K-12

Don't go in expecting you're gonna get a movie with fleshed out characters or a coherent story. The thing you're gonna get is just a bunch of music videos mashed together. The way the story is written is how kids from elementary school play make-believe with their friends. (only the friends have magical powers, everyone wants to get a bit of that spotlight, being a bit grotesque sometimes for the fun,...). It seems as if Martinez had a lot of fun with this project and I don't blame her, if I had the chance I would do the same. My main problem with the movie is that it tackles way too many themes (bullying, transphobia, body image,...) and it ends up being a "we live in a society"-mess wherein only the obvious get stated without saying much in depth about it. I do praise the movie for the costume design and set design, the colors in this movie had me in awe and that's what you kind of expect if you've seen Martinez previous music videos for her Crybaby album for example. I would recommend this movie to people who are a big fan of Melanie Martinez and for the people who watch movies solely for the aesthetic.

K-12 is just as it says-- an enchanting musical with a unique touch and wonderful aesthetic. I think people should see this film for its wonderful aesthetic and visual representation, but dont watch it expecting good writing and a plot.

The musical aspects (songwriting, choreography, and singing) of the film are amazing as usual with Melanie's work, but there are many potential plotpoints in the film itself that are just touched on once and never mentioned again. Some songs made seamless integration into the plot, for example "Wheels on the Bus", but others appeared out of nowhere and brought nothing to the plot, like "Strawberry Shortcake".

The movie's timeline is through the school years of Crybaby, but for most of the movie you couldnt tell at all what grade she was in at that time. Along with this, most of the characters are forgettable and dont have defining personality, but hey, at least it looks pretty!

I do think that Melanie put too much on her shoulders for this film. She wrote the script, directed, was the lead actress, did all of the songs, and edited the whole thing-- I applaud her for all the effort she went to make this film. For all of this being new to her, I think she did well, but I think that she should take it easy next time.

The film left me a little disappointed with more questions than answers, but at least I left the cinema with 14 new bops to add to my playlist.

Melanie Martinez has always been one for interesting visuals and concepts, and nothing exemplifies that more than K-12. The music video portions of the movie are beautiful. Amazing sets, catchy songs, gorgeous costumes and intricate choreography, but it seems as though aesthetic was the main focus of the movie. The plot - if you choose to call it that - is definitely where the movie falls flat. It's clear that Martinez's heart was fully invested in her directorial debut, but the writing itself reeks of immaturity. The integration of the songs itself is also done very poorly. While some songs like 'Wheels on the Bus' are weaved carefully into the plot, you also have abrupt starts and stops of scenes for songs like 'Teacher's Pet'. As a Melanie Martinez fan, though I can admit its faults, I liked the movie. For the casual viewer? I think you're better off watching the visuals themselves as opposed to the full hour and thirty minute feature film.

If you are a Melanie Martinez fan, I think that you will be blown away by the music (which, to me, sounds more mature and I'm glad that her style has changed a bit, it sounds much better). The costumes are out of this world and the filming place is beautiful. This movie is full of modern issues and I think that it's great for adolescents to watch. It's not hard to understand, even though it is mainly symbolistic. Right now I'm going to talk about what I didn't like. The acting is super cringey at times and I couldn't help but repeat their lines in my head with a better acting. But I think that is understandable. I think that those parts were the door appeared or when you could hear that goddess or whatever it was speaking were kind of forced. We all know that Melanie Martinez likes wicca and all, but I didn't quite understand what those scenes were doing to this movie. Mainly, this movie is full of cliches, but you can't help falling in love with the visuals. That's why my rating is pretty high for the quality of the overall movie.

When watching this movie, suspend your expectations for a well developed plot or fully developed characters. I went into this movie expecting just that, and it was a bit disappointing. However, if you love Melanie for her music and artistry, you'll get many doses of it. I did cringe at a few parts (cheesy acting alert!) but overall I am happy with the experience and left a bigger Melanie Martinez fan. The movie itself made the album that much more interesting. For example, my sister said "play that song with the puppet scene!". You feel more connected to the album. The messages in the film are pretty standard "society sucks and this is why" in regard to patriarchy and suppression and objectification of women. What I like about it is that many middle schoolers and high schoolers will be able to extract those messages easily and in a relatable way.