This Month's Movies
Longlegs (2024)
Selling your soul to the devil has never been worth it, but Longlegs puts into perspective just how horrible it may be with this psychologically thrilling, anxiety inducing movie. Fantastic acting, solid plot, and some beautiful shots land this a very deserving 8/10.
La La Land (2016)
Ok, who the hell put crack in this movie? I genuinely could have never guessed that this romance musical would shoot its way up to the top of my rankings and become one of my all time favorites, even with all of the things I had heard long before watching. This movie is so incredibly beautiful, both stylistically and thematically. Its ability to toy with your emotions and leave you feeling both hopeless yet optimistic is something unrivaled. What a wild ride this must watch is.
Trap (2024)
Shyamalan adds another mediocre banger to his ever growing stack. Besides the insanely dull characters and unbearably impractical plot, this movie drags like no other. Just when you think it's going to end, another all but unpredictable “twist” is thrown into the mix, leaving those still awake in the theater to do nothing but laugh to themselves as they roll their eyes. With some better writing and acting along with a massive overhaul on various plot points, this movie could have potentially passed as average, but I’m really struggling to see any appeal.
Fight Club (1999)
I’m not sure what I’m missing here, but what’s the deal? I mean, don’t get me wrong, it's solid. Very solid. But am I mistaken in believing that those who think this movie is so fantastic are just people who didn’t see the twist coming? Even without the “subtle” hints thrown in, I still think it would have been quite hard to miss. Maybe I’m being too harsh, but to regard this as one of the best films of all time certainly seems a little strange. Either way, the acting is great and there’s lots to enjoy, It’s just not what I expected from a movie so highly praised.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)
This franchise is heavily underrated. It's been a while since I’ve seen the original, but Catching Fire may be one of those rare cases where the sequel tops the original. There’s just something about a revolution story that I love so much. Is it the underdog aspect? Is it the beauty of teamwork? Is it simply the fact that Katniss is such a badass? I’m not sure, but Catching Fire does it great. Sure, the ending leaves you on a cliffhanger, but it's not like this is unexpected considering we know Mockingjay is to follow. Suzanne Collins, take a bow. You’ve not only made a great book, but done the tragically difficult task of turning it into a great movie as well.
Bully High (2022)
I love this movie so much. The awful dialogue, bottom of the barrel acting, and plot with a million missing parts makes me remember why I love watching horrible movies so much. Why does Nicole disappear halfway through the movie? What happens after she comes out to her parents? Why is Scarlet’s previous experience of being molested a basis for racism, and why does Maryam tolerate it? I don’t think there’s a single bit of this story which makes sense or has any sort of cohesion. It’s absolutely fantastic.
A Quiet Place: Day One (2024)
I watched this before watching the original, and I would rate this higher except for the fact that it came out after. I went ahead and watched A Quiet Place right after, and I don’t know what the writers were thinking. It is quite literally just the same story in a different city. They miss out entirely on creating an origin story, and instead focus for about 10 minutes on the actual first day. Conceptually this series seems fun, but the creation of Day One is poorly executed to the point where it doesn’t even make sense to go through with it.
A Quiet Place (2018)
Though the overall concept is interesting, and it's fairly well done, there’s just not much special about this movie. It’s not exactly scary, but it is intense. I can’t really pinpoint what exactly it is about this movie I didn’t like, but I think long term it's fairly forgettable. Krasinski and the others do okay, but I feel as if this movie suffered a similar fate to that of On The Rocks: Its quality is bottlenecked by its concept. It’s hard to truly sympathize with characters you don’t really get to meet, and you can never fully understand the extent of each relationship. You’re given ideas of how they may feel, but without any sort of dialogue it's hard to connect with them on an individual level.
White Chicks (2004)
I’m finding it very difficult to rate comedies. Movies like White Chicks are hilarious, but they aren’t the greatest movies in terms of plot, acting, cinematography, or any other metric. So, when I only give comedies a few stars, I don’t want anyone thinking I didn’t love the movie! Sometimes these movies can only be so good, but it doesn’t mean I didn’t love every second of it. White Chicks is hilarious, conceptually rich and set up for success from the start, and the plot honestly isn’t half bad. Besides the obvious major plot holes, I didn’t have a hard time overlooking some of the smaller problems, and overall I was impressed with how this movie presented itself.
Coraline (2009)
I’m not sure I quite understand what all of the hype is about. The best thing about this movie is obviously the visuals, and everyone involved hit the nail on the head. The artistic aesthetic is something that will be remembered for generations, but what about anything else? Well… eh. The story is fine, and the themes the viewer takes from it are important, but this movie didn’t “wow” me like I thought it would. Going in, I expected a movie that would blow my socks off, considering that 40% of Letterboxd ratings are at 5 stars, but this movie just simply fell short. There was no exceptional plot twist, and everything done felt standard for a movie like Coraline. I still enjoyed it overall, obviously, but it was hard for me to come out saying anything besides “That was it?”
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
Oh, wow! Another mediocre Marvel movie that will be thrown in the void and forgotten about within a matter of years. This movie could not have been more average. The multiverse stuff is getting extremely boring and overused, and the cameos aren’t that interesting to anyone who isn’t a hardcore Marvel buff. I laughed more than I thought I would considering I’m not the biggest Deadpool fan, but this hardly matters for someone like me who views the plot to be so intrinsic to a film’s overall value. Another disappointing Marvel tale, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. Hopefully they can dig themselves out of this ditch sometime soon.
Dune (2021)
Besides the obvious fact that Dune sets up Dune: Part Two perfectly, this movie does have some pros. The story is fun in concept, and the cast is absolutely stacked. Chalamet does a fantastic job at playing Paul, and the bit of Zendaya we get to see shows promising signs for the sequels as well. On top of this, the pacing is impressive. Sci-fi (to me at least) can get boring at the most inconvenient times, and this is further amplified by the runtime more often than not. Dune does a solid job of keeping the viewers engaged and moving the story on in a timely manner without rushing past key events or interactions.
Dune: Part Two (2024)
I imagine this series like the iconic Dwayne Wade-Lebron James alleyoop picture with Dune: Part Two being the absolute slam dunk. It’s hard to find much wrong with this beaut when it was set up so perfectly by its predecessor. Everyone loves an underdog story, and Dune: Part Two opts to bring that and more. I mean, this dude is basically Arrakis Jesus if you think about it (and kind of Moses? The religious parallels are pretty incredible). But we see him fall from where he began his journey to becoming the Duke of Arrakis, pissing off Chani in the process. You’re once again left with a bit of a cliffhanger, wanting the storyline to wrap up. I’m a bit worried for Part Three, but if things continue to climb as they have been, we should expect nothing but a banger.
Kung Fury (2015)
There’s really not much to say. This movie is hilarious by every stretch of the imagination. The absolute absurdity is exactly what makes it right up my alley, and I don’t know what I would have done if I had died without seeing these 30 minutes. I know it’s been 9 years, but I am still holding out for the sequel. If you haven’t seen this, it’s probably for a good reason. But if you feel you must, then it is your calling.
Grown Ups (2010)
If this wasn’t funny, this would easily have been one of the worst movies I had ever watched. There is quite literally no distinguishable plot, and I guess that’s the point? This movie is fun, and I really do like it, but to say it is a good movie is just blatantly not true. The casting was fantastic, however, and there are some good themes to take away, I guess. I just wish that there was some sort of storyline to follow rather than “rich family understands what it's like to live normally.” Regardless, I absolutely had some good laughs and this is definitely one of the funnier comedies I’ve seen.
This Month's Winner
La La Land (2016)
I don't think there could be a more deserving winner. La La Land has you by a choke hold from the very beginning. Watching this you may think it's going to be a normal musical, but you could not be more wrong. I mean, who the hell chooses to make a musical with jazz? It doesn’t seem like the best idea, but that’s exactly why it works. La La Land doesn’t blend in with every other musical you’ve seen. It sets its trademark ringtone almost immediately, forcing itself to stand out from the rest. This isn’t just the case with the music, but with the story too. Following a struggling actress and jazz musician through their relationship, encountering all ups and downs along the way keeps this movie raw and uncensored. By the end, you’re left with nothing but a tear running down your cheek and a message that stands out almost too boldly: Not everything works out, but that’s okay.
Rating Changes
Watchlist Additions
