SYTYCD Season 10: Meet the Top 20

So You Think You Can Dance
Season 10
Meet The Top 20

So You Think You Can Dance is back ya’ll and it’s time to see the dancers we will be spending our time with. Bring on the Top 20 Nigel. Make good choices!

 

Du-Shaunt “Fik-Shun” Stegall and Mariah Spears – Hip Hop
Thoughts: Loved who they picked. I wish Markus was included in this group, but with Emilio gone he may have a chance to come in. Fik-Shun did win me over during Vegas week, but I can already seeing him becoming a Cyrus where the judges try and make him out to be better than he really is that the audience gets turned off. Mariah on the other hand was sure to be in the Top 20. A pretty, talented, blonde female hip-hopper with swag? How could Nigel pass that up.
Choreographer: Luther Brown
Song: “Ball” by T.I. feat Lil’ Wayne
My Thoughts: I honestly couldn’t keep my eyes off Mariah. She just has a lot of character. She may have a little too much facial expression, but she’s an incredible dancer and performer. Fik-Shun as definitely over shadowed which is unfortunately because he does have a great personality. The moves were there, but it was thinking about it too much. It’s good for a first time performance, but he will have to up his game. This show is about growing, so hopefully he gets a chance to do just that. Maybe Mia can break him down.
Judges Thoughts: The judges feel like I do. Mariah is great, but Fik-Shun is going to have to keep up. They believe in him, he just needs to believe in himself. This show is about growing, so hopefully he gets a chance to do just that.

Mackenzie Dustman, Jasmine Harper, Tucker Knox, and Nico Greenman – Contemporary
Thoughts: I remember all of these guys from the auditions. My first impression of Mackenzie was that I didn’t like her, but her audition won me over and she really is an incredible dancer. She’s also gorgeous, so this makes her a no brainer. Though I hated the fact they played on her dysfunctional relationship with a former contestant, I really like Jasmine. I want to get to know her better. Tucker is an incredible dancer, but he’s also a bit stiff and awkward because he’s so tall. He also needs a haircut. Nico is adorable, but also all over the place, I can’t wait to see what he can do.
Choreographer: Stacey Tookey
Song: “Goes On and On” by Sleeping at Last
My Thoughts: The stand out for me was Nico, maybe it was because he had the most tricks, maybe it was because he looked like he was having such a blast, I couldn’t take my eyes off the kid. He’s a great dancer. I’m never a big fan of group contemporary routines, unless they unfold like this, so I can’t really say much about the routine itself. It had some beautiful moments. A lot of jumping.
Judges: They all LOVED Mackenzie and can’t wait to see what the four of them can do.

Alexis Juliano, Curtis Holland, Aaron Turner – Tapper
Thoughts: First, I am so glad that Curtis made it in the Top 20. He nearly broke my heart when he cried after his contemporary performance in Vegas. Someone who can feel so much when he’s dancing deserves to be on this show. I love Alexis as well and I’m glad she made it. Aaron I don’t know much about him, but I’m glad he got his chance to be in the Top 20 after Emilio had to drop out.
Song: “You Really Did It (Live)” Jason Mraz
My Thoughts: This was a really cool routine. I love the sliding boards and the song choice. You could really hear them tapping and their rhythms. Curtis was the definite stand out, he looked like he was having a lot of fun, and he showed so much charisma and personality. Alexis always looks at ease. There was no sense of strain or stress on her face. She just makes everything look so damn easy. Aaron needs to show a bit more personality. I feel like he may be one of the first guys to go, unfortunately.
Judges: Adam says Curtis has “unbridled joy.” That is the perfect way to describe them. They all love the routine and realize how complicated it was and how well they performed it together. The judges are excited about them. Tap On.

Jade Zuberi and Dorian “BluPrint” Hector – Animation
Thoughts: I don’t know how I feel about a hip hopper, 2 tappers, and 2 animators being in the competition. These types of genre’s never fare well on this show. That being said, I am glad that Jade made it. I think he’s got great personality and his animation is sick. I’m neutral on BluPrint, I think he does need to emote more. But hopefully that will chance in the coming weeks.
Choreographer: Christopher Scott
Song: “Trigger” by Kezwik feat Mel Presson
My Thoughts: It was crazy! The animation just blows my mind how someone can make their body do that. Jade was a definite standout, mainly because his of his facial expressions.
Judges: They love it. Of course they do.

Carlos Garland, Hayley Erbert, and Malece Miller – Contemporary
Thoughts: I don’t really remember Carlos or Hayley much, but I’m happy by girl Maliese made it. There was no doubt in my mind she wasn’t going to, but it’s nice to have confirmation. There’s just something about her. I’m also super excited they are doing a Mia Michael’s piece. Mia has this way of pulling the best out of her dancers.
Choreographer: Mia Michaels
Song: “Stay” by Rihanna
My Thoughts: I thought the routine, by itself, was great. I love the way Mia choreographs to the beats and the feelings of the song. I love the stories she tells. I always get so invested in them. I felt like the dancers could have given a bit more performance wise. I felt some emotion but not all of the emotion. The piece was great, but it could have been even better.
Judges: There is room to grow and all of these dances have potential.

Brittany Cherry, Jenna Johnson, Alan Karmiran, and Paul Bersten – Ballroom
Thoughts: I knew that Jenna was going to make it. She’s such a strong dancer and she was featured a lot in the auditions. I don’t really know much about the other dancers.
Choreographer: Louie Van Amstel
Song: “Wings” by Little Mix.
My Thoughts: Is it wrong to say I’m glad that each dancer had a partner? It’s always awkward when they have a 3-way in ballroom. The routine was cool, but the girls were definitely the standouts and the guys merely accessories.
Judges: Girls were amazing, the guys need to dance stronger. The girls out danced them.
Amy Yakima and Jasmine Mason – Contemporary/Jazz
Thoughts: Is it wrong that I knew when the decision came down to Jasmine and Megan that Jasmine would be the winner? Cat ruined it when she announced the other Jasmine and gave her a last name. She didn’t do that to any of the other dancers so why would she do it to just Jasmine. See I’m smart! I love Amy. She’s just so happy and a really great dancer.
Choreographer: Sonya Tayeh
Song: “Enjoy” by Bjork
My Thoughts: Gotta love Sonya. I think this was the perfect dance for these girls because they are such strong dancers. I can’t wait to see more from Jasmine, but Amy knocked this one out of the park. They both had a lot of power, and a lot of quirkiness that Sonya demands from her dancers. The routine itself, though, could have been better, sorry Sonya.
Judges: They loved it. Mary thought it was her favorite routine of the night. They love the two girls and can’t wait to see more from them.

Top 10 Guys
Choreographer: Christopher Scott
Song: “Sand” by Nathan Lanier feat Karen Whipple
My Thoughts: Awesome. Totally amazing. The sand isn’t even a gimmick, it works and it totally adds to the piece. I love how Scott used the dancers strengths and genres within the routine. It was powerful, well-choreographed, and pretty damn cool. I wonder if the guys will later feel ripped off for finding sand in their underwear without having gone to the beach?

Top 10 Girls
Choreographer: Ray Leeper
Song: “Lets Have A Kiki” by Fanny Pack and District 78
My Thoughts: I first heard this song sung by Sarah Jessica Parker on Glee, and I hated it. After hearing the real version, still hate it. It’s annoying, and I don’t get it. Seriously, someone tell me what the hell a “kiki” is.

Top 20
Choreographer: Sonya Tayeh
Song: “Ghost of Sky” by Steed Lord
My Thoughts: I’ve seen better routines. It’s a Sonya routine too so I have high hopes, but I find it a bit lackluster and expected. It did showcase the talent though, so I guess that’s what matters.

Random Thoughts

• I love that Mia is back. She’s hardcore and her routines are always fantastic and original.
• Love Mia sticking up for jade saying it shouldn’t be the dancers fault if a choreographer can’t choreograph despite it. I agree. If he wants to dance let him dance.
• Pretty much everyone who was voted off (with the exception of Marcus Shields who I’m still disappointed about) I did not recognize.

Quotes

Nigel: “Those feet Mackenzie I love those feet”
Cat: “They’re actually not so pretty from up here but when she’s dancing they’re beautiful.”

“If a choreographer cannot create because of a size difference than that’s on the choreographer” – Mia

Cat: “They even animate their eyebrows it’s amazing. I can’t wait to see them do ballroom.”

Cat: “Look what you’ve done to these poor girls? They’ve become Alice Cooper.”

Cat: “I’ve got tears in my cheek”

Cat: “It’s making it very awkward in these heels but never mind.” – re: Cats heels in the sand

 

 

What do you think of the Top 20? Will you watch this season? Who did you wish made it, but didn’t? Who do you think would be paired up with who? Anyone as enamored with Curtis as I am?

 

 

Movie Review: Man Of Steel

Though it wasn’t a bad movie by normal standards, Man Of Steel was not what I wanted for one of my favorite superheroes. What Snyder and Nolan did was take Superman, and make him average.

Man Of Steel
Directed By: Zack Synder
Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, Laurence Fishburne, Chris Meloni, Michael Kelly, Russell Crowe, Diane Lane, Kevin Costner, Ayelet ZurerPremise: When John and Martha Kent find a baby in a pod, they know he is not of this world. As Clark grows older he realizes he has great powers he doesn’t know how to control. After hiding his powers for so long, Clark, a loner finds himself helping others. He’s become a myth, an idea of a savior, until Lois Lane discovers his secret and alerts the world, and other worlds to Clark’s existence. As his otherworldly enemies threaten to destroy Earth in order to hunt him down, Clark must decide if he’s done hiding his alien half and ready to start trusting his human half.

My Review: Superman is probably the mostwell-known and well-liked superhero in the world. Everyone knows Superman, everyone loves Superman. He is the kind of person you hope your kid grows up to be like, cape or not. He is a good guy who just happens to be an alien from another planet…with superpowers. He truly does good, not evil. Unfortunately, Zack Snyder and Christopher Nolan took away everything that was “good” about Superman and turned him into your typical dark and brooding hero.

It’s a hard thing to do. To make Superman seem average. But mixed with grandiose and distracting camerawork, plot holes with obvious chunks of movie missing, and a gray/blue scale color pallete, Superman felt like kind of a downer.

 

Things I Liked:
1) Clark’s backstory. I’m a sucker for flashbacks. I blame JJ Abrams for that one. I liked that he was seen as a freak or an outcast as a child. It makes us understand him, and also makes the decision to help even his enemies all the greater. Unfortunately this theme doesn’t continue within the movie.

2) Amy Adams. She’s always this bright light in any movie, even when she’s in a serious role. She just carries this light throughout her. Unfortunately they didn’t have time to build up the chemistry between Lois and Clark so things were just lukewarm between them.

3) Henry Cavill is a handsome handsome man. Those piercing blue eyes. Those form fitting shirts…I could go on and on. And when they showed the teenage version of him, I swear he looked exactly like Tom Welling.

 

 

***SPOILER ALERT!!*** SKIP if you don’t want to be spoiled!!

 

4) The revelation of Clark Kent. *spoiler!!* I love how Synder teased Kent’s revelation. A flash of the Daily Planet. A flash of his suit. A flash of his black glasses. Everything was just an anticipatory teaser until Clark Kent, reporter at the Daily Planet was born. Genius.

 

 

What I Didn’t Like

1) The documentary style camera work. The whole shaky cam, “can’t find” the subject, quick zoom camerawork did not work for this kind of movie. Ok, so maybe it worked for the final battle but by then you were so sick of the movement you just didn’t care. A friend pointed out that JJ Abrams does this too, but I’ve never really noticed…and that’s how it’s supposed to be.

2) Michael Shannon. Michael Shannon is a good actor but I find with him that he’s either subtle or over the top. There’s no middle. Premium Rush he was SO over the top that he was cartoonish. For this movie he straddled the line so much it became almost comical instead of threatening.

3) Chunks of movie were missing. I felt like parts of the movie had been cut out so significantly. For example, Laurence Fishburne, who played Perry White, and Michael Kelly had small parts in the beginning of the movie, then suddenly they were all over the climatic ending. Like we were supposed to care about these characters fate even though we had NO IDEA who they were. But that was only one of the many, man holes in the movie.

***SPOILER ALERT!!!** SKIP if you don’t want to be spoiled!!!

4) SUPERMAN DOESN’T KILL. I agree with this article whole heartedly. In this movie Superman caused more destruction than he did saved lives. Sure the falling buildings looked cool, but how man lives were in those buildings. The Superman I know would have risked his life to hold up that building. He also, and this is my biggest problem with the movie, he also doesn’t kill. And when he does it should have a been a MUCH bigger deal than it was in the movie. I understand that when he killed Zod he was not only killing someone for te first time, he was killing his last lifeline to his home planet he only recently learned about. Its big, I get it. But Superman killing someone is BIGGER. This plot point wasn’t worthy of the first Superman movie. We have to get to know our first Superman. If you are going to make him a killer it should have been in movie 2 or 3. If you are going to make him a killer,  time should have been spent with him coming to terms with what he has done and what it means for who he is. If you are going to make him a killer, it needs to be handled with care. But it wasn’t. I don’t like my Superman like this. Superman is good. Let Batman be conflicted. Let Tony Stark be selfish and dramatic. Let the Hulk be an outcast loner. Superman puts others before himself. Like Captain America, Superman always had good values, he just needed the means and opportunity to show it. Keep Superman good! Let him be the beacon of light in a dark world.

If Man Of Steel were about any other superhero BUT Superman, I could easily say it was a good film. But because I have such high standards for my Superman, this film was a great letdown. I understand the temptation to let our Superheroes go dark, it’s interesting and gives them places to go. But the movie felt heavy. Whereas Marvel injects the comedy part of the “comic” book aspect to its stories. DC seems to be taking its characters in a more serious route and I’m not sure I like it. Make it fun. Make it brilliant. Make it thrilling. But most of all, don’t take the best part about a character’s character, and make him like every other superhero out there.

Rating: 2 1/2 stars

 

Movie Review: The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby has one of my favorite qualities about a movie. You either get it and love it, or you don’t get it and hate it. Baz Lurhman is weird, and visual, and stylistic. He got great performances from his actors and made a fantastic movie.

The Great Gatsby
Directed by: Baz Lurhman
Starring: Tobey Maguire, Leonardo Dicaprio, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, Isla Fisher

Premise: Gatsby follows struggling writer, Nick Caraway (Tobey Maguire) as he journeys from his small town to the big apple to hang with his cousin Daisy (Carey Mulligan) and her husband (Joel Edgerton). He moves next door to the mysterious Gatsby (Leonardo Dicaprio) who throws extravagant and elegant parties just for the hell of it. Caraway finds himself pulled into a world of secrets, betrayal, love triangles, deception and friendship when he surprisingly befriends Gatsby who holds a deep and tragic secret.

My Review: The first time I saw Moulin Rouge I hated it. I just didn’t get it. I didn’t understand it. I took it too seriously. Upon second viewing, and every viewing after that, it really is one of the greatest musical movies that exists. Gatsby stays true to Baz’s visceral style: luxurious parties, quirky and over the top characters, and lavish settings.  He creates a place that is both in the world and not in the world at the same time. And it’s unlike anything you’ve ever seen before.

Leonardo Dicaprio and Carey Mulligan pull out brilliant performances at Gatsby and Daisy. Dicaprio made Gatsby utterly relatable. Sure he was like this mythical creature to everyone, rich, luxurious, unattainable, but to us mortals, Gatsby was merely a man, trying to make up for something in his life, trying to fill a void. Dicpario made Gatsby fathomable and unfathomable at the same time. Dicaprio was particularly brilliant showing his comical side and his happy sides. Sides we haven’t seen too much of in his previous movies. The look on his face when he was throwing those shirts at Daisy was so filled with love and happiness; I swear he looked 10 years younger. He looked like Jack Dawson declaring his love to Rose. Also, the scene where he is about to meet Daisy for the first time in years is probably the best scene in the movie. You feel his nervousness, you see his vulnerability. You know exactly what it is like to be in that position. It was uncomfortable, funny, and sweet at the same time. Please, someone, give Leonardo Dicaprio an Oscar already! (He was robbed from Django! Robbed!) Carey Mulligan also gave a performance that was both delicate as it was haunting and chilling.

There are many was a movie like this could have gone wrong. I remember trying to read this book in elementary school and it came off as wordy and verbose, and frankly, boring. Baz managed to make the film exiting and visually beautiful. He created a world you wanted to be invited into and also his musical choices were excellent. Gatsby won’t be for everyone, but if you’re a fan of Baz, you’ll be a fan of this. Because we all know, Baz does romantic tragedy like no one else.

 

Rating: 3 ½ Stars

 

Movie Review: Fast and Furious 6

Sometimes a good movie can be ruined by a crappy ending and other times an okay movie can be saved by a great ending. Fast and Furious 6 fits into the latter. While being an overall fun, if not ridiculous and predictable movie, the fantastic turn of events during the end credits can’t help but make me think that Justin Lin may very well be a genius mastermind.

Fast and Furious 6

Director: Justin Lin
Starring: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Jordana Brewster, Michelle Rodriguez, Elsa Pataky, Gina Carano, Gal Gadot, Luke Evans, Sung Kang

Premise: After stealing $100 million dollars from the cartel in Fast Five, Dom and the gang have scattered across the globe trying to find places to settle down or live out their lives. Hobbs (Johnson), on the other hand, has been hunting mercenary drivers who’ve been committing heinous crimes throughout the city. He realizes the only way to catch criminals is with the best criminals he knows. With a new baby in the family Dom and Brian are reluctant return to a life they vowed to leave, that is until they realize Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) is still alive and one of the mercenaries Hobbs is trying to track down.

My Review: Fast cars, girls in questionable and unexplainably skimpy clothes, ethnically questionable bald men, outrageous stunts, and Paul Walkers baby blues, Fast and Furious is the same as ever. With every beat, the movie tries to outdo itself with one unbelievable stunt after another. And while upon first glance it’s hard to differentiate the difference between this movie and the other movies in the franchise, it’s not until the ending we exactly how creative this movie really is.

You can’t take the Faster and Furious movies seriously, especially if one time or another they called themselves “2 Fast 2 Furious.” But that is the genius of the movies. You’re supposed to just sit back, relax, turn off your brain, and enjoy the pretty colors, shiny objects and loud noises. It’s escapism at its finest. There’s no deeper meaning, no complicated dreams within dreams, there’s just hot men and hot women, leaping, exploding, maneuvering, shooting, shiny shiny toys. I had a blast, even if there were some laugh-out-loud ridiculous moments. And I mean RIDICULOUS.

And in the end, the end came the moment that makes me believe director Justin Lin is a genius. The moment where I actually gasped. It was a moment where the entire franchise came together. (Okay, so I needed a little help getting there.) But seriously. Genius. It saved the movie from being just okay, to being clever and actually pretty good. See Hollywood? Mediocre movies can be saved by super cool endings!!

Rating: 3 Stars

 

 

 

 

WARNING!! SPOILERS BELOW!! DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE MOVIE YET.

 

SPOILERS!! SPOILERS!!

 

SPOILERS!!

 

Now…let’s talk about THAT ending.

 

SO it turns out Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift does have a purpose! It turns out movies 4,5, and 6, are prequels to the spinoff that was Tokyo Drift, and a it all comes full circle at the end of this movie.

Now when I first saw the ending this was my thought process: “Oh good, Han made it to Tokyo…oh no, he crashed his car, that’s sad, his girlfriend died, now he’s injured…hey, that’s Jason Statham…Is this movie going to be the rival movie to The Expendables?…Oh no he killed Han, that Bastard!”…Okay, so maybe my thoughts weren’t exactly that composed and hilarious and probably went more like “…cars…crash…Jason Statham?…Aww, the only asian guy is dead.”

But anyway, Entertainment Weekly exposed that this scene was directly from Tokyo Drift, where Han did indeed die. He was hardened after the death of Giselle and at the end a Mercedes hit him and killed him. While in FFTD it came off as an accident, Jason Statham, the Transporter himself, was the culprit. Thus injecting his character as the new villain for the next Fast and Furious Trilogy: 7, 8, 9. How old will these guys be then?

Speaking of which, random thought, anyone feeling nostalgic from the title sequence with a young Paul Walker? Only makes him look all the much older (yet still good looking).

Other Random Thoughts: (Yes More Spoiler Alerts!!)

• If a man and woman were to collide at the rate and speed that Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez did, wouldn’t they implode? RIDICULOUS!
• Is Giselle really dead? Even though I knew she was doomed from the MINUTE she agreed to settle down with Han.
• I was genuinely faked out by the first “ending.” I was thinking…that ending was kinda anticlimactic, totally forgetting about the plane sequence from the trailer. But that’s what I love about movies, you don’t know when they are going to end. With TV shows you always have the DVR to tell you when your hour long show is about to be over.
• I understand Dom choosing Letty over Elena, but I was curious to see how that conversation was going to go. Instead we got the cop-out ending.
• Sorry Gina Carano, but you STILL can’t act. Why couldn’t her lines be dubbed in this movie as well? Also, didn’t see her twist in the movie coming, well played JL, even if it didn’t make sense.
• On a similar note, I loved how they played her fighting sequences with Michelle Rodriguez, first with Carano being “good” and Rodriguez being “bad”, then reversing the roles. Pretty creative.
• Anyone else notice all the females look incredibly similar? Jordana Brewster, Gina Carano, Gal Gadot, Elsa Pataky?

 

 

Movie Review: Oblivion

Oblivion had a lot of build up, so much so the movie often felt long, especially since a lot of it felt like exposition. That being said, it turns out the buildup, the character development, the time it took to make us and help us understand this world is ultimately what worked for this movie.

 

Oblivion
Starring: Tom Cruise, Olga Kurylenko, Morgan Freeman, Andrea Riseborough, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Melissa Leo

I’m just going to come out and say right now, I’m a fan of Tom Cruise…as an actor. As a performer he always delivers and Oblivion was no different. He is likeable as Jack Harper and relatable, playing a curious man who’s held back by his circumstances. The World has fallen into disrepair after a war with aliens called “Scavengers.” Though Earth won, the war left the planet unlivable and most of the population was relocated to another planet. Harper’s job is to repair drones that have been attacked by remaining Scavengers so that Central Command can collect Earths water and send it to the new planet.

See, the setup is great. It’s complicated, it’s thorough. You understand what’s going on and the story is well developed. It’s unfortunate that most of the backstory is explained with exposition, or voice over, or from other characters rather than shown to us. However, all this set up helps us care about Jack Harper and what happens to him.

His story is intriguing; especially when his world is turned upside down after finding out the very drones he had been protecting are killing humans — humans that somehow survived and didn’t get “relocated”. It’s too bad the other characters are overlooked for the sake of the high-concept story. Andrea Riseborough as Harper’s girlfriend is fantastic in the role, despite not having a fully fleshed out character, and Olga Kurylenko is as charming as ever. It’s just too bad the movie started to unravel in the last 20 minutes. It became sloppy and confusing, and rushed. While the beginning of the movie kept a deliberate pace, the ending was just a jumble of information that didn’t make sense and frankly lacked a proper climax.

I loved the twists and turns, they were unexpected and captivating, but that’s when the explanations stopped. Despite the inconsistencies, I still enjoyed Oblivion thanks to stunning visuals, post-apocalyptic themes, and Tom Cruise. You make love him, or you may love to hate him, but there’s no denying he’s one of a kind.

Rating: 3 Stars

 

 

Movie Review: Olympus Has Fallen & G.I. Joe

Review’s In A Hurry:

 

Olympus Has Fallen
Starring: Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Melissa Leo, Angela Bassett, Ashley Judd, Dylan McDermott

Premise: The White House is taken over by a Korean military-trained terrorist group and the President is kidnapped for his nuclear launch codes. Banning a former friend and secret service security to the President finds himself the only man to breach the heavily secured White House in order to save the president. Can Banning forget past demons, save the family he spent years protecting and save the day? And can the president hang on long enough to prevent nuclear war?

My Review: I like crazy intense, disaster-y, terrorist-y, hostage-y situation movies. They just appeal to me. Even though the trailers looked completely ridiculous, I was still…curious, I guess would be the right word…or intrigued.

Mike Banning is actually a really good character. He has an interesting tragic backstory and he is completely sympathetic. He gets exciting action scenes and has the weight of the country resting on his shoulders. Unfortunately he was severely miscast. I’m not a fan of Gerard Butler, especially when he mixes sleezy “humor” roles, with tough guy action roles. The Banning character deserved an actor that has that “star quality”. However, I will say even though he wasn’t perfect for a role like this, Butler pulled it off. Mostly it was the action stuff which was a great combination of grittiness and gore. It kept me on the edge of my seat (even if some of the situations were completely ridiculous). The movie was at its best when it was unpredictable and overall, it was a bloody good time.  Rating: 3 Stars

 

 

G.I. Joe
Starring: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Channing Tatum, D.J. Cotrona, Adrianne Palicki, Byung-hun Lee, Jonathan Pryce, Ray Stevenson, Bruce Willis, Walton Goggins

My Review: Three lone G.I. Joes find themselves on the run when their group is eradicated by the very people they trusted and vowed to protect. These Joes are forced to trust a former enemy and a retired Joe in order to save the world from a villain who’s posing as the president and threatening nuclear war.

You know, putting these to movies side by side, they have very similar themes. I guess with the movement of the nuclear weapons on Korea, Hollywood is finding something new to write about. That being said, they could have put a little more thought into GI Joe. Though a great concept, it was also familiar. GI Joe Retaliation was a rehashing of Die Hard 4 and 5, and Fast and Furious 4-6 (Same cast and ALL!). This movie was helped by exciting action sequences and great tension building, but ultimately failed due to shoddy writing and editing. I mean what the hell was going on? I was so confused during this movie. It’s as if the director and editor needed to chop down this movie, but instead of removing pointless scenes (Flint’s attraction to Lady Jaye, if you don’t have follow thru, then it’s not important), they removed important ones that were essential to the plot line. This movie should have taken note from the age old lesson we learned in elementary school: If you’re going to copy off your neighbors work, at least do it better! Rating: 2 Stars

 

 

 

 

Movie Review: The Host

It’s no secret that I am NOT a Stephenie Meyer fan (and don’t even get me started on how she spells her name). Yet despite this, I was excited for The Host. The trailers made the movie look electric and I love Saoirse Ronan. Unfortunately, the success of the trailer trailer had nothing to do with the movie, and everything to do with AWOLNATION’S song, “Radioactive.” The Host was a disaster, to put it lightly.

 

The Host
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Max Irons, Jake Abel, Chandler Canterbury, Diane Kruger, Frances Fisher, William Hurt

Premise: The concept of The Host is intriguing; an alien race has taken over Earth and consequently taken over most of the human population by entering their bodies and erasing their existence. Melanie Stryder a member of a small group of human resistors has been struggling to survive with her little brother. When she is captured by the alien seekers (the aliens who seek out surviving humans) her body is taken over by Wanderer, but her mind still lives on. Wanderer constantly finds herself battling with Melanie in her head especially when she finds herself inserted in Melanie’s former life including her family, friends, and lover (Max Irons). Melanie will do anything to protect her loved ones, but what is Wanderer willing to do to survive on her own terms?

My Review: I was expecting a movie about Melanie Stryder and how she fought her way to get to her brother and the man she loved despite her body being taken over by an alien. Instead it was a story about said alien discovering how to live as a human despite the fact that she’s not in her own body. We never got to know Melanie as Melanie except in flashbacks. We never got to root for her. Instead our protagonist was Wanderer, or Wanda and Melanie came off as, well, kind of a bitch. I wish, wish that we had seen what Melanie was like BEFORE she was captured. I would have loved to see her with her parents, or see her relationship with Jared and how it developed. I would have liked to meet Melanie as a character, but instead we met her through the eyes of another character. The Host is not about Melanie, but about Wanda. And that is the big mistake. That is the reason the movie failed. It started at the wrong point in the story, and never filled in the holes. I haven’t read the book so I can’t say if this is Meyer’s fault or director Andrew Niccol’s fault, but I have a sinking feeling (*cough* Twilight) it’s the former’s fault.

This cast was excellent, but these actors deserved a better movie, or at least a better plot, or more alien/human combat, or at least some more of Max Iron’s butt…something!

 

Rating: 1 ½ stars.

 

 

 

Other Things That Annoyed Me  & Random Thoughts
(**Minor spoiler alerts don’t read on if you plan on watching this movie…or…maybe do?**)

1. How Melanie and Jared first met. Really? A kiss within 20 seconds of meeting her? Really?
2. That whole speech on the couch was cheesy, eye rolling, cringe-worthy, Twilighty mess. I get the willies just thinking about it.
3. Sure Melanie fell in love with Jared, but the audience never got that chance. Instead he came off as abrasive and well kind of a brat. Instead we fell for the other guy, Ian, who was completely sympathetic, even if that relationship didn’t make sense. I’ll get to that.
4. We never really got to know Melanie. She came off as bitchy, which is understandable because all she wanted was her life and body back. But then she began to make stupid decisions that Wanda made up for in bigger, bolder ways. This made Melanie unlikeable.
5. I’ve never found Jake Abel attractive until this movie. However, his initial attraction to Wanda makes no sense, Especially since she looks like Melanie, he’s never heard her speak, and he thinks she’s an alien. Isn’t he then just attracted to Melanie? Plus we only like Ian because he likes Wanda and we like Wanda, but aren’t we supposed to be rooting for Melanie?
6. I love me some flashbacks, but they were not effective in this case.
7. How do you have a great actress like Frances Fisher and barely use her except as a bitter old lady?
8. *Spoiler alert* nothing happened in this movie. They didn’t defeat the aliens, they just accepted them. Nevermind the fact they overtook a lot of the humans. They just became friends. Yay? More like YAWN!
9. Why did Melanie sound heavily SOUTHERN in some conversations she was having with Wanda? I know she’s from Louisiana, it’s just it wasn’t consistent.
10. Who am I supposed to root for? Melanie and Jared? Wanderer and Jared? Wanderer and Ian? Ian and Melanie? Personally, I would have chosen Jared and Ian.

Movie Review: The Call

The Call was a heart racing, tense, and suspenseful movie. It was gory and brutal and smartly thought out. At times, movie was on the brink of being ridiculous but never crossed that line, that is, until the final minutes.

The Call

Starring: Halle Berry, Abigail Breslin, Michael Ecklund, Michael Imperioli, Morris Chestnut, Roma Maffia

Premise:  A girl is murdered as a result of a 911 operator’s poor judgment and months later the event still haunts her. When she answers the call of a 16-year girl who’s is in the trunk of a movie car after being kidnapped from a local mall, she realizes there are certain demons she’ll have to face if she wants to move on.

My Review: This movie was smart. If I ever get kidnapped and locked in a trunk I now know what to do (and what not to do). It also gave me insight into the world of 911 callers a job I can without a doubt say I never, ever, want. It was also extremely traumatic and bloody, which is surprising for a film like this. I was expecting something fairly popcorny flick ala Cellular, but ventured on the thriller/horror genre ala Red Eye. It was exciting and intense and the bad guy (Michael Ecklund) genuinely gave be the heebie jeebies.

Granted the last 10 minutes weren’t very plausible as well, but I was willing to suspend my disbelief. I was willing to accept the choices some of the characters were making were completely unbelievable because it wasn’t completely outrageous (not completely).

I was thinking to myself, I could be satisfied with this ending. But then, it kept going. It was like the Lord Of The Rings: The Return of the King (only that had 4 endings). Forget that this movie was crazy intense in a good way. Forget that Halle Berry and Abigail Spencer did an incredible job. I mean the movie is freakin’ intense but physically and mentally. But forget all that, because what could have been a decent movie was completely negated by 2 minutes of stupidity.

Sometimes I don’t understand who lets mistakes like these go through. Who approved that ending?!

 

Rating: 2 ½ stars.
(1/2 star deducted for that crappy ending)

 

 

 

Movie Review: Oz the Great and Powerful

I had high expectations for Oz The Great And Powerful, but ultimately (as I usually am) I was let down. I’ll admit, I’ve never read L. Frank Baum’s books, so what I know of Oz is from the 1939 movie Wizard of Oz and Wicked. However, that doesn’t mean I don’t already have an idea of exactly how the world should be. While Raimi got some of it right, he also get a lot of it so very, very wrong. This movie had all the potential to be an insta-classic, much like Wizard of Oz, unfortunately it failed.

 

Oz The Great And Powerful
Directed By: Sam Raimi
Starring: James Franco, Rachel Weisz, Michelle Williams, Mila Kunis, Zach Braff, Abigal Spencer, Joey King

Premise: The story of Wizard Of Oz is a well-known one, but the story of how the wizard came to be the Wizard is lesser known. Oscar Diggs, aka Oz (James Franco), is a con-man, working at a failing travelling circus, charming oblivious women with his cunning tricks. Oscar finds himself on the run when he scams the wrong person. He manages to escape in a hot air balloon, and right toward a tornado. The tornado takes him to Oz, a world of many colors, figuratively and literally. He finds himself in the center of a witchy rivalry, the city hoping he is the proclaimed Wizard prophesied to save their land from the Wicked Witch. Accompanied by Finley, a friendly flying monkey, and a China Doll (Joey King), Oscar embarks on a journey that changes his life forever.

 

WHAT IT GOT RIGHT:

The World Of Oz – Oz was beautiful, very reminiscent of the 1939 movie which I appreciated. The scenery was vibrant making Oz the place we all imagined (with advanced color correction). It was magical, and quirky, and unusual, from the costumes, to the make-up, to the set design.

Monkeys – First, the Evil Flying Monkeys were genuinely scary and I was happy about that. Gone was the bellhop uniform (at least for the evil flying monkey) and it was replaced by a frightening monsters that provided for some heart-racing moments. But Raimi didn’t fail us, still giving us the Oz monkey we know and love. Blue, bellhop and funny looking, Finely was Oscar’s lovable, loyal companion providing the audience with comical moments.

The Emotional Beats – This movie had some great moments. Oscar in China Town with the little China Doll was probably the sweetest, saddest, most emotional moment in the movie. It really was fantastic in every way. Another powerful moment came near the end. Revealing the Wizard was as outstanding as it should have been. The special effects worked well in this instance, where in other places it did not.

Rachel Weisz – I don’t know what it was, but her presence automatically elevated the movie. I can’t explain it, but when you see it you’ll know what I mean. She was as regal and beautiful as she was evil and I was mesmerized by her emerald green necklace. (I know costume design had more to do with it, than Weisz herself, but I’m a girl and needed to slip jewelry in here somehow.) She was a great casting choice as the evil Evanora.

 

WHERE IT WENT WRONG:

The Stiff/Proper Qualities to Theodora and Glinda – I don’t understand why the witches couldn’t have had a bit more personality. Rachel Weisz was fantastically evil. Her coldness worked for her, but she still had that passionate spark. With Michelle Williams, where she was going for whimsy, she came off a bit too doe-eyed. (Anne Hathaway in Alice And Wonderland also had a similar problem in Burton’s Alice and Wonderland.) Billy Burke’s version of Glinda had more personality, while keeping that fantastical quality. She wasn’t stiff…just eccentric. As for Theodora, her “proper” qualities worked for her in the beginning though I think she could have bad a bit more spunk, but later on in the movie the stiffness works against her. She was missing that special spark.

Mila Kunis – Ok, I love this girl. Seriously. I’m pretty sure if we met each other we’d be best friends or at least drinking buddies. (And I mean that in the least creepiest way possible.) One of the things I love about her are the way her eyes sparkle when she’s angry. Her huge eyes are just so expressive it makes the rest of her face come alive. Maybe it was the make-up, or maybe it was the way she was directed, but she was much more subdued. It made her harder to relate to. She lost all her spunky, fiery personality—something the movie could have used. So maybe it’s not so much her fault as it is the way she was directed or the way her character was interpreted. And again, I love the girl.

The Movie Catered To The Wrong Demographic – Ok, so there are kids’ movies that adults can appreciate and kids’ movies that alienate adults. While the Giant Slayer teetered on this line, Oz The Great and Powerful crossed it and then some. I would have enjoyed this movie better if it was a bit more serious. Everything felt cartoonish, from the blatant exploitation of the 3D technology (things jumping out on screen toward the audience) and the slapstick comedy of characters hitting each other with objects, to the portrayals of the witches. The movie would have been better if it were edgier.

The Cheesy/Campy/Corny-ness – I know I said this in the last point, but it was just too over-the-top: Characters, situations, dialogue. It was predictable, when it should have been quirkier. For example, good monkey’s and evil monkeys – not predictable. “China Town” cute, yet quirky. All of these things were successful. The over-the-top, overly dramatic but somehow stiff acting from James Franco, Mila Kunis, and Michelle Williams?…Not so successful. I love the fact that we are left guessing who the Wicked Witch really is, but the dialogue was pedestrian. I think Raimi needed a bit of Tim Burton’s influence.

Not Enough Characters From “Real World” Incorporated Into Oz World – *minor spoiler alert* In true Oz fashion, some characters from the real world need to carry over into Oz. Zach Braff was both Oscar’s assistant and Monkey friend, Michelle Williams was Annie Gale and Glinda…But that was it. Anyone else think Oscar’s female assistant should have been played by Mila Kunis’ character? Jealousy, heartbreak and all?

 

Rating: 3 Stars

 

 

 

Book Review: The Fault In Our Stars

It’s rare that I do book reviews but I just finished a book that I feel so fiercely passionate about I have to share. Plus it’s rare to find a book that can make you laugh and cry at the same time.

 

The Fault In Our Stars
Written By: John Green

“You don’t get to choose  IF you get hurt in the world, but you do have some say in WHO hurts you.”

The Fault In Our Stars tells the story of Hazel and Augustus. Hazel suffers from a terminal form of lung cancer. Destined to live with pain and on oxygen for the rest of however long her life will be. She knows she’s dying and her time on this planet is short but she chooses to be reclusive much to the chagrin of her overbearing, but well-meaning parents. At a support group meeting she meets the beautiful and now cancer-less, Augustus and immediately finds herself drawn to him. Hazel never meant to meet anyone but after meeting Augustus she knew her life would never be the same again.

John Green paints the picture of Hazel and Augustus so vividly that within the first few pages you immediately care for the characters. They feel real and realized as if they have existed all this time and we just didn’t know it. Hazel and Augustus are both bright with sarcastically dark sense of humors. Despite their grim outlooks, dark comments, and the sense they have the weight of their short lives on their shoulders, you, the reader, never really feel burdened. You don’t feel heavy or gloomy reading their story, instead you somehow feel hopeful.

Hazel is a recluse or maybe the better word for it is hermit. She spends her days reading alone and watching reruns of America’s Next Top Model or Top Chef. (Hey, that sounds like me!) She doesn’t want to make friends; she doesn’t want to get close to anyone. She just wants to die in peace causing as little damage to the people around her as possible. When Hazel meets Augustus everything changes. Though she’s reluctant to invite him into her life she finds herself forming a friendship. Eventually it turns into something more and to watch it happen (or rather read it happen) is bearing witness to something special. You want Hazel to want to love.

Hazel and Augustus have a relationship most adults wish they could have. Their sickness takes away their filter and in this way they get to know each other better than anyone could have ever thought. When Hazel becomes obsessed with a book that’s ending is left up in the air Augustus uses his “Make-A-Wish” to bring Hazel to Amsterdam to visit with the author and find out how the story ends. She wants to –no she needs to—find out what happened to everyone else once the main character passes away. And she thinks only the book’s author can bring her that closure on those people.

Fault In Our Stars is a story of courage, friendship, sickness, health, and love despite insurmountable odds. This story will make you cry and then catch you off guard with a hilarious statement so suddenly you are laughing and crying. And you’ll be thinking about these characters long after you turn the last page.

 

NOTE: I hear they are turning this book into a movie, but I urge you to read the book first because there is no way a movie will do this book justice. Especially if they try and turn it into a schmaltzy teen movie, if you know what I mean.