The Babysitter Review

Directed by: McG (Charlie's Angels, Terminator: Salvation, We Are Marshall)

Starring: Judah Lewis, Samara Weaving, Robbie Amell

Written by: Brian Duffield (Insurgent, Jane Got a Gun)

Plot: Released on Netflix. A kid (Lewis) sees his babysitter (Weaving) and her friends in a Satanic ritual. They are now pursuing him for what he witnessed.

Review: The Babysitter is a very flawed horror-comedy, but it is also a very fun one.
It is directed in a very stylized way. This is the kind of movie where, after the main character witnesses his first murder, the words "What the fuck?" appear on the screen in big bold letters. As you can see this style can be over-the-top at times, but then again, so is most of the movie.
Throughout the movie, there are a few instances of characters doing dumb things (it is a horror movie after all), and being saved by pure coincidence. There were also a couple times when I thought to myself "That should have probably killed the main character." But after watching it, I realized that this movie was not meant to be taken seriously. That does not excuse these things entirely, but it does make them a little more forgivable. All this movie really wants to be is a fun ride, and it succeeds in that regard.
Underneath all this, there is also a good coming of age story. The child has a very clear character arc, where he overcomes his fears, and "grows up" over the course of the night.
All in all, this is nowhere near a perfect movie, but it is a very fun and funny one. It is rarely scary, but there is a lot of blood. It is ridiculous and maybe a little over-stylized, but if you want to see a fun horror movie, this should satisfy you.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Thor: Ragnarok Review

Directed by: Taika Waititi (What We Do In the Shadows, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Boy)

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum, Mark Ruffalo

Written by: Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle, Christopher L. Yost, Based on the comics by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby

Plot: The goddess of death (Blanchett) is wreaking havoc in Asgard. Thor (Hemsworth) must stop her, but he is held captive on another planet by the Grandmaster (Goldblum) along with the Hulk (Ruffalo).

Review: Much like the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, Thor Ragnarok takes place mostly in world's other than Earth. Coincidentally, it is also as fun as those movies.
It is full of action, vivid special effects, and great comedic moments. Director Taika Waititi, who also made the underrated comedy, What We Do in the Shadows, makes sure this movie has perfect comic timing.
The worlds this movie creates are fully realized. All of the characters are well written and acted. The movie is very funny, and has plenty of great action scenes. You have to give credit to a movie that has no less than two action pieces that are perfectly set to Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song.
This is the best Thor movie yet. It is also the best Hulk movie we have gotten so far. It could probably rank among the freshest, funniest, and most entertaining Marvel Cinematic Universe movies yet.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

1922 Review

Directed by: Zak Hilditch (These Final Hours)

Starring: Thomas Jane, Molly Parker, Dylan Schmid

Plot: Based on the short story by Stephen King, and released exclusively on Netflix. A farmer (Jane) is unwilling to let his wife (Parker) sell their land so they can move to the city. So he, along with his son (Schmid), murder her. But after it's done, he's convinced that she is haunting them.

Review: This movie is the fourth King adaptation to come out this year. This isn't as good as It or Gerald's Game, but probably not as bad as The Dark Tower either. Although it does get pretty boring at times, I'd say it is decent.
It does a good job of bringing the time period to life, and has an interesting concept. There are a few disturbing scenes and images.
But at the same time, the plot moves pretty slowly, and can be very boring at times. The source material is apparently somewhere around 100 pages, and it doesn't have enough material to make a full-length movie. So they added a lot of scenes that don't contribute much to the story and aren't very interesting. The movie is an hour and 42 minutes long, but it probably would have been better as a short ninety minute film. I don't know how slow it would be then, but it would be better than the longer version.
But when things actually happen, it is very interesting. It is an intriguing allegory for guilt, and has plenty of disturbing sequences. I would say it is okay, but wouldn't particularly tell people to see it. A lot of people will get bored with it, but I think it just gets by for its story and imagery.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) Review

Directed by: Noah Baumbach (The Squid and the Whale, Frances Ha, Greenberg)

Starring: Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller, Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson

Plot: Released exclusively on Netflix. Three siblings (Sandler, Stiller, and Elisabeth Marvel) get together for an event celebrating their artist father (Hoffman), and come to terms with the impact he's had on their lives.

Review: After being in films like Jack and Jill and The Ridiculous Six, Adam Sandler finally proves again that he can actually act. It's just a shame that the rest of the movie isn't as good.
This is a Woody Allen style dramedy. It has great performances from it's all-star cast. But I personally didn't find the script to be interesting enough to get fully involved in.
But I would not tell anybody not to watch it. I am in the minority here, as this movie has been getting great reviews and was considered for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Once again, this movie has some great performances, and could be Adam Sandler's comeback movie. I just found it underwhelming, and I'm going to give it the rating I think it deserves.
I really don't have much else to say about this movie. I just felt like I should write something about it on the blog.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Blade Runner 2049 Review

Directed by: Denis Villeneuve (Arrival, Prisoners, Sicario)

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Jared Leto

Plot: The studio releasing this movie reportedly asked critics to not give away the plot in their reviews. So out of respect to them, I'll just say that it takes place decades after the original, and Ryan Gosling plays a Blade Runner who eventually meets up with Harrison Ford's character.

Review: Blade Runner 2049 is much better than I expected when I put it on my Top Ten Most Anticipated List of 2017. I don't think it is as good as the original classic, but it is a great, intelligent sci-fi thriller.
It is more complex and story driven than most other science fiction movies these days, without being overly confusing. The plot is not always easy to predict, and it has some interesting philosophical themes. It is very well acted, and the writing and directing are great.
It is phenomenal from a visual standpoint. The world this movie takes place in is fully realized, and looks amazing.
My main complaint is that it is a little too long. It clocks in at two hours and 44 minutes, and sometimes it drags.
I don't have much else to say about it, and I apologize for the short review. I recommend you see it, and support this kind of movie. If the box office is any indication, they need this.

Rating: 4 out of 5... stars (It's getting too hard to think of something else to write down in my ratings)

Gerald's Game Review

Directed by: Mike Flanagan (Oculus, Hush, Ouija: Origin of Evil)

Starring: Carla Gugino, Bruce Greenwood, Henry Thomas


Plot: Based on the novel by Stephen King, and released exclusively on Netflix. Jesse Burlingame retreats to a remote lake house with her husband Gerald, to rekindle their marriage by getting a little kinky. But things quickly go south when Gerald suffers a fatal heart attack, leaving Jesse handcuffed to the bed.

Review: Stephen King adaptations are hit and miss in terms of quality. While there are plenty of great adaptations like The Shining, Carrie, and The Shawshank Redemption, there is also a greater abundance of less than stellar ones such as Maximum Overdrive. But, along with It, it looks like 2017 will be a rare instance where we get two good King adaptations in one year.
Gerald's Game is more of a story of survival than a traditional horror movie. It is about her inner struggles, portrayed by hallucinations of herself and her husband. Much of the movie is about her facing her inner demons.
The actress playing the main character, Carla Gugino, gives a great performance, especially considering that she spends much of the film by herself or talking to a hallucination of herself. She plays a very relatable character, with a dark past that resurfaces in the midst of this ordeal.
Gerald's Game is similar to the director's other Netflix movie, Hush. Like that movie, it is about a woman alone in a house who struggles to stay alive, and has a similar character arc. However, while that one was a straight up horror movie, this one plays out mostly like a survival drama that gets suspenseful in the last act. But there are a few bloody scenes, including one in particular that was difficult for me to watch.
Altogether, this was a good survival story. It surprisingly never lagged story-wise, and kept me interested throughout. It should be given credit for adapting a book that is mostly inner monologue, and making it into a thoroughly interesting movie.

Rating: 8 out of 10 handcuffs

mother! Review

Directed by: Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream, Pi, Black Swan)

Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kristen Wiig


Plot: A couple (Lawrence and Bardem) have just rebuilt their home in the middle of nowhere, after it burned down, and are ready to get back to their peaceful life. However, things take a dark turn when Bardem begins letting people into their home against his wife's wishes.

Review: ...and then things get weirder and weirder.
First of all, this is not the horror movie that it is marketed as. Even though there are a few very disturbing momentss, this is a movie that most horror fans will probably hate.
mother! is closer to an art film. There is a story, but somewhere along the way, reality just goes out the door. One can easily tell that it is trying to be symbolic, even if they don't know what it is about. But I'm pretty sure everybody in the theater, myself included, walked out asking one question: "What the hell did I just watch?"
It is a good movie in terms of film-making, with good performances. But it is still a bizarre, often nonsensical movie, that will definitely divide audiences. But whether you love it or hate it, you will be thinking about it afterwards. It was made to be analyzed, and to have people try to piece it together.
For a long time after watching, I was unsure whether I liked it or not, but I decided that I did. It is an intriguing film, that made me want to piece it together, even if it did make Requiem for a Dream look normal in comparison. I am very surprised that such an unconventional film was made by a major studio.
In conclusion, whether you love or hate it depends on who you are. Just don't expect a horror movie. Or any kind of normal movie.

Rating: 3 out of 5 WTFs