Captive State

The first disappointing movie of 2019.  It's not horrible, and there is some effort put into it, but it's a narrative mess of a film. As soon as I got home I had to Google what this movie was actually about, because I was lost about 20 minutes in. John Goodman is good in this movie, and there are some exciting moments, but most of the time I was just confused as to what the story actually was. Bottom line: It's about aliens invading and taking over....and that's really all I'd be able to tell you. Obviously the goal of the film is to take back the planet from the aliens, but this goal is never really met, and the film spent too much time attempting to be a "clever" commentary on politics (?...) There is potential for a great movie in this story, but it's poorly executed here. It's disappointing, since the director's previous film "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" was fantastic. This would have been better as a short film, and it also needed more thrills. It was just...bland.

Grade: C     6.5/10   2.5/5 stars

Mortal Engines

This is a mess of a film. The story is generic, the two leads have no chemistry, and the narrative jumps too quickly from one thing to the next. The only good things about this movie are Hugo Weaving, and the visual effects. The trailers made it seem like this was going to be similar to "Mad Max" with  technology/vehicle battle sequences. It was like that for the first 20 minutes, and then it goes in a whole other direction, and from that point loses steam. This seems like it was a case of poor editing, since the story jumps from plotline to plotline, while at the same time not being clear enough. 30 minutes in, I was still not sure who the main protagonist was, what the goal in the story was, or what the stakes were. That all becomes clear towards almost the end of the 2nd act. It was a case of "too little, too late." The visual effects are impressive, though. The machines are creative, and the robot villain was terrifying and had such realistic motion capture. But impressive visual effects alone, do not a good movie make. I did not feel any sort of connection with any of the main characters, and I was confused about the goals and stakes for 85% of the movie.  Now I know why this went to my local discount theater after only 2 weeks, and didn't even survive there, since it was gone from even there 1 week later.
Grade: D       4/10      1/5 stars

Captain Marvel

This is a perfect example of horrible marketing for a good movie. I wasn't too impressed with the trailers. They were kind of bland. I went into this with my expectations checked at the door, and this movie was above average. It wasn't as boring and uninteresting as the trailers led me to believe, but it still has faults. For an MCU movie, it's average, and for a movie it's above average. The main problem was it tried to hard to be another 'Guardians of the Galaxy' movie, but without the risks. "Guardians" was a gamble. (A movie about a talking raccoon and a tree?! Marvel has lost their minds!). It tries to capture the wonder of a sci-fi movie, but plays it too safe. There were many factors that I felt didn't go as far as they could have. The plot is pretty paint-by-numbers as well. This movie 'borrows' too much from other films. It didn't feel enough like it's own thing.  There were some amusing moments, and one in particular that got a huge laugh out of me, but the film played it too safe. The CGI is pretty impressive. I couldn't tell that the aliens in the movie were CGI. However, when there are scenes of characters flying, it definitely looks CGI, and cheap CGI at that. (Think "video game trailer.") Larson's acting is not as wooden as the trailers would lead you to believe (most of the time anyway), nor is the character of Captain Marvel as narcissistic and rude as the trailers made her seem. She's nowhere close to my favorite MCU character, but I wouldn't mind seeing her return. I don't know what most of Hollywood has against Ben Mendelssohn's natural accent. Mendelssohn is a terrific actor, but in movies like "Ready Player One" and this one where they make him do an American accent, it sounds fake, and is distracting. And no, this movie is not a 2 hour lecture on feminism. Contrary to the marketing, Captain Marvel doesn't put down the male characters (at least not unprovoked.) This movie actually can be enjoyed by anyone. Marvel needs to re-evaluate their marketing team. 

Grade: B      8/10       3.5/5 stars

Robin Hood (2018)

I thought this was a fun movie! I don't understand why the critics and general audiences didn't like it. The main complaint with everyone seems to be the "historical inaccuracy", but yet these are the same people that are fine with the Disney cartoon where he's a fox. Go figure. Everyone in this movie did a great job. Ben Mendhelson as the villain is always fun. This does have the lately overused trope of ''This isn't the story of (legend/fairy tale/etc.) you think you know. No. This is the real story", which is getting tired and old. This feels so much like the first season of "Arrow" that this is probably the closest thing to a Green Arrow movie we're going to get for a while. I don't mind that, though. It had fun action scenes, some witty dialogue, and a stand-out cast. (Though Jamie Foxx's inconsistency with his 3 different accents was distracting). I was thoroughly entertained. I just wish it had ended where it ended. Because after it fades to black there's the "This isn't the end, here's our set up for a sequel!" which I'm tired of, because 90% of the time that happens there isn't a sequel, and considering this movie bombed with both critics and audiences, I'll be very surprised if it gets one. I'm glad I saw this movie. It was massively entertaining.
Grade: B      8/10      3.5/5 stars