Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

POSITIVES

  • It's a murder mystery! A puzzling whodunnit! It's the solid sequel to Knives Out. You liked what you saw in that movie? Then you're going to like this as well. 

  • Filled with creative situations, provocative characters, clever dialogue, funny gags, humorous random moments, unusual surprises, pop culture references, gorgeous set location, celebrity name dropping and cameos, this is as enjoyably entertaining as you could possibly want. 

  • I appreciated the fact that the movie allows us to play along with the mystery, as there really are clues being laid out as the story goes (more obvious in hindsight). That's part of the fun about watching this movie genre. This is when you don’t really mind all that exposition that are inevitably given to us.

  • Daniel Craig as Detective Benoit Blanc is a delight as expected, but let's go ahead and give lots of kudos to the fantastic ensemble cast for this Knives Out mystery. Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista, Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, and Leslie Odom Jr.

  • Ultimately the messaging and commentaries that this story is sharing with us is very relevant to the people of today. One could argue that the ending is a sort of call-to-action. 

NEGATIVES

  • Considering the year this movie takes place in, some might get triggered by some of the real world references that it makes. 

  • Second act kinda killed the pacing and momentum of the movie for me. Took me a while to reset. 

  • There are a couple of moments when you're really just going to have to suspend your disbelief, or the movie will just be ruined for you. 

  • Unfortunately some of the characters get to shine and stand out far more than others, and there were some actors I would have loved to have seen more of. 

  • You're going to be disappointed if all you're going to do is compare this movie with the previous one. Plus none of the characters from that movie shows up here. 

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Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery - watched it IN THEATERS (Dec 23 on NETFLIX)

She Said

POSITIVES

  • Important topic and subject matter that definitely needs addressing. It’s honestly the main reason why you should check this out. 

  • Investigative journalism is fascinating to observe, and there’s a lot of that here. This movie shows us some of the more procedural aspects of the job, and I’m all for it. 

  • Compelling dramatic recreations to some very pivotal moments in this story. Just observing the time frame of when it all took place alone, should keep you engaged in following along with the plot. 

  • Zoe Kazan and Carey Mulligan are quite excellent in this. From the more dramatic emotional scenes to little bits of lighthearted moments, they really take great care of bringing these characters to life. 

  • The relevance of this movie’s topic cannot be understated in that this is still an ongoing news topic and problem that still affects a lot of people. 

NEGATIVES

  • Very straightforward narrative without much flair or style. I understand the need to show some respect to the importance of the subject matter, but shouldn’t the movie be more of a cinematic experience than just a visualized version of the book it’s based on? 

  • As dramatic in nature is the real life topic, I wanted the movie itself to be more dramatic! They show some signs of interesting life and character drama, but really only skim the surface of all that. 

  • There are times I wished they actually gave us title cards on who and where the characters are. It could get a little confusing at times. 

  • Conclusion of the movie purposefully leaves you on a cliffhanger, making you want to see what else is going to happen next. I guess you should do your own research into this ongoing real life situation. 

  • The topic of Donald Trump is in this. Some might get triggered. 

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She Said - watched it IN THEATERS

The Wonder

POSITIVES

  • There’s a fascinating mystery to figure out. Is it a miracle or some scam? Usually a strong driving force of a premise to grab your attention. I don’t see how you wouldn’t be interested in seeing the resolution to this. 

  • Plot progression and narrative is a slow burn of dialogue, imagery, and turn of events. The careful storytelling goes hand in hand with the delicate tone of the film. 

  • It’s easy to talk about Kíla Lord Cassidy's excellent performance as Anna O’Donnell, but you probably really went into this movie to see how good Florence Pugh is in the lead role of Lib Wright. As expected, she is the best thing about this film, and really draws us in emotionally because of the passion she gives her character. Not to be completely outdone, kudos to the solid work here by the rest of the ensemble cast as well. 

  • Appreciated the simplicity of the location, plus the excellent cinematography that accompanies it. 

  • I was not expecting that reveal for the main mystery. Works really well with the themes of this story though, and only makes it more compelling of a movie. That third act will give you lots of thought provoking topics. 

NEGATIVES

  • I can hear the complaints now. It's slow and boring. 

  • I'm pretty sure somebody is going to be offended by some of its commentaries, considering the topics presented in it. Not to mention people getting triggered by some of the actions certain characters make in the movie. 

  • Simply put, the subject matter might just be of no interest to you at all. 

  • There is a plot development between two characters that I didn't think was necessary at all. 

  • While I dug the idea behind the bookends for this film, was it really needed? Like, why? 

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The Wonder - watched it on NETFLIX

Disenchanted

POSITIVES

  • In furthering the story of Princess Giselle, Robert, and Morgan, this movie shakes things up with a different angle to the previous movie’s charming premise. I say they justified having a sequel by introducing new significant characters, a different type of location setting, and some promising expansions to this world. 

  • How great is Amy Adams?! Truly a fantastic actress who really brings Giselle to life, and even gives us even more sides to her character that we didn’t really see before. Easily the main reason to see this movie. Got to also give kudos to the rest of the solid ensemble cast, which includes Gabriella Baldacchino, Maya Rudolph, Griffin Newman, Alan Tudyk, Idina Menzel, Jayma Mays, Yvette Nicole Brown, Patrick Dempsey, and James Marsden.

  • Musical numbers are still a delight to watch, with solid vocals by Adams, Baldacchino, Menzel, and Rudolph. I particularly enjoyed the performances of "Badder," "Fairytale Life," and "Perfect." 

  • Fifteen years later since the previous movie, I appreciated that they tackled some themes and commentaries that are definitely more towards the mature side. The adults can empathize with Giselle’s character arc, and the kids can relate with Morgan’s side of things. 

  • I liked all the meta winks and nods towards the other Disney Princess movies, and the whole plot tropes normally associated with this genre. 

NEGATIVES

  • Despite going in a different angle with the premise, it felt like the narrative just stumbled along the way just to check off all the plot points it wanted to have in this movie. 

  • Past the initial charm of the premise, there’s a moment when you might just feel disinterested with the whole gimmick. 

  • I think it’s unavoidable, but you’re going to have to suspend your disbelief a lot on the many plot conveniences and plot holes that are just ignored within the story. 

  • Certain actors in this ensemble; several from the previous movie, don’t quite have anything really significant to contribute here. They may as well have just written them off. 

  • Simply put, there unfortunately aren't enough catchy songs in this. 

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Disenchanted - watched it on DISNEY+

The Menu

POSITIVES

  • If you consider yourself a foodie who likes to discover cuisine that is delicious looking and very Instagram friendly, then this is a film you should check out. If you work in a restaurant that has to cater to those foodies, then this is absolutely something you should check out. 

  • Considering the premise, I suppose it has to be mentioned, but this does showcase some fancy looking dining. The plot progression actually moves along via what meal course is being served at the moment, and the narrative in turn gets more and more engaging as it goes through the whole menu. 

  • I appreciated the cleverness to the conversations, the interactions, the dark humor, who the characters are, the tense moments, and the one location setting that the film perfectly takes advantage of. It was like I was a fly on the wall observing the fascinating situation these people are in. 

  • Led by the fantastic Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Fiennes, Nicholas Hoult, and Hong Chau, the characters they play will really grab your attention simply by the curiosity to see what they are going to do next. The rest of the ensemble cast are also quite solid, from John Leguizamo, Janet McTeer, Paul Adelstein, Aimee Carrero, Judith Light, Rob Yang, Arturo Castro, Mark St. Cyr, plus many more. 

  • The thematic social commentaries and philosophical ideas this movie makes are very profound and matches the provocative plot. Definitely provides food for thought. Pun intended. 

NEGATIVES

  • Depending on your perspective, this movie might be triggering. You may just complain that it’s being unfair. 

  • There are some plot conveniences or plot holes or plot inconsistencies that the movie and the characters just manage to ignore. Wished those were actually addressed. 

  • One can argue that this movie itself doesn’t give a satisfying answer to its social commentaries and philosophical ideas. 

  • You will either be super annoyed or incredibly delighted by the character Tyler, played by Nicholas Hoult. He will either infuriate you to the point you want to punch him in the face, or amuse you with his glaringly flawed personality that you want to punch him in the face. 

  • Lots of food shown here and lots of talk about how exquisite they all are. Not a lot of actual cooking though. I see them preparing the meals, but I was a little annoyed by not even getting much B-footage of the cooks actually cooking. Not to mention what you might actually feel about whether you would actually go to a restaurant with these kinds of meals. 

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The Menu - watched it IN THEATERS

Black Panther : Wakanda Forever

POSITIVES

  • A solid tribute to the late great Chadwick Boseman / Black Panther and a look into how people mourn and grieve the loss of a loved one, but done through the lens of the fantastical Marvel Cinematic Universe. Then add in the global political intrigue and new major character introductions, and we've got a movie worthy of it's long runtime.

  • Probably due to the nature of why this movie exists, this happens to be one of the more dramatic MCU films, and provides a nice tonal change to what we normally expect from this cinematic universe. 

  • There are several battle set pieces here, and they are quite the spectacle to behold. Awesome stuff. 

  • Gotta love the globe-trotting nature of the story and the expanding world building beyond what we already know. Really keeps the story moving when we’re put into yet another new location. 

  • If you somehow thought the supporting cast of the first movie can’t carry this film without Boseman, then you are so very wrong. Everybody brought their A game here. From Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, Danai Curira, Tenoch Huerta, Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Martin Freeman, Dominique Thorne, plus so many more. 

NEGATIVES

  • This less funny and more dramatic Black Panther film may not be what some people want from their MCU movie. It’s so serious it doesn’t even have an after end credits scene. 

  • Narrative really tackles so many story elements that the plot can feel like it’s just stumbling along just trying to keep up with its own weight. 

  • It might be considered cheating or just lazy writing, but there are several plot conveniences created or abandoned just to push the story forward. 

  • While the intentions are good, it felt like they were just scratching the surface of this story’s multiple themes. Would have loved it if they delved on most of them further than they did. 

  • I’m sure there will be those who will have issues with who the new Black Panther is in this movie. 

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Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - watched it IN THEATERS

Enola Holmes 2

POSITIVES

  • The amateur detective that is the talented Enola Holmes is a delight of a character that I’m glad got a sequel. With a seemingly higher production budget, more twists in the story, more characters to play with, all that visual flourishes, and we’ve got ourselves an entertaining sequel to enjoy. 

  • As far as the narrative goes, this one spreads its wings into multiple plot directions and lively set pieces, that it will be hard not to be invested into seeing where things are going next. This one really wants to keep you on your toes in seeing what mysteries and dangers Enola Holmes will get herself into. 

  • While this movie has good supporting actors from Henry Cavill, Louis Partridge, David Thewlis, and Helena Bonham Carter, it really is Millie Bobby Brown that makes this movie worth watching. She easily carries this film and her character quite splendidly, plus she plays really well with the ensemble cast.

  • Gotta hand it to Millie Bobby Brown here, for being quite adept at the awkward humor and situational comedy that’s in this. Not to mention all that 4th wall breaking. 

  • That ending. Didn't think that's what this movie was leading up to. It’s just one of many worthwhile themes found in this movie that gives it a bit more substance than you initially expected. 

NEGATIVES

  • Happens a lot with sequels. The charms and discoveries of an origin story are no more. Now it gets to be super heavy on the plot and further expands the world, to the point where it stops feeling like a fresh movie experience, and more like a derivative franchise building intellectual property.

  • Regrettably, this is one of those detective movies where we in the audience can't participate in solving several of the clues presented, as we are just relegated to waiting for the characters to explain it to us. Part of the fun is supposed to be able to figure out the clues ourselves! 

  • Henry Cavill as Sherlock Holmes unfortunately doesn’t completely work for me. It’s definitely yet another interpretation, and that’s no fault of Cavill, but I wanted a bit more from the character. For that matter, the increased integration of the Sherlock Holmes mythos also takes away a bit from Enola Holmes being her own character. It’s like it’s slowly positioning her into just being another supporting character to her Brother’s universe, and that will be a disappointing development. 

  • The many callbacks to the previous film seems unnecessary. There’s also a particular character relationship that ate up a bit of the narrative that also seemed unnecessary.

  • How much of Millie Bobby Brown breaking the 4th wall like she’s Jim Halpert from The Office can you take? 

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Enola Holmes 2 - watched it on NETFLIX

WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story

POSITIVES

  • How do you make a musical biopic nowadays without making it come off looking like a parody of a musical biopic? Well you actually make a fictional musical biopic parody! 

  • Gotta say. I'm all for this incredible, funny, entertaining Weird Al biography over whatever the real life story is. It's fascinating to see what ridiculous over-the-top directions they take in his story. Unless the trailers spoil it, you might be surprised at where the narrative goes. 

  • The songs! The Weird Al songs are great to hear in this, and especially the awesome way they were integrated into the plot. 

  • Daniel Radcliffe and the ensemble supporting cast filled with a who’s who of actors and comedians are all fantastic here. The cast helped showcase the pop culture references and celebrity impressions that were so fun to watch.

  • Besides the usual themes and lessons that usually come with these musical biopics, there are the topics about parodies vs originals and revisionist history that will make an interesting subject to discuss due to this movie. 

NEGATIVES

  • I’m sure there are those who might actually prefer to have seen a biopic of the true story instead, as some of the divergences with reality might have gone too far. 

  • One could argue that Daniel Radcliffe and Evan Rachel Wood are over-acting their versions of Al and Madonna a little too much. 

  • The more emotional dramatic moments in this movie kinda breaks the light-hearted tone. Some will call those the “pee break scenes.” 

  • In the end it's still just another musical biopic that follows some very familiar tired tropes. 

  • Is it just me or is the lip syncing a little too obvious in this to the point of distraction? 

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Weird: The Al Yankovic Story - watched it on THE ROKU CHANNEL

The Banshees of Inisherin

POSITIVES

  • This is a story about a broken friendship and the series of situations that follow that. Starts off incredibly innocuous then escalates into a point of no return like you wouldn’t believe. Writer-Director Martin McDonagh has a story to tell you here, and it’s one you probably should check out. 

  • Cast of actors here are amazing. Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Kerry Condon, and Barry Keoghan, give you all the reasons to watch their performances in this film. Plus there's also a Miniature Donkey and Border Collie in the cast too. So much win! 

  • Dialogue is top notch here. Fantastic conversations and back-and-forths that just keep you invested in what’s going to happen next. I also appreciated the humor, which adds welcome levity, plus has one particular joke that really had me laughing out loud. 

  • Simple place to stage a movie? Sure. But the cinematography is incredible, and the location perfectly compliments the premise. 

  • Despite the seemingly simple premise of a movie, this actually has a lot of social-political commentary being made. The themes and metaphors absolutely makes this movie far more interesting than it may appear to be at first. Thought provoking and perfectly made to generate intellectual discussions about what happens in the film. 

NEGATIVES

  • There might be a point when you might wonder and complain about how this particular premise could possibly have been made into a movie. You might get restless or bored at how seemingly inconsequential of a plot this movie appears to have. 

  • Just going to say it, the first half is just not as good as the second half. The first half could probably have been tightened a bit to get to the more interesting parts of the story. 

  • The decisions made by certain characters may seem so baffling that it might just frustrate you. 

  • Someone dies, and it’s someone I didn’t want to die. 

  • If you can’t keep up with the Irish accent spoken in this movie, then you may as well stop watching. 

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The Banshees of Inisherin - watched it IN THEATERS

Decision To Leave

POSITIVES

  • Do you like your crime mystery movies involving a detective investigating a questionable death, a femme fatale of a suspect, and insomnia? Well here is an entertaining one that you should definitely check out. 

  • Park Hae-il and Tang Wei are amazing in this as Detective Jang Hae-joon and Song Seo-rae respectively. Since the main premise surrounds their unexpected and precarious connection, it is very engaging to see how well the two play off each other. 

  • From stake-out scenes, “mind palace” sleuthing, chases by car and foot, to sequences of eating a bento box, the plot may move at a measured pace but successfully strings you along to want to see what happens next. 

  • Appealing to the eyes in terms of cinematography and the set locations used in the movie, but it’s the visual narrative via the editing that really wins me over here. Fantastic stuff! 

  • Infatuation, attraction, obsession, and romance? This story does have a provocative premise that’s designed to get a reaction out of you, and possibly make you question how far you are willing to risk things and the sacrifices you will make when it comes to Love. It’s what completely drives this movie and is what makes it tick. 

NEGATIVES

  • This is not a movie you haven’t seen before, and is definitely not Director Park Chan-wook’s more ambitious project. 

  • How much you are willing to believe or put up with the main crux of the premise will make or break how invested you are going to be with it. Questionable character motivations indeed. 

  • Some people will probably feel bored or uninterested with the plot. 

  • At a certain point, the movie keeps going past when you thought it already ended, and suddenly it’s like you’re already watching the sequel movie. I adored the editing in this, but maybe edit the story down a bit too perhaps? 

  • That ending may or may not be what you wanted. 

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Decision to Leave (Heojil kyolshim) - watched it IN THEATERS