Double review - Jack Ryan and The Lego Movie.

Well, things are going a bit slow as far as movie viewing goes, so I figured I would take the time to finish a couple reviews that I’ve been putting off for a while. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, and The Lego Movie.

I first saw both films all the way back in February, but I held off on giving them actual reviews for other projects. Now that they’re both about to be released on Blu-Ray, I decided I would finally take the time to archive my thoughts on them. They’re both really entertaining, and I hope you’ll check them both out.

Godzilla movie review.

Hello, and welcome back, everyone! So, a couple weeks ago, the summer movie season got off to a weak start with the release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, a weak opener that many were hoping the upcoming release of Godzilla would rectify.

If you’re one of the few unfamiliar with the source material, Godzilla is the iconic lizard monster popularized by the campy 1950’s and ‘60’s kaiju films from movie studio Toho. American filmmakers had previously attempted to bring ‘Zilla stateside, but unfortunately in the form of Roland Emmerich’s horrendous interpretation. Directed by newcomer Gareth Edwards, and starring a fantastic roster of actors, this new take on the legend was released to magnificent hype, some may say to the levels of Ridley Scott’s Prometheus. With all the word of mouth, I suddenly got hopeful that it would start the season off right… but unfortunately, this really didn’t hit the mark. It’s just about as weak as any other movie released this month so far, but the sadder fact is it isn’t even the least bit enjoyable to watch.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie review.

It’s been two years since the release of The Amazing Spider-Man, which last saw our beloved web-head releasing with flying colors… Or, perhaps the better word would be muted colors. In spite of its solid critical success and strong box office revenue, this reboot to the Spidey storyline never could escape justly deserved skepticism that it was little more than a cynical attempt for Sony to keep the rights to the character, and even some who enjoyed it felt quite apathetic about it afterwards, myself included.

Of course, a sequel was to be expected, but the studio went even further, announcing that not only would three sequels be in production, but also a few spin-off films for other characters in the series. With so much hype built around it, and with Captain America already making a big splash this year, you may expect this film to be just as entertaining.

Unfortunately, you would be proven wrong. While not without its moments, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is a weaker, heavily less focused follow-up to the original.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier movie review.

Welcome back! Now that I’ve had plenty of time to rest, it’s time for my first official review for a 2014 movie.

When Captain America: The First Avenger was released, it was such a breath of fresh air. Fitted with a retro World War II vibe, and directed by Joe Johnston, it felt like something out of an Indiana Jones flick rather than any traditional superhero flick. Up until this point, it remained my favorite entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe after The Avengers, and in what has so far been a great second phase for Marvel’s constructed world, Captain America: The Winter Soldier has undoubtedly been the highlight. For what was already a wonderfully old-school adventure, The Winter Soldier is a spectacular update that stands as one of Marvel’s best since outings

My official predictions for the 86th annual Academy Awards.

On Sunday night, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will honor what they feel has represented the best achievements in film of 2013 during their 86th annual Oscars ceremony. The Oscars are always interesting to watch. Even though numerous races are set in stone from the get-go, there will always be the tricky categories to give us pause in predicting what we think the winners will be. This year has been no less perplexing, with support for films flying all over the place from presumed runaway frontrunners, to now several films having a legitimate chance to take the victory.

I wasn’t planning on doing this, but given how good and how hectic the year has been, I decided to toss in my predictions of who is going to win in all 24 categories, and my reasons as to why. I’m not 100 percent sure on all of these predictions, but these are all as finalized and certain as I’m going to get. With that said, let’s get started.

My top ten most anticipated films of 2014...

 Coming off of the fantastic year in film of 2013, now is the time for me to look ahead to some of my most highly anticipated films of 2014. The year itself has already turned in some titles worthy of notice, even in such a dumping ground as terrible as February (which includes THREE remakes), the fact that we’ve already got a movie as excellent as The Lego Movie (which I recommend everyone go see) is a very encouraging sign. 2014 has potential that it could even best last year, and so, having found some time to sit down and properly put my thoughts together, I give you my list of my top ten most anticipated releases of the year.

The Top Ten Best Films of 2013...

Alright, everyone! It’s all come down to this. After spending so much time talking about the worst movies of 2013, it’s finally time to talk about the best that 2013 had to offer. Despite some embarrassingly bad titles tossed around this year, I still maintain that it was a fantastic year for films, with plenty of variety to showcase. It had everything from sci-fi romance to action thrillers, from family dramas to survival thrillers in space, and from Hobbits and dragons to snowmen and reindeer. It seemed to have a little bit of something for everyone, and today, I’m counting it all down in the top ten best movies I saw all year. Please keep in mind that there are still high profile films I haven’t gotten around to like Blue is the Warmest Color, Nebraska, Philomena (or, as it’s now called, PhiloMANIA), and The Wind Rises.

Before moving on to the official top ten, I’d like to hand out some honorable mentions to films that would have been very deserving of placement on here. Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave is a brutal, devastating, and essential portrait of slavery, lifted by Chiwetel Ejiofor’s stunning lead performance. Inside Llewyn Davis from the brothers Coen is among the duo’s best films in years, a tale as timeless and heartbreaking as the folk songs present in the feature. Woody Allen struck a home run with Blue Jasmine, thanks mainly due to the performances of Cate Blanchett and Sally Hawkins as two sisters in a believably bitter situation. Dallas Buyers Club boasted fantastic performances all around, especially from those of the Oscar worthy Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto. Pacific Rim from Guillermo Del Toro is one of the best blockbusters of the year, and is an all around massive, spectacular, and thoroughly entertaining popcorn flick.

One project that I’d like to show due appreciation to (even though it isn’t a movie), is the spectacular survival-horror video game The Last of Us from the creative minds at Naughty Dog. If this qualified as a movie, it would have easily taken my position at number 1. Ever since finishing the game back in June, every image and emotion felt from the experience has stuck with me. From the gritty tone and atmosphere, the frightening sound design, the harrowing script, the inseparable duo of unforgettable lead characters, all the way down to the haunting score, The Last of Us not only proved how well a game can tell a story, but put any and all of the movies released this year to shame. It is perfection, one of the greatest games of all time, and a living testament that video games are high art.

All geeky gamer rambling done, let’s introduce the top ten.