After more than thirty years of service as one of the Navy’s top aviators, and dodging the advancement in rank that would ground him, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell finds himself training a detachment of TOP GUN graduates for a specialized mission the likes of which no living pilot has ever seen.
I rarely watch a movie and think it’s better the second time…
Apart from being preposterous… could it be better?
★★★★★
Five years have passed since Hiccup and Toothless united the dragons and Vikings of Berk. Now, they spend their time charting unmapped territories. During one of their adventures, the pair discover a secret cave that houses hundreds of wild dragons -- and a mysterious dragon rider. Now, Hiccup and Toothless find themselves at the center of a battle to protect Berk from a power-hungry warrior.
Mercifully improved by the third film, Cate Blanchett’s TERRIBLE accent continues to ruin the best parts of this. It is Russell Crowe in Robin Hood bad.
Also, this time round, I’m starting to give the villain a bit of side-eye on the “woke” scale. Black voice actor, dreadlocks, darker skin, bodily difference…
★★★★
I’ve not seen The Whale (nor did I intend to) but this is quite a piece!
You know that scene in Scott Pilgrim where Scott tricks Todd into drinking half-and-half just by “thinking real hard” about which cup he put it in? Well, this morning, I thought real hard about taking my medication on time and now I don’t know if I took it or not.
Twenty-five years after a streak of brutal murders shocked the quiet town of Woodsboro, a new killer has donned the Ghostface mask and begins targeting a group of teenagers to resurrect secrets from the town’s deadly past.
Considering the complexity of what this film needs to achieve, I thought they had a really good stab at it.
Some of the meta stuff seemed a bit hammy and on the nose but I’m not sure that wasn’t intentional.
There were some excellent kills too. Top drawer stuff.
Not sure it really works as a whodunnit, though. Had it in the first act… but, again, I’m not sure if THAT wasn’t intentional too.
★★★★
A tale as old as time, ignoring prognosticators across the ages.
Be warned, this is packed with spoilers, but if you have seen both it’s a fascinating read.
Documentary style account of a nuclear holocaust and its effect on the working class city of Sheffield, England; and the eventual long run effects of nuclear war on civilization.
I still think the biggest problem with #Partygate is that hashtag. It didn’t need to be a “party”, it needed to be an indoor gathering for non-work purposes that breached the rules in place at the time.
Yes, it is ridiculous that, say, 5 people, working in a socially distanced office, who had face-to-face contact throughout the day, could not stand together and sing someone happy birthday. But those were the rules and people bent over backwards to follow them.
As Hiccup fulfills his dream of creating a peaceful dragon utopia, Toothless’ discovery of an untamed, elusive mate draws the Night Fury away. When danger mounts at home and Hiccup’s reign as village chief is tested, both dragon and rider must make impossible decisions to save their kind.
This is a fantastic film.
It deftly avoids the mistakes of the second by focusing on the relationship between Hiccup and Toothless and keeping everybody else to supporting roles.
The fact that some of the best scenes have no dialogue is an absolute tribute to the animators. Such superb work.
And it delivers a pretty much note perfect ending (or three) too.
★★★★★
During a space voyage, four scientists are altered by cosmic rays: Reed Richards gains the ability to stretch his body; Sue Storm can become invisible; Johnny Storm controls fire; and Ben Grimm is turned into a super-strong … thing. Together, these "Fantastic Four" must now thwart the evil plans of Dr. Doom and save the world from certain destruction.
I’ve always thought this was one of the better early live action Marvel films. It’s all very lite but still fun. My little ones (11/8) enjoyed it enough.
There was a jarring amount of cleavage and, unexplicably, some saucy nightwear on the dark streets of (an unnamed borough of) New York. Different times, eh?
★★★
