1. Bad Times at the El Royale - I was expecting something a little bit more...wild. I liked a lot of it - the characters are interesting with a little bit of mystery to them, the pace moves really quickly, and the acting (for the most part) is really strong. I'm a big fan of Drew Goddard - he's written some episodes of my favorite tv shows (
Buffy,
Alias, Lost) and I thought
Cabin in the Woods was awesome. However, I think he still needs to find his own style - this film felt very similar to
Cabin in the Woods (same pace, character introductions, surprise ending), but it also felt like it was trying to be edgy like Tarantino-esque, and I think that's why it just didn't quite work for me. I'm not fully on board with Chris Hemsworth (I totally forgot he was in
Cabin in the Woods - he was about the only thing that I didn't like in that movie. I didn't feel like the main cast had any charisma). I think Hemsworth has definitely proved me wrong in a few movies (the
Ghostbusters reboot, the most recent
Thor movie and the most recent
Avengers movie), but sometimes his acting is just cringe-worthy. He's definitely
not edgy, so he is completely miscast for this movie. I also think that once his character appears, the film suddenly becomes really uninteresting.
2. Venom - Ok, so I sort of liked this movie??? It's actually kind of funny, which I wasn't expecting. Tom Hardy really gives it his all. He handles the cheesiness of the dialogue and plot really well and makes it totally watchable. I realize that saying something is "watchable" isn't exactly a compliment, but I had super low expectations, so I was pleasantly surprised and entertained while watching this movie. It did bother me that he is consistently greasy and dirty for the whole entire movie. It was hard to look at him without cringing. But otherwise, I think the movie is fun. It reminded me of a movie that should have come out in the late 90s (complete with the Eminem rap at the end - FOR REAL - I thought it was a parody, but nope!). There are plot-holes galore, and just plain dumb writing (I'm supposed to believe that a place that high-tech doesn't have video surveillance of every inch of their building??), but I think it's the type of movie that you're just supposed to have fun with and not take too seriously. I would totally watch a sequel.
3. A Simple Favor - Such a fun little movie! First, Blake Lively is just wonderful. I've always been a fan. I think she was quickly written off as a Mischa Barton type actress, but everyone who thought that was clearly WRONG. Clearly, she didn't do her best work on
Gossip Girl (I loved
GG, but some of the acting was iffy). But she has been consistently strong in smaller roles (
The Town was a big eye-opener for me). She's also stunningly beautiful, and in this movie, she is a fashion Goddess. The costumer designer should be nominated for an Oscar because those outfits are a dream. I can't stop thinking about her power suit when she shows up at the cemetery. My jaw actually fell open. Anyway, back to the movie. One of my co-workers described it to me as having a similar style to
Death Becomes Her (which is one of my all-time favorite movies), and I think that's a pretty accurate description. It's fun, but in a campy not-believable-at-all way, and dark, but never takes itself too seriously. I miss movies like this - I feel like it was a very popular style of "chick flick" from the 90s, that has all but disappeared lately. There are a lot of twists and turns, and while it's ultimately absolutely ridiculous, it's fun trying to guess where the story is going.
4. I Feel Pretty - Well, I knew that this movie was going to be a load of crap, and it's...."meh". Not completely crap. But it's very similar to
13 Going on 30, and
that movie is absolutely wonderful, so when you compare the two, it's an interesting contrast in how to take a dumb idea and do something amazing with it, compared to something really dull. I don't really connect with Schumer's character (or Schumer in real life). First, I would never go to a Soul Cycle class (that is literally my worst nightmare), and I've never watched a Youtube tutorial in my life. Also, I think the whole weight thing is really exaggerated because she's not even that big - she's like a size 10 (I'm guessing), and almost every retailer goes up to a 14. Sometimes I think people use their looks as an excuse as to why they are single or friendless, but in most cases I think it's probably because they are SUPER annoying. That's probably the meanest thing I've ever written, but the truth hurts sometimes. Also, if you really felt like someone didn't want to be with you or be your friend because of your weight or your looks, then why on Earth would you want them to be in your life anyway? I do think this movie has something interesting to say about the power of having self-confidence. I'm always amazed at how little self-confidence most women I know have. I get told often that I have confidence, and I get asked a lot of advice. I don't really know what advice to give. I like myself. I have plenty of flaws that I try to overcome, but overall I know that I'm a good person, and that's all I can do, you know? Anyway, this movie isn't
terrible. It's got some heart, and it's trying to give a positive message to women who are self-conscious. But the biggest and most glaring plot-hole is that she doesn't question why she can fit into the same size clothes if she thinks she's thin? Like, wouldn't all of her clothes fall off of her? SO DUMB. On a side-note, Michelle Williams does her Marilyn Monroe voice and it is HILARIOUS.
5. Fyre - This is the Netflix one - I'm not sure if the Hulu one has the same name. But HOLY MOLY this story is batshit insane. I don't understand how everyone involved isn't in jail? Why did only one guy go down for this massive fuck-up? Specifically, Ja Rule? His defense is literally saying "at least we didn't kill anyone". I mean, I'm just speechless. I have so many questions. 1. Who has the rights to all of this video footage? And why would you release it? Like, did Ja Rule give consent to all of this? 2. What the fuck is an "influencer"? 3. Don't these professional Models have agents? And why did these agents allow this to happen? Aren't there contracts involved? I truly just don't understand. 4. What kind of idiot pays this much money for something that sounds so sketchy? And they even fell for the cashless bracelet scam too? 5. How pissed would you be if you
were one of these idiots that got scammed, and you watched this documentary and the people behind it described the event as "selling a pipe-dream to your average loser"? 6. Why would anyone want to be Pablo Escobar? Is that something people aspire to? I have so many more questions, but I'll stop for now. I do think that the documentary was very interesting, and well-told, but I would have loved to see more from the actual event and from the people (or as I will forever refer to them as, idiots) who went to the festival.
