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Sarah (126 KP) rated Justice League (2017) in Movies
Aug 25, 2018
Very Weak
Upfront, let me say that I'm neither a Marvel nor a DC girl - to be honest, I would struggle (in the past) to differentiate one universe from the other, so there's no bias - in that sense - to my review.
For family film night we decided to watch Justice League - we'd all really enjoyed Wonder Woman (me, in particular) so figured a superhero film with the lovely Gal Gadot back again would be a good choice.
Oh how wrong we were.
The whole thing, from start to finish, is just exceptionally weak. Almost the complete opposite of Wonder Woman, neither the story or action were sufficient to capture any of our attention. The plot, with the boxes was rather vague and not compelling, too much time was spent on "getting the gang together", with very little happening, and not enough on the actual story itself.
One observation was "what's the point of Aquaman?" - other than having another location for a box, this was quite a good point. It felt like we spent a fair amount of time on setting the scene with him, but for very little in terms of what he could do or offer the Justice League.
To be completely honest, the whole ensemble seemed to be lacking - we didn't see the gadgets of Batman, the awesome power of Wonder Woman, anything very much at all of The Flash or Victor Stone - speaking of whom, for people like me who don't know the comic books, a bit of an idea of who these characters are wouldn't go amiss! My husband even asked "so, is he a knock off Iron Man?"
Then we come to Henry Cavill's face. Reading another review, I now understand he had a moustache which was digitally edited out - when watching I actually asked did he die part way through filming so they had to CGI him in? (Jokingly, I knew he didn't but the CGI was THAT bad!)
There is so much CGI in the film, it begs the question why not just make an animated film? It's so badly worked in at times, and so poorly done (see Henry Cavill's face).
I was so disappointed in this, not even topless Jason Momoa or stunning Gal Gadot could save it for me. But at least we had a laugh working lines from 'Born to be Wild' into our commentary of the film...
For family film night we decided to watch Justice League - we'd all really enjoyed Wonder Woman (me, in particular) so figured a superhero film with the lovely Gal Gadot back again would be a good choice.
Oh how wrong we were.
The whole thing, from start to finish, is just exceptionally weak. Almost the complete opposite of Wonder Woman, neither the story or action were sufficient to capture any of our attention. The plot, with the boxes was rather vague and not compelling, too much time was spent on "getting the gang together", with very little happening, and not enough on the actual story itself.
One observation was "what's the point of Aquaman?" - other than having another location for a box, this was quite a good point. It felt like we spent a fair amount of time on setting the scene with him, but for very little in terms of what he could do or offer the Justice League.
To be completely honest, the whole ensemble seemed to be lacking - we didn't see the gadgets of Batman, the awesome power of Wonder Woman, anything very much at all of The Flash or Victor Stone - speaking of whom, for people like me who don't know the comic books, a bit of an idea of who these characters are wouldn't go amiss! My husband even asked "so, is he a knock off Iron Man?"
Then we come to Henry Cavill's face. Reading another review, I now understand he had a moustache which was digitally edited out - when watching I actually asked did he die part way through filming so they had to CGI him in? (Jokingly, I knew he didn't but the CGI was THAT bad!)
There is so much CGI in the film, it begs the question why not just make an animated film? It's so badly worked in at times, and so poorly done (see Henry Cavill's face).
I was so disappointed in this, not even topless Jason Momoa or stunning Gal Gadot could save it for me. But at least we had a laugh working lines from 'Born to be Wild' into our commentary of the film...
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Love, Death & Robots - Season 1 in TV
Apr 9, 2020
The beauty of Love, Death and Robots is it's format. An eclectic collection of animated short films, some genuinely brilliant, with a handful of duds, truly gives something for everyone.
There are 18 films on show here, all with something different to offer.
Firstly there were 3 that failed to really resonate with me - Sucker of Souls, When the Yoghurt Took Over, and Alternate Histories. I found these three either slightly boring, or silly for the sake of being silly. There were 2 that sort of floated in the middle - The Dump, and Blind Spot, not bad by any means (none of the shorts are truly bad) but just were sort of there.
Leaving a grand total of 13 shorts that I thought were really really great.
A handful of these realistic CGI entries - namely, Sonnie's Edge, Three Robots, Beyond the Aquila Rift, Shape Shifters (one of the highlights for me), Helping Hand (reminded me of Gravity, in a great way), Lucky 13, and The Secret War.
These lot are lengthier offerings, and boast some good looking CGI animation, bordering on photo realism at times. The run time gives an opportunity for some decent fleshed out stories.
The Secret War in particular is nothing short of breath taking, and may well be my top pick of the whole season.
Elsewhere, we have more cartoony offerings - Suits, a loud animation that features farmers in mech suits fighting aliens. Zima Blue, a beautifully touching story of how a simple robot transcends existence itself - another highlight of the season. Fish Night, a short desert based drama bursting with colour. The animation of this one reminded me of A Scanner Darkly. Good Hunting, a collision of Ancient Chinese stories and a Bioshock style steampunk future. Hard to watch at times, but stunning also - easily would have been my top pick if The Secret War wasn't included.
Rounding it off we have The Witness, and animation that looks like a moving oil painting and reminded me of Mirror's Edge, and Ice Age, a fun short that's the only live action inclusion with CGI flourishes about a civilisation growing in a couple freezer.
It's an ambitious collection of shorts for sure, but like I said, there's something here for everyone. Even the ones that I liked the least are a 6/10 at worst. If you like sci-fi or animation in any shape or form, then check this series out.
There are 18 films on show here, all with something different to offer.
Firstly there were 3 that failed to really resonate with me - Sucker of Souls, When the Yoghurt Took Over, and Alternate Histories. I found these three either slightly boring, or silly for the sake of being silly. There were 2 that sort of floated in the middle - The Dump, and Blind Spot, not bad by any means (none of the shorts are truly bad) but just were sort of there.
Leaving a grand total of 13 shorts that I thought were really really great.
A handful of these realistic CGI entries - namely, Sonnie's Edge, Three Robots, Beyond the Aquila Rift, Shape Shifters (one of the highlights for me), Helping Hand (reminded me of Gravity, in a great way), Lucky 13, and The Secret War.
These lot are lengthier offerings, and boast some good looking CGI animation, bordering on photo realism at times. The run time gives an opportunity for some decent fleshed out stories.
The Secret War in particular is nothing short of breath taking, and may well be my top pick of the whole season.
Elsewhere, we have more cartoony offerings - Suits, a loud animation that features farmers in mech suits fighting aliens. Zima Blue, a beautifully touching story of how a simple robot transcends existence itself - another highlight of the season. Fish Night, a short desert based drama bursting with colour. The animation of this one reminded me of A Scanner Darkly. Good Hunting, a collision of Ancient Chinese stories and a Bioshock style steampunk future. Hard to watch at times, but stunning also - easily would have been my top pick if The Secret War wasn't included.
Rounding it off we have The Witness, and animation that looks like a moving oil painting and reminded me of Mirror's Edge, and Ice Age, a fun short that's the only live action inclusion with CGI flourishes about a civilisation growing in a couple freezer.
It's an ambitious collection of shorts for sure, but like I said, there's something here for everyone. Even the ones that I liked the least are a 6/10 at worst. If you like sci-fi or animation in any shape or form, then check this series out.
Li Hughes (285 KP) rated Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) in Movies
Aug 5, 2017
(FYI, I meant to rate this a 9/10 but my mouse is borked. Have to wait 4 weeks to fix the rating.)
This is an amazing movie to wash Star Wars 1-3 from the collective palate. (To be fair, I didn't HATE those movies...they just didn't live up to the rest of the series.) This is basically a restart, but without losing any of the history that was already built up.
It is much more a straight-up war movie than any of the rest of the series. Death and violence were definitely present before, but always with a "galaxy far, far away" feeling to them. In Rogue One, every injury and death is immediate, not gory but much more real than Obi-Wan winking out of existence or Luke's hand shearing off with minor discomfort. The ending definitely continues in that vein: I love the sharp reality of it and the flavor it gives to rewatches of the original movies now, but it was so painful to watch in the theater!
My biggest gripe was simply the CGI done for young Leia and Tarkin. Leia wasn't too bad, just enough off that it makes my eyes want to slide off without quite knowing why. But Tarkin was awkward and just weird looking. If you're going to recreate characters for whatever reason, either put the money in to get the CGI right or if the effects simply aren't up to that yet, wait until they are.
This is an amazing movie to wash Star Wars 1-3 from the collective palate. (To be fair, I didn't HATE those movies...they just didn't live up to the rest of the series.) This is basically a restart, but without losing any of the history that was already built up.
It is much more a straight-up war movie than any of the rest of the series. Death and violence were definitely present before, but always with a "galaxy far, far away" feeling to them. In Rogue One, every injury and death is immediate, not gory but much more real than Obi-Wan winking out of existence or Luke's hand shearing off with minor discomfort. The ending definitely continues in that vein: I love the sharp reality of it and the flavor it gives to rewatches of the original movies now, but it was so painful to watch in the theater!
My biggest gripe was simply the CGI done for young Leia and Tarkin. Leia wasn't too bad, just enough off that it makes my eyes want to slide off without quite knowing why. But Tarkin was awkward and just weird looking. If you're going to recreate characters for whatever reason, either put the money in to get the CGI right or if the effects simply aren't up to that yet, wait until they are.
Ross (3284 KP) rated Black Panther (2018) in Movies
Feb 20, 2018
Black Panther exploded into the MCU during the Captain America: Civil War and was a breath of fresh air for the franchise. Finally someone to rival Wolverine for fighting skill and claws. This film follows on from there where Prince T'Challa looks to be crowned as the new king of Wakanda. Wakanda has long hidden its true riches and technological worth from the world and is thought of as a nation of poor farmers. King T'Challa must choose whether to continue the selfish tradition or help the world by sharing their natural resources and technology.
The Black Panther is backed up by an excellent cast of sidekicks and helpers as he looks to crack down on illegal trade of Wakanda's vibranium and retain the throne from a worthy challenger.
My main gripe was some of the CGI. Like with Spiderman, I feel at times there is too much detail, eg when flipping over a car his legs sway around like he's in space. To my mind, he would be more focused and all his limbs would be exactly where they need to be. Also in these instances the feeling of which way up is the right way up got a little lost, which shouldn't happen.
I also felt that Andy Serkis was a little under-used in his role as Claue, similar to CrossBones in Civil War.
I am seriously looking forward to Infinity Wars now!
PS - I don't think the post-credits scene is worth the long wait.
The Black Panther is backed up by an excellent cast of sidekicks and helpers as he looks to crack down on illegal trade of Wakanda's vibranium and retain the throne from a worthy challenger.
My main gripe was some of the CGI. Like with Spiderman, I feel at times there is too much detail, eg when flipping over a car his legs sway around like he's in space. To my mind, he would be more focused and all his limbs would be exactly where they need to be. Also in these instances the feeling of which way up is the right way up got a little lost, which shouldn't happen.
I also felt that Andy Serkis was a little under-used in his role as Claue, similar to CrossBones in Civil War.
I am seriously looking forward to Infinity Wars now!
PS - I don't think the post-credits scene is worth the long wait.
Kevin Wilson (179 KP) rated Black Panther (2018) in Movies
Jul 19, 2018
Great cast (2 more)
Lots of action
Interesting story
The typical marvel formula (2 more)
Too many characters to develop each one
Boring villain
Are we finally feeling marvel fatigue?
I do feel this movie is very overrated. It was good sure but not as good as what people have made it out to be.
This could just be superhero fatigue. Or maybe it's just marvel fatigue because I'm still interesyed in what DC will offer. This just didn't feel very unique to me. Marvel seems to focus a lot on action, set pieces, CGI than its characters. The villain was boring and underdeveloped. It did have strong female characters, I'll give it that but was very underused. Black panther is well cast.
There were parts of this movie that felt very ironman and other parts that felt very James bond weirldy enough. There were times the CGI was distracting and when they tried to be too funny it didn't work. I'm talking about the car chase scene.
I knew nothing about black panther going in except was was in civil war and I'm not sure where they are going to go with the character.
I know I'm talking negatively but don't get me wrong the action was fun. The fight scenes were well choreographed, I live Martin Freeman in everything and it was interesting to see wakanda with all the technological advances. It's nots a bad movie, it was just overrated and just didn't live up to expectations. They falled flat in many areas.
This could just be superhero fatigue. Or maybe it's just marvel fatigue because I'm still interesyed in what DC will offer. This just didn't feel very unique to me. Marvel seems to focus a lot on action, set pieces, CGI than its characters. The villain was boring and underdeveloped. It did have strong female characters, I'll give it that but was very underused. Black panther is well cast.
There were parts of this movie that felt very ironman and other parts that felt very James bond weirldy enough. There were times the CGI was distracting and when they tried to be too funny it didn't work. I'm talking about the car chase scene.
I knew nothing about black panther going in except was was in civil war and I'm not sure where they are going to go with the character.
I know I'm talking negatively but don't get me wrong the action was fun. The fight scenes were well choreographed, I live Martin Freeman in everything and it was interesting to see wakanda with all the technological advances. It's nots a bad movie, it was just overrated and just didn't live up to expectations. They falled flat in many areas.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) in Movies
Nov 27, 2020
This second outing for the full Avengers ensemble is a bit messier than the confident and tight first film, but still manages to be fun and exciting in spite of its flaws.
Once again, the huge positive is the great cast, and the chemistry they all share. The core six Avengers return, and provide the films humour (rightfully scaled back from the all out comedy tone of Guardians) and generally remind everyone why they're the solid backbone of this mammoth franchise.
There are plenty of new faces joining them, most notably Scarlet Witch (Elisabeth Olsen), Vision (Paul Bettany) and Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), and all integrate smoothly.
The villain is the titular Ultron (voiced by James Spader), a classic Marvel Comics villain that unfortunately ends up being another one-and-done MCU antagonist. This films main focus is the relationships between the Avengers, and sewing seeds for Civil War, and sadly, Ultron sort of gets pushed aside for this. It's a shame because Spader does a great job of making Ultron a sinister presence, but he ends up being little more than a CGI commander, of a CGI robot army.
Some of the set pieces are great though, particularly the Hulk vs Hulkbuster scene, and the climactic finale, and the child me who grew up reading these comics was nothing short of thrilled to see Vision in action.
Age of Ultron is somewhat underwhelming for a full blown Avengers entry, but still manages to be entertaining. Hopefully, we will see Ultron return in a future installment that has some more depth to it.
Once again, the huge positive is the great cast, and the chemistry they all share. The core six Avengers return, and provide the films humour (rightfully scaled back from the all out comedy tone of Guardians) and generally remind everyone why they're the solid backbone of this mammoth franchise.
There are plenty of new faces joining them, most notably Scarlet Witch (Elisabeth Olsen), Vision (Paul Bettany) and Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), and all integrate smoothly.
The villain is the titular Ultron (voiced by James Spader), a classic Marvel Comics villain that unfortunately ends up being another one-and-done MCU antagonist. This films main focus is the relationships between the Avengers, and sewing seeds for Civil War, and sadly, Ultron sort of gets pushed aside for this. It's a shame because Spader does a great job of making Ultron a sinister presence, but he ends up being little more than a CGI commander, of a CGI robot army.
Some of the set pieces are great though, particularly the Hulk vs Hulkbuster scene, and the climactic finale, and the child me who grew up reading these comics was nothing short of thrilled to see Vision in action.
Age of Ultron is somewhat underwhelming for a full blown Avengers entry, but still manages to be entertaining. Hopefully, we will see Ultron return in a future installment that has some more depth to it.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Cube 2: Hypercube (2002) in Movies
Jan 14, 2021
Christ, I did not have fun with this. Cube 2: Hypercube is unfortunately a downgrade of its predecessor in every single way, so I'll start with a couple of positives - 1. Kari Matchett gives us a likable enough lead to follow. 2. When the film first introduces parallel dimensions around 30 minutes in, it became vaguely interesting for about two minutes. And that's about your lot.
Every single character is a walking cliché. The introductions to all these people go on for waaayy too long, and I found myself pretty much immediately wanting them to die, but we're not even allowed to enjoy that aspect. The little gore on display looks awful, nothing done practically, and instead with CGI that looks like deep fried turd, CGI that is draped liberally all over the movie.
Then there's the titular cube itself. Gone are the intricate and Hellraiser-esque aesthetics of the first film, to make way for a clinical white series of Cube rooms (with a grey trim just to spice things up a bit). It just looks terrible.
The narrative isn't too compelling either, with twist after twist thrown at the viewer, but none which have any impact. It even throws in one at the very end which just isn't explained in any capacity. A lazy script with a lazy plot.
I'm pretty sure I had even more negatives to say about Cube 2, but honestly, I'm getting bored just thinking about this film, so yeah, it's poo.
Every single character is a walking cliché. The introductions to all these people go on for waaayy too long, and I found myself pretty much immediately wanting them to die, but we're not even allowed to enjoy that aspect. The little gore on display looks awful, nothing done practically, and instead with CGI that looks like deep fried turd, CGI that is draped liberally all over the movie.
Then there's the titular cube itself. Gone are the intricate and Hellraiser-esque aesthetics of the first film, to make way for a clinical white series of Cube rooms (with a grey trim just to spice things up a bit). It just looks terrible.
The narrative isn't too compelling either, with twist after twist thrown at the viewer, but none which have any impact. It even throws in one at the very end which just isn't explained in any capacity. A lazy script with a lazy plot.
I'm pretty sure I had even more negatives to say about Cube 2, but honestly, I'm getting bored just thinking about this film, so yeah, it's poo.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Kong: Skull Island (2017) in Movies
Jul 28, 2017
Script & character development (2 more)
Overused slow mo
Music
Better than Peter Jackson's version
Well this definitely wasn't worse than Peter Jackson's snorefest of a Kong movie, and I'd say it's probably on par with Gareth Edward's Godzilla film.
It's a much better story and plot than Peter Jackson's but it really suffers from a patchy script and very poor character development. The CG Kong is impressive, but the slow motion effects are really overused. There are some cheesy shots - Tom Hiddleston has obviously been told to stand around "looking macho" - and the music just doesn't work. There isn't a requirement to use all of the same classic songs just because a film is set around the time of the Vietnam war!
It's a much better story and plot than Peter Jackson's but it really suffers from a patchy script and very poor character development. The CG Kong is impressive, but the slow motion effects are really overused. There are some cheesy shots - Tom Hiddleston has obviously been told to stand around "looking macho" - and the music just doesn't work. There isn't a requirement to use all of the same classic songs just because a film is set around the time of the Vietnam war!
Kate (355 KP) rated Beauty and the Beast (2017) in Movies
Mar 3, 2019
Contains spoilers, click to show
We all know the story, but I haven't watched the original one for many years and don't remember much about it. This is actually quite good although some of the CGI didn't quite work and looked dated but I expect that was to keep in with the theme. Having not read or seen much of the blurb about the film, I was nicely surprised by the number of stars who appear in it, of course you don't get to see them until the end. The only problem is having grown up watching the Harry Potter films I kept expecting Emma Watson to cast a spell but that is probably because I haven't seen much of her other films. Watch it.
Dean (6927 KP) rated Max Payne (2008) in Movies
Apr 27, 2019
I haven't played the games, of which a third is due out soon?! So I can only merit it as a film in its own right. Aware of poor reviews, I wasn't aware too much of the story behind the games, other than a cop who hands out his own rough justice. It was an interesting film but I think most expected a lot more action, or maybe more blood and violence. Instead it's more of a film noir thriller. The visuals are impressive, not just the cgi angels but the overall cinematography. The action gets better towards the end with a good shoot-out, but overall it needed a bit more throughout. A good surprising cast line up though!