I watch A LOT of movies, but when I saw this assignment there was one movie that came to mind. Aladdin, but not just the original Aladdin – the 2019 live action Aladdin.
I’d have to give the movie a solid 4 out of 5 stars (I never rate things 5 stars unless I can see nothing else can top them – but the live action Beauty and The Beast is up there with Aladdin).
To start off the entire movie set is PHENOMENAL. Though most of it is CGI, they made it look extremely realistic. I also love the bright colors they used, and it seems like they replicated the original Aladdin perfectly (yet adding a bit of a modern touch).
One thing that I didn’t like very much was… the movie should’ve been name “Jasmine” because it seemed like the entire movie was about her. I understand its the story of Aladdin and Jasmine falling in love, but why name the movie Aladdin if you’re not gonna focus the story on him?
Like this scene… cmon Jasmine it’s not THAT serious. Just let Jfar take over the world.
Even though I didn’t like that very much… I must say Will Smith being the genie really made up for it. He has so much humor, and he just did a great job as genie. I heard rumors that people weren’t going to like the remake because of the casting for the genie, but its mainly because people didn’t want to forget about Robin Williams playing the best genie. Don’t get me wrong, Robin Williams did a fantastic job as genie, but I think Will Smith did just as good.
I think the little changes they made between the animated and live action movie are subtle enough to where they don’t ruin the original film. Before I watched the newer version of Aladdin, I had my disappointments but I can proudly say the live-action Aladdin is by far one of my favorite Disney movie.
If you haven’t see Cruella or you loved the 100 and 101 Dalmations movies as a kid (Or as an adult, no judgment here), I highly recommend watching what is Cruella De Vil’s origin story. I watched it on Disney + so if you have that, then check it out. I don’t know if it’s still in theatres or not, or on some other online streaming platform. In my opinion, this movie is one of the best live-action Disney movies to date. Emma Stone played this role brilliantly, but the writing and storyline were so great, any female actor could’ve shined in this role I think. It has elements of a genuine feel good story mixed with the great evolution of a villain character. Certain parts of the movie reminded me of The Devil Wears Prada (hopefully that doesn’t give away anything). But, if you like movies with great character development, this is definitely one to watch. Without saying too much, I look forward to seeing if they follow through with a sequel because the first is amazing. I would’ve liked for there to have been more to the plot than there was, but nonetheless how things unfolded was still nice to see. It’s not often where I root for villains, but Emma Stone’s portrayal of Cruella almost makes you forget you’re supporting a heel (terms usually used in wrestling to signify the villain or bad guy). I’m not one to give a standard star rating, so I suggest watching the trailer and if there’s anything that intrigues you about the movie, go through with watching it.
For my last Writing Assignment for this week, I decided to Write A Movie Review for The Breakfast Club. After watching it for the first time today, I figured I would write about it again after my story analysis.
The Breakfast Club (1985)
is an iconic American film. If you haven’t heard of it, who are you? I had
known about this movie growing up, but I never watched it until today, which
may raise a lot of eyebrows in utter astonishment. Honestly, I didn’t know what
to expect from individuals from different cliques sitting in together for
detention. What could possibly happen?
Well, a lot.
If you’re someone like me who hasn’t watched it before, I
encourage you to watch it right now! I was pleasantly surprised, not only by
the characters, but the depth of the problems they share.
The main characters are Claire Standish, the princess; Brian
Johnson, the brain; Andrew Clark, the athlete; John Bender, the criminal; Allison
Reynolds, the basket case. They are your typical high school cliques, and on
the surface, they act as you would expect. However, with each interaction they
have with each other, they learn more about each other and themselves.
Despite Claire’s popularity, she faces peer pressure to
maintain her image. Although Brian is a Brainiac with exceptional grades, he is
under immense pressure to maintain his grades, even to the point of
contemplating suicide over a bad grade. Andrew is unable to think for himself
because of pressure from his father who’s obsessed with winning. John is
physically and verbally abused by his parents while Allison is neglected by her
parents.
These issues that surface in the movie reveal that there is
more to a person than their status—than who they portray themselves to be.
Everyone has their own problems. They may face different problems, but the
grief and angst they share from their familial issues are the same. The Breakfast Club isn’t afraid to bring
mental illness, child abuse and child neglect, and broken families, to the
forefront of its storytelling.
The only things that made me super uncomfortable was the comment John made about getting the princess impregnated, insinuating rape. As much as I hate to say it, I know that probably in those times, no one batted an eye at comments like that. Aside from that, this movie is phenomenal, and I now understand why it is so beloved.
This post is for the writing assignment, Write a Movie Review. The movie I chose to review for this assignment is Dirty Dancing (1987). The 1980s theme is perfect for this writing assignment because so many amazing movies came out during the decade. It just so happens that some of my favorite movies came out of it, too.
Is there anything better and more romantic and cuter than this movie and their passion. ABSOLUTELY NOT. A timeless feel-good romantic film with a confidence boost, and sooo much emotion coming from the acting. The movie came out in 1987 and after this many years, it’s still one of the best romance movies. And side note, what’s better than a young Patrick Swayze? If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it, 10/10!
WARNING: There are spoilers. I suggest that you watch the movie, then compare with my review.
If you are someone who is into fast cars, live-action stunts, guns and chaos, this movie may be for you. 6 Underground, a movie directed by the famous movie director, Michael Bay, is probably my favorite Netflix original of the year.
The movie begins with a beautiful neon green Alfa Romeo, which certainly is a beast of a car, that recklessly drives through Florence, Italy while attempting to escape the bad guys. The people in the inside of that car? The secret team of good guys, whom we don’t know by name (at least not until the end) that attempt to save the world from the world’s most evil individuals.
Alfa Romeo that the movie begins with. Image gathered from here.
Each team member on the good guys’ team, which totals 6 different people (thus the movie title: ‘6’ Underground) all go by numbered code names rather than their actual names. One, who is labeled as the billionaire team leader, suggests this as it ensures no team members get close, to ensure that their only focus is the task at hand. Lose a member due to a sticky situation? Oh well, you didn’t really know them anyway. That’s exactly what you feel in the film.
Rather than getting super into every detail with this film, I’ll just give some personal thoughts. I feel like it is more important for the reader (you) to watch the film before reading any review. I mean… What’s the fun in reading what happens without watching it first? This film was AWESOME. It had that usual Michael Bay film feel to it, which I personally enjoy greatly. It had that film that incorporates very serious elements such as the lighting, the death, the mystery, the missions, but then again it also had Ryan Reynolds who is such a great actor. This movie also feels very original as far as action goes, and you don’t often see that.
Here’s the full team of 6. Their nicknames are as follows from left to right: 7, 5, 4, 1, 2, 3. You can find this image here.
I also loved the fact that these individuals still had families, friends, loved ones, but no one knew they were alive. They all, in one way or another, faked their deaths. And they spend their time, away from the life they once knew, to actually make the world a better place. They accomplish things that ordinary people and governments cannot intervene in, and they do it very well. And I think that’s why I love this movie.
You can watch this movie on Netflix. If you’re feeling in the mood for a very intense action movie, then I very much recommend it.
Before I go and see a movie, I always look to see the reviews. Is the film worth spending 30 bucks at the movie theater? Or is it just something I can wait a few months to rent for a few dollars when it comes out digitally.
The purpose of this assignment is to write a movie review and make an argument about it. I tend to have strong opinions when it comes to movies/literature, so I am excited to shoot my shot at sharing my opinion. I think that it is also interesting to get hear other peoples’ point-of-view on media because we can all interpret it in different ways.
I watched American Psycho about two weeks ago, which takes place in 1987, so it ties well into our 80’s theme. This assignment is worth 3.5 stars.
After Bateman’s coworker Paul Allen (Jared Leto) shows off his business card to Bateman, something in Bateman snaps. He reacts by murdering a homeless man on his way home, and then later slashing Allen with an axe after inviting him to dinner and while talking about the intricacies of different music records.
Bateman continues his self-destructive and destruction-of-others streak through the injury, almost murder, and murder of both sex workers and his peers. These gruesome acts supposedly help Patrick feel something more.
It all comes to a screeching halt when a cop witnesses Bateman shoot a random elderly lady in the face. Running around NYC attempting to avoid the cops, Bateman makes a blubbering call to his lawyer, confessing to all of the murders.
The next day, after he has calmed down and things seem to have dissipated, he meets up with his buddies per usual and sees his lawyer, Carnes. Carnes thinks that his confession is a joke, but Bateman is insistent that he has killed many, especially Paul Allen. However, doubtful and now worried Carnes states that he just had lunch with Allen a few days ago in London, a man who was supposed to be dead.
American Psycho follows the mental unraveling of the mundane life of an egotistical young man in NYC. He finds solace in his brutal murders, but upon almost getting caught, realizes that he needs to be punished so he can feel something. Bateman’s world falls apart as he recognizes that maybe some of the things that he thought he did didn’t happen at all, and he therefore can’t have the punishment that he desires to have because his “confession has meant nothing.”
Harron’s movie makes you question everything that has seemed so real and leaves you thinking for days on what actually happened. This film combines action, horror, drama, and mystery in ways that no one ever would have thought. This is a must-see for anyone who can stomach it. Bravo.
Synopsis: LadyHawke is a love story. The movie
starts out focusing on a pick pocketer named Phillipe “The Mouse” Gaston. The
Mouse is cornered by some guards, but Etienne Navarre rescues him. Navarre’s hawk follows them and scouts to see if there is any
trouble ahead and behind them. That evening Phillipe and Navarre take shelter
in a farm house, but the farmer tries to kill Phillipe. The farmer is killed by
a black wolf who is followed by a beautiful woman.
The next day Navarre askes Phillipe to help him
sneak into the capital city Aquila in order to kill the Bishop. Phillipe
refuses and escapes but is recaptured by the Bishop’s guards. Both Navarre and
the Hawke are shot with arrows while they rescue Phillipe.
Navarre asks Phillip to take the hawk to an
abandoned castle where a monk named Imperius resides. Imperius heals the hawk
and Phillip discovers that the hawk is the woman from the first night.
Imperius explains that the woman is Isabeau of Anjou
and she and Navarre are cursed because the Bishop wanted Isabeau, but she refused.
Isabeau turns into a hawk during the day and Navarre becomes a wolf at night, they
are always together, but eternally apart.
Imperius explains that in order for the curse to be
broken, Isabeau and Navarre must face the Bishop together on “a day without a
night and a night without a day.” Navarre doesn’t believe him and decides to go
ahead with his plan to kill the Bishop. Phillipe smuggles him in to the
cathedral and while Navarre is fighting with the guards, he sees a solar
eclipse and realizes the curse can be broken.
As Navarre is about to kill the Bishop, Isabeau in
her human form comes into the Cathedral and stops Navarre from killing the
Bishop. Together, they face the Bishop and break the curse! The Bishop is
killed when he tried to kill Isabeau in a fit of rage. The final scene is
Isabeau and Navarre embracing each other finally.
Critique: This movie has gotten a lot of mixed reviews. Most people don’t like the story line and they think it is too weird. I believe the opposite. The use of cinematography is ground breaking showing the transformation each morning and evening for Isabeau. The use of light during sunrise and sunset is also spectacular.
There is also a lot of clever use of words. Phillipe has a very sarcastic sense of humor and uses it widely. He also discusses God in a very interesting way: he is very sarcastic with his discussion, but he also still holds a reverence of God. Navarre and Isabeau are portrayed brilliantly and the actors do a fantastic job of showing their emotions.
This assignment was harder than I thought it would be. Of course, we all come up with review of movies on our own, but its much harder to write it down in a coherent way for other people to understand. Especially if people have never seen this movie.
For this assignment, I had to Write a Movie Review from the writing assignment category. The task for this assignment was to “write a review of a movie. Don’t be afraid to use images, GIFs, and clips to support your discussion, but focus on the text. Make an argument about the film, no lame thumbs up nonsense.”
Well, since I already made a movie poster by modifying Footloose, it seemed that my choice was pretty clear. I needed to go watch the film! Astonishingly, I had never actually seen Footloose, despite the fact that I have been alive for over three decades. (I have no excuse). I of course knew the premise and the famous song from the movie, and that’s usually enough for me to forego watching a movie. (I prefer TV shows because they’re episodic and my attention span is short).
Alright! Time to watch-
Wait, nope. It’s actually not on Netflix. Or Hulu. Or anywhere. Time to search my house.
Success! I found a DVD copy in the workout room where other such classics reside, such as Body Flex and Disco Sweat. (See my Week 1 Summary for that VHS visual).
Time to get loose! Footloose. Haha, get it? …Moving on.
Right from the opening credits, I was on board. The scene with the dancing feet is something that is going to stick in my memory bank. Fun fact: the Footloose song was originally only meant to be played during the bar scene. The producers decided that they wanted to start and end with it as well, so they had tons of dancers perform for them- all dancing to a simple beat that they could then sync with the song during the editing process. And what they ended up with was tons of happy feet!
The movie continued to impress; the visuals, choreography, and of course the music really drew me in. There’s one scene near the beginning of the movie where everyone is grooving along to ‘Dancing in the Sheets’ and it’s brilliant. The music didn’t just come from the song itself; it came from the many different sounds of the drive-in area where all the teens were hanging out. Foot taps and car honks, diner bells and arcade sounds, a cup spinning on a car antennae all flow together and harmonize with the rhythm of the song. And it just works.
Another favorite moment was the part where our big-city kid Ren (Kevin Bacon) is teaching his new friend, Willard (Chris Penn) how to dance. Fun fact: Chris Penn really couldn’t dance. The film crew had to use wrestling terms for the actor to catch on. (I can relate- I myself have two left feet). The music was in time to the song, ‘Let’s Hear it for the Boy,’ and the choreography here was also brilliant. This wasn’t some big dance number; it was everyday actions performed to a beat. It just showed how even simple gestures can be dance. I especially loved the little scene where Ren and Willard are walking in sync down the school hallway connected by a Walkman headphone cord. This certainly would not have had the same visual impact if the two had been wearing Bluetooth headsets.
I Thought this was a Party
One of the things that surprised me when watching Footloose was seeing all of these well-known actors appear in the movie. I knew that Kevin Bacon was the star of the film, but I had no idea that John Lithgow played Rev. Shaw Moore- A stern, disapproving member of the town council. Nor did I know that Diane Wiest played Shaw’s wife Vi, or that Sarah Jessica Parker played Rusty- one of the friends from the main group of girls. Footloose had a great cast and a great story. But was it just a story?
As it turns out, Footloose is based on the true story of a small town in Oklahoma where dancing had been outlawed! The reverend of Elmore, OK thought that dancing would lead to teen pregnancies, which led to an overall disapproval of dance. Bummer. The teens of Elmore weren’t too happy with the dance ban, so they started a pro-dance movement lead by Leonard Coffee and Rex Kennedy (Leonard + Rex = Ren). After some polite debating with the council, the teens were finally able to persuade the town to let them hold a prom. Dancing was still frowned upon in general, but it was a small victory for the juniors and seniors of Elmore.
I think what surprised me the most was the accuracy in which the beginning of the prom was portrayed. All of the teens in the movie were standing around awkwardly, not knowing what to do. I thought, “why aren’t they dancing?…like, at all?” I was in disbelief that teens wouldn’t just instinctively flock to the dance floor after winning the right to dance. But as it turns out, the teens from our true story had no clue what they were doing either. No one knew how to dance. I think they eventually figured it out though, sans Kevin Bacon to lead the way.
Footloose was the first of its kind in the movie world. The movie’s production began before MTV was really a thing. Yet it was a movie that aimed to do what MTV would later aim to do: showcase music. The producers of Footloose had no budget to speak of, only a dream in their heart. They promised singers and songwriters, actors and dancers, and various other pros that if they got on board with the project, it would be worth the gamble. And it was! Footloose was a huge hit and has since become a classic. Not only that, but the movie has inspired a myriad of skits and parodies over the years. An example you say? Well, I’ll just leave you with my favorite example of all time, Scarlet Mafia’s Gundam Wing Footloose skit from Katsucon 2009. (An event that I attended).
The movie that I will review for one of my daily assignments is “Feed”.
Let me quickly explain the plot. A girl and her twin brother attend a party over the weekend. They get into a fight because they are both drunk, and they get into the car. The brother (during an argument) hits the wheel wrong and gets into a crash. He, sadly, passes away and his sister survives. She then starts to think that she is seeing her brother. Her “brother” is alway saying that he is hungry and needs her food. That was just a representation for the voice people who have anorexia hear. Want to know how it ends? Just watch to find out!
Here is the preview of the movie!!
I personally think that the vast attention that is applied to every aspect of this movie is incredible. They try to provide information on anorexia to the audience. It’s camera angles and storytelling is what got me the most. It felt like you were inside of the main character’s mind.
There was only a couple things that I was not a fan of. Â Those being, how the crash happened. It was too predictable for me. I thought that it’s cliche of a beginning storyline took away from the rest of the movie. The one other thing I had an issue with was when her brother popped up as she was making out with a guy. I thought that took a very strange turn. I know anorexia doesn’t go away no matter what, but I thought they could have presented that in a different way.
Kingsman: The Secret Service is a film like no other. The writing, acting, and directing come together perfectly to make for one of the most entertaining spy films ever. From start to finish, Kingsman slams on the gas and doesn’t let up. The incredible action scenes, special effects, and drama keep you at the edge of your seat until the very end. But don’t let all of that fool you, this movie is so full of humor and satire you may just fall out.
From the eccentric and deranged villain Richmond Valentine (played by Samuel L. Jackson) to the dignified spy leader Arthur (played by Michael Caine), many of the characters, places, and themes in Kingsman reflect spy archetypes (such as Bond’s villains and his boss M). And there’s no shortage of gadgets and weapons. Whether it’s a simple knife in an Oxford shoe, a bulletproof umbrella, or a ring that doubles as a taser, Kingsman delivers it all with amazing stunt choreography and cinematography. Famous for his work in Kick-Ass (2010), writer and director Matthew Vaughn will leave your heart pounding with insane action scenes peppered with hilarious dialogue. The acting isn’t half-bad either. Taron Egerton stole the screen with a breakout performance as Eggsy, a troubled but talented teen alongside with classy but bad-ass Colin Firth.
Kingsman is not a film for everyone. If you want a serious spy film, this is not the right direction. If you ever wondered “What if Guy Ritchie or Quentin Tarantino made a spy movie?” this is the movie for you. And if you think you’ve seen all the spy movies out there, you haven’t seen anything like this, and you’ll appreciate it even more.
