Just finally decided to rent and watch "Top Gun: Maverick". So glad I didn't buy this film thinking this drivel would be rewatchable over and over like the first one. Once is enough for me. Yea...it brought some nostalgia around the original. But, the whole thing seemed pretty damn silly. The actual big part of the film that was supposed to be the memorable part with the "attack" was just ridiculous. The thrill of watching these actors experience real Gs in real jets is gone. It's not like we haven't seen reaction videos of people experiencing Gs in flight. The realism doesn't work that well when the film's plot is this silly with the "one in a million" bombing run that seemingly goes off without a hitch until the utter absurdity hits home in the aftermath of this precision run. None of the story in the sequel was really surprising outside the stupid bombing storyline. This is the film that had to be made? It accomplished one goal...I feel stupider after having watched it. I'll give it an incredibly generous 7 out of 10. The only thing saving it from a lower score is the nostalgia associated with the original. When you get past that this is Tom Cruise and they were passengers flying in real jets, this is just a straight-forward gobbily gook of a film held together by paper thin characters and lousy dialogue. What kind of higher-ups in the military would openly chastise their pilots about how they are no longer going to be needed so lets rain on their parade until the jets fly themselves? Oh brother! It's just not a great film. It might have worked better if the supposed climactic invasion scenes weren't so utterly unbelievable. At least try to make it somewhat believable. I mean...what good is it that you're actors are flying in the jets where it's supposed to give off a vibe of realness but ends up like "hey...we're really flying in jets here being filmed by attached camera rigs but the flight maneuvers and sequences are just a completely unbelievable mess all around"? I liked how they stole the corkscrew manuever of whatever that snake flying sequence was between the two jets from Tom's "MI: Fallout" movie where he did the corkscrew in the helicopter. I guess we were supposed to notice that. I usually love me some Jennifer Connelly but she wasn't needed here and the relationship with Tom felt awkward. For me, the chemistry wasn't there and the relationship just didn't work in the film. Please don't make another one. Yikes!
two movies last night, both very good. Raymond and Ray, on Apple TV. Two half brothers go to their abusive father's funeral. Almost Faulknerian in tone, I really liked it. Thought Ethan Hawke was excellent, Ewan McGregor somewhat less so but still convincing. Worth watching, maybe 7.5 or 8/10. Then I watched Palmer, also on Apple TV. This one is terrific, and I can't say enough about Justin Timberlake's performance. He is a terrific actor. This is one that could easily have slid into cheese-land, but the whole thing holds up, is well-filmed, edited well so that the story unfolds naturally. Really well done. Probably a 9/10.
I watched "The Unbearable Weight of MASSIVE Talent" It was brilliant and hilarious. Nicholas Cage in a fictional move playing himself was very well done. May not like it if you hate things being Meta in movies. 9 out of 10.
Weird: The Al Yankovich Story This movie was AWFUL Spoiler AWFUL-LY good! Daniel Radcliffe plays Weird Al. He nails it. Lots of silly fun. Movie doesn't take itself too seriously. Not one bit. Lots of cameos. You can only watch it on Roku which is a pain, but it's free on Roku's site. On a scale of 1 to 10, I give it a:
the gentleman - 5.5/11 saw it on a recent flight. was excited because there are bits and pieces of this movie floating around the web being uber hyped. so i mean... that's it? what was the whole purpose of this? saw it a few days ago and i already forgot what happened. the airline food was much better than the movie cus i remember that more.
Amsterdam 6/10 This movie had potential, but started off wrong with a jarring flash forward. Tries to be witty and irreverently cool, but the last act feels like it belongs to an entirely different movie. You could prob make a great box office hit with half the cast, half the story and runtime. You either jump right in primed for a mystery with different checkpoints or you give up halfway wondering why there are so many moving parts and cameos for the sake of cameos. I rated higher based on the former, but the latter is why it bombed. Seems like they chopped up plot continuity to make it edgy and intellectual when the overall story is basic and only impactful because it's based on a true event. Margot Robbie is a different kind of stunning as a brunette. I don't know who designed/created Christian Bale's character. Wasn't likable or charismatic. Felt like Cosmo Kramer had his soul sucked out of him, then went to a war front to find his heart.... You almost had me there. This really is awful...would not unwatch again. This movie did not deserve to exist. But now it has, I have to read the book and about the events its based on..
The Banshees of Inisherin another great dark dramedy from Martin McDonagh, Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson. Funny, deep and incredibly watchable.....if you enjoyed In Bruges you'll love this..... A
Children of Men. 10/10. I’ve seen it before, but stumbled upon it today, and I just can’t help but watch it again. Can’t think of a more underrated film.
Good to hear. The trailer made it look repetitive to the point of unwatchable, but now I'll probably give it a try.
