the christmas chronicles

POSITIVES…
- Kurt Russell is an awesome Santa Claus, and I love the combination of making him knowledgeable but innocent-like, joyfully outgoing, but naughty at times.
- The young actors Darby Camp and Judah Lewis are also really good in this too, and their chemistry to each other; and to Santa, are fun to watch.
- I really liked the world building they did with this version of Santa, with some clever interpretation to how his “magic” works
- This is that “one crazy adventurous night” premise. While it has it’s derivativeness, it’s still enjoyable enough with this movie.
- Story is charming, has a lot of heart, and should make you feel good about the Holiday.

NEGATIVES…
- Considering how the story goes though, prepare to have your suspension of disbelief challenged.
- The CGI work for the reindeers and the elves isn’t exactly the best there is.

P.S….
- Seriously, I never would have imagined that Kurt Russell would play a great Santa Claus. Arguably the best modern take of Santa we’ve had in a long while.

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bodied

POSITIVES…
- Made for fans of battle rap culture and battle rappers and battle rapping.
- The battle raps in this movie are amazing to see play out, and are easily the main reason to watch this.
- Kudos to the whole cast here, but especially Calum Worthy for pulling off being a white boy battle rapper.
- There are some nice visual graphical touches here and there that I really liked.
- Satirical and funny in many respects.
- Thematically there’s a lot of things being said here in this movie. The social and cultural commentary is very strong in this one.
- There are also a lot of things said here that is offensive, provocative, outrageous, and just plain wrong, but that’s part of what makes this so enjoyable to watch.

NEGATIVES…
- Not for people who are easily offended or provoked.
- The movie provides explanations to some of the film’s thematic messages, but some people might get frustrated when it then doesn’t give easy answers for some of them.
- There’s also a character plot development at one point in the story that I just can’t completely buy.

P.S….
- This is YouTube Premium’s first film acquisition for its service.

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You can watch it now on YouTube Premium

rbg

POSITIVES…
- If you don’t already know who Ruth Bader Ginsburg, then this is a good documentary to introduce her to you.
- I liked the framing device of using her Supreme Court testimony.
- Marty Ginsburg.
- Generally does a good job covering her life, her interests, what she’s done, her impact to the world, and who she is as a person.

NEGATIVES…
- It’s a relatively straightforward documentary. Some people might want a more stylish narrative.

P.S….
- “the Notorious RBG.” “You can’t spell Truth without Ruth.” I want one of those shirts now.

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the possession of hannah grace

POSITIVES…
- Shay Mitchell is good in her role as the only person working the graveyard shift at the morgue.
- Kirby Johnson is good in her role as the scary looking possessed corpse that is fully naked but with clever visuals to cover her naughty bits.
- I appreciated the thematic premise of the story.
- Some clever uses of motion sensors and security camera footages.
- Lots of creepy build-ups here.

NEGATIVES…
- Despite the technically solid attempts to creep you out, the movie just wasn’t that scary.
- …nor was it really that interesting.
- Characters still make yell-at-the-screen stupid decisions.
- The final act kinda felt rushed, like they realized they were running out of time and needed to wrap things up.

P.S….
- A specific plot device caveat involving how our possessed corpse gets around, is just perfect for somebody to do a parody of.

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the night comes for us

POSITIVIES…
- There’s some efficient character developments for the ensemble cast of characters.
- Story is simple enough, but filled with good world building still.
- The violence can be pretty graphic, which I’m sure is a plus for many action movie fans.
- Fight choreography are good, and entertaining to watch.

NEGATIVES…
- In some ways, the fights are all you might really care about with this movie.
- The story might be too simple to feel any investment for.
- Some typical derivative plot points.

P.S….
- That big one-on-one battle during the final act has got to be the most brutal, violent, bloody, I-felt-the-pain-while-watching-it, fight scene I’ve ever seen.

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Watch It Now On Netflix

the favourite

POSITIVES…
- Olivia Colman is amazing as the needy and moody Queen Anne.
- Rachel Weisz is amazing as the strong willed and outspoken Sarah.
- Emma Stone is amazing as the manipulative and charming Abigail.
- The dynamics of this relationship between Anne, Sarah, and Abigail, is easily the main reason to see this movie. You’ll just want to see how that triangle plays out by the end (unless you already know your history of Great Britain).
- Out of the male actors though, I got to give a lot of credit to Nicholas Hoult for his poker faced portrayal of Robert Harley.
- I love how the characters of this movie are just so shameless in their crude bad behaviors, filled with duplicity, and indulgence. All with an air of civility and properness.
- That dance sequence. Loved it!
- Yorgos Lanthimos is the perfect Director for this screenplay by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara. It has witty dialogue, it’s darkly comedic, it’s idiosyncratic, it’s unpredictable at times, and it’s inappropriate in many ways, but those are reasons on why this movie is very entertaining to watch.

NEGATIVES…
- The level of absurdity that this movie goes to at times, might turn some people off.
- What also might not work for some people, is how the final act of the movie plays out.

P.S….
- To think the level of ridiculousness depicted in this movie, actually has some basis on historical truth, amuses me to no end.

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mirai

POSITIVES…
- It starts out like a simple family movie, then things get really unusual, odd, and unbelievable. That’s a compliment by the way.
- Since this is an anime, having what looks like a 2-4 year old Boy as the protagonist, actually gives us a different perspective that you don’t normally find in typical movies.
- The themes and lessons that this movie brings forth are very laudable.
- Animation is great, and the CGI scenes work well with the rest of the movie too.
- Very charming and amusing premise, with some pleasant surprises tossed our way from time to time.
- The fantastical elements and scenes of the story gives us this wonderfully whimsical and dreamlike experience.

NEGATIVES…
- Those fantastical elements greatly expects your suspension of disbelief, because if it doesn’t get that from you, a lot about this movie is going to seem unbelievably stupid.
- Some people looking for easy answers to the plot revelations will be disappointed.

P.S….
- Even in anime, Apple products make their presence known.

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instant family

POSITIVES…
- An important part of what makes this movie work as well as it did, is the chemistry between Rose Byrne and Mark Wahlberg, as the couple who wants to be foster parents.
- Rose Byrne in particular has good comedic reactions to the different situations she faces.
- The other important part of what makes this movie entertaining, is to see how they interact with the three foster kids.
- Those foster kids are really good in their roles as well, from Julianna Gamiz as Lita, Gustavo Quiroz as Juan, and Isabela Moner as Lizzy.
- Isabela Moner continues to prove that she is one of the most promising young actresses right now.
- Great main cast, combined with a great supporting cast overall. With some highlights by Octavia Spencer, Tig Notaro, Margo Martindale, Iliza Shlesinger, and a few more others.
- The comedy bits are entertaining, and the drama bits are emotional. Enjoyable all around.
- Movie has a lot of heart, to the point where I truly appreciate how much of a feel good film it is.
- I admire that this movie is very forward about covering a lot of the pertinent aspects about fostering kids. Almost like it’s not bothering to hide the fact that this is blatantly advocating for people to consider adopting foster kids. I’m okay with that.
- This is exactly what you would expect from a movie about fostering kids. That’s not necessarily a bad thing.

NEGATIVES…
- This is exactly what you would expect from a movie about fostering kids. That might be a bad thing for some people.
- Some familiar plot tropes and cliches show up here as expected.

P.S….
- From Transformers: The Last Night, The Nut Job 2, Sicario: Day Of The Soldado, and soon Dora the Explorer, it seems Isabela Moner likes variety in her acting choices.

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a private war

POSITIVES…
- This goes out to all journalists and their drive to tell everyone what’s actually happening in the world.
- Dramatic. Emotional. Inspirational.
- Rosamund Pike’s intense acting as Marie Colvin is mesmerizing to watch. Amazing work!
- As a psychological character study of Colvin, this movie is spectacular.
- I appreciated it’s raw depiction of the devastating human tragedies in war torn lands.

NEGATIVES…
- Some might say that the movie hits us over the head a little too much with it’s themes.
- The movie can be accused of retreading one or two topics excessively throughout the narrative, to the point where it might feel too repetitive.
- Also might be too slow moving for some people.

P.S….
- Colvin’s broadcast from Homs, Syria. Plus tribue (YouTube)
- Telling legendary journalist Marie Colvin's story in 'A Private War' (YouTube)

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cam

POSITIVES…
- Madeline Brewer goes all out in her leading role here. Amazing.
- Creepy, unsettling, and intriguing, in all the right ways.
- Got my attention throughout the film, with it’s own fair share of plot turns that I wasn’t expecting.
- As a techno-horror-thriller, this movie brings up many topics that are absolutely worth discussing.
- Gives us a bit of insight into the world of cam girls, as this was co-written by a former cam girl.
- The ending is thematically pretty satisfying.

NEGATIVES…
- There will be people who won’t be happy with how the movie ends.
- At certain times of the story, I would like to think that the main protagonist should have figured out some other solutions to her problems. I had to suspend my disbelief in those cases.
- The whole topic might be too uncomfortable for some people to watch.

P.S….
- The scary thing is that the fantastical stuff in this movie, can probably actually happen in real life sometime in the near future.

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Watch It Now On Netflix