The Giver

I'm pleasantly surprised that Hollywood chose to respect the source material instead of butchering it to the point where it's virtually unrecognizable as the same story. Jeff Bridges is the perfect choice to play The Giver! (In fact, when I read the book, I pictured him as Jeff Bridges. Apparently great minds think alike.) While it doesn't have nearly as much meat to the story as the book did it still gets the point of the story across. 1 hour and 30 minutes was a much shorter runtime than it should have been. They should have added at least another hour, and given more detail about the society in which the characters live. We're briefly given a list of their rules, but not enough detail as to how this society came to be. Some important parts were cut out of the movie or changed slightly, which is why you really must read the book first. However you can still understand most of it if you choose to see the movie before you read the book. While at times it does feel like it took inspiration from (read: stole) certain parts of the film adaptions of other YA novels such as "The Hunger Games" and "Divergent," keep in mind that the book of "The Giver" was written long before these other novels; it just took longer to make it. It's well worth the 20 year wait though, because this film adaptation is nearly perfect. It's probably the best book-to-film adaptation I've seen since the "Harry Potter" series. I'm hoping Jeff Bridges gets nominated for his role in this film, because he's absolutely phenomenal. And so is the film.
Grade: A-  9/10  4/5 stars

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014)

See, Michael Bay? You CAN make a movie based on something from the '80's without ruining it. Surprisingly, I enjoyed this movie very much. Megan Fox actually does something in this movie other than sitting around and looking pretty. Will Arnett really steals the show as her sidekick and has some hilarious one-liners. Although the motion capture in this movie is incredibly creepy, once you get used to it, the movie really sucks you in. I feel like Michael Bay actually learned from his mistakes with "Transformers" and decided to research the source material instead of changing it completely. Although, you can tell he's not going to let people forget the "Transformers" movies because Shredder looks exactly like Megatron, no exaggeration. it's as if Michael Bay decided to subtly do a TMNT/Transformers crossover but left that part to himself. Although the Turtles' origins have been changed slightly (in this movie, they're April's pets who are experimented on by her father in a lab instead of mutated by goop in a sewer) it still works and didn't really bother me that much. Despite the PG-13 rating, it's quite family friendly. I'm pretty sure the only reason for the rating was because it's live action. If it had been completely animated it could have easily gotten a solid PG.  Here's something I thought I'd never say about a Micheal Bay film; make a sequel. We could see Bebop and Rocksteady, Casey Jones, and Krang in the sequel. This was a great origin story film, but doesn't really have much else to offer die-hard fans.
Grade: B   8/10  3.5/5 stars

Guardians of the Galaxy

This feels more like a parody of the previous Marvel movies, then a legitimate one. That's not a bad thing though, because the constant humor keeps you interested and laughing the whole time. With so many retro gadgets, such as a Walkman, this film may make you nostalgic for the 80s. It has heart, humor and Easter eggs galore. Some people may feel they want to skip this one, because the premise is too unusual. Don't do that. If you want to understand Avengers 2 next year, you have to see this. Marvel took a risk, and it paid off tremendously. Hopefully this will open the floodgates for some more lesser known Marvel properties being made into films. 

Grade: A-   9/10 4/5 stars

Happy 1 year Anniversary! (A day late, I know, but oh well!)

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Finally! A prequel done right! Rise of the Planet of the Apes was great, but this is better than it in every way! The great thing about this movie is that it's not very clear who's good and who's bad. Both sides have good people and apes and bad people and apes. The documentary feel of this movie also helps instill emotions that would have otherwise not have been had this been filmed in a traditional way. See this is 3D if you can because the depth and detail make you feel you are right there with the humans fighting the war against the apes, and once you see the apes' side you feel as of you are right there quietly observing. When a human looks down the sight of his rifle, you feel you are that human about to shoot the ape. The great thing is that even if you haven't seen the previous installment "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," you can still understand this perfectly. The first 20 minutes are apes doing sign language with subtitles on the bottom of the screen but you can still understand even without them. This film conveys human emotion really well, and the score is breathtaking. If the Academy doesn't nominate this for best score I will never forgive them. Listen to it on a surround sound system, and just let it sweep over you. 

Grade: A  10/10 5/5 stars

How to Train Your Dragon 2

Dreamworks has done the impossible! They've officially beaten Pixar as the best computer animation studio. Sure they've had some duds, but so has Pixar. (I'm referring to Brave) This is one of the best, if not the best, of all the films they've put out. Don't expect this to wrap everything up though, because just like Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, this isn't a sequel, but rather act 2 of a 3 act story that you have to watch in order. Fans of the book series may be dissapointed to learn however, that just like the first film, its completely different from the books. This is also not the same formula that Dreamworks has used for "Shrek" and "Madagascar." Unlike those films this has a darker, more serious tone and is definitely anything but cookie cutter. I'm optimistic that "Dragons 3" will not be Dreamworks milking a dead cow, but rather making a fresh cut of prime rib out of it.  

Grade: A+ 10/10 5/5 stars

X-Men: Days of Future Past

If you're looking for a movie that has twists and turns and a plot that you have to pay attention to the movie to follow, this is it. I can easily say this is the best film in the X-Men franchise. It's got humor, heart, and a greatly satisfying ending. This is the ultimate geek movie. I mean what other movie has Jean Luc Packard and Gandalf in the same movie. (The actors of course, not the characters. That movie is too awesome to exist. This film is X-traordinary. There are too many boring parts though. But when it comes to action, this film delivers. This is why it's one of the best movies in the summer 2014 movie season.

Grade: A, 8/10, 4/5 stars