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The Flash (2023)
DC's problem child has finally released, and it's... Good?
Everyone and their grandma already knows about this movie's troubled production, mainly focused on a certain actor's criminal affairs (not naming any names). This halting the release and had people wondering if this would even release at all or just be one of DC's abandoned projects. But through many hurdles, the movie is finally out and all I can say is that it's good... for the most part.
To get this out of the way, Ezra Miller is a horrible person and I obviously don't condone his actions or behavior. I wouldn't even object to Warner Bros. Just cutting their loses and shelving this completely, almost like a certain other project (not naming names). But to stick with it even despite the controversy so quite admirable. This was made before the allegations surrounding Miller, so I can't exactly fault the production before it was public knowledge. Luckily the movie was enjoyable enough for me to believe who I was watching was Barry and not Ezra.
The story itself is pretty basic when it comes to time travel movies, which isn't all that impressive in the superhero genre, but I can say that I enjoyed the movies ideas of using the multiverse and exploring it through the concept of time travel. For the most part, the movie doesn't completely fail like most blockbusters which try using time travel and eventually break the rules they themselves set up. Except for one end gag that certainly raises a plot hole, but I digress. For the most part, they use the time travel/multiverse gimmick to tell a more personal story of Barry wanting to save his love ones. Not wholly original might I add, even the Butterfly Effect does it better, but within the superhero context, it certainly was an attempt I can applaud. Especially for having some genuinely sad moments here and there. I just wish the movie focused more on that aspect than having to have "epic battle" with faceless henchmen and super villain. It would have made the story a lot more memorable for me if it Soley focus on Barry's dilemma regarding his past.
Next is the visuals, whoo boy... were they pretty rough for this movie. I seriously was wondering if I was watching a movie or if this was a presentation for Injustice 3. Especially towards the beginning, it was pretty hard to not notice some of the animation, even Barry himself looking like a video game character. Now, not all of the CGI is in this rough state and has a couple of moments where it actually counted, but these moments are very few and far between really awkward looking animation. But, since the movie doesn't take itself that seriously, wonky CGI helped the humor land a lot better then it could have on its own.
Finally, I wanna get into the acting of the movie. First off, Micheal Keaton as Batman stole the show for most of it. Despite having not as much screen time as our main lead, he has may more presence then most of the other actors. This sadly goes for Sasha Calle as Supergirl. She doesn't have a whole lot to do in this movie, which is a shame with the marketing hyping her up and had me excited to see her with Keaton's Batman. I guess you need something to distract from having a real villain in your cast. Speaking of which, Ezra was actually fine in the movie. The premise of paring him with a younger more annoying version of his character weirdly worked for me. Don't get me wrong, the movie really hammers it home about his obnoxious personality and it can get grading at points. But having his foil be a older Barry that's self-aware of his stupidity made the dynamic a little more bearable and had some pretty good jokes. Don't know if it made me forget about his crimes after the movie though.
Anyways, The Flash could have been a disaster and through all the odds, all the allegations, and all the negative publicity around it, it somehow wasn't a dumpster fire. Was it the best superhero movie ever made? Nope, that belongs to Spiderverse. Is it the best movie DC has ever put out? No, Dark Knight still holds that one. Was it an enjoyable movie you could probably have a few laughs at and have a good time? Maybe? I don't know, I'm tired.
65 (2023)
Not Jurassic Park, but at least it's not After Earth
I was very curious about this film since it seemed very simple in concept to those of some of the best movies in the past decades. Not to mention having phenomenal actor Adam Driver fighting dinosaurs, who wouldn't watch it? After finishing the movie, I can at least say the movie was a competent and engaging watch, but wasn't as exciting as the trailers made it out to be.
First of all, Adam Driver is fantastic in this movie. Despite the simplistic and somewhat predictable narrative, he's still engaging to watch as a desperate man trying to survive and rescue the only other survivor, a young foreign girl. And Props to Ariana Greenblatt for pulling off a helpless girl with a language opposite of the lead and still having good chemistry.
Other than that, the movie doesn't really utilize it's concept that well with the battle of scientific technology and prehistoric creatures. There are only a few instances where we can see him use strategy and the use of various gadgets to take them down. While those scenes are fun, it's very little throughout the movie.
I was worried that this movie could have been awful since it gave me very similar vibes to After Earth, and I'm sure you don't need me to explain why. But I can at least say that writer and directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods didn't drop the ball that badly. I can also respect that they want to bring Hollywood back to basics with concepts that are simple, yet effective. While slow paced, and at times underwhelming, I can at least say I enjoyed myself while watching.
M3GAN (2022)
Wait, a January movie doesn't suck?!
I went into this movie with, let's say, less than stellar expectations. And who wouldn't from those trailers? I even wanted to see it purely for silliness and that ridiculous dance that's being imitated on TikTok right now. But as the movie released as of a few days from the time of this review, it was getting good reception from both critics and audiences. So I went to the movie with faint optimism to if it was actually good. But M3GAN showed me that marketing can be misleading in the most positive ways. In every way, this was destined to fail just from being a Blumhouse movie in January, but looks can truly deceiving.
The story is pretty simple, and even reminded me of the Child's Play remake with Mark Hamill, but the difference with M3GAN is that they actually utilize its concept of a doll slowly getting corrupted to help a child cope with their struggles. In this movie, it actually discusses the topic of facing the death of a loved one and the feelings of that trauma and the grief that comes with it. Not only that, the movie also goes into the topic of parenting and how they will let the internet raise them instead. Sure the discussion of this topic can be a little more subtle, but it could have been more obnoxious with this message and feel like it's coming from a 50 year old lecturing how iPhones are evil. The comedy also being a standout for me, as it was never too abundant to distract from the tense moments, and never too scary where the comedy just feels tacked on. It felt like a good balance between the two and I hope this will give us more horror comedies of this vain.
The performances were also very good all around, especially the young actress who brought M3GAN to life with robotic, yet precise motions. Not to mention keeping incredibly still, sometimes even making me question if it was a dummy at moments (And the voice work for M3GAN was also pretty great). Allison Williams did a splendid job as an ambitious inventor that is unfit to raise a child, but still sympathetic enough to try and connect with her new daughter. Violet McGraw certainly steals the show at times as her guilt of her parent's death can be felt through her performance and her quick burst of rage and sadness feeling quite shocking.
A lot of props should go to the writer, director, and James Wan for bringing this all together and making it work. James Wan is a director and producer that will let creators do what they want with every little interference. Usually this can lead to a good product, but it doesn't always turn out well. The writer has only done stuff for TV and two movies. One being Malignant, which was one of the best horror movies of that year, and no I'm not exaggerating... This director is someone I haven't heard of as they only made one movie called Housebound, another horror comedy. I was planning on seeing it eventually, but after watching this movie, I'll most likely be seeing it very soon.
If you are like me and are still on the fence about seeing this movie, I recommend that you go watch it with friends and support it. Hopefully this can show that projects with simple stories but filled with personality can be made and be profitable, especially in a month like January...
Don't Hug Me I'm Scared (2022)
It's DHMIS, just longer and stranger
As a long fan of Don't Hug Me, I'm Scared, I was very excited to see this become a TV series. There was the skeptic in me that questioned if this series was needed or could hold up to the YouTube series before it. Did this series exceed my expectations? I would say "Yeah, it did."
In my opinion, this continuation of DHMIS somehow was able to expand on the YouTube series, give more character dynamics, and keep the same energy of Sesame Street meeting Surreal Horror. I have to give props to the creators for still keeping their voice despite moving to a much bigger platform that would be limiting in most cases. Not only that, but the show looks almost identical from the colorful characters, multiple animation styles, and goofy off kilter humor that balances the horror elements. You can be laughing one second and silently staring at your screen in shock at the next. If that isn't impressive then I don't know what is.
The best thing to me is how much more defined the characters are in this series. Red Guy, Yellow Guy and Duck Guy had pretty easy to define traits in the YouTube series, but didn't have much interaction with each other or time for the viewer to grow that attached to them. In this series, we can really get a sense of great chemistry between a bunch of puppets and a guy with a red mop on his head. Feeling really distinct in their own way and giving us more than we could in the YouTube series. I particularly loved Duck Guy this season as he gave me some of the best laughs.
The only downside I could think of is that it would feel pretty different from the original series. Sometimes characters saying obscenities or being extremely violent, but they happened very rarely that it made it that much more funny. This is also a much longer version of what we're familiar with, with more focus on our main characters than the teachers that would instruct our characters. So seeing sides of them that feels a bit off putting makes it a lot more fun and exciting to see. Duck with a shovel or Red Guy shouting are prime examples of this done right.
Needless to say, I'm hoping to see this series get picked up for a second season and excited to see what the creators will come up with next. Seeing the fans come together and laugh with the show is a nice thing to see. I hope more people will come to enjoy the weird and trippy ride. Now release the abandoned pilot or I will hurt somebody or myself...