Recently Reviewed Movies

Infectious style and presentation. Story is pretty good, but falters a little near the end. Music is catchy. Generally liked the messaging. Little animation touches were great- there are a ton of silly little faces and moments. It's a fun watch!

Felt like a return to Marvel form (finally). The villain is a little underdeveloped going into the third act, but the action is good and the writing is coherent. It's a good (if crowded) ensemble that play off each other well. Great casting all around.

Watched the Keira Knightley / Jack Davenport audio commentary, which was fun and silly. There's some fun trivia in there, plus a lot of talking about where things were filmed.

A fun watch. A little all over the place tonally, but it keeps its core while staying weird.

A great documentary about one of the greatest raw athletes of all time. Just an interesting dude. Nicely put together!

Mackie does a decent job trying to drive the emotional core of the movie, but it feels scattered and emotionally unfocused. Carl Lumbly turns in the only noteworthy performance and he's hardly in the dang thing. There are 3x the characters they need and none of them have enough depth. And basically everything going wrong being explained by magic mind control makes for an unsatisfying plot. There are 5 credited screenwriters and it shows. The fight scenes are neat, but it spends the whole time trying to cash in on a series of emotional payoffs it hasn't come close to earning.

Is there some troubling masculinity on display here? Sure. But it's also a pretty fun concept with a great set of performances driving the whole thing. There's a lot of great jokes while still delivering a pleasant, if well-trod, story.

Cool documentary about the making of The Emperor’s New Groove. Very Sting-focused, since his wife made it. It’s funny though, since I don’t think of hims as basically part of that movie at all. Interesting to see where they started vs where they landed. Wish we got a little more about the film itself, but seeing into the creative process is always fascinating. Centering the narrative around Sting, who is sort of an outsider to the whole process, is a pretty good angle.

Does a great job developing the relationship between Jim and Silver. Not to mention the stellar cast- I don't know how they kept putting these together! Also an extremely Martin Short performance. Beautiful animation, to boot.

Besides being funny with an unreal cast, I'm always impressed by its intricacy. Every little joke, every visual gag, every little reference. The whole thing is a delight.

Cast, especially Anna Kendrick, kills it. But the tone is all over the place, so each of its vibes (thriller and goofy comedy) water each other down so only mush remains. The costume department must have had a blast though

Charming overall, but runs pretty long. Great cast and more songs than you remember. Still a good message, but could be edited down without losing much.

Hadn't seen this since I was a kid. It holds up pretty well! The animation and fight choreo is great (save some spotty CGI) and the story is light but fun. Great cast and a fun soundtrack. Great for what it is!

Utterly original execution. Hijinks that really pick up steam after the first third of the movie. Runs a little long, but goes to some truly unexpected places. I think some of what makes Looney Tunes so perfect is their short duration. This is a ton of them stacked together, which loses some of that brevity. Still a cool time though.

Cheesy but fun.

Stronger first half than back half. Some clever writing and a tropey story make for a cute, if predictable outing.

Awesome, over the top action, a big ensemble, and some fun characters moments make for a great time.

A nicely done documentary about the importance of the Coast Redwood. Does a good job justifying why the trees are important to their ecosystem and the people (both native and otherwise) of California. I liked the information about the history of the trees and how their parks came to be. Has some good interviews with subject matter experts, but leans a little heavily into people forming emotional connections with the trees themselves (which is fine for them, but made for a less convincing argument). There's also some interesting social science around these trees and the effect of Awe, which was neat, but maybe hard to replicate.

Absurd and irreverant while having a great heart at its core. Lots of moving pieces, but the narrative comes toegther well. Light and fun, just like summer should be.

I've really got a new appreciation for it after watching the documentary. They took a classic story, mixed in some pretty heavy emotion, plenty of laughs, and a killer soundtrack to make something truly special.

A spy thriller with little action, mostly dialogue. Great cast, with a good mix of stars and lesser known folks. Tense, but engaging. Has just enough spy tech that it's interesting, but not so much that the plot really relies on it. Fun to unravel who's behind it all.

There are definitely some rough edges, but it's much more charming than I expected. How much they care about each other really got me in the end. You do need to look past some dated jokes though

Old timey and charming. A little tough to tell some of the characters apart and the stunts are pretty dated, but the cast is good and the mystery is fun. The leads have good chemistry. Whole thing was much funnier than I expected it to be, too. I can see why it started a series!

A great dive into the production of a great movie. Plenty of cast and creator interviews, plus a step back to look at the film's impact on people of a certain age. It's a fun watch!

It’s mostly a schlocky 90s action computer thriller, but it does make some precient points about how much of "truth" lives in computers and how badly that can go if they start lying. Ther eare better hacker movies and Sandra Bullock never really plays it convincingly, but it had its tense moments.

It’s basically "Wet Hot American RomCom". I loved its commitment to subtle (or not) absrudity and it’s wildly large ensemble. Tightly written too, no lines were wasted. Perfectly captures 90s NYC romcoms.

Pitt and Clooney carry this dark action comedy hard. The story is simple (and makes a little less sense the closer you squint), but it didn't stop me enjoying the ride. The cast is focused (good!), the shootouts minimal (also good; more time for dialogue!), and the runtime 20 minutes longer than it needed to be (oops!). Great to see them both back together though.

A chilling adaptation of a great book. broadly focuses on the right things. Every casting is perfect and Rosamund Pike is superbly unsettling.

If you can look past the central joke is all about prison rape (a big if), you're rewarded with a genuinely funny movie. Dense with jokes across a variety of topics. Kevin Hart doesn't do a _lot_ to break out of his small-loud-sidekick role, but he has some good acting moments.

As a comedy of errors, leans more heavily into errors than comedy. There _are_ a wild series of errors though, so the writing gets a plus. They come relentlessly though, which makes it sort of an exhausting watch up until we reach the film's classic ending which saved the whole thing.

Has great heart. Silly, but not in a way that detracts from the story. Sort of more fun on the second viewing- you get to sit back and let it wash over you.

Always a classic. Curry is a champ.

Funny, british, and charming. Great leads and a fun supporting cast. A classic for a reason.

A well-produced concert with a good mix of laughs, weird things, and great performances. Pleasant time all around.

I don't usually think much about the musical performances on SNL. But this was a thoughtful documentary about how impactful they've been over the years and the careers they've launched. Great performances, interviews, and editing.

Charming, yet more modern feeling. Lots of great jokes. Pacing was a little slow and the story was less focused than it could have been. That's what happens when you translate 30 min movies into a 90 minute one. Felt like they could have tightened it up a fair bit.

A bit more story paired with the same great animation is a winning formula

Great little villain and some impressively expressive eyebrows. It's always cool how much they say without dialogue.

Very cool animation. Does a lot with a little.

Holds up remarkably well for as old as it is. Jokes land, there's more plot than you'd expect, and the costuming is very cool. It's also stuffed to the gills with cameos, which is pretty fun.

Plot wise, it’s like a really wet Jurassic Park? I didn’t love the really slow first half and unremarkable characters. Some good action pieces and some good cast members though.

No one does spectacle like John M Chu. Does a great job exploring and expanding the story without straying too far. Costumes and sets were beautiful and the whole production just oozed vibrancy.

Pretty dumb, but goodhearted and not too overwrought.

Continues to be a fun twist on Christmas Carol. Great cast, catchy music!

Wild to think that they made a novelization of this Christmas classic. Seriously though, Caine acts his butt off.

A charming premise supported by characters who are very patient and good sports about it all. Weird lack of chemistry between the leads, but not a bad time!

A decent premise that was never quite fun enough to be truly fun. Wasn’t much christmas magic. Chenoweth is great as always and it’s nice to see Lohan doing things again.

Lovely fight choreo, music, and a touching story make this a worth follow up to one of the world’s greatest movies.

A delightful comedy of errors with a blast of an 80s cast. Fun to see ZAZ write/direct something with a single plot running through it.

Does psychologically unstable yet relatable villains better than any other superhero film.

Campy and fun, with a great cast and pretty decent story. Always a blast.

Exhausting theater kid energy. Had some interesting perspectives on everyone's journey through their art and the paths that can take. But, felt disjoint, with too many characters. It also just seemes like drama for drama's sake- they just kept throwing bad things at these kids and everyone seemed miserable. It's ending was especially unsatisfying- it's a song where the ensemble pretends like everyone is fine when all evidence from the film points to the exact opposite. Whole thing was a real slog.

Cute concept and some nice social commentary, but felt fairly formulaic otherwise

Incredibly charming. Nicely paced, great cast, touching story. Captures the Christmas spirit better than any other

Tense and well acted. Fun inside look to the way NYC trains work. Heavy action, but keeps it moving. Could have maybe done more with the characters (and thinks about it) but it still works as a mostly-action outing.

It's a fun premise and a decent cast, but the lack of chemistry and an odd but not-fun performance out of Milligan left us out in the cold.

Maybe the world's foremost Thanksgiving movie.

Tight, funny, and densely packed with classic gags. Some of the references don't resonate today and a few of the jokes are bumpier than I remembered. But, it has such a good nature that I couldn't help but grin the whole time.

Cheesy and contrived, but has good bones. Occasionally tense, some goofy lines, and generally good performances. It's remarkable how much of Airplane! came straight from this.

Has some good gags, but the pacing felt off. Some segments are dense, but others are more air than joke. Most of the time, it felt silly for silly's sake. You can see the inspirations for Airplane, but it definitely wasn't there yet.

Surprisingly touching. Mixed drama and comedy well. Good performances out of a young cast. Had low expectations, but really enjoyed it.

Watched with the director's commentary podcast, which was fun! Annoying to keep in sync manually, but had some good bonus trivia.

Timeless, clever, silly, and delightful as always.

Well acted, atmospheric. Definitely creepy, with cool lighting and cinematography. Story was pretty good but I'm not sure the solve was fair.

Perfect mix of gory, funny, and heartfelt. One of the all-time classics of this genre. Tudyk is top-notch as always!

A cute premise paired with a good cast and some fun killings. Does a good job playing with the summer camp slasher genre and exploring what it’s like to be in a movie. Light and fun!

A small "bottle" movie with surprisingly little blood for its subject matter. Tense, interesting, and mysterious. Great performances all around.

Well-tread premise that has a few tricks up its sleeve. Ok performances and a predictable plot mostly let it down, but it picks up some steam in the back half.

Beautifully Hawaiian movie. Hits pretty hard emotionally, but does a good job peppering in jokes to not make the whole thing too heavy.

A pretty perfect movie to kick off a honeymoon in hawaii. Keeps you on your toes even if it doesn't totally deliver on its premise. Great performances out of Zahn and Olyphant

A neat concept that doesn’t quite deliver on its potential. Strong cast though.

Better than I remembered. Great cast and a good number of layers

Gripping pace but unlikable characters. A sort of interesting plot, but didn't do it for me. Very cool lighting though!

Fun cast, silly premise, but done well.

Has some really touching stories about the immigrant experience and family dynamics, but the whole thing is let down by its otherwise uninspired writing. Absolutely stunning graphics though, and some charming worldbuilding.

Cute extension of the original's concept. I liked the literal emotional complexity on this one

A fun behind-the-scenes. A ton of detail and work went into this thing. If only the movie were better!

Cute story with a good supporting cast. Comfort food, basically.

I enjoyed the heck out of this one. Though the actual plot and villain don't bring a lot to the table, it never forgets to have fun. I'm not sure it would stand on its own if you'd never seen any other marvel things, it rewards that familiarity with great payoffs. It was great to see Hugh Jackman back in the saddle. The dialogue was funny and the references right up my alley, but YMMV. More than any other recent Marvel movie, it feels like it understands what makes these franchises worth watching.

Probably the best X-Men movie. Great emotional payoffs building on an entire franchise. Always fun seeing the ensemble cast together.

Has some emotional payoff from the last couple of movies, but is significantly less fun than them. A fitting climax, but leaves somethign to be desired.

I like the plot and acting a little less than the first one, but it’s fun to see budget and care put behind the franchise.

A fun romp that's ultimately about marriage, and that's very sweet. Snappy writing and cinematography that punches way above its weight

A light and charming coming-of-age for the ages.

A little dry and the sets don’t all look great, but the casting is top-notch and the story has some high points. A good way to start off a franchise

Hit me harder than normal. The emotional climax does a great job with the family drama.

A great feel-good movie

Does many things that make prequel movies fun. Lots of nods to the franchise as a whole, too.

This movie is so dang fun

Liked it more than I thought I would. Charismatic cast and a fun premise, plus some fun face acting.

Pretty hokey, but it was earnest. It’s fun seeing 1960s SF and Vicky liked how many whales there were. I’m not totally onboard with the emotional climax being 100% whale noises, but it was a good watch overall.

Sort of a fascinating movie. Felt longer than it was. I generally liked Keaton, but I didn't feel like we got much of him compared to Nicholson. Felt totally unfocused, bouncing between big action set pieces and goofy joker dances. Art direction was pretty good, but won't go down as a better Batman

So good hearted, which paves over any other issues (of which there are few)

Stacked cast, tight screenplay, and a good story. Truly an all-timer.