December 2017 Movie Reviews
By: Moviegoer Grim
Hey Boys and Girls! This is Movie Goer Grim, here after five long years to bring you all my useless thoughts on three selected films for this go-a-round, one classic movie, one Netflix original and One brand new film that just came out in theaters.
Before we get started with the fun, we need to take a moment to honor the Memory of The World of Myth's resident movie reviewer, Reaper Rick! Rick lost his life long battle with diabetes and hypertension and left this realm last year.
Rick was hired to be the polar opposite to me, I was designed for the younger readers and Reaper was crafted for our mature readers. Originally, we were supposed to watch a movie together and do a Siskel & Ebert type of review, but as it turned out even though the hug age difference (I was 27 and he had turned 56), we had very similar tastes in movies.
Reaper Rick would officially join the movie reviews in February 2005 in the pages of issue 6, but life myself, he'd been there since the very beginning. He'd developed a great back story for his character, and ran with it all the way until the end. It was a pleasure and honor to work with him, and though out public personas did not like each other very much, behind the scenes we were the best of friends.
So let us all take a moment of silence for Reaper Rick as his presents will be missed, but never forgotten...
Continuing with the Memory of Reaper Rick in mind, I offer up to you my first review "8 ½." He had told me about this film at least a decade ago, and to be truthful it went in one ear and out the other. Well, I finally saw the film and everything he said about it was spot on.
So, 8 ½ is about is an Italian film from 1963 by master filmmaker Federico Fellini. It focuses on famed director Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni) is working on his latest movie which is part science fiction, part commentary on Catholicism, but most importantly primarily autobiography.
Despite Anselmi declaring that this movie should be an easy one to make, he is having problems with his artistic vision, specifically as he does not want to tell a lie on screen. From the stress, he has checked himself into a spa to help him with many of his problems, both professional and personal.
As he works through these problems, he reminisces about his childhood and fantasizes about how he either sees things playing out or how he hopes they will play out. Surrounding him at the spa and/or on set are many of the real life people who will be portrayed on screen including: his wife Luisa who he loves but who he does not fully understand especially as it relates to their marriage; his mistress Carla, the antithesis of Luisa; and an actress named Claudia who he sees as providing his ultimate salvation.
This is one of those metaphoric films of the revolutionary period of film making. While there is a general story (which is quite confusing if you try to watch it a such), but beneath is a much darker and hopeless story to be found. They just do not make movies like this, in fact, I believe this type of film making died out many decades ago, but at least we can still enjoy their skills from the past.
Many have their own interpretation about the theme of the film, and I am no exception. I see the film as a metaphorical journey through the process of actively dying—the only thing I could not figure out was did he die as a child or as an adult. Another popular theory is that Guido has an over active imagination and begin to be unable to tell the difference between fantasy and reality.
Regardless of your interpretation, 8 ½ is a fantastic film of the ages and in fact, I plan to purchase a Blu Ray for my own home Library! With that said, I give Federico Fellini's 8 ½ four and a half mind bending stars, as this movie with have you thinking about it several days after you watch it! Now, I'm not going to lie here. The original draw for me to even turn on the film was the smoking hot blond in the trailer, it created a nostalgic feeling from when I was a pre-teen in the Eighties watching movies like Porkies or Meatballs. While it was not a film like those two, it was the feeling that it created in the trailer that got me to press the "X" button (I have a PS4 that I watch Netflix through).
Cole (Judah Lewis), an introverted 12-year-old boy who is always bullied by his next-door neighbour, is secretly having a crush on his gorgeous babysitter, Bee (Samara Weaving). With this in mind, even though Cole doesn't admit it, he still needs his babysitter, as Bee is, above all, every boy's dream-girl fantasy incarnate. However, when Cole's parents leave for the weekend, unforeseen revelations regarding Bee's obscure past, will force the young teenager to take matters into his own hands, and for the first time in his life, overcome his fears to become the neighbourhood's hero. Of course, all that's needed is just a splash of blood.
I have to admit that if I knew going into the flick that it was a McG film, I probably would have had passed on watching it. I mean the last good film he made was...Uh a, Charlie's Angels movies? Wait, no, they both sucked. Umm... How about Terminator Salvation? Yeah, you're right that was Gawd awful!
Well, Sh*t.
It looks like he hasn't made a good movie, until now that is. Yeah, for real! The story was funny and quite entertaining combined with decent shots that move the tale along visually and good acting to top it off. Now, I should put out a PSA and say the acting is very, very campy—the entire thing was campy—and satire was its friend until the end. Well, that and the gallons of fake blood that is incorporated in the scenes! Good stuff, people!
Regardless of the camp, you find yourself feeling and caring for the characters (even the crazy-ass minor murderous characters). Robbie Amell plays a fantastic psychopath! The only guy I knew from the cast as I am an avid follower of the Flash television series on the CW Network. I had to laugh because he was shirtless though most of the flick, and I thought that he had to have learned that from his cousin Stephen. If you don't get that joke go check out any season of the CW's Arrow.
In conclusion, I openly admit that this is not a flick that's going to win any big awards, but, for what it is, it is done well! And with that I give McG's The Babysitter three sexy yet psychopathic stars! Check it out, I think you just might like it. All right kids, there has been a week gap from my previous review as it worked into my time frame and I got to go to the premiere of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. I actually saw the movie yesterday (the 14th), but had a tough time trying to decide the direction I wanted to with what I planned on being my final movie review in order to make room for all the new blood coming into the magazine. If anyone who has followed my reviews knows that I sincerely love the franchise—if memory serves me correctly I reviewed Revenge of the Sith for this magazine back in issue 10 in 2005.
My biggest problem was whether I would approach it an artistic prospective or in a social commentary that it strongly represents in its subtext.
My solution?
I'll leave it up to you the reader, I will add two separate links one will be labeled Artistic Review and the other Social Commentary Review (just a word to the wise, if you are offended easily DO NOT read the Social Commentary).
So, what do we need to know about the film?
We find Rey on the island she arrived on at the conclusion of Force Awakens developing her newly discovered abilities with the guidance of the last Jedi Master, Luke Skywalker, who is unsettled by the strength of her seemingly limitless powers. Meanwhile, what's left of the Resistance battles the First Order. That sums it up without any spoilers.
All right, welcome to my artist review, herein we will look at Star Wars: The Last Jedi with an artistic eye, and issue a grade with such foresight in mind.
I decided to enter this movie with no online impressions or spoilers, as I wanted to be cold as possible and not have a bias perspective. Also, I went with 3D for this flick as well, because I felt it would add to the mise-en-scène of the latest instalment to the Star Wars saga.
Visually it was beautiful, I mean come on it had like a half a billion dollar budget, it better look like they spent a few bucks on it, right? But, it did not feel like a Star Wars film—The Last Jedi's visual texture of the film is a continued attempt to be nostalgic, while the actual featured cinematography and visual style is entirely new. Either you make it look like the previous films or you make it a style all your own with a hint to remind the audience that they are watching a Star Wars flick. But attempting both, sends out a mixed message and confuses an actual fan of the franchise and not a hipster that says they love Star Wars, but have only seen Force Awaken and Rogue One.
In concerns to the story, to say it nicely, it was a clustered mess with fun moments. Okay, this is going to take some effort, so here we go... In the plot offered on the previous page, it seems fairly simple, right?
But, there is countless subplot, just as you begin to become involved in it switches to another scene with an entirely separate subplot. What are the subplot in the Last Jedi? Okay, here is a list of plot and subplots (that I can remember).
General Plots:
Subplots:
With all of that I'm almost 100% positive that I have forgotten something. Besides that, it is my understanding that the director attempted to add new things to the power of the force. To be honest it felt like Rian Johnson's main job was to eliminate the stories of the past via continuing to kill off main character from the original trilogy (Han Solo in Force Awakens) with the death of the biggest Star Wars character in all eight episodes dying at the conclusion of this film.
This film was the closing of the door on the original fan of the franchise, so they can make room for new money—I mean, fans. Yeah, fans. What I do not understand is, exactly why they brought back Luke, Leia and Han to make them washed up versions of their previous selves (a-la episodes iv, v and vi) and take them out one by one, to me it just seems like a hateful and wrong thing to do to characters beloved around the world and an ideology that was turned into a real (and recognized) religion in 2001.
So, we arrive at the moment of truth... For Star Wars: Episode VIII The Last Jedi, I award two out of five stars! Again, there were some great moment, but just not enough to make a great film. All right, Kids, that's it for me. If you are a reader from my original run, I hope that I entertained you, and gave you just enough thought into each flick to make you want to go check out the movies I've reviewed for yourself!
That's it for now, as I officially announce my retirement of reviewing movies—but, I'll always be around if I'm ever needed.
It's been fun and thank you for letting me to officially say good-bye!
As always, I remain...
Moviegoer Grim
Since we last met (which was September of 2012), a lot of things have changed, especially how we view digital streaming. Steaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and PlayStation Vue to name just a few have become the forefront way of watching movies nowadays. So much so that these companies no longer just stream other company's films, but they started creating their own stuff and streaming it for general consumption—case in point is McG's newest flick that was produced by the originator of Streaming Services Netflix called, The Babysitter.
