Anonymous

Brief catchup on other stuff I've been watching...

I rematched Star Wars I-VI in preparation for episode VII. I can't say much that hasn't been said by others. IV-VI are so amazing to rewatch and so fun. Amazing hero's journey and all the rest. I've been a Star Wars fan as long as I remember and still, few movies make me happier than these. I-III are still... disappointing. 

Marvel's Daredevil. Sooooo good. I thought the pilot was kind of meh, but I was soon persuaded. The acting is top-notch, the story is great, I love comics, what's not to like? Netflix did an amazing job, and I'm looking forward to them expanding their Marvel universe with the rest of the Defenders. Also, I would love to see them in the movies, even if it's just a cameo. Vincent d'Onorfio was an awesome kingpin, and he would make a great Spider-Man villain (remember the first story arc in Ultimate Spider-Man?)

Marvel's Jessica Jones. Soooooo cool. I couldn't stop watching. It was so dark and noir and felt more like a PI show than a superhero show. I loved the tone, whoever developed the overall tone and feel of this show deserves all my respect. The story was thrilling all the way through and truly exciting and scary and gut-wrenching. David Tennant was unreal, especially in the scene where he talks to Jessica in the police department. I loved how disgusting he was as a character. "You raped me!" "I hate that word." Truly despicable and the show did such a good job with him being a stalker/rapists/overall bad guy. I wasn't planning on watching this or the other Netflix/Marvel shows but it was so good I might have to.

I'm rewatching Freaks and Geeks right now because it's been a while. Man, Judd Apatow totally nails what it's like to grow up. I was such a Sam Weir when I was a kid it's almost painful for me to watch it--it's like looking at home video. Even better, it doesn't just focus on that. Lindsey is the main character and her struggle is different, more about finding out who she is. And the 'freaks' are all amazing, there is so much talent in this cast. When is Netflix going to do a reunion season? Come on!

Also on Judd Apatow, I rewatched Knocked Up and 40-Year-Old Virgin. These are like the perfect comedies to me. A lot of Apatow's movies are a little too long, but I love every minute. I can see where they drag and I totally get it, but I seriously cherish every minute of these and other Apatow movies. Not only are they funny, but they're so relatable and heartwarming at times and just all-around greatness.

Um, I watched Ted 2. It had its moments, but it't not the type of comedy I'd watch again. 

I'm keeping up with Flash and Arrow, both of which are phenomenal this season. Not enough people talk about these shows because they're on CW, not a major network, but the quality is very high. Totally loving them. 

Walking Dead has been great this season. The pacing is better than it has been in previous seasons and the acting is still on point. The pilot (I think it was the pilot) of this season in particular was fantastic, but much of that would be attributed to the script (it was a non-linear thing).

Creed (2015)

This was amazing. I knew I liked Coogler and Jordan from Fruitvale Station, but this was at another level. It totally felt like a Rocky movie, but not in an annoying or derivative sort of way. Every choice that Coogler made, between plot points in the script to how to shoot various shots felt like the best possible choice.

Most obviously, the long take. Man oh man. That was just gravy. The choreography and acting was already great, then they do it all in one magnificent shot. Awesome. Another camera thing I loved was when Rocky put Adonis in front of the mirror and told him how his greatest enemy is himself. When they are talking, both Rocky and Adonis's reflections aren't looking back at themselves, but right into the camera, right at you. And it works, it was so powerful.

I also love how Rocky was kind of broken and ready to die. It does seem like that without boxing, his wife, and his friends that he really had nothing left. That's why it was so beautiful when Adonis made him fight one more time. Except this time, it was cancer. This is another situation that could have felt forced, but it came across perfectly because that's who Rocky is: a fighter. He always gets back up.

Michael B. Jordan was amazing. I can't wait to watch the rest of this franchise with him, he couldn't have done better. At the end, when he proudly takes the name of Creed instead of running from it, it was so powerful. "I have to prove that I wasn't a mistake" or something like that was delivered so perfectly and really hit home. And Stallone deserves awards for this, he was as good as I've ever seen him.

Overall this movie was excellent, better than expected. It was really firing on all cylinders--script, acting, direction, cinematography, everything. Like Star Wars, it didn't feel like a cheap reboot, but a beautiful and natural continuation of the story.

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)

There has been an awakening...

I have waited for this day for years. New Star Wars! And it's good! Like, really good! I just got out of the theatre and I already want to see it five more times. So let's get into it. (DON'T READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE MOVIE.)

JJ Abrams is the man. The movie feels a lot like episode IV, but you know its intentional. The story heavily mirrors that of IV, but it doesn't feel like a remake or reboot, it is very much a continuation of the story. And it is a natural continuation, it didn't feel forced. I had a feeling that Kylo Ren would be Han Solo's son, and it's so cool that Luke trained him. So sad that Kylo turned to the dark side, and Luke went into hiding. Kylo really feels like a scared, sad, confused character--and when Han called him Ben (for Obi-Wan) I almost cried. You can see Kylo's inner struggle, that there is still good in him, that he is scared he is just being used by Snoke (sp?).

I also loved the homages to the original trilogy: "Where should we keep him?" "Garbage chute? Trash compactor?" There were TONS of little references to the old movies and they were great.

Every character was amazing, except for Snoke, in my opinion. I just didn't like Snoke because we know nothing about him or where he came from, so I'm hoping we will see soon. Everyone else had clear intentions and were awesome, especially Daisy Ridley as Rey. They showed early that she is a strong female character ("stop holding my hand!") and continued that strength and badassery throughout the movie, but didn't beat you over the head with it, as many movies with strong female characters do. It just accepts that she's a badass and tells the story. I wish more movies would do that. Also, WHO IS SHE? Who is her family? Why is she so strong with the force?

I can't wait for the next one. So many questions need to be answered and I trust now that it will be great. So many loose ends need to come together and the next one should explore who Rey is, maybe have her train with Luke, find out what Finn's role is, and maybe find out who Snoke is. I want to talk about this more, but I want to see it a few more times first.

Sorry...

It has been a long semester. I got busy with midterms and projects and finals and did what I didn't want to do: start a blog and forget about it.

So, now that I just watched Star Wars Episode 8, I have to write about it. And all the other stuff I've seen in the past 2 months (which isn't as much as I would have liked.)