Creed 2 Review

Creed 2, while a step-down from the first film, is still a great sequel. This movie is about Adonis Creed and Rocky, who must face ghosts of their past, when Ivan Drago’s son challenges Creed to a fight. Michael B. Jordan gives a fantastic performance. He is extremely convincing in the boxing scenes and also sells the emotional moments. Sylvester Stallone gives a great performance. While he has less to do this time around, he remains as compelling as ever. Dolph Lundgren and Florian Munteanu impressed me with their performances. They take what could have been a very cheesy side plot and ground it in reality. Tessa Thompson and Phylicia Rashad give really good performances in supporting roles. Their characters are crucial to Creed’s story and they play off Jordan well. Steven Caple Jr. did a great job directing. The boxing scenes are well shot and thrilling to watch. The script is overall quite strong with characters that are easy to root for. At 130 minutes the pacing is good, but flawed. The first half is good, but never reaches greatness. The second half is much improved with an absolutely incredible finale that took my breath away. Overall, while Creed 2 is not quite as good as the first, it still is a great sequel, especially for Rocky fans.

8/10

Wreck-it-Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet Review

Wreck-it-Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet is a hilarious and heartfelt movie throughout. This movie takes place six years after the first film and is about Ralph and Vanellope going on a quest to the internet to fix her game. John C. Reilly gives a great performance. His voice fits the character perfectly, though due to some writing choices, he can come across as unlikable. Sarah Silverman gives an incredible performance. Her character is hilarious and adorable, yet she is also able to carry some heavy emotional moments. Gal Gadot gives an excellent performance. She makes her character very memorable without a lot of screen time. Taraji P. Henson and Alan Tudyk give fantastic performances in supporting roles. Directors Rich Moore and Phil Johnston do a great job directing. The movie is filled with a sense of fun and adventure from the moment it starts. The script is filled with plenty of laugh out loud hilarious moments and some heartfelt ones as well. The more you know about internet culture, the harder a lot of the jokes will hit. However, they do make Ralph come across as extremely unlikable at times which hurts the movie. The animation is fantastic. Everything is so bright and colorful and yet unique looking. At 112 minutes the pacing is good though the first half is stronger than the second. The highlights of the movie are anything involving the Disney Princesses. Any scene involving them was comedy gold. Also, make sure to stay all the way through the credits for two well worth it scenes. Overall I had so much fun with Wreck- it Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet that its small flaws rarely affect the experience.

8.5/10

Robin Hood (2018) Review

Robin Hood (2018) is a lot of fun thanks to exciting action scenes and a great lead performance. This movie is another retelling of the classic story as Rob, a crusader returning from war, becomes a thief to get revenge on the Sheriff of Nottingham. Taron Egerton gives a fantastic performance. He does an incredible job in the action scenes and has a perfect sense of comedic and dramatic timing. Jamie Foxx gives a great performance as a new interpretation of Little John. His character motivation is great and his back and forth with Egerton is a highlight. Ben Mendelsohn gives a really good performance as the villain. He is not doing anything new but is easily despicable and a lot of fun to watch. Jamie Dornan and Eve Hewson give okay performances in supporting roles. They do their job, but their characters are not developed enough to care much. Tim Minchin is a lot of fun in a small supporting role. Otto Bathurst did a great job directing his first Hollywood movie. The action sequences are well shot and thrilling. However, they do occasionally rely on using slow motion too much. The script is good but nothing special. The story is simple and easy to follow with a few fun twists on the classic story. The editing is great, though a couple of scenes have a few too many quick cuts. The cinematography was very cool and unique giving the movie a realistic and fantasy feel simultaneously. At 116 minutes the movie moves at a fairly quick pace rarely slowing down. As for flaws, while I enjoyed the first act, the movie really picks up once the Robin Hood part of the story begins. Overall Robin Hood (2018) is a lot of fun and might be the best live action interpretation of the story yet.

7.5/10

Instant Family Review

Instant Family is a funny and heartwarming comedy perfect for the holiday season. This movie is about a young couple who decide to start a family by fostering a child. They end up with a rebellious teenager and a young boy and girl that might be more than they can handle. Mark Wahlberg gives a fantastic performance. He is believable as a dad while still bringing his signature comedy style to the role. Rose Byrne gives a great performance. She has great comedic timing and has fantastic chemistry with Wahlberg. Isabela Moner continues to impress with another really good performance. She especially sells her emotional scenes well. Gustavo Quiroz Jr. and Julianna Gamiz are adorable and likable as the two small kids of the family. Octavia Spencer is a lot of fun in a small supporting role. Sean Anders does a competent, albeit, unspectacular job directing. There is nothing bad about it, but it is very bland and standard. The script is fantastic. Almost every single joke made me laugh and the likable characters have plenty of heartfelt moments. At 120 minutes the pacing is good. While the movie never flew by I was never bored either. Overall, Instant Family is a hilarious and heartwarming gem that deserves to be seen this holiday season.

8.5/10

Widows Review

Widows is a thrilling heist movie with fantastic acting held back by some poor directorial decisions. This movie is about four women who must perform a dangerous heist to fulfill their dead husbands' debts. Viola Davis gives a fantastic performance. She makes a very complex character as relatable as she can. Elizabeth Debicki gives an excellent performance. Her character had the most development and you believe her character growth. Michelle Rodriguez gives a great performance. She plays a very realistic role really grounding everything in a sense of realism. Cynthia Erivo gives an okay performance. She is doing her best, but the script gives her very little to work with. Brian Tyree Henry and Daniel Kaluuya give good performances playing standard, but menacing villains. Colin Farrell and Robert Duvall are great in small supporting roles. Steve McQueen does a decent job directing. The action and heist scenes are so tense and thrilling. However, he makes some baffling creative decisions during simple dialogue scenes that come across as pretentious. The script is fantastic, filled with compelling characters and a plot that constantly keeps you guessing. The editing is overall fine, but there are a few truly terrible editing choices. At 128 minutes the movie moves at a consistent pace though it does occasionally slow down. Overall Widows is a great heist thriller with compelling characters despite some directorial problems.

8/10

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald Review

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is yet another fun exciting addition to the Wizarding World.  This movie is about Newt Scamander as he must race against time to find a boy, Creedence, before Grindelwald gets to him. Eddie Redmayne gives a great performance.  He is not the typical protagonist, but he remains lovable and compelling. Dan Fogler remains delightful as the main source of comedic relief. Alison Sudol and Katherine Waterson give really good performances. However, their characters are given much less to do this time around. Ezra Miller gives a unique performance. He is forced to convey numerous emotions at once, but he does it well. Claudia Kim gives an okay performance, but the inclusion of her character is pure fan service. Callum Turner gives a great performance in a smaller supporting role and I am excited to see where they take his character. Zoe Kravitz gives a really good performance though her character is mainly used for exposition dumps. Jude Law gives a fantastic performance playing young Dumbledore. He steals every single scene he is in. Johnny Depp gives a great performance as our villain. He plays the role very subtly and becomes infinitely more menacing because of it. David Yates continues to be an excellent director for this series. He is a pro at directing the magical action sequences by this point. J.K. Rowling's script is great, albeit, a bit overstuffed. There are plenty of likable characters with great development and plenty of great plot reveals. However, due to the sheer amount of information given here, I do highly recommend rewatching the first film as this movie jumps right in. The visual effects are all fantastic and really help transport you into this magical world. The costume and set design are stunning. The cinematography is also incredible. This is a visual feast for the eyes in all aspects. As for flaws, the movie starts off rough and it takes about 15 minutes to get going. At 134 minutes the pacing moves at a good pace, though slower than the first film. However, the movie ends on a strong note with one of the best third acts of the franchise. Overall, I had an absolute blast with Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald and recommend it to all fans of the Wizarding World.

8/10

The Girl in the Spider's Web Review

The Girl in the Spider’s Web is a very mediocre movie saved by a strong third act. This movie is about Lisbeth Salander as she gets caught in a government conspiracy ring while also dealing with the ghosts of her past. Claire Foy gives a decent performance. She is not doing a bad job, but she rarely ever completely grabbed me. Sverrir Gudnason gives a good performance. He did not blow me away, but he kept me engaged. Sylvia Hoeks gives a weak performance as our main villain. Lakeith Stanfield gives a great performance. Everything with him was easily my favorite part of the movie. Fede Alvarez did a good job directing. Some of the action scenes were unique and thrilling, but some were filled with so many quick cuts I could not tell what was going on. The script is a mixed bag with a story that is sometimes engaging and sometimes dull with weird character decisions. At 117 minutes the pacing is all over the place. The opening 15 minutes are really intriguing and then the movie barely touches on it again. There are some fun, thrilling scenes sprinkled throughout but for the most part, everything just felt mediocre. Thankfully the last 20 minutes come to life out of nowhere with an extremely strong and unique finale. Overall The Girl in the Spider’s Web is a mediocre movie saved by an extremely strong third act.

6/10