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Sunday, April 29, 2018

February and March Movies

Hey guys!

I haven't been reviewing movies for awhile, now i have quite a pile to maybe help you choose what to stream/download/whatever next :)).

Watched this back in February when it first showing (then i was forced to watch it the second time when my niece BB celebrated her bday with orphans, it was a whirlwind day full of McDs, amusement rides and movie date with hundreds of them). I knew there was a lot of expectations for it being the first black super hero full movie from Marvel, and judging on the way it exploded i think it didn't disappoint the fans? I personally enjoyed the movie quite a lot, i read someone mention that it's richer, deeper than the previous Marvel movies because of the backgound - i kinda agree with this, but also note that i think it's more serious so movie goers expecting goofy stuffs you can find in Iron Man, Spiderman or Thor might be a bit bored, because that's what my brother said.

So the movie takes place after Captain America : Civil War, T'Challa returns home to Wakanda, which is sort of a super futuristic, totally hidden African Nation (but sitll super traditional as well) to be coronated as the new King. Trouble started when someone from the past that he never ever knew showed up and challenging him to the throne.

Like i said earlier, it's a very interesting movie, pretty entertaining and very rich with cultural style. While i did enjoyed it a lot (it doesn't hurt that Michael B. Jordan is so handsome), i also understand how some people might find it a bit slow and boring. I also was quite bored when i had to watch it (halfway) for the second time so it's not exactly the kind of movie that i would watch over and over again, but it's not bad at all (and obviously a must watch if you're a Marvel fan). 

What am i doing reviewing Black Panther considering the rage right now over Avengers : Infinity War *LOL*, but that's a review for the upcoming month. Better too because then i would not be spoiling anything unconsciously.

As a wife of a gamer, i guess watching some game-based movies is not something that i can avoid. Honestly i can't even remember if i ever watched Angelina Jolie's Tomb Raider movies, maybe one of the last ones but i really have no recollection of it hmmmm... Probably because it left absolutely no impression on me. I don't exactly like Angelina Jolie (i'm #teamaniston obviously, like most women i guess) so i definitely don't get the while commotion about Alicia Vikander replacing her (i do heard that the problem lies with the boobs - or the lack of, that is). Physically i actually think that Alicia is better suited for the type of things that Lara Croft had to do in this movie. I mean, she's very slim but muscular (i know she bulked up for this movie), she has to do a lot of body pulling and stuffs, one should be as light as possible to do this easily, no? It'd be hard if you have watermelon sized boobies because it'd definitely add to your weight..

This movie actually goes back in time to the origins of Lara Croft. She is the daughter of an eccentric millionaire who always goes on adventures in the search of something that can connect him with his deceased wife. One day while Lara is still very young, he vanishes. Fast forward to present time, Lara is now 21, still refusing to accept that his father is most probably dead, living off a bike courier to make ends meet as she refuse to sign her father's death certificate that would make her in charge of his multi million dollar (or  billion) empire. One thing led to another, and Lara believes she finds the clue to his father's whereabout and sets on a crazy adventure to find and hopefully brings him back.

It's pretty good! Nothing mind blowing and i most probably would forget about the storyline a few months down the line, but it's definitely not something that you would feel like you spend your ticket's money for a crap or anything. Plus i like Alicia Vikander (seriously, there are actresses who are likeable to other women and there are who aren't and i think Alicia falls to the first category easily) a lot. The only thing that bothers me is most probably how Lu Ren (played by the ever so handsome Daniel Wu) who is supposedly a poor, drunken Chinese sailor speaks with perfect, American accented English. WTH.

Talking about the whole likeable actresses stuffs, Jennifer Lawrence is probably one that is the most liked by women of the world, right? Not by me, i used to not be able to stand her and i never understand why people thinks she is beautiful (hey, again, no offence! Everybody has their own tastes in looks too, i just happen to not be a fan of her looks. It's not a crime as long as i am not bashing her okay), but i do appreciate her sense of humour and i do think she is probably going to be someone who can be friends with most people? Having said that, Red Sparrow is not a movie that i would be interested in watching if not for my hunny, espionage thingy is not my thing.

Dominika Egorova is a former ballerina whose life is thrown to the ditch due to some unhealthy competitions, once she has everything she could ever want and a bright future ahead of her and now all seems lost. This makes her an easy target, especially when an offer comes from her own uncle who works for the Russian government - in no time she has no other choice but be recruited into being a Sparrow (basically young, attractive Russian intels who have to use their bodies as weapons) or lose her life. 

Well, i'm a bit perplexed and torn about this one. In one hand, i quite like it... It's interesting, a bit odd but sexy in a twisted way (i have a thing for Joel Edgerton, i had it since the moment i laid my eyes on him in his old movie that i can't even remember the title anymore - i did some digging, it was The Thing) - at the same time it confuses me and lots of the scenes are way too gory for me (i hate gore -___-, i'm all about horror movies but i can't stand the gory ones) torture scenes don't float my boat. Plus, i got a bit frustrated that i had to stream the bootlegged version that very night coz Indonesian censors got a bit too snipe-happy while editing the movie. I would watch it again for Joel Edgerton, as for the movie in general... It's okay i guess. I did stick to my mind for quite a bit but lots of it because of all the wrong reasons.

Oo-kay, a huge horror fan here as you know. I got overly excited when i saw the movie poster of this one because it looks promising. Learning too late what this movie is based off, it's he Winchester mansion which has a true, weird back story. It was built by Sarah Winchester (if i remember correctly, she is also said to be haunting the place as well) who lost her husband and child, then she goes on building/renovating spree - that goes on until her death. Some says she believes that she is hunted by demons and the only way to stop them demon from getting to her is to keep on building and confuse the the demons. I watched lots of ghost hunting shows in this place and although the story sure is weird, i never found the story to be exactly scary. Just weird. 

So the movie itself is based on the events, but like all movies that claims to be based on true events - it is very, VERY loosely based. It has the same backstory, a widower who builds her house nons top, 24-7. But in this movie, Sarah is actually a medium and she is not just building for no reason, but she is building a prison for restless, vengeful ghosts that seems to die from Winchester guns (even my hunny knew that Winchester is a very well know fire arm brand, i didn't know this ofc).

Okay, now this movie started off okay like most horror movies, pretty spooky with jump scares here and there. But when they started revealing the ghosts' stories, why they are haunting the Winchester family (because they blame them for making the guns...) well, it gets downright ridiculous. It gets more and more ridiculous that it annoys me. I totally expected Helen Mirren to choose her roles carefully but well... I guess she has her off days too *LOL*. It's not super bad but it's... not good. If you are a huge horror fan and have nothing else to watch, i guess you can watch this. Otherwise, pick other movies coz if you skip it, you won't miss anything




Geez, i think my March is filled with mediocre movies *LOL*. Most of them are very so so for me, nothing excites me *sigh*. This one is also extremely so so for me. I think i like the first movie a lot more even though i don't even remember what the movie is all about, at least there was Charlie Hunnam *LOLOLOL*. 

Jake Pentecost, son of the legendary Stacker Pentecost (from the previous movie, not that i remember him or his role at all) is living a very different kind of life than his father would've envisioned, instead of being a Jaeger pilot like he should've, he is now part of the underworld crime scene. When he is caught again, he has no choice but to seek favour from his estranged step-sister, Mako Mori and take the job to train young Jaeger pilot-to-be.

Well, when it comes to a movie with giant robots and giant robots (plus giant robot monsters) in it i would not have too high of an expectations on the storyline. The focus would be the actions and the giants ofc. I got bored a few times during the movie (because i do think that most Pacific Rim fans are fanboys, girls mostly just tag along for the ride... Not all of us ofc, but i am confident to say most of us are), but it was pretty entertaining. I would say this one is skippable too, unless you have free time and a sucker for light pop corn movies. I would rewatch the first one over this one anytime.

Like i mentioned in the first movie's review, i am a huge fan of Risa Saraswati (of her books, to be exact. But i recently discover that i like her ghosts books, the ones that are more... fictional i guess, i'm not really into) and i quite like the adaptation of Danur into the movie (although i didn't, don't and might never like Prilly Latucosina, i just find her vibe annoying) so i was very excited for this second movie to show in the cinema.

Maddah takes us on another chapter of Risa's life story but this one focuses on her uncle Ahmad who just moved back to Bandung with his family. Ever since their move, Ahmad has shown tremendous negative changes in his behaviour. He spends most of his time in a pavillion which he has dubbed his office, he becomes very quiet, withdrawn and temperamental to his wife and son. His son Angki confided in Risa, who one day saw Ahmad with another woman and thought that he was cheating on his wife - but when stranger, scary things keeps on happening, Risa finally realized that there is so much more than what she saw.

So, i did remember reading about Om Ahmad in Maddah (i don't remember much tho, i think i need to reread it already), and if i remember correctly... The storyline is not exactly the same as the one adapted in the movie. I understand that "real life" experiences would not make a very interesting movie if taken literally, but there's just so much tweak and twists to the story that it no longer feels authentic and true to the book at all. Especially when it comes to the ghost's personality, i don't remember the villain to be that malicious in the book at all.. This would probably not be a big deal for those who never read the book, but for me the element of creepiness from Risa Saraswati's stories are the fact that they are supposedly real life experiences, and when they change the storyline so much that i doesn't even resemble the original story... it just totally lost its creepy factor for me. 

Again, like i said for every single one of the movies i reviewed this this round, i would say that the movie is not bad... But it's not fantastic either. I much prefer Danur, it was also tweaked but not to a point where i don't even recognize the character anymore. If you want a suggestion for local horror movies, i would suggest Danur (the first movie) or Pengabdi Setan instead.

That concludes the movies that we watched in February and March!

Is there any of the movies that i mentioned that are actually your favorite and you think i am stupid for calling them mediocre? LOL. Do let me know, respectfully OFC.

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