Movies/TV Rate the Last Movie you Watched

[ToxicWhiskers]

Turning Red 9/10
Watched this last night with my sister. OMG, this has to be one of the funniest, zaniest and most visually-pleasing films Disney and Pixar has brought out. I love the anime-style visuals and Mei's panda form is adorable. Plus, Sandra Oh does a brilliant job voicing Ming.

I guess my only gripe is that it's a shame it was sent straight to Disney+ rather than getting a cinema release, as there are certain scenes that would have looked fantastic on the big screen. I seriously hope they don't give Lightyear the same treatment.

 

[There Is No Arceus]

Turning Red 9/10
Watched this last night with my sister. OMG, this has to be one of the funniest, zaniest and most visually-pleasing films Disney and Pixar has brought out. I love the anime-style visuals and Mei's panda form is adorable. Plus, Sandra Oh does a brilliant job voicing Ming.

I guess my only gripe is that it's a shame it was sent straight to Disney+ rather than getting a cinema release, as there are certain scenes that would have looked fantastic on the big screen. I seriously hope they don't give Lightyear the same treatment.

honestly, i didn't like the movie all that much. mainly because the mother was so over-the-top controlling for most of it. Makes it hard to take her seriously. because of that, the reconciliation at the end felt completely unearned.

 

[Juliko]

All That Heaven Allows - 8/10. Surprisingly, I liked this. Movies like this aren't normally my cup of tea, especially romance ones like this, but after learning it's meant to be a deconstruction of 1950s values and attacking the ridiculously strict rules women had to adhere to, I find I like it a lot more than I'm usually inclined. I do think Ned as a character is kind of a hypocrite, but I'm pretty sure that's the point considering what the movie is trying to do.

Psycho - 6.5/10. I can see why this made the impact that it did back when it was first released in 1960, but by today's standards, the special effects are rather primitive. But I did enjoy the atmosphere and liked most of the characters...yes, even the psychiatrist at the end. Some parts of it did drag on for a bit too long, and some bits of the music were a bit obnoxious. But if not for this movie, the film industry wouldn't have evolved, so I'll give Psycho that.

The Snow Queen (1957 Russian animated film) - 5.5/10. Man, I really wanted to rate this higher, especially since the animation is pretty stellar for its time. But the only version I was able to see was an American dubbed version...and the dub is pretty stilted and bland. But beyond that, Gerda as a main character just gets dragged around by the plot, rather than actually doing anything herself, similar to Fena in Fena: Pirate Princess, the Snow Queen herself is made into an afterthought in the end, and...who's bright idea was it to add an almost eight-minute long live-action sequence in the opening?! That being said, someone really ought to remaster this and put it on Blu-Ray, as the video quality kinda sucks. Hey, Criterion! This has your name on it! Give it a remaster!

The Hand - 9.5/10. Hot damn, who would have thought a 1965 Czechoslovakian stop motion short film would turn out so amazing in its simplicity and imagery? On its own, the short is plenty creepy but well animated, and the stop motion is a lot more refined than most of Rankin-Bass's early works. But when you learn more about the history behind its creation and how it reflected censorship enforced by a totalitarian regime during that era, to the point where The Hand was flat-out banned after Jiří Trnka's death, it becomes even better. Seriously, check this out. Also, somebody needs to remaster it for a Blu-Ray release, along with Trnka's other works!

Bubble - 6.5/10. Seriously, Wit Studio? This was the best you could do? I had been looking forward to this, but Bubble is pretty average. It doesn't do anything with its characters, Uta is just your generic mysterious waif who's there to provide tragedy porn, the movie refuses to answer basic questions about its setting, and most egregiously, the story is all over the place and tries to do so many things at once but utterly failing at them. The animation and music are nice, and I love one part of Hibiki's backstory, but other than those things, Bubble just feels like a generic action/romance/sci-fi mash up. Other movies have done its concepts better.

Long Way North - 8.5/10. Gotta say, I wasn't expecting this to be as good as it turned out. Love the minimalist animation, the story was pretty well done, I liked the characters, and even though it indulges in the "spunky princess hates her noble upbringing and wants adventure" cliches, it manages to be free of a lot of the overwrought sentimentality and melodrama associated with similar stories, letting the animation speak for itself most of the time. I only have to dock points for the fact that the story takes place in 1882, but uses modern CPR and mentions penicillin even though neither existed back in that time...and the crew's weird change in attitude towards Sacha near the end. But overall, definitely give this one a watch.

Calamity: The Childhood of Martha Jane Cannary - 7/10. Wow, a French animated movie about Calamity Jane? Made by the same people who made Long Way North, the animation is pretty sumptuous in its colorful, minimalist style. Buuuut I find I liked Long Way North better. I didn't find the characters to be that interesting, Jane often came across as bratty and violent at times which made it hard to sympathize with her, and there's some slapstick comedy thrown in that I felt was really out of place, along with romantic overtones that also felt tacked on. Eh, it's fine for what it is, though I wouldn't call it a favorite.

Storm Boy (2019) - 7.5/10. This was okay. Nothing special, but it's pretty nice, and I appreciate its faithfulness to the original short story. But I feel like the modern day segments didn't mix well with the rest of the story, especially the politics segments, and the movie uses way too many blurring effects.

 

[Emmy]

Wanted to experience more of director Sam Raimi outside of Evil Dead and Spiderman, so I stuck on his recent return to horror in "Drag Me to Hell".

I had heard that this script was actually written in the 90's...and perhaps it should have stayed there. Non-stop jumpscares with the comedy elements not blending in at all with the horror and not to mention the amounts of melodrama that could have been cut and to top it off the film came across as very nihilistic with its pointless cruelty. As an aside, I am genuinely surprised that they got away with the main character being cursed by a disease ridden Gypsie mystic woman, I would have figured that trope was too problematic these days.

2/10.

 

[Harryghost]

Us

Honesty, the movie has a well-written storyline, and the overall direction of the movie is also very good. My only gripe with the movie is its ending. Now, I believe an ambiguous ending isn't a bad thing, as this leaves the meaning of the movie up for grabs in the viewer's mind. However, Us's ending kinda put me off and left me confused for a hot minute TBH. I think I'll give it a 8.5/10.

 

[Emmy]

Needed to wash down the bad taste of Sam Raimi with a better movie so I stuck on "Wolf Guy: Enraged Lycanthrope", featuring the legendary Sonny Chiba and a host of familiar Toei actors from the 70's. It is very loosely based on the manga by Kazumasa Hirai - likely because Toho had already adapted it into a film a couple of years prior and so Toei opted to change the setting completely whilst keeping familiar elements. Thus instead of high school, Inugami is now an investigate journalist who gets involved with a young singer who is suspected of murdering a gangster who raped her, a blood transfusion between Inugami and another man goes horribly wrong, plus a shady government organisation is keeping tabs on Inugami.

What surprised me the most is that I wouldn't really call this a "horror" film. The first half is much more of a crime thriller with only the initial ambiguity of whether Miki's revenge killings are really supernatural or not and Inugami solves all his problems with his karate chops courtesy of Sonny Chiba. Presumably because of the budget but Inugami does not actually turn into a werewolf either, he certainly gets powers based on the lunar cycle but the more common western tropes of a werewolf are very much absent and given the (implied) Matagi hunters who killed Inugami's tribe and the way the tribe are presented as spiritual mountain folk it instead has more of a Japanese mysticism vibe.

My criticisms would be that trying to cram all three plot-lines into just 90 minutes means that the final act does get a little bit crowded and tying up the loose ends happens a bit quicker for each one then I would have liked - this is most evident with Inugami's relationships with the other characters where only his partner Arai got the most emotion out of me since they had both the required chemistry and screentime, whereas Inugami's tragic romance with the femme fatale Katie didn't do anything as they only shared a handful of scenes together and even that only tended to be sex or furthering the plot. Another criticism would be the special effects used to translate Inugami's powers, they're not terrible but they certainly are showing their age. Lastly, the graphic depictions of sexual violence will be off-putting to people although the only stomach-churning thing to me was how incestuous Inugami's romance with Taka was because he even acknowledges his attraction to her is because she looks exactly like his dead mother complete with flashbacks between the two.

Overall, it was a pretty solid flick to pass the afternoon to. Very 80's, very cool. 7/10

 

[dig]

Human Centipede 2: Centipede Harder

Don't know what all the fuss is about, although I am a decade late.

A young, physically and mentally challenged Englishman obsesses over centipedes. He works as a security guard for a car park.

The first act of this movies comprises of the man documenting and feeding his centipedes.
Then one Sunday morning the warm sun came up and pop! Out of the egg came a tiny and a very hungry caterpillar emerges from the cocoon with a violent lust for food! He started to look for some food. On Monday he ate through one apple. But he was still hungry. On Tuesday he ate through two pears, but he was still hungry. On Wednesday he ate through three plums, but he was still hungry. On Thursday he ate through four strawberries, but he was still hungry. On Friday he ate through five oranges, but he was still hungry.

On Saturday he ate through….. one piece of chocolate cake, one ice cream cone, one slice of Swiss cheese, one slice of salami, one lollipop, one piece of cherry pie, one sausage, one cupcake and one slice of watermelon. That night he had a stomachache!

The next day was Sunday again. The caterpillar ate through one nice green leaf, and after that he felt much better. Now he wasn’t hungry anymore and he wasn’t a little caterpillar anymore.

He was a big, fat caterpillar. He built a small house, called a cocoon, around himself. He stayed inside for more than two weeks.

Then he nibbled a hole in the cocoon, pushed his way out, and he's a wonderful butterfly!

 

[Lone_Garurumon]

Cinderella (1950): 5/10
Boy, that certainly was a film that I watched. It had a beginning, a middle, and an end. For real though it was just a very bland movie imo. It was kinda pretty, and a couple of the songs were fun, but it just generally felt pretty unremarkable to me.

 

[Juliko]

Jane Eyre (1970 version) - 8/10. This was a pretty good adaptation of Charlotte Bronte's novel, all things considered. It's a shame this movie will never get a remaster due to the original masters being lost, so the only version available is one on Amazon Prime that looks like it was ripped off a VHS. But the acting was pretty good, the characters are true to their novel characterizations, I liked the pacing and atmosphere, and need I say anything about John Williams' soundtrack for it?

Thirteen Lives - 7/10. A movie about the Tham Luang cave rescue of 2018. This was mainly a spectacle movie that wasn't interested in much in the way of character development, and the cast of characters in and of itself was pretty large, so the movie couldn't devote time to all of them. Plus, some scenes dragged on for way longer than necessary, making the pacing rather slow. But I do appreciate the movie's lack of interest in artifice and melodrama.

Misaki no Mayoiga - 7.5/10. This was a pretty cute anime movie, all things considered. Its opening half hour was the strongest, but it started to meander in the middle and then shoehorned in an unnecessary conflict at the end. I feel like this should have just been a slice-of-life movie that happened to have youkai in it, like what My Neighbor Totoro did. But it's still a very nice kick-back-and-relax kind of movie, if a little unmemorable and mild. Definitely buying it when it comes out on home video next month.

Drifting Home - 8/10. Wow, I didn't expect this to be such an effective survival movie starring kids. Very well animated with relatable characters and an intriguing plot that's full of stakes and tension. But parts of it did drag a bit near the end, and Reina really got on my nerves. But definitely give this one a shot if you want a movie to show to your older kids. And its on Netflix!

Music (2021) - 1.5/10. My thoughts on this movie can't be put into one or two sentences, but I will say this: It says a lot that I've seen fan fiction portray autistic people in a much more nuanced, respectful way than this movie could ever hope to do, and everything people have said about it turned out to be absolutely right.

It (2017) - 7/10. This was okay. Horror isn't normally my thing, and I don't usually watch Stephen King stuff, but this was alright. It is really weird hearing 12-year-old kids drop F-bombs like they're candy, even if it makes sense for the setting. I wish Mike did more, though. That being said, I absolutely refuse to read the novel because of a certain...controversial scene in it.

 

[Emmy]

"Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father, prepare to die."

Yeah, I finally decided to earn my nerd credentials by watching "The Princess Bride" today. No word of a lie, there are so many memes about Inigo and Vizzini that I was so confused going in that the protagonist's name was actually Westley and Vizzini died a little before the halfway mark. I also had actually seen a clip of the Battle of Wits a long time ago but because of Westley's outfit I always assumed that it was a scene from a Zorro movie. With all that preamble out of the way, I really enjoyed the film. I always dig a good framing device and centering the narrative around a grandfather (played by Peter Falk no less!) reading a book to his sick grandson always pulls on the heartstrings. The plot may not have been super deep or anything, but it was full of heart and very entertaining nonetheless. The cast all acted their parts well no matter how minor, the action scenes were well shot (with particular mention going to the iconic fencing duel between Westley and Inigo) and the soundtrack was great. The only real criticism I would have is the constant references to the real world got a bit much, I get that the original novel and thus the film by extension are a playful spoof of the "Ruritanian Romance" genre but stuff like Vizzini talking about Australia being a penal colony a couple centuries before it actually happened took me out of the film briefly.

Otherwise yeah, a good film overall and a recommend to the two whole people who haven't seen it yet. A shame to hear about Goldman wanting to write a sequel but not managing it before his death.

8/10

 

[noctiluca]

I don't really watch movies, but I tried to watch some this year, so I'll rate them...

Turning Red - 8/10 I liked the movie... The 4☆Town songs are catchy and the main character Mei and her friends are endearing and relatable. The movie reminds me a bit of my childhood, because we didn't use technology as much...

Raya and the Last Dragon - 6/10 The protagonist, Raya, is definitely the film's strongest point. She is very resolute and focused on achieving her goals. The dialogue though is replete of modern colloquialisms which breaks the immersion of the setting which is supposed to be in Southeast Asia sometime in the past. I think the idea of a con-artist baby is fairly silly. Namaari and her mother are poorly developed, and I don't understand their intentions and motivations. Also, the film's message is presented in contradictory way...

Moana - 5/10 Similar to Raya, Moana is a good protagonist who is very resolute in attempting to achieve her objects. Maui is okay and I think once is his background is elaborated, the movie is better. However, what makes the film particulary weak is the lack of supporting characters. The setting is also fairly bland as it's only ocean, and I think it's unfortunate that the chicken Heihei is depicted as stupid.

BanG Dream! FILM LIVE - 7.5/10 I wasn't too sure to include this one or not as there is not plot or character development, but the point of the film is to showcase some of the fan-favourite songs of the bands from the Bang Dream! Girls Band Party franchise. It's clearly meant for fans of the series though it wouldn't be a bad introduction to music of the series. I was disappointed that RAISE A SUILEN only made a cameo appearance, but the music selection was very catchy and pleasant.

Hopefully, my post isn't too stringent on the movies as I don't really enjoy that medium of entertainment. I know many people work hard on producing movies...

 

[-PokemonBattleFanatic-]

Halloween Ends 5.5/10

Michael Myers gets nerfed and has been hiding in a sewer for 4 years.He got his mask stolen by a babysitter who accidentally killed a child.The babysitter goes on a killing spree around town.Michael vs Laurie don't face each other until towards the end of the movie.

Apparently Michael got weak due to not killing people for 4 years so when he started doing it again in this movie he got some of his strength back but I find it stupid because he should've been fully charged from the last movie And why would he just stop killing for 4 years?The babysitter either got Michael's evilness from looking into his eyes or just awakened what was already there.

This isn't the worst Halloween movie I watched but it also isn't the best or even one of the best of the franchise.It's somewhere in the middle for me.

 

[TwinklingCupcake]

Wendell and Wild: 8/10. Amazing stop-motion, Henry Selick, Jordan Peele, retro punk/rock soundtrack, scathing social and political commentary? Yes, top-notch, loved it all! The cast are all great, there's not a single actor who doesn't knock it out of the park, and you can tell everyone enjoyed themselves and really wanted to bring this story out. Also, hey, PG-13 horror animation!
But I did have to knock a few points because of some pacing issues. It would have benefited from being a longer movie, or perhaps a miniseries. But eh, it's no big deal.

 

[impervious_gakko42]

Bullet Train. So great, I went back to see it in theatres a second time. I don't even like theatres.

If you can handle blood (not even gore, just blood) it's a riot. The plotline is kinda simplistic, but enthralling nonetheless. I seldom laugh at anything but oh man some parts had me wheezing. I have a poor attention span when it comes to movies, yet I never really found myself getting bored at any point.

Totally buying this one on DVD. 10/10.

 

[Nicolas721]

One Piece Film Red: 10/10

I watched some of the OP films earlier this year and they were cool but typical series-inspired anime films, but this one really blew it out the water. The plot has been done before and starts a bit slow and repetitive, but when it gets going it becomes very well developed with well placed backstories and twists that get you invested. The animation and the visuals are simply GOD-tier, both in the fights and in the song scenes, which by the way are great too and represent well what Uta is thinking at the moment. Uta is also a great villain, this series really needs more young female villains. I wish the main cast had done a bit more, but is compensated by the secondary cast having decent roles and being completely active (shoutouts to Koby!).

Chip & Dale Rescue Rangers: 6.5/10

I had heard great things about it but it's just...average. The story is rather slow and simple, the secondary characters are boring and humor is mostly composed of lampshading and pop culture references. On the plus side, both members of the main duo are likeable and well-developed, the cameos are great and sometimes really clever, and it's refreshing to see a live action-animation hybrid that gives full focus to the animated characters. And it's evident it was made with lots of respect and apreciation of the original series, while I never saw it I respect that.

 

[Harryghost]

The Black Phone (2021)

It was a very good movie to watch. I am sucker for the supernatural and the paranormal, so I really enjoyed sitting through this one. The plot is great, and there are many moments that have you at the edge of your seat.

Definitely recommend watching.

 

[Emmy]

Beggar: [points at domesticated elephants] "Are these silent monsters at peace with us? It is but a truce they keep with Man. But I, who have seen their tusks stained with blood, I could tell you a tale of the silent ones...for a few coppers eh? A bowl of rice?"
Female Tourist: [whips out camera]
Beggar: [covers face] "What would you do with my image, memsahib?"
Female Tourist: "I would keep it, for a memory of India."
Beggar: [lowers hands] "Verily, you would have all India in your picture - Nay! You would have the book of the jungle to read in my eyes..."


If that overly long intro didn't give it away, I spent the evening watching "The Jungle Book" (1942). I had seen the film as a wee child and the final scene of Mowgli (played by the iconic Sabu) riding back into the jungle on an elephant has been seared into my mind ever since. Despite the title, the film takes more scenes from the sequel book rather than the original Jungle Book, apparently this was because the technology of the time wouldn't allow them to bring the animals to life quite like the books and so the film uses mostly the human focused stories instead. Baloo is hit hardest by this as he is barely in the film, only appearing at the start and ending. Interestingly, as this film predates the Disney one, Kaa is correctly depicted as Mowgli's ally and not an enemy. Changes it did make include: Nathoo and Mowgli are explicitly the same person now, the battle with Shere Khan and his death happen completely differently and several human characters are inserted into the village to flesh it out such as Mahala, Buldeo's daughter who has a crush on Mowgli.

Overall it was a charming movie and just as fun as I remember. The cast gave a wonderful performance with special mentions to Sabu and Calleia as Mowgli and Buldeo respectively. There were a lot of cool camera tricks to blend the actors and the live animals together, and when they did have to resort to using puppets it wasn't too distracting. The only real criticism I have is that being the film is adapted from an anthology of short stories, the result meant that the pacing gets a little wonky in places. Humorously, because of the accents in the film, every time the characters brought up the subject of Nathoo, I simply could not unhear it as them saying the Pokémon Natu. Definitely a recommend at any rate~

8/10.

 

[Juliko]

The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (1985) - 8/10. For Rankin-Bass' very last stop motion special, it's amazing to see how far they've come in perfecting their Animagic style, and this has to be one of their most ambitious and creative efforts yet. The characters were charming, the stop motion is the best its ever looked, and the soundtrack is amazing, a few cheesy songs not withstanding. The villains are kind of stock standard, and it's a crying shame this never got a proper HD restoration, because this deserves to be more well known.

Princess Arete - 8.5/10. I gotta say, for a movie that came out in 2001, this is really, REALLY well put together. Yes, the pacing is sluggishly slow, deliberately so, and I agree that it can be a detriment at times, but this movie wastes no time with the important stuff like proper build-up, character development, doing something new with the cliche "evil villain kidnaps a princess" premise, and actually bringing its setting to life. A criminally underrated movie that I'm surprised hasn't gotten a US release.

Laid-Back Camp Movie - 8.5/10. Man, it feels like every piece of new material for Laid-Back Camp winds up being better than its predecessor in some way, because for a proposed "what-if" scenario for the characters, this is surprisingly mature and down-to-earth, yet it still remains true to the show's whole ethos. The characters and their development go in surprising yet unexpectedly refreshing directions, and while some may claim the movie runs too long for its simple premise, I appreciate that the movie really tries to take its time to flesh everything out and bring out the best of what makes LBC just so damn good.

The Birds - 7/10. This is a pretty alright Alfred Hitchcock horror movie, even if a lot of the effects are pretty dated by today's standards. Though I have to wonder who thought it was a good idea to have the main female character literally stalk some guy and break into his house, even if her reasons for wanting to talk to him aren't malicious. That's really the only issue I personally had with the movie. And yes, I like this better than Psycho. Sue me.

 

[prog rocker]

Though I have to wonder who thought it was a good idea to have the main female character literally stalk some guy and break into his house, even if her reasons for wanting to talk to him aren't malicious. That's really the only issue I personally had with the movie.

Oh... So that's why the main character of Birdemic has stalker vibes...

 

[Lone_Garurumon]

Lightyear: 5/10
Mostly pretty mediocre. Basic plot was rather generic in concept but done decently well, and some of the character writing was neat. The Big Twist was dumb and really feels more like just having it there for the twist than anything else. Honestly the biggest thing that drags the story down is that the premise collapses at the slightest thought.

Spoiler: Spoilers for Act 1 of Lightyear

So the entire premise of the first act is that the hyper-speed crystal their big ship was using is busted so they have to test new crystals they're synthesising so they can replace it and go home. But when Buzz does the test flights, a 4 minute trip at 70-80% hyper-speed becomes 4 years for everyone else because he's time dilating from going so fast, and once the crystal is perfected, just a few seconds in hyper-speed is enough to ramp that time up to 22 years. And this is the successful test that can replace the original fuel crystal that the ship was using. Meaning that the ship that they were using for long enough to require cryo-stasis was dilating them 18 years for every few seconds it maintained hyper-speed. Meaning a single trip with such a fuel would take centuries, if not millennia for everybody not on the ship. How does this society work, exactly?

So, yeah, Lightyear. Kind of ok, premise collapses under slight scrutiny. Wouldn't really recommend over the slew of other stuff you could watch, but I guess if you've somehow watched every actually good movie, then this is an acceptable mediocre movie to move on to.