this reason that I held out some hope for Bride Hard starring Pitch Perfect allums Rebel Wilson and Anna Camp. Unfortunately this lame action comedy wastes its talented cast (and it’s not just Camp and Wilson but Anna Chlumsky, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Sherry Cola and more.) The only real question I’m left with after watching it is why was this deemed as theatrical worthy? It’s so weird.
This movie also earns its R rating with some pretty violent sequences that do not fit the tone at all. At one point a bad guy is skewered with a party platter and it’s played off as a big joke- like look how funny it is this person was skewered through the stomach? Camp and Wilson have nice chemistry and they try (along with Randolph) to save it but it’s a hopeless endeavor. This one is a definite skip.
Frown Worthy
Megan 2.0
Believe it or not I actually enjoyed the first Megan film. It was campy and much like Happy Death Day it balanced horror, comedy and social commentary very well. Now we have M3gan 2.0 and while its definitely weaker than the first film I was entertained enough to recommend it.
The biggest change they made from the first film is to practically abandon the slasher roots it had established. I’m a pretty easy scare so if this didn’t feel like a horror movie in any way than it’s a problem. In fact, M3gan 2.0 is more of a sci-fi thriller/comedy than it is a horror film.
That said, M3gan 2.0 not only leans into the camp of the first film but then adds to it. It is a very silly movie but it owns that cheese and still manages to be entertaining. Your mileage may vary.
Smile Worthy
28 Years Later
https://youtube.com/shorts/MlOccoJGdz8?feature=share
It’s always interesting when a new entry in a franchise comes out but I haven’t seen any of the movies in said franchise. This is most likely to occur in the horror genre because I have the most horror blind spots. Usually I ask around if the movie is stand alone enough and if my friends say it is I give it a shot. One example that worked out great this summer is Final Destination Bloodlines, which I’d never seen before and really enjoyed. I took a similar risk in seeing 28 Years Later (a franchise I’ve never seen any of the films before) without as much payoff.
I honestly struggle with what score to give this film as it has some positives. I like how unhinged it can get and that director Danny Boyle isn’t afraid to try different things. It also looks great and his actors are all up for whatever he throws at him particularly young Alfie Williams as Spike and Jodie Comer playing his Mom. Ralph Fiennes isn’t in the movie as much as I thought he would be but he’s very good as a mysterious doctor in the time of zombies.
The problem really comes in Alex Garland‘s unfocused script. The movie starts off being a father/son dynamic and then that is abandoned for a son/mother journey to find the doctor. Then when they find the doctor it’s another story. Plot points are brought up in the beginning that go nowhere, characters are introduced to be nothing but zombie fuel and I’m honestly not sure what Garland is trying to say with this script (good zombie movie should be about something. Right?)
Evidently this is the beginning of a new trilogy of films which should be interesting as the ending of this film is bizarre and makes no sense. It will be fascinating to see what they do with that choice in future films. At the end of the day, 28 Years Later has some compelling elements but it doesn’t quite come together.
Frown Worthy
Jurassic World: Rebirth
https://youtube.com/shorts/ATBebnMDY_M?feature=share
Speaking of unfocused films, let’s talk about Jurassic World: Rebirth. I must admit I was not super hopeful with this film as the sequels to my beloved Jurassic Park have mostly been underwhelming. They just can’t seem to capture that mixture of dino action and compelling characters that you had in the first film- I mean and not even close. Unfortunately Rebirth continues with that trend.
The frustrating part of this film is the main story with Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey could have went somewhere. They are scientists trying to get to the dinosaurs to get DNA for a miracle cure drug that’s going to cure heart disease. Mahershala Ali joins them along with the obvious villain in Rupert Friend. All this could have worked but the movie makes the bizarre choice to cut away from this group to a family that is marooned on a boat with a teenage boy who’s whole personality trait is to be annoying.
It honestly felt like 2 movies wedged together and every time they went back to the family the momentum is sucked out of the story and we couldn’t build up tension or investment in the characters or anything. At least with Jurassic Park 3 you’re with the same characters most of the movie (plus it’s 45 minutes shorter!) There are a couple decent dinosaur scenes but they are less fun than they would be because we don’t care about the characters and the tension hasn’t been built appropriately.
I must admit I hope this movie isn’t a big hit because the franchise really needs a reset. The original film meant so much to me and it’s sad to see it be treated so poorly again and again. Sadly I’m sure it will do very well and so we will just keep getting more of the same. Alas I wish they could spare no expense on the writing (this even has original writer David Koepp at the helm of this one, so maybe it’s just a lost cause?) Nevertheless, a movie with this many mutant dinosaurs shouldn’t be this boring… (Also literally nothing is rebirthed in this film…)
Frown Worthy
This is what I would do if I was given the chance to pitch a Jurassic movie
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