The Trial of the Chicago 7 Review

The Trial of the Chicago 7 is a historical legal drama based on the anti-Vietnam War protesters the Chicago Seven. The movie is produced by Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks Pictures, Amblin Partners, Reliance Entertainment, Cross Creek Pictures, Marc Platt Productions, Alibaba Pictures, MadRiver Pictures, and Rocket Science and distributed by Netflix and Paramount Pictures. The Trial of the Chicago 7 is written and directed by Aaron Sorkin.

The story is seven defendants have been arrested for inciting a riot along with others charges during the protest against the Vietnam War during the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Their trial doesn't seem to be a fair one so now both them and their lawyer must do whatever it takes to prove their innocence.

Initial Reaction

At first my only reason to see this was because of the cast, especially favorites those being Michael Keaton, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Then I wanted to see the movie because the trailer really got me hooked.

Cons

I've got nothing to say. Let's move on.

Middle Ground

The only grey area with the film is the score. It's good for what it is but at the same time I don't think it's going to be one of the big highlights of the movie.

Pros

One of the best things regarding The Trial of the Chicago 7 is the performances. This was probably some of the best acting I've seen from a movie this year, and to be honest I don't know which performance I can pick as my favorite. Because everyone and everybody did a fantastic job playing their roles. What also made the movie get was the cinematography. Not only is this a beautiful/nicely shot movie but it really does look like the the 60s. Another thing that made the film that was really good was the editing. It was nice, crisp, and clean. I mean it props to the editors they did a great job. The final thing I'll praise The Trial of the Chicago 7 for is the script. Now yes this movie does take some liberties but, I think people will be willing to forgive those. Because with how the story was both structured and told, people will let it slide. We did it with a lot of other true event films so why shouldn't this one get a pass.

I definitely enjoyed The Trial of the Chicago 7. The performances were phenomenal, the cinematography was great, the editing is top notch, and the script was very well written. The score is fine but I think it'll fall under people's radar.

My final rating is Great

So that's going to do it for me. Come back on Monday, Oct 19th for my Classic Film Night review of An American Werewolf in London. That's right I'm getting right back into the Halloween themed reviews. Until then enjoy the rest of your day.

Batman: Death in the Family Review Isn't Happening

Hey guys, so if any of you read the last part of my Tucker & Dale vs. Evil review, you would see that I said on this day I would review Batman: Death in the Family. Well I really didn't want it to come to this bad sadly that's not happening.

The reason being is when I was going to get my copy of the movie yesterday, because remember this is an interactive film and you're not gonna get that with a digital release but anyways back to what I was saying, when I was going to get my copy at Walmart they were sold out. So then I went to Family Video hoping to at least rent one but they didn't have either. Then I decided to go up to Alliance and see their Walmart had a copy but just my luck THEY ALSO WERE SOLD OUT.

Apparently everybody in Ohio had they same idea I did. Probably should've tried to get a copy on Tuesday when the film was initial released but I figured I didn't need to rush anything, boy was I wrong.

So that's the unfortunate news I had to give you guys. I'm sorry that this has happened but that's life for ya. But I hope you come back on Saturday, Oct 17th for my review of The Trial of the Chicago 7. Until then enjoy the rest of your day.

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil Review

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil is a 2010 comedy horror movie. The film was produced by Eden Rock Media, Looby Lou, Reliance BIG Pictures, and Urban Island and distributed by Magnet Releasing. Tucker & Dale vs. Evil was written by Eli Craig and Morgan Jurgenson and directed by Eli Craig.

The story is two hillbilly friends named Tucker & Dale are planning to enjoy a nice backwoods vacation. It seems normal enough until some college students mistaken them for serial killers. Tucker & Dale's vacation suddenly takes a bloody turn and now they must fight back before the students kill them.

• Negatives

I've got nothing to say. Let's move on.

• Mix

I've got nothing to say. Let's move on.

• Positives

One thing I loved about this movie was the humor. I had a lot of good laughs with this movie, and I think my favorite moment might have been when the sheriff and the college kids showed up at Tucker & Dale's cabin. Not gonna spoil anything I'll just say whatever you think could go wrong does.

What I also loved about Tucker & Dale vs. Evil is how it pulls off being a good blend of horror and comedy. I was expecting one to overshadow the other but that wasn't the case at all. Both are evenly balanced.

Another aspect of the film that made it great was Tucker and Dale are very likable characters. Nowhere in this entire movie can you find a reason to hate them, the writers did a good job making us love these two.

The other thing to enjoy about this flick is the homages. The movie truly does pay tribute to the whole killer hillbilly films that came before it while also paying homage to other horror films, such as one scene where it's a tribute/parody of Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

The final thing I'll praise the movie for is the performances from Alan Tudyk and Tyler Labine. They really played these characters to perfection. Not only that but their chemistry together was also one of the highlights of the film.

Guys I only recently watched/discovered this movie and I already have it listed as one of my favorites. It has great humor, a perfect blend of horror and comedy, I loved the protagonists, the homages are nice, and Tudyk and Labine give great performances.

My final rating is A Must Watch

Okay guys, that's going to do it for me. Come back on Thursday, Oct 15th for my review of the newest DC animated feature, Batman: Death in the Family. Until then enjoy the rest of your day and please give this one a watch. You won't be disappointed.

Charm City Kings Review

Charm City Kings is a drama movie and a film adaptation of the documentary 12 O'Clock Boys. The movie is produced by Overbrook Entertainment, Sony Pictures, and Warner Max and distributed by HBO Max. Charm City Kings is written by Sherman Payne and directed by Angel Manuel Soto.

The story is a young boy named Mouse wants to join the Baltimore dirt bike group called The Midnight Clique. Mouse is willing to do whatever it takes to join this group but his mom and cop mentor want something better for him. Will Mouse chose a different path or will he become the newest member of this gang?

Initial Reaction

The whole reason I wanted to review this was for three simple reasons. One, people seemed to like my review of HBO Max's previous movie An American Pickle. Two, I wanted to review another HBO Max movie. And three, after watching the trailer and reading the synopsis for the movie I was interested.

Cons

I've got nothing to say. Let's move on.

Middle Ground

The mix bag with the film is the dialogue. For a majority of the movie it's fine but there were quite a few times when it got repetitive.

Pros

One of the best things are Jahi Di'Allo Winston's performance. This kid was phenomenal! Whatever emotion he's supposed to have whether it'd be happy, angry, serious, or etc. he nails it. What I also liked about Charm City Kings is this is definitely a gut punch of a movie. Not only do the characters go on an emotional journey but you're also feeling what they're going through. So whenever you get the time to watch this expect to go on a roller coaster ride of emotions. Another aspect of the film was the father figure subplot between Blax and Detective Rivers. I liked that because it really added another challenge for Mouse. Does he go with the cop who's trying teach Mouse a better way or will he go with the cooler bike rider? It was a good lair added to the story. The final thing I'll give Charm City Kings credit for is the cinematography. I wasn't expecting the film to be shot in such a beautiful way.

So I think you should give Charm City Kings a watch. It has great performances (especially Winston's), it's a gut gut punch of emotions, the father figure subplot was a nice touch, and the cinematography was really good. A slight issue is the dialogue can feel like you've already heard this conversation before.

My final rating is Great

Okay, that's all for me. Come back on Monday, Oct 12th for my review of the horror/comedy, Tucker & Dale vs. Evil. Until then enjoy the rest of your day.

Cinematic Disasters - Black Christmas (2019)

Originally I was going to review this in December as part of my Looking Back at the Films of 2019, but the more and more I kept thinking about the more and more I would've had to write which would have completely destroyed the short but sweet format I have for that series. So here we are and wow. This is a mess of a movie.

Black Christmas is a slasher movie and the second remake of the 1974 Canadian film of the same name after the 2006 remake. The movie was produced by Blumhouse Productions and Divide/Conquer and distributed by Universal Pictures. Black Christmas was written by Sophia Takal and April Wolfe and directed by Sophia Takal.

The story is almost everyone has left Hawthorne College to go spend the holiday season with their families, the only ones who stayed behind are Riley and her sorority sisters as they prepare for their seasonal party. But what they don't know is a mysterious figure is stalking them and he wants them dead.

My Thoughts

One of the issue with this movie is the horrible pacing. The movie is only 92 minutes long that means Black Christmas should've been a breeze to get by, but it's not. Somehow despite the short runtime when watching it it felt longer. How do you accomplish that? That takes a special set of skills to make a short story feel long.

What also made the 2019 version of Black Christmas a terrible movie was simply put it wasn't scary. You could quite literally see the jump scares coming a mile away. And something I found hilarious was this movie tried making text messages scary. Yes, text messages. Now yes it is more realistic that the characters didn't answer a phone call because the phone would tell them that the caller's id is unknown. But a phone call from a serial killer is always way scarier than a text message. It just is.

Now to discuss the four BIGGEST issues with this remake, one of those being it has no connecting to the original 1974 movie other than it's name. Which begs the question of how can they call this a remake to the original if it has nothing to do with the classic? It's like if someone was to make a remake to Friday The 13th but there's no Jason Voorhees or anything else that made the previous movies worth watching. It kind of makes me wonder if this movie was to go by another name but Blumhouse/Universal remembered that they own the rights to the Black Christmas name and thought if they put it on this movie it would get more butts in seats.

Another thing that made the film terrible was the characters. They awful. Riley is a victim of sexual assault but her assault is so rarely brought up that it might as well have not been in the movie at all. Other than that bit of her character there's nothing to Riley that makes her memorable. She's just a blank slate. Then we have Kris or as she should be called "The Woke". Yes we someone's Twitter/Tumblr account brought to life.....cause that's what people wanted in a slasher movie. Then we have Marty and Jesse, I can't remember a single thing about them. They're just there. That's all. And if the movie isn't spending time with them then we have the other characters who are boring. There wasn't one. single. person. to care for. Yes, slasher movies aren't known for character depth but a majority of them gave us something, Black Christmas (2019) gives us nothing with these characters.

Then we have a villains....oh boy are they comical. They're literally cliched and they're motivation is so stupid! Basically there's this statue that drips black goo, and this black goo makes the men in the movie super strong that way they can put women in their place and be the superior alpha males that they were born to be. I admit that was both me making a joke/a shortened less sophisticated version then what the writers wrote down but that's basically it. So our villains are bunch wimps. Sure Freddy Krueger has magical dream powers but the filmmakers showed he was dangerous before he got those. Like I said the motivation for the villains is eye roll hilarity.

Now to bring up the number one thing about this film. Yes, the rumors are true. The movie does have a political message but the thing is it's bad one. For many reasons, let's list them

1) Why a political message in slasher movie? I really don't understand this. I don't know anybody who goes to see a slasher movie and hopes that there's some sort of political stuff in there.

2) It's a poorly written message. If this was a good movie the message could've been interwoven into the script while at the same time give us an entertaining flick. But the writers way of going about it was make the most standard, boring, easy to debunk, and overally preachy message to the point where nobody wants to watch the movie. Which is actually a shame because sadly there are a lot of cases where women have been treated horrible at college campuses. But like I said the writers didn't go for smart they went for "All women are good, all men are evil. You don't believe us well guess what you're part of the problem, we'll have #Cancelled on Twitter, now give us your money".

So that's all I gotta say about Black Christmas (2019). I know I typically go into more details about what happened in the movie but honestly I just didn't feel like it this time. The movie sucked any enjoyment I could've had ripping it apart (😆). Honestly after watching this I think we should give the 2006 remake an apology.

My final rating is Destroy It!

That's going to do it for me. Come back on Saturday, Oct 10th for my review of the newest HBO Max movie Charm City Kings. Until then enjoy the rest of your day and please don't watch this. Just stick to the original.

Underrated Films - The Blob (1988) Review

 

The Blob is a 1988 science fiction horror movie and a remake of the 1958 film of the same name. The movie was produced by Palisades California Inc. and distributed by TriStar Pictures. The Blob was written by Chuck Russell and Frank Darabont and directed by Chuck Russell.

The story is a meteorite has landed in Arborville, California. It seems just like a normal meteor until a strange slime comes out of it and then starts devouring everything in it's path. Once the town folks learn about the substance they must to whatever they can to stop before it eats all of them.

Why It's Underrated

The main reason why The Blob is so underrated is it just doesn't get enough exposer. For my whole life I can't think one time when I saw a TV showing for this. I don't if that has something to do with me not looking hard enough or for whatever reason or another TV stations just don't show it as much as they should.

My Thoughts

One of the best things about this movie is the special effects. Not sure there are some noticeable ones but for a large majority of the movie they are fantastic and do this day still hold up.

What also made The Blob a really good movie was how the Blob itself has a new origin, and it works. Because of this new origin you become much more intrigued with the story.

Another thing I liked about the movie was it's sense of humor. It's very well balanced. The humor was there when it needed to be, there wasn't a scene where you're suppose to be scared but then out of nowhere for no rhyme or reason there's a joke.

The other aspect of The Blob that I liked was the ending. It had a very bleak tone to it and it made you think of all the possibilities they could've taken the story had there been a sequel.

The final thing I'm giving the film credit for is the fact that nobody was safe. I mean it the people you think are going to survive this there's a 50/50 chance they're going to die. Which not only ups the danger to the story but it also showed that the filmmakers had some real balls when they were making this.

The Blob (1988) is one of the best horror remakes to be made. It has for a large portion a great amount of special effects, a brilliant new origin for the Blob, humor when it was necessary, a good ending, and the no one is safe vibe was also a nice touch.

My final rating is Great

I mean it when I say The Blob deserves to be considered one of the best horror remakes of the 80s. It's right up there with John Carpenter's The Thing and The Fly starring Jeff Goldblum. It's that good. Anyhow that's going to do it for me. Come back on Thursday, Oct 8th for my Cinematic Disasters review of 2019's Black Christmas. Until then enjoy the rest of your day and watch The Blob.

Welcome to Sudden Death Review

Welcome to Sudden Death is an action and a remake to 1995's Sudden Death. The movie is produced by Netflix and Universal 1440 Entertainment and distributed by Netflix. Welcome to Sudden Death is written and directed by Dallas Jackson.

The story is Jesse is trying to live a normal life with his family after coming back from the military. He takes his daughter and son to a basketball hoping for the bit of normalcy while he works security for the arena. This take a drastic change when he finds out the arena has been taken over by terrorist and now he must stop them.

Initial Reaction

Now I yet again wanted to do another Netflix movie so when I heard about this movie I was interested. I wasn't excited about it like I would for the big latest blockbuster in theater but I was looking forward to it. Especially since Michael Jai White was going to be in it and come on, that guy is awesome and very much an underrated actor.

Cons

One of the many awful things about this film is there's not much differences between this movie and the 1995 flick. Which is why when I was watching it I was asking the question "how is this considered a sequel?" Because sure there were slight differences but overall not that many. Another thing I hated about Welcome to Sudden Death were the characters of Gus and Mara. Mara is Jesse's daughter and Jesus was she annoying! She's suppose to be a sassy little girl but no she's annoying. So annoying that whenever she was screaming "Daddy!" during his fight with the final bad guy all I wanted her to do was shut up. Then we have Gus......who thought putting this character in this movie was a good idea? Gus is the "comedic relief" but he's not funny. In matter of fact his character feels like he shouldn't be here. It felt like he would have been better suited for a cheap children's movie then a cheap action movie. What also made Welcome to Sudden Death a bad movie was the music. First we had the score which was just forgettable, seriously I can't remember one piece of music from the score. Then we have the songs that they put in during scenes. Which I didn't mind in some scenes but in others it just didn't fit. Like there's a montage where Jesse and Gus are going driving around getting the bombs and the music in the background seems like it would've been better for a club then a bomb hunting scene. It was really weird. My other problem with the film is the humor. Whether there's a scene with or without Gus the jokes in this movie aren't good. There was two types of jokes in this, a) the joke was predictable or b) the joke fell flat. That's really all you get. Now to talk about the biggest issue with this movie (which is way I saved it for last) and that's there's no real tension. When I was watching the movie I felt none of that. In the 1995 movie you got a lot of suspense, for instance during the fight scenes in that movie Jean-Claude Van Damme's character had a really tough time fighting the bad guys whether they were henchmen or the big villain. In this one Michael Jai White's character goes face-to-face with them and just goes threw them without breaking a sweat. Not only does that take away any suspense but it also made the bad guys not look like that much of a threat.

Middle Ground

I've got nothing to say. Let's move on.

Pros

The only real positive I can give this movie is Michael Jai White. He really brings something to the movie even if the script sucks, which yet again just shows how underrated he is.

Welcome to Sudden Death is bad. It has probably the most annoying characters of this year with Gus and Mara, the music isn't that great, the humor was awful, and it lacks tension. The only good thing was Michael Jai White.

My final rating is Awful

I also just realized something, the title to this movie makes no sense because unlike hockey there's no "sudden death" in basketball. But anyhow that's going to do it for me. Come back on Monday, Oct 5th for my review of the remake of The Blob. Until then enjoy the rest of your day and stick to the 1995 movie Sudden Death, it may not be perfect but it's way better than this one.