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jmbush22
Reviews
The Iron Claw (2023)
A poorly told story that robbed the mainstream audience
I thought this was a film about a wrestling family for a non-wrestling audience
Released as a feature film with mainstream stars & marketing that targeted the general audience, it had people who knew nothing about the Von Erich family interested
So much so, they were willing to spend their money & see the film in theaters instead of waiting for it to quickly come to a streaming platform.
They, the general audience, were greatly misled. Unless they knew someone that could fill in the gaps, they had to be completely lost at the most critical points
Several times throughout the film, I was ONLY able to understand what was going on because I knew the story already.
There's one scene where a major character suffers a life changing loss to the point it ultimately leads to an even bigger life changing event for the Von Erich family. But we never see what happens. One moment this main character is completely fine. The next, his whole world had changed WITH ABSOLUTELY NO EXPLANATION as to what happened.
Unless you knew what happened, you'd be at a completely lost.
This happens several times throughout the film where the general audience just has to guess at what happened and it's always around MAJOR LIFE CHANGING EVENTS.
And this isn't a fact vs fictional or creative story license thing, it's just plain BAD STORY TELLING!
Argylle (2024)
If you don't like to relax & have fun at the movies, then you'll hate this movie
A LOT of critics immediately want to compare this to Kingsman simply because it has the same director. And because Argylle is less serious & less traditionally James Bond-esk; it gets trashed.
It is simply not being judged on its own merit. It is a fun, well-paced film that leaves you guessing till the very end AND that doesn't easily fit into one category. And that's the real problem small minded critics have with this movie. It is NOT Kingsman. It is NOT James Bind. But it's not supposed to be!!! But because critics can't think past what has already been done, they have nothing directly to compare it to. And critics HATE that! Once a film becomes successful, then critics who rely on the creativity of others, have a standard to compare everything else to.
Well, Argylle isn't easily compared to other spy/action/comedy films.
Is Argyle goofy at times? Yes! But not Airplane/Dumb&Dumber/Naked Gun goofy.
It's goofy fun yet many of these moments are interlaced with novel action sequences.
It challenges the silos that both critics and Hollywood brainwashed audiences want everything to fit into.
Another reason why I know it's being panned is that the leads look like real people & not every camera angle is designed to avoid double chins & real woman hips. The film's inclusion of Henry Cavell's character is a reflection of the Hollywood's overly sleek non-relatable standard for movie spies.
You know why spies are spies in the real world? Because they look more like Sam Rockwell than Henry Cavell. And it is so refreshing to see this reflected in a feature film.
Invincible (2021)
Halfway through S2 E1 went from a 10/10 to 4/10
Why?
Why Robert Kirkman?
Do we really need another ******* storyline?
(And before you comic book marks go all "well, actually" on me; I know.
It doesn't make it a good decision though. And if you like lazy writing like that then good for you but I want something more especially now that Marvel & DC are shoving this down our throats RIGHT NOW;
But I guess some people like water so much, they're not even aware they're drowning)
Marvel Studios is treading dangerously close to alienating their audience with that same, practically identical, storyline concept by having it dominate all near-future projects . And DC... well DC, you know; copy/paste but make it worse.
The Golden Age of comic cinema & TV is dead and I think Kirkman just nailed the coffin shut.
I thought AMC executives were the ones that ruined The Walking Dead.
After watching Episode One of Season Two of Invincible, I'm not so sure.
No matter how bad The Walking Dead got (personally stopped watching after the Carl debacle), I never thought of Robert Kirkman selling out. I just thought he got screwed over in his deal with AMC and the AMC executives had more control than what he thought he signed up for.
But now...
Now I know Robert Kirkman can do what he wants with his own creation but "laziness", "big entertainment corporate trends", and "sellout" is all I can think of after Invincible S2E1.
Kirkman sucked out every bit of enjoyment I had in Invincible.
Maybe I'll just rewatch season one and dream of a universe where I'd only be moderately disappointed that the series ended there.
Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023)
Unrealized potential
This could have been soooo good!
I was at first surprised at how low the audience ratings were; but as I watched it became abundantly clear that this was death by a thousand cuts.
What makes it worse in some ways is that certain elements were far superior to 90% of horror films out there today.
The cinematography was excellent! From the lighting to the framing composition to the basic great quality; it leaves the all to often grainy, poorly lit quality of most modern horrors in the dust.
The solid acting was also somewhat surprising. Unfortunately, they killed off one of their best actors, Paula Coiz, almost immediately.
Her portrayal of Christopher Robin's love provided a solid foundation that really grounded the film right off the bat.
In Mary, Coiz's character, you had someone related to a central figure from the original stories that was innocent and outside those original stories. She was the audiences eyes and ears. She was perfect for drawing the audience in and experience this strange world from her point of view.
Moreover, she gave us someone to care about. She was obviously a good person and supportive of Christopher even though she believed his childhood stories to be a figment of a young highly imaginative mind.
She was also set apart by not being Christopher; the uninteresting silly looking boy from the cartoon movies we remembered as kids. Furthermore, it was Christopher's abandonment of our beloved woodland friends that started all this mess.
So the audience won't care about him nearly as much as they would an innocent supportive spouse doing her best not to dismiss Christopher's fanciful tales out of hand.
But the filmmaker quickly threw all that away.
The entire movie could have been built around her and Christopher trying to survive while at the same time attempting to reconnect and recover the beloved friends Christopher knew.
But nope. The filmmakers had to dive head first into mediocre horror film troupes.
Besides the horrible storyline, not to mention the awful dialogue, that killed the film for most people were the COSTUMES!!!
The look like that were designed and crafted over a weekend. Despite being told at the beginning that our animal friends have abandoned anything that made them human-like; they dressing in human clothing and leave a pathetic impression in the viewer's mind of just men in jeans and flannel with oversized latex masks on.
Personally, I would have casted the often underused and overlooked vertically challenged members of the acting community. Yes, I mean actors who happen to have dwarfism.
The Hundred Acres woods creatures would look sooo much better and realistic. Full body costumes would be so much better. I also wouldn't be completely thrown off by the fact that Piglet and Pooh were now somehow TALLER than a grown up sized Christopher Robins.
Besides, what would be more frightening than being chased by overpowered, animalistic, kid sized, revenge driven monsters?
Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023)
Unrealized potential
This could have been soooo good!
I was at first surprised at how low the audience ratings were; but as I watched it became abundantly clear that this was death by a thousand cuts.
What makes it worse in some ways is that certain elements were far superior to 90% of horror films out there today.
The cinematography was excellent! From the lighting to the framing composition to the basic great quality; it leaves the all to often grainy, poorly lit quality of most modern horrors in the dust.
The solid acting was also somewhat surprising. Unfortunately, they killed off one of their best actors, Paula Coiz, almost immediately.
Her portrayal of Christopher Robin's love provided a solid foundation that really grounded the film right off the bat.
In Mary, Coiz's character, you had someone related to a central figure from the original stories that was innocent and outside those original stories. She was the audiences eyes and ears. She was perfect for drawing the audience in and experience this strange world from her point of view.
Moreover, she gave us someone to care about. She was obviously a good person and supportive of Christopher even though she believed his childhood stories to be a figment of a young highly imaginative mind.
She was also set apart by not being Christopher; the uninteresting silly looking boy from the cartoon movies we remembered as kids. Furthermore, it was Christopher's abandonment of our beloved woodland friends that started all this mess.
So the audience won't care about him nearly as much as they would an innocent supportive spouse doing her best not to dismiss Christopher's fanciful tales out of hand.
But the filmmaker quickly threw all that away.
The entire movie could have been built around her and Christopher trying to survive while at the same time attempting to reconnect and recover the beloved friends Christopher knew.
But nope. The filmmakers had to dive head first into mediocre horror film troupes.
Besides the horrible storyline, not to mention the awful dialogue, that killed the film for most people were the COSTUMES!!!
The look like that were designed and crafted over a weekend. Despite being told at the beginning that our animal friends have abandoned anything that made them human-like; they dressing in human clothing and leave a pathetic impression in the viewer's mind of just men in jeans and flannel with oversized latex masks on.
Personally, I would have casted the often underused and overlooked vertically challenged members of the acting community. Yes, I mean actors who happen to have dwarfism.
The Hundred Acres woods creatures would look sooo much better and realistic. Full body costumes would be so much better. I also wouldn't be completely thrown off by the fact that Piglet and Pooh were now somehow TALLER than a grown up sized Christopher Robins.
Besides, what would be more frightening than being chased by overpowered, animalistic, kid sized, revenge driven monsters?
Saw IV (2007)
Bad casting caused unnecessary confusion
Why in the world would you cast Scott Patterson (Detective Strahm) and Costa Mandylor (Detective Hoffman) in the same film, both playing detectives????
They could be twins or at least brothers.
Look at their IMBD profile pics!!
This casting caused so much unnecessary confusion in a film that already has several storylines playing out at once, timeline hopping, and dimly lit scenes!
They even dressed Scott and Costa alike!
I consider my rating of 6 generous given how bad of a filmmaking choice this was.
My generous rating was help by some fantastic elements of this film. The camera work and editing was amazing. The transitions were creative and visually stunning.
The overall storyline was the best so far in the Saw series.
But when will these people learn just to listen to Jigsaw??
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
Pacing seemed slow in order to get two movies out of one story
Before watching it everyone should know this is only part 1 of the story and this movie ends at a very unexpected moment.
Typically with good written 2 part stories, each part has a beginning, middle, and end; with an overarching story connecting the two parts.
This just had a lengthy drawn out beginning, a muddled middle and that's it.
The producers seemed to want to milk Spider-man fans of their money over multiple movies for no other reason than greed.
For 3/4 of this movie, I kept wondering why the plot points were taking so long to get to and why they were seemingly eating up screen time for minor plot points that could be cover in 1/4 of the time.
This just seemed to unnecessarily drag on for ever.
The "aha" came when it ended. They are unnecessarily stretching the story over multiple movies just to cash in on the popularity of the previous film.
If you can't tell a complete story within two hours, you're either bad at storytelling or you're taking advantage of your audience's fandom by stretching a 2 hr story across multiple movies.
The only exception to this are epics where by the amount of content itself necessary additional time to tell the story. But based upon what I saw in this movie, the overarching storyline would barely require an hour and a half, let alone two two hour movies.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch (2021)
An animated A-Team
First season was amazing!
But the second season is work just to watch
The first season had focus
Each episode had its own story but there was an overarching main story that connected every episode
The second season is the complete opposite
A lack of focus and the only thing connecting episodes is "get money for our boss"
It's an animated A-Team
A team of quirky individuals that work together in non-verbal action sequences to achieve a goal with member-berry callbacks sprinkled in from time to time
What a waste.
The episodic format is just so limited
The Cody storyline as promise but my guess is that it only progresses at the very end of the season and gets rapped up in one episode.
Dying for Everest (2007)
The picture painted by the documentary is incomplete
On its own, this is good documentary.
However, a quick internet search will reveal that it is incomplete.
It failed to mention several instances where many more people from various teams attempted to help David that day.
For example, there were at least two separate instances where climbers spent at least an hour with David trying to help him.
He was not able to move. He was not coherent.
Unfortunately, David consciously made dangerous choices, like climbing alone, limiting his own oxygen supply intending not to use it, & refusing to carry a radio.
Anyone that blames a double amputee or anyone else that day for David's death is a praise-for-sensitivity seeking dolt.
And yes, that includes Sir Edmund.
In other parts of Edmund's interview that weren't included, Edmund kept comparing his "expedition" to those on the mountain that day.
We'll, his "expedition" in 1953 included 200 people that were there to solely support just four climbers, split into pairs. When Edmund & his partner ascended through the Death Zone where David died, there were just the two of them. OF COURSE, he wouldn't have just left his partner to "just die"! Plus, there were people on standby monitoring them.
Comparing his "expedition" to David's situation is nonsense. David didn't climb with a partner that knew or could monitor David's condition. No one knew why David stopped where he did, what kind of condition he was in when he decided to stop, nor how long he was there. BECAUSE David chose to climb alone, without anyone monitoring him, & with no way of contacting anyone!
Plus, David didn't have the luxury of having 200+ people at base camp hanging of every little detail that could be gleaned from his journey.
In another interview part not included, Sir Edmund referred multiple times to climbers NOT trying to help David. We know this to be a categorically false summation of what occurred!
Sir Edmund either chose to not research all the facts first or was ill informed. In either case, his grandiose proclamations & morale superiority was based upon ignorance.
A Haunting on Dice Road 2: Town of the Dead (2017)
Is that Brian? Crap
When Brian was introduced, I think "There is no way they put Brian from Ghost Hunters in front of the camera again. This has got to be some other Brian."
Then he speaks...
I think, "oh no, that might be him"
Then he talks to the entity...
I think, "crap, that's him"
Then he tries to man-up to the entity...
I think, "that's definitely him & he hasn't learned a single thing in 10+ years"
This guy is doesn't get it!
Regardless of whether the criticism is harsh or gift wrapped with a pretty bow, he refuses to take it, understand why it is, & change
That's why he was fired from the original Ghost Hunters. Brian is simply unwilling to or incapable of change.
And yet someone thought it was a good idea to hire him for this show...
I'm starting to think there may be someone more dense than Brian
Who's the more foolish? The fool or the fool that hires him?
Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)
Most heart, character development, & thought provoking SW film since Empire
The more I watch Last Jedi, the more I'm convinced Rian Johnson is a genius
Last Jedi is by no means perfect but in light of what JJ Abrams did, it actually added to the SW universe, not just rehash fan favorite moments from past films
Not since Empire, have there been major themes in a SW film that open our eyes to new insights, challenge our preconceptions, & leave us with something to think about after we leave the theater.
1) You don't have to be anyone special to change the world
- not a princess, not a charming pirate, not a child from a gifted family, not a successful businessman
- In ANH, this is what endured Luke to the audience but of course, later we find out that he's special b/c of who his father was
- Last Jedi bring back that relatability back to the main protagonist (of course, JJ ruins that later); this theme is echoed in the character of Rose and her sister as well as the little slave boy force controlling the broom at the film's end
2). A hero's journeys is not just a series of spectacular stunts and amazing feats; it is learning, maturing, & discerning as well
- Poe, Rose, Ray, & Finn are not just the new kids that get to fulfill the impulses while relying on others to hold down the fort, in a time where the New Republic is gone and the resistance is dwindling, they are the new leaders
- Leia is especially looking to Poe to step up and become a leader. She says "I need you to learn that." She follows that by pointing out the on Poe's bombing campaign of the drednaught there were "dead heroes, no leaders"
3) When does adherence to ideology prevent us from both understanding what is most needed in the moment and as well as, finding a new solution even though they stray from one's ideology?
- Failure to do so is what led to the fall of the Old Republic and the Jedi Order
- Parallels can be drawn to church dogma when more importance is put on obeying rules than empathizing and helping others who are different (& not just trying to convert them) (just speaking from personal experience).
Eternals (2021)
The one time I wish there was more studio oversight
Chloé Zhao may be a fantastic director & writer for deep introspective dramas but there is nothing in her background to warrant taking on such a hefty epic comic-based action flick and it is extremely apparent with the final product.
Did no one at Disney think they could tell her "No"?
It is painfully slow. There is no momentum whatsoever.
Forget spoon feeding exposition, Chloé Zhao shoved that sludge down our throats no matter how much we tried to spit it out.
50 minutes could easily be left of the cutting room floor
Even then the script is a mess. It is almost like Chloé Zhao tried to write a heartfelt drama with action scenes wedge in between plot points.
Suicide Squad (2016)
Why didn't anyone ask "why"?
Why wasn't David Ayer asked why?
Why is the main villain a loosely defined magic thing with ill defined powers?
Why David do you think rescuing. Amanda Waller not just once but twice is compelling for the audience?
Why is the Enchantress's heart tied to a bomb if not for the express purpose of killing her if she does what she did to set up the whole movie plot?
Why does Joker look more like a ICP Juggalo than a DC villain?
Why are your plot points and characters so I'll defined?
Why in one scene does Harley takes out a half dozen blob soldiers with a bat and the very next scene Amanda Waller brags that the blob soldiers can take "a shot to the head" & keep going?
Why is the squad pinned down on a roof with Waller who waits for the attacking helicopter to fly away before she calls for it to be shot down?
Why did you think the audience wouldn't guess that. Slipknot was going to be the first to die after giving him no introduction at all and slipping him in on the squad at the last moment?
Why why why why was David Ayer given this project?
The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
So underrated
The Matrix spoon-fed audiences Philosophy 101
Reloaded threw the audience in the philosophical deep end & assumed they'd learn to swim on their own
So I understand why so many dump on this movie
For a knucklehead like me, it took me several re-watches to "get" the meta-type meanings interwoven with aspects from different philosophies & computer science
So I really wish people would just give it several rewatches and really try to understand the philosophy behind it
Because once you "get" it, Reloaded is an amazing movie (with some really bad CGI)
The entire Trilogy is a philosophical journey for the characters and the audience
Philosophy struggles to understand who we are as humans and why we're here
Philosophy is a very human notion
The machines struggle to understand human philosophy because the machine's understanding of what they are and why they exist are explained by computer science
That's why in Reloaded metaphors are spoken both in terms of both philosophy and computer science
What confuses both Neo & the audience is when the machines try to explain to humans what life is using human philosophical metaphors that have been bastardized by the machines' own philosophy based on computer science.
The Cabin with Bert Kreischer: Fresh Perspectives (2020)
Missed opportunity for Kaley
Kaley could have used this to understand someone from a different background
Instead she made it all about her and getting upset when someone didn't act like the rest of Hollywood acts around her
I'm sure she's a nice person but I think she takes it for granted that people are automatically nice to her because she's famous and beautiful
I can also understand being thrown off by Ms Pat because she is such a strong personality but of course that's why people who follow her love her
But still, Kaley took Ms Pat's personality as a rejection of her personally.