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Reviews
Dune: Part Two (2024)
Diverges from the book in all the wrong ways
To be succinct, my issue with this movie is that many of the most interesting, clever, and unique story features that makes Dune so iconic were oversimplified and/or completely changed to make a very generic story that does not mirror the book in most any respect. Sitting in the theater, having only just finished my re-reading of Dune the day before, I realized that only about 20% of the movies material were scenes from the novel and even still scene were taken in a completely different context. The characters are simply not the same characters from the novel, but even more than that they are not the same as the first part and that is apparent from their inconsistent motivations. Overall, the movie is not bad. I give it 5 out of 10 because it is a generic, middle of the pack movie. Which is even more upsetting when paired with the knowledge that following the plot of the already established novel would have provided a much higher score. Quite disappointing.
Wonka (2023)
Very charming and a lot of fun!
This is probably the most fun I've had watching a movie all year. I normally do not like musicals so I had no expectations of liking this movie, other than my general enjoyment of the original. This movie is shockingly funny, beautiful, and most importantly entertaining. Plus the editing was fantastic, every transition and shot felt smooth as butter and just had a sparkling energy to it. They did a great job of using visuals to capture that child-like feeling of imagination and wonderment. More than anything I think this movie has a lot of charm. The main cast is very likable and easy to route for, but even the "bad guys" made a lasting impact and I always looked forward to seeing them in scenes. Wonka doesn't push any boundaries for plot or dialogue, but it's a movie I'll be sure to see again and I definitely recommend you find the time to see in theaters!
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
Spiderverse 2 (Part One)
This movie has no ending. In fact, the first two hours have very little to do with the last thirty minutes and neither stories have a conclusion. I did not realize going into the theater, but this movie only acts as a mediocre stepping stone to a third movie. Across the Spiderverse reminds me of the "Part One, Part Two) movies that came out in the 2010s. The first have is all set up and extremely boring and the second half is an overly drawn out conclusion and epilogue. Nothing introduced in this story is resolved, but beyond that the content isn't even good to begin with. 80% of this movie is a generic young adult coming-of-age story. If you want to see a teenager struggling with his future, parents, grades, and girls then I'd recommend watching any one of the countless movies that do it better. I'm sure high schooler will relate to and love this movie. Everyone else will have a tough time connecting to the story because it is so two-dimensional and generic. Overall, a very boring film that I do not plan on rewatching.
John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023)
Amazing action, poor story
This is one of the craziest actions movies I've seen since Fury Road. This had all the creativity and diversity you would expect from a John Wick movie plus a little more. The stunt team is still working hard to bring set-pieces and direction that have never been seen before and for that reason alone it's worth a viewing. A word of warning, however, myself and some others have complaints about the audio being too loud at time. Leaving the theatre afterwards, I still had the sound of the gunshots lingering in my ears. On paper, there is nothing about this movie that does not meet expectations. However, by watching this movie I've learned how much the emotional stakes of the first movie were important. John Wick's character is heavy minimized compared to previous movies and the change, for me, was hard to get over. At this point in the franchise I need to stakes to be higher than ever, but the story comes across as a little directionless and it's not quite clear what John is fighting for anymore. The movie introduces new side characters and gives them depth and driving factors which makes the audience route for them, while simultaneously pointing out the lack of motivation John has to even live. At the end of this three hour movie I'm not sure what changed for the characters involved and that's a pretty big problem for a movie to have. Overall, it's a lot of fun but lacking the substance I need from the main characters.
The Simpsons: Hostile Kirk Place (2023)
It's never cool to try and be cool.
This is my first "1 out of 10" in my IMDb rating history. This episode had no laughs, no plot involving any of the main characters, and instead focus it's entire run time on a social narrative it was trying to reinforce to the audience.
Never before have I seen a Simpsons episode have such a decisive concept become simplified and polarized. They make a prominent joke about consumables being used as political propaganda while creating just that in the very same breathe.
Regardless of the specific message, this episode was treated as an essay instead of a sitcom. It exists purely to perpetuate the social and political beliefs of the writer. While that is not an issue in an appropriate media, it comes across as preachy and obstinate when disguised as a regular episode of a comedy show.
Atomic Heart (2023)
Fun and Unique
I rate games on one factor above all: fun. Atomic Heart brought that and so much more. It's always great to see new idea sand experiences unlike games have previously explored. Many have compared this to Bioshock and although I see the similarities I think they're only similar in a very abstract atmospheric, or thematic sense. Atomic heart nails the first person shooter while being the versatility in combat that modern games have made standard. The game clearly prioritizes your fun above all with dynamic skill trees that can be adjusted at will and three difficulty mode expertly curated per player's desired play style. Normally I play games on their highest difficulty, but the masochistic icon which depicts it as a man being tied down and beaten by robots represents the setting aptly. I suggest playing on the middle difficulty for greater enjoyment. Overall, I truly recommend this to anyone in search of a game of a gripping single player experience.