Here is your chance to get a little insight on which film or TV Show you may be keen on seeing or which film or TV Show you may want to miss altogether.
These are Reel Ree:views here, keeping it concrete and reel...and somewhat, unbiased...well as much as possible, that is!
I possibly heard about this around 4 years ago and the information was relayed like this: "They are making a movie based on true events called "Cocaine Bear" where a Bear eats cocaine". Not verbatim but my reaction was just the same as yours then to what it is now, now that you have heard about it "what!?! A bear eats cocaine. And this happened for real? True events? What?" Yes, and even now, I am still confused as to if this is actually legit. Like, the premise alone fills you with curiosity. While this sounds wild, you can only assume the trailer will be just as wild...AND JUST AS WILD IT IS!!!
This is a must see! I was not sure how they were going to present this movie, but it seems a little bit like dark humour horror. The part where the bear is sliding on his back released a cackle from me along with some of the interactions with the coked up bear. This movie looks wild and while a horror, maybe not too scary and hopefully more comedic, but as I am guessing it is a fight for survival from a bear, as dangerous as a bear is, but high on cocaine, this is definitely a must watch from me.
First of all, this looks like fun. Second of all, this looks like FUN! What I definitely will say though, are they throwing every single thing in Mario lore into this, because it sure looks like it. I am yet to see Mario Paint, Dr. Mario, Mario Tennis and maybe a few other things, but it really does look like EVERYTHING is in this movie. Could they have space for a sequel and include new things? I mean it IS all about franchises, right?
Third of all, WAS THAT CRANKY KONG!? It was definitely a blink-and-you-will-miss-it moment, so if true, seeing Diddy and Dixie Kong will absolutely blow my mind! I am an old-school gamer (not that old, like Atari) but NES, SNES etc and although I do not remember beating Donkey Kong Country or Donkey Kong Country 2, these were platform games of a generation lost. It was not that long ago I was wondering if these platform games can return as the gaming industry is being swept up by genres that include shooters, RPGs, racing and sandbox open-world games. Unless I am mistaken, where are those classic platformers you remember from the '80s and '90s?
This trailer definitely brought a smile to my face when I saw the racoon suit, whilst the fire flower was pretty much standard. I had a few laughs and the nostalgia was at an all-time high. It would be interesting to see if there are ways that Mario could potentially "die" but not die, but what can cause him actual harm as we saw the fish latch onto his face, though, if you were playing the game, you would have died, no? Also, will we see Mario eat a sacred mushroom which will enable him to grow double in size? It was great to see the dinosaurs running (I am assuming Yoshi's species) and the introduction of Mario Kart which seemed a little out of place, but whatever! I am sure it will make sense in the movie. Also, considering how Wreck-It Ralph was excellent and how they celebrated computer games, as well as elements of Ready Player One which did the same, I am wondering how they will handle Luigi though, because Luigi has always been second fiddle nobody really cared about...and it IS called Super Mario Bros.
Nobody really knew Chadwick Boseman until he played James Brown. He was an up and coming actor who played Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall and many other characters in film. It was only until he played Black Panther, a lot more people took notice. Chadwick Boseman was an incredible actor. Ma Rainy's Big Black Bottom and Da 5 Bloods is testament to that. Chadwick Boseman died at the age of 43 due to Colon Cancer in the middle of the Pandemic, something he was battling for years and before he joined the MCU. Whilst people online were saying horrible things regarding how he looked in a video he released prior to his passing (due to visibly losing a lot of weight) Chadwick kept his illness a secret, even from Director Ryan Coogler who had just finished penning the script to a Black Panther sequel that starred Chadwick Boseman. Ryan Coogler had a task similar to James Wan in the Fast and Furious franchise, but a lot more difficult.
Whilst I agree with recasting the actor because the character is bigger than the actor, Marvel were at an incredible disadvantage due to being 'damned if you do recast and damned if you don't'. People will dislike the film regardless due to what they feel should have went down and how it should have been handled. That said, Marvel took a stance to not recast and Ryan had to re-write a script that had Chadwick Boseman as the star due to shoot in a few months to Chadwick not being the star anymore. A colleague, a friend, taken from us at 43 years old. A rising star. Ryan was in a predicament and did not walk from the project, he stuck with it. Whilst the film will definitely divide the audience on where they stand with the decisions from corporate, ultimately Ryan directed a beautiful tribute to Chadwick Boseman and the film was great, although it could have been just a little bit longer in places. I'll explain.
The film starts off with a cold open and we are in the thick of it. The passing of King T'Challa is immediate and sudden. Wakanda has lost their King and whilst reeling from their loss, the world are equally trying to steal vibranium anywhere they can find it. This leads to the emergence of an underworld hidden civilisation who are led by a person named Namor who wants to protect his people from the surface world. Events lead to a huge battle between the two nations, the people of Talokan and the people of Wakanda whilst Shuri, T'Challa's sister, the princess, mourns the loss of her brother and tries to bury her head in her work.
The only issues I personally had with the movie was that, the film should have been longer. It would have helped to flesh out the characters a little more and give it a bit more meat to characters such as Riri Williams and Namor. I had trouble adjusting to Namor as he was a different type of "villain" to Killmonger and whilst I knew he was not meant to be anything like him, something about him being formidable, just didn't feel formidable enough or maybe his presence did not feel like it carried the weight and baggage it needed to to make me feel a person who is as menacing as he is powerful. Do not get me wrong, there was a scene that occured midway through the movie when there could have been a potential resolve, but something leads to another and I was stressed. So, feeling that, maybe the movie did what it needed to do, but I just felt like there could have been more. With that said, Namor and his forces left the movie feeling unbalanced which made it seem like there was not many stakes. They did something with a specific character I felt was unnecessary and the surprise cameo and "other plot" felt forced and pointless, especially when we do not fully know why it was needed.
Other than that, Angel Bassett deserves something, some recognition to her performance in this movie as she was incredible. Whilst every actor was spot on, performances were top tier, Letitia Wright and Angela Bassett were definitely the standouts. Tenoch Huerta was excellent as Namor. Charismatic, fierce and powerful. There were a few ways he would react and say things that made me burst out laughing because the character was calm but vicious, I just wanted a tad bit more from him to help feel the weight. I am not really sold on Riri Williams and I do not think it was Dominique Thorne's fault, I just felt her character's background should have been fleshed out a bit more as it was pretty surface level.
The cinematography was pretty standard with some cool camera work here and there and the music was excellent as per usual, not to mention the costume design. Director Ryan Coogler had a huge task and he delivered something I would say, is a servicible movie despite the circumstances. Although the movie cannot escape the impact and importance Chadwick Boseman brought to the movie, his presence is felt throughout even when they do not lean into it. A great watch and touching tribute for a King.
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Would you believe that there is a producer in Hollywood who has made billion on billions through a single franchise and could quite possibly be the only producer in history to do so? While that could be a reach on my part, his name is Kevin Feige and he is the man behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I mention Kevin because he has put himself forward and into the position to take an entire franchise on his back, make a plan, pivot where necessary, but execute. The franchise that is Star Wars, does not have that person and over the past 10 years, it has been showing.
Whilst there has been some great and not so great shows within the franchise of Star Wars, I do feel the people behind this believe too much of their own source but are not brave enough to try something different. That is what Rian Johnson did. And whether you like his take or not, he was willing to push the boundaries and scope. With that said though, if you have not been watching Andor, you are definitely missing out. Andor is where the franchise needs to venture more into.
So far, this show has delivered. A spy thriller show with politics. Great scenarios built with tension throughout. Expanding the universe with more characters, locations, vehicles and so far, not a mention of the word Jedi or a flicker of a lightsabre. You see Star Wars is more than spaceships flying around in dog-fights, laser-fire and lightsabres. Sure, these things are cool, but Star Wars does it not make. The prequels tried to show us that, but the execution was not the best. The sequel trilogy did not touch much on the politics as much, but Star Wars is more than just good vs evil. Star Wars is about politics, governments and empires ruling with an iron fist, oppression and yes, lightsabres. Think of the “WAR” part in the name. Is not all wart about politics? Whether it is in the stars or on the ground? This show is one of a few that is making a difference to the universe that is star wars and this episode (as well as the story so far) has displayed how different this franchise can be and it is excellent.
Such a great episode with Andor trying to get Kino on his side for a prison break. The dialogue. The acting. The music. Everything about this show screams great storytelling leading to where we know it will end up in Rogue One. It will be very interesting to see if there will be any more other characters that we will see later on in the timeline other than the ones we have thus far. I realise this show may not be for everyone and that is fine. Not everyone understands or has the patience for the slow build, the character development, the lack of dog-fights (so far) and lightsabres and that is fine. But this show is far from rubbish, because when you really think about it, you need to think of a ‘Game of Thrones’, ‘House of the Dragon’, or’ Breaking Bad’, ‘Better Call Saul’. These shows for example, were more than just dragons, incest, drug dealing and the big con. These shows were about the characters first and foremost, who they were influenced by (the people around them or their situation), what they had to do to survive and or achieve an end goal, no matter how dirty they got to do so. Maybe this will be better as a binge watch…but that tension!
There is a reason why this man takes a while to make a movie. This man stays creating and breaking boundaries. Underwater motion capture!? So another trailer has dropped and James, James is just swinging for those damn fences...and clearing them! This trailer looks all types of great and not only does the trailer not give you much, the trailer gives you a whole lot more than the teaser trailer and it is absolute great.
In my last review I said Jake now has a child, but it seems like he has a few children. There is a character who seems to be listening to the planet, another character who wants none of anything Jake is warning them about, a possible civil war between the Na'vi AND the humans, or now other avatars are back bringing the war. I have no idea what exactly this is about, but just like the first one, I will be watching this, and quite possibly, in both 2D and 3D like I did before. The music sounds great and it goes without saying, the visuals look amazing. It is just a wonder how well this movie will do now that it is 13 years away since the first movie. I mean, Top Gun was older and they achieved great success with the sequel.
I am going to be real honest. I tried to watch this show possibly, 4 times, maybe even 5 and I could not get through it. This is due to many reasons and none of my reasons were due to this show being either boring, rubbish, disinteresting or disappointing. The times I tried to watch this show was usually at night. You know, a 20-25 minute cartoon fix before bed, something I could just put on and not focus too much on it. More often getting through a single episode than the optimistic 3 or 4 before falling asleep because I was too tired. It was that or I kept getting distracted or I just did not have enough time. Every time I pressed play, I could not remember where I was until one day, I decided to watch the show, AGAIN...and from the beginning AND to be dedicated. I made this decision because deep down, I enjoyed the show. It was funny. It was engaging. It is Sci-fi among many other things I love, but basically, it seemed like a good story. Was it a good story at the end of the 3 seasons? Yes, YES!!!
Gary is an ordinary guy from Infinity Guard. He is not exceptionally intelligent or capable, he is just a good guy who wants to follow in his father's footsteps. One day The Gary (sorry Gary... you'll understand when you watch it), walks into a bar and sees a woman he instantly falls in love with. It is love at first sight for Gary, but Quinn does not give him the time of day until Gary tries all he can to get her to like him, but all his actions lead to him being imprisoned.
Whilst in Prison serving out his sentence and given a robotic floating sphere companion named KVN, Gary is on one of his daily tasks where he bumps into a little green sentient blob-like ball-thing with a face he names "Mooncake". Finding Mooncake cute and adorable, Gary takes in Mooncake and defends it from being captured from a being called the Lord Commander whom is after Mooncake. It is from this moment The Gary sets off a chain of events that include meeting a catlike creature named Avocato, and his son, Little-Cato, eventually Quinn and is forced into a situation where The Gary and his Team Squad are tasked to save the galaxy.
But going into Season 2 we meet more characters such as Fox, Ash and a Titan named Bolo. Yes, a Titan. This show is wild. It's a goofy, comedy, sci-fi cartoon with tons of drama. An example of it's goofiness would be a scene where Gary dances to beat the enemy which is absolutely hilarious. Or you he his love for cookies and dreaming of cookie children cannot go amiss. The comedy lies between the characters such as Gary, KVN, H.U.E and Fox. Obviously this is a cartoon, so this cartoon is allowed to get dark, especially as this is not for children, but the drama it packs, I was close to tears in a few scenes throughout it's run. The themes of love, lost, rejection, friendship, parenting, motherhood and fatherhood, the show, whilst wrapped in goofy comedy, the show is quality. The voice acting is top-notch especially hearing the skins, the soundtrack is great and the storyline is beyond amazing. Let's think of Star-Lord from Marvel, with a little bit of a Rick and Morty vibe laced in everything sci-fi. Whilst I love to go on and on about this series, I risk of spoiling all the sci-fi elements the. show gets into. Whilst I understand this show might be a little difficult to follow at the very beginning , but once you get into it, essentially, it is a love story, written soo well. Try and give this show a chance and you might just like it, just like me. You might also be devastated when you get to the end. I hope someone picks this up
