Sean’s movie thoughts

Avengers Endgame Stars Wars Episode Nine Shazam Spider-man Far From Home Captain Marvel How to Train Your Dragon the Hidden World Am I still allowed to complain about too many sequels? (Heh.)

Aquaman is good. I did not expect Dolph Lundgren to have a supporting role, so that was nice. (This has been a year for Lundgren.) Amber Heard was good as Mera and Jason Momoa is good as Arthur Curry/Aquaman. The undersea setting makes the movie feel different than other superhero movies. In this Arthur Curry, the half human half Atlantean heir to the throne, has to step up and stop his brother Orm from declaring war on the surface. Arthur has to find a royal Trident, which will prove his right to the throne. Also Black Manta has a score to settle with Arthur/Aquaman. Black Manta was working for Orm but after the initial encounter between Black Manta and Aquaman, killing Aquaman is now personal for him. I liked it. I might like Bumblebee more. Patrick Wilson does okay as the villain but if he doesn’t pop up in a future movie, I’d be okay with that. Maybe it was the way the role was written but he is not a great villain.

The Predator is not terrible. It might not be good though and maybe this franchise can be put to bed for a long time, if not forever. Predators return to earth to do more hunting (and maybe something more). There is one Predator that is bigger and badder than the other. A sniper and a team of escaped soldiers with emotional problems fight them. A scientist gets involved, and the sniper’s son has autism but he can figure out alien technology. (Some people did not like that plot point if I remember correctly.) Some of the soldiers are kind of interesting. Olivia Mann does come across like a scientist. I just don’t feel like there is anything else to explore with this monster. The ending cries out for a sequel but a lot of movies do that nowadays. There was a scene removed from the film because the male actor/extra was a convicted sex offender and the director did not inform anyone on the set. This actor worked on Shane Black’s last two films and they were friends. Black later claim

Top ten movies as 12-25-2018 Avengers Infinity War Black Panther Deadpool 2 Mission Impossible Fallout Spider-man Into the Spiderverse Leave No Trace Creed II Searching Bumblebee Instant Family It has been a pretty good year.  I think I saw Uncle Drew in a theater and probably liked it more than it deserved. 

Is Will Ferrell the Star he was five years ago? It is interesting that two of his last three movies (the House, Holmes and Watson) have not been previewed for critics. That is not a good sign. I am little surprised that Holmes and Watson is not being shown to critics. It is a big Christmas Day release. (The studio might fear it is really bad.) Also he did not make sequels for years. He would make similar movies and play similar characters but he didn’t make sequels until Anchorman 2. Counting his role in Zoolander 2, he has made 3 sequels since 2012.  It used to be that his appeal (or the appeal of him and his co-star)was enough to get people to the movie. Is his star fading and does he need to return to previous roles/characters (or have a franchise) to create interest in his movies? Maybe. He went a long time before making Sequels. Maybe he is using sequels to get other projects produced? Emilio Estevez made at least one Mighty Ducks movie to get financing for a smaller movie.

This is a road trip movie with two guys who barely know each other. One is a forty something mechanic and possible burnout and the other is a nineteen year old going to art school. Along the way they have adventures and meet some interesting characters. They meet at one point and since this isn’t a horror movie they become traveling companions. Jason Mantzoukas plays Richard (the older man) and Tony Revolori plays Nathan the younger man. They have a nice chemistry. This is decent. Maybe I expected too much but it has some nice moments and I don’t regret seeing it but I might not want to see it again. If I gave letter grades I might give this a c+.

The fifth Marine movie stars Mike “the Miz” Mizanin as Jake Carter and Jake is now working as paramedic. (I saw the Marine 4 but did not review it.) He and his partner get a call that take them to an abanded parking lot of an amusement park. They find a gunshot victim and there is a biker gang out to kill him. Jake must use his skills to try to keep himself, his partner, and their patient alive. I like the fight scenes and when the action moves to the abandoned amusement park that was fun. Cellphones don’t work in the parking lot and later the bad guys take out a nearby cell tower, so the movie explains why Jake and his partner cannot call for help. (A lot of movies need to create plot points to explain why the characters don’t use cellphones to get help.) Mike the Miz Mizanin might not be as good of an actor as Dave Bautista or Dwayne Johnson but I think the Miz is better than some athletes turned action heroes. Also he seems sincere or earnest, which are good qualities for an act

I wish more people had gone to see Bumblebee. It didn’t open well. It is really good. I can understand why more people did not go to see it though. If you did not enjoy the last few films in this series, I can see not being excited about this one. Maybe people were more excited by Aquaman. If this is the last Transformers movie, that is a bit of a shame. At least they made a good movie. Hailee Seinfeld will be fine. I don’t think this film will hurt her career. I am not sure if this will hurt director Travis Knight’s career. I hope not. Maybe this was not a great weekend for the film to open. There was a lot of competition and there are new movies opening Tuesday. Maybe earlier in the month would have been a better day. Maybe opening on a different day wouldn’t have helped the movie. (It is impossible to know.) Bumblebee is a good film. Hopefully it will make enough money internationally to get a sequel.

I don’t really care if this movie reboots the Transformers series. If it does and future movies in the series are this good, that would be okay. If it does not, okay. Bumblebee is set in 1987 and a 18 year old girl named Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld) is adjusting to the death of her father. Her mother has a new husband. Charlie finds the transformer Bumblebee who is disguised as a Volkswagen Beetle. There are Decepticons hunting him and the military is helping thhem. Seinfeld carries the movie. She is very likable and the scenes where she talks about her dad are touching. (Her dad appears on videotape briefly.) Dylan O’Brien voices Bumblebee in the early action and John Cena is on as a military officer. The action is well staged but not great. However it is clear. The soundtrack is fun. I was not expecting to hear Sammy Hagar. It might be slightly under 2 hours and moves at a good pace. This is really good. It might seem like a remake of the original Transformers movie but it is bet

I have no interest in seeing Vice, the new movie about Dick Cheney. Maybe it will be good but I don’t feel any interest in it. Would have I been interested if the movie came out closer to the end of his term as Vice President? I am not sure. The new Hellboy trailer is out and well, it looks okay. Maybe I am tired but I feel like I have already seen this film. Maybe the movie will good. Maybe it won’t. I liked the two Hellboy movies, so maybe I will enjoy this one. It was a pretty good year at the movies this year. I did not regret watching any movie in theaters. I might not have gone to as many movies as in previous years but I still went to at least twenty and I am going to Bumblebee this weekend.

I have seen Maximum Overdrive but not for at least ten years. I remember it vaguely and it is interesting as the only film Stephen King directed. I bought the Blu-Ray and I am not sure why. It could have been an impulse buy.  Oh well, I will probably watch it this week and maybe I will figure out why I bought it. At least it seems to have a nice set of bonus features. There is a commentary track that could be interesting and there are some interviews. Disclaimer I don’t work for the company that put out the new Blu-Ray (or any media company). If I later write a good review of this movie and bonus features, I won’t make any money if that review inspires a purchase. This applies to all movies I buy or watch and later review.

Is three years enough to create a tradition? There is an article talking about how there is not a Star Wars movie in December like there has been in the last three years and that feels werid.  Here  is the article. There were like 15 or 16 years without a Star Wars movie. There have been some articles about the Justice League movie George Miller was going to make in 2009. At times it seems odd to have new articles about a movie that never happened but I have seen a few over the years. There was one even this week. I guess the success of Mad Max Fury Road made Miller a Star again. ScreenCrush (I think it was that website) used to do articles about predictions/rumors about films and which ones were true and which ones were not. I am not sure when ScreenCrush stopped doing these articles. These were kind of interesting.

This movie is good. It is an animated movie featuring several Spider-men and Spider-women but it focuses on Miles Morales, an African-American teenager. He becomes Spider-man during the course of this film. I am not going to talk about the plot.(Not too much anyway.) This is fun but also touching at times. It features an older Peter Parker training Miles. This is an older Peter than we have seen on screen and he is a bit out of shape and beaten down by life. (Tom Defalco’s Spider-girl featured an older Peter Parker. He might have been retired but he had a pretty good post Spider-man life.) Other Spider-people in this movie are Spider-woman (Gwen Stacy), Spider-man Noir (a Peter Parker from the 1930s), Spider-ham (Peter Porker, a cartoon pig), and SP//dr (Peni Parker a young girl with a spider-like suit of armor that she copilots with a radioactive spider). Villains include Kingpin, Tomstone, and a female Doctor Octopus.

A young boy named Lewis, maybe 11 or 12 years old, comes to live with his uncle (Jack Black). Lewis’ parents died in a car accident. The uncle lives in a strange house that seems to be alive. The uncle is a warlock. Black is good in this. He might have been making this instead of Goosebumps Haunted Halloween and this movie might be a little better than the Goosebumps sequel. Cate Blanchett co-stars as a witch. She is good too. I am not going to talk about the plot but I liked the movie. I think it was set in the army 1950s but it might not have been said. I thought it took a while to start but it had a good ending. Black is a bit subdued at times but it fits the story. His relationship with Blanchett is fun. I thought the young actor playing Lewis was good. I think it is fine for families. This has some horrorific features but families can enjoy it.

The Mortal Engines movie opens this weekend. I have seen previews but I don’t feel interested. I am wondering is anyone interested in it. Is anyone? I know this film is based on a series of books. I had not heard of the books before I saw the movie’s preview. There are a lot of books published, so probably that doesn’t mean much. I just don’t feel interested in this movie and unless I am missing it, there doesn’t seem to be as much excitement for this movie as there is for Bumblebee. (I am not dismissing Bumblebee but that is the 6th or 7th Transformers movie.) I guess the studio thinks someone is interested. The studio is spending plenty of money to make and promote the movie. The studio must feel that there is an audience for this movie. Of course the studio behind Robin Hood felt there was an audience for it too.

Maybe Robin Hood and King Arthur need to fight. Maybe that will get people to go to a King Arthur movie. Just kidding but watch to see if that happens in the next 5 years. I am not sure that why they would fight. Do people really want to see a Men in Black film without Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones? I guess we will find out. Although Jones kind of sat out a large part of the last movie but Josh Brolin played a younger version of Jones’ character. It has been a few years since the last Men in Black movie. I like the concept of Men in Black but I liked the pairing of Smith and Jones. I saw a video review of the new Fantastic Beasts movie that was just brutal. That movie has some problems, I will admit. I think it could have been better but I guess I felt more generous towards the film than the guy who made the video.

Early reviews of Bumblebee have surfaced. The reviews are pretty good. Maybe this will work out. Previews have looked good. I made jokes and wisecracks about this movie when it was announced. (“As you know, we all love Bumblebee.”) I guess the joke is going to be on me if this movie as good as it looks and as good as the early reviews look. I guess I can live with that.  I heard or saw rumors about this rebooting the Transformers franchise. (The franchise changes its history with each new film from I’ve heard, so I guess it is possible that the whole franchise could be rebooted.) I don’t care about the Transformers franchise but I am open to the possibility of caring about the franchise going forward.  Dylan O’Brien is the voice of Bumblebee. That is good. I am not sure this is the movie teaming him with Hailee Steinfeld I wanted but it is better than nothing.

This is good. It is based on or inspired by a real story. It is 1952 and a boat is sinking during a massive storm. Things are starting to get really tense and a couple of crew members are arguing over what to do. Another crew member (Casey Affleck) steps up. A small coast guard boat comes out to rescue them. Chris Pine plays Bernie who failed in a previous rescue effort. He is advised by some people not to go (pretend he couldn’t get the boat past a certain point because of the storm). He is joined by three members of the coast guard. Ben Foster co-stars as another Coast Guard member. The movie cuts back and forth between the two ships until the Coast Guard ship reaches the tanker. This is effective. The movie is over two hours long but does not feel overly long. There are also scenes featuring Miriam, Bernie’s fiancé, and her dealing with the situation. Some critics didn’t like those scenes but I guess they were added to prevent the movie from lacking a major female role. Also t

I think the Mission Impossible series really works because it is committed and sincere. Tom Cruise is committed to doing as many stunts as possible and that comes acros while watching these movies. He broke an ankle during the making of Fallout while doing a stunt. The makers of the movies seem committed to doing old fashioned and amazing stunts. When I say the films are sincere, I am not saying that they are humorless. However the films are not ironic. Also Marvel movies, as much as I enjoy most of them, have a tendency to undercut the drama with humor. (Thor Ragnorok does it a lot.) The Mission Impossible movies don’t do that.  I have not seen the first Mission Impossible movies in years and I mostly thinking about the last three movies. I remember in at least two of the first three movies the bad guy is a former member of the Mission Impossible team.

Candyman was based on or losely inspired by a story by Clive Barker. I have never read the story but I have heard there are some significance differences. There is a new edition on Blu-ray, so this seems a good time to re-watch it. Also Jordan Peele has announced that he is working on a sequel. Virginia Madsen stars as a graduate student named Helen studying urban legends and she hears the tale of Candyman. He was the son of a former slave and an artist but he was killed after he fathered a child with a white woman. Now the legend is if you look in a mirror and say his name 5 times, he will appear and attack you. He seems to haunt the Cabrini Green Housing project in Chicago. This was a real place (I think it was torn down) and it might have been among the most infamous housing projects in America. At times it appears that Candyman is a product of Helen’s imagination but some things are happening that seem to contradict that. Tony Todd is really good as the Candyman. He was a go

One online film critic said that the killing of the villain of the Marine 6 left him cold. It is a low budget action movie, villains can die in a horrible way. It was not overly graphic. Maybe Johnny Depp’s Grindelwald can turn back into Colin Farrell for the next Fantastic Beasts movie. That might be kind of cool, they’re playing wizards so explaining that would be easy. Matt Singer of ScreenCrush declared Sno-Caps the worst movie theater candy. I don’t think I have seen Sno-Caps at my local theaters. I will look for them next time I am in a theater. In the same article Starbursts were declared the best movie theater candy.

The Equalizer 2 is okay, not great. Denzil Washington is fine as the retired DIA agent Robert McMcall who helps people when he can. He is also working as a Lyft driver, which he uses to find people to help. This time his former co-worker and friend Susan (Melissa Leo) is killed. He is also trying to keep a young man in his apartment complex out of a gang. I don’t regret watching this but I think I’d be okay if the series ends here. I did not see this in theaters, so this is not a re-watch. The action scenes were good and Denzil was good too but I didn’t find the movie compelling. Maybe if the villains had been more interesting that would have helped. I think the villains in the first film were more interesting. Maybe if I re-watch the movie in a year or so, I might have more positive feelings about the movie.

Last year King Arthur Legend of the Sword bombed in America but might have broken even due to international markets. (This was the start of a planned franchise.) In 2003 King Arthur bombed. The last hit King Arthur movie might be Excalibur from 1983. This year Robin Hood bombed, it might be one of the biggest bombs of the year. Unless I am mistaken the last hit Robin Hood movie was Robin Hood Prince of Thieves. That was in 1991. Russell Crowe’s Robin Hood in 2010 was not a hit but it might have broken even. So why hasn’t there been a hit Robin Hood or King Arthur movie in so long? Maybe people just aren’t interested in these characters any more. I am not sure that is true. Maybe people look at the new King Arthur or Robin Hood movies and just don’t feel interested in the new spin on the legend the movies are offering. (Almost all the recent movies featuring these characters feature new spins on the characters. It would almost be interesting to go back to basics.) Maybe some of thes

This 1980s slasher stars Melissa Sue Anderson as Virginia, a teenage girl who suffered a horrorible accident and had brain surgery. She is back in school and hanging out with a group of friends. Suddenly her friends are being killed (and it appears they know the killer) and she is having flashbacks. It is not bad. If I have seen this before, it has been years ago. I know this movie because it was covered in Going to Pieces (both the book and the Starz special). The movie moves at a good clip and I thought it did a nice job introducing the characters before the murders started. It is not overly gory, at least not compared to modern movies, but it was probably pretty gory for the time. At the time this was made Melissa Sue Anderson was best known for playing Mary Wilder on Little House on the Pirarie. So I guess seeing her in this might have been a bit jarring. Except for Glenn Ford in a supporting role, no one else in the cast looked familiar. I picked this up on Blu-Ray for a rea

Robin Hood bombed and it might be the biggest bomb of the year. King Arthur bombed last year. (The last King Arthur movie in 2003 bombed, so it has been a while since there was a hit King Arthur movie. The last one might be Excalibur from the 1980s.) Isn’t there a way for studios to know that there won’t be an audience (or enough of an audience to make the film profitable)for a movie before they make it? I guess there is not one or else studios would not produce these bombs. I wonder if a movie version at Salem’s Lot would work. I like both of the TV mini-series of the novel but wonder if the success of It might bring Salem’s Lot to be the big screen. I would like to see the story on the big screen but could the story be told well in 2 1/2 hours or less? This story needs a slow burn.