How to Train Your Dragon

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....How to Train Your Dragon!

Original image located here. Accessed 25th January 2019

As some of you regular readers would know, with this series there is only one concrete rule: I must see a movie I haven't seen before. So what do you know, here's one that originally passed me by. But I have friends who think very highly of this and with a second sequel being released, I guess now is as good time as any to take a look....

Weeeeeeelllllllll......
eeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrmmmmm.....
......Oh who am I kidding? This was absolutely brilliant. It's Dreamworks striking gold and the rare picture that appeals to both children and adults without talking down to both parties. The flying sequences are a wonder to behold, the expressiveness of Toothless is a delight and truly a solid adventure flick. Throw in a subtext about a protagonist going against the grain of the norms and how working together is better than drawing battle lines and this is.... well..... a film where I can;t use enough positive words for without sounding like a broken record XD

Now about the sequels.....

Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse!

Original image located here. Accessed 18th January 2019

Calling it: Best Spiderman movie ever made. Better than Homecoming and better than the Sam Raimi Spiderman movies.

Not really much else i can say really: There's some great ideas, some amazing creativity, and a delight in seeing many art styles thrown together and interacting with each other. Its funny, action packed and astonishing in it's animation.
Mind you, watching this after Aquaman, one gets the feeling that the MCU set the bar high to a point where their rivals are rising to the challenge and lifting their game.
Needless to say, Far From Home has a serious challenge to face up to....

Aquaman

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Aquaman!

Original image located here. Accessed 11th January 2019

So, can Jason Mamoa have enough clout as a leading man? Apparently so.

Well, this is indeed a step in the right direction for DC - and certainly counts as one of the hits after numerous misses.
One gets the impression that seeing Aquaman is a low tier DC hero (and in some cases a joke hero), the people behind this decided that they had a clean slate and they could do what they liked. So yes, there is a sense of fun - and Lord knows the DC movies needed it. There is some great action, some interesting villains, imaginative designs and a cast boasting members that are made unrecognizable.

I'll say it again: This is indeed a step in the right direction for DC. So it remains to be seen whether they can capitalize on this...

The Unknown Known

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....The Unknown Known!

Original image located here. Accessed 4th January 2019

Anyone heard of this? This is a documentary on Donald Rumsfeld, where he talks about his career, working for several presidents and his role in both the War on Terror and the mobilization into Iraq.

What i got the most from this documentary is that it feels....well.....empty. For a movie about Rumsfeld, i came away not knowing much about him - aside from that his speech is evasive. Watching him speak to camera, it becomes increasingly clear he is speaking a lot but not saying anything. He is intelligent no doubt but his ability to dodge matters is astonishing. He's a tough nut to crack and to find some objective truths about the Iraq War is a slog to be sure.
Perhaps the most telling thing comes at the end. When asked why he agreed to this documentary Rumsfeld replies with: "I'll be darned if I know"

The Lego Batman Movie

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....The Lego Batman Movie!

Original image located here. Accessed 28th December 2018

I once declared that Mask of Phantasm was the greatest Batman ever made. Now however I may have reason to reconsider.

There's a lot to unpack here so let;s just fall onto bullet points:
- It's been a while since I last saw a movie that left me laughing out loud and laughing a lot.
- Anyone else find that Batman's a lot more fun when he's a jerk?
- Self referential gags aplenty here. Not that I'm complaining.
- I actually like this 'machine gun' style of jokes. True it may get exhausting to keep up but it's never dull.
- I know some Batman fans like to elevate their idol to a superhuman status. This Batman seems like the accumulation of such adulation but it doesn't seem like a good thing. Which makes this Batman even funnier.
- Funny thing: The LA DC movies are super serious but this animated effort is a lot more fun. And thus a better movie.

Bumblebee

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Bumblebee!

Original image located here. Accessed 21st December 2018

I've never really cared much for Bayformers but I have to admit that this was...... an improvement.

Yes, I'm finding it hard to believe myself. So lets cut to the chase and use dot points:
- This was unexpected: It had humour, heart and some touching moments. Unusual for this particular franchise and even more unusual in that they actually work
- Having a rockin' eighties soundtrack didn't hurt either
- Funny thing: When I originally saw the first Bayformers movie i was frustrated that there seemed to be more focus on the human characters than the Transformers themselves. Here, i have the opposite problem XD
- No way around it: Hailee Steinfeld carries a lot of this movie - so much so i want to see what happens next with this character
- Watching the end credits I noticed this movie was written by a woman, Christina Hodson. If this was a gamble then it clearly paid off
- Ultimately this seems a better movie than it ought to be. And after five attempts, they finally got it right. So what now?

Mortal Engines

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Mortal Engines!

Original image located here. Accessed 14th December 2018

I knew little about this movie going in. But it was only after I saw this movie that i became aware it's actually based on a series of children's fantasy books - I think the mention of Scholastic Publishing in the opening credits may have been a giveaway.

I have to admit that there is a lot of creativity at work here, there's some decent art direction and the opening scene is incredible. But in the end, the movie is a rather empty experience. Get past the flashy effects and, like a lot of other movies, there's not a lot else. The protagonists are dull, the commentary is on the nose and everything's running at a pace so rapid you'd think it was frightened that the audience will fall asleep.
Special mention however must go to Shrike. He is flat out the best character. He is the most interesting character having a level of tragedy and complexity that would've done Shakespeare proud. Why isn't the movie about him?

Isao Takahata and His Tale of the Princess Kaguya

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Isao Takahata and His Tale of the Princess Kaguya!

Original image located here. Accessed 7th December 2018

Well I saw The Tale of the Princess Kaguya last week (as well as The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness earlier this year) so seeing this was inevitable.
As mentioned last week, I'd always felt that Takahata tends to get overlooked by Ghibli fans so seeing this documentary, focusing on the man himself is welcome indeed. Much like the aforementioned The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness, we see the trials and tribulations going into making a movie at Ghibli and the approach the director takes - but in this case the approach is completely different from Miyazaki.

Thus we see Takahata pushing the envelope as to what animation could accomplish (largely to compensate for his inability to draw), a real trial and error approach to completing a task and facing down a monumental workload. And despite the frustrations caused, Takahata remains funny, passionate and a contrast from the Grumpy Old Man that Miyazaki has become known for in recent years.
I think some of the best moments in the movie come from seeing both Takahata and Miyazaki together and watching these two personalities bounce off each other. It looks natural and a delight to see two long-lasting friends and creative talents together and the bond they clearly have.
A bond that has sadly since been broken

The Tale of the Princess Kaguya

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Kaguya-hime no Monogatari (The Tale of the Princess Kaguya)!

Original image located here. Accessed 30th November 2018

I've always had a soft spot for Isao Takahata. Whilst Hayao Miyazaki has become synonymous with Studio Ghibli, it unfortunately results in the other movies and filmmakers in that collective being given the shaft. Which is shame because a lot of said movies, are superb works, worthy of standing both on their own two feet and emerging out of the shadow of what Miyazaki's imagination can cook up. I mean Takahata is the co-founder of Ghibli so that must count for something right?
In any case, Takahata left this earthly plane earlier this year so now is a good time as any to visit his final movie.

Let me say this up front: It's going to be impossible to divorce this movie from the creator. It's going to be impossible to vie this movie as the accumulation of what Takahata's been doing over his career. It's going to be impossible to see this movie as a meditation from someone who felt his time was approaching.
So what is this movie then? It is perhaps the most beautiful movies I have ever seen, animated or otherwise, and easily capable of standing tall as one of Ghibli's strongest works (which is indeed saying something).
And I will even admit a particular poignancy to seeing the final credit of 'Directed by Isao Takahata' fading in before fading to black.

Deliverance

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Deliverance!

Original image located here. Accessed 23rd November 2018

Well that was enough to put me off going through the wilderness again.
But that, of course, was precisely the point.

It may look like an action movie but it's not: Its more of a thriller and, quite frankly, all the better for it. Packed with both suspense and a threatening mood which neither let up for a second, what i got the most out of this was a critical eye cast towards action/macho movies. And that is surely something that should be standout over 'squealing like a pig'
Also R.I.P Burt Reynolds.

Fahrenheit 11/9

And this week's Friday night movie has been....Fahrenheit 11/9!

Original image located here. Accessed 16th November 2018

It all began during my Uni days: i was flicking through the channels on TV when i stumbled across this guy called Michael Moore. I was fascinated by his humor, his anger and his stunts that always ended with him getting kicked out of some major place. In recent years, I thought he'd gone silent but no: Here we are with his latest celluloid rant.

Going after President Trump would indeed be an easy target but somehow Moore makes it interesting. Highlights included:
- The opening which shows the Hillary supporters on election night thinking they've won - only to be hit with the result which makes it painful to watch.
- The debacle that was the Bernie Sanders campaign
- Moore's own meeting with Trump
- A comparison with 1930s Germany that actually make sense
- The horrors of the water system in Flint Michigan
- And the rising up of youth to take a stand for themselves.

I may know little of US politics (but then again, my country isn't doing that much better) but this was an eye opener to say the least.
Still, imagine what would happen if Michael Moore didn't have something to get angry about

Bohemian Rhapsody

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Bohemian Rhapsody!

Original image located here. Accessed 9th November 2018

I tend to approach biopics with caution: On one hand, for any filmmaker attempting one, they have a responsibility to meet as they are drawing from history and people will take the final product as gospel (not to mention the people online who will whinge about each and every inaccuracy). But on the other hand, the finished product must still adhere to a proper storytelling structure and see some numbers in the audience.
It's a tricky balancing act that few can pull off. So can the current darling of cinema pull it off?

Weeeeeeelllllllllllll....................uuuuuuuummmmmmmmm.......
Let me say this: I love me some Queen and their story may be a gold mine to make into a movie but I can't help feeling that said story is shown here in a sanitized light. Everything moves at an abrupt pace, there are some timing issues (Freddie appeared to have such a busy day on the day of Live Aid), and some glaring inaccuracies.
Not a bad movie - there are indeed some mindbogglingly accurate performances - but somehow I felt this could've been more.......

Zootopia

And this week's Friday night movie has been.....Zootopia!

Original image located here. Accessed 2nd November 2018

As is often the case with this series, I took the long road to getting to my destination...

....But it was worth it!

Well there isn't a lot I can say about this movie: It was hilarious and was never once boring. Great dialogue, a compelling lead and a some decent wisdom being imparted about being yourself and never settling for complacency.
Granted I'm not sold on this whole 'surprise villain' that seems to be Disney's flavor of the month but other than that, this was indeed a gem in the Disney canon.
Okay sure that canon is full of gems but this one is one of the brightest!