Nobody 2

The dust has settled and I am back for a short while this month.

Speaking as a light fan of the first movie I was stunned to learn that a sequel was being made, hell to be embarassingly honest I've been so out of the loop on new movies coming out this hit my radar about 2 weeks before release. Don't get old kids. But I'm kinda speechless to say I enjoyed this movie far far more than the first, maybe it was the familiarity with the characters or the emphasis on the family unit but this hit all the right buttons for me from the word 'Go'. And it's not much more complicated than the first, Hutch has been working so much he's been neglecting the family so he decides to take them on a vacation where he gets embroiled in this crime boss' affairs, because of course he does, and now papa's gotta take care of business. The first thing I really gotta say is despite the lack of action, the real stranglehold grip this movie had on me was you get to spend a lot of time with Hutch's wife and kids and while indeed the element was there and was quite good in the first, I just gravitated to it so strongly here. Connie you fucking gem of a woman, I'm honestly jealous as shit she's married in this movie because I would kiss the ground that mama bear walks on, and I do appreciate they give Becca a bit more edge here. The kids are pretty good too with Gage Munroe as Brady taking on his dad's violent urges despite Hutch wanting him to be a better man than he ever was, and Paisley Cadorath as Sammy who is the sweetest most cutest girl ever and boy did my protective side leap out at a certain scene involving her. Like I fully understood the urge to just whip someone's ass if they laid a finger on my daughter, no scratch that I would spill someone's guts onto the floor if they touched my daughter so papa Hutch is a man after my own heart. And yeah Bob is probably on even better form here truth be told, both as a character and as an action man with plenty of time going to both, showcasing his hard edged fighting style but also his wish and happiness to give his kids memories to look back on. It's not overt, it's more subtle but that's why it works so damn good. In terms of action I can count every major setpiece on one hand but each is different and impactful, they still very much like using random bits of the environment during the fights in true Jackie Chan style which I actually feel is harder and more gratifying to write than if it was a straight up gun/fist fight but it was solid stuff! I very very much enjoyed this movie and while I felt the sheer idea of a sequel seemed tenative I was pleasantly surprised and wouldn't mind a potential third entry if all the planets align. I'm sure the first was more of a sleeper hit and I'm hopeful this one will do even better, it is worth seeing in theaters I can tell you that much. So full 4 stars from me, 8/10, and next week we're shifting gears big time going back not only to 3 reviews for the week but allllll the way back to the golden age of cinema with some movies I've always wanted to talk about.

Over The Garden Wall

I don't know what I just watched. I loved it though!

What even in the hell is this? It might be the strangest show I've ever known and if you've stuck around long enough with me I have seen some weird shit man. It's the most barebones synopsis in the world but the progression and details of the story are the interesting parts, two brothers Wirt and Greg are lost in the woods and have to find their way back home. Simple and easy to understand....annnnd then we meet pumpkin people, frogs attending a swanky party on a paddle steamer, and some eldritch horror known only as The Beast. What the actual fuck have I been doing with my life?? Yeah I'm late to the party on this one big time with the mini-series being broadcasted back in 2014 so hey 10 year anniversary woohoo, but it's always been on the outskirts of my radar and on Halloween no less this year Cartoon Network played it in full. 10 episodes, pretty much ten minutes each, so feature film length by the skin of it's teeth. Granted I knew precisely zilch about it other than it was pretty damn good from various people throughout the years. I barely know where to start but all I'll say is I'm kinda pissed at myself not watching this in senior year of high school. You know how I always talk about that "exquisite fall atmosphere", well this is the gold standard that probably will never be matched again, this is the autumn of my dreams with grey skies, colorful leaves, and old trails to wander. Visuals alone, 20/10! But I greatly enjoyed the odyssey these two brothers went on, it's offbeat entirely but still has a certain charm about it that makes you not want to put it down until it's done. Wirt is a much older kid in high school with all the growing maturity, logic, and even depression that sets in around that time, and Elijah Wood who I didn't even recognize until end credits popped up does a very good job giving a lot of character to a very white bread protagonist. Collin Dean as Greg is my highlight of the whole show catalyzing exactly what young kids are like, they are friggin' little oddballs with no sense of focus or tact and it's marvellous how real it feels, hilarious and endearing to watch. Melanie Lynskye as Beatrice a talking bluebird that acts as a guide through the woods actually had a very good backstory that gets revealed later and her sassy attitude was a joy to watch, nothing super deep but effortlessly engrossing. It was wild to hear Christopher Lloyd as a returning character of the Woodsman, he does fine work with the material but there clearly is more to this guy's past than the show lets on and while you wish to know more wraps everything up in a nice bow. And last bit far far from least as the Beast we have Samuel Ramey, who creeped the ever living shit out of me from first appearance to last appearance tapping into that fear of unearthly glowing eyes, and although it doesn't honestly have that much screentime or do that much the way the world reacts around it is what gives it presence and gravity. In fact there were a few moments in this show where for just a single solitary second fear gripped my heart, it can be horrific even for adults and definitely scary to younger kids but the show has a good balance. The fantasy element is high and the best way I can sum it all up is there's a shot of a wooden boat on a lake with a fish sitting in it with a lure cast into the water, undeniably distinct and imaginative and when coupled with the atmosphere and scenery you have yourself an unforgettable thing. It's even kind of a musical somehow? There's a good few vocal performances that range from silly made up kid songs to stunning soaring serenades, and it wouldn't surprise me for a second if there indeed was a soundtrack available online. I'm almost speechless at this, I will go out of my way to buy this show and you can bet your ass it is going to be a staple of October viewing for years to come. Simplicity goes a long way, anyone can watch it and enjoy it whether it's immersed fully or just leisurly viewing, admittedly if you're a lover of fun and fancy free entertainment this is gonna hit more your stride but I still say watch it and make up your own mind. It could do something for you. I walked into the unknown as much as Wirt and Greg did but coming out on the other side made me realize how amazing the trip was. 4 stars easily, 9.5/10, and now comes the part where the seasons relieve me of the joy of autumn and non-christmasy things but why should that stop me from denying the holiday cheer?

Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Why have I been sleeping on my ass for the past 7 years before getting to this movie?

I really and truly think this movie doesn't get half the praise it truly deserves, Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a movie worthy of discussion, analysis, praise, and overall enjoyment regardless of age. It's such a unique and bonkers yet brilliant idea to esentially set a real world crime noir in the bright and slapstick world of cartoon characters. Set in 1940s Los Angeles a gruff private investigator named Eddie slowly gets enbroiled with cleaning the name of cartoon star Roger Rabbit as he's set up for murder, but Eddie has a damaged past and cares nothing for toons yet more pieces fall into place and the plot thickens. Already the cast in this movie is what makes half the movie as great as it is, Bob Hoskins is a trememdous lead and effortlessly acts through the film despite that none of his toon co-stars are there in the flesh (in a sense), George Fleischer couldn't play a bumbling yet still very much fearing for his life toon better if he tried, Christopher Lloyd might have his coolest look in this film and it's indeed a different role for him but one I feel to be almost the most effective, and I tip my hat to Kathleen Turner for giving us the voice and personality of Jessica Rabbit in all her glory. Rock on. Now we get to talk about the technicals which is an obelisk sized task in just text, they have entire behind the scenes documentaries on how they blocked, shot, interacted, and implemented all these animated characters, props, and scenery. It is ingenious and any film school that doesn't talk about it in some way is a hack, they had to use in scale to the animation rubber replicas of the characters and I don't know how to describe it, cause they key out the dummy and layer the animation and it looks seamless. And this was a huge huge deal at the time, this was the movie where Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse shared a scene, nothing like that happened before. Even with movies like Space Jam A New Legacy it was still all properties of Warner Bros., but this is where every animation studio chipped in and that was a huge deal before the 90s, and even then it wasn't a common occurence, plus I'm a nerd for this kind of thing so I'm peering in the background naming any characters I can. I will admit it's been a few years since I last saw this movie but, I'm not entirely sure this was made for kids. I mean Looney Tunes were primarily believe it or not, made more for adults but kids loved it and it still worked. The same applies to here, we get some pretty gruesome deaths both seen and implied, Eddie drinks a fair bit, Jessica Rabbit I don't think I need to say much more about her, you get a little bit of language, it just seems more geared towards at least older kids and adults. That didn't stop me though, I must have saw this when I was maybe 10 years old and I absolutely loved it. I loved the story, the characters, the humor, the musical score mother of pearl! Let me tell you right now, real talk, I cannot listen to the first half of Valiant & Valiant without getting in an emotional mess and weeping. It is that damn good, and the music score is very jazzy/bluesy which I adore endlessly. I mean I don't think I need to tell people to go see it, it's an incredibly strong film even if the mystery aspect isn't absolute shall we say, I can't recommend it more. But what's the score? I don't know if I wanna give it an 8 or 9. It deserves either but I'm gonna give it a 9/10, 4 stars check it out!

Nobody

F***in' A man we starting good this week!

This feels like a modern day Cannon movie to me, now you might be saying but Dude modern doesn't really go in the same sentence as Cannon Studios. To which I reply, Cannon is an art style. They know what they make and how to make it good, with the most famous of their films being in the actionsploitation, revenge story, and foreign action flick genres in their hayday. They took elements of that and gave it a modern spin here, and a mighty good one at that. The story follows a total average day guy who kinda blunders into the middle of a russian mob plot after his house is broken into so he has to take action to keep his family safe. Basic plot, but predictable it is not at least not in the way you think. Bob Odenkirk who I remember as a comedy man in the 90s damn near flawlessly pulls off the action hero thing despite him looking and acting like a guy you would see on the side of the street. He does have comedy to him but when the game is afoot and the pain is about to be unleashed, I buy it. He could f***me up something fierce, he plays the part wonderfully. It dips into some family drama here and there, and the movie does a good job presenting the kind of average yet kinda broken family element which brings some good character points as the movie goes on. It looks really good too in cinematography, the editing while mostly normal has it's special moments where it's very sleek and expertly timed, the soundtrack is kickass and I'm saying that even about the Louis Armstrong track, and the action is shot well. From fisticuffs on a bus, to the home invasion scene, to the final shootout, it's all handled super well. I had a fantastic time with this movie, the movie on multiple occasions got me to exclaim, clap, and get excited. It really hit all the right buttons for me, and I do strongly recommend it if it sounds up your alley. 3 stars, 8/10, catch you tomorrow for another new to video action film.

The Addams Family Values

I'll be totally clear, I don't hate this movie. In fact I enjoy this movie but does it surpass the first? Yes and no.

Our story focuses once again on Uncle Fester who ends up actually getting married to a seemingly nice lady named Debbie who turns out to be a money obssesed psycho. It happens. Meanwhile Gomez and Morticia have had their third child and due to Wednesday and Pugsley not liking the baby much along with Debbie's suggestion get sent to a summer camp. Now I think I can safely say everyone loves the camp scenes in this movie, and most will agree it is the best parts of the movie. But why exactly? It's by no means an admission to the marriage plot line being bad, but there's really not much going on except for several humorous attempts on Fester's life. So there's a hell of a lot of comedy in the camp scenes and genuinely has a conflict and story, and to be brutally honest I feel much the same way Wednesday and Pugsley feel toward the camp. I'd rather choke and die than go there, it's so....suburban. But it leads to some great comedy, this is so much more the film where Christina Ricci gets to shine, she's outstanding in this movie! Again, not to say the rest of the cast does bad cause Christopher Lloyd still does good and he is completely whipped in this movie which causes turmoil in the family which is an element I like, Anjelica Huston is still lovely and has some great lines, Carol Kane actually really cracked me up as the grandmother and I just adore Carol Kane so nothing but love there, and Raul Julia though not having much to do this film around still gives a great and very funny performance with a killer dance scene with Morticia. I think the reason this film does not surpass the first is, though it does have excellent scenes there's not much for the family to do, we're either focused on the marriage or the camp scenes despite there being a new member of the family. So it just doesn't give as much time to the other family members, and I know the entire conflict of the last movie is a bit shoehorned in because The Addams Family is above such scenarios but it still worked, and though the idea of a black widow marrying into the family could be quite funny not much is made of it. But you should still see it to judge it on it's own merits and to see if you liked it more than me. The only highlights are the camp scenes and Raul Julia, which is a shame because I love these actors and I love these characters very much and I know you can make entertaining stories and great humor from one of pop culture's most famous families. Regardless of decade or iteration, from the 60s series, to the 70s animated show, to friggin' Scooby-Doo, to these movies and beyond, The Addams Family always holds a place of undying love in my heart and I am always happy to see them time and again. Especially Lurch, because he's my favorite. I'm very interested to see what the new movie has in store, and already was putting it on my calendar just from seeing the comic strip designs for the characters, and I'll tell you what I think of it on Friday. But don't be afraid to pay a call on The Addams Family throughout this month, for it is always a grand spooky time in their house regardless of day or season. Until we meet again.

The Addams Family

I love this movie.

I've always been a fan of The Addams Family since I was dreadfully young, and this movie has always been a favorite. I'm absolutely thrilled to finally be able to see an Addams Family movie in theaters so it was high time to talk about the still loved duology from the 90s. So our story begins with Uncle Fester returning after 25 years since he disappeared, but all is not as it seems since Uncle Fester has suffered amnesia and is part of a team ready to rob the Addams blind, so we spend time with the family and see the connection begin to grow between Fester and the family before the final resolution. Yeah, this isn't a film for it's plot but more just to be a very fun movie for everyone and it succeeds greatly. This is the better of the two movies but more on the second next time, but for now let us delve deeper. This is such a funny and entertaining movie, I dare even say that the reason it's took about 25+ years for a new Addams Family movie is because the casting could not have been more perfect. I mean really ask yourself, who could have played these parts better during that time and place in the world? No one. Raul Julia is the stuff of legend, Anjelica Huston does give Carolyn Jones a run for her money, Christopher Lloyd is great and because the story focuses on Uncle Fester you get a lot of screen time with him, and well let's be honest Christina Ricci was created to be Wednesday, and the rest of the cast is just as great. The comedy is really good, it can easily make me either smile or bust out laughing, but when you have a good script and expertly delivered lines by great actors it's hard not to laugh! There's just a lot to love in this movie from the design, to the comedy, the timeless characters, even the effects. I was surprised by the effects to be honest, I mean I don't know how they pulled half of it off from Thing to even just simple throwaway gags like the books, it's quite amazing. I could praise the movie all day, but this movie grabbed my love from the very get go where our macabre family greet Christmas carolers by pouring hot oil on them. It speaks to my very soul. Though easily the best scene in the entire movie is the Mamushka, such great music and energy! This movie really does showcase Raul Julia the more I think about it, he can dance, sing, swordfight, his charisma leaps off the screen and is a bittersweet joy to experience. Raul Julia always said this was his favorite role to play because he enjoyed entertaining children and it always brought a smile to his face to see people recognize him as Gomez, and if there ever was just one single reason to watch this movie it is because of him. I definitely recommend this movie to all ages and all families, this is a funny and well done movie, easily a solid 4 stars check it out!

And we'll be back next time to look at the sequel.

Star Trek III: The Search For Spock

A good follow up to Wrath Of Khan, but not as fantastic.

Our story picks up right after Wrath Of Khan with the Enterprise leaving the Genesis planet and on their way home. Soon after they arrive the Enterprise is decommisioned and it is discovered that Spock is still alive on the Genesis planet so Kirk and crew travel to the self destructing planet to save their friend. Meanwhile in all this a Klingon commander played by Christopher Lloyd seeks Genesis as well to help his people continue to strive. And this is a very good villain, not with a commanding presence and powerful dialogue like Khan but still a formidable foe with excellent character development which for the most part is very subtle but is nevertheless fascinating to watch. The film takes major steps and risks with their characters, with major losses and yet it adds strength to the film as a whole. Is it as excellent as Wrath Of Khan? No. Is it still a really good Star Trek movie? Absolutely! If you wish for a further continuation of the last film you really couldn't ask for more. And thus the journey continues in the next film, so join us tomorrow when we make The Voyage Home.

Back To The Future III

I seriously cannot understand why people treat this movie so differently from the other two. It's awesome!

Maybe the reason people treat it so differently is because, it truly is different from the other movies because it's set back in the old west. So the final chapter of this fantastic trilogy has Marty learning that Doc has been sent back to the year 1885 after a lightning storm and now he has to go back further than he has before in time, and save his best friend. Maybe I'm just a sucker for the western vibe this movie has, but I love it! We get to see Hill Valley when it first started out, we get to see the clock tower start, we get to see what Doc has been up to in the old west, it's great. And it is a little sad to see the trilogy end, but it's not at all bad for the characters. Marty gets back home, starts planning his future with his girlfriend, Doc actually falls in love with a teacher back in the old west and they have a family and travel through time, so it really is a bright and happy ending. And the movie is very different from the other films, but in no way does it take away from the experience. It's still Back To The Future and it's a hell of a good sequel. And that is my review of the Back To The Future trilogy. I will see you guys next week.

Back To The Future II

Yes, this movie takes place in the year 2015, and I am still waiting on my hoverboard and flying car!

So Back To The Future II is an incredible sequel to the original. It does nothing but add on to the experience and the greatness of the original, and adds a surprising twist to it all. So the story picks up immediately after Back To The Future when Doc comes back from the year 2015 to warn Marty about some big problems with his kids, so he brings Marty and his girlfriend Jennifer to the year 2015 to right the wrongs of their very own future. But that's only the first problem that pops up, soon well stuff happens due to Marty's greed getting the best of him and a long story short, an alternate timeline of 1985 is created where Biff has turned Hill Valley into Hell on Earth. So Doc and Marty have to travel once again back to 1955 to solve that problem. Now of course, there's a ton more to the story than what I told you, and if you loved the original you're going to love the sequel even more! The characters have even more depth and personality to them, the setting is both interestingly new and familiar old, and the film just adds to the fun factor and also greatly adds to the original film in more ways than one. And we still got one more film to review, some consider it to be the black sheep of the series but I consider it just as good as the other two.

Back To The Future

Okay, I swear to God I didn't plan this. Today is Michael J. Fox's birthday and it just so happens I scheduled my review of Back To The Future on the same day.

So Back To The Future, one of the greatest time travel movies ever made! How does it hold up? Well...incredibly so. I mean yes the movie takes place in the 80's and the 50's but it doesn't at all feel dated, in fact it feels very new. It's kind of difficult to explain how the movie's time frame impacts you, but I would damn near describe it as timeless! It's a film that has aged incredibly well. So what's the story? A kid named Marty McFly is a teenager in the year 1985 and he's friends with a brilliant scientist, Dr. Emmet Brown who one day invents a time machine out of a DeLorean, and through a series of events Marty accidentally travels back to the year 1955. So he has to meet up with his old friend despite the fact he doesn't know Marty yet and help him get back to the future. Now the plot sounds awfully familiar because almost every single time travel movie since this came out has copied the formula, because it works really well. But don't let that deter you from seeing this movie because you've heard of the plot a hundred times. The film is a hell of a lot more than what you expect, and it is a fun and great movie to watch. I just realized this for the first time now that I am properly reviewing it, that 85% of the shots and the dialogue in this movie are very, very important to the plot. There is hardly ever a moment of filler in this movie. Every scene, every word spoken has significance in the grand scheme of things, and not just for this movie but the entire trilogy. The dialogue is interesting and very funny, the characters are great, the settings are very realistic as it is set in two past era's, the performances are the bloodline of this entire franchise and every single one of these people give it their all, and everything about it just works to an amazing degree and I love it! Hell, there are even people that stand by their opinion that Back To The Future is the greatest movie of all time, and I can kinda understand that. Is it my favorite movie of all time? No. But do I understand why people would say that? Absolutely! Bottom line, go out, buy all the Back To The Future movies, marathon them, and judge for yourself if you would like to go back to Back To The Future in the future.

Tune in tomorrow where we examine the fantastic sequel and the impact it has on the year 2015.