thependragonscribe
Joined Oct 2013
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The Enterprise crew is back for more adventure. After a divisive follow-up that is "Into Darkness", I am proud to say that the third installment of the newly-formulated Kelvin timeline (the J. J. Abrams movies) is a worthy addition. Where the next trek goes brings the Enterprise to its knees, as they are attacked by a merciless leader named Krall (a menacing Idris Elba). And landed on a hostile planet, the crew must stop Krall from his evil deeds.
If you are a devoted follower to the saga, you may observe the repetitive pattern (wherein Enterprise gets attack by a baddie with resentment to the Federation and must stop his/her huge plans of mass destruction). "Beyond" applies the same pattern but to surprising effect. It can be lauded to Justin Lin's effort to lend his flair for blockbusters – as seen from his Fast & Furious movies – and apply them to the Star Trek universe without sacrificing its heart and soul. And that comes from the Enterprise crew on adventure mode, for this new "Star Trek" feels like a full-length TV episode. It proves that Simon Pegg knows Trek flair when he and his co-writer wrote this down.
Well, it can be attributed that this is a mandatory tribute for Star Trek's 50th year anniversary, but as a stand-alone feature, it is a whole lot of fun. As the visual spectacle has been consistent, the cast this time has more chemistry and screen time, with Chris Pine as Kirk striking solid, Zachary Quinto as Spock and Karl Urban and Dr. Bones as an effective duo, Anton Yelchin finally having time to shine, and newcomer Sofia Boutella in breakout mode after "Kingsman".
Yet, despite the fun, it cannot help but make this a bittersweet entry, as this is where the late great Leonard Nimoy was given a well- deserved salute, and this serves as Yelchin's posthumous performance. Fitting to this celebratory part of the franchise. While Trekkies and non- Trekkies may see this as a loss, it should not stop "Star Trek Beyond" from being an epic adventure that truly respects Gene Roddenberry's creation and gives it a breath of fresh air. This adventure boldly went where no man has gone before (even though it means repeating itself).
If you are a devoted follower to the saga, you may observe the repetitive pattern (wherein Enterprise gets attack by a baddie with resentment to the Federation and must stop his/her huge plans of mass destruction). "Beyond" applies the same pattern but to surprising effect. It can be lauded to Justin Lin's effort to lend his flair for blockbusters – as seen from his Fast & Furious movies – and apply them to the Star Trek universe without sacrificing its heart and soul. And that comes from the Enterprise crew on adventure mode, for this new "Star Trek" feels like a full-length TV episode. It proves that Simon Pegg knows Trek flair when he and his co-writer wrote this down.
Well, it can be attributed that this is a mandatory tribute for Star Trek's 50th year anniversary, but as a stand-alone feature, it is a whole lot of fun. As the visual spectacle has been consistent, the cast this time has more chemistry and screen time, with Chris Pine as Kirk striking solid, Zachary Quinto as Spock and Karl Urban and Dr. Bones as an effective duo, Anton Yelchin finally having time to shine, and newcomer Sofia Boutella in breakout mode after "Kingsman".
Yet, despite the fun, it cannot help but make this a bittersweet entry, as this is where the late great Leonard Nimoy was given a well- deserved salute, and this serves as Yelchin's posthumous performance. Fitting to this celebratory part of the franchise. While Trekkies and non- Trekkies may see this as a loss, it should not stop "Star Trek Beyond" from being an epic adventure that truly respects Gene Roddenberry's creation and gives it a breath of fresh air. This adventure boldly went where no man has gone before (even though it means repeating itself).
"Independence Day" is 1996's prime summer blockbuster. Despite being an unoriginal piece of space invasion sci-fi, it has its fun moments like the alien destruction, quirky characters and Will Smith's star-making performance. Now, after 20 years in the waiting, the aliens "resurge" for one more attack in their bigger return in the lamest way possible.
As a starter, after the events of the 1996 hit maker, the whole world is unified under one protection umbrella called Earth Space Defense. A weary but game Jeff Goldblum returns as himself, again, who uncovers a plan about the aliens sending a distress signal after their defeat. Goldblum tries his best but he is given the same material from the original, and he just dragged Charlotte Gainsbourg along in his chase. And once invasion is confirmed, it is up to the ragtag team of pilots, like Liam Hemsworth, Jessie Usher as Will Smith's son, and Maika Monroe as Bill Pullman's daughter, and Roland Emmerich's stock characters to stop the invading forces.
For the audience, try doing an endurance test (in the first 10 minutes) because you will likely have a hard time getting invested on anything. Blame it on the fast but uneven pacing that questions the editing, introduces new characters inserted to no effect (What are Hemsworth and Usher fighting about again?), inserts pointless characters (case in point, Judd Hirsch's unpleasant return) and kills off old characters to no payoff. Not helping is the jarring script (penned by five writers, including Emmerich, partner Dean Devlin and James Vanderbilt of The Amazing Spider-Man) that rehashes the pattern of the original. Wait what?
The only saving grace is the alien destruction that made the original kind of remarkable. But even that, it basically lasts only for a while and the climax copies Ivan Reitman's "Evolution". Lame. Yet at least you will tolerate returnees being present for nostalgia factor (from Bill Pullman's awesome president in old man's beard and Brent Spiner's wacky scientist) and Maika Monroe's phoned-in yet bearable performance. But even they cannot save "Independence Day: Resurgence" for being a total trainwreck of a sequel that failed to capture the fun, the charm, the flair, the bombast, the scale and the awesomeness of the original. 2016 sequel-itis hit once again, and "Resurgence" is not immune.
It is just a summer popcorn lackluster.
As a starter, after the events of the 1996 hit maker, the whole world is unified under one protection umbrella called Earth Space Defense. A weary but game Jeff Goldblum returns as himself, again, who uncovers a plan about the aliens sending a distress signal after their defeat. Goldblum tries his best but he is given the same material from the original, and he just dragged Charlotte Gainsbourg along in his chase. And once invasion is confirmed, it is up to the ragtag team of pilots, like Liam Hemsworth, Jessie Usher as Will Smith's son, and Maika Monroe as Bill Pullman's daughter, and Roland Emmerich's stock characters to stop the invading forces.
For the audience, try doing an endurance test (in the first 10 minutes) because you will likely have a hard time getting invested on anything. Blame it on the fast but uneven pacing that questions the editing, introduces new characters inserted to no effect (What are Hemsworth and Usher fighting about again?), inserts pointless characters (case in point, Judd Hirsch's unpleasant return) and kills off old characters to no payoff. Not helping is the jarring script (penned by five writers, including Emmerich, partner Dean Devlin and James Vanderbilt of The Amazing Spider-Man) that rehashes the pattern of the original. Wait what?
The only saving grace is the alien destruction that made the original kind of remarkable. But even that, it basically lasts only for a while and the climax copies Ivan Reitman's "Evolution". Lame. Yet at least you will tolerate returnees being present for nostalgia factor (from Bill Pullman's awesome president in old man's beard and Brent Spiner's wacky scientist) and Maika Monroe's phoned-in yet bearable performance. But even they cannot save "Independence Day: Resurgence" for being a total trainwreck of a sequel that failed to capture the fun, the charm, the flair, the bombast, the scale and the awesomeness of the original. 2016 sequel-itis hit once again, and "Resurgence" is not immune.
It is just a summer popcorn lackluster.
"Finding Nemo" is really one of Pixar's best efforts. So a followup to the 2003 undersea adventure would really set a lot of standard. For that, I'm proud to say that its sequel, "Finding Dory", is not as bad as I expected it to be. In fact, it is actually great.
Well, part of the skepticism I had for this followup to "Nemo" is that it centers on the predecessor's instant scene stealer Dory. To admit, Ellen Degeneres truly made the lovable blue tang as an iconic character as she is now. And to turn the spotlight to a forgetful comic relief does show corporate cynicism for Pixar, as demonstrated by "Cars 2". At least that's my first reaction to a sequel to "Nemo" that centers on Dory. More than thankfully, Dory makes up for another compelling adventure, with Marlin (a game Albert Brooks) and Nemo (Hayden Rolence), in search of her parents as she retrieves memory of them from her birthplace in a Morro Bay marine reserve. Kudos to Ellen for bringing heart to every funny, tearful and motivating moment.
There are new characters along the adventure, like Destiny (an enthusiastic Kaitlin Olson) and Bailey (a clumsy Ty Burrell). But the definite breakout is Hank the octopus or septopus (a gallant Ed O'Neill), who provides an undeniable presence of a scarred but redeemed character. Though his back story is kind of vague (an octopus who wants to stay in captivity), the mollusk is more than interesting, and a great companion to Ellen's beloved blue tang. Just the animation of its design and movements is something Pixar has always stepped up to create.
Always a Pixar standard is its quality animation as not only the ocean became the main attraction, but also the detail of the so-called "jewel of Morro Bay, California". Andrew Stanton and team are really aware of the environment they are in. Kind of reminds me of "Jurassic World" of how life size the attraction is. Also, watch out for sudden twists and turns, just a showcase of how unique the movie is.
Though this may not be as momentous as "Finding Nemo", "Finding Dory" is still a worthy continuation of the adventures of everybody's favorite clownfish and forgetful blue tang. Pixar finally gave us a fine sequel to their property. And I am sure to hold hopes for their next film "Cars 3". Hmm.
Ellen, you deserve the movie you took years of campaigning.
Well, part of the skepticism I had for this followup to "Nemo" is that it centers on the predecessor's instant scene stealer Dory. To admit, Ellen Degeneres truly made the lovable blue tang as an iconic character as she is now. And to turn the spotlight to a forgetful comic relief does show corporate cynicism for Pixar, as demonstrated by "Cars 2". At least that's my first reaction to a sequel to "Nemo" that centers on Dory. More than thankfully, Dory makes up for another compelling adventure, with Marlin (a game Albert Brooks) and Nemo (Hayden Rolence), in search of her parents as she retrieves memory of them from her birthplace in a Morro Bay marine reserve. Kudos to Ellen for bringing heart to every funny, tearful and motivating moment.
There are new characters along the adventure, like Destiny (an enthusiastic Kaitlin Olson) and Bailey (a clumsy Ty Burrell). But the definite breakout is Hank the octopus or septopus (a gallant Ed O'Neill), who provides an undeniable presence of a scarred but redeemed character. Though his back story is kind of vague (an octopus who wants to stay in captivity), the mollusk is more than interesting, and a great companion to Ellen's beloved blue tang. Just the animation of its design and movements is something Pixar has always stepped up to create.
Always a Pixar standard is its quality animation as not only the ocean became the main attraction, but also the detail of the so-called "jewel of Morro Bay, California". Andrew Stanton and team are really aware of the environment they are in. Kind of reminds me of "Jurassic World" of how life size the attraction is. Also, watch out for sudden twists and turns, just a showcase of how unique the movie is.
Though this may not be as momentous as "Finding Nemo", "Finding Dory" is still a worthy continuation of the adventures of everybody's favorite clownfish and forgetful blue tang. Pixar finally gave us a fine sequel to their property. And I am sure to hold hopes for their next film "Cars 3". Hmm.
Ellen, you deserve the movie you took years of campaigning.