Thoughts on 5 Films

1. Frozen II - Oh God, I honestly don't know how I survived through the whole thing. I wasn't a huge fan of the first one. It amazes me that it had such a huge following. There was nothing wrong with it, I guess, but it just wasn't my thing (and that song is insanely annoying - and I say this as a huge fan of Idina Menzel). I actually don't remember much from the first one (I watched it 5 years ago - my memory is about 2 weeks for things that I don't love). This second one, though, is just so dull and the music is cringe-worthy. I forgot how annoying Olaf is (and Josh Gad...ugh), but he did have the highlight of the movie - with the funniest line when he shouts "their parents are dead!" It was the way he said it that really sent me into a fit of giggles. I'm also really confused at the theory that Elsa is gay? Because she shares a 5 minute scene with a woman and they...talk? I really hope the creators don't think that's acceptable as representation? Or is it just an audience theory by dumb people? I have no idea (nor am I invested enough to look into it). Anyway, I'm glad that kids enjoy this. Although it makes me ecstatic that I don't currently have a child because if I had to sit through this garbage on repeat, well...I don't know what I would do.

2. Doctor Sleep - Look, I like The Shining as much as any sane person, but it's never been at the top of my list. It's actually been decades since I've watched it, so maybe I would have a new appreciation for it now (doubtful), but the story just never hooked me (the iconic images - now, that's another story). I was still looking forward to this, mostly for the cast and for Mike Flanagan (Hush is one of my favorite horrors of the last decade). For the most part, I enjoyed it, but it still didn't really hook me. It's faaaaaaaar from scary, which I think makes the whole thing a bit pointless. It's at its best when it recreates those "iconic images" from its predecessor, but it took far too long to get there. Rebecca Ferguson is definitely the highlight, and is indeed, mesmerizing. I was really bothered by the girl who plays Snakebite Andi because I was really confused why they had someone so old play a 15 year old, so I looked up her age and she claims to be only 18. I also learned she is the same actress who played the child version of Amanda Clarke on Revenge, so I guess she could be telling the truth. (although her date of birth on Wikipedia is listed as 2001/2002(?) and on IMDB her place of birth is USA instead of an actual city. If you look further, there are several sites that list her actual birth place and her birth date, but it all seems suspicious to me. I think she's at least 25. Anyway, epic sidetrack, and not important at all, but it distracted me from the movie for a good 20 minutes). Jacob Tremblay is waaaay too good to be in a movie for, what, 5 minutes? How insulting. But, there is one moment that will stay with me forever - the "kill yourself" moment. I actually gasped and I think I stopped breathing for a full minute. It's chilling.

3. Richard Jewell - Really satisfying in its portrayal of a misunderstood man, the disturbing "story-chasers" within the media, and how both of these things can shape how the public crucifies innocent people. The story is just fascinating, and very relevant to our deconstruction of the press (and the idea of "fake news" - there is some truth to that, although it's dangerous to assume every journalist is like this). It has become more important to be first, than to be right or even of quality (even in something less important like film news/reviews), and that is extremely dangerous. It's been amplified by social media, and I don't see a solution any time soon. This, along with the Oklahoma City bombing that happened a year before, are two moments in my teenage years, where I really started to understand just how awful humans can be. I remember being really scared as a teenager to attend crowded events or famous buildings (obviously this fear got so much worse just 5 years later). But now, I'm so desensitized. Just like mass-shootings, it's just a part of life - no point in living life in fear (woohoo America!). Anyway, I really like Olivia Wilde in this - it's a very different role for her. I'm also really fascinated in this depiction of this woman, because she basically trades sex for story tips, which is obviously unethical (and if it's not true, then this movie instantly becomes exactly what it is trying to expose...). It's a shame she's not alive to defend herself. Also, Sam Rockwell is a treasure. He just instantly makes every movie better, and he provides some much needed comic relief.

4. Gemini Man - I guessed by the box-office numbers that this movie is a disaster, which is sad because I really want Will Smith to do something great again. This movie, is in fact, a disaster. The premise is really strong but it's not executed well. It's also dumb that we already know what the movie is about, but they wait 35 minutes to introduce the "clone" version, and I guess we're supposed to be shocked by it. The worst part, though, is the visual effects. I appreciate that Ang Lee pushes the envelope with technological advances in film - often experimenting with the "spectacle" of a movie (with Life of Pi and Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk), but I often find his films long and drawn-out (and a more controversial opinion is that his best movie is The Ice Storm, although I remember liking Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. I'm not really a fan of Brokeback Mountain. *runs away*). The de-aging technique in this movie, is visually disturbing in my opinion. I think the only way this works is if we don't already know what the actor looked like as a younger version? I felt the same way about Samuel L Jackson in Captain Marvel (he didn't look like that!). The younger clone is just really hard to look at - robotic, emotionless, and my brain never registered it as a real person. My other problem with this movie, is that this shit is very boring. The only really, really, really cool scene is the one featuring the helmet assassin. It was like Terminator style, but faster. I wish the whole movie felt like that.

5. Palm Springs - The hyperbole is REAL for this one, my friends. It's a super cute movie, and may even end up in my Top 10 of the year, but that's because EVERYTHING has been pushed back this year. So, that's not exactly something to brag about. I'm not the biggest fan of Adam Samberg (although I love Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but that's for the supporting cast), he's fine, I guess, but he's just the same dopey character in everything - so, not much of an actor. I don't recognize Cristin Milioti from anything (never watched a single second of How I Met your Mother), but she's cute. She kind of reminds me of Lizzy Caplan (I would have preferred Lizzy, if I'm honest). I didn't know much about the movie before watching it - someone described it as "Groundhog's Day but with a couple", and that description made me groan (sorry, but I don't get the love for that movie. I feel like I'm admitting a lot of opinions in this post that will make film nerds cry - don't like Groundhog's Day, Brokeback Mountain, Frozen, and I don't think The Shining is the best movie ever. Sorry film nerds, the truth hurts!). I did like this movie. I think that they have great chemistry together - and that made it really enjoyable to watch (and THANK GOD the movie didn't revolve around the girl in the beginning, because I wanted to slit my wrists when she talked). I really, really like that they committed to the ridiculous plot 100%. And the ending is really cute. But it's not something I'll remember years from now, nor do I have any inkling to rewatch it. I've seen someone describe it as being in their "top 3 rom-coms of ALL-TIME" and that's....just really hard to believe.