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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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I just saw Star Wars: Episode 9 – The Rise of Skywalker and this movie definitely needs a second viewing to cement my feelings on this movie. The Rise of Skywalker follows the surviving members of the Resistance as they try to bring an end to this war in the final chapter of the Skywalker saga. First of all, this movie is very predictable. I can’t fully explain this but I made a joke yesterday about how this movie was going to end and I was completely right. Even while I watched this movie, I figured out some things before they happened. The pacing in this movie is so bad because as much as this pains me to say this but this movie is kind of boring to sit through. The movie never really picks up the pace and everything just feels like they had to drag it out in order to get the longer run time. As much as I think J.J. Abrams is a good director this movie wasn’t his strongest and I feel like it’s because he has to try and explain everything that happened in, “The Last Jedi” which caused this movie to be slightly boring. Even the action scenes weren’t the greatest. I really wanted to get into the finale action scene but honestly, I just couldn’t. It was such a great experience getting to see it all happen but nothing really happened to bring me into the action and put me on the edge of my seat. I will give them credit for trying but then it immediately gets resolved which is another thing that bugged me was things getting resolved so quickly. Things got resolved so quickly that there were no threats for the audience to be like how are they going to get out of this one because something would happen and resolve it. I do have to say that I love what they did with Leia in this movie due to the passing of Carrie Fisher in 2017. All of the actors in this movie did the best they could with what they were given but it wasn’t everybody's best work. Really the only good things about this movie is the nostalgia and John Williams score. In the end, The Rise of Skywalker could have been better if J.J. Abrams didn’t have to do damage control. I definitely will rewatch this movie for a spoiler review and to cement my feelings on it. I give The Rise of Skywalker a 6/10. https://www.instagram.com/p/B6XJyeplhhU/?igshid=o5ku81p38y3v

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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I just saw Richard Jewell and despite not knowing anything going into this movie I enjoyed this movie. Richard Jewell is based on the true story of Richard Jewell, played by Paul Walter Hauser, a security guard working at the 1996 Olympics where he discovered a bomb and became a hero but also the prime suspect in the FBI’s investigation into the bombing. First of all, the acting in this movie is outstanding from everybody. There was no stand out to me because honestly, everybody was giving it their all in this movie. Paul Walter Hauser was incredible as the title character and as I said, in the beginning, I know nothing about what happened but he seemed to be acting like how I would picture him acting. His chemistry with Sam Rockwell, who plays his attorney/friend Watson Bryant, was unbelievable. There are so many scenes that showcase it but there’s one scene at the end of this movie that drives it home how great of friends they were. Kathy Bates, who plays Bobi Jewell, deserves an award for her performance because she was giving it her all in this role and there’s one scene in this movie that really showcases it and it nearly brought me to tears. Honestly, this movie was such an emotional ride to go on because the entire time I just wanted to walk up to the FBI agents and slap them. This movie doesn’t show the press side or the investigation process but Richard Jewell’s side of it and not many movies do that and I’m happy that this movie did that because people need to see what he was going through. This movie pretty much is showing us the audience that with the news and media we aren’t getting the whole story only facts and sometimes it can’t be trusted. Honestly, this movie is worth checking out at least once because it’s well-acted, directed and for the story even if you don’t know anything about what happened because I looked into it and other than one or two things that were changed everything that you see did happen. In the end, Richard Jewell is a movie that deserves more attention not just at the box office but also the awards. I give Richard Jewell a 10/10. https://www.instagram.com/p/B6R8FlhF2_X/?igshid=lodxop3e9lf1

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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I just saw Jumanji: The Next Level and it was a decent movie but isn’t as good as the previous movie. Jumanji: The Next Level is the third Jumanji movie and it follows the gang from the first movie going back into Jumanji to save Spencer, played by Alex Wolff, when he goes back in but there’s a twist this time around, the game has changed. First of all, the acting in this film is great. All four of the main leads returned and you can see they got to have fun with these new characters, other than Karen Gillan who still played Martha. I will say that I’m not the biggest Kevin Hart, who plays Milo, fan but in this movie, I can see why people like him. He fully embodied playing this seventy-five-year-old man and it made for some humorous scenes. Jack Black, who plays Bethany/Fridge, was a standout in the previous movie and still was a standout in this one. Dwayne “the rock” Johnson, who plays Eddie, also did a fantastic job playing an elderly man but I will say that at times he slipped back into his normal voice. I’m not sure if this is just me, but it definitely worked for the annoying kid sitting next to me, but the comedy didn’t really make me laugh that much. There were some points where I chuckled but nothing that made me laugh out loud. Again, this is probably just a me thing but it’s just worth mentioning that I found the humour worked best in the previous movie than in this one. The CGI was all right in this movie but nothing really made me go wow. Really my main issue with this movie is how they made it more complicated than it needed to be. The previous one was straight forward and you understood what needed to be done but this movie just throws in some random stuff that it just doesn’t need. In the end, Jumanji: The Next Level didn’t really need to happen but I’m pretty sure people can enjoy this movie over the holidays. It ends with the possibility of a fourth movie so who knows what will happen. I give Jumanji: The Next Level a 7/10. https://www.instagram.com/p/B6CV9TbFyEe/?igshid=y3zmv0kuyqpz

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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Last night I watched Marriage Story and this is definitely one of the best movies of this year. Marriage Story follows Charlie, played by Adam Driver, and Nicole, played by Scarlett Johansson, a married couple going through a divorce and trying to keep their family together for their son Henry, played by Azhy Robertson. First of all, I just need to talk about the amazing performances both of the leads give us. Both Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver give it their all in this movie and give out probably some of their best performances to date and they deserve nominations in the upcoming award season. They never feel like people playing these characters but actual people that you wanted to support. Their performances keep you invested from beginning to end. It wasn’t just them that was great but the supporting cast was brilliant as well. Noah Baumbach did an incredible job with this movie not just as the director but also the writer. Just like how all of the actors made us feel like they were real people the way it’s directed and written makes us feel like a fly on the wall during this. I personally have never witnessed people getting a divorce but this movie gave me insight into what goes down and this film isn’t afraid to show the realism of what happens. I personally feel like there was only one thing they could have done to make this more accurate to what happens during a divorce but overall it seemed accurate to what goes down. Really my only problem with the movie is that I feel like there were some scenes missing that I wish were included. Sure, the movie is already two-hours and sixteen-minutes long but I feel like there were some scenes that we needed to see. There’s one moment in particular that I wish we got to see what exactly happened because it comes out of left field and I wish we got to see it instead of just hearing it. In the end, Marriage Story is an amazing movie that is streaming now on Netflix and everybody should check it. I give Marriage Story a 10/10. https://www.instagram.com/p/B5uti8BFXrA/?igshid=1jcccz6wi3wyb

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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Knives Out Review

I just saw Knives Out and this is a movie I highly recommend seeing if you like murder mysteries. Knives Out follow detective Benoit Blanc, played by Daniel Craig, and some officers who’ve been tasked to solve the death of Harlan Thrombey, played by Christopher Plummer. First of all, I know this is weird to start out with but the musical score, composed by Nathan Johnson, was amazing and helped bring people into that old school murder mystery feel. The music sounded like it came straight out of an old mystery movie. The acting in this film was well done by everybody but three people really stood out to me. The first-person being Chris Evans, who plays Ransom Drysdale. He’s mainly known for playing Captain America and this role showed people another side to him that I really hope we get to see more of because he played this douchey character to perfection and I just have to say this because Marvel geek but somebody needed to tell him to watch his language. The second person is Daniel Craig who has a weird accent in this movie that needs time getting used to but it doesn’t take away from this marvellous performance. One thing that I love about mystery movies is the detective’s process of figuring out the case and he delivered on just that. The last stand out is Ana de Armas, who plays Marta Cabrera. This movie could have easily lost me but she was one of the main reasons I kept interested in this movie because she brings so much to this role that it captivates you and want to try and help her out. Now, I will say this if you can easily pick up on things then this might not be the movie for you because after the big reveal happens you realize all of the clues that you should have picked up on and facepalming, personal experience. In the end, Knives Out is a great movie for everybody and I do recommend seeing it. But, like I said if you can easily pick up on things, which I usually can but due to the annoying person next to me I couldn’t, then you might not enjoy it as much. I give Knives Out a 9/10.

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Review

I just saw A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood and this movie better get nominated for Oscars because it deserves it. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is based on the article written by Tom Junod. The movie follows journalist Lloyd, played by Matthew Rhys, who’s assigned to do an interview with Mr. Rogers, played by Tom Hanks, and he’s determined to figure out the other side to him but in the end, learns something much more valuable. First of all, the trailers and posters might have you believe this film is mainly about Mr. Rogers but no it isn’t. The movie mainly follows Lloyd and what’s going on in his personal life and I really enjoyed it. Do I wish that the advertisements were more accurate to the actual movie topic sure but I understand their decision on why because of money. But honestly it was an interesting story to watch and I enjoyed it. This is also helped by everybody in this movie giving it their all. I’m too young to have watched the actual show growing up but I have seen clips from it and Tom Hanks just does an incredible job as always and I really hope he at least gets an Oscar nomination for best-supporting actor. I mean he pretty much embodied Mr. Rogers and his mannerisms and it makes for an amazing performance. Matthew Rhys does an amazing job as Llyod. Every time you saw them on screen together it was glorious because you can see how different they are but how they are also helping each other. This movie was well directed, Marielle Heller, and shot. There were so many shots in this movie that I just thought to myself we need more of this in the world. There is one scene that I feel like everybody needs to check out and do at least once in their life. I did enjoy how it was filmed as if it was his show and we were just watching an hour forty-nine-minute long episode. The score by Nate Heller is an excellent one. In the end, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is a movie that we need in this day and age and no matter how old you are I think everybody should check out this movie at least once. I give A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood a 9/10.

#a beautiful day in the neighborhood #a beautiful day in the neighborhood movie #tom hanks #mr rogers #Drama #drama movie #biography #based on true story #movie #movie review #film #film review #Critic

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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Frozen 2 Review

I just saw Frozen 2 and I honestly think this film is a little bit better than the first one, but still not better than Tangled. Frozen 2 follows the gang three years after the first film and everything is just perfect but Else, voiced by Idina Menzel, is hearing a voice that she’s drawn to. So, the gang ventures into the unknown to figure out what this voice is trying to tell them. First of all, from my last review everybody knows I’m not the biggest fan of the music from the first movie, mainly due to being overplayed and just annoying in my opinion, but this movie’s music I can admit I really enjoyed it. This could be because I don’t expect people to be singing “Into the Unknown” as much as “Let it Go” but no I actually really enjoyed the music and I think it’s because not just one song had a message but a couple of them did. Although, I will admit there are 2 songs that could have been cut out because they kind of just brought the film to a halt. The score, once again done by Christophe Beck, was even a tiny bit better in this movie. The animation in this film, in my opinion, surpasses that of the first. There were so many shots in this film that were just gorgeous to look at and I wanted to see more of them. As much as I’m praising there are somethings that still bugged me about this movie like inconsistences in the film that bugged me, one thing is even in the trailer. This movie definitely took what was good about the first movie and tried to make that same magic again and sometimes it worked like with the songs but in other, it didn’t such as, with the plot twists. There are two “plot twists” if you can call them that because most people over the age of twelve can figure them out, in this movie and I get why we had them but at the same time they weren’t as good as with Hans from the first. Once again, the voice cast in this is incredible from everybody and I love how they actually gave them character growth. In the end, Frozen 2 is a great family movie and a good follow up to the first. If you enjoyed the first one, you’ll probably like this one. I give Frozen 2 a 8/10.

#frozen #frozen two #frozen movie #Disney #animation

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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Doctor Sleep Review

I just saw Doctor Sleep and my feelings for this movie are definitely mixed and I probably need another viewing to figure out how I feel. Doctor Sleep is based on the book by Stephen King and it follows an adult Danny Torrance, played by Ewan McGregor, who now goes by Dan dealing with his past. Soon he meets Abra, played by Kyliegh Curran, who has a very powerful shine that Rose the hat, played by Rebecca Ferguson, wants to feed off of. Now, this is a spoiler-free review and I’m going to try and keep it that way but a majority of my problems with this movie are spoilers so sadly I won’t be able to mention a lot but I’ll try to keep it vague. First of all, the editing in this film is just weird in the first half of it. I get it the movie has to tell three different stories but it would jump to the next scene so awkwardly. There were some really cool shots in this film that I wish I could talk about but trust me when I saw there are some shots that are brilliant in how they look. Now, the acting in this film was good from everybody and there was really only one-person who slightly blew me away and that was Ewan McGregor. He took everybody on a journey with this character. From the beginning of the film to the end you always feel bad for Dan and just want the best for him. Kyliegh Curran, I can see her doing great work in the future. Rebecca Ferguson did an okay job as Rose the hat but she doesn’t really become a standout until the end of the movie. The pacing in this film is definitely slow in the beginning and picks up the pace towards the end. I have to applaud the set designers for what they did to the Overlook Hotel. The musical score, done by the Newton Brothers, may not be as iconic as the original movie but you can hear elements from that movie. In the end, this movie is a good sequel to The Shining but if you want to watch this movie, I would recommend not watching the trailer because, in my opinion, it gave away a lot of the good parts of this movie. I give Doctor Sleep a 8.5/10.

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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Last night I rewatched The Shining and this movie was better my second time around. The Shining is based on, even though at the point we all know it’s loosely based on, the book by Stephen King’s novel and follows Jack Torrance, played by Jack Nicholson, and his family as they look after a hotel in the middle of nowhere. Things start out normal for the Torrance’s but as time goes on things start to get crazy. First of all, the acting in this movie is just outstanding. Danny Lloyd, who played Danny Torrance, could easily seem like a normal kid and then switch to a terrified one quickly. Before I praise Shelley Duvall, who plays Wendy Torrance, I just want to say that I don’t condone what Stanley Kubrick did to her on set, if you don’t know what happened look it up, I will say that it did help with her performance. I honestly can’t say that if he didn’t do what he did she would have given the same performance but she still was a strong standout, even though sometimes I felt like she was over exaggerating at times. Now, I can’t do a Shining review and not mention the mad man himself, Jack Nicholson. Jack Nicholson was hands down the best part of this movie with how he played Jack. I really enjoyed watching him go from this kind and caring father to a mad psycho killer who just wants to kill them. This is all helped with the pacing of the film. I will admit that when I first watched this movie, I thought it was long and slow but now I understand why they had to. If they rushed his transformation into a psycho it wouldn’t feel natural. But I will say that at certain times I was still bored. But for those times that I was getting bored, I could still enjoy the cinematography, set design, the sound design and the music, by Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind. All three of those kept me entertained until the end. In the end, The Shining is a classic movie that I would recommend people to watch but from personal experience people who love cinema but really anybody can watch this outstanding psychological thriller. I give The Shining a 8.5/10. https://www.instagram.com/p/B4miQ8HlarP/?igshid=z59ha3ujh801

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jess-movie-reviews · 4 years

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Last night I rewatched Newsies and if you want to watch a musical version of the newsboy’s strike of 1899 then watch the Broadway version and not this mediocre film. Newsies is based on the true events of the 1899 newsboys strike. The movie follows the newsies and their leader Jack Kelly, played by Christian Bale, as they go on strike after Joseph Pulitzer, played by Robert Duvall, rises the price of the papers and makes it hard for the newsboys to buy them. Before I start, I have to mention that I have seen the Broadway version of this and find it far superior and I will sometimes be comparing the movie to the show just to show how they could have done this movie a bit better. First of all, my big problem with this film is the singing in it. Now, I get it a majority of these kids are in their teen years which means they probably won’t sound great but I’ve heard amazing singers that are around their same age. Sometimes the singing was okay and I could enjoy it but for most parts, I was cringing at how bad it sounded. The dance numbers though were well choreographed is what I would say if I was able to see them. I’m not joking when I say sometimes it was hard to see what they were doing. Wither it be because the camera was far away from the scene or the set was just too crowded to see what’s going on. This is one advantage the Broadway version has is that they’re performing on a stage so they can easily adjust the number of people in a scene and can control the props in the scene. Christian Bale was pretty good as Jack but when you see what Jeremy Jordan, who plays Jack Kelly on Broadway, did with the character you see what Christian Bale could have done better. Jeremy made Jack a complex character where he actually changed emotions throughout the play compared to Christian who kind of kept him at one emotion throughout the entire film. I wouldn’t say this is fully his fault but just the order of how things go down in the film was weird. The Broadway version had the correct order compared to the film version. I wish I could fully explain but it’s kind of difficult so I recommend listening to both soundtracks to figure out what I mean. (continued in comments) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4CWL-Qlg4A/?igshid=x414kk6m5mok

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jess-movie-reviews · 5 years

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Joker Review

Just saw Joker and I walked into the theatre with no expectations and walked out of there loving the movie. Joker follows Arthur Fleck, played by Joaquin Phoenix, a man with a mental illness and finds it hard in the world he’s living in. The movie follows him as he slowly becomes the infamous Joker. First of all, the message in this film is great especially with what’s going on in the world. Everybody who goes to see this movie will probably walk away thinking the exact same thing and know what the message is. At this point I think it’s pretty obvious what everybody already knows and I’m just going to put in my five cents and that’s Joaquin Phoenix is amazing as Arthur Fleck/Joker and he definitely deserves an Oscar nomination for his role. He went all-in with this character showing the different stages in his life and making everybody feel bad for him. At certain points in the film, I felt really bad for the guy and wanted to help him out because nobody deserves to be treated that way. It also helps that he didn’t start out as wanting to become the Joker but society just helped turn him into him. Robert De Niro, who plays Murray Franklin, probably won’t get an Oscar nomination for supporting actor but he still did a standout job with his character. Another thing that stood out to me was the cinematography of the movie and how it helped show Arthur’s slow descent into madness and how he views the world. I feel like some people are waiting for me to hate on the pacing of this film and honestly, I had no problem with it at all. If the movie was any longer it would have felt like it was dragging on and any shorter and they would have rushed the Joker transformation. But with that in mind, this film is like most people have said already and that’s a character story. So, if you don’t want to watch a story about a man who’s driven to his breaking point and wants to see an action superhero then stay home and watch The Dark Knight. I love how the costume was different from any Joker suit we’ve seen before, though it’s hard to replicate without buying a store-bought costume. The music by Hildur Guonadottir was amazing. In the end, this movie is an amazing character story with an important message. I give Joker a 10/10.

#joker #joker film #joaquin phoenix #robert de niro #zazie beetz #frances conroy #todd phillips #dc #dc movie #movie #review #movie review #Critic

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jess-movie-reviews · 5 years

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It: Chapter 2 Review

Just watched It: Chapter 2 and this is an excellent sequel to the first movie. It: Chapter 2 follows the Losers Club twenty-seven years after the first movie as they are called back in by Mike, played by Isaiah Mustafa, when the murderous clown Pennywise, played by Bill Skarsgard, comes back. Now they must ban together one last time to try and defeat this clown once and for all. First of all, the adult cast was outstanding playing the older versions of the kids. Yes, some of them may not look like them physically but they still knocked their parts out of the water. For me there wasn’t a weak actor in this film but the two that stood out the most out to me was Bill Hader, who plays adult Richie, and James Ransone, who plays adult Eddie, because these two characters already were standouts in the first movie and they helped cement that status with what they did with their characters in this film. Bill Skarsgard once again was great as Pennywise and still doesn’t help with mine or anybody's fear of clowns. Now, this film is two-hours and forty-nine-minutes long with credits and two-hours and forty-five-minutes without credits and I’m going, to be honest with you at certain points you start to feel that time. There were some scenes that went on far too long that I think they could have cut down and also certain scenes that could have just been left out entirely. Apparently, this film was originally four-hours long and you can kind of see where they had to cut certain things out. But I will say that there are points in this film where you feel like a fly on the wall in this film and the time just flies by. I think that in this film they used more CGI compared to the first one and honestly it doesn’t look that great. This isn’t a spoiler cause the kid actors have said this in interviews but they had to de-age the kids in this film so they matched what they looked like during the first film and you don’t really notice it. Although I will say that in one scene a character doesn’t sound the same and it’s pretty obvious. But for the rest of the CGI, it just wasn’t the greatest. In the end, this film is a good follow-up to the first film with stellar performances and a great story. I give It: Chapter 2 a 8/10.

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jess-movie-reviews · 5 years

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Ready or Not Review

Just saw Ready or Not and it actually was a fun time. Ready or Not follows Grace, played by Samara Weaving, who has just recently gotten married to Alex, played by Mark O’Brien. His family has a tradition of when a new person joins the family, they must be initiated in by playing a game but little does Grace know that this game of hide and go seek is deadly. Now she must try and survive till dawn. First of all, I wish this film was a bit longer. The film is one hour and thirty-five minutes, with credits, and I feel like if it was longer it would have helped it out a bit more. This is a slight spoiler but it’s the opening scene so either skip over this or read it but the film just jumps straight into the film. There is no lead up into it, it just jumps right in so not till later in the film do we learn why they are doing this. So, I feel like a couple of extra minutes in this film could have helped it out. The acting starts out cheesy and kind of annoying but as the film goes on and the stakes get higher it takes a sharp turn and becomes pretty good. As the movie progresses you get to see which family members are fully invested into this and which ones would rather not do it. I will say that Grace is one of the most badass characters in horror and I was always cheering her on. I will say the editing in the film is kind of award at times and makes no sense. I say sometimes because most of the time it’s edited just fine but in a couple of scenes it just jumps to a scene that isn’t connected and almost feels like the directors were like, “Shoot we forgot that one scene well let’s just throw it in between these two scenes even though it doesn’t make any sense to.” This film is a horror-comedy and I will say they balance the two well and a couple of scenes had me chuckling. The last thing I want to mention is the score by Brian Tyler is great. In the end, I highly recommend checking out this film at least once because it’s a unique and original story and we don’t have a lot of that now a day. I give Ready or Not a 8/10.

#ready or not #ready or not movie #samara weaving #adam brody #mark o'brien #andie macdowell #henry czerny #horror movie #horror #movie #review #movie review #Critic #teen

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jess-movie-reviews · 5 years

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Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark Review

Just saw Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and even though I haven’t seen the show this movie felt like a long episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark is based on the short horror stories made for children written by Alvin Schwartz. The movie follows a group of teenagers who stumble across a book written by Sarah Bellows filled with scary stories. Soon the teens learn that the book is actually reading them and writing their story. First of all, I will admit that in a few cases that the CGI in this film was okay but I do know that they also used makeup to help make these creatures and whenever it was practical it looked well done. I’ve seen multiple things online comparing the creatures in the film to those in the book and you can see the level of detail the make-up people put into making them look as if they just popped right out of the book. As much as I want to say this film is scary it honestly isn’t. You can tell right away when a jump scare is about to happen because it’s such a cliché way. I will say that there was one point where I felt like I was going to vomit but it was one moment out of I don’t know how many. The pacing in this film is another big problem with this film. The film is one-hour and forty-one-minutes long and you feel it. The plot moves at a snail pace speed and the film keeps coming up with dumb ways to keep making the film longer. Like I said in the intro this feels like a long episode of a kids show like Goosebumps or Are You Afraid of the Dark and it probably would have been better as a two-part episode of one of those shows. The acting in this film was mediocre at best and I couldn’t really care about any of these characters. I don’t want to say which person it was but there was one character that could have been better recasted. In the end, I feel like this could have worked best as a TV Show than a full-length film. It ends off with a possible sequel that I think will never happen. I give Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark a 5.5/10.

#scary stories to tell in the dark #scary stories to tell in the dark movie #zoe margaret colletti #austin abrams #natalie ganzhorn #gabriel rush #michal garza #austin zajur #andre ovredal #guillermo del toro #movie #review #movie review #critic #teen

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jess-movie-reviews · 5 years

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Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood Review

Yesterday I saw Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood and I thought I was going to hate it more than I did. Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood takes place in 1969 and follows actor Rick Dalton, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, and his stunt man Cliff Booth, played by Brad Pitt, as they deal with an industry that is slowly outgrowing them. First of all, I will say that the story is an interesting one but Quentin Tarantino told it in a confusing way. What I mean by that is that the movie was all over the place until it finally got its grounding in the middle. Until the middle, the movie would cut away to tell a different story at random points instead of just finishing that one person’s story and then transitioning to the next. Because of this the film to me just felt a bit choppy and all over the place. This movie is two-hours and forty-one-minutes long and I feel like it could have been cut down. Some scenes just felt like they dragged on for far too long and there were so many perfect spots for the movie to end but it just kept dragging on and the ending we got comes out of nowhere and doesn’t fit the rest of the film so it should have just been removed. The acting in this film though was great. Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt easily came off as friends and this seems like such a minor thing but really, it’s a major thing. Sometimes actors can’t act like friends who have known each other but they came across as people who have worked together for years. Now, I’m not the biggest Leonardo Dicaprio fan but this film made me slowly start to appreciate his acting a bit more. For me, he was the stand out in this film because he could easily do both serious and funny scenes. Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie, who play Sharon Tate, also did great jobs. The soundtrack to this film was filled with great songs from that decade. In the end, this film is defiantly for people who are Quentin Tarantino fans or just want to relive the glory days of older Hollywood. I give Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood a 8/10.

#once upon a time in Hollywood #quentin tarantino #leonardo dicaprio #brad pitt #margot robbie #movie #review #movie review #critic #teen

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jess-movie-reviews · 5 years

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Chernobyl Review

Last night I finished binge-watching Chernobyl and you have to stop what you are doing and watch this series because it’s just that great. Chernobyl is based on the nuclear accident that happened on April 26, 1986. The show follows multiple people as they risk their lives to try and control the radioactive from spreading to other countries. First of all, the acting in this show is just outstanding. I just want to shout out the casting people who took the time to make sure that the actors they choose to play these important roles looked like the real-life person. Honestly, if you looked at a photo from the HBO series and another in real-life other than the quality you can’t tell the difference. Now even though the cast looks the part they need to act the part as well and well they also succeed in that department. Jared Harris, who plays Valery Legasov, is amazing in this role. He’s the main character you follow in this role and from the first time you see him to the last episode he changes so much. He learns from his mistakes and keeps on fighting for what he believes in. Stellan Skarsgard, who plays Boris Shcherbina, is also a stand out for me. Boris changes over time and you grow to love him. He also has an amazing friendship with Jared Harris and I understand that it was because the real-life people were friends but they portrayed it in such an honest way that makes it seem like they are friends in real life. Paul Ritter, who plays Anatoly Dyatlov, is just great as a bad guy. His character was the guy that even though the reactor was not stable he still kept the trial going which ended up having the reactor blow up. Every single time that he’s on-screen he made me angry and just wanted to beat him up. Just like with the casting the creator of the series, Craig Mazin, took the time to make sure that everything looked exactly like how it was back when this event happened. You can look at a photo from the past and compare it to the series and I bet you it will be accurate. This just goes to show how dedicated he was at making this show to pay tribute to the people who lost loved ones, died, or the survivors of this event. The suspense in this show is just spectacular and it works. There is a scene where three guys are going into the building and there is light music in the background but all you can hear is the Radiation Geiger going off. There are so many scenes like this and because you feel for the characters you hope they will live. This show only has five episodes in it and every single episode just gets better and better as you go along. In my opinion, the best episode is the last episode with the court trial. But honestly, all of the episodes are important and helps show you how serious this event was. Also, once you are done watching this show you will feel dumb but after another watch, you will feel smart because you learn stuff. The show explains stuff that’s hard to understand in an easy way so that everyday people will be able to understand what the characters are saying. In the end, Chernobyl is a series that everybody needs to watch at least once in their life. This show is so interesting and shows you the true story of the worst man-made catastrophes. I give Chernobyl a 10/10.

#chernobyl #hbo #chernobyl hbo #true story #stellan skarsgard #jared harris #jessie buckley #tv show #tv show review #review #critic #teen

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jess-movie-reviews · 5 years

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The Act Review

Yesterday I finished binge-watching The Act and the show is an interesting one and worth a watch at least once. The Act is based on the true story of Dee Dee, played by Patricia Arquette, and Gypsy Rose, played by Joey King, Blanchard who seemed like a normal happy mother and daughter family but you soon learn that appearances can be deceiving. First of all, all of the acting in this film was pretty good. Joey King deserves a special shout out because she actually went online to watch videos of how Gypsy Rose acted so she could perfect her role and it shows. After watching this show I decided to watch the HBO documentary, “Mommy Dead and Dearest” and I would say it was pretty spot on. From the way she spoke to, acted was almost just like the real-life person. Patricia Arquette also was amazing as Dee Dee. She could easily switch from that kind and caring mother only looking out for her child to insane overprotective mother really well. At certain points in the show, I actually symphonized with her but for the rest of them, I wanted to kill her. Everybody else who were minor characters also did their jobs and I loved seeing their twist at the end of the series after learning that Dee Dee was playing them all. I think the only casting I didn’t like was Calum Worthy, who played Nick Godejohn. He just didn’t come across as evil only awkward and weird which I understand is supposed to be Nick but again compared to the real-life Nick he was way weirder. One of my problems is definitely the pacing in this show. I understand that we have to set up the relationship so that by the time the murder scene comes around we actually know why but every episode just seemed too long. With barley, anything going on it just made no sense to have the episodes be that long. Also, this is mainly with the first couple of episodes, but keeping the story in chronological order is key for this case. If you already know the story then it doesn’t matter but if you’ve never heard of it than starting out with the murder doesn’t work. In the end, The Act is an interesting show that’s worth a watch but maybe not a second one. I give The Act a 8/10.

#the act #the act hulu #hulu #gypsy rose blanchard #gypsy rose #dee dee blanchard #joey king #patricia arquette #calum worthy #tv show #tv show review #review #true story #critic #teen

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