Movie Review – The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part Two

Synopsis- The thrilling conclusion of the Hunger Games saga, Katniss Everdeen must once and for all take down the Capitol in an effort to free the districts.

Initial Response- It wasn’t bad, the beginning scenes felt rushed, like they were trying to gloss over it to get to the intense stuff despite the fact that it was pretty important.

Pros- The effects are amazing and there are parts of true intensity that are great.

Cons- As mentioned before, many important things are rushed to get to the major battle. It feels like they spent too much time on some parts and not enough on others.

Thus ends the spoiler-free part of the review. Spoilers ahead!

Graphic/Sexual Content- There wasn’t much sexual content. A few kiss scenes that aren’t very intense at all, but that’s it. I don’t recall any cussing, however, I may have missed it. There is some violence, some pretty freaky mutation things, and a few dead bodies, but besides that it’s not terribly graphic.

Major Annoyances- The last movie ended on Peeta attacking Katniss, and in this movie they recognized it for about five to ten minutes. Katniss’s neck bruises were healed by ten minutes in. If you are going to leave a movie off with a cliff hanger, at least acknowledge it more in the next movie.

They rushed many important scenes, and spent too long on others. Suddenly Annie and Finnick were getting married, oh but now they have to go to District 2, oh now they are in the hospital with Johanna. They kept flicking from scene to scene too fast. But then, the siege on the Capitol is 65% of the movie. In my opinion, they spent too long on the siege and not enough on the other things. Sure, the battle is the most important part, but they honestly put too much focus on that.

Things I Did Like- The movie stayed fairly true to the book, and the film in general is just great. They did a really good job of building suspense in the right moments and using character deaths to draw emotion from the audience. It was a good ending to the franchise.

Final Thoughts- Definitely worth the money, overall it was pretty good.  My friend who was with me and hasn’t read the book guessed most of the plot twists before they happened, so it was somewhat predictable. But, it really did close out the series nicely.

Rating- 8 out of 10

Stay cool and keep dreaming,

Phil-fa

Movie Review- Avengers: Age of Ultron

Synopsis: When the artificial intelligence known as Ultron threatens to destroy the planet, the Avengers must work together and team up with new characters to save the world.

Initial Response- In my opinion, it’s not as good as the first and is much more predictable. However, it was still great and fulfills the Marvel Cinematic Universe standard, but not much beyond that.

Pros- It’s a Marvel Cinematic movie, which pretty much guarantees the action scenes, character angst, and witty one-liners we’ve all come to know and love. It’s entertaining and fun for the whole family if you have older kids, and is definitely worth the ticket.

Cons- Because Marvel’s been making Avengers type movie for a while now, it’s starting to get a bit stale. It felt a bit like they were just rehashing some things from the last movie. I’ll go into more detail on that in the spoilers section later.

P.S. To save you some time, I’ll tell you there is a mid-credits scene, but unlike the last movie there is no end credits scene. So you don’t have to worry about waiting through the whole credits to see a scene. There isn’t one.

Thus ends the spoiler-free part of the review. Spoilers ahead!

Graphic/Sexual Content- There is some swearing, nothing too horrendous though. They have a running joke through the movie where Captain America gets on to the other Avengers (specifically Tony) about language only to curse later himself. And Tony’s first line of the whole movie is literally, “Sh*t!!!” As for sexual content, the closest thing is an almost kiss between Natasha and Bruce. (Yes, they’re a thing now apparently.)

Major Annoyances- As I mentioned earlier, it felt like they were rehashing some of the elements of the last movie for a while. They start with a battle scene, they move on to angst between the members for the filler in between battle scenes, and then there’s a big battle at the end that lasts almost an hour. Maybe I’m just being picky, but it really feels like superhero movies in general are becoming more of a bland paste they crank out full of references to sate comic fans and goofy characters to sate others.

This is more of a personal thing, but I was sad that they revealed Clint had a family. I’ve shipped Clint and Natasha since the first Avengers movie and I was kinda sad to see that ship sink. #ripclintasha But, it was nice to see that at least one of the Avengers has a family because it shows the sacrifice the character has to go through to help save the world.

My next point ties to the last one, but I do NOT like the new romance between Natasha and Bruce. They are such polar opposites. I know the phrase “opposites attract” but they are opposite each other in interests and personality that I don’t think it could really work.

I’m just going to go out and say it…all of their problems could have been solved if Magneto was there. He could have destroyed the army of Ultrons with one hand and then used the metals in the rock to lower the floating land back down safely. I mean sure, his character is more tied with the X-Men, but it’s the same universe and his kids were there fighting anyways. (In case you are unaware, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver are the children of Magneto.)

Ultron didn’t really cut it for me as the antagonist. He just fell flat and wasn’t as interesting as say, Loki. I mean come on, Ultron even used Loki’s scepter to mind control a doctor. Does this sound familiar? (Hint- It’s what happened in the last movie.)

Things I Did Like- Marvel had the guts to kill off a major character in their Cinematic Universe. This is pretty huge for any comic company because they are usually reluctant to completely kill off major characters. They usually resurrect them somehow, (i.e. Phil Coulson in Marvel Cinematic Universe, Jean Grey in Marvel Comics, Jason Todd in DC Comics… the list is almost endless), but it was actually surprising to me when they killed off Quicksilver. They were kinda hinting the whole movie that Clint was going to be the one to die, but Piedro saved him at the last minute at the expense of his own life. I actually liked that Marvel was bold enough to do so, but I still think it’s possible they’ll resurrect him because Marvel has a history of resurrecting characters. Or maybe they won’t because they’ll consider him a minor character and he’ll join Freya (Thor’s mom) in obscurity. Either way, I liked that part of the plot even if my reasoning is flawed.

I always like the witty one-liners. There weren’t as many good ones as the last movie, but they were still there and as entertaining as always.

Just the feel of the movie. I always like a good superhero movie, even if they are all similar in plot. Its still entertaining and worth the ticket.

Final Thoughts- Go for it. It was entertaining, and another generic Marvel movie that we all love. What I would personally like to see in the future is something new and unique, but for what we’ve got now, it was a great movie.

Rating- 8 out of 10

Stay cool and keep dreaming,

ThePhilosophicalFangirl

Movie Review: Project Almanac

Synopsis: When high school senior David Raskin and his friends discover blueprints to a time machine, they build it and mess up many timelines in the process.

Initial Response: I actually really liked it, and so did my mom, but my brother didn’t. It seems like one of those movies that you either like or don’t with no middle ground.

Pros: The storyline is intricate, but so good. You really have to pay attention or everything will be confusing, so no bathroom breaks during this movie. There is a great romance between two of the main characters that I actually enjoyed and was interested in, which is rare for me because I don’t usually like romance.

Cons: The entire movie is filmed by the characters, so much of the camera work is shaky. I liked it, because I thought it made it unique, but I understand that many people won’t like that.

Thus ends the spoiler-free part of the review. Spoilers ahead!

Graphic/Sexual Content: Swear words, as per the usual. The main couple have sex, but it is not shown, merely referenced to, in a scene where the girl is in nothing but a towel, that she opens to the guy but not the audience. There’s some kissing, but not much else.

Major Annoyances: The shaky camera. As mentioned before, I kinda liked it, but I think most people won’t. Especially because of the reaction the shaky camera in The Hunger Games got. My mom leaned over to me at one point in the movie and told me she was dizzy. If you didn’t like the shaky camera in The Hunger Games, you definatly won’t like this one.

Things I Did Like: As mentioned before, I actually did like the romance in this movie. It actually did something for the plot and wasn’t just put in there to attract teen girls.

I liked the character development and teen angst. You can actually feel the struggles the characters are going through. This movie will be really relatable to teens, so even if you’re a teen and not into the science of the movie, you can at least relate to the romance.

Final Thoughts: Definatly recommend for anyone who likes time travel, sciencey movies, or teen angst movies. Or both. I really liked it myself, probably because I like both of the above.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Movie Review: Jupiter Ascending

Synopsis: Jupiter, a normal girl living a dismal life, suddenly discovers she is the heir to a large intergalactic fortune and gets sucked into the middle of a family war.

Initial Response: Ehhhhh. It wasn’t a terrible movie, but I wouldn’t recommend it. The special effects were really good, but I wouldn’t recommend seeing it in 3-D if you get dizzy easily. I saw it in 2-D and that was dizzying enough.

Pros: As mentioned before, the special effects were really good. There was quite a few elaborate scenes that must have taken a lot of effort on the special effects team so kudos to them. I actually did like the story line, minus the romance. It was a bit confusing, but pretty good if you could understand it.

Cons: The romance. The romance was obnoxious, and did nothing to the plot. It seemed like it was just made to make Mila Kunis and Channing Tatum kiss.

Thus ends the spoiler-free part of the review. Spoilers ahead!

Graphic/Sexual Content: Just the usual. Some kissing, a few swear words, violence, nothing too extraordinary for a PG-13 movie.

Major Annoyances: When Jupiter woke up after being rescued by Caine the first time, she asked him a bunch of questions about what was going on like, who are you, who are the people who tried to kill me, are they going to keep trying to kill me, etc. To which Caine explained that they were going to continue trying to kill her and she had to come with him. My biggest complaint for this scene is that Jupiter never asked him why they were trying to kill her. If some guy had just saved me from a bunch of aliens, and he told me I had to go to space with him, I would ask him why. That’s just obvious. In Jupiter’s defense, she did ask him later, after she was alone in a car with him, driving God knows where.

As mentioned before, I didn’t like the romance. It just kinda stood out like a sore thumb and did nothing for the prompt.

It was a Sean Bean movie that Sean Bean didn’t die in.

Things I Did Like: As mentioned before, I liked the special effects. They were on point and it looked like there were many complex elements that took some time.

I liked the story line, with the whole family war and that planets are just gene farms for rich people. It was complex, but if you can understand it, its not bad.

Final Thoughts: Not a great movie, but not terrible. If it comes on Netflix and you’re just looking for something to watch, I would recommend it. But, I would advise to not waste your money on it because I personally believe it wasn’t worth it.

Rating- 4.5 out of 10

Stay cool and keep dreaming.

ThePhilosophicalFangirl

Third Film of the Star Trek Reboot Movies to be Released 2016

Yes. It’s finally happening. The successor to Star Trek Into Darkness is scheduled to be released July 8, 2016. The title has not been released yet, and it is listed on IMDb as “Star Trek 3.”

Unfortunately, J.J. Abrams will not be directing this one. He jumped ship over to the Star Wars franchise. This movie will be directed by Justin Lin, who directed the third through sixth Fast and Furious movies. Abrams is remaining on the staff as a producer. Maybe this means there won’t be as many lens flares…

Anyways, I digress. It is unknown who or what the antagonist will be in this movie. To be honest, little is known about the plot at all. One of the writers from the other two movies, Roberto Orci, wrote a script for this one, and was scheduled to direct the movie, but he backed out. It is unknown at the time if his script will be used, but Orci has remained on staff as a producer.

This movie is scheduled to be released exactly two months before the 50th anniversary of the franchise. So, many will have to opportunity to see the movie on the anniversary, if you want to wait a couple months. They have set a deadline to get it released before the anniversary, but with the difficulties in finding a suitable director, it is questionable if it will be accomplished.

It is rumored that William Shatner may have a cameo role with Leonard Nemoy in a throw-back scene. Apparently, they are waiting for Shatner to agree.

Little other information is known at the time, I will keep you updated as more is revealed.

Until then, stay cool and keep dreaming

ThePhilosophicalFangirl

The Hobbit-The Battle of the Five Armies Movie Review

Synopsis- After awakening the dragon, Smaug, the band of dwarves must defeat Smaug, and then protect the mountain from outside forces.

Initial Response- Not bad, but the movie was pretty much only consisted of the battle. The rising and falling action together probably lasted only forty-five minutes. That may not seem too bad, but the entire movie was about a little under two and a half hours.

Pros- The battle was cool. As the title suggests, it was the clash of five armies, all battling. It was pretty epic. The love story in the last movie between an elf and a dwarf continued and the interracial romance was fascinating. Especially when Legolas got all jealous.

Cons- In my opinion, not much plot. The movie was basically all battling. Thorin was a jerk, people died, Bilbo threw rocks. It didn’t contain much else.

Thus ends the spoiler-free part of the review. Major spoilers ahead!

Graphic/Sexual content- Not really anything to be honest. The only graphic content really is all of the fighting. There wasn’t a whole ton of foul language or major sexual content.

Major Annoyances- Thorin’s death. He should have stabbed the White Orc through the ice to make sure he was dead. I mean, come on, who’s really that stupid? I don’t know if Thorin saw it, but I saw the Orc move under the ice. It was painfully obvious. Even if he thought the Orc was dead, he should have still stabbed him through the ice to ensure his death.

Legolas defying physics. There was a scene where he was fighting an orc on a collapsed bell tower spanning a chasm. There was a part where he got knocked off the tower, and ran up falling rubble to safety. I am aware that Legolas is not human, so he may be able to do superhuman things, but there is no way he could have run up all that rubble, while falling, to make it to safety. We all know they can’t kill Legolas, because he’s in the Lord of the Rings movies, so the suspense they were trying to create completely flopped.

Tauriel playing the damsel in distress. I mean come on, Kili died for her, and Legolas almost did, and she’s just laying on the ground. Yes, I know she’s injured, but people are dying. She didn’t have any major wounds that could affect her mobility, get up and kick some butt girl! Don’t just sit there while these guys are dying for you.

Alfrid. But, then again he’s a character you’re not supposed to like. He’s a major coward, and even dresses like a woman to avoid fighting. It was very frustrating to see him running away.

The amount of time it took them to kill Smaug. It took them, maybe twenty minutes at most. I feel like this bit should have been in the previous movie. I didn’t even remember what exactly had happened in the last movie, but all I can see is one of the dwarves was in a jail cell for some reason, and the others were with some guy’s family etc. It continued the plot from the last movie into twenty minutes of this one and it was very annoying.

Things I Did Like- The women getting up and fighting. It was shown in a brief, twenty second shot, but the women grabbed everything they could find and went and fought with the men. You go girls!

Bilbo was actually useful! He threw rocks at orcs and warned Thorin of the approaching army. He attempted to facilitate peace between the men, elves, and dwarves at the cost of his life. It was nice to see him not being so dead weight.

The battling was pretty epic. It kind of made up for the lack of plot.

Final Thoughts- It was a decent movie, not the best I have ever seen, but not terrible. Just like the other Lord of the Rings movies it was long, but it didn’t contain so many dull moments as some of the other LOTR movies.

PJ Scale Rating- 0, but that’s to be expected, considering the story lines added and many things changed. As mentioned in my other posts, a low score on the PJ scale does not make for a bad movie. (For more information on the PJ scale, check out my other post named as such.)

Overall Rating- 6.5 out of 10

Until later, stay cool and keep dreaming

ThePhilosophicalFangirl (Phil-fa)