Monday, November 24, 2014

21 Jump Street/22 Jump Street double feature.

Today, I’m going to be doing something different. Recently, the hit comedy 22 Jump Street, the highly successful sequel to the highly successful reboot from two years ago, was released on Blu-Ray. Having never seen the first film, and having never gotten to see the second film in theaters, I decided to take this opportunity to watch both films back to back. Needless to say, I had myself one riotously funny time. The two films, based on the hugely popular television series, each turned out to be pleasant surprises in their own right, and without any further ado, here’s my take on both of them.

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Brief thoughts on Fury.



Brad Pitt must really love to kill Nazis.

When it went into wide release a month ago, Fury was one of the year’s most surprising hits. Directed by David Ayer of Training Day and End of Watch fame, and headlined by megastar Brad Pitt, it garnered much acclaim and box office success. A film that takes inspiration from and emulates numerous films, most notably Saving Private Ryan, the film attempts to strike a balance between a visceral action thriller and brothers-in-arms drama. However, in its attempts at doing so, the final product is a bigger misfire than the tracker shell bullets in the film.

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Interstellar movie review.



I’ve been putting this review off for a long time now, and now it’s time I finally start writing.

But really, how can I accurately get to the core of such a perplexing and polarizing film as Interstellar? Two weeks since I’ve first seen the film, I still don’t think I’ve cracked all of its secrets. Christopher Nolan has never been one to shy away from heady stylistics (such as in films like Inception and Memento), and with this film (originally intended to be directed by Steven Spielberg), he’s created his most head-scratching film yet. I find everyone either loves or hates this film for its intentions, and I can’t deny that I don’t see those same issues.

In many ways, Interstellar is very much Nolan’s 2001. An at once beautiful, but flawed piece of cinematic art, Interstellar ironically proves to be so ambitious that its heady concepts almost work against it. Is it a destined cinematic masterpiece that will grow in appreciation for generations to come, or is it a pretentious slog where Nolan’s intentions run more rampant than ever?

I have no clue, but let’s take a look at the film as is.

Monday, November 10, 2014

Big Hero 6 movie review.

After the Walt Disney Company acquired Marvel Entertainment, it was only a matter of time before the company would give us their first animated feature based off of one of their properties. Boy, did they pick an interesting one.

Big Hero 6 is an obscure member of Marvel’s classic archives, and one that makes Guardians of the Galaxy look as popular as Spider-Man by comparison. This would actually give Disney some much needed freedom to do what they wished with the material, and expand on the source material’s potential.

Disney, in a much needed rebirth, has been on a recent  hot streak with their latest animated offerings, including Wreck it Ralph and Frozen, and Big Hero 6 is a fantastic continuation of their strong output. What Big Hero 6 may lack in 100% originality, it more than makes up for with brilliant execution, heart, and fun.