Change Your Image
harleysbatman
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter (1990)
Goofy But Entertaining!
The Never Ending Story is a classic fantasy book and children's film that inspires imagination and creativity. I've never read the book, but I've seen the films, and though the first one is considered a classic, they all seem goofy and silly to me. But that's not entirely bad---I just don't think the films are epic, masterpieces. I don't even remember much of the first one, to be honest. I remember horrible acting and horrible special effects but nothing more. I remember the sequel to it though, and maybe for the wrong reason: Because it's so laughably bad!
Yes, The Never Ending Story 2 is a mediocre movie but at least it gives something back. There's so much terrible acting, special effects and plot holes, though, that it becomes endearing. You have to remember it's a child's fantasy movie and not to take it so seriously. Nothing in this movie makes sense and that's why it works. A child doesn't make sense of things for the most part. So that's why I can come to the conclusion why a child can ride a magic dragon with no problem but be afraid to jump into a swimming pool. That's why a kid, who knows nothing of an evil elaborate plan of his wishes destroying him, will not use up magic wishes. That's why a kid will betray his friend in 5 seconds, and then be upset when he kills him in the next 5 seconds. Though, I cannot defend his decision to use a bottle of spray paint to fight monsters, instead of like...literally anything else!!!
Though I make fun of this movie, I actually really like it. It's stupid and harmless fun and that's what movies should be...
Mi vida loca (1993)
Main Reason I Hate Cholos!
Some people think The Room is the worst movie of all time. Some think it's a movie with Carrot Top or Pauly Shore. No, those movies are harmless. Those movies birthed some laughter. Mi Vida Loca is a stereo-typed, glorified and I would really hope INCORRECT look at one aspect of Latino culture. I say one aspect because, as a Latino, I know alot of other Latinos that are proud of gang life mentality and consider it to be the defining aspect of our lineage. It's not. It's more like an elective. You, me or nobody has to join a gang and ruin their life. We have music, clothes, art, history, medication, science---so many things going for us---and yet, the one thing some seem to protect and hold highest is being a firme vato! I would never be proud to be a killer. I would never be proud to hold this delusion of representing my city or my home, by completely making it ugly, dangerous and feared...
But I digress...
I don't have one positive praise for this movie. There's not any one outstanding character. There's not one great scene. There's not one great piece of acting. It's all just a bunch of stupid characters, saying, doing or thinking stupid things. No one even has their own mind in this movie. "I'm like a gang member so I gotta do what the streets tell me to do, even if I know it's wrong, cause then all the other gang members will hate me, eh!". Jesus Christ! So the first thing I ever hated this movie for was the opening conflict between Mousey and Sad Girl: They are two best friends, who grew up together, and find out that they are being used and literally screwed by the SAME guy...and their logically thought out answer to this is: "Ah, hell no! That's MY man!". Really? Are people that dumb? There's this other scene, shortly after, when they have their kids by this loser (who gets shot and killed because surprise surprise: that's what happens you join a gang!) and they sort of make up and take them to a park. The kids are playing with eachother and they tell the little boy something like, "You can never have her, mijo! That's like your sister, eh!". Again, Jesus Christ! They're just playing, you morons! They're like 2 and don't even understand the concept of romantic love or sexual intercourse! That line/seriously pissed me off. They have one character in this whole movie that tries to be positive and steer all the other gang members in the right way...and she is laughed off. She tells them about the future and computers and how they can make their life mean something! They can get a job and go to college! They don't have to obey the streets or gang life! But no, they just laugh her off and then one of their kids gets shot, accidentally, in a drive by. Should of went to computer class, huh?
I'm sorry but (censored) this movie! Again, I'm Latino and I have and know a bunch of cousins and others that glorify this crap and live by this movie like their life depends on it. This movie just makes us all look bad and stupid and most of all: dangerous! And we are not...
1 Star for that whole McDonald's/Burger King bit!
Riding in Cars with Boys (2001)
Steve Zahn Is The Only Reason To See This!
Growing up, my sisters (and every female in my family) loved this movie. I didn't understand the love. From what I saw, not one character is likable, especially the main character, played by Drew Barrymore. The characters are either losers, dumb or selfish but it was almost like a gospel truth for my family members. Almost like the only things you can strive to be were losers, dummies or selfish people. Well, I learned that if you connect to any of the characters in this movie; if you relate to Bev or Ray, then you pretty much done messed up...big time!
Here's the deal though, I gave the film a few stars because it did manage to make me react; even if it's negatively. Whenever I see Drew Barrymore, I think of her as Julia Gulia or Bev. She can either be the world's most sweetest, perfect girl or the most selfish, irresponsible demon. So to get those reactions, kudos! Also, Steve Zahn's performance as Ray is amazing. I feel more empathy for Ray, even though he is supposed to be somewhat of an obstacle for Bev. He's alot more kind and understanding than she is; does the right thing for his kid in the end IMMEDIATELY and again, he's supposed to be the guy we hate!
The story is good enough, the character of Bev is just so unlikable. I cannot root for her; the supposed hero. She doesn't care about anyone but herself. I know maybe one of the themes is that she is just a kid/young herself, but I mean, her son is fully grown at the end, and she's still a selfish butthole! She never grew a little? She never stopped pitying herself? She never puts her kid ahead of herself at any point? The more praise I hear for this character, the worse I feel about mankind...
To be fair, the son is also kind of a whiny, little dweeb...
In conclusion, to say the characters are relatable is one thing but to want to be and emulate these characters? Madness!
Rocky Balboa (2006)
The Best Rocky Movie With The Perfect Ending!
I didn't really know about the Rocky Universe until I was about 20 or so. I knew of Rocky; I knew of the classic lines and images but I had never seen any of the films. Then one day, for whatever reason, my dad just started talking about Rocky and all the films and characters and I really wanted to see them! I remember the night he came home from work and presented me with the 5 DVD Rocky Box Set! I was very surprised and happy! To understand why this is special to me, or more so, is because my dad works more than an hour away from home. He stopped at four or five different stores, before he found it at a Best Buy. He made it home in 2 hours that night. Also, I had Chicken McNuggets that night. The perfect dinner to watch Rocky!
That night, I watched the very first two Rocky films. Loved them! The next day I watched Rocky 3 and 4. Loved them too! The third night, I watched Rocky 5 and was let down, but still enjoyed it. I had grown attached to the characters in the Rocky Universe. I had grown attached to these characters and I was kind of sad for them at the end of the final movie. Rocky was always meant to be the underdog; to be the guy that life crapped on but even he deserved to go out better than that! So when Rocky Balboa (Or as I just like to say, "Rocky 6") was announced, I was thrilled!
Many people say the original Rocky is the best in the series, and I can see why, and the films are close but for my money, Rocky Balboa is the best film in the series! I think Rocky and Rocky Balboa both have the emotional weight going for it. That's why they are the best in the series. Rocky 3 and 4 may have all the cool lines and cameos but they lack the raw emotional depth. Save for Mick's death. You could argue Apollo's death as well, but I feel his death came second to the fight. Rocky Balboa got the edge for me, though, because it ends on a perfect note...
In Rocky Balboa, Rocky is retired, widowed and trying to live his life as best as he can. He loves and misses Adrian, who has died of cancer, and he uses work to numb that pain. On the flip side, he does not want to forget Adrian and celebrates their love whenever possible. Rocky also has lost his son, but not to death but to his shadow; to insecurity. The one person still left in Rocky's life is Paulie, the lovable but grumpy brother in law. Although he loves Rocky, he is limited in kindness and cannot always be there for him or comfort him. Rocky seems to be alone, and he doesn't like it...
Meanwhile, the newest champion, Mason Dixon is getting bad press because, well, he's just too damn good! This may be the weakest part of the movie and my only real complaint. The character of Mason Dixon and the real life actor both suck. Storywise, the fans are turning against him because he wins too much; too fast and too easily. No one wants to see him box anymore. I think this is flawed because people would pay to either see their hero continue his streak or they would pay to see someone, hopefully, beat the crap out of him. Some sports show creates a dream match scenario, in where a virtual Rocky defeats the virtual Dixon, and based on this, the boxing people think that the real deal fight is exactly what needs to happen!
Meanwhile, Rocky befriends an old acquaintance in Little Marie. Little Marie is the little girl from the first Rocky who called him a Creepo. She now works as a bartender and is alot more nice. Little Marie (played by Geraldine Hughes) is another reason why I love this movie so much, and the best part of the movie to me. Her portrayal of Little Marie is so real and vulnerable. Like Rocky, Little Marie has had it pretty rough too. Rocky, too, understands this but never takes advantage of this. They (along with her son) become closer and friends, all throughout the movie. Little Marie acts as the Adrian of the movie. She isn't a love interest to Rocky, and that's how it should be. Little Marie is the heart that Rocky lost. She is the drive that will keep him going, just as Adrian was. Again, I love the character of Little Marie in this film!
Rocky jumps through some hoops and gets his boxing license back. He has a very emotional talk with Robert, Jr. and gets his son back. Paulie gets laid off from his job and after a heart to heart with Rocky, his brother is back. Hell, even Duke comes back to train Rocky! Rocky is getting lesser and lesser alone. The eye of the Tiger is returning! Meanwhile, Mason Dixon is learning that not everyone who says they care for him actually means it. He goes back to his old trainer, whom he left for more money and fame. His trainer says he needs to learn to fight for the right reasons; to fight when you can no longer fight. To push himself to his absolute limits! This signifies his face turn but honestly, like I said, I disliked the character so much, that I didn't really care if he was a good guy or a bad guy...
Rocky and Dixon fight. Both are getting the upperhand. Both are showing their weaknesses. Rocky is shown as being slower but more knowledgeable, while Dixon is shown as faster but more arrogant. Both have fallen to the canvas and both are not giving up. The match ends, and Rocky and his new family (his son, Paulie, Little Marie and her son) leave the ring as Michael Buffer announcers the winner of the match. This is shown, I believe, to show Rocky's frame of mind, which to me, is who cares if I won or lost?! I have everything I need! The end shows Rocky talking to Adrian, at her graveside, finally accepting her death and accepting that life goes on...
It's beautiful. It's my favorite Rocky movie. It's damn near perfect!
Extraordinary People: The Woman with 7 Personalities (2004)
Interesting But Flawed
I saw this title available on Netflix and decided to give it a go, as I am engaged to someone with DID (formerly Multiple Personality Disorder) and I like to support my fiancee by learning all I can about her disorder and fighting to erase the stigma of having a mental illness. I was interested in seeing another person with the same disorder, and how they dealt with it; and how it affected them...
The documentary, The Woman With 7 Personalities, is, at best, an interesting and fair look at a woman's life with DID, and at it's worst, shows way too many (from my experience and opinion) inaccuracies about the disorder and never builds up to the friendship between the director and Helen. It almost feels like they aren't friends at all. I certainly did not get any friendship vibe; but more of a, "Hey, I remember some girl I went to school with who had DID, I should make a documentary about her!". I don't know. The director didn't really seem like someone who was Helen's friend or cared about her too much...
Another thing I disliked was how the director seemed to be baiting Helen's alters (alternate personalities) out of her. She, again, wasn't really coming off like a long time friend, but more like a doctor talking to their specimen. I thought it was kind of disrespectful the way she was treating Helen. In my experience, you can't lure out an alter just by repeating their name, over and over, summoning them up like they're freaking Beetlejuice! In my experience, the alters come and go, rapidly. I believe that the more dominant ones will come around in longer duration but not once has repeating a name ever worked. Also, to the untrained eye, most people would never even notice a shift. I can tell when my fiancee shifts into an alter by the way she moves; by the way her voice tone changes; certain words or even phrases being used and even by what she wants to eat. Her voice can get a little higher or a little lower but it's not cartoony, baby talk. I am not sure how severe it can get with someone with DID, and maybe it's possible that a child-like alter can come off really cartoony, but I've never seen or heard of it. I don't think that the director truly cared about Helen. All I saw was Helen being exploited...
In conclusion, I think this documentary, while flawed, is still worth a viewing. I think it can positively impact people and make people understand mental illness a tiny bit better. While I do think Helen and her mental illness are exploited and exaggerated a little, I don't think it was done with malice behind it. I don't think it was meant to put fear in people. I think the director had good intentions, but just doesn't understand DID too well...
Community (2009)
Cool Cool Cool
My original rating for Community was a perfect 10. I had watched the first four seasons on DVD, when the show was still on the air and it's prime. It was one of those shows where I could watch over and over again. Recently, I re-watched the entire six seasons of Community on Hulu, with my fiancee Diane and that's when I realized I had to change my rating. Yeah, it was still a good show but it wasn't a great show anymore. Seasons five and six took the series down. Season five was tolerable but by the last season, everything had changed. The characters were no longer themselves. The gags weren't there. Half the original cast was gone. The spirit that made the show special was deleted. Honestly, it made me feel kind of sad. I keep thinking, had I stopped at season four, I would know this show as a perfect series that went out in glory. Instead, I now know this great show lost it's charisma overtime and went out kind of meh. I think my biggest complaint is that once Troy was written out, the character of Abed suffered. Season One and Season Six Abed are vastly different. I know that characters need to grow and what have you; and that's fine, but they took the core of a character and changed it for no reason. Abed was special because he saw the world differently. He was weird and wasn't ashamed of it. By the last episode, he wasn't unique anymore. He was just this quiet guy that sometimes liked pop culture. To take it a step further, once Troy, Pierce and Shirley were written out, the show became a vastly different show. It wasn't this comedic mastermind, that was just laid back and goofy. It got way too serious. I found myself thinking things that I never thought I would think would be important like, "Why isn't the Dean wearing costumes anymore?", "Shouldn't they actually be in a class or at school?", and "Wasn't Garret with Vicki? Who's this new girl he somehow is engaged to now?! Where's my continuity?!". In conclusion, the series is great until the fourth season. Season 4 was the lowest rated season, but I felt it was the last good one. The first four seasons were fast paced, funny, wacky and made you love the characters. The last two were slow downed and didn't have the same heart or magic anymore. The characters were depressed and even when they tried to be more creative again, they didn't try very hard. Chevy Chase might be hard to work with and out of touch, but I think he was correct in saying that the show, Community, needed to be wacky and out there. Not some ordinary drama show...
Edward Scissorhands (1990)
Hardcore Fans Only
Admittedly, I dislike Tim Burton. Sometimes, I really hate Tim Burton. I don't mean the director---I mean, the actual person. Tim Burton is just so, "Ooh! Look At Me! I'm Different Than Everyone! No One Understands Me! I Was Bullied As A Kid!". I feel like some of his "torment" was self inflicted in a way. There's nothing special about Tim Burton's origin story. What makes Tim Burton special is the amount of pity he gave himself and the inflated ego it gave him. What's this assessment have to do with the movie, Edward Scissorhands? Well, it doesn't take a genius to know who the title character is based on...
Edward Scissorhands is a dark and gothic fairy tale that makes little sense; has very unlikable or uninteresting characters and will only be liked by Tim Burton and every Emo kid that gets off to cutting to the image of Tim Burton. We start off with a grandma telling some kid about Edward Scissorhands. Edward lives in a dark, creepy castle, on a dark, creepy hill above a little, happy, light filled town. No one seems to notice this until a woman decides to sell makeup one day. Vincent Price plays his father (inventor) who dies before finishing him. That is to say, he gave him scissors for hands instead of regular hands. This is funny to me, since, in the movie, the inventor actually has a plan for this, and human like hands are on it, as like the 8th step. Okay, what the hell?! "First, I shall put scissors for the hands! Then I will go get latex mold! Then I will make a pair of hands from said mold! Then I shall call my best friend Tim! Then I will watch Beetlejuice! Then I shall sharpen the boy's scissors! Then I will remove the scissors! Finally, I shall install the hands!". WHY THE HELL WERE THE SCISSORS EVEN NEEDED?!! So then Edward goes to live with the makeup lady and her family. No one questions or is freaked out about this guy dressed in bondage with scissor hands. Well, they are and they aren't. They're not really concerned for the right reasons, I should say. They kinda just wanna know if the makeup lady is doing him. Edward can cut things like grass, shrubs and hair and that makes him valuable! No one has ever thought to do these things before! If it wasn't for Edward, people might have never cut their own grass or hair! Also, the daughter, who's known him for 5 minutes is now in love with him...for...reasons?! I mean, they haven't had any connected in any way; they haven't had a deep conversation; they know nothing of eachother but they're in love, I guess. Tim Burton does not know how life works. So now the boyfriend is mad and wants to kill Edward for getting his girlfriend all hot and bothered. The town people want Edward out of town now because they heard an unconfirmed rumor. Grass and hair be damned! So Edward runs home to his spooky castle, impales the evil jock boyfriend (admittedly, he did suck but he was also so unlikable and boring and miscast that you don't care) and never returns. Twist: Grandma was the daughter all along in horrible old person makeup!
Tim Burton seems to think everyone who is not Tim Burton is the same. We're all bullies. We're all jocks. We're all mean. If you aren't pale, lonely or like the color black, you must be a bad, stupid or lesser person. If you don't live on a spooky mountain, in a spookier castle, well, guess what? You suck! You don't understand the pain of having pain! I like some of Tim Burton's work, like Big Fish and even the Batman films (though flawed). I like his movies where he leaves his ego and 10 year old self at home. Edward Scissorhands is a love story to himself, and for himself. Unless you're a hardcore fan of Tim Burton's work, you won't enjoy this film...
The Room (2003)
Horrible, Funny And Let's Face It: Not Much Better Than Most Would Do Either!
Tommy Wiseau is an accidentally on purpose genius. What I mean is, his movie is an accidental hit but his intentions were truer than true! He lives in his own world, with his own standards and there, in this world, Tommy Wiseau is king! Not just any king either: He is a good king; he is an admired king. His people worship him and why not? He is good to his people. He treats them respectfully. He gives them all the encouragement and friendship they require. In Wiseau Land, he has been the elected king 687,327,921 and a half times now! And while, yes, his movie is VERY indulgent and self centered, it's charming and oblivious. He really does see himself as this all-American, perfect without fault Johnny character. He wants us to perceive him this way, and I say, we should. Why the heck not? He's not hurting anyone and I think we owe him for all the quotes, memes and laughs he is providing us. Now I will admit that the movie is not for everyone. Heck, it's literally just for Mr. Wiseau---but it's noteworthy, to me, if just for the fact that someone said, "Ah dun care wha any bahdy say! Ah will make dream movie! People, they use me; they lie to me and I dun care any more---oh, hai Greg!". Tommy made his dream come true; put his stupid heart on the line and succeeded in his failure! He made a negative, a positive and that's pretty hard to do sometimes! So while it is not a great movie, it's a great example of what someone can do if they really put effort into their selves...
Mother! (2017)
Tried Way Too Hard!
I first heard about Mother!, while listening to two people talk about it on a radio podcast. They were talking about how shocking and controversial the movie was; mainly, the ending. I saw it in a Red Box one day, and figured my fiancee and I would give it a whirl. I wish I hadn't. I really, really wish I hadn't...
The movie is riddled with biblical and religious overtones and themes. Each of the characters represents someone or even something in the bible. An example of this for instance, Mother is actually the Earth. You know? Like, Mother Earth? I bet the writer/director thought himself especially clever for that gem! I'm not religious---I'm an Atheist, in fact---but even I thought this fellow Atheist was too damn preachy! The movie is self indulgent and not needed. What's more: seeing people break a baby's neck and then eating it is not smart or artsy or anything. It's shock value. It's more on the lines of, "Look At Me!". I don't agree with religious aspects and such, but I also don't go out my way to impose my non-belief beliefs on people. This is what the movie is: The ultimate imposing of your right to believe in something. Someone's hatred disguised as art. To be fair, the sink was interesting. The sink was my favorite character...
Charlotte (2017)
Horrifyingly Awful
Some nights, me and my fiancee pick a random movie on Netflix to watch. It can be anything; any genre but usually they're Horror movies and the likes. We go into the movie knowing that they're usually cheap, quickly made B Movies and so we know what to expect and aren't shocked when they turn out to be really bad. In fact, we kind of like it when they turn out to be stinkers. I mean, just because a movie isn't a Hollywood Blockbuster doesn't mean there was no effort or value in it. Charlotte, sadly, does not have anything going for it; other than it was actually made...
So the plot of the movie is centered around a teenager with attitude who is babysitting and gets held hostage by an evil doll, after the kid goes to bed. Does this doll kill her or torture her? Yes and no. She is forced to watch a series of Twilight Zone-like min stories (that have nothing to do with anything and often do not have a twist or lesson to be learned) and then gets turned into a doll. I should also note that when the babysitter mentions the doll to the kid's parents, they say they have no doll. Yet, the twist of the movie seems to imply that the doll changes every week and turns the newest teenage brat into a doll. Not only that but their child is a boy. So, either the parents are not very observant or they're in on it. The doll is giving them a 10% cut perhaps? I want to also state that the title of the movie, Charlotte, itself, has NOTHING to do with the story or main character. Charlotte is simply the name of a character in the first mini movie. She has a minute of screen time and maybe one or two lines of dialogue. So yes, Charlotte isn't even the name of the damn evil doll!
There's not too many good things to say about Charlotte. I'm struggling to find some positive aspects. Well, like I said the damn thing got made so that's a win for the film makers. Some of the actors seem to be enjoying their roles as well. They might not be the very best actors, or even good actors but you can tell that they are trying. Some of the mini movies are mildly interesting (at the start) and might even get a scare out of someone. That's all the praise I have for this film...
So many negative marks for this movie! Where to start?! Well the acting is really bad. I'm guessing these actors are just starting out or maybe friends of the directors, so I should go easy on them but when the film is so bland, these bland actors did not help. The mini movie format is cliche, but that doesn't make it a bad thing. Had these mini movies been decent or entertaining, it would have been acceptable. The problem is that these mini movies were god awful and many of them made no sense. There's one in particular, about a man who cuts his fingers off to feed...Satan?...I guess?...and then is eating cookies and milk, all happy. The end. I mean, WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ABOUT?! In these mini movies, only ONE was decent (or at least made sense/tried to make sense) and even then, that's just in comparison to the duds that came before. Being the least smelliest turd in the bunch is not an accomplishment. Back in the main story, there is no real plot or lesson to be learned. I mean, the girl babysitting doesn't seem too evil or bad. She is just a regular teen...but this EVIL doll must not like teenagers that eat pizza, have sexual desires, get acne and hate authority. Jealous perhaps? Was she not offered a slice of pizza or penis? This movie had a big opportunity to be entertaining but it missed the mark!
I give this movie 2 stars for being completed and for the actors that actually tried...but other than that, I can't recommenced this film be watched unless you're willing to accept that you'll waste an hour of your life and you like scratching your head...
Hereditary (2018)
Over Hyped And Falsely Marketed
The thing is, I was REALLY looking forward to this movie. I was hooked from the first time I saw the trailer. The marketing and editing of the trailer was brilliant. It made me feel as though this was the next big thing in Horror movies. I felt hyped to see this movie! I even made jokes to my fiancee that I was going to be holding onto her, all during the movie and not to tell anyone if I ended up screaming or crying too loudly. I did not scream. I did not cry. I mostly laughed. Oh Zod, how I laughed out loud at this movie! That's when it clicked in my head that I had been suckered in by Hereditary...
The problem with this movie, in my opinion, isn't that it's a bit slow in pace or tone; nor is it that the movie bait and switches the hell out of you---NO! The problem is that Hereditary believes its own hype; explains nothing and pats itself on the back for getting, to what equates to, a Participation Trophy! Listen, this movie isn't entirely bad or unwatchable---it has some great acting, scenes and ambiance---but it doesn't know what it wants to be. Honestly, it works better as a Drama, Suspense or Thriller but not as a half baked Horror film. Here are my thoughts on Hereditary; both good and bad:
The Good:
The acting in this film is very good (except for the dude who played the son) and believable. The mother gives very real reactions (mostly---she can over do it a bit) and you can feel her emotional exhaustion. The little girl who plays Charlie is very good in her role and I hope she continues to do other movies. She wasn't in the film for very long, but she did her best with what she had to work with. Most of the shots were used very well and added to the suspense. I even believe the director used a similar shot from The Shining in one scene. When Charlie dies, I felt horrible for the child. That was my emotional attachment to the movie. I was invested in the character and I was surprised when she was killed off, so early in the film. Regretfully, this is the end of the positive praises I have for Hereditary.
The Bad:
Oh Zod, where do I begin? I'll start with the obvious: THIS FILM HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH GENETICS! Watching the trailer, you might believe that the film is about a little girl, possible mentally ill or with supernatural powers, due to her genetics (why else call the damn thing Hereditary?!), that is getting out of control or is in some kind of peril. Or something along those lines. What you REALLY get is a film that has ZERO to do with this child (who the film maker makes the focus of the trailer!), ZERO to do with genetics and all things hereditary and an ending so stupid, it gives Mother! a run for its money! The movie does address (very poorly and vaguely) that some mental illness does run in the family and that the mother has even (unintentionally) tried to kill her children but at the end of the day, it isn't needed or important because the Big Bad here is Zhuul or Satan or some Devil King (who, I swear to Zod, wears a cheap looking Jugghead Crown)!
I mean, imagine that for two hours, there's this guy who keeps talking about how he hates rice. This rice has done something to this poor guy, no doubt. Rice has to play into this story somehow! Then all of a sudden, the devil comes and kills him, puts on a stupid crown and leaves. The end. WHAT ABOUT THE DAMN RICE?! That's what this movie was. A bunch of talk and no good explanations. Speaking of which: Why? WHY?! That's all I could say after viewing this. Why did they make Little Charlie appear to be troubled, just to kill her off with no pay off? Why does the mom or any of the others in the family not know that Grandma is in a cult? Grandma was said to be this private woman but she literally leaves the mom nothing but Occult items! Why does the son cry like a cartoon baby? Why does the mom let a small teen go to a party with much older teens? Why does Charlie hide candy? Why does the dad go from being comforting to not having it overnight? Why was Charlie the grandma's favorite (assuming that she believed this was the Devil King) and not the actual MALE child? It's like she bent over backwards for this Devil King dude! In the end, there's just more questions; questions that lead to more questions and questions I never thought I'd ask. The bottom line to me is that people are going to walk out of the film thinking that the mentally ill are evil and are satanists and all that type of Stigma. I know it's true because I heard it myself! They used mental illness as the scapegoat for a cult movie. That's all Hereditary is: A movie about a grandma, who was a devil worshiper, who believed her deity was her granddaughter but wanted to be a boy, so somehow she kills her favorite grandchild so that her deity could then go inside her 2nd favorite one. Or something like that. It's STUPID!
6 out of 10 for effort...