Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too! Review

 

Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too! is a direct-to-video mystery movie and the thirty-eighth entry in the Scooby-Doo! direct-to-video series. It was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. Scoob-Doo! and Krypto, Too! is written by T.K. O'Brian and directed by Cecilia Aranovich.

The story is members of the Justice League are mysteriously disappearing. Here about this, Scooby-Doo and the gang head to Metropolis, and team-up with Superman's dog Krypto, to find out why this is happening and who's behind this. And they must hurry, or else all of the supervillains will bring chaos.

Initial Reaction

The reason why I decided to review this was because I was interested in the idea. Scooby and Krypto teaming up. And before you ask, yes I could've reviewed this when it leaked online, but that was unfinished version, which means the quality would've been terrible.

Cons

I've got nothing, so just scroll down to the next part.

Middle Ground

Now the movie does provide a fairly good experience, whether you're a fan of Scooby-Doo!, DC, or both. However, the story isn't very imaginative. Yes, I know it's Scooby-Doo and the franchise isn't known for its sophisticated and complex storytelling, almost every Scooby project follows a formula, but just because there's a formula to something, that doesn't mean you can't be creative with it. And here, like I said previously, it's fun, but it's very predictable. Hell, Scooby meets Krypto almost the way I figured it would happen.

Pros

Now for the truly good stuff, one of those being the animation. For the longest time the movies have been doing a good job replicating the classic art style, but putting it in a more crisp and clean HD style, and this movie is no exception. Then there's the humor. While not everything worked, nine times out of ten, it was a pretty funny movie. There's actually a good running gag where Lex gets lost in the Hall of Justice, which I feared who get old, thankfully that wasn't the case. The last thing I'll write about but also keep short, is the voice acting. It comes as no surprise that cast do a great job with their roles. Although one [Frank Welker] is an industry veteran. But regardless of who has the longest experience, the cast continue and are more than likely going to continue their great chemistry.

While Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too! does have some entertaining factors to it, this isn't really a movie you need to rush to see, whether you're a fan of one franchise or the other or both. Although we can all agree it's far more superior than Velma.

My final rating is, Okay.

That's all for me. If it's possible, come back on Sept 30th, The Creator, and if I can't review that, then come back on Oct 5th, where I'll have something special planned for John Carpenter's The Thing. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Looking Back at the Films of 2022 Part 4 - Clerks III, Jeepers Creepers: Reborn, Smile, The Greatest Beer Run Ever

 

Alright, we're back, we're back at looking at the films of the past. Let's get to it.

Why Didn't I See Clerks III?

Now I really wanted to this, I really liked the first and second movie. So when I heard a third was finally gonna be released, I was ready...until some bad news came. It was released at Fathom Events. Which automatically meant there was no way I was gonna be able to see it.

What is Clerks III?

Clerks III is a dark comedy drama movie, the sequel to the previous two flicks, and the ninth installment of the View Askweniverse. It was produced by View Askew Productions, Bondit Media Capital, Mewesings, Destro Films, and Three Point Capital and distributed by Lionsgate. Clerks III was written and directed by Kevin Smith.

The story is it's been fifteen years since the events of Clerks II, and Dante and Randal's lives are still pretty much the same. But things take a drastic change when Randal has a heart attack. Feeling like he hasn't really done much with his life, Randal finds a new purpose by making a movie about his and Dante's lives.

My Thoughts

The Good: One good aspect is the humor. While I did feel like things were toned down when compared to the previous films, it was still a pretty funny movie overall. Then there's the performances, especially from our two main stars, Brian O'Halloran and Jeff Anderson. They still have that same extract chemistry and with that nailed the comedic bits, but most importantly they also did a pretty good with the drama. There's a great bit with Dante where he pours his heart out about the pain he suffered from a past event, and you tell Brian was giving it his all in that moment. Which brings me to the next point, that being, that this is a very bittersweet movie. Well it's understandable that might worry, that's if you haven't seen the movie yet, there's nothing to worry about. Those more dramatic moments are only there when necessary, and don't drag down the movie's quality.

The Bad: I've got nothing.

The Okay: Now for the mix bags. While the movie is pretty good, there is one part of the story that got old, and that was Elias' turn from Christianity to Satanism. It was funny at first, but it got old really fast. Sure, it's a really small part in the grand scheme of things, but that still doesn't change the fact it was the same thing over and over again. Then there's Kevin Smith's directing, more importantly the whole style of the movie. While it's pretty decent for what it is, it's still not as good as it was the previous two movies.

Final Verdict: Good.

Why Didn't I See Jeepers Creepers: Reborn?

After seeing the very uneventful Jeepers Creepers 3, I just lost faith. But when I heard there was a reboot, I perked up just a bit. Cause now it meant a whole new vision and everything. And we didn't have to be surrounded in controversy over the franchise's previous director Victor Salva.

What is Jeepers Creepers: Reborn?

Jeepers Creepers: Reborn is a supernatural horror movie, a reboot to the series, and the fourth movie in the franchise. It was produced by Orwo Studios, Infinity Films, Ink Pine Media Limited, and Great Point Media and distributed by Screen Media Films. Jeepers Creepers: Reborn was written by Jake Seal and Sean-Michael Argo and directed by Timo Vuorensola.

The story is a couple named Chase and Laine are traveling in Louisiana to a festival called Horror Hound. Just when they think it's just gonna be all fun and games, the couple quickly realize they're being hunted by 'The Creeper'.

My Thoughts

The Good: There is not one good thing attached to this movie. Not! One!

The Bad: Oh where to begin? Let's start with how it's not scary. I was sitting on my couch completely bored. And even if you can't be scary, the movie could've at least been somewhat entertaining, but no, it wasn't. Even when The Creeper does something violent, you're still bored. Then there's the acting....wow. The acting just sucked. It would've been better suited for a high school play than a movie. That's how bad it was. Now we have the production. Let me just show you how bad it is.

Before you ask, yes, yes those are actually in the movie. Those aren't behind the scenes pictures or deleted scenes, this is what the movie looks like for 98% of the time. It looks like the filmmakers used a filter on their phone and then called it a day. But ya know what's worse than bad effects in a movie? A terrible story, or lack there of. There is no complete story here. By the end, we're left with far more questions than answers. We don't know why Laine's eyes turned completely black, we don't have any information on the cult, and I don't know why the crows were treated like such a big deal, especially that white one that was watching everything go down. The movie provided zero, absolutely zero answers. I get they're saving stuff for sequels (which probably isn't happening cause it bombed), but you can still wrap up one story, and then save some stuff for said sequels.

The Okay: Nope, there's not even a decent aspect. It's all terrible.

Final Verdict: Destroy It!

Why Didn't I See Smile?

Truth be told, I purposely skipped this because I had a bad feeling. When seeing the trailers and TV spots, I was getting some Truth or Dare vibes. Remember that terrible movie? No. Well consider yourself lucky.

What is Smile?

Smile is a psychological supernatural horror movie based on the 2020 short film, Laura Can't Sleep. It was produced by Paramount Players and Temple Hill Entertainment and distributed by Paramount Pictures. Smile was written and directed by Peter Finn.

The story is one day, therapist Dr. Rose Cotter was speaking to a grad student when all of sudden she screams in terror, then out of nowhere she commits suicide with a disturbing smile on her face. After that, Rose experiences terrifying events and visions. She soon learns something is coming after her, all while having a sinister smile.

My Thoughts

The Good: One of the movie's greatest strengths is with its main actress, Sosie Bacon. She truly carries the movie, whether the film itself is at its best, worst, or somewhere in between. Another big strength is the themes of trauma, mental health, and suicide, and what those things strongly effect you, even if the traumatic event happened years ago. The last thing I'll give credit to is the horror. Let me get this out of the way, yes, there are jump scares, but, they're done far better than in other horror flicks. Especially since there's an actual pay off to them and it fits with the evil entity tormenting our main character. It's not some domestic pet knocking over a garbage can, or somebody getting tapped on the shoulder. But even when there isn't a jump scare, there are some truly scary moments. Even when there's nothing terrifying happening, you still get this feeling of uneasiness.

The Bad: Nope, I don't have anything negative to say.

The Okay: If there's one mixed bag I had, it was Peter Finn's directing. While the movie does look nice, there were times when I felt like Peter made some odd choices. Like there was this one scene, where Rose is in her office and she's putting on her jacket, and the whole time she's doing this, the camera is tilted. I thought that was leading into something, but no. The camera's just tilted for no real reason.

Final Verdict: Good.

Why Didn't I See The Greatest Beer Run Ever?

Because it has Zac Efron and I haven't forgiven him for all of the High School Musicals! I'm of course kidding. The real reason is I was deciding between either this or Hocus Pocus 2, and I picked Hocus Pocus 2 because I liked the first movie and I figured that was the more popular one to review.

What is The Greatest Beer Run Ever?

The Greatest Beer Run Ever is a biographical war comedy-drama film based on the book with the same name. It was produced by Apple Original Films, Skydance, and Living Films and distributed by Apple TV+. The Greatest Beer Run Ever was written by Peter Farrelly, Brian Currie, and Pete Jones and directed by Peter Farrelly.

The story is after attending a funeral and hearing another friend is M.I.A. because of the Vietnam War, John "Chickie" Donohue wants to go to South Vietnam and deliver beers to raise his serving friends' spirits up. Despite being told otherwise and some not believing he'll do it, John sets out on his quest, in the hopes he'll succeed.

My Thoughts

The Good: One thing that surprised me was Zac Efron's performance. While I never considered him to be a poor actor, I was still surprised by what he does in this. Sure, he's not winning any awards for this, but given how the material he was working with was decent at best, he still deserves props for doing such a good job.

The Bad: Just move on.

The Okay: Now the movie does have a pretty good story to it. So good I still paid attention to what's going on. But with that being said, you still run into some familiar territory. Like people debating with anti-war protesters, then next thing you know, a huge fight breaks out. Then we have the Peter Farrelly's directing. For the most part, he wasn't really doing anything interesting. The visuals really don't become eye catching until later on. I think maybe he wanted to save the best stuff for later, but it still felt like he could've done that with the entire movie. The last thing I'll write about is the movie does have a lot of heart to it. It's very clear the filmmakers wanted to tell this story of a man who wanted to do something good, even if logic behind the idea is questionable. So you can admire the movie for that, but I think we can all agree that this really did need a much more stronger screenplay.

Final Verdict: Okay.

Well, that's all for tonight. Due come back on Thursday, Sept 28th, for my review of Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too! Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Cinematic Disasters - The Legend of the Titanic

 

If there was any reason to truly hate James Cameron's Titanic, it should be all the blatant rip-offs that came afterwards. Such as this one.

The Legend of the Titanic is a animated fantasy movie, and supposedly based on the RMS Titanic (you'll find out later in the review why I phrased it like this). It was produced by SEK Studio, ITB Spain, Hollywood Gang Productions USA, and Mondo TV and distributed by Mondo TV. The Legend of the Titanic was written by Celelia Castaldo and Loris Peota and directed by Kim J. Ok and Orlando Corradi.

The story is on April 1912, passengers aboard the ship know as the Titanic. It seems like it's gonna be a one of a kind journey for them, but little do they know, things are about to take an unexpected turn for the worse.

My Thoughts

The first thing I want to get out of the way is the animation. It's fine, but it's really bland. There's nothing about it that stands out.

Now let's talk about the biggest problems with the movie, one of those being talking, anthropomorphic animals. I kid you not. I mean, why? Why put something so cutesy in a Titanic movie of all things?! And if they're not anthropomorphic, then they're just regular animals who talk because of...magical moonbeams...I'm not writing this while high folks, this is all in the movie.

Let's move onto the voice acting. This was just awful, there's no real emotion in their voices, and I swear they recorded their lines in some sort of empty room, because I swear there's some hollow sound whenever they talk.

Then there's the fact the filmmakers just straight up rip off James Cameron's movie. And when I mean rip off, I mean rip off. When we're first introduced to Elizabeth (our main female lead) her introduction is literally a shot for shot recreation of when Rose was introduced in the Cameron movie. She even has an arranged marriage story! Way to be creative there guys.

Which finally brings me to the biggest problem with The Legend of the Titanic, oh my God the story. Let's break it down.

1) The Love Story, or Lack There Of

Yes, just like the James Cameron flick, we've got a love story. Cause apparently we haven't ripped Cameron off enough. Anyhow, Elizabeth falls for a man named Don Juan. Then after spending little to no time with each other throughout half of the movie, they exchange one whole sentence, fall in love, dance, escape the sinking ship, and then by the end they're married.

Yeah, that's their love story. Wasn't just romantic? Didn't it just move you? I have seen shippers come up with better reasons why two characters should be a couple with little to no evidence, and say what you will about the couples in the older Disney films, at least there felt like development in those stories. Here, one sentence later, Don and Elizabeth decided it's a good idea to get hitched.

2) Nobody Died

You read that right folks. According to this movie, nobody actually died on the Titanic. Not only is that insulting, but this brings up a huge plot hole. If we're lead to believe that, then how come in this movie, newspapers years later are saying the Titanic sunk and killed hundreds of people? By the end of the movie, everybody in New York saw the survivors alive and well. This story may take place in 1912, by there was still a thing called media attention! And I'm pretty sure hundreds of people surviving something of this magnitude would've gathered some media attention! That's not one of those stories you can brush off and then make up whatever you like.

3) The Real Reason for the Sinking & How Everybody Survived

Strap in for this one, cause it's one hell of a doozy.

So the "true" story of why the Titanic sunk, was because Elizabeth found out about her arranged finance's illegal whale hunting operation. So in order to cover his tracks, he tells his henchman to go tell talking sharks to find a way to sink the ship. So the sharks trick a giant octopus with a puppy dog face in an iceberg throwing contest, which it accepts, throws said iceberg, thus causing the Titanic to start sinking.

I'd like to remained you all, once again, that I am not high. This is all in the movie.

So, how did everybody survive this? Well it was a combination of things. 1) There was enough lifeboats for everybody. 2) Puppy face octopus held the ship together. 3) The holy saviors known simply as the whales also gave a helping hand.

I'm gonna say it, one more time. I am not taken any mind altering drugs...THIS IS ALL IN THE MOVIE!

So yes, the sinking of the Titanic was just a plot to cover up an evil whale hunting operation.

Holy crap! Do I even need to say anything for this after what you just read? Not only is this just a terrible movie overall, but it's also insulting to those who died. If you want to make an anti-hunting movie, okay, fine, you have that right. But don't incorporate it into a real-life tragedy. What's next? An anti-bird hunting movie and it's mixed in with the Hindenburg?

My final rating is, Destroy It!

That was a tough one to get through. But, come back on Monday, Sept 25th, for part four of Looking Back at the Films of 2022. Hopefully I'll have much better movies to review for that one. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Classic Film Night - The Land Before Time

 

The Land Before Time is a animated adventure drama movie. It was produced by Amblin Entertainment and Sullivan Bluth Studios and distributed by Universal Pictures. The Land Before Time was written by Stu Krieger, Judy Freudberg, and Tony Geiss and directed by Don Bluth.

The story is a massive famine has forced several herds of dinosaurs to leave their homes and find a oasis known as 'The Great Valley'. During this journey an earthquake causes everyone to get separated. Now a little Apatosaurus named Littlefoot, along with his new friends must travel to this great valley, all the while trying to avoid a vicious T-Rex.

My Thoughts

One praise the movie deserves is the performances. The adult actors were great, but it's the bulk of the cast, which are the child actors, are truly amazing. They were charming, funny, and really nailed the movie's more sad moments.

Then there's the music. I don't think my words can do this music any justice. I also think it's one of the more underrated film scores out there.

Now since it's a Don Bluth movie, it really shouldn't come as a big surprise, especially if you're a fan, study his work, or both, that the animation is beautiful. I just get get over how Don always made everything move with such fluidity. Heck, even the backgrounds are hard to look away from. They look like they could be paintings.

The last thing I'll praise is the story. Even though the movie only clocks in at an hour and nine minutes, there's quite a lot to it. Going through a painful loss, building a friendship, overcoming fear, and moving towards a goal no matter how hard it is. In a way, even though it can get pretty dark, and the end it's a very uplifting film.

The Land Before Time is not just a great movie for the entire family, but a great movie in general. I strongly recommend it.

My final rating is, A Must Watch.

Well, that's all for now. Sadly, on Thursday, Sept 21st, I'll be having a Cinematic Disaster review of, The Legend of the Titanic. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

The Nun II Review

 

The Nun II is a gothic supernatural horror movie, the sequel to 2018's The Nun, and the ninth installment of The Conjuring franchise. It was produced by New Line Cinema, Atomic Monster, and The Safran Company and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The Nun II is written by Akela Cooper, Richard Naing, and Ian Goldberg and directed by Michael Chaves.

The story is it's been five years after the events of the first movie, Sister Irene now lives as reclusive. She soon has to come out of this lifestyle when she's asked to investigate a series of murders throughout Europe. She quickly finds out she's coming face-to-face with the demon nun Valak, once again.

Initial Reaction

The reason for wanting to see this was because I really enjoy The Conjuring franchise. Sure, it's not perfect, but a lot of the times they are some entertaining movies.

Cons

I've got nothing negative to say. Just move on.

Middle Ground

To be honest, the first act might bore you. A lot of does a good job setting things up, but there are still sometimes when it's just boring stuff, like your typical clichê bullying. Thankfully, acts two and three make up for this, by being far more entertaining and keeping your interests.

Pros

One good thing was the pacing. From beginning, middle, to the end, everything goes by quickly, without us feeling like we missed somethings, or without feeling like the movie wasn't taking its time to slow down for a bit. While the scares might not blow you out of the water, I can't say they were boring. There was still some nice tension here and there. I think everybody's favorite is gonna be a scene with a magazine stand. That one was actually pretty scary. The last thing I'll touch upon and it's probably the movie's best feature, is the character work. We really do get to know who these people are, what with tragic past, religious doubts, and so forth. Because of this, we truly do care for the characters, as suppose to wondering when the Nun is just gonna get them already.

The Nun II is not gonna shatter the landscape of horror or cinema in general. But I'll probably provide you an entertaining experience for a Friday or Saturday night.

My final rating is, Okay.

That's gonna do it for me. Come back on Monday, Sept 18th, for my Classic Film Night review of, The Land Before Time. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Differences Between The Ultimates & Ultimate Avengers: The Movie

 

Yep folks, it's another edition of Differences Between, only this time I'm done a Marvel comic series. But not just any Marvel series, but one from the Ultimate Universe.

One noticeable difference among many, is the amount of violence and changes to the dialogue. For the comic everything seems pretty rated r, as with the movie things are very much toned down.

Another changes that was made, was the team. In the comic series, the team consist of Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, Wasp, Giant Man, Hawkeye, Quicksilver, and Scarlet Witch. In the movie, the members are Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, Wasp, and Giant Man.

What was also changed was Captain America's escape. In The Ultimates, Captain America gets into a fight with security and Nick Fury, jumps out a window, and is then stop by Giant Man. In Ultimate Avengers: The Movie, most of it is the same, expect when Captain America gest outside, he sees how everything changes, ask Nick Fury if they won the war, then collapses.

The next change comes from Iron Man. In the movie, Iron Man is chased down and gets into a brief fight with both S.H.I.E.L.D. and Giant Man. This kind of encounter never happened in the comic book maxiseries.

Then we have our villians, the Chitauri. In the movie, they're spread throughout the whole movie, while in the comic series, there was more of a slow buildup.

There's two different reasons as to why the teams were formed. For the comics, the team was made to combat the growing threat of supervillains, such as Magneto. For the movie, it was because of the upcoming invasion from the Chitauri.

Our next change involves Wasp, Giant Man, and Captain America. In the comics, Wasp gets into a relationship with Cap, because she couldn't deal with Hank's (aka Giant Man) abuse anymore, which in return makes her pursue a relationship with Captain America. While in the movie, there's still some tension between Hank and Wasp, but it's nowhere near as bad as it was in the comics.

The next change comes from the recruitment of Thor. Mainly in who tries to recruit him. In Ultimates, it was Nick Fury and Bruce Banner, while in the movie, it was Nick Fury and Captain America. Both still had the same result of Thor declining the offer.

Then we have the team's first mission. In comic's team first mission was to stop a rampaging Hulk. While in the movie, the first mission was to stop a Chitauri intruder from stealing information from a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility.

Speaking of the Hulk fight, it was drastically changed. In the limited series, the Hulk fight happens much earlier and takes place in Manhattan. In the movie, the fight takes place after the invasion and the location is at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.

That's all for now. Come back on Saturday, Sept 9th, for my review of The Nun II, and just in case that doesn't happen, come back on Monday, Sept 18th, for my Classic Film Night review of, The Land Before Time. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Underrated Films - Slap Shot

 

Slap Shot is a sports comedy movie. It was produced by Kings Road Entertainment and distributed by Universal Pictures. Slap Shot was written by Nancy Dowd and directed by George Roy Hill.

The story is in a small town in New England, a local mill is about to lay off 10,000 workers, which in return indirectly threatens the local hockey team. Feeling this is gonna be the last season, the team goes all out and plays more violently, which excites the fans even more. Seeing an opportunity, the coach decides to use this violence in effort to gain bigger crowds and help the town.

Why It's Underrated

Simply put, the movie just isn't known to a lot of people. I didn't know about until earlier this year when I did research on what movies I wanted to do for this segment. Sure, it's on Netflix and has a cult following. But a cult following can only get you so far, and let's be honest, Netflix sometimes will put almost anything on their streaming service.

My Thoughts

One thing to praise is the performances. This cast was incredible. They nailed the humor, had great line delivery, and also had good chemistry.

Speaking of the humor, it's very funny. While there are some physical bits of comedy, a majority of it stems from the dialogue. It's shocking, it's clever, and also vulgar. So vulgar in fact, that there is no way a movie like this could be made today.

When watching this film I was very surprised at how much character work was put into it. While it is quite funny, we still get to see what our characters struggles are. Not only is that a nice tiny bit of drama but, it also gives the movie another layer of quality.

The last thing I'll praise, and this is something I couldn't help but laugh at upon realizing it, and that is, this is the anti-sports movie. What I mean by that is, all of the clichés are here. An underdog team, odds stacked against said team, a rise to stardom, the possibility of a downfall, only to have a triumphant ending. But it's flipped on its head by essentially being an unapologetic, crude movie. It's one half hysterical, one half brilliant.

If you want a good laugh or want to watch a good sports movie, you should definitely give Slap Shot a try.

My final rating is, A Must Watch.

That's all for now. Come back on Thursday, Sept 7th, for a brand new Differences Between. For that one I'll be tackling the Marvel comic maxiseries, The Ultimates, and it's movie adaptation, Ultimate Avengers. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.