Reviews
Smile 2 (2024)
10 out of 10 till the ending
So good, so scary, well directed, and amazing acting. Jump scares were fantastic and got my wife and I good.
But... spoiler alert...
**"
She should have kicked the brick out of the door, froze to death, then been brought back. There was no indication the demon wanted a mass audience, and it completely ruined her powerful struggle.
If they were worried about a sequel there are much easier ways to fix that then make the whole experience an unreliable narrative.
Still loved it, but definitely would have gone a different way at the end.
Massive kudos to Naomi...she pulled off a lot of great characters throughout.
Mythic Quest: Raven's Banquet: Backstory! (2021)
A Little Close to Home
I'm an author...who has also worked in video games. I've been fortunate, but I know a few "Carl Longbottoms," and this was a beautiful tale beautifully told.
I worked in MMOs for years, and can attest to the "spiritual truth" of a lot of what goes on in the show...and far more, of course. I laugh frequently at MQ and wince at some of the memories it conjures. It's a good, funny show and I wouldn't want it's *overall* tone to change.
But "Backstory!" and "A Dark Quiet Death" are masterpieces. It's one thing to write funny...even laughable... characters. When you bring this kind of humanity to them it makes running gags so much more bittersweet.
I'm so glad the studio and creators allow these occasional "side quests" to exist. Major kudos to the writers, creators, and performers for bringing that kind of soulful triumph and tragedy to the series.
I was already a fan. Now I'm a fan for life.
American Housewife: Coupling (2020)
Gross
Edible undies and handcuffs for her 19-year old daughter? Actively encouraging them to have sex in the house? Are the writers feeling stifled they aren't on a cable network? Very, very disappointing.
The Empty Man (2020)
Good and creepy, didn't love the ending
I would have liked a more tangible or concrete ending, but I enjoyed the twists and turns up to that.
Really disappointed they glamorized smoking though, especially with teens. I thought we were past that?
Snatchers (2019)
We loved it! Fun, well-acted, and a great pace :)
Our kind of movie to start with, but the quick camera takes, great characters, and excellent work by several of the actors (especially the main character) were spot on. Kinda early Raimi-esque.
Secondary characters get some love too...you find yourself rooting for them (or against them in one case).
Just pure fun and a great rental. Thanks to those who made it. :)
Fantasy Island (2020)
We were thoroughly entertained
Good pace and a fun film with some neat surprises. Dunno what all the whining is about. If you like Blumhouse films you will almost certainly enjoy this one.
The Wretched (2019)
Scary film, tight story, and a nice twist
Superb acting, great dialogue, perfect pace, and a solid horror tale without the plot holes or antagonists breaking their own world rules as you often see in films like these. It also has a nice twist ... the movie doesn't hang on it, but it further confirms the "rules" of the world. Just loved it. :)
Ryan Hansen Solves Crimes on Television (2017)
Pure Genius
Clever premise, great plots, rapid fire banter, and plots that make you grin the moment you get the gag. (The Donald Faison and public domain princesses stories were personal favorites.)
Hansen's enthusiasm is infectious. (And wow, did he really do that ninja stand in the Escape Room episode?)
A little breaking the fourth wall and loving jabs at Hollywood itself takes it to the next level.
Highly, highly recommend.
Elysium (2013)
Dumbest movie I've ever seen at a theater
Plot holes you could drive a space shuttle through. Here are a few:
1) They don't have medical machines on earth? It's more cost-effective to maintain security and shoot down shuttles full of people than it is to set up hospitals with "miracle machines" where they could make a *fortune*?
2) People give space shuttle captains their life savings to take them to Elysium, though obviously they often get shot down and there's no way for them to integrate once they're there anyway because they're not citizens. And everyone *in the movie* at least was going for the magical medical machines (that are for some reason kept in living rooms--but not in factories or government facilities on Elysium). But *no one* has set up medical machines on Earth? And don't say "All rich people are evil and want the poor people to die" because even if you believe that tripe the rich get rich by making money--which they could make in the *trillions* if they sold access to the machines.
3) The big reboot at the end. They don't have backups they can restore to? "Sorry, you're no longer citizens. Ctrl-Z."
4) Regardless of your opinion on ObamaCare, this is an ad for it...esp the end where it shows all the clean white robots (stand ins for government doctors, I guess) bringing good health to the masses. For it or against it, it's a gross simplification of the real issue, but will certainly rile up those who don't want to put much thought into it.
5) The bad guy's best weapon is an exploding ninja star (shuriken). Maybe that makes sense, since when they spray the guy with a *minigun* at the ambush scene he's miraculously unharmed, despite being directly targeted by a weapon that sprays *thousands of rounds a minute*.
6) One of the bad guy's 6 or so iHover camera bots just happens to be going down the nurse's street as Damon comes out, despite LA being perhaps even twice as dense as it is currently.
7) Maybe there's a good scientific principle here, but I sure don't know what it is--how come Elysium didn't have any sort of roof or sealant to keep its oxygen in?