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Showing posts from December, 2019

Home Alone (1990)

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I figured I'd do a Christmas review considering it is Christmas. I could have gone with Die Hard , Elf, or Lethal Weapon  but I think Home Alone is appropriate considering its legendary status in the Christmas movie genre. I don't think I need to explain the plot but I will anyways: bratty 8-year-old Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) acts out the night before a family trip to Paris, his mother makes him sleep in the attic. After the McCallisters mistakenly leave for the airport without Kevin, he awakens to an empty house and assumes his wish to have no family has come true. But his excitement sours when he realizes that two robbers (Pesci & Stern) plan to rob the McCallister residence.  Well to begin, this review is obviously a little biased as Home Alone is not a phenomenal work of cinema but it is a classic whether you like it or not. For starters, Pesci is a joy to watch, as usual, his performance is engaging as hell. Fun fact, the reason why Pesci is constantly m

American History X (1998)

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American History X  is a hard watch; it covers social commentary that is very difficult to discuss. Racial issues are always a tricky subject when it comes to any form of media yet  American History X  handles it appropriately with respect.  With a brilliant performance from Edward Norton, the movie humanizes those who seem inhuman. The plot centers on Derek (Norton), who has served three years in prison for a hate crime, who tries to change the thoughts of his brother, Danny (Furlong), who is following the same path. We, as the viewer, begin to relate to Derek, a man whom we originally thought was pure evil. His arch towards redemption is justified. As we get flashbacks to his time in prison, we see the true him come out from underneath. The flashbacks are incredibly obvious, however, as the director opted to choose black and white whenever a flashback occurs, which I suppose makes it easier for the viewer to orientate themselves. Daniel's character arch, on the other hand, i

The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

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Where do I begin? I went into the theater with a low bar of expectation set in my head. The reviews online weren't great, but some movies resonate differently with different people. I tried to put that preconception away and enjoy the movie.  I couldn't. The Rise of Skywalker is a bad movie.  I'm sure people will disagree with me on this, for instance, people who don't watch movies, but as someone who has a deep love for the Star Wars franchise, I didn't like this movie at all. It's hard to find something I like about it, but I'll try for the sake of a balanced review.  Emperor Palpatine is fucking badass, especially when he was attached to the crane. I wish they would have made a more dramatic reveal of the machinery that was keeping him alive because it was one of the coolest parts of the movie. It was grotesque and unnatural, perfect for a Sith lord. The way they skimmed over it felt like a huge waste of a big reveal. I think the whol

Akira (1988)

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I wouldn't call myself an expert on the anime genre yet Akira stands out immediately. From its brilliant animation and style to its social commentary, Akira is what every anime should strive to be. I feel like people not familiar with anime or even the use of animation view animation as a lesser form of film. I disagree wholeheartedly as animation can break barriers normal film cannot as does not need to abide by the laws that contain us. The plot runs as follows: In 1988 the Japanese government drops an atomic bomb on Tokyo after ESP experiments on children go awry. In 2019, 31 years after the nuking of the city, Kaneda, a bike gang leader, tries to save his friend Tetsuo from a secret government project. He battles anti-government activists, greedy politicians, irresponsible scientists, and a powerful military leader until Tetsuo's supernatural powers suddenly manifest.  For one, Akira was one of the first anime movies to enter the western cinematic world. It revolutioni

The Irishman (2019)

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Usually, when a movie spans three hours and a half, I get bored. This was not the case for  The  Irishman. The Irishman  takes place in the 1950s and centers on truck driver Frank Sheeran (De Niro), who gets involved with Russell Bufalino (Pesci) and his Pennsylvania crime family. As Sheeran climbs the ranks to become a top hitman, he also goes to work for Jimmy Hoffa (Pacino) -- a powerful Teamster tied to organized crime. It follows Frank's entire life from his early twenties to his late eighties.  This was Scorsese's goodbye to the gangster genre, a genre in which he helped to mold and create with movies such as  Goodfellas ,  Mean Streets,  and  The Departed.  Yet  The Irishman  feels so different from the aforementioned movies for a multitude of reasons.  Let's start with the performances.  The Irishman  boasts a magnificent cast where Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel, and Al Pacino all play key roles. For one, Pacino is amazing. Compared to the dire