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nAn interestingnturn of events has been occurring in the past few years. Like a perfect storm,nslowly developing into a deadly juggernaut, Disney is now reigning king as thenmost successful movie studio in history. It all started with the deadly double knocknout of acquiring both Marvel and Star Wars! All of the sudden, boom, they’venmade some of the most successful films ever, actually, scratch that, with ThenForce Awakens, they’ve produced what will apparently turn into THE mostnsuccessful movie of all time. And it doesn’t look like they’ll be stopping anyntime soon; audiences are devouring everything that Disney is producing! Andntheir slate of films for the coming years promises to keep them on top for the foreseeablenfuture. All other movie studios better shape up! In terms of commercial films, Disneynis gobbling you guys up like yesterdays leftovers! That’s right my friends, allnother studios are playing catch up to the house that Mickey built. This doesnnot mean that other studios aren’t producing quality stuff; it just means thatnDisney is good at marketing. They also have the money to not only make the mostnexpensive films out there; they can also amass the most talented group ofnfilmmakers. It will be interesting to see other studios step it up. One thingnis for sure, they have very stiff competition! So anyways, here’s my list ofnbest and worst of 2015, I haven’t seen everything, so obviously, some reallyngood ones aren’t on this list yet. But of the ones that I have seen this pastnyear, these were the ones I loved and hated the most, enjoy! I’ve divided thisnarticle into three parts, ‘The Worst of the Year’, the ones that were ‘Not Bad But Not Great’ and finally, ‘The Best of the Year’. Let’s start off with the worst shallnwe?
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nWORST OF 2015
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nFantastic Four (2015)
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nComments: Quite possibly the Fiasco of the year, FantasticnFour was doomed from the get go thanks to all the shenanigans that were goingnon behind the scenes. First off, this was a 20th Century Fox filmnand nowadays, audiences only want their Marvel films to be made entirely bynMarvel, anything else gets suspected ofnbeing crap. To make matters worse, Josh Trank, this films director, had a darkntone in mind for this Fantastic Four film while the studio wanted somethingnlighter, as a result the studio took the film from Trank and did it their way.nAs most film buffs know this is never ever a good thing on any production. Sure I’ve seen far worse films in my life time, but thenfinal results with this particular film are hard to ignore. It was too violent for kids but with dialog that was too silly for adults. The story felt choppy, like a rushednjob. The studio tried to cover the mess with a bunch ofnvisual effects in the films finale, but by then the damage had spread too farnand the resulting Fantastic Four movie we got was a huge messy thing, enjoyablenat times, but ultimately unable to deliver the truly satisfying Fantastic Fournfilm we all yearn for.
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nQuote: “We are not gods, just people. And we are strongerntogether than we are apart.”
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nInsurgent (2015)
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nComments: I halfway enjoyed the first one, which is why Ingave this second one a chance. But damn, this second one was just so boring, sonblah, that I didn’t even feel the need to write a review for it. There’s thatnand then there’s the fact that this whole teenagers against the systemnsub-genre has worn its welcome a long time ago. Please just stop making allnthese movies, they all feel the same! To make matters worse, we have to seengood actors shaming themselves by appearing on these crappy movies and sayingnthis inane dialog. I mean, how sad is it to see Naomi Watts and Kate Winslet onnthis thing?
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nQuote: “You can take the girl out of abnegation, but you can’tntake abnegation out of the girl.”
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nJupiter Ascending (2015)
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nComments: The Wachowski brothers downward spiral continues,never downward! So sad because at one point, these two directors were consideredncutting edge! Now they are considered makers of want to be science fictionnoperas. Jupiter Ascending suffered from some really bad miscasting, mainly thatnof Mila Kunis in the role of the worker bee who ends up becoming the Queen ofnthe Universe. Kunis isn’t a bad actress, I’ve seen her do good in films likenBlack Swan (2010), but here, she just didn’t feel like a Queen, like someone whonwould command an entire society. Her journey from janitor, to queen of thengalaxy was too quick. We never saw her go through a process, therefore it’s allna bit hard to swallow, even for a science fiction film. To top things off, thenvisual effects were too messy visually speaking. Will the Wachowski’s ever makena comeback to good science fiction cinema?
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nQuote: “A dream is the only way any of this makes sense.”
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nFifty Shades of Grey (2015)
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nComments: Here’s a movie I hate with all my heart, andnladies, don’t take this the wrong way, I don’t mind sexy thrillers, but thisnone is just a freaking fantasy. I mean, sure there are maybe one or two guysnout there in the world this film was made for. But for the 98% of out there,nthis movie was made so our girlfriends would hate us. I mean, who can live upnto the standards set by the gazillionaire on this film? Basically, this movie wasnmade for the common woman out there to float on a nimbus cloud for two hours,nso then they can come down to the reality of the poor schmuck they have for anboyfriend and think “why am I with this loser?” So yeah, this is a fantasy fornthe ladies, I just hope they realize that in the real world, most of us poornschmoes don’t have our own private helicopters or jet planes.
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nQuote: “I don’t make love. I fuck…HARD!”
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nJohn Wick (2015)
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nComments: Here’s a film that didn’t impress me at all, yet anlot of people seemed to like. Maybe I need to give it a re-watch? I mean, this is one by the numbers, been therendone that affair. There’s nothing original about it, nothing moves the movienforward, and the so called “style”, I’m sorry I just didn’t see it. They killednhe’s dog and he has to kill every Russian he sees because of this? Wow.nAmazing. Please, shoot ME! I don’t mind stylish empty violence, but hey, I’dnlike to see some actually trickery with the camera to keep things interesting,nnot a cgi bullet ballad with no blood or gore. Where’s the real freakingnviolence? This is so pg-13 it’s nauseating! They are actually making a sequel,nlet’s hope they can inject some sense and meaning into the film this timenaround, because this one was an empty shell, with no style, no guts and in mynbook, no freaking glory.
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nQuote: “In a bar, I once saw him kill three men, with anpencil. A fucking pencil!”
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nMaggie (2015)
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nComments: Zombies and Arnold Schwarzenegger, sounds like a winning combination right? Well, yeah, unless you’re talking about a film called Maggie (2015), then you’re talking about a borefest. Man, I was expecting one thing and got another. I was expecting Arnold blowing up zombie heads, instead I got Arnie attempting a melodrama. I’m sorry, I tried liking this one but it was just too damn slow and not in a good way. I mean, I don’t mind dramas, I don’t even mind slow zombie movies, but this one was just so uneventful.
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nQuote: “Dad, you’ve protected me all your life. Now it’s my turn to protect you. There is life with you not with me.”
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nPixels (2015)
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nComments: Pixels was a low blow to my nostalgia. It got menby flashing all those old video game characters on the screen during itsntrailer, but once I was in the theater I was like “what is this shit?” AdamnSandler has totally lost my respect, I mean, what the hell man, you aren’t evenntrying. You don’t care about making movies, or cinema, you just care about thendough. So yeah, it’s safe to say that Sandler has completely lost my respect.nSimply having old video game characters in your film will not make it a goodnfilm, you have to have a gripping story and least of all, a bit of sense. Thisnwas a half assed effort from a crew that should’ve known better. I mean, comenon, this piece of crap came from the guy who wrote Gremlins (1984) and The Gooniesn(1985)? Really?
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nQuote: “Pac Man’s a bad guy?”
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nAmerican Ultra (2015)
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nComments: Wow, what a waste of celluloid. First up, I wentninto this film with high expectations because of the creative team behind it,nnamely, writer Max Landis, a writer who has rarely let me down. I loved hisnVictor Frankenstein (2015) and loved the hell out of Chronicle (2012). Thenconcept for this film was an interesting one, though not entirely original. We’venseen the secret agent who doesn’t know he’s a secret agent until he isnactivated routine before in films like The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and Saltn(2010). The original element on this film is that the oblivious secret agent isna stoner who works in a convenience store. He has panic attacks whenever hentries to leave the United States. He doesn’t have a whole lot of ambitions innlife, he’s happy with his contempt life. But his secret agent past is catchingnup to him. Sadly, while that does sound like an interesting concept, the way itnis told is just so been there done that. Around the halfway point, this movienfelt so boring and un-original that to finish it was torture. The films onlynsaving grace? John Leguizamo as a cocaine snorting drug dealer.
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nQuote: “Something very weird is happening to me…I keepnkilling people! There’s a chance I may be a robot!”
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nNOT BAD BUT NOT GREAT
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nPoltergeist (2015)
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nComments: Okay, of course this one was poised to get hatrednfrom people. It’s the remake of a beloved horror classic from the 80’s, but Inalways give remakes the benefit of the doubt. This one didn’t totallyndisappoint because it had decent visual effects and a couple of innovativenconcepts, like sending a drone with a camera to the other side. But whennmeasured up against the awesomeness of the original, this one was missing somengravitas, mainly; the horror element was brought down a couple of notches.nSuddenly this film was no longer scary; suddenly the spectacle is no longernthere. When you watch the original, you feel like the filmmakers wanted to wownus. When you watch this remake, you’ll feel no such passion. Even the ’FreakynFreelings’ are less charismatic thisntime around. You feel the film is pretty much “by the numbers” and decidedly lessnscary. Which sucks, I mean, what’s the point in making a horror film lessnhorrifying? You’re supposed to up the ante, not bring it down people!
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nQuote: “They’re here…”
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nAvengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
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nComments: Of course I didn’t hate this one; it had Hulkngoing up against Iron Man! But can I pin point what I didn’t like about thisnfilm? I still can’t quite figure it out. I think it was the overdose ofncomputer generated effects. I think nothing feels real anymore, I know that whatnwe’re looking at was never filmed; it was rendered in a computer. People are nonlonger wowed by a legion of evil robots because we know actors are fightingnagainst nothing, standing in front of a green screen. But there was somethingnelse wasn’t it? Could it be that these stories are getting too big for theirnown good? If you save the world on this one what do you save on the next one?nThe Universe? And then what? God? Speaking of which…that is exactly what thenAvengers are going to be going up against soon, Thanos becomes a God, so mynassumptions aren’t that far from the truth! Here’s hoping they manage to makenthese movies heartfelt and tangible, because effects for effects sake can havena numbing effect. Goddamit, the trick is to make me care for what is happening!nPut some feeling and intensity into it or else my brain just registers it as annempty spectacle as heartless as the robots in your movie.
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nQuote: “The city is flying and we’re fighting an army ofnrobots. And I have a bow and arrow.
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nNothing makes sense.”
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nTerminator: Genisys (2015)
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nComments: This franchise keeps jumping from productionncompany to production company ever since Linda Hamilton sold the rights to thenfranchise with Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003). Since then, each sequelnthat has followed has been made by a different production company, the resultnis a very uneven franchise, with each production company changing things just anbit while retaining the franchises strongest selling point: Arnold Schwarzenegger.nThe filmmakers behind this one decided to wipe out everything that had beenndone before in order to make a brand new mess of their own. The film went withnthe current Hollywood formula of giving us a bit of the original with a bit ofnthe new, this is why we go back to 1984, and that fateful first try atneliminating John Connor before he was born. Unfortunately, no sequel afternTerminator 2: Judgment Day (1992) has been able to surpass what Cameron didnwith that film. It is my personal belief that only when the rights revert backnto Cameron and he himself directs a Terminator film, will we get a good Terminatornfilm.
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nQuote: “If we die tonight, mankind dies with us.”
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nPAN (2015)
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nComments: What went wrong with this new take on Peter Pan? Well,neven though the film flopped at the box office in a huge way, I pretty muchnenjoyed this one. I mean, we get the Pan, we get the flying pirate boats, wenget the pixie dust. Could it be that what people really missed was CaptainnHook? Truth be told, good old Captain Hook is a huge part of the Peter Pannequation, and not giving him to us the way we know and love him, with his hugenmustache, his hook and his fear for giant crocodiles, well, that only leaves usnwith half of the Pan equation. I think the film was entertaining, but withoutnHook it was only half of what it could have been. And Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard,njust wasn’t Hook. I get that they wanted to eventually give us the full blownnversion of Hook in future films of this planned franchise, but since this firstnfilm flopped so hard, well, I guess we’ll never see it.
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nQuote: “I am going to tell you a story about a boy who wouldnnever grow up.”
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nKrampus (2015)
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nComments: Krampus is Michael Dougherty applying the formulanhe used on Trick R’ Treat (2007), but with Christmas. Basically the formula says ifnyou don’t celebrate the holiday, then you’re going to die! On this one we meetna family that hates each other, so much so that one of the kids in the familynwishes they would all die! In comes Krampus, a demon who is basically thenreverse of Santa Claus. He doesn’t bring toys to little boys and girls, hentakes little boys and girls! So basically, everything that’s jolly andnbeautiful and merry in X-Mas, gets turned spooky and horrifying. The whole filmntakes place during a blizzard, which makes everything scarier. I mean, thisnmovie is extremely atmospheric which I loved. My only fault with the film isnthat I wish it had been gorier, because I was expecting a full blown Christmas horrornfilm, and not a kiddie version of it.
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nQuote: “Saint Nicholas isn’t coming this year, instead, anmuch darker ancient spirit. His name is Krampus.He and his helpers did not comento give, but to take. He is the shadow of Saint Nicholas.”
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nFurious 7 (2015)
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nComments: Well, what can I say, it was a brainless action film all the way. It had nifty action sequences, same as in the whole series, in a phrase, it was entertaining. This production was struck by tragedy because as we all know, Paul Walker died mid-production. This made the whole affair more sentimental, many an audience member shed a tear or at the very least got watery eyed. The film itself was fun, with action sequences getting more and more unrealistic as the franchise progresses, as I said in my review for it, I half way expect the crew to be sent into space for the next film. But apparently they wont go that far, I hear the next one takes place in Cuba. This franchise has become a guilty pleasure of mine, can’t call them “good” films perse, but I can’t deny I have a blast every time I go see them. This one was no exception.
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nQuote: “No matter where you are, whether its a quarter of a mile a way, or half a world away, you’ll always be with me and you’ll always be my brother. ”
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nBEST FILMS OF 2015
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nIt Follows (2014)
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nComments: When it comes to modern horror films, most of thentime the good ones don’t even get a big theatrical release. This is somethingnthat doesn’t register with me because the horror that does get releasedntheatrically is just abysmally bad. ItnFollows, though not a perfect horror film, is effectively creepy. It even manages to make scenes that take placenon a beach, during the day, scary. Kudos to first time director David RobertnMitchell for knocking it out of the park early in his career, I hope he doesn’tngive up on making horror.
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nQuote: “Like I told you, all you can do is pass it on tonsomeone else.”
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nChappie (2015)
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nComments: Chappie was like taking Robocop and Robocop 2 andnmixing it with Short Circuit (1986) and Short Circuit 2 (1987). Basically, anscientist creates a robot that thinks on its own, against the wishes of thenrobot manufacturing company he works for. When “Chappie” the robot becomesnsentient, he’s like a little baby, lost in the world and ready to be takennadvantage of. This one has Neil Blomkamp’s trademark skinny robots, which henhas been using since his first short films ‘Yellow’ and ‘Tempbot’. Though thisnfilm has elements from the films I mentioned earlier, it also ends up goingninto completely original territory, especially towards its final act. It evenngets existential, toying with themes of god and questioning our reasons fornliving.
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n Quote: “Remember, nonmatter what happens, you were made for good.”
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nThe Babadook (2014)
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nComments: Another amazing horror film from a new filmmaker,nJennifer Kent. This film is all about a spooky children’s book that once younread it, it gets in your head and doesn’t get out! A single mother must protectnher son from the creature called ‘The Babadook’. The scares creep up on you, it’sna slow burner, but when it gets you it gets you! It is an extremely atmosphericnfilm. It brought to mind films like Roman Polanski’s Repulsion (1965), with itsnfemale protagonist going nuts in her own home. Turn out the lights, snuggle innyour couch and don’t watch it alone!
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nQuote: “You can’t get rid of the Babadook.”
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nSPY (2015)
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nMy introduction to Melissa McCarthy was this awful film shenmade with Susan Sarandon called Tammy (2014). I started watching that one andnjust couldn’t finish it. I was not impressed I tell ya. I was like this is thenbig deal? Good word of mouth on Spy made me curious for it. I mean, how bad cannit be if everyone is praising it so much? Then I saw a scene in which Jude Lawnaccidentally kills a bad guy because he sneezes while pointing at him with angun and I laughed my ass off so I decided to give Spy the benefit of the doubt.nI’m glad I did, this movie had me laughing all the way through! It’s an excellentnJames Bond spoof! I think McCarthy works best when in collaboration withndirector Paul Feig. Spy was so funny that it made me want to check out another PaulnFeig/Melissa McCarthy collaboration called The Heat (2013). Also, I feel verynoptimistic about Feig and McCarthy’s upcoming collaboration: Ghostbustersn(2016), something tells me that one is going to work out well.
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nQuote: “I drove a car off a freeway, on top of a train,nwhile it was on fire. Not the car, Inwas on fire!”
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nJurassic World (2015)
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nComments: This was not the most original film in the world;nactually, it did exactly what J.J. Abrams did with Star Wars: The Force Awakensn(2015), it gave us more of the same. I guess Hollywood’s new formula is “if itnain’t broke don’t fix it”, basically, they are giving us more of what we lovednthe first time out; they want to make the best out of our nostalgia for thenmovies we grew up with, which is why like The Force Awakens, Jurassic Parknfeels like a remake of Spielberg’s Jurassic Park (1992). But I guess this isnokay as long as it’s done in an entertaining manner. Audiences sure didn’t mindnbecause they made Jurassic World one of the biggest money makers of the year,nbreaking all kinds of records, which then The Force Awakens went on to break.nThis formula Hollywood is milking for all its work includes one interestingnclause, with every retread of an old action sequence we get new elements that opennthe door for new sequels and so at least we finally get to see the park opennits doors to the public and we get a couple of new dinosaurs to look at. Also, ChrisnPratt showed us he has what it takes to be the next Indiana Jones.
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nQuote: “Maybe you should include that in the brochure…thatneventually one of these things will eat someone.”
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nVictor Frankenstein (2015)
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nComments: Another great surprise that nobody went to see,nprimarily because some genius over at 20th Century Fox decided tonrelease it close to the release of a little film called The Force Awakens andnso, guess who lost that little war? The Force Awakens was sucking money out ofnpeople’s pockets months before it was even released, and so, none of that moneynwent to Victor Frankenstein, which died a quick death at the box office, a pitynbecause Victor Frankenstein was actually a really fun take on Mary Shelley’snFrankenstein. Of course we’ve seen Frankenstein’s tale told time and timenagain, but this time the film focuses on telling the story from Igor’s point ofnview. The filmmakers decided that Igor needed an update, so on this one, Igornisn’t in “Yes, Master!” mode, he’s actually an important part of thenexperiments that bring the dead back to life. This was a fast paced,natmospheric film that you should give a chance to once it reaches home video.
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nQuote: “It’s alive!”
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nCrimson Peak (2015)
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nComments: Guillermo del Toro movies are a gift from thenmovie gods, so of course I was excited to see this, primarily because Guillermondel Toro is a real horror film connoisseur. I’ve heard him wax poetic aboutnhorror films, and the guy goes in deep. He’s one of the few directors out therenwho has a true appreciation for horror. This isn’t just some director making anhorror film, this ghost story comes from a lover of the genre, and to topnthings off, he’s one of the best genre directors out there. Not everyone whonmakes a horror movie is a real, true blue, nitty gritty, horror buff. Del Toronis! In line with this, Crimson Peak is an amalgamation of atmosphere andnsituations gathered from a zillion horror films. The influences on this one arenmany, among them Roger Corman’s The Fall of the House of Usher (1960) and RobertnWise’s The Haunting (1963), so it’s old school, atmospheric scares, the kindnthat slowly creep up on you. At heart it’s a tragic love story, but withnghosts. Very gothic, very atmospheric, this is a beautiful film to look at withnan amazing color palette (a del Toro signature) and amazing, jaw dropping artndirection.
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nQuote: “Where I come from, ghosts are not be taken lightly.”
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nTomorrowland (2015)
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nComments: Here’s a movie that went down the toilet as soonnas it premiered. No one went to see it for whatever the reason. It became anhuge box office failure for director Brad Bird, a director who is usuallynassociated with successful family films like Ratatouille (2007) and ThenIncredibles (2004). Tomorrowland’s downfall is a shame because not only is itnextremely fun, it also sends an extremely positive message. We live in a worldnin which we are always being told that things suck, that things are bad andnthat they are only going to get worse. What this movie proposes is that we stopntalking about how bad things are and that we start talking about how we cannimprove them. It asks all those creative, intelligent minds out there to risenup and make the world a better place. Tomorrowland sends this message out therenin a very entertaining and fun manner, with the aid of some excellent specialneffects. This was one of the best surprises of the year; it’s the coolest movienyou never saw. What this film connoisseur proposes is that you give it anchance. You might discover a film that touches your soul and brings a tear tonyour eye.
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nQuote: “Dreamers need to stick together, it’s notnprogramming, it’s personal.”
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nEx-Machina (2015)
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nComments: Ex-Machine is Alex Garland’s first stab atndirecting a feature film. Normally Garland is on the writing part of thenfilmmaking equation. He’s responsible for the scripts for films like 28 DaysnLater (2002) and Dredd (2012), but for Ex-Machina, he got behind the cameras. Sometimesnwhen a writers decides they want to direct a film, the results aren’t alwaysngreat, but not on this occasion. Ex-Machina was an excellent slice of sciencenfiction! It’s an intriguing film that will keep you on your toes. Oscar Isaacnplays the inventor behind a new form of cyborg, but before he puts it out onnthe market he wants to test it, see how it reacts to questions, how it thinks.nThe film goes into existential territory by asking questions like do we makenour own choices? Are we being watched all the time by an all powerful entity?nAre we masters of our own destiny? A psychological film every step of the waynthat shows that Garland has talent for both directing and writing films.
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nQuote: “No matter how rich you get, shit goes wrong. You can’tninsulate yourself from it. I used to think it was death and taxes you couldn’tnavoid, but it’s actually death and shit.”
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nAnt-Man (2015)
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nComments: The big draw with Ant Man is that it isn’t one ofnthese huge storylines like in The Avengers (2012), where the fate of the entirengalaxy is in the balance, no; Ant-Man is a more personal story about a father tryingnto redeem himself in the eyes of his daughter. This is a movie about a regularnJoe who discovers a way to miniaturize himself, so a smaller story goesnperfectly well with the films premise. Even with its smaller scaled story,nAnt-Man managed to be every bit as entertaining as some of Marvels bigger films.nThe effects were amazing on this show. nAlso, it gets unexpectedly surreal and trippy. Add to that a goodnmeasure of humor via Paul Rudd and the excellent supporting cast and you gotnyourselves a winner.
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nQuote: “Sorry I’m late, I was saving the world. You know hownthat is.”
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nMission Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015)
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nComment: This was another surprise for me because to benhonest, I’d lost all interest in this series. Mission Impossible: GhostnProtocol (2011) while entertaining, didn’t really say anything to me. It wasnjust mindless action, empty calories. But Rogue Nation impressed me because thenuped the ante in terms of stunts, which were performed by the ever surprisingnTom Cruise. The stunts are truly impressive on this one, blow your mindnimpressive. Add to that an interesting plot line about the government wantingnto eliminate secret agents (which was strangely similar to Spectre (2015) bynthe way) and you got yourselves a film with maximum entertainment value.
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nQuote: “Human nature…my weapon of choice.”
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nKingsman: The Secret Service (2015)
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nComments: This one was a sweet surprise when I went to seenit in theaters. I went into this one blind, not knowing anything about it. Incame out with a smile on my face; my head exploded into a million colors out ofnjoy. This is a James Bond spoof done right, something along the lines of IfnLooks Could Kill (1991), only, you know, a million times better! The action,nthe effects, the pacing…all great! There’s this show stopping scene thatninvolves a massacre inside of a church, that’s just wow. You have to see it tonbelieve it. A movie with a bite, that has no problems criticizing the world wenlive in.
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nQuote: “I’m a catholic whore, currently enjoying congress outnof wedlock with my black, Jewish boyfriend who works at a military abortionnclinic. So, hail Satan and have a lovely afternoon madam.”
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nSpectre (2015)
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nComments: The reconstruction of what we knew as the James Bond universe continues with Spectre, a film that yet again smashes everything we’ve come to know about 007 and repackages it in an entertaining and intriguing way. This is the 24th Bond film and the 4th starring Daniel Craig in what is possibly one of the best Bonds to ever light up the silver screen. It looks like this might be the last time Craig plays the character, but with the success of his run, I seriously doubt it. Something I enjoyed about this particular Craig/Bond film, it regained its sense of humor, something that had been sorely missing from Craig’s Bond films. Spectre is another solid entry in the Bond franchise, a franchise that is enjoying now, after so many years, some of its best moments.
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nQuote: “You are a kite, dancing in a hurricane Mr. Bond.”
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nThe Hateful Eight (2015)
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nComments: A Tarantino film is always a gift from the moviengods, so I was most anxious to see this, the eigth Tarantino film. For Tarantino, cinema is his religion, he breaths it, lives for it. I love seeingnanything he does because making a film is a sacred affair for him, each frame,neach line of dialog, meticulously chosen to perfection. At the core, is thatnperfectly written and planned out script, which is why most Tarantino films arenso good. This time around he revisits the theme that reigns supreme over hisncinematic repertoire: racism. It is not as obvious as in previous films (likensay Django: Unchained) but yeah, with The Hateful Eight he once again touches upon mans discrepancies with theirnskin color. This time around, the story is all about these eight people who getntrapped in a cabin in the middle of nowhere thanks to a raging blizzard. Whonwants to kill who and why? Tarantino effectively builds tension and brilliantlyndevelops characters. You’d think that a film that takes place almost entirely in ancabin would be boring? Then think again. Tarantino will make you laugh andncringe all in one swoop. This one is drenched in gore and blood so be ready fornthat! Another winner from one of the best directors in cinema.
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nQuote: “But when John Ruth ‘The Hangman’ catches you….younhang!”
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nStar Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
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nComments: So yeah, it was a real joy to see this one. Disneynand J.J. Abrams knew what they were doing when they made this nostalgia bulletnto the heart. By using A New Hope as the blueprint for this new adventure, theynmanaged to give us that old Star Wars we knew and loved. It was a shot ofnfamiliarity that wiped clean the bad tasted left by Lucas’s overtly political prequels.nIt was awesome seeing Han and Chewie back flying the Millenium Falcon. And itnwas awesome to see so many interesting new characters populate the Star Warsnuniverse! Not only that, the new characters rocked the house! Kudos to Disneynfor putting a woman and a black man in the leading roles! There was not ansingle Jar-Jar Binks type character in sight! In addition to that, Disney andnJ. J. Abrams went old school with this one by actually building sets and propsnas opposed to having everything be computer generated and for that I applaudnthese guys! This was a film that didn’t forget to be fun; it didn’t forget thatnthe simplicity of the originals was part of their success. These films are backnto being about good guys vs. bad guys and it’s a welcome return to form for thenStar Wars universe. This is without a doubt the film of the year, maybe not the best of the year (that slot was saved for the next film on mynlist) but The Force Awakens was an event, an experiencenthat brought an entire generation and their kids back to movie theaters. Thenforce was strong with this film!
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nQuote: “The force is strong in my family. My father has it, I have it, my sister has it. You have that power too.”
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nMad Max: Fury Road (2015)
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nComments: I was expecting big things from Mad Max: Fury Roadn(2015), but nothing could have prepared me for the onslaught of awesomenessnthat would be unleashed upon my retinas in that darkened theater. This movie isna work of art. Every time I watch it and I have watched it many times since itsnrelease, my eyes are glued to the screen. I love the dialog, the cars, thenperformances, and of course the stunts! Real cars, real stunts! What I lovednabout Mad Max: Fury Road, aside from the brilliance in storytelling and visualnflare is that computer generated images were used to enhance and not to takenover the film. George Miller proved with this one what we film buffs havenalways known, that he is a true auteur. He understands the language of cinema,nknows how our minds and our eyes work and he uses that to his advantage as anstory teller. Charlize Theron as Imperator Furiosa was spot on casting and TomnHardy as Max? The icing on the cake! I loved the fact that they put the femalenin a leading role! I loved that it was all about protecting the dignity andnliberty of women. This to me is the best made film of the year, it deserves tonwin Academy Awards in cinematography, visual effects and hell, why not, I’dnnominate George Miller for director of the year. Mad Max: Fury Road is anfilmmaking feat that no other director could duplicate! Rarely does a directornleave his mark on a film the way Miller did with this one, my hats down to himnfor making such a memorable film! Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) was “the movie of the year” but MadnMax: Fury Road (2015) is the better picture, which is why I give it my numbernone spot. If you haven’t seen it yet, what are you waiting for? Go andnexperience the madness!
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nQuote: “If I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die historic! On thenFury Road!”
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