Pitch Perfect 3 is the conclusion to a trilogy that honestly didn’t need one. I can’t precisely remember why I enjoyed the first two only to say that I did (according to my ratings on IMDb) but this one was pointless and even the music doesn’t overcome a disorganized plot, even though the cast at least seemed to be having a good time.
Even though I did find Justice League entertaining enough, there’s no denying there was a certain amount of disappointment leading to the build-up and not being able to see what was originally intended, not to mention the deleted footage seen in the various trailers. If you go in just expecting a insubstantial popcorn flick, it’s fine, but it certainly did not live up to the title.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life is a half-baked and poorly made sequel that lacked the fun and thrills of the first film though Angelina Jolie appeared to give it her all, or at least her stunt double did, but the action itself was lackluster outside of the opening action sequence.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider is a fun and entertaining action-adventure, in the cheesy kind of way that features a charismatic performance from Angelina Jolie who seemed to have been made for the part and some absurd CGI to go along with Daniel Craig’s laughably bad American accent.
Daddy’s Home 2 might not be very good and some Christmas comedy-classic-in-the-making this is not, but I did manage to chuckle a few times here and there and I did genuinely enjoy seeing Mel Gibson generally being a dick, otherwise it’s an unmemorable film.
Batman: Gotham by Gaslight is a solid entry into the vaunted DC Animated Universe line that excels with some great Victorian-style animation and two top-notch voice acting by Bruce Greenwood and Jennifer Carpenter.
10 Cloverfield Lane is a strong sci-fi thriller that, even though it’s been many years since I last saw it, equals the original and had the added bonus of not being in the found footage style and features better characters. I’m not sure how well this will hold up in the long run however but at the moment I found it to be thoroughly entertaining.
Cloverfield has held up pretty well since the (nearly) 10 years since its release. Sure, the dialogue isn’t the sharpest and T.J. Miller got on my nerves, but the suspense is well done and there was some actual emotional resonance with these characters.
Inception might be my favorite Christopher Nolan film, or at least right there with The Dark Knight and Interstellar. The film features some well done performances and groundbreaking visual effects and storytelling that despite the eight years since its release, still holds up incredibly well.
It might’ve been a worldwide box office phenomenon raking in $700M and frightened audiences but for myself I can’t say I was once terrified and actually became a bit more annoyed with the jump scares more than anything. However, the movie is worth watching if only for the impressive young cast.
The LEGO® NINJAGO® Movie is by far the weakest of the LEGO® franchise be it theatrical or direct-to-video as the humor doesn’t really work and it’s just a bland animated flick that might appeal to a younger audience.
Blade Runner 2049 is probably not a great sequel to the 1982 classic but still a very good movie as a whole. Although the visuals (both in terms of cinematography and effects) are fantastic, the characters weren’t all that interesting and the performances were just okay. However, this is still well worth seeing.
The actual Brawl in Cell Block 99 may only take up a few minutes of the two-hour film, yet I found it engrossing with a compelling plot and a main character played by Vince Vaughn you actually care about.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day might be one of the best science fiction movies ever made not named Star Wars but it is a shame that this was not the perfect 4K UHD release in terms of a DNR-riddled video, though the new featurette and audio were both great.
The Dark Knight Rises might be a slight step down from its predecessors in terms of story, but the performances from Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman and Anne Hathaway were all top notch and it was a satisfying enough conclusion to the trilogy.