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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated My Spy (2019) in Movies

Jun 22, 2020

My Spy (2019)

2019 | Comedy, Family

7.3

(13 Ratings)

Movie Rating

STX made headlines when they agreed to sell their upcoming film “My SPY” to Amazon so the movie could debut on the streaming service versus waiting for the highly uncertain time when audiences will be able to return to theaters in significant numbers to make films profitable.

The movie stars Dave Bautista as a C.I.A. agent named JJ. JJ was a former Special Forces member who joined the agency after his military career ended. After an operation does not go as planned; JJ’s boss David Kim (Ken Jeong) questions whether JJ is right for the type of work that is required.

JJ is assigned with an overzealous analyst named Bobbi (Kristen Schaal) to conduct surveillance on a single mother named Kate (Parisa Fitz-Henley) and her nine-year-old daughter Sophie (Chloe Coleman).

Kate Sophie had just moved from Paris and are struggling to adapt to the new situation. It seems that Sophie’s father was deeply involved in all sorts of illegal operations and JJ and Bobbi are keeping an eye on them to see if their uncle attempts to contact them as he’s a key figure in an ongoing plutonium arms deal.

Things take an unexpected turn when the precocious Sophie figures out that their apartment is loaded with surveillance gear and soon tracks it to an adjacent apartment and confronts JJ and Bobbi.

Unwilling to have to admit to his superiors that their cover was blown by a nine-year-old girl; JJ soon becomes Sophie’s new friend as she forces him to take her ice-skating and to appear at a school career day as she is desperate to make friends following her move.

This arrangement causes issues with Bobbi and she believes that JJ needs to be training her in the finer aspects of his career.

Further complicating matters is a growing attraction between JJ and Kate thanks to Sophie repeatedly finding ways for her mother and JJ to be together.

While most viewers will be able to see where the film is heading; the enjoyable cast and the chemistry between them makes the movie rise above standard family comedies.

Bautista does a great job poking fun at his action persona and clearly showed in his “Guardians of the Galaxy” performances that he is certainly capable of mixing comedy and action.

While the film does not offer much in the way of surprises; it does offer some very charming and enjoyable moments with enough humor to make it an enjoyable viewing experience for the entire family.

3.5 stars out of 5

Kudos

Natasha Khan recommended Blue by Joni Mitchell in Music (curated)

Blue by Joni Mitchell

1971 | Folk, Rock, Singer-Songwriter

9.2

(6 Ratings)

Album Favorite

"I was only about 13 when I heard it and it was another one that I played a lot in my bedroom. There was a trilogy of females, which was Joni Mitchell's Blue, Kate Bush's Hounds Of Love and Bjork's Debut that I discovered when I was 12 and obviously had a huge impact on me. But Joni Mitchell, for me, her voice is like an instrument, the same as Bjork's - I just loved hearing a woman's voice that sounded so free and was doing weird things to my brain, pulling it around. How do you even talk about something like this? You just end up saying a load of cliches! There's songs like 'River' and 'Blue' and I didn't know anything really as a 13-year-old about California and Laurel Canyon and the psychedelic 60s and what had happened to everybody, the disenchantment they maybe felt later on. I didn't really understand the background of that, yet there was this woman coming out of my speaker, her feminine energy and her freedom, her expression, her unapologetic rawness, again, and the beauty and competence, and weird tunings, it all completely made sense to me. It all sounded like this amazing place that smelt like pine trees and had golden, yellow sunshine and long hair and tapestries and curtains and cats and guitars. I thought: "What is this place that this woman is talking about?" Actually it's just this universe inside of her, she's like this amazing building full of beautiful things, so complex and so deep and intellectual. I just think she's fully competent on so many levels! I was listening to Carole King, Tapestry, at the time, and that's another beautiful record, but Joni Mitchell's is just emotionally more complex. It was meandering and had movements and parts to it and her voice would soar. There's that bit where she's saying, "hell's the hippest way to go, I don't think so but I'm going to take a look around it": there's that onset of disenchantment, where she's sick of this bullshit, and Joni Mitchell's so good at seeing through the bullshit - it's not this throwaway, idealistic, hippy kind of thing, she's always burrowing a little bit under the surface. As a young girl, hearing women talk about travelling, going on an aeroplane, missing California, being in Paris, seeing some guy playing guitar and writing a love note on a napkin to her. It's like good life experience, listening to that through someone else."

Source

Kudos

Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated Trouble In Paradise (1932) in Movies

Sep 30, 2019

Trouble In Paradise (1932)

1932 | Comedy, Drama

10.0

(1 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Highly Entertaining

I love that I don’t have to score on a curve when watching the classics. Movies like Trouble In Paradise really do stand the test of time and are quality movies in comparison with even today’s standards. Sure, techniques may have been adjusted for today’s time, but the movie as is is truly a joy. in Trouble In Paradise, two crooks in love plan a heist against a perfume company executive, but the plot truly thickens when things don’t quite go as planned.

Acting: 10
When it comes to performances, each person played their part extremely well. However, I have to give the biggest nod to Herbert Marshall as Gaston. He handles the role with a suave nature that takes over every scene he appears in. He handles the emotional brunt of the movie in a way where you can truly see how torn he is.

Beginning: 10

Characters: 10
Gaston will make you laugh but he will also make you feel. He is a flawed character with many layers. I love that you really don’t know what he’s going to do next. While I thoroughly enjoyed the two female leads as well, Gaston carried the movie in my opinion.

Cinematography/Visuals: 10
The movie takes you all over Paris from grand hotels to expansive ballrooms. I enjoyed how director Ernst Lubitsch captures the sleight of hand from the thieves. There were also a few shots hit from different angles to capture point-of-view that I especially appreciated. Overall, the cinematography added to the beauty of the film.

Conflict: 10

Entertainment Value: 9
What makes this film so entertaining and separates it from other classics is that feeling of the unknown. I couldn’t guess what was going to happen if I tried and it made me appreciate the movie that much more. In addition, not only does it have its hilarious moments but some emotional ones as well. Trouble In Paradise takes you on a rollercoaster from start to finish.

Memorability: 10

Pace: 10

Plot: 10
Great story that keeps you guessing. Also, the movie proves that less is more with a plot that’s extremely easy to follow but also intuitive. In the end it’s a story that leaves much for interpretation and lets you decide how you think things unfold.

Resolution: 10

Overall: 99
From the beginning, this movie grabs your attention and holds it until the last shot. The more I thought about Trouble In Paradise, the more it captivated me. If you are looking for a quality classic, look no further.