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Gifted (2017)
Gifted (2017)
2017 | Drama
There's an unexpected depth to it (3 more)
McKenna Grace is a star of the future
Captivating and brilliant
The relationship between Frank and Mary
It could have gone even deeper (1 more)
Would have liked to know more about Mary's mother
Surprisingly good
  
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
2021 | Action, Sci-Fi
Paul rudd (1 more)
Mckenna grace
Who u gonna call
Finally a ghostbusters sequel that's worthy of the name after the all female reboot which doesn't get mentioned here thank god we finally get a proper sequel thats faithful to the orignal which I remember seeing when I was 15 years old. excellent script good casting and of course the return of the orignal busters of course older but still got it . But for me the standout star goes to mckenna grace who steals the movie from the adults who shines thru star of the future. Overall Brilliant sequel so who u gonna call ghostbusters also stay for the end credits
  
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CBorden (67 KP) rated Gifted (2017) in Movies

Feb 10, 2018  
Gifted (2017)
Gifted (2017)
2017 | Drama
Chris Evans and McKenna Grace are superb! They elaborately maneuver the labyrinth of raising a gifted child, and being the gifted child trying to be a kid but also embrace the things that make her unique. This movie very clearly shows the struggles from all sides - the guardian, the extended family, the teaching professionals, and the gifted themselves.
  
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Sarah (7798 KP) rated Gifted (2017) in Movies

Feb 8, 2019  
Gifted (2017)
Gifted (2017)
2017 | Drama
A great surprise
I hadn't really expected very much from this film, but it was actually a brilliant and heartwarming surprise. It has a great cast and is wonderfully acted - McKenna Grace is exceptional for a child actor and I was even impressed with Chris Evans, it's been so long since I've seen him in something that isn't Marvel related and it's nice to see.

The film itself is a mixture of humour and a sometimes heartwrenching and emotional story about a gifted child. It has a fairly short runtime which is also refreshing, but I actually think it could have been a little longer. It's well shot and scripted and was just an all round delight to watch. And seeing Chris Evans with cats? Kinda hard to resist.
  
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
2021 | Action, Sci-Fi
Very nostalgic (1 more)
Good fun for all the family
A little too familiar (0 more)
Spooktacular
This definitely looked fun from the trailer and just like the stream from the Proton pack it's a blast.
Definitely one fans of the original will enjoy. Plenty of reminders, playing homage to the original and respect to Harold.
It centred around the young actors a bit more than I expected but they are suited to their roles. Mckenna Grace really stood out.
Only slight down side is the plot does become familiar in the final third and very safe, sticking to the original in many ways.
Overall a fun film that all will enjoy whether old fans of the original or those on their first visit to Ghostbusters. Stay to the very end for another scene.
  
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
2019 | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Annabelle's Horror Doesn't Live Up To The Hype In Her Homecoming
Annabelle is a 2019 supernatural/horror movie written and directed by Gary Dauberman and from screenplay co-written by James Wan. The film was alos produced by James Wan and Peter Safran and by New Line Cinema, Atomic Monster Productions and The Safran Company and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The movie stars Mckenna Grace, Madison Iseman, Katie Sarife, Patrick Wilson, and Vera Farmiga.


Four years after Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmigia) brought the Annabelle doll into their home, they leave Mary Ellen (Madison Iseman), a babysitter, in charge of their daughter, Judy (Mckenna Grace) while they investigate a case overnight. Mary Ellen's friend Daniela (Katie Sarife), sneaks into the artifact when she comes over uninvited and accidentally leaves Annabelle's glass case unlocked causing the terror that ensues.


This movie was pretty good. I liked it and thought that it was genuinely scary in certain parts for a PG-13 movie, but then afterwards I looked it up and saw that it was rated R. I don't feel that this movie lived up to its potential, it being rated R and also being in The Conjuring franchise. The plot felt very loose and not very put together and instead of being about the couple, it centered on their daughter. This I felt definitely made it feel a little scarier since she has none of the experience and knowledge of her parents when it comes to fighting these evil forces but I felt the audience was robbed of a better story the franchise could have told with the parents not really being involved at all. Also I felt that they tried to add too many ghosts/characters for one movie, which was kind of cool in certain ways but also seemed less because of it. All in all, if you like The Conjuring franchise you'll like this movie and I give it a 6/10.
  
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JT (287 KP) rated Annabelle Comes Home (2019) in Movies

Mar 2, 2020 (Updated Mar 10, 2020)  
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
2019 | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
The Conjuring Universe has grown steadily over the years. The introduction of Annabelle was a sinister spin-off for a genre that was kicked started in terrifying style by James Wan. Since then it’s been up and down. The Conjuring spawned a sequel, with one more scheduled for next year. The Nun was introduced (poorly in my opinion) and with this, Annabelle has her trilogy.

Paranormal investigators Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) are back again. The opening events serve as a continuation of the first film. When they leave their daughter Judy (Mckenna Grace), in the hands of babysitter Mary Ellen (Madison Iseman) and her friend Daniela (Katie Sarife) the inquizitive trio release the unwanted entity into the house.

These films are a mine field of jump scares and elongated tension. But that seems to be lacking as it takes time to really get going. When it does it is nothing that we haven’t experienced before. There are a few effective moments. Ghosts with coins on their eyes and a woman in a wedding dress provide some spine chilling scenes – but that is as far as it goes.
  
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Blazing Minds (89 KP) rated Annabelle Comes Home (2019) in Movies

Nov 1, 2021 (Updated Nov 3, 2021)  
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
2019 | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
The films over the years have followed a varied timeline in the Conjuring Universe and Annabelle has featured in two movies, the first set in 1967 and Annabelle: Creation set in 1955, in Annabelle Comes Home we are taken to 1967 shortly after the Warren’s obtained the Annabelle doll, when a teenager and her friend unknowingly awaken an evil spirit trapped in a doll while they babysit Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) Warren’s daughter, Judy (Mckenna Grace), all hell breaks loose!

The third movie in the Annabelle series and seventh in the Conjuring Universe starts as the Warrens take possession of Annabelle and make their way home to lock her up safely with their other artefacts, but on root they come across an incident that those have seen The Curse of la Llorona will recognise as Patricia Alvarez is at a tunnel near the viaduct where La Llorona drowned her sons in the 2019 movie, the Warrens are told to take a detour on the way their car breaks down, Lorraine is visited by a spirit that tells her, “I like you doll”, then she sees many spirits wanting to use Annabelle as a vessel.
  
Gifted (2017)
Gifted (2017)
2017 | Drama
Good Stuff
After the death of his sister, Frank (Chris Evans) opts to take in his extremely intelligent niece Mary (McKenna Grace) and raise her like he thought his sister would have wanted. His hope is to protect her from growing up too fast, particularly from ending up in the clutches of his mom Evelyn (Lindsay Duncan) who would prefer to hole Mary up in a private institution.

Acting: 10

Beginning: 10

Characters: 10
When I look at characters and how they impact a movie, it’s not just about how intriguing they are, but also about how real they are. I love characters that are flawed and you get that with Frank. He’s just trying to do the right thing by his sister and his niece while still trying to live his own life as well. There are oftentimes where he’s wondering if he’s making the right decision and you’re wondering right along with him. I really appreciate the relationship between him and Mary as it wasn’t all rainbows and lollipops. They’ve clearly had some disagreements, but they love each other through it.

The supporting characters helped to hold the movie up as well. Bonnie (Jenny Slate) was probably my personal favorite as the warm caring teacher who genuinely wants the best for Mary. Both encouraging and sweet, she is another character whose story you get to unpack more and more as the movie progresses.

Cinematography/Visuals: 7
Great imagery and shots of a sleepy town in coastal Florida. There isn’t much to blow you away in the way of cinematography, but I appreciate the consistency at the very least. They keep the scenery fresh throughout which was good enough for me.

Conflict: 8

Genre: 7

Memorability: 8

Pace: 10

Plot: 10

Resolution: 8

Overall: 88
I’ve seen Gifted quite a few times, whether all the way through or in bits and pieces. Everytime I watch it, I find someting different to appreciate it. Solid surprise of a movie.
  
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
2019 | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Director: Gary Dauberman
Writer: Gary Dauberman (Screenplay) James Wan (Story)
Starring: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Mckenna Grace, Madison Iseman, Katie Sarife, Michael Cimino, Samara Lee
 
Plot: While babysitting the daughter of Ed and Lorraine Warren, a teenager and her friend unknowingly awaken an evil spirit trapped in a doll.

Tagline – The Next Chapter In The Conjuring Universe
Runtime: 1 Hour 46 Minutes
 
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
 
Verdict: Relentless Scares
 
Story: Annabelle Comes Home starts one year after the Warren’s Ed (Wilson) and Lorraine (Farmiga) bring the Annabelle doll home, knowing its power to control the other items inside their blessed room. With Ed and Lorraine going on a business trip, it leaves their daughter Judy (Grace) with girl next door babysitter Mary Ellen (Iseman), who has planned a little birthday surprise.
When Mary Ellen’s best friend Daniela (Sarife) decides to visit, with questions about the house, getting a moment alone, she sneaks into the blessed room, only to unleash a host of evil upon the three for a night of terror, all thanks to the dreaded Annabelle doll.
 
Thoughts on Annabelle Comes Home
 
Characters – Judy Warren is the daughter of the famous paranormal investigators, she is treated differently at school because of this, with some students being scared, while others just bully her, she does see spirits too and is a shy little girl, she just wants to make friends like any young girl and is struggling with the fact nobody will be her friend except her babysitter Mary Ellen. She does know how to handle herself when hauntings start happening around her house though. Mary Ellen is the girl next door babysitter, she might well be worried about who will take her to homecoming, but she is a friend that Judy needs. Daniela Rios is the best friend of Mary Ellen, she invites herself over to look around, in hopes that she could find a way to connect with her deceased father, whose death was an accident, but she believes was her fault, she unleashes all the evil items on the household, which would make her truly horrible, until you add in the reason why she is trying to find forgiveness. Ed and Lorraine are the familiar faces, only they are basically extended cameos in the film. Bob is the love interest of Mary Ellen and he does through the generic awkward moments of trying to ask her out, he is good for a laugh too.
Performances – McKenna Grace takes over the role of the daughter, she does make us believe that her character has become distant from the world around her, makes us believe she is feeling lonely and isolated too. Madison Iseman makes for an easy pick for the babysitter, she comes off friendly and gives the scream level required to show the fear. Katie Sarife is strong as friend who unleashes everything, somehow making a character we could hate feel sympathy towards. Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson do seem to be here as a draw, only they are barely even in the film.
Story – The story here follows a babysitter’s friend visiting the Warren’s house who unleashes all the evil from the safety, only for the three girls needing to put a halt to this before they can become the latest victims of the curses they have. This story does have a few positives and negatives, the first positive being see how the daughter of the Warren’s is struggling with making connections in life because of their work, we could have easily dived deeper with this, but it was nice to see a change in why somebody is isolated. The pure number of different evil figures we meet through the film is brilliant to see because this opens the doors to seemingly endless amounts of spin off movies now, which could be seen as a negative because, while this is an Annabelle movie, it does tend to focus on the other evil, instead of the main one attached to Annabelle. We could get into character decisions, which aren’t the smartest especially when it comes to knowing who the character of Judy is meant to be.
Horror/Mystery – The horror in the film, is an endless amounts of jump scares, this does work because each does have its own way of being effective, even if a lot if music goes silent and either a boom or something charging the screen. The mystery comes from each new evil that we get to see, we get glimpses into a few leading us to only want to know more.
Settings – The film is set in one singular location, the Warren house, this has all the evil set up within it, which means once it comes out and traps them, they don’t know what will come next.
Special Effects – The effect in the film are strong throughout, with each creation look different, with a couple of tricks for the Ferryman coming off nicely.

Scene of the Movie – The circular shot, I am a fan of this shot even if it was the same as the Nun.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – I can’t help but think one of the rules for babysitting at the Warren’s, would be, anything slightly strange happens, get out until we come home.
Final Thoughts – This is a nice jump scare filled horror, it has plenty of references to the previous films and does leave us wanting more from this universe.
 
Overall: Jump scares for everyone.
Rating