Movies in Review: "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tells"

Oh how I've been waiting for Johnny Depp's career to bounce back. With each new film, I'm always hoping for great things. So when I saw the trailer for the 5th installment of Pirates and the Caribbean, I again got excited for him. Captain Jack Sparrow has been one of Depp's more popular roles. Although I was a bit surprised to see another film from this franchise, and the trailer didn't really appeal to me as the others, I still anxiously awaited its release. I love Jack Sparrow's adventures and couldn't wait to see what he was getting himself into this time.

I think we all know The Pirates of the Caribbean films to have an abundance of characters, however with this film there were also too many storylines that you could tell they tried to force together, however it didn't work out that well. I wasn't a fan of the new edition characters as I have been in previous films. To be quite honest, I was kind of bored with them. The adventures also weren't as fun and exciting as previous films. The make-up was horrible, especially the makeup used on Will Turner Jr. There were so many other characters, I seriously felt there was very little of Jack Sparrow, who was still great as always. Out of all the films from this franchise, this was definitely my least favorite. It was kind of hard to remember any of the previous happenings in earlier films as this installment is released 6yrs after the last film...smh.

I left the theater a little more disappointed than I had expected. This movie offered nothing new or exciting from previous films. It was the dullest installment to date from this franchise. I am still a fan of the franchise, but unfortunately not of this film...C

Movies in Review: "Baywatch"

Wow! Baywatch got dragged through the mud by critics. It was almost enough to make me pass on this film...SIKE! Are you kidding me!? Me miss an opportunity to see Dwayne Johnson run around shirtless on a beach? I would never pass on that...ijs. When I watched the trailer I didn't find this movie to anything extraordinary, but it looked cute and funny enough to get me into the theater. There are certain films you have to approach with low expectations in order to help with a more enjoyable experience. This was one of those movies...

I'm not sure what critics were expecting. I never watched the TV series Baywatch, but I'm sure it wasn't a work of art, but people tuned in to see Pamela Anderson run on the beach in a one piece ~shrugs. Putting The Rock half naked on the beach was the same reason I went to see the film. Yes the movie was corny, the storyline very weak, and almost complete nonsense, but I still enjoyed it. I enjoyed the characters in the film (except Zac Efron). Efron was definitely the weakest link for me, and he really needs to find another niche. The "hot guy" is starting to wear thin...ijs. Other than Efron though, I thought everyone else was appropriately cast and there were some decent funny moments. I really enjoy Dwayne Johnson in comedic roles, and he didn't disappoint with this one.

Do you need to go see this...no, you can wait until it hits Netflix, or Redbox. However if you have nothing better to do, and nothing better to see, are willing to set your expectations low, I think there is still some entertainment value to take away from this one...lol...C+

Movies in Review: "Alien: Covenant"

I seriously hate horror films, especially science fiction films. It's not that they are bad movies, and to be quite honest, science fiction horror films are actually better than others. However it seems with my old age my stomach can't take all the gore, and I often find myself jumping in my seat in horror or fighting back a queasy stomach from all the blood ~quiver. When it comes to any Alien film I feel the need to go and finish this franchise since rocking out with their movies since 1986. It's honestly torture, but I have to watch. I'm really hoping they stop making these films soon and the franchise will end...lol. Only because I can't take the emotional toll, not because the films are bad...

I loved when the franchise started to film prequels to the original Alien films, with Prometheus being the first prequel. I thought it was a nice touch to keep the franchise going, keep it fresh, and to also give audiences some background into how this horror started. As I was watching Covenant, I wished that the film wasn't released so far after Prometheus. This film references Prometheus a great deal, and I can't recall half of what happened in that movie. It would help if you caught up on Prometheus before going to see this one, in my opinion. 

You get everything that is expected from this franchise. Although you may feel like you've seen it before in other films, there is enough to freak you out and have you feeling the terror. What I kind of didn't like was the lack of character development. I had a hard time figuring out who was who before they were tore into pieces...ijs. There was no real connection to anyone except Fassbender's characters as the androids Walter and David. He was what made this film as good as it was. It seemed that all other characters were only put in the movie for the horror ~shrugs. 

I enjoyed the film, but there wasn't really anything new added. It will still scare the crap out of you, but I still feel like I just wanted there to be a little more. Lucky for them, the ending was good, and terrifying enough to still have me looking forward to the next installment...B+

Movies in Review: "Snatched"

Yes I knew better than to interrupt my beautiful Mother's Day to go see any of this weekend's new movie releases. There were 2 new wide released movies this weekend and I took my chances with Snatched. I honestly found very little interesting or entertaining about the trailer, but I was willing to take my chances with Amy Schumer because I enjoyed her last film "Trainwreck" so much. I also think Schumer is a hoot, and was expecting to at least belt out some laughs. Unfortunately I caught more Zzzzz's than laughs with this one. 

Once I saw Goldie Hawn in the trailer, my expectations for this film immediately dropped. Goldie Hawn is not a strong enough comedic actress to share the screen with Schumer. Hawn added nothing to the comedy, and in my opinion, brought the movie down. This is not to say Schumer was great. She actually could have used the help because many of her comedic lines fell flat. The writing for this film was not the greatest, and often very dull. I seriously fell asleep on it. There wasn't much to this film except corny, cliché lines and plot. 

The only thing really great about this film was that the running time was only a 1.5hrs. However I still walked out of the theater wanting my time and money back...smh. I wish I had more to say about this movie, but I've already wasted enough of my time...D-

Movies in Review: "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2"

Omg! Guardians of the Galaxy 2! Yes I will have a second helping of that please! Do you know how much I loved the first movie!? When the trailer for the sequel hit theaters I couldn't wait! There was nothing you could say to me that would keep me out of the theater, especially since the trailer only fueled my excitement. I think I had little expectations for the first one, and unfortunately this sequel had some big shoes to fill, and I didn't doubt it could.

Ok sooooo this sequel was giving me all types of humor, straight from the gate. I remembered the first film being funny, but the comedy for the sequel seemed to be non-stop, and I liked it. This was a really solid sequel, although not better than the first, but by all accounts, still worth seeing. I think the first movie had a better story line, and felt more innovative and creative. Although the sequel is still a visual work of art, the visual creativity of the first movie outshined it a bit. However, the laughs definitely go to the sequel. The humor was on 100. My favorite exchanges were between Mantis and Drax. Drax was on another level in this movie, and it was all good. Adding to the lol moments of course goes to Baby Groot, whose adorable features keep you loving him and babyesque movements will keep you chuckling.

I very much enjoyed this movie. Although not as clever as the first, it still scores on visuals, and its entertainment value is still stepped up by the humor and some of the natural tone from the original. As with all Marvel films please stay in your seats until the credits stop rolling and the lights come on...A-

Movies in Review: "The Circle"

So I seriously thought I was going to be in for a treat with this techno-thriller. Thrillers are definitely some of my favorite films, and one with a technology premise, even better. With the intriguing trailer and stellar cast, I knew this was a movie I had to see. If you can't tell by now, I walked into the theater with fairly high expectations that I felt should have been easily met...unfortunately I was 100% wrong with this one.

This movie was bad from the opening credits...honestly. There really wasn't great character or story development in this film. The movie kind of jumped all over the place with scenes that involved the main character played by Emma Watson. To be quite honest, it did this throughout most of the film. I was expecting scenes and story lines to lead to something bigger and thrilling, but each sub plot fell flat and this movie never really reached the climax it needed. Honestly, there was very little thrilling about this film. It definitely didn't have the story innovation or excitement I got from other techno-thrillers like Nerve. The story seemed to meander into inescapable pit with no way out...and then the movie was over...smh. The ending was the camel that broke the camel's back for me. The simple, empty ending pretty much summed up what this movie was. 

I haven't been disappointed like this in a while, especially with a film that had such huge potential for its cast alone. Goes to show that even a film full of talented actors can't save a film that isn't written or directed well. There is really nothing to see here. I promise if you go see this film, this is the face you will have throughout...D+