A little late with this review but better late than never! This movie was definitely a sleeper for me as I hadn't heard much buzz about it all year. Sometimes no news can be good news as it leaves you open to be pleasantly suprised which I can definitely say is the case here.
Love the cast. Seth Rogen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Anthony Mackie each deliver awesome performances during their onscreen time together as well as their own separate storylines. They absolutely drive the impact of the movie. This is not to say the ladies came up short, however. Jillian Bell, Lizzy Caplan, and Darrie Lawrence light up the stage and are responsible for some hilarious moments that, in some cases, made me laugh harder than during the guys' screen time. Kudos all around.
If you need a good laugh and want to see a fun story unfold, this is definitely a great film to check out. Overall, I give it a 93.
I'll give them credit for being ballsy enough to attempt this. When I first saw the trailer for this movie fifteen years ago, I was turned off. The original animated Grinch was so good, why would you want to even try a live-action version? I expected it to be lame which is why I've steered clear of it for over a decade. I finally decided to give it a chance and, I have to say, I'm really glad I did.
For those of you that don't know the story, the evil Grinch lives atop a mountain overlooking the city of Whoville. The Who's love Christmas, while The Grinch detests it. Not wanting anyone else to be happy, The Grinch decides to rob the townspeople of Christmas by stealing every single present they have.
The biggest draw of this story to me has always been the message behind it and none of that is lost in translation here. It's a heart-warming story that identifies the true meaning of Christmas. This movie will make you burst into laughter at times and can be heartbreaking at other times. The emotional mixture is both enjoyable and genuine. Director Ron Howard took the time to make the story his own while still staying true to the animated version. Hats off as well to Jim Carrey who stole the show with his protrayal of The Grinch. One favorite scene of mine that sticks out was one where The Grinch was trying to decide if he was going to accept an award the Who's were giving him. His back-and-forth on what he would wear was truly hilarious. I give this movie an 87.
About eight minutes into Star Wars: Episode VII--The Force Awakens, there was already a glaring difference between this movie and the prequels: the acting. Whether large or small, each actor/actress was superb in their respective roles, from the hilarious innocence of John Boyega as Finn to the dark and brooding Snoke played by Andy Serkis. Acting should enhance a movie and never take you out of scene. It does just that in this film while also capturing the spirit of what Star Wars is all about.
Fun yet dire. That's what I mean by the spirit of Star Wars. JJ Abrams is known for capturing that magic in his films and he definitely didn't disappoint here. I went into the theater with all the fanboys hoping for a revival. Abrams delivered.
Abrams told us (and by "us", I mean the public) that he wanted to get away from CGI as much as possible which is challenging for fantasy/sci-fi movies. Once Again, Abrams held true to what he set out to do as all of the characters, save for three, were not computer-generated. That's not to say the visuals fell short, however. Beautiful setpieces and epic space battles are sure to give you your fill of eye-candy.
I love movies that can manage to make you laugh in the moments where you don't expect to. The comedy flows naturally in each scene without detracting from the seriousness of the surrounding situations. Nothing forced. Just right.
The film isn't without its flaws despite all my gushing. The trailers were a bit misleading in some ways, but it wouldn't be fair to deduct points for that unless the movie was bad and it was far from it. You can tell that the film is the first of a few as you will probably leave like I did with gobs of questions. Too many questions. Maybe that's ok for you as a viewer, but it always tends to leave an unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach. After all, what if I don't like the eventual answers to those questions? Does that still make the movie good? I'm not sure.
It reminded me of Spider-Man in this regard. It wasn't until I saw the second movie that I was truly able to appreciate how good the first one was. I was hoping for more closure in The Force Awakens, but I went in knowing I probably wouldn't get it. There are a couple other pitfalls the movie has, but I can't talk about them without spoiling the movie and I've already promised...
It's the story of two people trying to find their way in a galaxy that threw them some lofty curveballs. Great movie experience that has left me excited for more. I give this movie an 85.
About two thirds of the way into the movie, Rise of the Guardians experiences a bit of a wardrobe change and loses its way for a slight moment. The film goes from fairly light-hearted to dark and brooding in almost the blink of an eye. This isn't the first time this has happened in a movie, but it's hard to overlook when a movie suddenly shifts away from something it was doing so well only to have to reintroduce itself in another tone. Good news, though, that is really the only problem I could find to pick at. That, and I wanted more of Sandy. Can never have enough Sandy!
Rise of the Guardians is the story of our childhood heroes. That's right I'm talking the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, The Sandman, and the jolly old fat one himself Santa Claus. Imagine them fighting together to protect the belief of innocent children against the darkness of the world and you have Rise of the Guardians. Much like Arthur Christmas, the innovation here is marvelous. Each guardian has their own special power that relates to their gift-giving job. For example, Bunny can create holes in the ground by stomping his feet. The helps him get from one place to another quickly and also helps trap enemies when he's in a pinch. As I mentioned before, Sandman, who doesn't say a word the entire movie, is definitely my favorite guardian. Instead of talking, little images appear above his head to express how he's feeling.
A fun movie to watch, especially if you're trying to instill in your kids the beauty of using their imagination. I give it an 86.
As I've done before, I'll start with the cons: Quite frankly, there aren't many. The film does take a moment to engross you in this particular Christmas world, but once you're in, you're in to stay. Also, like a lot of against-all-odds stories, it seems like main character Arthur can't seem to catch a break which really drove me crazy at times. It's like watching the Trix rabbit get rejected over and over and over...If you can get through this, you're definitely in for a treat.
Let's face it, Christmas movies have been done and redone, particularly those regarding Jolly Old St. Nick. It's refreshing to see one so original as this. I don't want to give away too much and spoil the magic of watching it firsthand, but watch the first scene and see if it doesn't put a smile on your face. As the years have passed and technology has advanced, so apparently has the help provided to Santa. Elves fly around looking like they're on the Mission: Impossible team with the perfect computer gadgets to ensure all the kids get what they ask for without actually seeing Santa himself. And that's only the beginning.
While the film packs a great comedic punch, it packs even more heart. If you're not rooting for young Arthur to succeed in delivering the one present that Santa missed, something is wrong with you. A number of smaller stories combine to tell that of the entire Claus family and what Christmas means to each of them separately.
Our family is currently watching twenty-five movies leading up to Christmas Day and this just happened to be one my son picked out. So glad he did. It's the story of a man who goes to great lengths to reinforce the spirit of Christmas. I give this movie a 98.
I hate prequels. A part of the magic of a film or novel is the not knowing. You're waiting to see what's going to happen next because you just don't know. When you don't have that, watching the movie becomes a normal thing, like driving to a gas station. That being said, when a prequel is pulled off well I have to give credit where credit is due. There has been a lot of talk over the quality of the Star Wars prequels and what exactly George Lucas was thinking. With Star Wars: Episode III--Revenge of the Sith, I think he got it right.
Space operas can be confusing as there are things happening we might not fully understand. There is a huge political shake-up here that might be hard to keep up with and my suggestion is to not even try. The action is more than enough to keep you entertained. While the first two prequels try and keep the story moving with dialogue and character development, Revenge of the Sith has way more slicing and dicing. Let's face it, we love Star Wars largely because of the lightsaber battles and this film doesn't disappoint. Where the second prequel came up very short with a brief Yoda battle, Revenge of the Sith gives our favorite little green hero multiple action sequences that will leave you with a cheesy grin on your face.
The Star Wars series has never struggled in the area of visuals and Revenge of the Sith is no exception. There's so much attention to detail that it's almost silly, from the hundreds of crazy cool creatures to the impact a lightsaber has with other objects. Two particular scenes that stick out in my head are Obi Wan's race through a cavernous set-piece on a dinosaur with a high pitched yelp and Obi Wan's battle with Anakin Skywalker as lava is exploding all around them. Eye candy galore.
Outside of the action, Revenge of the Sith did something else quite well that failed to resonate in the first two prequels: create an emotional tie. This is a dark movie that definitely earns it's PG-13 merit badge. The sadness is almost palpable as you watch a great force of good being extinguished. Anakin leaves behind a trail of destruction that you can't unsee which left me thinking, "Man, they really went there. Wow."
Two small cons I must address: 1. Hayden Christensen, while much improved from Attack of the Clones, still leaves a lot to be desired as an actor. It's almost like the director did multiple takes of his scenes and decided to go with the ones that sucked the least. 2. Jar Jar. Oh, Mr. Binks, your lack of relevance in everything you have to do with these prequels will never cease to amaze me. I will say, these two blemishes pale in comparison to everything else the movie does well.
It's the story of a troubled kid becoming one of the most iconic bad guys the universe has ever seen. A great swan song to the prequel trilogy, I give this movie a 97.
