Thoughts on 5 Films

1. Avengers: Endgame - I've been up and down with the Marvel movies, and honestly, I think I'm just exhausted by all of them. I didn't even see this in the theater because I just couldn't gather that much energy to sit there for 3 hours to watch something that could have probably been condensed into the previous movie. I appreciate that they had a clear timeline for the story to play out and a plan for the evolution of these characters, it's revolutionary for film in general - to create, what, 20 movies? All connected and relevant to each other. History has been made. But as far as the actual movie goes...I'm not really the biggest fan. Everything was very expected - of course they were able to wipe everything away that happened in the previous movie (the snap) because it wouldn't be a very uplifting superhero story if they didn't. There were a lot of moments that made me groan, mostly the scenes that were added as fan service - like the one where all the female superheros take the spotlight (am I supposed to feel empowered that they were given a total of 3 seconds of screen-time together?LOL). I think the worst part for me was that this type of movie is made for someone with a good memory, and my memory sucks. I have no idea what happened 4 movies ago (honestly, I can barely remember what happened in this - and I watched it like 2 weeks ago). I probably would have enjoyed all the nostalgic bits of time travel if I remembered all the things I'm supposed to be nostalgic about. And, this may make me seem really cold, but I'm not emotionally attached enough to any of these characters to care if they actually die. At this point, I'm expecting it - I mean, fucking finally, right?!

2. Stronger - I thought I was going to cry, but I was able to hold strong. I think it's weird that two movies were already made about an event that happened just 6 years ago. This movie is very different than the Marky Mark one because it focuses on just one of the survivors (and his surrounding support system). Jake Gyllenhaal is definitely one of the best actors of his generation (which is my generation). There are no other actors in their 30s that have accomplished what he has, and the fact that he doesn't have at least 3 Oscars is unfathomable. He's only been nominated once! I count at least ten performances (including this one) that should have been nominated. Fuckin' TEN. That's insane! His Boston accent is spot-on in this, and the emotional depth of this performance is astounding. Tatiana Maslany is also really great (as expected if you've seen Orphan Black). I hope she has a huge career and that's she's not forgotten about. This story is really great, because it puts the focus on our need for "heroes" and what constitutes someone as a hero. He's seen as a hero, but all he did was simply survive. He was suddenly thrown in the spotlight, and expected to perform. It's quite tragic, really. It's amazing that he is able to keep his sense of humor and sarcasm, even during the worst situations. It's sad that they aren't a couple anymore (yes, I looked it up). I was rooting for them, and I don't root for many couples.

3. John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum - I really enjoyed the first two and expected to love the third, especially with the strong reviews. Unfortunately, I just couldn't get into this one. I felt like the first two created a really strong world that lives within "our" world, but this felt like they went too far to live in any sort of realism. Also, I loved the scene with Halle Berry, but she hasn't been strong in anything since...Gothika? Has it really been that long? I really used to love her, and would even site her as one of my favorite actresses..but that was over 15 years ago. She was terrible in this - just so bland, and she seemed like she was reading off of cue cards. I just wish the scene was done with a different actress, because then I could say that it was truly great. The rest of the movie was exactly as expected- wonderfully crafted and choreographed fight scenes. It's a little disappointing that they still left the story open, room for a fourth movie. I'm over it. Enough is Enough. Also, a minor criticism, but as an animal lover - a big part of why this movie is so special - his fight to revenge the death of his dog, I despise the horse scene. Horses do not belong in NYC - and animal activists have been actively fighting against this for decades. It's tone deaf to have John Wick galloping through the city streets on a horse, I don't care how cool he looks.

4. Long Shot - Seth Rogen and Charlize Theron are definitely an odd pairing - and not because of looks. Because he's a stoner comedian actor and she's an Oscar nominated actress. I think it's definitely a societal problem when a super hot actress pairs up with a "normal" looking funny guy, and everyone goes "really...him?" (I've been guilty of it myself - see: January Jones and Jason Sudeikis - really, him???). It's insulting on many, often contradictory, levels. For one, to assume that a beautiful woman, like Charlize Theron, only cares about materialistic things (therefore, the man she dates must either be hot or rich, or both) is completely misogynistic. On a completely opposite spectrum - in order to look like Charlize Theron, it takes a lot of effort - from the designer clothes, to the constant skin care routine, etc. that women have to endure, and then they end up with "normal" guys, like Seth Rogen, who literally do nothing aside from getting out of bed and maybe showering. It's not really that far out of line to think that maybe she deserves better? I'm just throwing out some thoughts in my head, but it's all sort of fascinating to think about this pairing. Anyway, the movie isn't as deep as the thoughts in my head, as it doesn't really need to be. It's a dumb comedy, that's actually pretty funny. Rogen always makes me laugh, but I wasn't expecting the spot-on comedic timing from Theron. She's actually hilarious and it felt genuine - like she wasn't even trying too hard to be that funny. Which just makes me love her even more. 

5. Robin Hood (2018) - Completely unnecessary, but I will watch literally anything with Taron Egerton. Literally ANYTHING. I actually don't think I've ever watched a Robin Hood movie aside from the animated one with the fox that I watched when I was a child. I don't even know how many there are, but there is only so much you can do with the story. I think a modern version - should be just that - modern. This just feels redundant and boring - even as it's announced in the beginning that you need to forget "what you think you know", as if this movie is going to tell you something completely different (*spoiler* it doesn't). The only thing that shocked me was that the super hot guy from The Fall shows up so I had the privilege of oggling not one, but TWO super hot guys for two hours. I was also pretty surprised at Jamie Foxx's over-acting. He's usually consistently strong, but he's definitely the worst actor in this. They did do a sort of twisty ending (that I think is pretty predictable, but I still appreciated it), but other than that I think it's pretty dull. If it didn't have two hot guys to stare at, I probably would have fallen asleep or gotten up to clean and kept it as background noise.