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I was pretty up-front in my The Incredibles review by the fact that super heroes movies are a tough sell for me as they are not my thing and that is still true. I do try to watch these movie despite any my personal taste. But movie review are seldom objective and this review series is which Pixar movie is my favorite.
So the question is how did I like the sequel to The Incredibles? The aptly named Incredibles 2.
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And agian we are back with a movie installment in the Pixar Cars Franchise. A Franchise and a world I really don’t get. Like the are cars but with same rules as people. Are they born? Are they made? Is gas sustenance or alcohol?
It almost seems maddening that the movie doesn’t want you, the viewer, to ask those type of world-building questions because it exists as “fun family movie” with talking cars that go fast.
Any is Cars 3 Good? Is it better than Cars 2? Is it better than Cars 1?
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It’s really amazing the sheer amount of sequels that Pixar produces. SO when I heard that Finding Nemo got a sequel called Finding Dory I ignored it and promptly forgot about its existence, and I liked Finding Nemo when I first saw it in theaters. And in truth, this title does not have the same reputation, for better or worse, than other Pixar titles have.
Going into this movie I had low expectations, other than knowing that Dory was the focus and trying to find her parents, I knew nothing. I didn’t even 100% if was a sequel or a prequel.
Did Finding Dory meet my low expectations or was it even worse?
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Prior to making the decision to watch all the Pixar movies there were two Pixar movie titles I did NOT want to watch. One based on word of mouth and the other I had actually seen before. I knew I didn’t like it then. The Good Dinosaur is the later, I had seen it once before and I didn’t like it.
But MAYBE, just maybe on a rewatch I will like it more or at least appreciate its artistic or narrative merits more than the first time I watch this movie.
Maybe?
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Inside Out is one of the few Pixar titles that I have watched the most as a jaded grown-up. Not sure if it’s more than four but this rewatch definitely makes it three times in the last few years. Arguably that is not very impressive for some people but for me it’s quite a lot.
Admittedly, the reason why I watched Inside Out more over the other Pixar offerings had more to do with the subject matter than the entertainment of animation so in that capacity it was different viewing experience.
But the question is as always is what are my own subjection feelings, opinions and emotions for Inside Out? Which emotion took control of my personality console as I watched Inside Out?
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Monsters University is another new Pixar offering for me to watch. Now I was little harsh on Monsters INC but ultimately it was cute and good movie. So with that in mind I knew Monsters University was a prequel, apparently Pixar’s only prequel to date, and I went in to this one with a fair opened minded and measured exceptions.
So how did I find Monsters University?
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And we’re back to the another Pixar title that is a rewatch. To be perfectly honest, I did not care for Brave the first time I watch it. I remember coming away from it really disliking Merida and also not really recalling the plot at all. I think I immediately forgot what the will-o-wisps did but remember them being in the movie. I think I just forgot the witch entirely.
But I went into this rewatch with an open mind.
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Again we have a Pixar offering that I haven’t seen before. Unlike A Bug’s Life I did have been working knowledge of Toy Story 2’s plot as I’ve seen clips and I was familiar with Jesse’s backstory. I just didn’t know how the plot unfolded.
It’s a little odd to think about that Pixar’s third move being a sequel. So often they get criticized for doing sequels when their third movie was a sequel. They did sequels right out of the gate. But at least it was an example of a good sequel.
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Recently I sat down and watched Guillermo Del Toro’s latest film offering, his take on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. And here is a review.
Shelley’s Frankenstein was never part of my school ciriculum and oddly enough I’m not much of a horror/sci-fi fan to have read it on my won, so a critique this film on its adhesion to the novel is not something I can fully comment on maybe someday but as now I have a backlog of reading*. That being said I have read other reviews and takes on Del Toro’s Frankenstein to know that this is very much his take and more of spiritual interpretation of the novel that an adaptation of Shelley’s novel. Though it seems none of the movie adaptations actually do a by the book version with its theme but an approximation.
So what was my take or impress of Del Toro’s Frankenstein based solely on his vision? Also Spoilers
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A Cinderella Story
A Cinderella Story is a by the book modern telling of Cinderella. It used to be a guilty-pleasure of mine. I know it’s dumb, cliched and very early 2000’s but really there something clumsy and likable about it that I don’t dislike it, I don’t it but this shit could be so much worst.
Hilary Duff as Sam & Chad Michael Murray as Austin
Story follows smart, down-earth Cinderella named Samantha in this movie. Of Course, in the trope of making her “likable,” Sam is more “guyish” as she doesn’t like fashion or girly stuff like her arch-rival, the popular bitchy mean girls, who prefer rice crackers to big macs. Anyway, she has the world bestest childhood evar, till her dad remarries and dies. She the does chores and works at a diner so she can go to Princeton, which is why she stays the awful people. Through a chat she meets the Prince character who is the popular guy at her high school. He plays football but also likes Lord Alfred Tennyson because it’s he is less well known than Shakespeare. Also her mean nickname is Diner Girl, real clever kids.
It’s pretty by the book, you have the godmother, who is Sam’s kick-ass manager, a cell phone fills in as the slipper. And instead of getting “married‘ they both go off to New Jersey.
Hilary Duff as Sam & Regina King as Rhonda
I think the real reason I don’t dislike this movie as much as I probably know it, is the supporting cast sells the movie more than the leads. Like everyone but the leads are making the cast work, maybe because they don’t need to be likable and perfects and since Sam and Austin are bland and boring, there is nothing to work with for characterizations. But methinks Duff isn’t the most talent actress and a better actress could have made the dialogue more natural sounding.
Jennifer Coolidge as Fiona, Madeline Zima as Brianna, & Andrea Avery as Gabriella
The Technicals aren’t specials in any way. They feel a lot like Ella Enchanted with the cheesy styling. The camera work and editing is very basic. There isn’t much to it. This movie also seems to be ad for it’s soundtrack.
Hilary Duff as Sam & Dan Byrd as Carter
A Cinderella Story
This movie like next week’s movie has a be your self theme, which is trite and has been done a billion times because it’s easy yet seemingly genuine, very basic.