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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Smallfoot (2018) in Movies
Jul 2, 2019
The movie features Channing Tatum as Migo, James Corden as Percy,
Zendaya as Meechee, Common as Stonekeeper, LeBron James and Gwangi and
Danny DeVito and Dorgie, Migos father.
The movie is centered around a group of characters (the Yeti) and the
rules that surround their existence and are literally “set in stone” ,
carried around by (and, one surmises, enforced by) the Stonekeeper.
If it isn’t in the Stones, it just isn’t so.
Conversely, if it IS in the stones, it MUST be so, even if your eyes and
experiences tell you differently.
Each member of the village has a job, and even though the jobs are
monotonously repetitive, and even though at the bottom of it all, they
don’t really know the “why” behind what they are doing, all the Yeti
happily go about their days and participate to make the village run
smoothly.
Until, that is, Migo sees and chases down an airplane that crash lands
into their mountaintop sanctuary. There are legends of Smallfoot in the
Yeti’s folklore, but the stones emphatically state that Smallfoot do NOT
exist.
Migo brings his exciting news of the Smallfoot sighting back to the
village, only to be met by the Stonekeeper questioning whether Migo
could have ACTUALLY seen a Smallfoot, since the stones say they do not
exist. Migo does not let go of his story of seeing the Smallfoot, and is
subsequently banished from the village until he can “see the truth”.
(Maybe he REALLY saw a new breed of Yak!)
Migo leaves the village not knowing where his path should take him now,
and is intercepted by the members of the SES (Smallfoot Evidentiary
Society) who tell him that they believe him and show him the reasons
why, as backed by evidence that they have found over the years.
The three members of the SES are Meechee (Zendaya), who happens to be
the Stonekeepers daughter (!!), Kolka (Gina Rodriguez), Gwangi (LeBron
James), and Fleem (Ely Henry). The four encourage Migo to follow his
curiosity to find the Smallfoot and see what he can find out about them.
With trepidation, Migo heads down the mountain to see what he can find.
Once he has made his way down the mountain, Migo meets a videographer
named Percy, who has been lamenting his recent dismal ratings and lack
of viewers. Percy was going to go so far as to fabricate a story to get
“hits” online and to make a story go viral. Meeting Migo changes all
that and what follows is a heartwarming story about overcoming
differences, learning how to communicate, friendship & sacrifice.
The movie is colorful, and has great, catchy songs. The characters are
funny, there are lots of jokes, and I didn’t feel like there was any
“dead space” in the movie. The story was easy to follow but not boring.
I wouldn’t be surprised to hear about some sort of outcry raised by a
certain segment of the population, saying that the movie is
“anti-religious”, but I found it entirely refreshing for a kids movie to
send the message of not believing something someone tells you just
because “they say so” or just because “that’s the way its always been”,
or even “we do it this way for your own good (because you can’t be
trusted to think for yourself)” . Critical thinking skills are highly
lacking in today’s society, and I think that this movie is a great
example of finding out the truth by asking questions and not just
blindly following where you are told to.
My 10 year old son loved the movie, and I would go see it again in the
theatre, just to watch it again!
Zendaya as Meechee, Common as Stonekeeper, LeBron James and Gwangi and
Danny DeVito and Dorgie, Migos father.
The movie is centered around a group of characters (the Yeti) and the
rules that surround their existence and are literally “set in stone” ,
carried around by (and, one surmises, enforced by) the Stonekeeper.
If it isn’t in the Stones, it just isn’t so.
Conversely, if it IS in the stones, it MUST be so, even if your eyes and
experiences tell you differently.
Each member of the village has a job, and even though the jobs are
monotonously repetitive, and even though at the bottom of it all, they
don’t really know the “why” behind what they are doing, all the Yeti
happily go about their days and participate to make the village run
smoothly.
Until, that is, Migo sees and chases down an airplane that crash lands
into their mountaintop sanctuary. There are legends of Smallfoot in the
Yeti’s folklore, but the stones emphatically state that Smallfoot do NOT
exist.
Migo brings his exciting news of the Smallfoot sighting back to the
village, only to be met by the Stonekeeper questioning whether Migo
could have ACTUALLY seen a Smallfoot, since the stones say they do not
exist. Migo does not let go of his story of seeing the Smallfoot, and is
subsequently banished from the village until he can “see the truth”.
(Maybe he REALLY saw a new breed of Yak!)
Migo leaves the village not knowing where his path should take him now,
and is intercepted by the members of the SES (Smallfoot Evidentiary
Society) who tell him that they believe him and show him the reasons
why, as backed by evidence that they have found over the years.
The three members of the SES are Meechee (Zendaya), who happens to be
the Stonekeepers daughter (!!), Kolka (Gina Rodriguez), Gwangi (LeBron
James), and Fleem (Ely Henry). The four encourage Migo to follow his
curiosity to find the Smallfoot and see what he can find out about them.
With trepidation, Migo heads down the mountain to see what he can find.
Once he has made his way down the mountain, Migo meets a videographer
named Percy, who has been lamenting his recent dismal ratings and lack
of viewers. Percy was going to go so far as to fabricate a story to get
“hits” online and to make a story go viral. Meeting Migo changes all
that and what follows is a heartwarming story about overcoming
differences, learning how to communicate, friendship & sacrifice.
The movie is colorful, and has great, catchy songs. The characters are
funny, there are lots of jokes, and I didn’t feel like there was any
“dead space” in the movie. The story was easy to follow but not boring.
I wouldn’t be surprised to hear about some sort of outcry raised by a
certain segment of the population, saying that the movie is
“anti-religious”, but I found it entirely refreshing for a kids movie to
send the message of not believing something someone tells you just
because “they say so” or just because “that’s the way its always been”,
or even “we do it this way for your own good (because you can’t be
trusted to think for yourself)” . Critical thinking skills are highly
lacking in today’s society, and I think that this movie is a great
example of finding out the truth by asking questions and not just
blindly following where you are told to.
My 10 year old son loved the movie, and I would go see it again in the
theatre, just to watch it again!
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Curvature (2018) in Movies
Jul 8, 2019
If there’s any particular genre i’m particularly keen too, it’s science fiction. Books, movies, television, comics, you name it. I’ve been watching the old school versions of ‘The Twilight Zone’ and ‘The Outer Limits’ since I was like 5 years old (that could explain quite a few things actually). As far as movies? That’s going to lead only to the past, the future, other dimensions, etc. If you had to nail it down even further within the genre of science fiction, I’d have to go right to anything revolving around time travel. That’s where today’s film for your consideration comes in. This one in particular doesn’t seem to be getting the credit it deserves and although it’s a bit rough around the edges, I think it also deserves a shot.
‘Curvature’ is a 2017 science fiction/thriller film (released on February 23rd of this year) written by Brian DeLeeuw and directed by Diego Hallivis. The film stars Lyndsy Fonseca, Noah Bean, Glenn Morshower, Zach Avery, Alex Lanipekun, and Linda Hamilton (yes … THEE Linda Hamilton as in ‘Sarah Conner’).
Helen (Fonseca) is grieving the lose of her husband Wells (Bean) in the aftermath of his suicide. Not long after, Wells’s colleague Tomas (Morshower) seeks her out and asks for her blessing to continue the research project that he and Wells were involved in. Being an engineer and a scientist herself, she agrees and not long after returns to work trying to confront the grief as best she can with the guidance and help of her mentor Florence (Hamilton). Without warning, Helen succumbs to a blackout and awakens several days later. Upon awakening at home, she learns that several days have passed and receives a phone call …. from HERSELF. Helen warns herself to get out of the house as soon as possible as a man in a black BMW is coming to the house to kill her. In the confusion that follows, she manages to barely escape and seek out her friend Alex. What follows is a story of deceit, betrayal, and a conspiracy that goes beyond what Helen could imagine where she can’t trust anyone … not even her future self.
Obviously, i’m biased her being partial to the genre. That being said .. this movie is was, is, and will be excellent. 4 out of 5 stars. What impressed me about the film was how well the writing went with the talent of all the actors involved. My only real complaint, is that I wish they had incorporated more dialogue into the 90 minute movie. It’s almost like they sacrificed time between characters for the special effects which I will say, were absolutely awesome for an independent film. The film fell somewhere between a movie and a television episode as far as the experience. I would’ve preferred it to be one or the other and not in between if that makes any sense. However, I was still blown away by the film and will gladly watch it again and add it to my library at the first opportunity. Not to give too much of the film away, one thing I found unique about this particular time-travel film is how the writer came up with the concept that the nature of the ‘experiment’ allowed for someone to only go back so far into the past between a few hours and a few days limiting how far back you could alter history so-to-speak. The intent wasn’t necessarily to save because too much time had passed … but to ‘stop’. As for the ‘star power of the film’, I saw it as a tip of the hat to other films in the time travel genre. This film definitely deserves a place in the science fiction/time travel library. Take my suggestion and give it a look.
‘Curvature’ is a 2017 science fiction/thriller film (released on February 23rd of this year) written by Brian DeLeeuw and directed by Diego Hallivis. The film stars Lyndsy Fonseca, Noah Bean, Glenn Morshower, Zach Avery, Alex Lanipekun, and Linda Hamilton (yes … THEE Linda Hamilton as in ‘Sarah Conner’).
Helen (Fonseca) is grieving the lose of her husband Wells (Bean) in the aftermath of his suicide. Not long after, Wells’s colleague Tomas (Morshower) seeks her out and asks for her blessing to continue the research project that he and Wells were involved in. Being an engineer and a scientist herself, she agrees and not long after returns to work trying to confront the grief as best she can with the guidance and help of her mentor Florence (Hamilton). Without warning, Helen succumbs to a blackout and awakens several days later. Upon awakening at home, she learns that several days have passed and receives a phone call …. from HERSELF. Helen warns herself to get out of the house as soon as possible as a man in a black BMW is coming to the house to kill her. In the confusion that follows, she manages to barely escape and seek out her friend Alex. What follows is a story of deceit, betrayal, and a conspiracy that goes beyond what Helen could imagine where she can’t trust anyone … not even her future self.
Obviously, i’m biased her being partial to the genre. That being said .. this movie is was, is, and will be excellent. 4 out of 5 stars. What impressed me about the film was how well the writing went with the talent of all the actors involved. My only real complaint, is that I wish they had incorporated more dialogue into the 90 minute movie. It’s almost like they sacrificed time between characters for the special effects which I will say, were absolutely awesome for an independent film. The film fell somewhere between a movie and a television episode as far as the experience. I would’ve preferred it to be one or the other and not in between if that makes any sense. However, I was still blown away by the film and will gladly watch it again and add it to my library at the first opportunity. Not to give too much of the film away, one thing I found unique about this particular time-travel film is how the writer came up with the concept that the nature of the ‘experiment’ allowed for someone to only go back so far into the past between a few hours and a few days limiting how far back you could alter history so-to-speak. The intent wasn’t necessarily to save because too much time had passed … but to ‘stop’. As for the ‘star power of the film’, I saw it as a tip of the hat to other films in the time travel genre. This film definitely deserves a place in the science fiction/time travel library. Take my suggestion and give it a look.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated The Goldfinch (2019) in Movies
Nov 7, 2019
Theo Decker's life is changed forever when a terrorist attack on the Metropolitan Museum of Art destroys everything he holds dear. In the debris he finds a man who pleads with him to take his ring and go to a shop, the last words before he dies.
After leaving the museum he is brough to the home of the Barbours, the only place he seems to be able to think of and they take him in rather than see him become part of the system.
Things should slowly be getting back on track for Theo but the ring wasn't the only thing he took from the museum, in his possession he has The Goldfinch, a priceless painting that will have a hold on him his whole life.
Much like the book the film is not for the faint hearted, 880 pages has become 2 hours and 29 minutes on screen. You could probably cut another chunk off this but that change would inevitable mess with the pace, which I don't think would suit the story all that well.
I wrote a lot of notes as I sat in this film and I've had to reread them all because I can remember the film/story but I can't remember anything about how I felt about it. I left myself a handy note though... "I am incredibly bored by this."
I know that I will never make it through the book, even before the film it wouldn't have been a possibility, but I would like to know what amendments were made to cram the story into that relatively small time frame.
The thing that threw me was Luke Wilson, I don't think I've ever seen him in a dramatic role before, plenty of comedy that I really enjoy but no drama. I can't say this made me want to watch him in this sort of role again. I didn't find him convincing as Theo's dad Larry, at least not convincingly through the film. Alongside him there's Sarah Paulson, she's a great actress but I felt that (while entertaining) her show of Xandra was too over the top for a film with this tone.
Nicole Kidman always brings a character to life and this was no exception but I found the relationship between Mrs Barbour and the kids, particularly Theo, to be confusing and difficult to navigate.
Where do I start with Ansel Elgort... I saw him in Baby Driver, I wasn't a fan, I watched him in this and I wanted to see something better, I don't feel like I got that. Even with the restrained characters actors can still give the role a little glimpse of something to click with but I don't get that from Elgort. There was the briefest flicker when he's confronted by a customer but soon enough it was back to the base level.
On the plus side I found the younger incarnation of Theo, Oakes Fegley, to be very engaging on screen. He worked well with the others and added something a little lighter to the heavy aspects of the film. He worked particularly well with Finn Wolfhard as Boris, though that's another part of the film that stuck out as strange and seemed to hold little meaning other than to allow for the ending to come together.
I'm sure that this is for someone out there, that person was not me though. While it did have a few touching moments here and there I just couldn't make it past the long run time and the slow story.
What you should do
I would only recommend this to people who have read the book.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
A large antiques store to explore.
After leaving the museum he is brough to the home of the Barbours, the only place he seems to be able to think of and they take him in rather than see him become part of the system.
Things should slowly be getting back on track for Theo but the ring wasn't the only thing he took from the museum, in his possession he has The Goldfinch, a priceless painting that will have a hold on him his whole life.
Much like the book the film is not for the faint hearted, 880 pages has become 2 hours and 29 minutes on screen. You could probably cut another chunk off this but that change would inevitable mess with the pace, which I don't think would suit the story all that well.
I wrote a lot of notes as I sat in this film and I've had to reread them all because I can remember the film/story but I can't remember anything about how I felt about it. I left myself a handy note though... "I am incredibly bored by this."
I know that I will never make it through the book, even before the film it wouldn't have been a possibility, but I would like to know what amendments were made to cram the story into that relatively small time frame.
The thing that threw me was Luke Wilson, I don't think I've ever seen him in a dramatic role before, plenty of comedy that I really enjoy but no drama. I can't say this made me want to watch him in this sort of role again. I didn't find him convincing as Theo's dad Larry, at least not convincingly through the film. Alongside him there's Sarah Paulson, she's a great actress but I felt that (while entertaining) her show of Xandra was too over the top for a film with this tone.
Nicole Kidman always brings a character to life and this was no exception but I found the relationship between Mrs Barbour and the kids, particularly Theo, to be confusing and difficult to navigate.
Where do I start with Ansel Elgort... I saw him in Baby Driver, I wasn't a fan, I watched him in this and I wanted to see something better, I don't feel like I got that. Even with the restrained characters actors can still give the role a little glimpse of something to click with but I don't get that from Elgort. There was the briefest flicker when he's confronted by a customer but soon enough it was back to the base level.
On the plus side I found the younger incarnation of Theo, Oakes Fegley, to be very engaging on screen. He worked well with the others and added something a little lighter to the heavy aspects of the film. He worked particularly well with Finn Wolfhard as Boris, though that's another part of the film that stuck out as strange and seemed to hold little meaning other than to allow for the ending to come together.
I'm sure that this is for someone out there, that person was not me though. While it did have a few touching moments here and there I just couldn't make it past the long run time and the slow story.
What you should do
I would only recommend this to people who have read the book.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
A large antiques store to explore.
365Flicks (235 KP) rated The Darkest Universe (2016) in Movies
Nov 20, 2019
Talk about a movie where you just don’t know where to start with!! Co-Directors (Yes Co) Tom Kingsley and Will Sharpe have crafted what I can only describe as my favorite completely surreal yet right down to earth drama I have watched in 2016… Wait no… In years.
As I have said recently I am on a real Indie hidden gem kick right now and the ever amazing Phil Wheat of Nerdly.co.uk asked me to check this movie out suspecting that it would be right up my street. The Darkest Universe is an absolute gem of a movie for more reasons than I can explain, but I will try.
Co-Director and Co-Writer Will Sharpe plays highly strung and highly stressed Zac Pratt. We join Zac on the verge of a complete breakdown following the disappearance of his sister and Break-up with his girlfriend. We follow him on somewhat of a journey of self realization and discovery. Zac starts up a fledging blog making video diaries of his search for his sister due to his frustration with the police coming up short. During this time we have a wonderfully interwoven series of flashbacks showing us what happened and giving us breadcrumbs of information.
A movie like this can live or die in the intricate plot woven style and this one flourishes because there is not one unnecessary moment on screen, it all matters. We find that Zac’s relationship with his girlfriend Eva (Sophia Di Martino, Channel 4s Flowers and Casualty) is strained and fragile which leads to a wonderfully awkward marriage proposal failure. While Zac would like us to believe from the get go that his sister Alice (Tiani Ghosh Co-Writer and first time acting, You couldn’t tell) is unhinged we slowly find she is probably the sanest person in his life, as she meets mis-fit wanderer Toby (Joe Thomas Inbetweeners and Fresh Meat). The relationship between Toby and Alice is almost as captivating as Sharpe’s all round performance and is just such a delicious watch.
Okay lets just get to it Will Sharpe in this movie is bloody outstanding. Think about Ezra Miller in We Need to Talk about Kevin, that is how intense this role can get, but he can also switch-up and be this charming at times funny sincere chap. There were moments I just didn’t know where it was gonna go and his performance was layered as such. Of course the script helps aswell because its to the point, at 90 minutes long the movie gets in, messes with your head a bit and gets out. Also no spoilers from me but this movie is never what you think it is and the ending is just a thing of beauty.
I take nothing away from anyone else in this movie because for her first time acting Tiani Ghosh is well above par and her chemistry with Joe Thomas is undeniable. On that note Joe Thomas of Inbetweeners fame was a surprising delight for me in this. A cheeky little cameo from fellow Inbetweener Simon Bird was received well and rounding off our cream of Brit comedy crop Chris Langham (The Thick of It) does not disappoint as Toby’s dad.
I really don’t think you will disappointed if you give this movie a shot, it has all the ingredients of what I would call an indie classic, people will find this movie and talk about it for years to come. Sharpe and Kingsley are a directing duo you have got to keep an eye on. I myself am pissed I never saw there first effort (did I mention this is just there second directorial outing) Black Pond but I will rectify that. They are miles ahead of there Ages and show a level of film-making maturity that most directors will struggle to get to. Effortless and beautiful I am so glad I will be ending 2016 with this movie.
As I have said recently I am on a real Indie hidden gem kick right now and the ever amazing Phil Wheat of Nerdly.co.uk asked me to check this movie out suspecting that it would be right up my street. The Darkest Universe is an absolute gem of a movie for more reasons than I can explain, but I will try.
Co-Director and Co-Writer Will Sharpe plays highly strung and highly stressed Zac Pratt. We join Zac on the verge of a complete breakdown following the disappearance of his sister and Break-up with his girlfriend. We follow him on somewhat of a journey of self realization and discovery. Zac starts up a fledging blog making video diaries of his search for his sister due to his frustration with the police coming up short. During this time we have a wonderfully interwoven series of flashbacks showing us what happened and giving us breadcrumbs of information.
A movie like this can live or die in the intricate plot woven style and this one flourishes because there is not one unnecessary moment on screen, it all matters. We find that Zac’s relationship with his girlfriend Eva (Sophia Di Martino, Channel 4s Flowers and Casualty) is strained and fragile which leads to a wonderfully awkward marriage proposal failure. While Zac would like us to believe from the get go that his sister Alice (Tiani Ghosh Co-Writer and first time acting, You couldn’t tell) is unhinged we slowly find she is probably the sanest person in his life, as she meets mis-fit wanderer Toby (Joe Thomas Inbetweeners and Fresh Meat). The relationship between Toby and Alice is almost as captivating as Sharpe’s all round performance and is just such a delicious watch.
Okay lets just get to it Will Sharpe in this movie is bloody outstanding. Think about Ezra Miller in We Need to Talk about Kevin, that is how intense this role can get, but he can also switch-up and be this charming at times funny sincere chap. There were moments I just didn’t know where it was gonna go and his performance was layered as such. Of course the script helps aswell because its to the point, at 90 minutes long the movie gets in, messes with your head a bit and gets out. Also no spoilers from me but this movie is never what you think it is and the ending is just a thing of beauty.
I take nothing away from anyone else in this movie because for her first time acting Tiani Ghosh is well above par and her chemistry with Joe Thomas is undeniable. On that note Joe Thomas of Inbetweeners fame was a surprising delight for me in this. A cheeky little cameo from fellow Inbetweener Simon Bird was received well and rounding off our cream of Brit comedy crop Chris Langham (The Thick of It) does not disappoint as Toby’s dad.
I really don’t think you will disappointed if you give this movie a shot, it has all the ingredients of what I would call an indie classic, people will find this movie and talk about it for years to come. Sharpe and Kingsley are a directing duo you have got to keep an eye on. I myself am pissed I never saw there first effort (did I mention this is just there second directorial outing) Black Pond but I will rectify that. They are miles ahead of there Ages and show a level of film-making maturity that most directors will struggle to get to. Effortless and beautiful I am so glad I will be ending 2016 with this movie.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) in Movies
Jan 23, 2020
In this day and age, where Star Wars is beloved by so many, and more recently met with sighs and trepidation by just as many, it's a franchise that easily faces scrutiny.
We can look at both the prequel and sequel trilogies to plainly see that it doesn't take much to piss off Star Wars fans in one way or another.
The announcement of Rogue One was met with said scrutiny, some saying it wasn't needed, some feeling fatigued by the sheer amount of Star Wars being thrown at us, sentiments that I can understand.
But I truly believe that Rogue One was a surprising win, and I left the cinema feeling that it belonged up there with the top tier SW films, and my opinion hasn't budged on repeat viewings.
The story revolves around a rag tag group of mercenaries, smugglers, and outcasts, and how they managed to secure the Death Star plans that set off the events of A New Hope back in 1977.
The cast of heroes aren't fleshed out a huge deal, but were given enough backstory to understand them adequately and back their campaign against the Empire.
Just like TFA, it's great to have another female lead in the SW universe. Felicity Jones is likable enough as Jyn Erso, even if her character is a little on the vanilla side.
The duo of Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus (Donnie Yen and Wen Jiang) work great next to one another, and provide a lot of the films humour and emotional impact.
The droid K2-SO (voiced by Alan Tudyk) is also a surprising highlight, his dry sense of humour works fantastically with the more serious tone of the movie.
We also have Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) which is the only character from the main group I struggled to like. He's written like a poor man's Han Solo, and I just didn't care about him at all, an aspect that can hopefully be rectified in the upcoming Disney+ series.
We also have Forest Whitaker as Saw Gerrera - a concrete connection to Star Wars: Rebels no less!, Mads Mikkelsen as Jyn's father Galen, and Ben Mendelsohn as this films villain, Orson Krennic.
It's a really strong cast if mostly enjoyable characters that earn their place in the SW pantheon.
In terms of cinematography, Star Wars has arguably never looked so good. Gorgeous and colourful locations like Scarif contrast against the classic Whit and greys of the original Empire design beautifully. All of the CG effects are more or less perfect, (with a huge exception that I'll get to in a second) and the action set pieces are thrilling. The whole final act is spectacular, and then just when it's seems like it's all over, we get THAT ending sequence - Gareth Edwards knows just the right amount of nostalgia to ensure the audience laps it up, and it's one of the best minutes of any Star Wars film ever.
The exception I mentioned above is of course going to be the subject of bringing back real actors from the dead. The inclusion of Grand Moff Tarkin makes sense in this particular narrative, but it does feel a bit odd seeing Peter Cushing, who died over 20 years ago, back on screen. Another cameo late on that includes a younger version of a legendary Star Wars character looks really off as well.
Overall though, these are just nit picks at an otherwise terrific sci-fi adventure.
Rogue One is bonafide great entry into the Star Wars canon, and its my personal favourite of the Disney era so far. Top stuff.
We can look at both the prequel and sequel trilogies to plainly see that it doesn't take much to piss off Star Wars fans in one way or another.
The announcement of Rogue One was met with said scrutiny, some saying it wasn't needed, some feeling fatigued by the sheer amount of Star Wars being thrown at us, sentiments that I can understand.
But I truly believe that Rogue One was a surprising win, and I left the cinema feeling that it belonged up there with the top tier SW films, and my opinion hasn't budged on repeat viewings.
The story revolves around a rag tag group of mercenaries, smugglers, and outcasts, and how they managed to secure the Death Star plans that set off the events of A New Hope back in 1977.
The cast of heroes aren't fleshed out a huge deal, but were given enough backstory to understand them adequately and back their campaign against the Empire.
Just like TFA, it's great to have another female lead in the SW universe. Felicity Jones is likable enough as Jyn Erso, even if her character is a little on the vanilla side.
The duo of Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus (Donnie Yen and Wen Jiang) work great next to one another, and provide a lot of the films humour and emotional impact.
The droid K2-SO (voiced by Alan Tudyk) is also a surprising highlight, his dry sense of humour works fantastically with the more serious tone of the movie.
We also have Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) which is the only character from the main group I struggled to like. He's written like a poor man's Han Solo, and I just didn't care about him at all, an aspect that can hopefully be rectified in the upcoming Disney+ series.
We also have Forest Whitaker as Saw Gerrera - a concrete connection to Star Wars: Rebels no less!, Mads Mikkelsen as Jyn's father Galen, and Ben Mendelsohn as this films villain, Orson Krennic.
It's a really strong cast if mostly enjoyable characters that earn their place in the SW pantheon.
In terms of cinematography, Star Wars has arguably never looked so good. Gorgeous and colourful locations like Scarif contrast against the classic Whit and greys of the original Empire design beautifully. All of the CG effects are more or less perfect, (with a huge exception that I'll get to in a second) and the action set pieces are thrilling. The whole final act is spectacular, and then just when it's seems like it's all over, we get THAT ending sequence - Gareth Edwards knows just the right amount of nostalgia to ensure the audience laps it up, and it's one of the best minutes of any Star Wars film ever.
The exception I mentioned above is of course going to be the subject of bringing back real actors from the dead. The inclusion of Grand Moff Tarkin makes sense in this particular narrative, but it does feel a bit odd seeing Peter Cushing, who died over 20 years ago, back on screen. Another cameo late on that includes a younger version of a legendary Star Wars character looks really off as well.
Overall though, these are just nit picks at an otherwise terrific sci-fi adventure.
Rogue One is bonafide great entry into the Star Wars canon, and its my personal favourite of the Disney era so far. Top stuff.
Natacha (374 KP) rated Red Rising in Books
Jan 23, 2020
More reviews on my blog: https://natachainreviewland.wordpress.com/
Red Rising is another book that I struggle to rate. I did enjoy the book but it didn't blow my mind. I think it's just an "It's not you, it's me" kind of situation. For the best part of the story, I felt like I was reading a retelling of the Hunger Games (and it was a movie I felt it was just ok, haven't read the books) and mixed with The Punisher (guys loses his wife and needs to get his revenge). I had fun but that's all.
Things I liked:
-The writing was very good. Simple, clear, just the right amount of information and exposition to make us understand the world and characters.
-We have a cast of charters with different and distinct personalities and well fleshed out.
-I really enjoyed the fourth part of the book. At this point, I felt like it lost the Hunger Game vibe. We don't have just one person that needs to take down the system but a whole army that marches against corruption.
-Towards the end, we had two nice twists. One of them had been foreshadowed for a while and the second one I personally saw it coming. Although to be honest when you have 20 pages left you can guess that things will go in a different direction what the author is making you believe. Despite that, I really liked those twists.
-I really like Darrow and Mustang dynamic and relationship. I thought it was well done and it felt natural.
-Now that the Huger Game part of the story is done I'm curious to see what Darrow will do outside in the world and how his plan will unfold.
Things I didn't like
I don't have many negatives. There was nothing wrong with the story but I'll try to point some aspect that bothered me.
-As I mention I didn't care about Hunger Game and throughout a large part of the story I couldn't help but thinking of the similarities.
-I'm a little tired of the "They kill my wife and I need to get revenge and keep her dream alive" trope.
-The story is written in first-person POV and present tense and this is really my least favourite way to tell a story.
-I feel like Darrow is a little bit of a Gary Stu. On so many occasion we have Darrow say things like "I'm stronger, I'm taller, I'm faster than he/she, I know better than them" etc. This is why I don't like first-person POV. When it's the author or another person telling us that the main character is stronger or taller or whatever it feels like an observation. When we have the main character telling us about the fact that they are better than everyone else, for me, they become across as obnoxious and annoying. And because of that, I struggle to really connect with Darrow.
-Rape is used a couple of times to move the plot forward. I don't mind when it's used once but when it's used again and again it feels like the author didn't know what else to do to get the plot going.
So here you have it. It wasn't a bad book there was nothing wrong with it and I understand why so many people rave about it. But personally, I couldn't get into the "this is a great book" place. I'm curious about the rest of the series, I don't feel the need to start right away like with other series, but I will get to the second book eventually.
Red Rising is another book that I struggle to rate. I did enjoy the book but it didn't blow my mind. I think it's just an "It's not you, it's me" kind of situation. For the best part of the story, I felt like I was reading a retelling of the Hunger Games (and it was a movie I felt it was just ok, haven't read the books) and mixed with The Punisher (guys loses his wife and needs to get his revenge). I had fun but that's all.
Things I liked:
-The writing was very good. Simple, clear, just the right amount of information and exposition to make us understand the world and characters.
-We have a cast of charters with different and distinct personalities and well fleshed out.
-I really enjoyed the fourth part of the book. At this point, I felt like it lost the Hunger Game vibe. We don't have just one person that needs to take down the system but a whole army that marches against corruption.
-Towards the end, we had two nice twists. One of them had been foreshadowed for a while and the second one I personally saw it coming. Although to be honest when you have 20 pages left you can guess that things will go in a different direction what the author is making you believe. Despite that, I really liked those twists.
-I really like Darrow and Mustang dynamic and relationship. I thought it was well done and it felt natural.
-Now that the Huger Game part of the story is done I'm curious to see what Darrow will do outside in the world and how his plan will unfold.
Things I didn't like
I don't have many negatives. There was nothing wrong with the story but I'll try to point some aspect that bothered me.
-As I mention I didn't care about Hunger Game and throughout a large part of the story I couldn't help but thinking of the similarities.
-I'm a little tired of the "They kill my wife and I need to get revenge and keep her dream alive" trope.
-The story is written in first-person POV and present tense and this is really my least favourite way to tell a story.
-I feel like Darrow is a little bit of a Gary Stu. On so many occasion we have Darrow say things like "I'm stronger, I'm taller, I'm faster than he/she, I know better than them" etc. This is why I don't like first-person POV. When it's the author or another person telling us that the main character is stronger or taller or whatever it feels like an observation. When we have the main character telling us about the fact that they are better than everyone else, for me, they become across as obnoxious and annoying. And because of that, I struggle to really connect with Darrow.
-Rape is used a couple of times to move the plot forward. I don't mind when it's used once but when it's used again and again it feels like the author didn't know what else to do to get the plot going.
So here you have it. It wasn't a bad book there was nothing wrong with it and I understand why so many people rave about it. But personally, I couldn't get into the "this is a great book" place. I'm curious about the rest of the series, I don't feel the need to start right away like with other series, but I will get to the second book eventually.
Night Reader Reviews (683 KP) rated The Figment Wars: Through the Portals in Books
Jan 9, 2020
The Figment Wars: Through The Portals by David R. Lord is a book that I hope to see a sequel to in the coming years. In fact, the ending of the book suggests at least a sequel if not an entire series. I just wonder how such stories can continue without becoming too far fetched or simplified by the childrens stabilizes in this book, but without giving too much away I have to stop there.
Thomas and his little brother Isaac are visiting their cousin Emily at her house and they are not exactly having a good time. At Emilys house, the boys dont even have a TV to watch and they are extremely bored. Then one afternoon when Thomas goes to the woods behind the house to get Emily for lunch something amazing happens. The trees themselves bend and move, forming a portal that all three children fall into. The portal transports the children into the Realm of Imagination, a place where all the things humans imagine come to life.
https://nightreaderreviews.blogspot.com/2019/07/review-figment-wars-through-portals-by.html
https://www.austinmacauley.com/book/figment-wars-through-portals
Almost as soon as the children arrive they are attacked by Monsters but luckily they are saved by Heroes and are taken to the Library in the Impossible City. It is here that they meet Belactacus who believes that the children are Real and not just confused imaginary friends. Sadly the Council who is in charge of the portals that allow beings in the Realm of Imagination to go to the Realm of Reality is corrupted and the children are denied a portal back home. Shortly after this decision Monsters attack the Impossible City and even overwhelm the Heroes. Now the children must find a way to stop the corrupted council member from bringing all the Monsters from human imagination to life in the Realm of Reality, home of the humans.
What I liked best might not seem like much but for a story such as this one, it makes a big difference. I liked how not only was the idea of the Realm of Imagination a great concept but the creation of the Realm was well explained. Also, some of the main people in the Realm were explained to be the result of collective consciousness in humans such as the standard idea of a mother figure which was a very nice touch. What I didnt like was the budding relationship between Thomas and Emilys old imaginary friend. I actually thought it was a little creepy. At times I found myself hoping that she would be able to become real and then I thought that it would be way too much like Thomas having a relationship with his cousin.
This book falls solidly into the YA or young adult group of readers. I know this is a broad group ranging from middle school and older, but this book is actually really good and I saw nothing that would make in inappropriate for young readers. The only thing to be careful about is if an advanced reader in elementary school wanted to read this book. I dont know how well they would take to the idea that monsters such as the Boogeyman are real and just living in a different dimension so to speak. With all that being said I rate this book a 3 out of 4. Everything is extremely well thought out in this book. The idea of the Library and the collective consciousness of humans was amazing. The only reason why this book did not get a perfect rating is that I still felt like it was missing something that gave it that wonderful ability to really stand out, but few books have that.
Thomas and his little brother Isaac are visiting their cousin Emily at her house and they are not exactly having a good time. At Emilys house, the boys dont even have a TV to watch and they are extremely bored. Then one afternoon when Thomas goes to the woods behind the house to get Emily for lunch something amazing happens. The trees themselves bend and move, forming a portal that all three children fall into. The portal transports the children into the Realm of Imagination, a place where all the things humans imagine come to life.
https://nightreaderreviews.blogspot.com/2019/07/review-figment-wars-through-portals-by.html
https://www.austinmacauley.com/book/figment-wars-through-portals
Almost as soon as the children arrive they are attacked by Monsters but luckily they are saved by Heroes and are taken to the Library in the Impossible City. It is here that they meet Belactacus who believes that the children are Real and not just confused imaginary friends. Sadly the Council who is in charge of the portals that allow beings in the Realm of Imagination to go to the Realm of Reality is corrupted and the children are denied a portal back home. Shortly after this decision Monsters attack the Impossible City and even overwhelm the Heroes. Now the children must find a way to stop the corrupted council member from bringing all the Monsters from human imagination to life in the Realm of Reality, home of the humans.
What I liked best might not seem like much but for a story such as this one, it makes a big difference. I liked how not only was the idea of the Realm of Imagination a great concept but the creation of the Realm was well explained. Also, some of the main people in the Realm were explained to be the result of collective consciousness in humans such as the standard idea of a mother figure which was a very nice touch. What I didnt like was the budding relationship between Thomas and Emilys old imaginary friend. I actually thought it was a little creepy. At times I found myself hoping that she would be able to become real and then I thought that it would be way too much like Thomas having a relationship with his cousin.
This book falls solidly into the YA or young adult group of readers. I know this is a broad group ranging from middle school and older, but this book is actually really good and I saw nothing that would make in inappropriate for young readers. The only thing to be careful about is if an advanced reader in elementary school wanted to read this book. I dont know how well they would take to the idea that monsters such as the Boogeyman are real and just living in a different dimension so to speak. With all that being said I rate this book a 3 out of 4. Everything is extremely well thought out in this book. The idea of the Library and the collective consciousness of humans was amazing. The only reason why this book did not get a perfect rating is that I still felt like it was missing something that gave it that wonderful ability to really stand out, but few books have that.
Neil Goddard (3 KP) rated Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) in Movies
Feb 27, 2020
No Actors Required
Contains spoilers, click to show
I have a theory about movies that are 100% CGI; when someone isn’t a great actor and they are required only to supply a voice and they still aren’t very good, it really stands out.
Now, imagine you’re watching a film. I don’t know, maybe a bit creature epic, larger than life with whole cities being destroyed. The creature’s look amazing and the carnage they are wreaking is fabulous; buildings, helicopters, cars, all flying around the screen with a swish of a mighty reptilian tale. Now imagine that the actors, real people, not CGI, are, at best, bland and in some instances just outright terrible.
Annoying isn’t it?
It would lead one to believe that the film makers didn’t really put any stock in the human interactions, rather just gave a huge wad of cash to an SFX company and said, “Fill your boots, the more the merrier, make everything f---ing enormous!”
Godzilla (2014) was the second time Hollywood has attempted to make a film featuring Japan’s kaiju supremo and it was the first successful attempt from Hollywood, given that the 1998 Roland Emmerich attempt was basically Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) but with added daddy issues (Roland Emmerich’s trademark).
Gareth Edwards 2014 first entry in the MonsterVerse was a huge success, financially and artistically. We saw a Godzilla that was of a scale we’d always wanted, towering over buildings, a reptilian God and we’re just the ants trying to not get squished.
Godzilla: King of Monsters attempts to up the ante by throwing a dozen or so monsters at the story. “Godzilla fought two MUTO’s did he, well… hold my beer!” Yeah, we’ll hold your beer while you get Millie Bobby Brown to stand there teary eyed for most of the film (a waste), Vera Farmiga to go from bereaved workaholic, to eco-terrorist to pointless self-sacrifice (unfathomable), and for Kyle Chandler to… well, Christ knows what Kyle Chandler was doing, apart from spitting terrible dialogue badly and then standing/sitting/walking looking angry but unconvincingly. Bradley Whitford provided some nice comic relief, he does droll sarcasm immensely well, Charles Dance is underused (and then forgotten about) and Zhang Ziyi tries to out-Kyle-Chandler Kyle Chandler in the bland, borderline useless stakes.
Worse than any failing on the human emotion side of the story are the huge liberties they take with global travel, like, one of side of the world to the other in a very short space of time. I mean Godzilla can do it because of some tunnels under the sea that he uses, possible the ones used in the science-denying sci-fi car crash abomination The Core (2003), but for the humans to just pop to Venezuela or the Antarctic is unforgivable.
This kind of leaps of reality always leads me to lose interest in the events in a film and start thinking around the script. In a film where everything everyone says is of dire emergency or import and then we see them in another part of the world some time later, what have they been talking about for all that time. Have they been napping? If so, it’s hasn’t eased any of the pointless angry posturing. Have they been chatting about boring everyday stuff? There is no hint of a relationship between any of these people who are spending potentially their last moments on earth together with alarming regularity. The world is possible about to get destroyed and you are in direct harm’s way! Shut up and nut up.
Now, imagine you’re watching a film. I don’t know, maybe a bit creature epic, larger than life with whole cities being destroyed. The creature’s look amazing and the carnage they are wreaking is fabulous; buildings, helicopters, cars, all flying around the screen with a swish of a mighty reptilian tale. Now imagine that the actors, real people, not CGI, are, at best, bland and in some instances just outright terrible.
Annoying isn’t it?
It would lead one to believe that the film makers didn’t really put any stock in the human interactions, rather just gave a huge wad of cash to an SFX company and said, “Fill your boots, the more the merrier, make everything f---ing enormous!”
Godzilla (2014) was the second time Hollywood has attempted to make a film featuring Japan’s kaiju supremo and it was the first successful attempt from Hollywood, given that the 1998 Roland Emmerich attempt was basically Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) but with added daddy issues (Roland Emmerich’s trademark).
Gareth Edwards 2014 first entry in the MonsterVerse was a huge success, financially and artistically. We saw a Godzilla that was of a scale we’d always wanted, towering over buildings, a reptilian God and we’re just the ants trying to not get squished.
Godzilla: King of Monsters attempts to up the ante by throwing a dozen or so monsters at the story. “Godzilla fought two MUTO’s did he, well… hold my beer!” Yeah, we’ll hold your beer while you get Millie Bobby Brown to stand there teary eyed for most of the film (a waste), Vera Farmiga to go from bereaved workaholic, to eco-terrorist to pointless self-sacrifice (unfathomable), and for Kyle Chandler to… well, Christ knows what Kyle Chandler was doing, apart from spitting terrible dialogue badly and then standing/sitting/walking looking angry but unconvincingly. Bradley Whitford provided some nice comic relief, he does droll sarcasm immensely well, Charles Dance is underused (and then forgotten about) and Zhang Ziyi tries to out-Kyle-Chandler Kyle Chandler in the bland, borderline useless stakes.
Worse than any failing on the human emotion side of the story are the huge liberties they take with global travel, like, one of side of the world to the other in a very short space of time. I mean Godzilla can do it because of some tunnels under the sea that he uses, possible the ones used in the science-denying sci-fi car crash abomination The Core (2003), but for the humans to just pop to Venezuela or the Antarctic is unforgivable.
This kind of leaps of reality always leads me to lose interest in the events in a film and start thinking around the script. In a film where everything everyone says is of dire emergency or import and then we see them in another part of the world some time later, what have they been talking about for all that time. Have they been napping? If so, it’s hasn’t eased any of the pointless angry posturing. Have they been chatting about boring everyday stuff? There is no hint of a relationship between any of these people who are spending potentially their last moments on earth together with alarming regularity. The world is possible about to get destroyed and you are in direct harm’s way! Shut up and nut up.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Downhill (2020) in Movies
Mar 8, 2020
I'm not going to lie, the trailer did not look good. I went in expecting something that would hopefully be mildly amusing to pass the time before seeing The Invisible Man, thank goodness I saw this one first, ending my double bill with this would have been heart-breaking.
Pete and Billie are taking their two boys away for a skiing trip, things have been tough recently and they all need a chance to unwind. When a controlled explosion on the slopes gets a little too close for comfort the family are shaken. When the snow settles Billie, who instinctively went to protect her sons looks around and Pete is nowhere to be seen. Tensions run high between the could and they both start to wonder what the situation means for their family.
Let me first state that this is a confused mess of genre, I think that was clear even in the trailer, but it became more evident as I sat through the film. It isn't funny enough to be comedy and it's trying so hard to be comedy that it misses drama.
This could turn into a bitch fest if I let it but there are some good points I would like to mention (while I'm not angry at this film).
Both Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Will Ferrell get to have moments that are actually quite moving. In the trailer we see Billie relaying their story to their friends, that complete scene you can tell that Louis-Dreyfus is digging deep for that emotion and it comes through incredibly well. Ferrell, when he finally gets to open up about the event felt very sincere, though he does manage to get upstaged by Billie seconds later.
The setting is obviously very picturesque and they do a great job of showing the contrast between the two different resorts, there are quite a lot of clips of skiing that feel like stock footage and somehow feel out of place with whatever genre this film was. The snow footage that really excited me was that initial avalanche early on, for the briefest moment I thought I'd misjudged the film (it was a fleeting feeling). The rush of the snow, the sound and the reaction of the people on the deck really made for a tense moment.
I'm at a loss for anything apart from that thought. I think I vaguely remember laughing at one point, or more accurately, exhaling slightly more vigorously than normal, but I couldn't tell you which bit that was. The guy across the aisle from me (who arrived nearly 20 minutes late) was roaring with laughter... I just couldn't see any of it. None of the jokes landed and the one character who seemed to only be there for comedic effect was so over the top that it just became annoying.
Will Ferrell's movie career is an interesting thing to scroll through, it has a lot of films you've heard of, most of which I just kind of go "meh" at and will never see again. I honestly don't think I've enjoyed one of his films since Old School. Downhill is sadly no different. I had hoped that this might have been interestingly different with its drama aspect but there was nothing to dig it out of that avalanche.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus wasn't bad, I think mainly because her character wasn't overly burdened with any of the comic stuff to do. A lot of her role was serious and that really helped. But with the film feeling so mediocre/bad around her most of the good acting was lost.
If you can find the good in this film then I'm really pleased for you, but I was left confused and somewhat down about what I'd seen.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/03/downhill-movie-review.html
Pete and Billie are taking their two boys away for a skiing trip, things have been tough recently and they all need a chance to unwind. When a controlled explosion on the slopes gets a little too close for comfort the family are shaken. When the snow settles Billie, who instinctively went to protect her sons looks around and Pete is nowhere to be seen. Tensions run high between the could and they both start to wonder what the situation means for their family.
Let me first state that this is a confused mess of genre, I think that was clear even in the trailer, but it became more evident as I sat through the film. It isn't funny enough to be comedy and it's trying so hard to be comedy that it misses drama.
This could turn into a bitch fest if I let it but there are some good points I would like to mention (while I'm not angry at this film).
Both Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Will Ferrell get to have moments that are actually quite moving. In the trailer we see Billie relaying their story to their friends, that complete scene you can tell that Louis-Dreyfus is digging deep for that emotion and it comes through incredibly well. Ferrell, when he finally gets to open up about the event felt very sincere, though he does manage to get upstaged by Billie seconds later.
The setting is obviously very picturesque and they do a great job of showing the contrast between the two different resorts, there are quite a lot of clips of skiing that feel like stock footage and somehow feel out of place with whatever genre this film was. The snow footage that really excited me was that initial avalanche early on, for the briefest moment I thought I'd misjudged the film (it was a fleeting feeling). The rush of the snow, the sound and the reaction of the people on the deck really made for a tense moment.
I'm at a loss for anything apart from that thought. I think I vaguely remember laughing at one point, or more accurately, exhaling slightly more vigorously than normal, but I couldn't tell you which bit that was. The guy across the aisle from me (who arrived nearly 20 minutes late) was roaring with laughter... I just couldn't see any of it. None of the jokes landed and the one character who seemed to only be there for comedic effect was so over the top that it just became annoying.
Will Ferrell's movie career is an interesting thing to scroll through, it has a lot of films you've heard of, most of which I just kind of go "meh" at and will never see again. I honestly don't think I've enjoyed one of his films since Old School. Downhill is sadly no different. I had hoped that this might have been interestingly different with its drama aspect but there was nothing to dig it out of that avalanche.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus wasn't bad, I think mainly because her character wasn't overly burdened with any of the comic stuff to do. A lot of her role was serious and that really helped. But with the film feeling so mediocre/bad around her most of the good acting was lost.
If you can find the good in this film then I'm really pleased for you, but I was left confused and somewhat down about what I'd seen.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/03/downhill-movie-review.html
Shaun Quarterman (24 KP) rated The Transformers - The Movie (1986) in Movies
Mar 9, 2020
Robots in disguise
Contains spoilers, click to show
TRANSFORMERS THE MOVIE
This movie is what I like to call a cult classic the first big screen appearance of the Autobots and Decepticons, its appeared after the first two seasons and it shook everything up Transformers as we knew it was over. It starts with a massacre on an Autobot shuttle and many characters died at the hands of Decepticon leader Megatron it shocked me when I first saw this because we had seen two seasons and it was all a bit tame. But the worst was yet to come so let me explain the whole idea of killing off these characters was to make way for future characters and new toy lines we had grown up and loved Ironhide ,and Ratchet, Prowl it definitely threw me the brutality of it shot point blank in the back of the head.
The war continues on Earth and we meet the future of the franchise Ultra Magnus and Hotrod as well as others all made to look futuristic their vehicle modes were Cybertronian which was new and I loved the more space age look about it we meet Daniel Witwicky the son of Spike but there is no sign of sparkplug or an explanation of his whereabouts Carly is Daniels mother. Now comes the part that shocked the world the death of Optimus Prime now let me explain in all versions of Transformers Optimus Prime always dies and the devastating planet Unicron always appears its Transformers lore but this movie defined it I wanted Optimus to destroy Unicron but it wasn’t to be.
Megatron also makes his last appearance with several other Decepticons which evened out the earlier Autobot deaths except they didn’t die they were reanimated by Unicron a new leader was born Galvatron and Cyclonus and Scourge and his dreaded Sweeps then came the death of Starscream it showed the brutality of the new leader, in the first two seasons Starscream would try to overthrow Megatron but he would always get away with it. Galvatron showed no mercy and blasted him straight away.
We are introduced to several new races of Transformers Junkions, Sharkticons and Quintessons all of which have would future appearances in season three and four, we see the friendship blossom between the young Autobot Hotrod and the old warrior Kup and the Dinobots get there action in as well I have always been a big fan of the Dinobots and they save the day again,
The most brilliant thing I had ever seen at the time was the transformation of Unicron a planet to robot I loved the sheer size of it and this final battle brought forth a new leader of the Autobots Rodimus Prime and a new era in Transformers entertainment despite the violence and death it did all make sense plus there are some cameo voices as well Galvatron was voiced by Doctor Spock himself Leonard Nimoy and rodimus prime voiced by Judd Nelson and Unicron was Voiced by orson Wells war of the worlds.
So I must admit this film is a guilty pleasure of mine and I highly recommend it I would advise to watch seasons one and two first just so you can feel how much the movie changed the franchise and the deaths of the characters actually mean more to you so give it a try and see what you think and there is a massive spoiler alert at the end of the movie which is narrated and got the public excited about the next season so enjoy it savour it and soak up this cult classic
This movie is what I like to call a cult classic the first big screen appearance of the Autobots and Decepticons, its appeared after the first two seasons and it shook everything up Transformers as we knew it was over. It starts with a massacre on an Autobot shuttle and many characters died at the hands of Decepticon leader Megatron it shocked me when I first saw this because we had seen two seasons and it was all a bit tame. But the worst was yet to come so let me explain the whole idea of killing off these characters was to make way for future characters and new toy lines we had grown up and loved Ironhide ,and Ratchet, Prowl it definitely threw me the brutality of it shot point blank in the back of the head.
The war continues on Earth and we meet the future of the franchise Ultra Magnus and Hotrod as well as others all made to look futuristic their vehicle modes were Cybertronian which was new and I loved the more space age look about it we meet Daniel Witwicky the son of Spike but there is no sign of sparkplug or an explanation of his whereabouts Carly is Daniels mother. Now comes the part that shocked the world the death of Optimus Prime now let me explain in all versions of Transformers Optimus Prime always dies and the devastating planet Unicron always appears its Transformers lore but this movie defined it I wanted Optimus to destroy Unicron but it wasn’t to be.
Megatron also makes his last appearance with several other Decepticons which evened out the earlier Autobot deaths except they didn’t die they were reanimated by Unicron a new leader was born Galvatron and Cyclonus and Scourge and his dreaded Sweeps then came the death of Starscream it showed the brutality of the new leader, in the first two seasons Starscream would try to overthrow Megatron but he would always get away with it. Galvatron showed no mercy and blasted him straight away.
We are introduced to several new races of Transformers Junkions, Sharkticons and Quintessons all of which have would future appearances in season three and four, we see the friendship blossom between the young Autobot Hotrod and the old warrior Kup and the Dinobots get there action in as well I have always been a big fan of the Dinobots and they save the day again,
The most brilliant thing I had ever seen at the time was the transformation of Unicron a planet to robot I loved the sheer size of it and this final battle brought forth a new leader of the Autobots Rodimus Prime and a new era in Transformers entertainment despite the violence and death it did all make sense plus there are some cameo voices as well Galvatron was voiced by Doctor Spock himself Leonard Nimoy and rodimus prime voiced by Judd Nelson and Unicron was Voiced by orson Wells war of the worlds.
So I must admit this film is a guilty pleasure of mine and I highly recommend it I would advise to watch seasons one and two first just so you can feel how much the movie changed the franchise and the deaths of the characters actually mean more to you so give it a try and see what you think and there is a massive spoiler alert at the end of the movie which is narrated and got the public excited about the next season so enjoy it savour it and soak up this cult classic