Black Dynamite

Funny how I knew about the show for years before finding out about the movie.

Black Dynamite is a beautifully faithful homage film to the Blaxsploitation genre of the 1970s, seeping every second of the film in the rich albeit sometimes flawed production qualities of those pictures. Essentially a passion project for Michael Jai White who plays our eponymous character who after learning his brother got killed goes on a bewildering but highly entertaining trail that leads to a nationwide conspiracy and kung fu treachery. This has been a movie on my list for a long ass time, and I honestly just don't know where to begin because every aspect I could go into considerable detail with. I will say first and foremost that while the script is really damn good this movie wouldn't be worth anything without the cast presented. Michael is a stellar lead able to tightrope bonafide bad mothertrucker action star and genuinely hilarious comedian, with a substantial background in martial arts he simply IS Black Dynamite to a fault! Salli is a lovely lady and though the romance with her character Gloria is far from fleshed out, it still kinda works regardless. Byron Minns as silver tongued rhymer extraordinaire Bullhorn though in a smaller capacity is great fun and man I'm kinda jealous of his verse! Tommy Davidson as Cream Corn certainly shines brighter in the show but certainly has moments here as a more comedic foil on the hero side, but hey he's a part of the team. The production side of things I feel deserves a dedicated masterclass it's so effortlessly embedded in the early 70s timeframe, that if you were uninitiated you wouldn't blink twice and just assume it was a 70s exploitation flick! The grain, the color saturation, the clothes, the cars, the editing, the music right out of a Rudy Ray Moore movie, the simultaneous love given to blaxsploitation and martial arts cinema, the flubs peppered throughout are a bleeding heart for that particular type of filmmaking in that time and corner of the world. The movie could give a shit less if you saw the boom mic or any other flaw, and frankly I don't care either! I've never seen a movie that has intentional botches in it and it somehow is endearing and entertaining, adding just another layer of enjoyment to the experience. The fights can range from extremely humorous to pretty kick ass, with Michael's ample skills on full display and a little bit of gunplay to keep it fresh. The comedy is where it shines the most, with some of the jokes undercutting to where you have to pay attention to get them while others is pure visual gags that work well, and it is quotable as all hell! I've only seen the movie probably less than 10 times, but I can still rattle off lines that absolutely have been adopted into my vocabulary. The worst part is I think it's still very much considered a cult film, sure the show helped get it onto the more mainstream scopes of people but it's not a household name yet which I find inexcusable. I love this movie and I'd gladly review the series when I have the time. It's such a unique beast that somehow simultaneously seems like it's not trying at all and putting so much meticulous effort in it that it's kinda amazing! Easy 4 stars from me, 9/10, and that about does it for this month. Tune in next month for modern sci-fi, adaptations of a gothic french novel, some crime thriller antics, and a decade of reviews.

Undercover Brother

Another long time coming review!

Speaking as a whiter than sour cream kind of Dude I don't have the slightest damn clue how I got exposed to this movie around probably 8 or 9 years old. All I know is I had it on DVD and knowing precisely two things about black cinema, jack and shit, I enjoyed it a good bit but it's been about 20 years since last I saw it and this here idea for the reviews this week has been brewing for some time. First thing I gotta say is, this is a 2002 ass movie! It absolutely wears it's 70s influence on it's sleeve but make no mistake it is very easy to discern when this movie came out, that ain't necessarily a bad thing but holy moly is it noticeable! Taking a very super spy edge with an organization of black agents battling against a faceless supervillain known only as The Man (no not Becky Lynch) recruits a new member in the form of the parachute pants wearing, afro laden, soulful Undercover Brother. The plot is pretty dirt simple and focuses more on the wild characters within this world, but it's very serviceable and has some decent moments of parody and acknowledgement of the world. Will say the casting is actually pretty good with Eddie Griffin who has a lot of humor and too cool for school energy as our lead, Chi McBride who I just love that man in anything so that's an easy win for me, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor certainly has that sass and ass kicking thing down pat, Dave Chappelle who big shock was the funniest person in the whole damn flick for my money was another easy win, my man Gary Anthony Williams looking sharp and hey props to him he got Denise Richards before the end, speaking of which Denise I love you to death and I got nothing but respect and appreciation for you and your career so it was a treat seeing you again! Certainly don't have a problem saying this movie soundtrack is also a big winner with more classic funk and soul stuff like James Brown and Kool & The Gang, mixed with more modern stuff like Michael Jackson and Mary J. Blige, which thank you for that movie cause I love the fuuuck out of her song! The only real negative I could hold steadfast on and even then it's minor is the tone and presentation of the movie is split, like I said it wears the 70s with pride but it kinda rams heads with the modern new millenium style of production and I do kinda wish it picked one or the other. But the movie works well enough, pretty good sets and location shooting, the humor can miss at times but has enough solid hits and a meta style that makes it original, casting was so on point they somehow got Billy Dee Williams and James Brown in the movie which is both amazing and impressive, also made me tolerate and even kinda enjoy Neil Patrick Harris that gets you half a point alone movie! Could some point at the stereotypes and black vs. white moments and have a problem with it? Well even with someone like me who got majorly called out on the mayonaise part, I refer you to clause 4 subsection A under "learn to take a joke"! 2.5 stars, 7/10 from me, and we'll look at not only a more faithful homage but a superior film in my opinion next time!

An Extremely Goofy Movie

Shit son I am getting old.

Story time! While I never even heard of the first Goofy movie, I actually had this on VHS back when I was most likely 5 and watched it regularly, and boy howdy this movie may have have left an impact on me I'm only just now rediscovering. The story I feel is somewhat better and somewhat worse than the last, with Max heading to college and pretty soon after Goofy has to go back to school for a better chance of employment (You remember when college meant something?), and then they get embroiled in the X Games which is a whole other ass story and...I'm split. The last movie was very much Max's film despite the title but here the focus is split between our two leads and their subsequent college lives, and while I do understand both characters have stories to finish I do wish it could have focused on just one. I honestly adored Goofy's story in this movie, from that almost akin to a death in the family loss when your kid goes to college which honestly kinda cut me deep and it did even more so when I was younger even if I was too young to fully comprehend why, to him finding a girlfriend, to him being able to let Max be his own individual, that's a pretty friggin' strong story all by itself! Whereas with Max I almost feel like all the character growth from last movie got thrown into the incinerator and we're back to square one, with him wanting nothing to do with his dad and just wants to compete at the X Games which leans a little too close to character assassination for me personally, and there's just nothing even slightly interesting going on in his story. Hell I was having more fun seeing PJ get this sassy hipster girlfriend and their background relationship more than Max's story. The voice acting is still just as good even on a direct to video production, Bill still has such a wide range of emotions to play with and interesting dynamics to keep it entertaining, Jason leans heavier into the young adult angst and cockiness which fits the story even if it isn't that engaging. Bebe Neuwirth I feel is criminally underused as Sylvia, Goofy has a girlfriend and why the fuck are people not talking about that? This dorky ass, nerdy, redhaired librarian is such a sweet presence and the relationship feels real although I'm screaming to the heavens for it to be expanded upon in the still 82 minute runtime. They vastly deserved more on screen time together and for a Disney animated movie, that could have broke all new ground. Jeff Bennett was pulling overtime on this production with three characters including our main antagonist Brad, who my God is he hateable for such a stock jock character so props to him on that! The animation quality has dipped a notch as is common with direct to video material but it's far far from bad, with pretty solid use of color, rather fluid animation for a budget, and can have some scale to it when needed. This damn soundtrack though, holy shit! How is it that the cheaper movie has a better soundtrack than the theatrical film, with Pat Benatar, John Avila, Carmen Carter, and the friggin' Partridge Family?? And it's not covers either, it is flat out the song! We get a Saturday Night Fever dance sequence for crying out loud! So I guess my love for disco started at a young age. You see what I mean? Some aspects are maybe a little too good and some are just average at best! It's fairly aggravating I must say. Which does make me understand why absolutely no one brings up this movie, it makes the first movie seem almost hallowed but the good stuff shines bright even amidst all the other stuff. I still was super happy to revisit this movie which I probably haven't seen in 20 years and though it didn't hold entirely up I can still recommend it. 2.5 stars, 6.5/10!

A Goofy Movie

Don't ask me why, madness just striked.

Though in all seriousness in the near decade I've been doing this I haven't given a lot of love to the 2D animation department at the house of Mouse so I figured it couldn't hurt. I have not seen this movie before but I certainly have heard about it, it's kind of an interesting case of nostalgia for many it would seem though it's far from a house hold name, definitely a cult hit in my estimation. It's a fairly grown up story about Goofy and his son Max starting to hit that era of the generational gap and how a father and son are trying to reconnect amidst the backdrop of a road trip movie, and what I vastly enjoy so much about it and can even respect it a good deal is it doesn't really pull any punches. There is frustration, there is a lack of listening, there's dare I say depression at times, so it doesn't surprise me why people hold it near and dear to their hearts. Now granted this was a follow up to the Goof Troop television series but trust in me when I say you can watch it without the backstory, and that point is even further compounded when we get to the sequel tomorrow. It really can be it's own singular thing and that's a luxury compared to nowadays! And being an animation project in the 90s it has that distinct look and feel to the era, and I kinda had this little epiphany strike me while watching which is, the 90s was the last gasp of when old could mix with new. Now what do I mean by that? Well simply put, a lot of the comedic elements are things I have seen in Looney Tunes and Three Stooges shorts but that juxtaposition of the generational gap is present even there with the slick, colorful, and modern animation style. Bill Farmer does a very good job playing Goofy who admittedly out of the classic original lineup of Disney characters might be my favorite, he still has that highly animated sensibility but can show emotion of wide degrees that gets you invested. Same for Jason Marsden as Max, you know what he's going through with the angst, and the crushing on a cute girl, and how he wants to distance himself from his dad but not in a mean spirited or despicable way. He's a kid who's growing up and that has been proven time and again as good drama for stories. It very much centers on these two throughout for the less than 90 minute runtime, but I'll of course shoutout Kellie Martin, Jim Cummings, and Rob Paulsen who all still put solid work in and easily elicited reactions from me both ppsitive and negative. The only real problem I have with the movie is dear lord, it just flies by! Sure it takes it's time when needed but when we are nearing that climax, it's going at warp speed and I honestly feel there were chunks left on the cutting room floor, and the climax itself is like...3 minutes before firmly shifting back into falling action and resolution not long after. If memory serves this was a theatrically released film which perplexes me further why it's as short as it is, but I heard the production was kind of an uphill battle and it really came down to the wire to get the film done and out so I can't be that mad at it and I'm not really, it's just kind of a bummer it isn't longer. The songs are mostly ehhhh but seviceable, the animation quality is worthy of a theatrical picture, the story is basic but certainly quite good, and I am pretty happy to say I've finally seen it. I give it 3 stars, 7/10, and I'll see you next time.

Beauty & The Beast

Wild to think it took me this long to get around to this movie. 

Now I can easily tell you it has been about 15 years if not more since I last have seen Beauty & The Beast, but considering the day it fits perfectly. I am resoundingly impressed by Disney on this project, I mean this was the film that pretty much birthed the Best Animated Feature award and still to this day is heavily discussed and analyzed the internet over. From shot one it is iconic so do I really have to recount the plot of this movie? I'm pretty sure even if you have lived under a rock for the subsequent 30 odd years since this movie came out you know the story, so instead I shall discuss the myriad of qualities it possesses. Absolutely fascinating this animation style, the prominent use of multi-layered backgrounds giving you that depth of vision is very unique to Disney, this honestly might be the most gothic looking of the catalogue as well especially in terms of the castle, but it effortlessly captures that classic fairy tale look and time period. Cast could not be better with many theater actors granting a strong performance for each character. Paige O'Hara is like quintessential Disney nostalgia and is as blissful as love's first kiss, and she is the reason Belle is probably the most well received and beloved of all the Princesses if not female leads in general which I can attribute to one simple aspect, she feels real. There's nothing special about her, she's just this intelligent, simple, sweet girl that makes it ridiculously easy to grasp onto and you can put yourself in her shoes and understand why she reacts and does the things she does, she is a great character. Robby Benson as the Beast, wow man! I scarcely know where to begin here, phenomenal voice no doubt, lot of depth present in his actions and certainly even more his reactions, outstanding design as well, he is the reason people delve so deep into this story and breakdown the relationship presented. Hell the way he can flip between being scary, then slightly shy, to feeling undeserving of love, then to caring is something I have yet to see elsewhere. Richard White as Gaston, absolute bastard of a man but what a great performance! Which is hilarious because seeing clips of Gaston at the parks he is so entertaining and funny, how they took this womanizing son of a bitch and made him kind of likable is a feat in and of itself, but that juxtaposition is exactly what we need for the story and sometimes it is just fun to love to hate somebody. Also just want to shoutout Angela Lansbury, because I love that woman to the moon and back and if acting royalty is a thing she can be counted upon the high echelons of that hierarchy. Onto the romance! You're not gonna believe me when I say this but I timed it, by the time Belle gets to the castle there is one hour of film left before credits. One. Hour. It should be physically and statistically impossible for them to achieve this level of romance in such a short time, but the animators know the golden rule, show don't tell. I am kinda at a loss for words truth be told on how to break this down, it is much easier to feel it than to think about it, but it works. I'd be stunned shitless if I ever met anyone who liked the human version of the beast better, I mean not to kink shame or anything but y'all are dangerously close to crossing some legal and ethical boundaries with this monster of a fella. Now am I saying that I could so very easily see a dark romance version of this story in the future? And I do fully mean like Nosferatu this bitch up? The vision is clear. Oh God what I have just created? I'm only encouraging this debauchery saying such things. We gotta go, moving swiftly on, don't pay attention to the man behind the curtain! Just for the record by the by I laugh in pure derision and uproariously at the individuals who claim this movie promotes Stockholm Syndrome, oh darling your idiocy never fails to amuse me. Wow, lost my train of thought. This got way off track, I may have gone too far in a few places. I very much enjoyed it, the appeal still holds strong, may not have went super in depth with the romance and the characters but there's only about 1.6 million videos on Youtube for that, so I'll just wrap up by saying 4 stars, 8.5/10, thank God we went out on a high note and I hope you get some real nice goodies of....various types this Valentine's Day. And just for the hell of it we're gonna keep the animated Disney train rolling next week so stick around.

Crazy Rich Asians

I don't know if the wait was entirely worth it.

I do recall seeing trailers for this movie back in 2018 and it looked to be a fairly humorous romance movie and I was intrigued enough, fast forward seven years and...it's okay. Granted I love how unabashedly it revels in the asian heritage, from the music to the food to the architecture of Singapore, and how it digs into the shall we say differing if not archaic principles of how family units and relationships are handled there. Now speaking as a dumb white boy from Texas I'm not saying I know better or how to fix it, but I can tell you I don't agree with it for even a millionth of a micro-second. It starts extremely innocently enough with a young professor named Rachel who is going to Singapore to accompany her boyfriend Nick for a wedding but to also be introduced to the family, as she gets thigh deep into the opulence and debauchery of the most lucrative family in China. This movie does firmly deepen the fact I do not want to be stupid rich or even moderately wealthy, it really does not paint such boujee antics in a positive light, maybe that's just my upbringing speaking but it is incredibly vain and shallow though I will admit the wedding reception was lovely. What I did appreciate to a point was the fact that not every member of Nick's family was a massive raging cock to Rachel, a good few in fact welcome her with open arms which is lovely! Constance Wu plays the sweetest most down to earth girl imaginable as Rachel, who really has to deal with so much shit I was kinda hoping this would turn into a villain origin story or at least contain a few murders, now that would make this movie vastly better! Henry Golding as Nick honest to God, he's kinda husband goals like the man is maybe too nice, acknowledging, and caring for his own good cause even I was like damn dude I simultaneously am crushing and aspire to be that great myself. Very interesting to see Michelle Yeoh take on a much more antagonistic role as Eleanor, almost an evil stepmother who wants two things to do with Rachel, jack and shit, but it certainly doesn't end on a happy note with her which admittedly is more realistic but Jesus Christ. Awkwafina our girl still shining bright as ever here as best friend Peik Lin, still an oddball, still hilarious, nothing but love from me on this character! Also Gemma Chan you have precisely zero right being that absurdly pretty, and not to bash Rachel or anything but I was kinda invested in her story more probably because it didn't feel needlessly dramatic or eye rollingly stretched out but rather a unique relationship dynamic that has solid potential for storytelling. And yeah the last 30 minutes of this movie simply did not have to exist, this is a two hour movie that has an obligatory third act breakup tacked on to a story that honestly if you stopped it at the end of the wedding would be a beautiful and sweet ending, because the movie fucking ends the same way either way so I thoroughly checked out after that. Such a shame because while I strongly detest drama with a force that even God has to reckon with, but at least the instances before were manageable. Like okay, I get the whole putting a spotlight on the perhaps toxic lineage of parents over controlling their children and how marriages and relationships are still being held up as if it's still medieval times and we gotta form that bond with Spain so time to marry the Spanish Infanta, which what the fuck that is not how you achieve a life of peace and happiness in every day! I really understand what the writer and director's intent was and indeed I don't hate the acknowledging of the problem, I just fucking despise the problem to begin with. Some traditions have to die. There is a very fine line to walk where you can uphold your past while still embracing the future, and I just wish it was different. But then again I suppose that is good storytelling if you can get someone from a different culture to think about and feel something that strongly, so props to them for that. The production design really does show every penny on screen and for a budget of I believe thirty million dollars, consider me impressed because you can see the rapacity in stark display. It's shot competently albeit basically, the soundtrack is good, the technicals are done solidly, so I really can't harbor any serious grievances with it. If memory serves there is a sequel but we'll just have to see when I get around to that. 2.5 stars, 7/10, see you on Valentine's Day for hopefully the best of the lot for this week.

Punch Drunk Love

This has been on my list for a good few years and frankly it did not disappoint. 

It was great to see another Paul Thomas Anderson romance movie considering how much I adored Licorice Pizza, and I was walking fairly blind into this movie. Adam Sandler plays a businessman with social anxiety named Barry who similar to The Dude himself gets embroiled in this caper, while also meeting this nice lady Lena played by Emily Watson as a odd romance blooms between the pair. It is an interesting movie to say the least, certainly never dull for a moment pretty much from the word go with an opening sequence bordering on David Lynch bizarreness as we follow the day to day life of Barry. This was one of Adam Sandler's first forays into more dramatic acting which from all examples present he actually has a knack for, and while there are moments of offbeat comedy present the movie plays it pretty straight and he is very believable in the role to where I kinda forgot I was watching Adam Sandler! Emily Watson gets a smidge of screentime but I do like the romance that is played up and she is very likable and sweet, and it is quite nice to hear her native accent present. Philip Seymour Hoffman essentially plays our antagonist who has even less screen presence than Emily, but you know what it's Philip he puts in a good performance no matter how small the role is and again it is an interesting dynamic between our main character and the antagonist. It's a romance movie with some sprinklings of other more original plot points that keep it interesting and I think that's really why I like it as much as I do! It's such a horse of a different color and defies all tropes of a typical romance movie akin to Licorice Pizza and yet in an even more bold way. Now if you want a master class on lighting and a cut above the rest in terms of color palette, dear sweet God look no further! There is not a dull or average shot to this movie, with use of shafts of light and lens flares, tracking shots and great use of space, color sequences nothing short of kaleidoscopic and wondering if I was having one of my occasional acid flashbacks, it really did kinda blow my socks off. If that wasn't enough this movie quite possibly more than any other effortlessly got me severely anxious and wound up tighter than a spring, through the sound design and music choices alone, really putting you in Barry's shoes as this maelstrom of shit is happening around him and you feel that ever increasing crescendo of stress and uneasiness rub off on you. That is pretty impressive storytelling. I thoroughly enjoyed it but I know for a fact it isn't going to be for everybody, critically it did pretty well but commercially was considered a bomb but I feel as time has passed since 2002 it's gotten a cult status. It's good enough for the Criterion Collection so it's good enough for me. 3 stars, 8/10, and next time we got another movie that has been on my list since even before the movie hit theaters so stay tuned.

Love Hurts

First rom-com actionsploitation I've reviewed?

Could be! That's quite a few genres to juggle and the movie handles that...adequately. I pretty much knew the movie I was walking into, a fun albeit basic action comedy with our golden boy Ke Huy Quan and that's what I got! Following a realtor who has a shady past that sucker punches him out of the blue he quickly finds his life upturned, an old flame returns, and he has to square off with his brother to gain some semblance of normalcy back. It mostly succeeds in the action part, got a few laughs from me, and I will admit Ke and Ariana are cute at times but there would be tiny changes I would make. I mean the movie doesn't even clock in at 90 minutes with credits so I feel even a slightly longer runtime could make a big difference. I think the biggest detraction is the editing and even then it's sporadic, prime example: in the middle of a fight scene we get this POV shot from inside a microwave as the turntable does it's thing and I think oh wow, a shot I've never seen before in an action movie this is gr-and then they just fucking cut! Odd ass choices like that can have a negative effect. I will say however I somehow liked 90% of the characters and didn't want them to die, yes even the henchmen which is wild and they write them in such a unique way to where you strangely get invested. Like this assassin who writes poetry or this buddy duo where one of the guys tries to get back with his lady friend, it's very original! I very much liked that! It's definitely an action movie first and I will own up and say it actually is really rock solid choreography that even got a "Oooh shit!" moment out of me at one of the falls the stuntguys took, and they even do the thing where this dust cloud puffs up after a hit in true martial arts fashion, so props to them on that. The comedy is more unannounced I guess I could say, it doesn't build up to a punchline or anything it's more just hearing people talk humorously but it sorta works. I wasn't completely sold on the romance angle, a lot of the history between Marvin and Rose is kept off screen and the time they do spend together feels more like kindred partners in crime than romantic opposites but they do have small moments, and it's not really at the forefront so I can't be too harsh on it. Ke Huy Quan is a joy, shocker I know, able to pull off a simple man trying to make his way through the galaxy and asskicker extraordinaire seamlessly, and does not look half bad with a nice suit and a moustache either! Ariana DeBose is decent, she certainly has that off her rocker criminal edge down pretty good and though not really prevalent a lot gets the job done. Hell we see Lio Tipton as one of Marvin's office staff Ashley way more and man, I kept having to shake my head clear cause that woman is a little too similar to Emma Stone like it was fuggin' weird! Pretty fun though and was my second favorite performance of the film! Mustafa Shakir easily is the most well designed in costuming, and as the assassin who writes poetry Raven he gets some flowery dialogue as well as some good action so thumbs up from me. Daniel Wu as our main villain Knuckles is pretty standard (aside from a boba tea addiction) but pulls it off with ease. It's an okay movie, more on the average decent side than cult classic gem in the making, but it's entertaining enough for at least one viewing. 2 stars, 6.5/10, I'll do proper romance films next week for the holiday so see you then!

Conclave

Okay I feel like an ass for not seeing this when it came out. Granted I never saw a poster or even a trailer, only through some preliminary buzz on the interwebs was the movie brought to my attention. And this is truly an interesting film if not for the plot itself, because for lack of a better word this concerns the "business" side of the Vatican, with the plot revolving around the election of a new Pope. I'm guessing from a very ignorant, uninformed, and straight up uncaring point of view that this is information not readily available to the public, I mean I doubt they let observers into the conclave for the voting process. So it is fascinating to watch because it's a very realistic, very humble, very unglamorous window into a religious sect that has existed for nigh a millennia with little rites or even spirituality. Funny to say regarding the cast is entirely composed of the various hierarchy of priests and nuns, but I very much appreciated such notions, with even certain scenes pointing out that the church should be used for worship and not power. Ralph Fiennes is our lead as Dean Lawrence who is essentially the head honcho in charge of the conclave, keeping the event and it's participants in line and the man can clearly play anything bringing emotion and yet unswerving power to the role. Stanley Tucci as Cardinal Bellini certainly had my vote for next pope, bringing a sense of world weariness and self awareness with very progressive ideals that I think many not even of Catholic faith could stand by, plus the guy is just a great actor and it's been too long since I've seen him last in a movie. Our fabulous lady Isabella Rossellini though in a minor role as Sister Agnes has a part to play, and David if you can hear me pull some strings and get this girl an Oscar win just for the hell of it! Carlos Diehz is certainly the outlier in the cast as a newly appointed cardinal pretty much thrown in the deep end head first but is kinda the dark horse of the conclave, and they do some bold stuff with his character but he plays it beautifully. It was surprisingly difficult to get a grasp on what story this was going to be, causeI read the synopsis and at the word 'conspiracy' I was expecting almost this thriller style story and while it does wiggle it's toes in the mystery pool it kinda sticks to this simple story of just electing a new pope, with some political machinations which comes with any kind of vote. I will say the movie looks beautiful, and not just simply down to the extravagant sets or lavish costuming, the cinematographer knows how to use color, they know how to linger on a shot or place the camera in an engaging way. For a 2 hour movie it was flying by and I honestly wanted it to be longer, it certainly wasn't dull or tedious which in and of itself shows the crafting of this movie to be in strong capable hands. Also I attribute that to the score, it is...intense, you could say and knows how to punctuate a scene. Props to the composer Volker Bertlemann! I mean the movie has to be good if even someone such as myself, who isn't religious and actually holds contempt for organized religion was thoroughly invested and easily can say it was a great movie. Shit it got a whole point for just acknowledging and admitting the public facts that a previous pope was a youth in the natzi party and the massive cover up of priests with their choir boys en suite, I have to have respect for just calling that out! But it was super engaging, very well made, has a story that may ruffle some feathers but the status quo needs a shakeup now and then, and I could easily have seen it on my top 10 even if it was in the bottom five. 4 stars from me, 8.5/10!

Companion

Potential top 10 material already? Ooooooohhhh maybe!

Fwack that was exactly my type of weird, and this is gonna hit spoilers of a certain degree so fair warning right now, aboslutely loved it, highly recommended. Okay? Okay. Companion was unfortunately spoiled a bit for me but not through any jackass on the interwebs, but through the second trailer I saw in theaters. Now the first trailer had me hook, line, and sinker I was gonna be here one way or other! But then...dear sweet Sophie turns out to be a fembot and I was pissed hearing that, and indeed the twist isn't kept for long but my God the reaction would be all the stronger had I not known. And yet! This movie still had me guessing, on my toes, and utterly engrossed. Because there's still shady areas where you don't know all the in's, all the out's, all the what have you's with why this group of friends have taken up a lakeside house and what role Sophie or rather I should say Iris has to play here. It takes elements of Ghost In The Shell, Blade Runner, and Asimov's 3 Laws Of Robotics and crafts something original and great. Sophie dear sweet God my girl better get recognition with this role, just her fucking tics and the way her body reacts, c'est magnifique! And yes I was loving every second of her, for lack of a better term, empowerment and where her story goes, just outstanding start to finish. I'm telling you man this was a wild ride! Jack Quaid was bugging me man, I mean not only does he potray the most massive asshole but I kept scrathing my head cause I swear I've seen him before and then I remembered, he was in Oppenheimer. But anywho, I just had a bad feeling about his character Josh after just seeing he doesn't cuddle after a love making session, may be painting in gigantic strokes here but if you don't give a bit of aftercare once done with a bit of hey hey yeah sorry you're a worm and I'm severely disappointed in you. Easy win with Harvey Guillén, he was as fun as always and though not in it long was still great! Props also to Lukas Gage who has quite an arc through the movie to say the least and is far more than just a handsome face. Megan Suri no slam against the actress here, if anything big props for playing a complete bitch, that takes talent more than you think. But it's more how the characters play into the story that makes it super good rather than just the very good cast, and I think you'll have no problem getting invested. Couple that with not super fancy cinematography but we got some solid landscapes and a couple of artsy shots which of course daddy like (in a cinema snob way of course), pretty friggin' good humor that hit my funny bone multiple times throughout, and a pretty bitchin' soundtrack that ends on one of my favorite Bee Gee's tracks. So do I hear 10/10 off in the distance?? The Bee Gee's helped push it farther than I already adore it, I will shamelessly admit. It's been a hot minute since a movie pushed so many of the right buttons for me, I'm kinda amazed. I wanted it to be good, a rare instance of expectation in my career, but it somehow surpassed it by several leagues and a country mile. Of course I'm biased as hell it's my show after all, so just take it all with a grain of salt and if you're feeling super adventurous try a triple feature date night with this, Heart Eyes, and Love Hurts. Thank me later! I really wanna give it a 10 buuut to temper my excitement and love I'll give it 4 stars, 9/10! Still Kino.