Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
Tomorrowland (2015)
There are two wolves inside each of us - Despair and Darkness, Light and Hope. Which will you feed?
This film is visually spectacular, heartwarming, and motivating. The locations are beautiful to explore with the eyes, the acting is all- around enjoyable, and the message throughout the film is a refreshingly optimistic one despite the many negative things that are happening in this world today.
Tomorrowland is a metaphor for the possibilities that exist if we would only apply ourselves towards reaching for them. Rather than feed the despair and darkness inside of ourselves by resigning to a grim fate and a lost planet, we can accept the film's encouragement to feed the light and hope that is accessible to each person. Even though the main characters face many difficulties and many naysayers on their journey towards completing an impossible task, they press forward with a confidence that is unshakable.
Some have considered this a fault of the film, being that one of the main characters is almost too optimistic. This criticism is not warranted, and it seems that it's more a product of the wave of negativity gripping films and society in general, rather than objectivity. Yes, she is absolutely driven to making a difference in the world and fixing the problems around here regardless of what it takes. And yet, this is not an unreasonable quality for anyone today to possess, and the message is an overwhelmingly positive one. Just as she strives to fix things around her and to think of solutions to the insurmountable problems in the world, Tomorrowland encourages the audience to be optimistic about our ability to engineer and encourage powerful change.
Tomorrowland is not unbiased in its presentation of the optimistic heroine, though, and that is one of its strengths. The other main character trends towards the more pessimistic side of the coin and provides an interesting balance to the setting. It cannot be said that the film is overly gung-ho, being that negative perspectives are expressed during the main characters' interaction with one another. In the end, the film did a great job of exploring the negative attitudes we as a society will face whenever we want to strive for something greater than ourselves. There will always be the naysayers, the Debbie Downers, the Negative Nancys. They will always maintain that your aspiration is impossible and that you should resign yourself to failure. It is in this pervasively common train of thought that Tomorrowland stands opposed. Tomorrowland represents what we can achieve if we collectively put our energy and aspirations to work. We can not only repair a dying planet, but we can build an entirely new one.
It is here that the film loses some credibility, though. At one point it did feel that the film was a beautiful wrapper for a not- so- subtle attempt to force climate politics onto the viewer. Rather than telling the audience that the climate is set to destroy the earth, it would have been more productive to show the damage being done. Towards the end of the film, the constant telling became a tad preachy. Additionally, the conclusion as a whole felt substantially weaker than the first three-fourths of the film.
All in all, the movie is a pleasure to look at, the acting is interesting, the action scenes are done very well, and the over-all message is a positive and empowering one. Regardless of what people say, strive for your dream until you see for yourself what you can realize. Even if there is no hope, there are times when someone has to do something. Instead of waiting for someone else to do what you're waiting for, Tomorrowland encourages you to be the one who makes that difference in the world. Feed the right wolf. Feed Light and Hope, because enough people feed Despair and Darkness!
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
A decent action flick at best, Mad Max: Fury Road is very overrated. *minor spoilers*
The film has some interesting concepts but it doesn't particularly excel in any area. There are some decent characters but none of the characters are really all that memorable, with the exception of a guitar playing maniac who swings around on a mini-stage for the duration of the film. Guitar-Man, as I shall dub him, was the funniest and most memorable part of the movie for me.
Over-all, the action is somewhat entertaining but it wasn't memorable. There is a lot of vehicular warfare but most of it feels bland. The hand-to-hand combat and gun-play are similarly bland. The character development isn't particularly revolutionary. Both of the main characters remain mostly undeveloped by the end of the film.
On the topic of characters, I must point out that some people are bashing the film and praising the film for nonsensical reasons. On the one hand there are those who insist that the film is feminist propaganda, introduced into theaters to pollute the action genre with excessive and invasive commentary on social issues like equal rights for men and for women. This is simply nonsense. Max is portrayed as the stronger character more than once. If it wasn't for Max, the mission would have arguably failed and Furiosa would have died. Both characters have adequate screen time and I saw no contrived attempt to depict Furiosa as a feminist symbol. For the most part, it didn't feel like the interaction between the two characters was supposed to serve as some kind of political commentary. Being that she has only one arm, Furiosa is seen in a weakened state multiple times. Not only does Max save her, but he provides her with the right path to take when she is about to set out on a long and useless journey. Those who are attacking the film because of it being "propaganda" are, in my opinion, grasping at some serious straws. Simultaneously, it is nonsensical to praise this movie for its depiction of women. Yes, there is a strong female lead. Yes, there are many women who play important roles in the film. But to focus on this is to ignore the fact that the action is bland and the story undeveloped is to prefer political commentary over action in an action film. To focus on praising the supposed feminist material embedded deep inside the action is to inject politics into a movie that is fairly simple and straightforward.
All in all, this movie has failed to provide satisfying and memorable action. Yes, there are a few cool scenes and some fun moments. But for the most part, you won't come away from this movie remembering any particular crash or explosion apart from the rest. This isn't to say that they are all equally amazing crashes or explosions...to me, they weren't really spectacular to begin with. While the film did have some stunning visuals, some appealing music, and a very interesting post-apocalyptic culture...it failed to be what it could have been. If it intended to be an action film, it didn't deliver enough. The throaty V8 sounds are never met with interesting vehicular warfare. Rather, it's the same repetitive chase-and-speed-up, with the occasional exploding spear thrown for effect. The interesting sub-cultures the group encounters are never given enough treatment to establish an intricate and well-woven narrative for the audience. If the film intended to be a commentary on a woman's ability to match men, it failed to do more than offer viewers with the opportunity to inject immature and baseless politics into the film. But perhaps it intended to be a fertile soil from which wide-spreading dialogue on feminism and representation could spring forth. If that is the case, it arguably succeeded in achieving its goal - but the price for this is failing to be a great movie, and instead becoming an overrated and politicized ploy.
I would encourage you to watch it once if you're looking for some mindless action and plenty of V8 noise to take your mind off of things. Don't look here for a meaningful treatment of complicated issues, though. Its greatest deeper meaning comes not from a deep, detailed, and carefully constructed narrative...but from the internet warriors who insist on forcing deeper meaning onto the bland action.
Man of Steel (2013)
Ignore the hate, go watch this film.
I went into the film having watched brief snippets of trailers. I didn't want to spoil anything for myself. I knew that a lot of critics were saying that it's a flop of a film, but I went in with a blank slate. I was open to whatever the film had to show. I was pleasantly blown away.
The music was excellent. Sets the mood and ends up being a very iconic sound for this Superman reboot. The visuals were excellent. The sci-fi elements were so well-done that I cannot wait to see more. The CGI was excellent - I noticed it only a few times. The action was excellent - the fights were choreographed beautifully and the film is quite brutal despite the PG-13 rating. The acting was excellent - the villains are menacing and threatening and the supporting actors do a great job.
The character development is subtle at times but it's prevalent if you pay attention to each character's struggle. As an origin story and a first-villain story, Man of Steel had a notable amount of character development and history jam-packed into two hours and thirty-five minutes of footage. I would say that the vocal critics are forgetting that this is the first film. This is not to concede that there is poor character development or story, though - there is plenty and there is much potential for more in the future.
Go watch the film. There's really nothing negative I can say - I just wish it was longer. ;)