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Friends: The One with the Truth About London (2001)
top 10 episode imo
Lots of great stuff in this episode, I enjoyed how the london storyline ended with a really nice sentimental moment with chandler and joey.
The real highlight was the rachel ben storyline, which makes this maybe my favorite rachel episode of the series. Rachel has a prankster side that we don't see much of in the rest of the show and it's really fun and creative, especially when she backtracks and ben is screwing with her. It also hits that chord that everybody feels, wanting to be the fun relative. On top of that i think jen's acting is hysterical in this episode. Top it off with the end scene that turns the dynamic on its head **chefs kiss**
Hawkeye: Never Meet Your Heroes (2021)
an ok start
Some shows, like Game of Thrones, need hugely action packed premieres to draw audiences in. It seems like with this show Feige knows he's gonna have people watching multiple episodes even if the first episode doesn't blow you out of the water. And that's essentially it. This first episode is long and drags at times, but has some intriguing plot points to set up what's to come, and I think what's to come could be good for the following reasons.
I like Kate Bishop. Her backstory and motivation is weak, and the flashback scenes with her were quite mediocre, but I like her personality and she seems like a good second lead to Clint. I know next to nothing about Hailee Steinfeld, but I really like what she did with Bishop in this episode.
The fighting was good, but really well choreo'd. I think Kate is supposed to be a good fighter, but nowhere near the Clint or Natasha level, and that came across with the fight scenes.
The episode had gave some intrigue that sets up a potential underground crime plot involving rich people conspiring, which is something Marvel hasn't done besides Daredevil, and I think it could be pretty cool.
Only thing I definitely would change is the length of the episodes. Closer to 35 minutes seems more reasonable for a show that probably isn't making huge waves in the greater MCU, and would ensure the episodes don't drag. Who knows, though, the coming episodes could be action packed and could need all 50 minutes.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
a gorgeous movie
Shang-Chi has instantly entered my top 5 of Marvel movies. There is so much to adore about this movie. The visuals are beautiful, the villain is compelling, the last sequence isn't very predictable, as superhero movies can often be. The characters all have a level of depth that is often missing from the supporting characters in superhero movies, and I was pleased that they didn't marginalize Xialing as it would've been easy to do. I don't know much about the different disciplines of martial arts, but it seems very similar to Avatar: The Last Airbender in how they drew inspiration from different real world fighting styles for different fighters in the movie. If I compare the acting to the other movies I consider the best to produced by Marvel (Infinity War, Ragnarok, Winter Soldier, etc.), Shang-Chi is a notch below, but it blows every other Marvel movie out of the water when it comes to action and choreography. The bus scene in the first act has easily become my favorite sequence in any Marvel film. Origin films often fall into the same traps, but Shang-Chi doesn't, maybe because many didn't know much about the character. But even so, typical tropes like training sequences were done better in Shang-Chi, and the story didn't linger on his youth too much.
Luca (2021)
had good themes
The film did well at exploring the throes of childhood friendship in 90 minutes, and those relationships did tug at the heart strings here and there. Obviously the animation was fantastic, and the depiction of the italian riviera and countryside italian culture were great, although i'm not sure if any actual italian says "santa" followed by a cheese like giulia.
At first i wanted to say the acceptance scene at the end was a little unrealistically conflict-free, but i caught myself and thought that if this is the message pixar wants to show to our children, then more power to them. It was a great way of saying "embrace our differences and accept each other".
Pixar seems to have become a victim of its own success though, as nothing really blew me away in luca or struck me as super creative. Maybe 20 years ago the concept was innovative, but today luca was merely an above average animated movie, falling short of the likes of ratatouille, toy story, soul, coco, and many others. The plot ended somewhat along the lines of what i expected, and to that end it doesn't play as well for adults as i believe it does for children, unlike some of the films mentioned above.
Maharshi (2019)
i might be the only one who can see mahesh babu's acting
Mahesh babu has not been a good actor for years. he gave some very good performances in 2010 and 2011 with khaleja and dookudu, but since then he has been praised for srimanthudu, bharat ane nenu, and this movie, but his facial expression literally does not change throughout this entire film, and it doesn't in either of those other two. it seems like he can cry on command, which is good, but if he doesn't move his face, it can't be considered good acting. i will give him credit that his vocal inflection is great. i can hear his characters emotion in the voice but i can't see it on his face. the only times i saw some good acting was in the very few comedy scenes he was in, which were a big part of his earlier movies and why i used to thing he was a very good actor.
the plot of this movie was a good idea. there were a lot of great emotional moments, and it was at many points very touching. i think allari naresh stole this film. he was incredible as ravi. i've also been a fan of pooja, who has had a great rise in the last three years. she was good in this movie, but very underused. it seems like they quickly wrote in a female character for the typical female lead role, and the character doesn't bring much to the story. at the end, when she comes back to rishi, it seems like the writers wanted to say that rishi was right the entire time and that she was wrong and it seems like she came crawling back, which isn't a great message for any women who watch this movie. tollywood movies are almost always male-lead, which i'm used to, but that doesn't have to mean you can't make a strong female character. a big reason i went to watch this movie was for pooja, and i wish she had a bigger role.
The Umbrella Academy (2019)
worth finishing
Some shows today are great but just aren't bingeable, while some are mediocre but very bingeable. the first season of umbrella academy is closer to the latter. the first 4-5 episodes aren't nearly as good as the last 5, but i found myself interested enough to keep watching. the plot isn't incredible, but the writers did a good job of starting the show with a bunch of unsolved mysteries and questions that i wanted answered, so i ended up finishing season 1. some characters are dull. i wanted more from tom hopper, and he certainly delivered when asked for an emotionally charged scene or two, but his character didn't demand that much. number five, the character who's essentially trapped in the body of his younger self, is slightly over-acted and annoying. allison is mostly boring except for one aspect of her character that involves her power which i won't spoil, but the writers decided not to dive into that as much as they shouldve. diego is alright, and vanya is both interesting and very well acted by ellen page. but klaus's arc was one of the main reasons i decided to stick it out and finish season 1. if you find yourself bored around episode 3 or 4, i'd suggest just watching an episode or two more, and if you're still bored around episode 6, then its probably not for you.
Suicide Squad (2016)
more than a missed opportunity
I'm astounded by how much wasted money was poured into this movie. if the studio and the producers saw the script, why did they fund this movie? there are an incredible number of flaws, so much so that I'd call the movie a flaw in and of itself and it'd be quicker to name what's good about the movie. but there's no fun in that, so let's run through what makes this flick horrible.
the base plot. you can't have the suicide squad going on a mission to fight a supernatural and/or magical entity. in almost every iteration of the suicide squad, at least half of the team has no superhuman ability, or at least a power that's not very, well, powerful. this adaptation is one of those, with the entire squad being basically powerless except for diablo. so most of the squad is essentially useless during the most important parts of the movie, seeing that the main villain is a magical witch and her brother.
a lot of the plot details.
-what was the point of keeping the full details of the mission secret for so long? the squad can't do anything anyway. they have bombs in their necks.
-the beef between flag and deadshot that headed off most of the first half of the movie just didn't make sense. it was inorganic, and we all knew how it would end.
-thrusting bits and pieces of the harley quinn/joker backstory into the movie here and there was both annoying and confusing
-the camaraderie between the group felt very fake and shoehorned by the end.
-and others i can't remember off of the top of my head.
the script. deadshots lines were absolutely horrible most of the time. diablo's were a little cliché as well. flag's weren't great. harley quinn's were fine, but i'll expand on her below. but i have to say, killer croc had the worst dialogue of any superhero movie this century, hands down. it's hard to put it into a review without going through the movie scene by scene, but if you watch you'll probably know what i mean when i say that the script could've been better written by an average liberal arts sophomore.
the acting i guess was alright. i would attack will smith, but i know that he was given awful lines to work with, and when he had decent dialogue, he delivered pretty well. jai courtney's horrible acting was at least slightly hidden. joel kinnaman, though, had some very rough moments, even though for about 65% of the movie he was somewhere between passable and good. viola davis disappointed me, not because she was bad, but because she was only okay. jared leto, though, was a disgrace. his joker voice sounded like his mouth was full of spit, his laugh was just plain bad, and the way his scenes were shot and edited didn't do him any favors.
margot robbie is a special case. i think she did well, but the problem was that everything around her was so bad, it just made her lines, acting, and character be judged sort of unfairly. i think that if the other aspects of the movie were good, then she'd shine a little more, but the overall low quality of the rest of the movie clouds our judgement of her performance and the character of harley quinn.
the pacing of a lot of the scenes is also disjointed. i wouldn't say the movie is too fast paced, but it rushes through a lot of things it could slow down on.
don't watch this movie. i thought i would, saying to myself that it couldn't be that bad. well, it really can. i don't understand people who say this is better that BvS. that movie is more boring and dreary with a few bright spots rather than just wholly a failure like this one is.
Game of Thrones: Dragonstone (2017)
things to like and things to dislike
there is much to admire in this episode, but there is also stuff to berate. i can't call it an average episode, even though if i were ranking this among game of thrones episodes it would be somewhere in the middle, because there is only great and not great, nothing in between. lets go story line by story line.
the Arya cold open was amazing. David Bradley was amazing. the dialogue was amazing. there is absolutely nothing to hate about this scene. but the second Arya scene disappointed me. i have nothing against Ed Sheeran, but it pains me to see Benioff and Weiss inserting a celebrity cameo into the show. this is game of thrones. this is the greatest spectacle and the most captivating TV show the world has ever seen. they should be above celebrity cameos. everything about game of thrones and HBO in general is so professional and high quality that this just disappoints me, even if it was intended as a surprise for Maisie Williams.
there isn't anything wrong with the scenes in winterfell, except for the fact that i don't think Davos spoke even once. he's personally one of my favorite characters on the show, but i also don't think anybody else would argue that he's one of the best characters on the show. i want more Davos.
Bran arrives at castle black. cool. it was maybe a little annoying when Bran was being a know it all to Edd, considering he doesn't even fully understand his powers, but it doesn't bother me too much.
the Hound's character development is pretty great. nothing much else to say.
I'm not a book reader, but those who do read the books have told me the the introduction of Euron in season 6 was underwhelming, as he was one of the most polarizing characters in the books. i couldn't get enough of him in this episode, and i can't wait to see more. nice fix by the show runners.
i have nothing against Sam, but I'm a little bored by his arc. i hope he's not in too many episodes this season, or at least that he doesn't take up too much of our time. the poop montage was pretty great though.
Daenerys's landing at dragonstone probably should've evoked more out of me, but i don't really care that much that she's coming home, considering that we've only seen her in essos. I'm waiting for Tyrion to do some damage.
all in all, it was just Ed Sheeran's cameo that annoyed me, that and the lack of action after Arya's mass poisoning, but what can you expect out of a season premiere? if i had to give it a numerical grade, it would probably be a 7.2/10.
Snatch (2017)
not snatch, but still good
if you're looking for a throwback to the original Guy Ritchie masterpiece, this show is not what you are looking for. i was of this mindset before watching the show. what really defined snatch was the range of characters and different personalities that brought it together, and how there wasn't really a definition of bad guy or good guy. in this show, we obviously have some clear villains and the heroes. it tries to do camera angles, zooms, and overall cinematography and editing like the movie did, but not as effectively. the movie's was also heavily predicated on accidental and unintentional mishaps, which are present but not as prevalent in the show. what it is, though, is an enjoyable show with likable characters and pretty solid dialogue and writing. the acting isn't half bad, and the plot is very well thought up. the show is very unpredictable, unlike much of what comes on the screen in the crime genre these days, and i never find myself thinking "oh, of course that happened". i will reiterate, this is not the movie, and you will see minimal similarity with the movie, but don't let that cloud the fact that this isn't a bad show by any stretch. i will say that the flashback scenes that start each episode are kind of annoying, but i guess that's just a testament to how much I'm invested in the actual plot of the show. please do not be alarmed by the rating of this show. try at least an episode and a half before you call it quits.
the above was written three episodes into the show. having finished the entire first season, i have more to say. for one, after episode two and three the quality of the show stays about the same throughout, maybe getting a little better, but definitely not worse. there are definitely a couple of scenes and plot points that are very questionable, and if there were more experienced writers then maybe those could've been fixed, but they're relatively easy to look past. overall, it's a fun and entertaining show that really doesn't have any outstanding flaws. i highly recommend it if you like crime or heist movies and shows in general, or if you're looking to bang out a quick show over a couple days or a week, without any real long term attachment. it's definitely better than what you'll find on some big TV networks nowadays, and i personally really enjoyed it.
Office Christmas Party (2016)
hilarious
i loved it. I'm seeing so many reviews that are really critical of the comedy, but i was laughing the entire time. there were plenty of witty jokes and well-placed humor that worked really well, and if you can get by the unnecessary nudity and cocaine that always seem to be shoehorned into comedy movies like this one, such as the hangover or horrible bosses, its actually a great movie and a really fun time. the plot was pretty basic, but that was expected, and shouldn't be an indicator of how good the movie is. the acting was pretty good, especially from Olivia Munn, who hasn't had much acting experience. she wasn't amazing or anything, but i didn't have any moments during the movie, from her or any of the other fifteen important characters, where i was cringing at terrible acting moments. Jason Bateman was as great as always, TJ Miller showed me he could do more than just television, and Jennifer Aniston showcased that she doesn't have to be a sexual character to be enjoyable in a movie. and everybody else, especially Kate McKinnon, Jillian Bell, and Sam Richardson, was great.
Home Alone (1990)
more of a must see than great movie
it's not without it's flaws, that's for sure. the acting isn't amazing, some plot points aren't great, and it doesn't have a dialogue that's anything special. but this is an American treasure. i would never call it one of the top 10 movies i've ever seen, but it is definitely one of my top 10 favorite movies. it's a movie that if you haven't watched, you haven't lived. it's one of the most defining Christmas movies with values and life lessons entrenched in the plot. it's just such a fun movie that everyone will love even if they don't think its a great movie in and of itself.
it's kind of hard to explain, but you just have to watch this movie if you've never seen it. you definitely won't regret it.
Beasts of No Nation (2015)
I couldn't finish it
It started off great. Few war movies are so inspiring. Idris Elba was amazing, and I think Abraham Attah could give Haley Joel Osmont a run for his money in the "Best Child Actor Performance of All Time" category. The cinematography was great, the landscape in which it was shot was a beautiful jungle, the murder of Agu's dad and brother and the first couple of battle scenes were touching, and the Commandant and Agu were both inspiring and very admirable characters. But then it took a sick, twisted turn for the worse.
I read the synopsis. I think it's safe to say that 90% of people who watched this movie would've hoped it went a different way. Everything about the film was great, except for the plot itself. The Commandant became a rapist, and Agu became a druggie.
Why? Why couldn't this have been a movie about an army of African child soldiers led by an inspiring revolutionary who overcame odds and defeated the government? But no, this has to be a messed up story about a revolutionary leader who gives a whole speech to Agu about how he sees leadership in him, and then proceeds to rape him. His speeches talked about the rape prevalent in their country that was a result of the government, yet he is a perpetrator of it himself!
I know this was based on a book, and people would've been outraged if it was a bad adaption and left things out, so I guess I'm targeting the author here, but why couldn't it have been at least half of a happy story? Lots of movies end with the antagonists winning, but usually we are secretly rooting for them in some way, or at least something decently good happens. Nothing positive takes place in this movie. Nothing at all.
If there were no drug problems, no rape, and the Commandant faithfully led his battalion without any worries about pay or twisted fantasies, and then they failed, then I would've been okay with it. But this movie just doesn't please the viewer at all.
I know that there are many stories like this in Africa, and screwed up events like this take place, probably more often than anyone would expect, but this movie fails to present a point it is trying to make or a theme they are trying to bring out that most movies in which the opposite of what the viewers want to happen usually have. It's just disappointing.
American Crime Story: From the Ashes of Tragedy (2016)
enticing and very promising
I've always been fascinated by the story of OJ Simpson, and this show has brought the story to life in a very interesting story that incorporates everything that the trial encompassed in the very first episode. It shows the reluctance of cops to bring in celebrities, it has characters fighting to achieve true equality between black and white, and it gives us a deep look into the mind of a criminal who was not entirely a bad person, which is a very complex and interesting type of character.
I will say, though, that Travolta was a bit of a let down. He's a great actor, we all know that, but he's usually good at playing those slow-talking characters that sound kind of dumb, but aren't necessarily unintelligent, like Vincent Vega. Now he's pretty big and looks kind of intimidating, but his voice and his acting are relatively the same, and when he tries to be intimidating, it doesn't work because he doesn't move a single muscle in his face.
Schwimmer was a pleasant surprise. He didn't stand out until the end of the episode but its clear that taking all of those years without doing any significant works actually payed off.
I never thought I'd say it, but Cuba Gooding Jr. is actually quite good, and while the voice isn't perfect, does it really need to be? I guess it doesn't bother me as much because I'm one of those few people that wasn't bothered by Christian Bale's Batman voice.
Catch Me If You Can (2002)
a lot of fun
this is just a thoroughly enjoyable movie. it doesn't have any spectacular traits that make it outstanding, but its just fun all the way through. it has great characters, delightful performances that one would expect from the actors in these movies, and an enjoyable plot that never gets too fast or too slow. its the perfect pace, and has very few errors. the flaws of this movie are very slight and unnoticeable. the music ties into the movie very well and helps keep the pace and the mood. and don't get me started on the main character. leo depicts frank abagnale jr so flawlessly, and he is just full of charisma. its hard not to like him. christopher walken is as good as ever, which is shown by his Oscar nomination. tom hanks isn't his best, but that certainly doesn't mean he was bad. he was still very good, which, of course, is sub par for tom hanks. all in all, it was a thoroughly enjoyable movie for someone who is looking to have fun rather than critique.
Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015)
i feel like i should give it an 8 but i don't want to
not flawless, but still very, very good.
what many negative reviews say is that its a "remake" rather than a sequel. it certainly seems that way, but it was definitely done that way for a reason: to appease star wars fanboys. you can see so much of a new hope in this movie that its crazy. but that isn't a bad thing. its just something that will cleanly divide viewers of this movie. some people love it, some people criticize it for being this way. personally, i think they went just a little overboard with the nostalgia, but they did what they originally planned to do: revitalize the series, try to remedy the damages done by the prequels, and start off what looks to be a great trilogy. this movie does a lot of setting up, with plot, characters, and even themes. rage is something i had never seen in a sith but it was always said throughout all of the star wars movies that it was a path to the dark side, and this movie really showed that. it also answered a lot of questions that people had coming into this movie.
one thing i especially liked are the new characters. finn is very charismatic and rey is a strong independent woman, and they can be correlated with han and leia, but finn its as if they took some of hans qualities out of finn and plugged in some of Luke's original qualities in a new hope, and then did the same with some of the leia qualities in rey. overall, I'm really excited for these characters, and new ones to come (benicio del toro). also, I'm now a fan of Oscar isaac, and while his acting was questionable at times, he did a great job as a character who wasn't really based off of anybody.
while we are on the topic of acting, i want to mention that abrams did a great job of taking these D-list actors and turning them into stars.
the main reason i couldn't hate all of the correlations with a new hope is because, well, its star wars, and they copied great concepts from a great movie.
Inception (2010)
nolan almost at his finest
this is nolan's 2nd best movie of all time, and i think you can infer what i think is nolan's best. the originality of the script and the concept that this brilliant movie was conceived from is absolutely stunning. the cinematography, again with the nolan and wally pfister pair that stunned us in the dark knight trilogy. this has the aspect of nolan movies that i always like: there's a lot of information that is relatively essential to the movie that is easy to forget as more and more information is piled on. then the second time you watch it, you're still able to absorb all of the amazing elements of this incredible journey, but know everything is coming together and you can actually understand it a lot better.
the scene switching as the story is narrated from every level of the dream is magnificent, as we cut from yusuf trying to escape from the projections in the first dream, to arthur's dilemma with protecting the sleeping team in the second dream, to trying to actually plant the idea in the third dream, to everything that happens in limbo. while this may not count as one scene, because its literally half of the movie, its still indescribably outstanding.
even though the movie wasn't as confusing as i was told it would be, with this complex of a plot, there are bound to be plot holes. i only detected a couple, but they were minor, and nowhere near as obvious as the ones in the dark knight rises. but even if there were more, they probably wouldn't make this film that much worse, just separate a crowd of fans who will immediately dub the movie as terrible, as the same crowd did with the dark knight rises.
the only thing that had potential for bringing the movie down was the performances. they weren't bad, more just mediocre. none of the supporting roles really called for major performances, except for marion cotillard in a few instances, and while she didn't do what i thought her best was, she was fine. but this probably isn't even in leonardo dicaprios top 10 performances, as he was maybe even a little less than mediocre for most of the movie.
some people thought the ending was ambiguous, or left things a little unclear. was the top wobbling, and about to fall, or was it going to stay up forever? i think this was more to be left to the viewers imagination, and i think it was definitely about to fall.
Interstellar (2014)
amazing
i want to give this a 10/10. i really do. the emotional spectrum of this mind blowing journey with so many moments that just made you feel how much hope means to people, and through the futile journey of loss and longing you can either cling on to that last, flickering hope, or you can just let it go. i loved the main character, coop was such a privilege to watch, and mcconaughey has yet to let me me down. most of the other performances were good, with anne hathaway being as mediocre as ever except in a select few moments, like at the end. i normally don't like space movies, or any movie like gravity, for that matter. they just make me have that feeling of loneliness and despair, because i could not imagine a world in which id want to go into space. but this movie takes that and taps into it so well, especially with the character of dr. mann, who i really couldn't blame for trying to abandon the other astronauts to get home. there are only a couple of reasons i didn't give this a 10/10. it was very confusing, and i consider myself to be a fairly well educated person, and i usually understand complex things. but i had to go to wikipedia towards the end of the movie because i really did not get what was happening. yes, the way they wrote the script was so that they'd explain everything after the whole confusing morse and binary code scene was over, but still. also, it took me a while to try to figure out exactly what dr. mann was trying to do when he attacked coop, because they really didn't mention that they had low fuel until after he died. and i don't think he knew they had low fuel, so why didn't he just tell them that the planet was inhabitable and they could all go home TOGETHER. and lastly, i heard a good amount of this movie's appeal was the visual effects, and i didn't watch interstellar in theaters, rather, i watched it on my laptop so i kind of got to see some of the flaws of the movie without my judgement being partially blinded by the amazing visuals, which were still pretty good on my mac.
Mr. Robinson: Pilot (2015)
good but with many flaws
the pilot of mr. robinson has a good attitude, decent direction, and shows some motivation for episodes down the line, but it has many problems. you have the generic likable charismatic African American male with a love for music and women. its always been a good character type, but like with the generic sigourney weaver strong and tough attitude female character, its overused, and you can definitely see its overuse in the pilot. it also has some corny parts, that along with trying to rope in what defines kids today, like the music the kids like, and this gives it the feel that you can very often find in those Disney channel sitcom type shows, which most people above the age of 12 can testify too: they are amusing at times but overall usually unbearable to watch mainly because of audience it appeals to with the plots and events in each episode. now take these attributes and combine them with the regular old sitcom comedy we have in those shows we love like in how i met your mother and friends, and there you have mr. robinson.
The Flash (2014)
started slow but gradually became amazing
i really wanted to dislike this show, and i mean really wanted to. i was like 5 or 6 episodes behind towards the end of the season, and people were starting to say that it was better than arrow. i understood how people were beginning to doubt arrow, as half of season 3 came down to felicity instead of oliver, which really ticked me off, but i still loved arrow, and i didn't like that the flash was giving it a run for its money in its first season. i will say though, before the season finale, i might have given this show a 9 or even an 8.
highlights of the show:
really good plot development after suspicions begin to arise about Harrison Wells being the reverse flash, and making it so that every episode isn't just about Barry fighting some generic criminal meta human.
firestorm storyline that starts with the man in the yellow suit but is actually the main plot line in the nuclear man and fallout.
Leonard Snart/captain cold...great villain and excited to see more of him.
arrow appearances.
late season one hit wonder villains like mark martin and especially mark Hamill as the trickster. some stuff with the trickster was unnecessary, like the subplot that reveals the new trickster was actually his son. i know that when Hamill says "i am your father" they're paying tribute to the star wars movies, and even though i love star wars, it was unnecessary.
low points:
superhero clichés that are in a lot of live action movies/TV, like the ones that have become abundant in the MCU and arrow season 3.
a lot of predictability in the first half of the season.
not delving enough into the part of Barry that distinguishes himself from oliver: the fact that he wants to save everybody and be as heroic as he possibly can. the only time we really see this breakout is in the 2nd to last episode where he tries to save the criminal meta humans.
the fact that all of the meta humans except like 3 were bad people, or just downright evil.
the 2nd to last episode: it started off pretty good, with Barry going to Snart for help and everything, but after that all happens and Barry's plan falls through, it really seemed like they squeezed the second plot of oliver and Ronnie coming in to help Barry defeat Thawne, even if it was only a fight scene.
Snart's sister. she's pointless and annoying, even if she is hot, and i hate the concept of that gold gun.
now i'm going to take a couple of lines to talk about the finale. i always had the feeling that Barry wouldn't go through with the plan to save his mother, but i didn't expect it to happen that way. grant Gustin's acting took things to a whole new level, starting off with the scene in prison with his father, which was very emotional, and with Joe, also emotional, and then finally with his mother dying in his arms, and having to go through her death all over again, especially when he knew could've saved her, and would've if future Barry didn't tell him not to. that scene was incredible, heartbreaking, outstandingly acted, and mind-blowing at the same time. i wouldn't be surprised if a lot of movies couldn't pull that off. and then the way Eddie sacrificed himself to save everybody. i was predicting this since the day that we met Eddie, in the first episode. it had already been announced that reverse flash was the main villain of the first season, and someone with the same last name was in the first episode. yet at that point in the finale, i didn't expect it would happen. but the cinematography involving the shot and seeing Eddie with the blood stain on his chest was so incredible and emotional. and Candice Patton's acting finally came through, and yet another amazing one on one emotional scene was fitted into the episode, and it still wasn't too much. the only thing is, if eddie had made up his mind a couple of hours or even days earlier, he could've just gotten a vasectomy. i will say that i hated the cliffhanger though. i hate cliffhangers.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2005)
hilarious, with some flaws
the show starts of with some flaws, while also being hysterical, and doesn't develop its characters enough for the first couple of seasons. mac is the typical a-hole type character, and he is expanded upon in the first couple of seasons, maybe because his actor, rob mcelhenney, does most of the writing. dennis is kind of a shadow of mac's character, while not only being a jerk but an absolute terrible person. its easy to hate dennis in the first couple of seasons. dee is alright, frank is alright, but charlie isn't enough of the lovable weirdo we all love that he is in the later seasons. and most of the comedy comes from the situations the characters are in, not the characters themselves. this starts to change as season 3 starts. everybody's characters get a little expansion, and charlie becomes the center of most of the comedy. this is where the show really takes off. it'll never have the constant roasting and degrading that the league has, which is more of what i like, but the original stories never quit to amaze me in this show, and danny devitos acting is as good as ever, even if it might steal the show a little. one thing season 2 did well was bring out the competitiveness in the characters, with the episode where everybody is coaching the basketball teams for community service, and it would really be better if they made more competitive episodes than 1-2 per season.
Se7en (1995)
really good
se7en was a very unsettling and well made movie. though most of the movie was conversation and could probably put many people to sleep, it quickly picked up pace towards the end and surprised everybody. i already knew the ending going in, yet i was still in shock. i think the main goal of the movie was not to be super intriguing or well written, and David fincher probably wasn't shooting to make a movie that would be rewatched thousands of times by countless people, but a movie that made a lasting impression on the thoughts of viewers. the goal seemed to be to make people think about the world we live in, and how diverted it is from God's original perspective. i will say that the acting was very good, and even though brad pitt had some questionable moments, he delivered a great performance where it was most needed. so did morgan freeman, and kevin spacey in the few minutes he had. the only reasons this got a 9 was 1) because it's a 2 hour movie, and while it was made this way to ensure that people got the whole story and no plot holes came up, it would've been a little less boring if it was shorter and 2) because mills is somewhat of a typical, single minded character most of the time, kind of a typical hotheaded cop.
Kick-Ass (2010)
good not great
the best part about this movie are the action scenes, mainly the ones involving big daddy and hit girl. but what this movie lacked most was an intriguing plot. it also wasn't as funny as I expected, and while it wasn't expected to be good, the acting was sub par. i know mark strong could've done better, especially early on in the movie, which, with good acting, would've established frank damico as a more sinister villain. the love story that developed between dave and kate was relatively good, though, and I was disappointed to learn that they break up in the second movie. I really liked the occasional comic book storytelling or transition, though, and again, the action was great, but his best friends are only occasionally there for comic relief and are pretty much useless. but in my opinion, the worst part is his ease with the concept of killing. he doesn't kill for the entire movie, yet he does it with the gatling gun on the jetpack without contemplating what he was doing. and he never questions why an 11 year old would be killing in the first place. one of the central themes of superhero movies is the justification to kill and this movie completely glazes over it.
American Hustle (2013)
good not great
more of a critic pleasing movie than a moviegoers'. the acting was mainly the highlight of the movie, which is expected of the all star cast, but the characters are never really likable or people that anyone wants to root for. sure, they are relatively strong characters, and they show good development, but i don't really care when something bad happens to any of them. Christian bale is my favorite actor and i tend to support each of his roles in movies, yet i didn't really like irving that much. i did think that the foundation that was built for richie in the beginning of the movie was good, showing him as a loser that just wanted to make a name for himself and feel success for once in his life, as he was living with his mother and a fiancée that he did not care about at all. but then they made him more of a jerk as the movie went on. i guess they made him a jerk so that no one would feel bad when he lost at the end of the movie, but they didn't do it well enough because i definitely felt kind of bad for him. also, the movie was well written and had a good plot, but not enough intrigue. American hustle seemed more on the side of winning over the academy than being a people pleaser. also, i think exploring the friendship that irving and carmine built a little more would've been good.
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
alright
i came into theaters to see this movie hoping that it would be absolutely amazing, as thats what all of the critics and the freaking 8.7 rating on IMDb said. but honestly, i don't see what all of the hype is about. sure, all of the effects were pretty cool and the action scenes were entertaining, but at the end of the day, what is it? its a movie about a post apocalyptic car chase that has a couple battles while they are driving. the characters weren't that in- depth, and they had little development. and i have not enough knowledge about the little civilization that immortan joe has that they overthrow at the end to actually be rooting for them. the acting was relatively good, and the three main characters, portrayed by charlize theron, tom hardy, and nicholas hoult were well played, but i wasn't that enthralled in the movie. and i was expecting more action that i got. and it wasn't as gruesome as i expected. probably shouldn't have been rated r. it really wasn't that gory or sexual, and i don't remember any swears. some scenes were very well done, though. but if all the scenes were done as well as those, i'd definitely like this movie a lot more. maybe its because i didn't watch it in 3D?
The Prestige (2006)
amazing
in the beginning, i was thinking: this movie is totally overrated. its not even that interesting. but it captures the true nature of what movies were supposed to be in the first place. most movies today have an intense, climactic ending, while this movie just keeps picking up speed, becoming more interesting as the plot delves deeper and darker and even though one can't seem to grapple which character they support, you'll love this movie and its mind blowing ending. some people say its hard to understand. its really not. if you just pay attention, then you will completely understand it, even though the various jumping around between the years will be confusing. the plot of this requires geniuses at the same level as those of the dark knight. i only have one grievance: if they made this movie today it would've been slightly better because i feel that both hugh jackman and scarlett johansson's acting has developed and become a lot better over the last nine years. also, its not the type of movie you can watch again soon. if you wait a couple years then you'll feel the hype again.