(Movie Review) The Lion King // Spoiler-Free

Based on Disney’s The Lion King by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton

Directed by Jon Favreau

Produced by Jon Favreau, Jeffrey Silver and Karen Gilchrist

Screenplay by Jeff Nathanson

Starring: Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Alfre Woodard, Billy Eichner, John Kani, John Oliver, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, and James Earl Jones

Genre: Musical

Synopsis: The plot follows Simba (voiced by Donald Glover), a young lion who must embrace his role as the rightful king of his native land following the murder of his father, Mufasa (voiced by James Earl Jones) at the hands of his uncle, Scar (voiced by Chiwetel Ejiofor).

Review

I need to get this off my chest: I dislike everything about this movie.

Not because they changed the cast, but because of the acting of the new cast.  The conversations were too scripted and unnatural. I couldn’t connect with any of them. The essence wasn’t there. Young Simba and Nala didn’t have a sense of innocence and wonder compared to the characters in the animated movie. 

 

Timon was a disappointment. His irony didn’t come through. He wasn’t at all funny. I found him to be the meerkat who told bad jokes. It didn’t fit his character. Even James Earl Jones’ (who’s the original voice of Mufasa) character didn’t come across well. It sounded like someone trying too hard to be James Earl Jones.

 

This movie was a letdown. It is sad to see that most of the characters aren’t as well developed as the ones I watched as a kid in the original film, though the producers managed to avoid the plot holes found in the animation. But it missed the heart of the original and lacked the depth portrayed by the 1994 characters.

 

That concludes my review. I rate this 6/10.

 

Alex is signing out.

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(Movie Review) Spider-Man: Far From Home // Spoiler-Free

 Based on Spider-Man by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko

Directed by Jon Watts

Written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers

Produced by Kevin Feige and Amy Pascal

Starring: Tom Holland, Samuel L. Jackson, Zendaya, Cobie Smulders, Jon Favreau, J. B. Smoove, Jacob Batalon, Martin Starr, Marisa Tomei, and Jake Gyllenhaal.

Genre: Action

Synopsis: Parker is recruited by Nick Fury and Mysterio to face the Elementals while he is on a school trip to Europe.

Review

Not what I expected. I didn’t expect it to start as it did.

I enjoyed watching Peter Parker as a student, going on trips and juggling his crazy life. Now that is one thing I would like to see more of. His relationship with Mary Jane is simply different from the other versions/remakes. I love watching Peter’s stress building up from multitasking two things at once. Yes, I know I’m cruel but I live for that. Seeing the characters struggling is far more interesting and entertaining. We can get another sense of his student life as well as being Spider-Man. I need more of that. I also love that the movie portrays the awkwardness in teenagers which is rarely shown in shows.

 

I am glad that there are bits here and there of students noticing that their classmate is missing. And thank God that they didn’t act as though Peter Parker doesn’t exist as in most superhero movies tend to do. I love it that we as the viewers don’t have to go through another cycle of someone guessing who’s under the mask. To avoid spoilers, I can’t say more about this. It’s a  superhero cliche. It’s tiring and that needs to change but thank goodness it did in this movie. Nobody is that dumb after all. Well, that concludes my review.

 

I rate this 9/10.

 

I am looking forward to the third movie. THAT ENDING had me stoked, and I cannot wait for the next one!!!

Alex is signing out.

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(Movie Review) AVENGERS: ENDGAME // Spoiler-Free

Based on the comic, The Avengers by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo

Screenplay by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely

Produced by Kevin Feige

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Holland, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Paul Rudd, Brie Larson, Karen Gillan, Danai Gurira, Bradley Cooper, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zoe Saldana, and Josh Brolin.

Synopsis: it picked up where it left off in Infinity War

Review

Wow, I have a lot of mixed feelings about this movie. I am going to come out and say it, this finale was too hyped. I get it why it’s hype though; to end the saga, of course! But was it worth the hype it was getting? Half yes, and half no. The movie was any superhero movie. It had action scenes, torn relationships, good friendships, and tragedies. But the storyline was boring, only until the ending was near where they found a way out, and settle this once and for all — it became better.

I like that the main characters were well-developed enough that it was easy to care about them while watching them suffer on screen. But I couldn’t connect with the new members of the Avengers.

With that being said, the movie was still pretty entertaining to watch. Seeing Peter Parker’s and Tony Stark’s relationship grow as an apprentice and mentor touched my heart. We get to see that Iron Man has a heart made up of not only steel but love too. It was cool and far more interesting to watch them fight alongside their allies.

Some of the questions were explained in the movie. But I didn’t get this one because of spoilers, not gonna say it. I still prefer Infinity War to Endgame. It had a good start at the beginning, everything was well built up, but things went downhill in the follow-up movie when the solution is brought up. The plan was the simplest solution. I feel like they were taking the easy way out. I just wished the writers came up with something other than that.

Also, I felt like Thanos wasn’t at all a villain. Yes, he made humans suffer and almost destroyed their planet. But he wasn’t that developed as the other characters were which was disappointing. It felt like something about him was missing. I thought Captain Marvel and he will have an EPIC battle, considering their powers were quite similar. But nope, I didn’t get any of that. I needed more action scenes with her in it if not why would they make a movie all about her. 

Despite everything, it was a good movie but not the best. It was enjoyable but draggy for most parts especially the beginning leading up to the middle. I rate Endgame, 6/10

That concludes my review.

Alex is signing out.

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(Movie Review) SHAZAM! // Spoiler- Free

                                          

Shazam! ~ theatrical poster

Based on the characters from DC Comics

Directed by David F. Sandberg

Story by Henry Gayden and Darren Lemke

Screenplay/Written by Henry Gayden

Produced by Peter Safran

Language: English

Genre: Action, superhero

Starring: Zachary Levi. Asher Angel, Mark Strong, Jack Dylan Grazer, Djimon Hounsou,

Synopsis: Billy Batson (Asher Angel), a teenage boy who can transform into an adult superhero (Zachary Levi)

Review

I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it. This movie gave me some Meet the Robinsons and The Kid Who Would be King vibes (two great movies by the way.) I was a little bit worried about the flashbacks at the start. But after a few scenes in, it was easy to navigate into the main story line. I like how the prologue gave the viewers some Easter eggs to tie in with the rest of the story. With that said, I like having a clear sense of the characters’ motivation at the back of my mind.

 

I love the characters and their relationships circling in the story. The humour especially. And the message conveyed which I thought was relatable and agreeable. It doesn’t matter where you come from, just know this that there are people around who love you. This. Is. A. Good. Message. That. Needs. To. Be. Heard.

 

The idea for the story; a boy transforms into a super adult hero whenever he says Shazam! is pretty cool. Nothing like I’ve seen before. The plot line is a little different from other superhero movies I’ve watched which is a good thing. I love a unique story!

 

I cannot wait for the sequel. Overall, I rate this 8/10.

 

That concludes my review.

Alex is signing off.

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(Movie Review) How to Train Your Dragon 3 // Spoiler-Free

Based on the novel series, How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell

Directed and Written by Dean DeBlois

Produced by Bonnie Arnold and Brad Lewis

Language: English

Starring: Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Cate Blanchett, Craig Ferguson, and F. Murray Abraham.

Synopsis: (read it only if you have watched the first two)
It follows Hiccup seeking a dragon utopia called “The Hidden World” while coming to terms with Toothless’ new bond with a female Light Fury.

Review

It feels like a train ran over me.

 

So many feels. I don’t even know where to start. What more to say other than awesome?!

 

The poster shows two dragons, one white and the other black who is Toothless. So, of course, we knew there’s something going to happen there. It’s obvious.

 

But the movie didn’t just focus on the romance, they had us going ‘wow,’ and then we had some ‘aww’ and ‘haha’ moments. A balance which I like. The plot had action and a touch of romance which I enjoyed watching. Slow romance. They kept it rounded. Though there is still a lot of action scenes, that didn’t stray the viewers away from the main plot. It was kept to a minimum. Enough to make you gasp, cry, and want more.

 

I love it when Ruffnut and Tuffnut talk in their humorous way; the reason why we love her and her twin brother so much. I love the world building. Even though it was only a few seconds, they were able to show the viewers a constructive, layered hidden world. Kudos to the crew. I also love watching the friendship between Hiccup and Toothless grow stronger. Especially, the ending which killed me, in a good way at least. It was epic and at the same time tears of joy sprung out. I love all the characters to bits and I am going to miss them.

 

All in all, I rate this 10/10. If you love dragons and strong bonds, I highly recommend this trilogy.

 

Alex is signing out.

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