Movies 2021
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- DirectorRoseanne LiangStarsChloë Grace MoretzNick RobinsonBeulah KoaleA female WWII pilot traveling with top secret documents on a B-17 Flying Fortress encounters an evil presence on board the flight.It's a good enough movie. The plot is pretty simple, and typical for a budget movie that takes place in an enclosed environment - in this case, a plane. It's a series of hurdles to overcome one after another, sometimes concurrently.
But I liked the unique twist that's set up right at the beginning and pays off throughout. The background score is my kinda music. The acting, or in most cases the voice-acting, was pretty good. If you survive the initial phase where our protagonist is 'trapped' in the turret, then the movie holds your interest all throughout and delivers some good enough action. It's not 'Kick-Ass / Hit-Girl' level of action from Grace Moretz but it's good enough for the setup of this movie.
However, there are two parts that distinctly drag on. First is her stuck in the turret, and the second is where she is rescuing a 'package'. Those parts could've been cut down a little to keep the pace brisk, and still could've effectively conveyed the respective messages they were trying to convey.
But other than that, I liked the movie overall. IMHO, has repeat viewing potential.
8/10 for me. KEPT. - DirectorJohn KrasinskiStarsEmily BluntMillicent SimmondsCillian MurphyFollowing the events at home, the Abbott family now face the terrors of the outside world. Forced to venture into the unknown, they realize the creatures that hunt by sound are not the only threats lurking beyond the sand path.Not as effective as the first one, and there are a couple of cheap jump scares that seem to be just filler moments to keep the tension high for the sake of it. Also, it seems to contradict the behavior of the aliens. There seem to be instances where the characters make a sound and nothing happens. However, the main problem I had with the movie that kept me from appreciating it as much as the first one is that they do away to a certain extent with focusing on the aliens and their ability ot react to sound as the main tension-inducing point and resort to other cliche methods to do the same. For example, the whole point of the incinerator having a bad latch was to create a tense moment where the kid gets trapped with his baby brother and then we have the tense moment where he is forced to use his baby brother's oxygen to survive and we wonder if the baby will survive it. All in all, I suppose one can summarize that the expansion of the world established in the first movie is not very effectively done, which is a bummer.
So while its a well made movie, it lacks the punch and sacrifices the originality of the first movie for some cliche tropes.
6/10. Kept.
P.S.: Mr Sunday Movies has done a great review/breakdown of this where he and Maso go through the silly contradictory aspects of the movie. TBD : Links - DirectorJason ReitmanStarsCarrie CoonPaul RuddFinn WolfhardWhen a single mom and her two kids arrive in a small town, they begin to discover their connection to the original Ghostbusters and the secret legacy their grandfather left behind.Its pretty run of the mill as far as Blockbusters of its kind go. You have the obligatory recognizable leads, good production values, good CGI with some unexpected stuff done using said tech, a brisk pace, and a lot of pandering to fans of the franchise.
Honestly, having no particular attachment or nostalgia for the OG Ghostbuster movies, I am nonchalant about this one. It brings nothing new to the table as far as a franchise blockbuster goes. It just copies the Marvel MCU formula but for this franchise. Its safe, doesn't try to do anything new with the franchise, and goes out of its way to appease existing fans of the franchise who are now in their 50's at least (?) , while trying to rake in new fans by using recognizable young adult talent, and leaving an ending that is open to sequels.
Also, Paul Rudd disappears for like half of the movie, for some reason...
Anyway...not impressed, not turned off either.
6.5/10 ... Not sure if keeping. - DirectorAdam WingardStarsAlexander SkarsgårdMillie Bobby BrownRebecca HallThe epic next chapter in the cinematic Monsterverse pits two of the greatest icons in motion picture history against each other--the fearsome Godzilla and the mighty Kong--with humanity caught in the balance.Loved the fights, but that's about it. But really, the movie is worth it just for the fights. Kong is given King status, thus making him King Kong, and I liked that it was implied rather than stated. I wish the rest of the movie were that way too.
First of all, the mythology and the world building is BS, and very silly. Not just the Hollow Earth theory but pretty much all the stuff outside of the fights. The flashy tech, the use of Ghidorah's head, the gravity inversion, the 'tech' in King Kong's lair, everything.
Also, the humans, other than that soulful little girl, were there just to spew exposition, and they somehow had omniscience because they could look at something for the first time and immediately tell (the audience) what it is and why it is there and what it's gonna do or currently doing. Like... unnngh!! It really gets silly at times.
As for the tech (Apex) stuff, why is it all soooo flashy / neon / epilepsy-inducing? It distracted rather than enhance anything, especially the night time fight.
However, despite it all, the fights and Kong's journey to becoming King Kong, and the performance of the deaf-mute little girl... that makes the movie pretty watchable.... and the fact that they did not seem to have skimped on the creatures effects.
7/10 Wow! KEPT. - DirectorJon WattsStarsTom HollandZendayaBenedict CumberbatchWith Spider-Man's identity now revealed, Peter asks Doctor Strange for help. When a spell goes wrong, dangerous foes from other worlds start to appear, forcing Peter to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.
- DirectorLana WachowskiStarsKeanu ReevesCarrie-Anne MossYahya Abdul-Mateen IIReturn to a world of two realities: one, everyday life; the other, what lies behind it. To find out if his reality is a construct, to truly know himself, Mr. Anderson will have to choose to follow the white rabbit once more.OK, so here is the thing. I liked the upgrade to the plot elements, and the direction the story takes, in general. But overall, I cannot say I am thoroughly enthralled by the movie. The draw of the OG Matrix was not only just the out-of-the-world thought-inducing plot that even managed to challenge the reality of the viewer, but also the insanely shot never-before seen action. It was a perfect marriage between plot and action. The new Matrix, no so much. While the plot beats are upgraded, the action sees a downgrade.
Neo (and Trinity) both get one action scene where they show off their physicality, but for the rest of the movie, especially in the third act, Neo is dodging and bending bullets and missiles with hand motions in the air, while Trinity either runs alongside him or just watches him in the background...until suddenly she can fly while he still can't...until he can too in the very last minutes of the movie. I guess the action was forgo for this mostly because both the leads are in their 50s and not spy anymore, but I am sure they could have substituted it with cool action scenes with the younger crew. Anyway, the point is, the innovative action is not present, and what is seen (as part of callbacks, I am sure) has been done to death by countless movies since the OG Matrix in 1999.
Agent Smith's motives range between vague to unknown, both when he is fighting Neo in the second act and when he is helping him in the third act (which was truly unexpected).
Morpheus' return as a code/program is also barely and vaguely explained as a "modal" aka simulation, that Neo subconsciously programmed to escape the Matrix. This raises 2 questions. (1) Why was Morpheus required to free Neo and no one else could?, and (2) Doesn't this take away from Bugs' achievements?
At the end of the day, one can go into minute details, but overall, the feeling I got after watching it is that it is a movie not wanting to revolutionize cinema as the OG movie did in 1999, but is more focused on capitalizing on the nostalgia of those who hold it in great regard...which makes it just another movie in a long line of movies that are being made in this day and age.
I do wanna say though, that the actors act the heck out of their roles. There is no question about that. Its just that this construct of the Matrix couldn't keep me as contained in its world as the OG one did. Didn't even need to take a Red Pill to flush the illusions away.
Not unwatchable, but not as monumental as the OG was for its time.
7/10. Kept, cause what else was I gonna do... - DirectorChloé ZhaoStarsGemma ChanRichard MaddenAngelina JolieThe saga of the Eternals, a race of immortal beings who lived on Earth and shaped its history and civilizations.
- DirectorJames GunnStarsMargot RobbieIdris ElbaJohn CenaSupervillains Harley Quinn, Bloodsport, Peacemaker, and a collection of nutty cons at Belle Reve prison join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X as they are dropped off at the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese.I think Suicide Squad (2016), and The Suicide Squad (2021) will become important movies for film students in the future as they serve to show how the same concept and the same basic story can have wildly different results depending on the behind-the-scenes happenings. James Gunn was given a much greater control of his 2021 movie, because Wb studios were at a point where they had seen the (mediocre) results that come out of too much studio interference, and also that James Gunn had proven himself to be able to handle the "ragtag superhero ensemble" genre vis a vis Guardians of The Galaxy movies. Whereas, David Ayers' 2016 movie was made at a time where there was a lot of audience feedback that the DC movies are too dour and dark and while the studio execs had given Ayer the green-light to his kinda movie, they freaked out and interfered in the post-production and tried to re-edit the movie into something light and fun, and we ended up with a mess of the movie that it is.
The Suicide Squad (2021) does everything right. Its bloody, its funny, its colorful, and it gives the main characters a chance to emote and interact (including King Shark aka Nanavue) without sacrificing the pace of the movie or taking them out of the action into, say, a bar. It has the typical James Gunn flare that he displays in the GotG movies also. And, at the same time, it also manages to portray some pretty dark themes, such as Peacemaker's philosophy of killing indiscriminately, including his teammate Rick Flagg, and ruthlessly without any regards, for the sake of "peace and liberty".
There are some reports that it under-performed, but I think that is because of he fatigue associated with the bad first movie and that it is a fully R-Rated movie, and of course, because of the current pandemic. I am sure WB studios had accounted for this too, so I am not too worried.
8/10. Kept. - DirectorAlan TaylorStarsAlessandro NivolaLeslie Odom Jr.Jon BernthalWitness the making of Tony Soprano. The story that reveals the humanity behind Tony's struggles and the influence his family - especially his uncle, Dickie Moltisanti - had over him becoming the most iconic mob boss of all time.I feel cheated to be honest. Tony Soprano was featured front and center in the trailers but it turns out the movie is al about his uncle or whatever. It has a lot of lookbacks and references and eater eggs to the series but given that very little that happens in the movie really has any effect on the plot of the series itself, it feels a little gratuitous, and the movie over-all feels like a let down.
5/10. Keeping for the sake of completion. - DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsTimothée ChalametRebecca FergusonZendayaA noble family becomes embroiled in a war for control over the galaxy's most valuable asset while its heir becomes troubled by visions of a dark future.Having never read the books or seen the seemingly crazy campy adaptation of the 80s, I have no frame of reference to compare it to. But on its own, its a pretty well made movie with some very good direction, good acting, scenery and special effects. The plot (so far) is not as complicated as the news media would have you believe (given that it was once hailed as unadaptable). The world building is done mostly through exposition, but it is usually accompanied by plot progression, so it doesn't feel like the audience is being spoon fed information because of lazy writing or direction. In fact, quite the opposite.
It does feel a bit incomplete towards the end because even though there are some great battle/fight scenes in the movie, the ending feels a little plateaued and the next movie is set up in a silly way by one of the characters saying something along the lines of "there is more to come, yo!"
I am glad though that there is a part 2 happening. I am looking forward to it.
8/10. Kept. - DirectorCary Joji FukunagaStarsDaniel CraigAna de ArmasRami MalekJames Bond has left active service. His peace is short-lived when Felix Leiter, an old friend from the CIA, turns up asking for help, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology.Its a mixed bag. It goes to places previous Bond movies have not, but as a stand alone, it does feel a little too "generic action movie" with added -on "Bond Moments".
It would, I guess, hold the dstinction of being the first Bond movie to show a Bond dying, so it has that going for it.
Daniel Craig's Bond movies have been a moxed bag over all, with a couple very good ones like Casino Royale, and the rest being silly lackluster ones. This one sits smack in the middle.
Lets see where the franchise goes to in the future. I do wish a studio other than Sony was handling this franchise, though. It would be in better hands then.
7/10. Kept. - DirectorZack SnyderStarsDave BautistaElla PurnellAna de la RegueraFollowing a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas, a group of mercenaries take the ultimate gamble, venturing into the quarantine zone to pull off the greatest heist ever attempted.Bautista does not have much to do in this, honestly. He is mostly off-screen, then comes on screen for a bit of talking emotions with other characters. He does not even give that many orders or is in a leader role - he doesn't make the plan, he doesn't fund the mission, he does not even lead the team. Like, that is one passive leader if I ever saw one. He does get some great fight scenes ( a couple), but thats about it. There is no character development - not for him, nor for anyone else...except maybe The Coyote...maybe. Everyone else is in a one dimensional role.
As for the plot, well, its a grind house plot if I ever saw one. The way the characters interact with one another, the way the scenes are shot, the dialogue, the campy humor, the campy over-the-top action, the campy over-the-top deaths, it all reminds me of the grindhouse movie genre.
Given that this is directed by Zack Snyder, his visual signature is all over the place, and this alone makes the movie good enough to watch, but there are some notable deviations from his style. One, the CGI budget seems to be limited because those dust, explosion and fireball scenes all looked fake, like they were obvious CGI. Thats a first for Zack Snyder. Also missing, although not missed (the movie works without it), were the slo-mo shots. I can guess why they weren't present, given that they require some amazingly clear CGI, and the movie obviously went cheaper budget on that.
All in all, its a watchable experience, and it introduces quite a few new elements to the "getting tired" zombie horror genre. Like, alien zombies and robot zombies, and intelligent strategizing zombies who hold their own territories and can interact with humans, and an alpha who has a bulletproof face mask, and an alpha female with whom he can mate and who can get pregnant...and of course, the zombie animals - tigers and horses. I think the idea is that the "Zombie" Alpha in this movieis an alien species who is intelligent, but that his bite can spread an alien infection that infects humans ad zombifies them, and their intelligence decreases as the biting order moves farther away from the alpha.
Also, side note, only frigging Zack Snyder can make a zombie female alpha look sexy af!! That dude...
Anyway, pretty watchable for the new concepts it introduces, as well as for the camp-factor of it all, if you don't take things like plot progression and special effects too seriously.
8/10 for me. Kept. - DirectorRawson Marshall ThurberStarsDwayne JohnsonRyan ReynoldsGal GadotAn Interpol agent successfully tracks down the world's most wanted art thief with help from a rival thief. But nothing is as it seems as a series of double-crosses ensues.Its a "turn your brain on low" kinda fun adventure heist movie with likeable leads and good locations / sets all over the world. Each of the leads is personality acting, as in their role does not require them to be a particular type of person, and they are just letting their talent and personality and charm shine through. The action is good enough, and its overall a fun experience. The Nazi Bunker scene was particularly good and well done.
I don't have much to say about it because there are no complicated plot points, its just your typical adventure heist movie with likeable leads.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and would not mind a part-2, or if Netflix makes a franchise out of it.
8/10. Kept. - DirectorSimon McQuoidStarsLewis TanJessica McNameeJosh LawsonMMA fighter Cole Young seeks out Earth's greatest champions in order to stand against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe.Its not as offensively bad as G I Joe Origins : Snake Eyes would later turn out to be, but its not as good as an R-Rated Mortal Kombat movie should be, given how well the recent in-game cinematic stories are.
It feels like the producers/studio was unsure whether they would make it R-Rated or PG-13, so most of the fights come across as filmed with a PG-13 rating in mind, with blood and gore sprinkled in around when they decided to make it R-Rated. There is no impact to the punches and kicks, and feels more like sparring.
Same for the story. It is a far shade from the in-game lore and stories, and feels lazily done. The world building is also lazy and feels incomplete, like it assumes a lot of know-how to be already present from the audience. Also, some of the core concepts of the lore are broken, like how the tournament is the only way to determine which realm has won, and no interference outside of that is tolerated, whereas here, no such limitations. Sub-Zero and Shang Tsung unabashedly interfere and get away with it.
Now for the good parts. Scorpion is well done, and at its core, the story revolves around him, but at the same time (unfortunately) he is sparingly used. However, it makes it more impactful when he shows up during the climactic fight. Sub-Zero fights are also well done, but him showing up on Earth with no Elder Gods to stop him sticks out like a sore thumb. Acting wise, Kano steals the show. The costumes are also well designed for almost all of the characters.
I hope they make a sequel, but this time they commit to R-Rated blood and gore, which is the main draw of the games anyway, and this time they impose the core lore of the game better.
5/10, Kept. - DirectorShawn LevyStarsRyan ReynoldsJodie ComerTaika WaititiWhen Guy, a bank teller, learns that he is a non-player character in a bloodthirsty, open-world video game, he goes on to become the hero of the story and takes the responsibility of saving the world.
- DirectorCate ShortlandStarsScarlett JohanssonFlorence PughDavid HarbourNatasha Romanoff confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises.
- DirectorDestin Daniel CrettonStarsSimu LiuAwkwafinaTony Leung Chiu-waiShang-Chi, the master of weaponry-based Kung Fu, is forced to confront his past after being drawn into the Ten Rings organization.
- DirectorZack SnyderStarsHenry CavillBen AffleckGal GadotDetermined to ensure that Superman's ultimate sacrifice wasn't in vain, Bruce Wayne recruits a team of metahumans to protect the world from an approaching threat of catastrophic proportions.Its an exercise in what uncut first drafts of a movie looks like to the studio executives. This is what they see, only with unfinished effects and hopefully a 16:9 screen ratio.
It is also an exercise in why the studio should not have rushed things about DCEU, and jumped directly from Man Of Steel to BvS to Justice League without giving each of the characters a movie of their own. There needs to be character development and backstories in order to make the audience relate to the characters, and trying to do so in an ensemble movie takes time, which increases the length of the movie to unrealistic proportion, which then freaks the studio executives out, who then 'fire' the OG director and bring in Joss Whedon to do a rewrite and reshoots at the last possible moment.
I refuse to call the theatrical cut Josstice League. I blame the Studio, not the Director.
Anyways, it was better than the theatrical cut, but needed some trimming of its own too.
6/10 for me. But KEPT. - DirectorIlya NaishullerStarsBob OdenkirkAleksey SerebryakovConnie NielsenA docile family man slowly reveals his true character after his house gets burgled by two petty thieves, which, coincidentally, leads him into a bloody war with a Russian crime boss.Unabashedly a discount rip-off of John Wick. More like if John Wick concept had the production value of a B-Movie or TV Movie.
The only thing that sells it is Bob Odenkirk. There are some scenes where we see him full-on be in the middle of the action, and that is cool. But at the same time, there are many cut-aways and camera trickery too during many of the fight scenes, as opposed to the relentless long takes that Keanu does with John Wick.
The story is as barebones as JW, but unlike JW everything else is also toned down. The mythology, the lighting, the soundtrack, the action takes, and so on. The "dad" and the "brother" were fun to watch, but didn't really come across as believable. The wife was boring.
The worst part is the generic, super generic, and badly acted villain. He also gets to do nothing that would make him formidable against "Nobody". In JW, the villains exuded power, and he acted good enough to sell his part. This dude, not so much. He is mean for the sake of it, and at no time does he come into his own against the protagonist.
Overall, a very forgettable movie. Don't think we will get a Part 2, but if we do, I'll give it a peek.
5/10 for me. But Keeping for now. - DirectorJanicza BravoStarsTaylour PaigeRiley KeoughNicholas BraunA stripper named Zola embarks on a wild road trip to Florida.
- DirectorMagnus MartensStarsSam HeughanRuby RoseAndy SerkisA small army of well trained criminals led by Grace Lewis have hijacked a train deep beneath the English Channel.
- DirectorBenDavid GrabinskiStarsKerry BishéJoel McHaleAl MadrigalA dark romantic comedy. Tom and Janet have been happily married for years. But a visit from a mysterious stranger leads to a dead body, a lot of questions, and a tense couples' trip with friends who may not actually be friends at all.
- DirectorGuy RitchieStarsJason StathamHolt McCallanyJosh HartnettA mysteriously stoic character is hired as a security guard by a cash truck company responsible for transporting a lot of money around Los Angeles each week.Wow, this does not feel like a Guy Ritchie movie. All his trademark stuff, like the music and the camera angles and some frantic-ness in some scenes, etc. is hardly present. It is a very toned down version of his usual fare. I was kinda excited about Guy Ritchie working with Jason Statham again, given how good 'Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels', and 'Snatch' were. This has a completely different feel to it.
I mean, its not bad in any way, shape or form. I guess I need to rewatch it and tune my expectations to really enjoy this.
6.5/10. Kept, ofc. - DirectorStefano SollimaStarsMichael B. JordanJodie Turner-SmithJamie BellAn elite Navy SEAL goes on a path to avenge his wife's murder only to find himself inside of a larger conspiracy.Its strictly OK. I suppose this is the best one can expect from Amazon Prime Original Movies these days, or any streaming platform original for that matter. They still come out with great series, but the movies are just OK.
The action scenes are good enough, and Micheal B Jordan as a lead is pretty good on his own right. The production values are also on par with a studio production, and so are the special effects, but that is where it stops. The story is a little too dumbed down and frankly pretty generic for these times, and the supporting characters just do enough to support the main character without really being great themselves. Some are better than others but no one comes close to MBJ.
Having said that, I will watch a sequel if released, but if wouldn't be sad if there was none.
6.5/10 for me. Not kept. - DirectorJoe PennaStarsAnna KendrickDaniel Dae KimShamier AndersonA three-person crew on a mission to Mars faces an impossible choice when an unplanned passenger jeopardizes the lives of everyone on board.**SPOILERS**
Its brooding and visually spectacular and the acting is great all round, but it also seems like it tries a little too hard to be the next 'Gravity'. Also, it feels a little weird that all throughout the movie, Shamier Anderson's stowaway character is the main focus of the story but then the ending pivots completely to Anna Kendrick's doctor character and her sacrifice.
Also, the plot is a little weak, in the sense that it revolves around the main component of the entire spacecraft, that being the carbon dioxide scrubber, getting damaged early on in the movie, and there being absolutely no replacement for it, nor any spare parts. This is not just bad design, its impossible. Spacecrafts, especially ones with people, and of the size that the one in the movie is shown, are built with redundancies. They would either have multiple scrubbers all over the ship, or at the very least, they would have spares for the critical systems. It would never be that astronauts travelling huge distances like the one between earth and mars would be sent there with only one scrubber with no spares. Once this realization sets in, then the whole movie kinda loses its sheen.
If you are somehow able to ignore this, then its a pretty watchable movie. Nowhere near 'Gravity' or 'Sunshine', but pretty good by streaming platform originals (this one being a Netflix Original) standard.
6.5/10 for me. Kept.