maze runner the death cure

So I've seen 2014's "The Maze Runner" and thought it was pretty decently entertaining. Then I saw 2015's "Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials" and thought it was pushing my buttons in trying to convince me not to bother with this young-adult franchise anymore, because it was overall disappointing. Then here comes 2018 with the final movie of this trilogy, and I thought why not see it anyway just to finish off the story. Did I make the right decision? I don't think so. 

Off the bat, without giving spoilers, I just want to say that the final resolution to the story is a huge disappointing let down for being such an obviously predictable plot revelation. Alright, speaking of plot reveals, there is another one that happens during the first thirty minutes of the movie that is fine for what it was. Then it had to be introduced as another plot reveal to another character. Then it had to be introduced as another plot reveal to another character... and repeat. It's like they wanted it to be a drinking game. Don't get me started on how it's still stupid and heavy handed that the bad guys of the story call themselves "WCKD." That's still not clever! 

Now that I got all that off my chest, as for the movie itself, it at least moves at a quick pace. Especially considering it's almost two and a half hours long. Just like the previous installment that downplays proper character and story development, ninety-five percent of the running time (or should I say maze running time) is devoted to multiple action set piece. Admittedly, it's easy to enjoy watching the heist sequences at a base level, but I feel like that's all this movie can really offer that's entertaining in anyway.

So despite all the world building that the overall premise of this franchise can give us, it comes down to just a series of generally underwhelming and forgettable action sequences. Oh, there is that plot line between Thomas and Teresa that offers us some drama. But there's also the plot line between Thomas and Minho, or Thomas and Newt, or Brenda and Thomas (aha! I switched it there), or Thomas and his nemesis Janson, or Thomas and me not caring about the whole thing in the end. 

loveditenjoyedititsokay  IT'S MEH  itsterrible

the commuter

I admit, it was easy for me to dismiss this movie, and go in with low expectations. It looked like another disposable action thriller, that years later I will just as likely forget it existed unless somebody actually brings it up to me. All that is true. I've watched the movie, and to be honest, years from now I will probably forget that it existed, until somebody asks me if I've seen it. You know what though? I enjoyed this movie quite a bit. To my surprise of course. 

To be fair, there are a lot of disposable action thrillers all around that are forgetfully bad. However, all it takes are some clever writing and a good director to make it work, despite the odds against it from being good. It's hard to be a great action thriller, but it is possible to at least be an enjoyably good one. At the hands of Director Jaume Collet-Serra, he managed to make this film a fun thrilling experience.

From some cool visually stylized tricks, to just keeping an exciting but steady pace to the narrative, and toss in some good action set pieces here and there, this disposable action thriller is definitely better than it needs to be. The premise itself is interesting enough to get people talking about it. From the clues, to the twists, to the reveals, we as the audience are also playing along with the story, wondering and guessing where it's going to go. That's what made it fun to watch this movie. 

Liam Neeson at this point has been taken for granted that he is solid as an action star, and "The Commuter" is no exception. Along with the help of the direction and the story, Neeson contributes greatly to why this is an entertaining movie to watch. Sure there are times suspending disbelief needs to be done, there are some questionable logically flaws, and some oh-so-convenient scenarios. Yes, it's not perfect. As a disposable action thriller though, it delivers at being a good entertaining fun time at the movies. That's what counts here. 

lovedit  ENJOYED IT  itsokayitsmehisterrible

insidious the last key

If you're a fan of the Insidious franchise of movies, it's premise, it's mythology, and the character of Elise Rainier, then you may as well see "The Last Key." Part of the appeal of this series of horror movies is the overarching stories that connect it all together, and this one should interest the fans since it fleshes out more of Elise's backstory. Lin Shaye is fantastic as always playing Elise, and truly she is arguably the primary reason to feel attached to this series. 

As for the scary horror aspect of the movie, I thought there were some clever suspenseful creepy scenes. Unfortunately that cleverness do not translate to the rest of the scary scenes, which admittedly relies too much on the jump scare formula. The fact that a lot of the scares in this one feel like you've seen them before, gives the movie a certain sense of staleness to the whole thing. It doesn't help that the demon that is featured as the primary antagonist is uninspiring and not that interesting at all. 

What also doesn't help are the supporting cast surrounding Lin Shaye. Any kind of fun that included her sidekicks in the previous one; Specs and Tucker, seem to have gotten lost. They are the comedic relief for this movie, and they simply were more annoying than funny, so much so that it started to feel really embarrassing to watch. Even the inclusion of some new characters didn't really help either, as I just didn't care much for them. I did like Tessa Ferrer's character though, so I'll give it that one positivity. 

"Insidious: The Last Key" could have been a great addition to the franchise, especially considering it's importance to the overall story. The opening flashback sequences were really good though, and I genuinely like the idea for the story, but unfortunately the rest of the movie was just all over the place in quality. Some of the stupid illogical stuff that happened during the second half also bugged the heck out of me. Sad to say, but this is my least liked installment of the whole franchise by far. 

loveditenjoyedit  IT'S OKAY  itsmehitsterrible