samueljohncrawford Reviews

Scarygirl (2023)

An intriguing and imaginative film with solid values

[8/10 · 14 November 2023]

This film is intriguing and imaginative, with excellent world building and well developed characters.

The world of scary girl has far more depth developed than any modern Disney film. There is an obvious love of the story and world from the studio here that just isn't seen in most modern films. The story stays true to the source material, and doesn't try to insert any agenda's that don't fit the subject.

The voice acting is well done, and cinematography on point.

The only criticism is the animation isn't as polished as is seen in many modern animated movies. However the choice of stop-motion animation is largely the reason here, and arguably is the right choice for the subject material. What is done with the budget available is still well done.

Overall I and my kids thoroughly enjoyed this film, and we were all happy to re-watch a few days later. Highly recommended.

Finnick (2022)

Lazy

[1/10 · 8 October 2022]

Simply put this is an exceptionally lazy child's movie. The script is poor and silly, characters un-interesting and lacking depth, and animation is wooden. Avoid, it's not worth the 1.5 hour runtime.

This movie just contributes to a long line of pump and run productions aimed at children with the sole aim of generating profit. There's no love or care for anything here. No artistic vision, or attempt at introducing a single new concept or idea. Nothing about it is original and certainly not thought provoking.

These movies need to be made unprofitable. Also, there are only a handful of reviews against this movie here but each is curiously marking it 10/10 (which led me to give this one a try). They are obviously staged by people with a stake in this one. Don't believe them, this one is rubbish.

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017)

Pretty but Dumb

[4/10 · 28 July 2017]

If you enjoy movies based purely on aesthetics, you may enjoy this movie, but prepare for waves of frustration as you try to understand its ridiculous script. If you prefer a proper cerebral, sci-fi experience, don't waste your time.

This franchise had all the base ingredients for a great movie: a story in a well detailed and interesting universe backed by plenty of money to produce a great result. Sadly, it falls well short of expectations.

The script is an abomination, and is based on a tired, predictable pattern. Twists are devoid of subtlety, and lack impact. Nonetheless the audience is consistently left confused by each characters actions, as their beliefs and values change moment to moment. What results is a predictable script with unpredictable characters.

Despite a decent effort by Cara Delevingne, the actors are poorly cast. Dane DeHaan is simply not believable in his role. Thanks again to the terrible script, character development is non-existent and the rich background offered by the Valarian universe is not sufficiently explored to cover this gap. The cast didn't stand a chance.

The movie does tout appealing visuals. It is vibrant, and at times, stylish. Unfortunately, this seems the only aspect the Director (Luc Besson) valued.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)

Do not believe the hype

[3/10 · 19 November 2016]

I was excited to take another plunge into the wizarding world of J.K. Rowling. I greatly enjoyed the Harry Potter (HP) books and, despite some flaws, the HP movies.

Prior to viewing, I looked at the other pre-release reviews to determine a critic consensus and despite some minor negative feedback, the majority seemed to love this movie. I am very disappointed. This movie was terrible. Analysing any aspect of each scene reveals just too many errors in transition or logic for me to truly enjoy this film. Sadly, I felt so disconnected by its lack of realistic behaviour and logic I spent much of my time discovering more faults, such is the nature when you do not enjoy a movie.

The core story-line falls flat when compared to any HP book or movie. It lacks character and often does not make sense. Some characters are posted as the self redemption seekers and yet continually choose, knowing well the consequences, morally evil decisions. Other central characters can't seem to make any decision themselves, paralyzed by lack of reasoning. I get it, these people are witches and wizards and thus eccentric takes on non-magics. This idea was taken a step too far in this movie. America felt like it was being run by about 20 buffoons while the main characters waltz around fragrantly discharging their own laws.

Do not expect to see any magnificent, fantastical creatures here either. In every case the extent of the imagination was to take 2-4 animals in our world, smash them together and voila. Even with such a simple formula, you can count the number of creatures you see on both hands. To top that off, the CGI was bested by the first Harry Potter, again it seemed to be rushed to final production without a true critical eye.

I was sorely disappointed with this film. If not for the HP stamp I feel it would barely review as a B-grade movie, charging blockbuster prices. That HP stamp though will likely bump it higher, but please keep your critique realistic lest we cop the same treatment in the probable sequel.