Category: Movie

Final Destination Bloodlines

Posted on by Mikey

TV Show or Movie: Movie

Where to Watch: Theaters

Genre: Horror

What It Reminds Me Of:

Writer: Guy Busick, Lori Evans Taylor

Directors: Zach Lipovsky, Adam Stein

Cast: Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Teo Briones, Owen Patrick Joyner, Anna Lore, Brec Bassinger, Tony Todd

Premise: Plagued by a recurring violent nightmare, a college student returns home to find the one person who can break the cycle and save her family from the horrific fate that inevitably awaits them.

Review: I am a huge fan of the Final Destination franchise. I grew up during the days of Devon Sawa adding a few very notable horror movies to his resume. Idle Hands was one of my favorites growing up along with Final Destination. At the same time I was playing Mouse Trap as a kid, I was sneakily watching Final Destination. Luckily, I didn’t have OCD at the time. Well, I probably did, but not as noticeably as these days. Now, the movies just add to my OCD. But that doesn’t stopping me from watching these movies. And rewatching these movies.

Before this new entry came out, the first one in 14 years, I rewatched the first five. Everyone loves the second one. The logging truck scene from part II is the most memorable and memeable to so many people. And don’t get me wrong, I loved it. But I still think the first movie and Final Destination 5 stick out as the best ones to me.

When rewatching them, I honestly can’t recall if I had ever seen Final Destination 3. And as much as I love Ryan Merriman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and Amanda Crew, this was my least favorite in the franchise. It was too cheesy, although it was nice having Tony Todd in it and some of the kills were fun.

In 2011, Final Destination 5 came out. It was the second movie to use James Cameron’s 3D cameras. It was the first really comedic entry in the franchise, with cast members like David Koechner and P.J. Byrne. It also had one of my favorite actor/musicians at the time, Mike Fisher. The movie was a blast in the theater and the last scene was fantastic. Something that only a few movies in franchises, like Saw,

Trailer: 

Clown in a Cornfield

Posted on by Mikey

TV Show or Movie: Movie

Where to Watch: Theaters

Genre: Horror, comedy

What It Reminds Me Of:

Writer: Eli Craig, Carter Blanchard

Directors: Eli Craig

Cast: Katie Douglas, Aaron Abrams, Carson MacCormac, Kevin Durand, Will Sasso.

Premise: A fading midwestern town in which Frendo the clown, a symbol of bygone success, reemerges as a terrifying scourge.

Review: Clown in a Cornfield is a fun and funny slasher. It is written and directed by the same person who did Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, so I knew I wouldn’t be dissappointed. I was also excited that Will Sasso was in it as I will watch anything and everything with him. Kevin Durand is also great and great at playing crazy. He added some fun flair to last year’s Abigail.

The movie isn’t a pointless gore fest or anything. There is a real story and reason behind things.

This movie is based off of a book series and after making $6.5 million so far on a $1 million budget, I could see there being sequels which I would be on board for.

Trailer:

Novocaine

Posted on by Mikey

TV Show or Movie: Movie

Where to Watch: Currently in theaters

Genre: Action, Comedy, Thriller

What It Reminds Me Of: Crank, Deadpool

Writer: Lars Jacobson

Director: Dan Berk and Robert Olsen

Premise: Nathan “Nate” Caine, a mild-mannered bank employee with a rare condition that renders him unable to feel physical pain, leads a cautious and uneventful life. When his colleague and newfound love interest, Sherry Margrave, is kidnapped during a bank robbery, Nate turns his unique condition into an unexpected advantage. Determined to rescue Sherry, he embarks on a perilous mission, confronting dangerous criminals and uncovering shocking truths, all while navigating his own limitations and discovering the true extent of his resilience.

Cast: Jack Quaid, Amber Midthunder, Ray Nicholson, Jacob Batalon, Betty Gabriel, Matt Walsh

Review: This movie was throughly entertaining. It involved three of my favorite genres: comedy, action, and torture. This movie is disgusting. But in a hilarious way.

About halfway through, there is a pretty cool twist. I thought it was interesting and definitely a surprise. Jack Quaid plays his typical dorky guy who gets the girl and kicks a little ass along the way. Ray Nicholson, son of Jack Nicholson, had a costarring role in this movie playing the lead antagonist. He broke out on the scene in last year‘s Smile 2. His role was short but stuck out as he put on his father’s creepy smile.

The film has some other great costars such as Matt Walsh, who plays one of the sassy detectives alongside Get Out’s Betty Gabriel. Jacob Batalon plays the charming and lovable best friend who helps out when needed.

This movie is a lot of fun. Watch it on the big screen while you still can.

Trailer:

Sinners

Posted on by Mikey

TV Show or Movie: Movie

Where to Watch: Theaters

Genre: Horror, action

What It Reminds Me Of:

Writer: Ryan Coogler

Directors: Ryan Coogler

Cast: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton, Jack O’Connell, Wunmi Mosaku, Jayme Lawson, Li Jun Li, Omar Miller, Delroy Lindo.

Premise: Trying to leave their troubled lives behind, twin brothers return to their hometown to start again, only to discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.

Review: 

Trailer:

The Amateur

Posted on by Mikey

TV Show or Movie: Movie

Where to Watch: Theaters

Genre: Action

What It Reminds Me Of:

Writer: Ken Nolan, Gary Spinelli

Directors: James Hawes

Cast: Rami Malek, Rachel Brosnahan, Caitríona Balfe, Jon Bernthal, Michael Stuhlbarg, Laurence Fishburne.

Premise: After Charles Heller, a CIA crpytographer, loses his wife in a London terrorist attack, he realizes his bosses will not act due to conflicting internal priorities. Having blackmailed the agency to train him as a field operative, Charles embarks on a one-man mission to hunt down his wife’s killers.

Review: I got tickets to an early screening of this movie. Not how I used to though. Not when you enter contests on places, like go fubo and hope that you can be one of the people with advanced free tickets. I was on AMC looking to see a movie last weekend and noticed that there was an early screening of this. And I was also able to use my AMC pass which I was pleasantly surprised by. I was excited to see this movie, a week early.

It’s funny, because Jon Bernthal is currently playing two of the same characters in two extremely similar movies right now. This movie and The Accountant 2 with Ben Affleck where he plays his brother. I’m also watching Jon Bernthal right now in daredevil. I love that guy.

Anyway, I love action movies. The last movie that I saw on reviewed was Novacaine. I am very excited for the new Mission Impossible movie. There is a new Jason Statham movie out that I’m sure I will see you soon. I also just learned that he is doing a sequel to The Beekeper. The first one was a blast.

Now the thing about The Amateur is that it is like so many other movies but the execution steers clear of so many stereotypes. The following includes very minor to not really spoilers.

The stereotypes that this movie steers clear of: There is no new love interest. There is the love story of the protagonist losing his wife and thinking of her throughout the movie, but there is no new love interest with some 20 year old bikini model. There are no hand-to-hand fight scenes. No Rami Malek fighting 20 guys off with his barehands with a bunch of grunting.

My Dead Friend Zoe

Posted on by Mikey

TV Show or Movie: My Dead Friend Zoe

Where to Watch: Theaters, On Demand

Genre: Dark Comedy, Drama

What It Reminds Me Of:

Writer: Kyle Hausmann-Stokes, A.J. Bermudez

Directors: Kyle Hausmann-Stokes

Cast: Sonequa Martin-Green, Natalie Morales, Ed Harris, Morgan Freeman, Gloria Reuben, Utkarsh Ambudkar, Thom Tran

Premise: Engaged in a mysterious relationship with her dead best friend from the Army, a female Afghanistan veteran comes head to head with her Vietnam vet grandfather at the family’s ancestral lake house.

Review: First off, I love a television show or movie where one of the main characters is dead. Six Feet Under, Dexter, Rescue Me. A story where one of the main character is dead and kind of plays the subconscious of the main character. I think this can be hard to pull off, but when it does it is so good.

When I first saw the trailer to this movie, I was sold. I have loved Natalie Morales since Parks and Rec. Sonquea Martin-Green since The Walking Dead, and Ed Harris and Morgan Freeman were good newcomers who I think have a real shot at being big actors.

The movie is really good. It’s a little long, but I feel it works. We really get to see a grief-stricken veteran try to carry on and get by in their day to day life. The movie is very funny. The back-and-forth banter between Merit and Zoe is really funny. The movie takes place in present day, but has a lot of flashbacks throughout to their time in the service.

The last fifteen minutes are a complete tearjerker. I haven’t, surprisingly, cried at something in a while and this movie made the waterworks come out. There is a twist that will really catch you by surprise.

This movie was written and directed by a veteran and it is based off of his life.

Mickey 17

Posted on by Mikey

TV Show or Movie: Movie

Where to Watch: Theaters

Genre: Science Fiction, Black Comedy

What It Reminds Me Of: Combines the dark humor of Dr. Strangelove with the existential sci-fi elements of Moon

Writer: BBong Joon-ho (screenplay), based on the novel Mickey7 by Edward Ashton

Director: Bong Joon-ho

Premise: In 2054, Mickey Barnes, an “expendable” crew member on a mission to colonize the icy planet Niflheim, is repeatedly cloned after each death. When Mickey 17 survives a mission but is presumed dead, he returns to find his clone, Mickey 18, leading to ethical dilemmas and conflicts within the crew. 

Cast: Robert Pattinson (Mickey Barnes), Naomi Ackie (Nasha Barridge), Steven Yeun (Timo), Toni Collette (Ylfa), Mark Ruffalo (Kenneth Marshall) 

Review: I really wanted to like this movie. I just got around to seeing Parasite last year and it was phenomenal. I am also a huge Snowpiercer and Train to Busan fan. This was probably the first Bong Joon-ho movie I’ve actually seen in theaters. I was hooked since the first trailer.

It’s not a bad movie. It’s done very well. The acting is fantastic. Robert Pattinson plays a lot of integrations of himself, including one that seems like he’s just doing an impression of Steve Buschemi. Stephen Yeun plays a dick. I’ve never seen him not play a lovable guy. Well, maybe in Beef. Toni Collette and Mark Ruffalo were fantastic. I want a spinoff movie on them. They were so, so awful. Ruffalo basically plays Elon Musk; a politician turned space pioneer. The movie definitely had a little bit of a Snowpiercer feel with the difference in classes.

The movie is very funny. Very, very funny. It’s not often you get a comedy/sci-fi/action movie and it pulled those all off well.

I think the movie just went in a different direction than I thought it would. Or I wanted it to.

I would love a stuffed animal of the creature. Oh, and the way that he gets sucked back into the printer and then continues to be pushed out is fucking brilliant!

Trailer:

Captain America: Brave New World

Posted on by Mikey

TV show or Movie: Movie

Where to watch: Theaters

Genre: Action, Adventure, Superhero

What It Reminds Me Of: 

Writer: Rob Edward’s, Malcolm Spellman, Dalan Musson.

Director: Julius Onah

Premise: Sam Wilson, the new Captain America, finds himself in the middle of an international incident and must discover the motive behind a nefarious global plan.

My Premise: Sam works on setting into the new role or Captain America as the world is threatened by an unknown. 

Cast: Anthony Mackie, Harrison Ford, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Carly Lumbly, Tim Blake Nelson, Giancarlo Esposito.

Review: I love Anthony Mackie as Captain America. The way they phased out Chris Evans was handled perfectly—Steve Rogers finally got to be with Peggy, grow old, and live a normal life. It was also great seeing Wyatt Russell in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. That moment when he killed the Flag Smasher in front of a crowd—the act that cost him the Captain America title—was one of the most intense things I’ve ever seen in a Marvel project. Honestly, that’s something I don’t think they would’ve dared to put in one of their theatrical films.

Anyway, watching Mackie fully take on the role was incredible. He’s one of my favorite actors, and seeing a Captain America who not only wields a shield but also has wings? That’s just badass.

I’ve also loved watching Harrison Ford these past couple of years in Shrinking. Over the last few years, he’s starred in his final Indiana Jones movie and the Yellowstone spinoff 1923, and now he’s stepping into the Marvel universe as Red Hulk. And the guy is 82 years old! Technically, Ford is taking over the role of Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross after William Hurt’s passing in 2022, which is a big deal.

I thought Tim Blake Nelson as the antagonist was interesting. I guess I see him as someone who usually does

The Gorge

Posted on by Mikey

TV show or Movie: Movie

Where to watch: Apple TV

Genre: Romance, Horror, Sci-Fi- Action

What It Reminds Me Of: 

Writer: Zach Dean

Director: Scott Derrickson

Premise: Two highly-trained operatives become close after being sent to protect opposite sides of a mysterious gorge. When an evil emerges, they must work together to survive what lies within.

My Premise: Two snipers take a top secretive job to protect the world from what is hidden inside of a gorge. But their year long job starts to unravel secrets they never would have expected.

Cast: Miles Teller, Anya Taylor-Joy, Sigourney Weaver.

Review: It’s not often that we get a good movie that combines romance, sci-fi, horror, and action. I feel if anything tries that it’s usually a straight to digital type of movie. This movie also stars two of the biggest actors in the business right now and costar Sigourney Weaver. Anytime you see Sigourney Weaver pop up in a movie you know it’s going to be good. She seems to play a similar role in this movie to the one that she did in Cabin in the Woods.

This is one of those movies where a friend of yours tells you that they called it, you can easily call them out on the lie. There’s definitely been movies like this, but I think this one takes it in the new direction.

With the movie running over two hours, I thought that it would be a lot of set up in a lot of romance in building the relationship but actually gets into the action part pretty quickly . The second and third act of the movie very action packed up until the end. It has a cheesy ending, but hey, it is romance movie. What do we call a movie that is a romance horror? RomHor?

This is a fun movie. You don’t have to pay attention too much, I will say, however, that the movie does get pretty dark and the second and third act. And I mean that in terms of lighting. But it makes sense to the movie.