switchboard85 Reviews

Mortal Kombat (2021)

1 part: A Frustrating Mess. 2 parts: Exactly What I Was Hoping For!

[7/10 · 25 April 2021]

So, first things first. If you're not already a fan of the Mortal Kombat franchise and have no familiarity with the central story or it's lore, this is not the best place to start. This is a movie clearly intended for fans of the franchise and it's nearly 30 years of lore which is often referenced or alluded to without explanation. A huge section of this movie is already highly expositional and fan-service is kind of the order of the day here. Having said that, if you know MK even a little bit or have simply seen the original 1995 film, there's a lot to love here. I had a fantastic time watching this movie overall. There are some jarring edits, some wonky storytelling and a few bad hires when it comes to acting, but when this movie hits certain beats and does what it does right, it's executed so well and exceedingly satisfying for the longtime MK fan!

(Minor story-structure related SPOILERS to follow!!!!!!)

The Sub-Zero/Scopion parts of the movie finally do some justice to the classic lore and even though it really only bookends the movie's narrative instead of being the central focus or running side-by-side the larger Earth vs. Outworld A-plot. What is done here is more than satisfying in that regard though. The opening moments are treated with a sense of genuine earnestness and the final fight feels epic and brings the story back around to complete the emotional backbone of the entire movie. What we see in the interim is kind of a mixed bag though.

Lewis Tan, who plays the lead role of Cole Young just isn't a good actor and it's easy to see he was hired for his martial arts background and his pretty-boy good looks than his thespian abilities. Thankfully, most of his scenes are bolstered by some really inspired character portrayals like Kano, Sonya and Liu Kang. Josh Lawson's Kano is done brilliantly and it turns out the one actor who least resembled his MK character's in-game counterpart actually felt the most authentic out of the whole cast. Kano serves as a very welcome and clever comic relief and Lawson is clearly having a lot of fun and plays really well off of Jessica McNamee's Sonya Blade.

The extra-sugary icing on this cake (pun intended) are the myriad of references and easter eggs in this movie for fans to catch without any of them really being vital to understand the central story. This movie totally owns the fan-service it leans on and it cerainly has a lot to draw from. Apart from the existence of Cole, you can easily tell that this story, characters and even props were designed with the fans of the game series in mind and it's that crowd this movie really aims to please.

Throw in some kick-ass fights and wonderful fataliites into this mix and I think what comes out clearly has more working for it than against it. If you like MK, this is definitely worth your time.

The Crow: City of Angels (1996)

The (2nd) Worst Thing Harvey Weinstein Has Ever Done

[5/10 · 12 December 2020]

This is one of the clearest examples of a potentially really good movie that was completely slashed up and transformed in post-production into a movie that would be unwatchable were it not for the inspired cinematography and musical score.

I would never watch this movie again, but if a new restored cut its ever released, it may be worth our attention.

Freddy vs. Jason (2003)

If you know what you're here for, you will be pleased

[7/10 · 16 November 2020]

Considering the relatively mediocre depths both the "Friday the 13th" and "Nightmare o Elm Street" franchises have sunken to in the past, this is quite the crowd pleaser, just so long as you know what to expect from a title like "Freddy vs. Jason".

Yes, the non-killer teen characters may as well have numbers instead of names and they seem to go out of their way to move the plot or offer themselves up for slaughter, but that's to be expected at this point and this movie isn't trying to reinvent the wheel. Instead, it tends to lean into its slasher trappings and embrace them in a fun, self-aware way that doesn't come off as annoying or pretentious like "Scream". After all, you watch this movie to see how they bring 2 of the biggest 80's horror icons to do battle in whatever form that takes. As far as that aspect is concerned, you definitely get your money's worth and not just in terms of a Mortal Kombat style deathmatch, but the clever ways the filmmakers use the characters' lore to actually draw them together in a "plausible" way that actually makes this a proper sequel to both franchises and doesn't feel totally disjointed for the sake of a one-off crossover. While this definitely shouldn't be anyone's introduction to either character, it also doesn't require an encyclopedic knowledge of the past 17 movies either.

For fans, this is loads of dumb, tongue-in-cheek fun with just enough of everything you love from Freddy and Jason (not least of which being a respectable body count)

Tenet (2020)

Another Instant Classic From Christopher Nolan

[9/10 · 10 September 2020]

"Tenet" wraps so many of the skills that Christopher Nolan has honed over his previous 10 films and puts them on high display. Like so many of his movies, this is a very plot-heavy story with a lot of exposition. Normally, an overuse of exposition irks me more than most things, but in films like "The Prestige", "Inception", "Interstellar" and "Tenet", it somehow feels not only appropriate but absolutely necessary. The only thing that type of dialogue tends to hurt is the characterization through much of the runtime. By the end of the story, we are given ample character motivation and dimension, which may make this an even better watch on a second viewing.

Unfortunately, this is one of those movies that is nearly impossible to talk about without spoiling it.

Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)

Fans In 2002: "Attack of the Clones" is the worst thing in the Star Wars saga!" Rian Johnson in 2017: "Hold my beer"

[4/10 · 24 November 2019]

At least if simply viewed as a mindless spectacle, TLJ has some impressive visuals and battle sequences. Its also good to at least see Mark Hamill return to his most iconic character. Unfortunately, you'll eventually have to think about what those action scenes were in service of and what they ended up doing with the character of Luke Skywalker.

This movie goes out of it's way to misdirect it's audience simply for the sake of doing it. The main plot is nonsensical and the B-plots end up either going nowhere or end up being set-ups for ridiculous twists that make our characters seem stupid. New characters are introduced and mishandled to the point of absurdity. Our new leads from the last film are either totally flat or so inconsistent that they no longer feel like characters. The legacy characters are so massively misused and unrecognizable in their characterization that it would almost require an additional trilogy of films to justifiably get them to where they are here.

Watch it on Netflix if you're curious but try not to think too much if you want to enjoy it.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

The Best Of The Disney-Era Star Wars Films

[8/10 · 24 November 2019]

Without exaggeration, this is easily the best offering in the franchise since 'Return of the Jedi'. Yes, it is a spin-off of a simple set-up line from the original film, but it manages to really craft it's own story around the demands of where the plot has to go by the end. While it's definitely not a character driven movie, I was surprised with the amount of time given to our key protagonists and the effort to at least make them intriguing.

The idea of another prequel movie was a hard sell; but unlike the prequel (and for that matter, the sequel) trilogy, this manages to tell it's own story within the structure of a lead-up to an event to which we already know the outcome. Felicity Jones and Diego Luna are especially effective along with secondary characters like those played by Riz Ahmed and Donnie Yen becoming easy fan favorites. Ben Mendelsohn is great as always as Krennic despite not being given much dimension as a main villain.

The character of Saw Guerrera (Forest Whitaker) seems a little cut-up and while I understand the character is better informed by one of the animated series, what we have in the film seems like it may have been a little more beefed up in earlier edits of the movie.

One thing I hear from people who don't care for this movie is the amount of fan-service moments. Random appearances of old characters or species, call-backs to famous lines and some easter-egg visuals can be a little distracting and if you don't care for that self-indulgent stuff, you'll definitely notice it here. Personally, it never really bothered me apart from one instance that lasts 5 seconds.

On a final note, while the decision to include Darth Vader was inevitable for this movie, I was so glad to see they did a little more than give him a short cameo appearance and actually give him a moment or two without leaning on him too much as a crutch to distract the audience.

If you love old Star Wars and couldn't care less about the two superfluous trilogies that followed, consider giving this a try.

The Mandalorian: Chapter 3: The Sin (2019) Season 1, Episode 3

What A Pleasant Surprise...

[9/10 · 24 November 2019]

This episode caps off what could easily be a great 90 min movie. As it stands, its a fantastic first act of what could be shaping up to be a really special show. Never thought I'd be so excited for the next episode of a Star Wars TV show, but this keeps hitting all the right notes with absolutely no superfluous nonsense.

All the little character and story points in Episodes 1 and 2 laid some well placed and subtle groundwork for the excellent action-packed payoff that brings everything we've seen together and even adding some weight to previous episodes that may have felt like filler at the time.

And yes, Baby Yoda is so impossibly adorable, this show could be nothing but a nanny cam on his bedroom and I'd probably be fine.

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

This Is Star Trek's Guitar Solo!!

[9/10 · 10 March 2019]

The showrunners had set the table for this film in the original series without even realizing it at the time. A perfect villain for the Star Trek Universe to face down Kirk and crew awaits as we see Jim Kirk having trouble adjusting to his new, more "desk-bound" position out of the captain's chair. This combined with his 50th birthday leave him questioning whether he is still of any use and what he must do to regain his youthful spirit that had served him so well. These subtle themes are hit at perfect moments in this movie with great effect while on the surface, we still get the most nail-biting, emotionally charged adversarial conflict in all of Star Trek. Khan has escaped the far off planet he'd been marooned on years earlier at the conclusion of the "Star Trek" Season 1 episode, 'Space Seed'. We learn that in those years, planetary catastrophes ended up killing most of his comrades and his wife while no effort was made in all that time to check on these people left there to die. Khan lays the blame for this squarely at Kirk's feet and soon steals his own Federation star-ship to pursue him and enact his vengeance if it's the last thing he does. Perfect Star Trek film, if a little stylistically contrasted from its predecessor's ideology and relative pacifism.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

An underrated classic the likes of which we really don't get to see anymore.

[7/10 · 10 March 2019]

For Paramount to release this kind of movie at it's infamously methodical pace within 2 years of Star Wars taking over sci-fi, that's especially ballsy regardless of how you feel about this film.

'Star Trek: TMP' is perhaps the most unique of all the Trek films to date. Its a smaller character driven story set against the backdrop of a visually arresting plot involving a gigantic craft concealed by gas slowly making its way towards Earth from parts unknown. The dust is brushed off the newly redesigned U.S.S. Enterprise for it to intercept this anomaly before it is close enough to pose an immediate danger. (At one point a crewman mentions its diameter as being over 82 AU's, making it far larger than our entire solar system). Newly minted Admiral James T. Kirk assumes command of his old vessel along with the rest of the returning crew from the original television series that had ended 10 years earlier. I really must stop the synopsis there as the slowly unraveling mystery is the part that really pulls you in. No one will ever call this the most exciting Trek movie of this or any era, but I found it to be one of the most thought provoking and is really the only entry in the series to deal in exploration, investigation and discovery like Shatner's immortal introduction lines of the series suggested. Some of the plot points can be a little convoluted and it may be a little too cryptic for its own good when it comes to general audiences, but it is, ultimately, a very rewarding experience and the famous Enterprise has never looked better.

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

One of the Funniest MCU Movies Yet

[8/10 · 20 November 2017]

I almost skipped "Thor: Ragnarok" entirely since this franchise has served as little more than a Thor placeholder between Avengers films in the past. Luckily, this is nowhere near the case here. Not only is this one of the better comedies of the MCU, it may be the best film they've done since "Captain America: The Winter Soldier", albeit for different reasons.

This strikes a perfect balance of action and comedy that this franchise was so devoid of before. The basic villain plot in this film is kind of out of left-field but its executed so well that you can ignore the finer details.

Goldblum and Blanchett steal every scene they're in. Tom Hiddelston and Chris Hemsworth are able to loosen their ties a bit and look as though they're genuinely having fun this time around.

The action sequences are nothing short of amazing. "Ragnarok" sports a color palette that takes direct inspiration from the illustrated works of Jack Kirby and it shows on every inch of the screen.

The film's score is remarkably memorable and you'll never see a better use of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" in any other movie. Can't wait to see this again and that's something I'd have never imagined saying about a Thor movie.

Justice League (2017)

Wasted Potential. Sometimes Enraging, Lazily Written Misfire.

[5/10 · 20 November 2017]

This movie is a complete mess in so many ways. I was kind of reminded of "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" in that we're given a series of disjointed scenes barely held together by a pretty flimsy, by-the-numbers plot. Just mash up the villain plots from "Man of Steel" and "Avengers" and you've got a pretty good idea whats in store here.

The characters are portrayed relatively well for what they're given. The CGI is wildly inconsistent, one of many symptoms of a troubled, rushed production. There are some really fun moments between the heroes here but they come and go too quickly to really be enjoyed. I felt like I was watching a 2hr, hastily edited, abridged version of a 3hr+ original film. Replacement director, Joss Whedon injects his familiar humor but it creates a tonal clash that constantly pulls you out of the movie. Lip service is occasionally paid to some characters' individual arcs but they never really go anywhere.

Danny Elfman's score is bland and forgettable. Even the occasional flourish of his 1989 Batman theme or even John Williams' Superman theme come and go so fast, you wonder why they bothered.

This is really an unfinished film whose studio seemed to prioritize making a release date over creating a valuable product. It has a beginning, middle and end but not much meat in between.

Doctor Strange (2016)

Solid and Really Enjoyable Marvel Flick

[7/10 · 6 November 2016]

For the 14th movie in a franchhise, Doctor Strange feels like one of the more original movies in Marvel's catalogue, even if the plot is kind of paint-by-numbers. Cumberbatch and Swinton stand out among a great cast with no real weak links. Strange as a character seems like a cross between Tony Stark and Gregory House and Cumberbatch taps into that hybrid fantastically, to the point where he now seems like a Robert Downey jr in the sense that you can't imagine anyone else in this role.

Marvel is clearly getting weirder and the subject matter in this movie comes completely out of nowhere. Oddly, that never really bothered me as it doesn't really even feel like an MCU movie apart from the style of humor and occasional Avengers references.

The villain is, again, kind of weak in presentation. He is portrayed deftly enough but there just isn't enough meat on the character to chew on. And thats really my only real gripe about this otherwise amazing new chapter in Marvel. I can't wait to see where they take him from here.

Ant-Man (2015)

Surprisingly well done.

[8/10 · 26 July 2015]

Leave it to this studio to take on something this obscure and absurd and make it work for them. "Ant-Man" is one of Marvel's funniest and unique projects to date, and that is saying a lot. The action is exciting and kept feeling fresh all the way through the film, despite pretty much playing the same few tricks from different angles. After the departure of Edgar Wright and what I felt was a slightly underwhelming "Ultron", this movie didn't look too promising. However, they've done it again. Marvel still seems to be firing on all cylinders in some respects heading into their 'Phase 3'. Although, the villain (as is the case with most Marvel Studios films) is highly forgettable as written and given what we got, one can easily envision an even better movie if Wright had stayed on to direct. His fingerprints and writing style are all over this movie and that can be a bit of a distraction. All in all, while perhaps not Marvel's best film, this is certainly a welcome surprise.