Month: January 2018

The Truman Show (93%) CLEVER

cinemacal

 

Enjoyability 9
Creativity 10
Recyclability 7
Plot 10

Summary

Overall, I recommend this movie to everyone.  It portrays a fantasy reality in a way that doesn’t seem unrealistic.  Even though this would most likely never happen, the movie is presented in a way in which it feels like it could.  It’s a heartwarming story about a man who has never experienced the real world and has been trapped in a world of lives his entire life.  Will he escape or will he be trapped forever?

Enjoyability

I watched the Truman show when I was younger and I remember liking it, but I recently rewatched it and discovered how much I truly enjoyed it.  It’s just so clever and put together so well.  Assuming you don’t really know the plot of the movie before watching, the viewer discovers what’s happening to Truman in real time as Truman slowly becomes more and more suspicious.  The movie is so great because it never flat out states what is happening, it is slowly shown throughout the movie and you start to realize to true extent of the project surrounding Truman.  Overall, some may find it to not be the most exciting in terms of action, but the story and the way it is presented more than makes up for it.

Plot

The idea is so clever.  A movie about someone who doesn’t know they’re the star of a tv show.  There is a dome that can be seen from outer space that contains Truman’s home as well as thousands of actors doing their part to make the town seem like a real place to Truman.  Ever since Truman’s birth, a tv producer has been filming Truman’s life through a series of hidden cameras scattered throughout the town.  Everyone in Truman’s life is fake, except his father.  All the actors are being told what to say to him and have been his entire life.  But, eventually Truman becomes suspicious as the world seems to revolve around him.  We never find out if Truman had any idea all along or how long he did, but he eventually finds out in the end and has to make a decision to stay put and live a life of safety and security, or to leave and become a part of the real world.

Genre Drama/Fantasy
Rating PG
Movie Production Cost $60 million
Year Released 1998

Pitch Perfect 3 (50%) WEIRDLY ENJOYABLE

cinemacal
Acting 5
Cast 7
Enjoyability 8
Soundtrack 7
Recyclability 4
Plot 5

50%

Summary

This movie stays strong with the music and performances, but lacks in the plot and the mix between being a comedy movie and an action movie.

Acting

It’s very hard to judge the acting in this type of movie mainly because it’s full of jokes.  I don’t think Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) said one serious line in the entire movie.  Every single line was a joke.  Although many made me laugh, she’s a very unrealistic character. Overall, this movie is very unrealistic and bizarre, yet it’s so enjoyable I’d still watch it.

Cast

Of course, by now everyone knows the cast from the previous movies.  Rebel Wilson, Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, and many more.   Hannah Mae Lee plays one of the most odd characters I’ve ever seen.  Her name is Lily and she’s part of a singing group, yet she doesn’t talk.  Nobody can ever hear what she’s saying.  But, she finally says something in this movie and explains not talking because of inner demons.  It makes no sense, but that’s most of the movie so…  And maybe the most surprising thing of the movie, DJ KHALID is in it.  What???  Don’t ask me why he decided to be in this, but he really wasn’t that bad.  It’s definitely a surprise to see DJ Khalid acting in a movie.  But, this movie is full of surprises.

Enjoyability

The riff off’s and the shows are very enjoyable because you will know every song because they are all popular today.  But, in this movie we see some action.  Never thought a Pitch Perfect movie would involve an explosion and a hostage situation.  I guess you can consider it enjoyable to see Rebel Wilson punching a bunch of men, but the plot itself wasn’t very good.  But, even with the plot, the ending is very warm and a fun way to end the Pitch Perfect trilogy.  You may even shed a tear.  Yet after all the surprises and parts I didn’t really enjoy, the movie overall is still enjoyable due to the music.

Soundtrack

There were no original songs that I’m aware of, but all the songs are well-known and it’s interesting to hear all the songs mixed together in the riff offs.  The singing itself was exceptional throughout all the performances.

Recyclability

I could see myself rewatching it sometime in the future, but probably not for a few years.   It’s the same as the previous two movies.  When you finished watching them, did you think to yourself, I want to watch that again right now?  NO.  If I ever rewatched it, it would be for the musical performances and Fat Amy.   Everything else doesn’t really mean very much to me.

Plot (Warning: Spoilers)

Where do I even begin?  The Bellas are out of college and all have jobs they hate.  But, they all reunite at a reunion for the Bellas.  Aubrey really wants to sing as a group again. So, she enlists them in a USO performance tour in Europe thanks to her Army officer father.  If they win, they get to open for DJ Khalid.  At first all the soldiers and their families were confused about the acapella singing, but they eventually became the fan favorites.  We meet Fat Amy’s dad who is trying to get money out of her which leads to the hostage situation and explosion on a boat.  What a plot twist.  Singing at one moment, to being held hostage on a yacht with Fat Amy being the only person who can save them the next.  In the end, The Bellas technically don’t get the spot to open for DJ Khalid, but you’ll have to watch it to find out exactly how it ends.

Genre Comedy
Rating Pg-13
Movie Production Cost $45 Million

13 Cameras (35%) VERY CREEPY

cinemacal
Cast 2
Enjoyability 5
Scare Factor 6
Recyclability 1
Plot 8

Cast

I didn’t know one person in this cast.  That is most likely because of the low budget this movie had.

 Enjoyability

The first hour of the movie is incredibly slow and it feels like nothing is happening.  It’s like watching a reality tv show that just follows people’s everyday lives, but nothing really happened.  Except for the husband having an affair.  But, way too much of the movie is dedicated to the couple setting up the room for their baby.  However, once the landlord comes to the house near the end, the action picks up very quickly.  Some of the scenes are scary and may not necessarily be enjoyable, but they are shocking and definitely interesting.

 Scare Factor

Like I said before, nothing really happens for the majority of the movie.  But, the parts that could be considered scary aren’t really scary.  There’s a few jump scares, but thats about it.  The purpose is mainly to be creepy, and the landlord accomplishes that without a doubt.

Recyclability

There is a 0% chance I will ever rewatch this.  It’s hard to watch a movie again when you know the ending and the ending to this movie is basically the entire movie.  I would just get too bored watching it.  During the first hour, I almost turned the movie off because I knew the landlord would do something, but that something just never seemed to ever occur.

Plot

The plot itself and the idea of the film is very relevant in our society today.  The beginning shows statistics about how many people are being watched in their houses without knowing.  It’s a staggering number and frankly very frightening.  The idea of the movie is good, but it could have been executed much better.  But, the most frustrating part of the entire movie is that we never find out why the landlord is doing this.  You will see that he does much more than just watch them, but why?  There always should be a reason to why something is happening.

Genre Horror
Rating NR
Movie Production Cost N/A

 

The Greatest Showman (95%) MUST WATCH

cinemacal
Cast 8
Cinematography 9
Enjoyability 9
Soundtrack 10
Recyclability 10
Plot 8

95%

Summary

The Greatest Showman is one of my top picks of the year.  The soundtrack is amazing and full of very catchy songs.  The cast includes some very popular names at the moment.   Overall, it’s a great feel good, family movie that can be enjoyed over and over again.  It’s definitely worth watching.

Cast

The cast of this movie is spectacular with the likes of Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michele Williams, Zendaya, etc.  One of the best parts of the movie is getting to hear Hugh Jackson sing.  Coming off his recent movie Logan, this is a much more joyful and upbeat movie.  The High School Musical fans were definitely excited to see Zac Efron sing and dance as well as fall in love with Zendaya.  However, I found it bizarre that Zendaya, a dancer, was in the air for every song.  In a movie with so much choreography, I expected her to be on the ground dancing.  But, good for her for doing her own Ariel stunts and spending the time to learn how to do the trapeze.

Cinematography

Not much to say; every scene looked amazing.

Enjoyability 

If someone told me they didn’t enjoy this movie, they’d be lying.  How could you not be entertained by the songs every ten minutes?  They just kept coming.  The choreography went perfectly to the music for every song.  This is the perfect movie for people of all ages.  Adults will especially appreciate the story and the theme of inclusion. But, children will be drawn to the flashiness and the catchy music.

Soundtrack

Personally, this is my favorite soundtrack of all time.  I’ve never really enjoyed musicals, so I was very surprised that I enjoyed it so much.  All original songs were written by the writers for the music of La La Land, so that should speak for itself.  The song “This is Me” has already won a Golden Globe for best original song.  No song from the entire soundtrack stood out to me as bad or low quality.  Every single song was catchy and made the audience just feel good.  The lyrics especially make sense with the story being told.  The songs tell the story while being catchy at the same time.  So, the music isn’t there to just be there, it actually serves a purpose.

Plot

The story is a great way to represent inclusion and self dignity.  At first, all the members of the show were different and were outcasts (Bearded lady, Tom Thumb, Albino, etc.).  But, throughout their experience of putting on the show, they found their true selves and found a family.  In the beginning, P.T Barnum, Hugh Jackson, is fired from his job.  So, he comes up with the idea of showing people things they have never seen before.  He creates his show of outcasts and draws a very large crowd to every show.  But, the glory      doesn’t last forever as a group of protestors arrive and eventually burn down the theater.   After going on a tour around the United States with a singer from Europe, Barnum realizes he needs to be home with his both his families.  His real family and the members of the show.  In the end, the show is moved to a tent similar to circus’ today and ends with the same song that the show began with.

Genre Musical, Drama, Romance
Rating Pg
Movie Production Cost $84 Million