If these little coincidences keep up, you may have to give up watching movies for a while

Too much catching up to do.

By The Sea.

In the 1970's Vanessa and Roland are taking a trip to a French coastal village in an attempt to restore their marriage. Vanessa is a former dancer who takes pills and Roland is a writer with a drinking problem. Once there they meet Lea and François, a newly wed couple, who are everything Vanessa and Roland are no longer.

This film is directed by Angelina Jolie and starred her then husband Brad Pitt. Though the movie didn't fare well at the box office and was panned by critics the movie is rather good. It's nearly an independent movie yet it was released by Universal.

I seem to be having it for heavy drama's lately and this one is no exception. 3 stars.

Has anybody else here watched Tracers? It wasn't great as far as plot goes, but the parkour footage had me enthralled I've never wanted to learn it more...

Pet Sematary (1989)

Never thought I would still see the original before the remake. This is definitely King's darkest and twisted story he ever wrote. It even scared him to publish it. If you read the book you know what it's about. A family moves to a house near a highway full of trucks and a Pet Sematary in the forrest behind the house. However something dark lives behind the cemetary that is about to strike.

A pretty dark and disturbing film. 3 stars.

Pet Sematary (2019)

So I saw the remake. The movie was good when it comes to mood and Jason Clarke and John Lithgow gave solid performances. The movie seems to be doing well despite some changes. Maybe they were necessary in order not to make the film an exact copy. But this did not had the impact on me IT had. Yet, I'd give a 3 stars because going lower would not do it justice but the original was better.

Saw Pet Sematary on Friday with my Dad and sister. It's one of those movies that is kinda creepy, but kinda slow. Had some pretty good jump scares. XD

We also binged all the Indiana Jones movies while we're were at it. Those movies are SO good. lol My sister and I have also been watching the Fantastic Beast movies. She hasn't watched any of the Harry Potter movies though, so we're trying to get through those as well.

*phew*

The people in the row before really jumped up a few times, while I sat there as a brick. When things really got gruesome one of the girls really turned her head away from the screen.

Binging Indy is also real fun.

So what are your favorite movie endings? I guess this is for everyone different but I was more like aiming the final moment before the end credits begin. These are my favorite endings with epic grandeur.

This is what I've come up with so far in the order I came up with.

1. Independence Day.

Despite there is a clip, it cuts off before it fades to black, so here's the track. This was the movie I always figured had like the best and complete ending. Mankind defeated an entire alien race, world peace was at hand. It was like mankind finally learned. Especially those last 24 seconds of the track gives me goosebumps everytime.

2. Rocky.

When everything is over, there's only one person he wants to be with. Nothing else matters. Can't imagine what that would feel like when you find each other in a big crowd and be able to tell that person you love her/him. According to Sylvester Stallone that final moment was filmed in only 1 take.

3. Robin Hood Prince Of Thieves.

Another kind of classic ending. The they-live-happily-ever-after-ending. The bad guys are defeated, the hero gets the girl, they finally marry and everyone is happy. Though I'm mostly not in for happy endings, Michael Kamen's score makes everything so rousing with the usage of the movie's theme song in full glory. Now that's a feel-good ending.

4. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Despite Elsa's death, Indy reconciled with his father and also rides into the sunset with Marcus and Sallah, the people he really cares about. And what an ending to finish the original trilogy. This is how you end them. If there is like one ending that works everytime, it's having them ride into sunset. Whether it's on horses, camels or motorcycles. It works everytime. Fantastic score by John Williams of course.

5. The Mummy.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a decent clip but I'll make do with the track. Starting from 1:55 until 2:15. I like it when Rick, Evy and Jonathan ride in the sunset with the gold in the bags and again the hero having the girl. It's also reminiscent of The Last Crusade. Great ending score by Jerry Goldsmith.

6. Judge Dredd.

Judge Dredd. Long time since I've seen the film but I always remembered the epic ending with Dredd leaving on his motorcycle with the crowd cheering and a very powerful and energetic score of Alan Silvestri. Maybe an even too good a score for a further mediocre film. Still it made it into the list.

It's looking great.

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World had the best movie/franchise ending ever. But that's all I'm going to say about it

The Edge.

Billionaire Charles More, takes his wife Mickey and his assistents Bob and Stephen to Alaska for a photo shoot. When they decide they need the Native American Bob had seen on a picture in the lodge they're staying in, they set out to get him by their plane. Unfortunately their plane crashes in the wilderness, killing the pilot and leaving Charles, Bob and Stephen stranded. With no other means of survival the men have to rely on each other to survive. Only they find themselves hunted down by a large Kodiak Bear.

A movie with a great premise, yet the script was sometimes a little flawed. There was this backstory about Charles having his suspicions that his wife might be cheating on him but they don't flesh it out enough. Which is a shame, it could've given the movie more depth and then this combined with survival. Survival in MacGyver-style, since they stranded there with practically nothing, Charles tries to improvise on their situation. But also on that aspect, the writing lacks big time. Only two scenes really jumped out and that's in which Charles makes a compass and goes fishing. So much more could've been done though.

Despite these flaws the movie seemed to have been received rather well and there were a few great action sequences involving the bear. Actually they used a real bear for those scenes. A bear who had a long career of in appearing movies spanning nearly two decades. Ever heard of Bart The Bear? The bear appeared in movies like the two Homeward Bound movies, Legends of the Fall and this one both with Anthony Hopkins.

He also presented the envelope to Mike Meyers on the 70th Academy Awards for best sound effects editing on Titanic back in 1998 as you can see below.



Unfortunately the bear died in 2000 at the age of 23 from cancer. He was 9' 71/4" and wheighed over 1700 pounds.

Also keep an eye out for Larry Musser (Mr. Wiley in The Visitor) as the plane pilot and Gordon Tootoosis (Perry/Phil Crow Mask Of The Wolf/Trail of Tears) as the Native American the leads are looking for. Only just know I found out they were played by the same actor.

Despite the flaws and with all the info on the bear, I'm keeping the movie in higher regard then I intended. 3 stars.

Saw Avengers Endgame yesterday after work.

Other than some guy sitting in the same row as me talking to himself throughout the whole movie and eating popcorn like it was sexual experience, I enjoyed the movie a lot.

The only issue with the movie was that it's really long... so make sure you go to the bathroom before the movie, and bring tissues.

Had about the same experience, Jedi.

For the first time in a long time again, I wasn't bothered by the audience. Last time, I nearly, nearly really left the theater because I was so terribly annoyed by the audience. People, who just can't shut up! The time before that, people were nearly fighting, popcorn was already thrown. The lack of respect and decency in theaters lately (well actually since the last six years for me) just sickens me. People are not quiet, they're arrogant and rude, always looking at their phones during the movies, which is equally annoying. They should actually ban or at least scramble the internet connection and services inside the theaters. I don't see a reason why you should be reachable when you're going to the movies. I'm a frequent moviegoer, going to the theater two or three times a month (sometimes even four) is not unusual for me. But since a few years, I literally notice everything in there. Whispering, people constantly talking. Usually I don't say anything because you never know how they might react or they just laugh in your face, but sometimes... sometimes, you know?

Actually the best way for me is to sit on the top row, then it can't come from behind me. That's where we sat yesterday and those are actually the best seats, top row in the middle. Crowd was alright, until the final battle some guy in the row before me, (thank God, 4 chairs to the right of where I sat), started to wave his arms during the final battle. I mean like; "hello, there's someone sitting behind you." It's one thing to enjoy yourself during the movie just don't annoy everyone else. And when the battle was starting he found it necessary to start applauding. As if he was trying to get everyone to applaud, which of course didn't happen. That was the only thing that bothered me this time and I was glad he didn't sit in front of me or I would've used my own super power on him.

Other then that the movie was satisfactory and he seems to be doing really well too. It has broken records in ticket sales and the box office. It has surpassed the box-office of Infinity War in only 11 days with 2.2 billion dollars. It has already beaten Titanic and now stands on the second place of highest grossing films ever. It only needs a little over half a million dollars more to beat Avatar, which I think it's going to be able to do so, since the movie has only been out for two weeks. Maybe that 3 billion mark is in sight? Depending on how long the run will last, I think it will reach the 3 billion mark and might leave Avatar far behind and who knows once it's adjusted for inflation it might even beat Gone With The Wind that has 3.7 billion dollars. But it's a little early for that, IMF still needs to update their global consumer price index. But I think something interesting is happening with the highest grossing films ever. I think it's also to most expensive movie ever made with a budget of 356 million dollars.

Der Untergang AKA Downfall.

The final days of the Third Reich seen through the eyes of secretary Traudl Junge. The Russians are advancing on Berlin while the Reich is crumbling down and Hitler and his entourage of generals are hiding in the bunker when the final hours are slowly counting down and Hitler's world falls apart and the Führer himself has gone completely mad.

Great score and the scene where Magda Goebbels kills her children is downright chilling and one of the most brutal scenes, I've ever seen. It really makes me feel cold when I see it. The score reminds me a bit of The Basement of the Police Department from RE2. It's just sounds more chilling and tragic.

This is one out of three of my favorite war movies, the other two being: Schindler's List and Das Boot. 5 stars.

Martyrs.

About ten years ago, I saw this movie for the very first time. My first French horror film and it sure left an impact because I never forgot the movie again. Then recently, I found the movie on Blu-ray and rewatched it. I remembered whole bits and forgot others. I remember the beginning and the girl taking revenge on a family, though it seemed quite tame this time. But as the movie progressed, it became relentless and brutal as the first time I saw it.

The movie is about a little girl named Lucie, who escapes her captors after being ruthlessly and inhumanly abused. Taking in an orphanage she befriends a girl named Anna. 15 years later Lucie is still being haunted by her abused past and the horrible vision of a battered woman. She sets out to find the people who did this to her along with the help of Anna to take bloody revenge.

I really can't say more about it because to see this film the less you know the better. This movie is brutal as hell. Just so you know. 4 stars.

Whiteout.

Marshall Carrie Stetko has spend two years in Antartica trying to get over an incident that happened when she was working as a cop in Miami. Winter is about to kick in in Antartica followed by a six month darkness, the team of investigators and scientist are prepping to go back home. Only while preparing their leave she gets called out to the field when they find a body in the ice. She has less the 72 hours to figure out what happened or else she will be forced to stay in the facility until spring.

Whiteout is one of these guilty pleasure films with actually a nice MacGyver-touch to it in some way. The movie is pretty generic, yes and there might even be a plothole here or there, but if you watch this movie at the right time it's quite enjoyable. Kate Beckinsale was good and there were a few solid action sequences. The movie could've used a little more depth especially on the not-knowing-who-to-trust angle. But it was fun. 3 stars.

Deep Rising.

Another guilty pleasure film but this remains one of my top favorites. I guess we all know that story. A bunch of robbers set out to rob a grand and luxurious cruiseship that is sailing in the South Chinese sea. Only they find the ship completely deserted. Finding a few survivors along the way it turns out the ship has been attacked by massive sea monsters from the deep.

Of course panned by critics as an Alien knock-off. In some way it actually is. The gang is on a huge vessel with no form of communication to send out a distress signal while being hunted by monsters. Though I think the movie Virus is a lot more similar to Alien and also stars Cliff Curtis.

Anyway the movie also stars a couple of familiar faces in the beginning of their careers like Famke Janssen and Djimon Hounsou. Treat Williams was obviously having a great time during this film. Other familiar faces where Kevin J. Connor, Wes Studi (Last of the Mohicans), Anthony Heald and Derrick O' Connor (Vorstedt of Lethal Weapon 2).

Great score by Jerry Goldsmith. This movie are a great 95 minutes and with a fantastic ending. 3,5 stars. All I can say is: "Now what?"

Awakenings.

Dr. Malcolm Sayer (Robin Wiliams) applies for a job in a Bronx hospital for chronic patients. He takes care of a group of people who are in a form of catatonic state. Living like statues, yet able to move and respond on stimuli. While taking a particular interest in Leonard (Robert De Niro) he starts giving him an experimental medicine in hopes of bringing him and the other patients back of their catatonic state.

Based on true events and on Oliver Sack's book, the actual doctor. In the 60's there had been an actual event on how an experimental drug brought back people from their catatonic state. Unfortunately it was only temporary and had a few serious side effects. Apparently afterwards the patients still had a few periods of awakenings but never it was so intense as that time in the 60's.

Great movie and greatly acted by De Niro and Williams. I think Robin Williams missed his calling by becoming an actor. He should've become a doctor instead, whether as an actual doctor or psychologist, therapist or psychiatrist. I think he would've been a damn good one too. 3,5 stars.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

Another good one of John Hughes but not better then The Breakfast Club. If Saved By The Bell was a movie, it would've been this one. It has several elements that later was used in SBTB. Ferris Bueller is technically Zack Morris. He interacts with the audience through fourth wall breaks and has several inventive ways of manipulating people and to cut classes, but he's more likeable where Zack Morris is arrogant and selfish.

So Bueller decides to take a day off of school by pretending he's sick, manages to convince his best friend Cameron to ride their Ferrari and helps to get out Bueller's girlfriend Sloane of school and simply enjoy their day off because: 'Life moves pretty fast; if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it!' 3 stars.

Went to see Alladin last night.

It has been ages since I have seen the original animated movie on VHS and that was dubbed over in Dutch, so I never heard Robin Williams as the Genie.

To be real honest the movie was very good, despite the songs, even though the songs weren't so bad either. In Beauty and the Beast there was a song like every two scenes. There were several here too but they were not too long and not every two scenes and they seemed a little more appealing to me too. I wasn't like: "Not another song!"

Will Smith did great as the Genie and the cast was good. 3 stars.

So my sister, my friend and I were gonna go see Dark Phoenix this weekend. Apparently after three weeks, it's already being pulled from theaters. Anyone see it? I heard it was really bad.

I'm not sure what we're gonna see. Probaby Toy Story 4.... possibly Annabelle Comes Home.

I'll probably see TS4 at some point. I also want to see Lion King XD

I did. It wasn't that bad but it's not the big blockbuster everyone expected. Simon Kinberg didn't want to make it the big blockbuster it could've been. Why? I have no idea. It was his directorial debut maybe he didn't want to go down with a failure on his first movie or maybe it simply was never the intention but the reason is unknown for me at the time. It's a great missed opportunity to end this phase with a bang and of course also for Sophie Turner who could've done so much more. Instead they went with the scale of the very first movie. It's less then two hours long, it's way too light for what it could've been. The Phoenix is supposed to be the most powerful mutant ever, she deserved a better and darker story.

But the reason why I think the damage is not as bad as people say is this. I actually see this movie as another spin-off. It's not better or worse then X-Men Origins: Wolverine. It's an X-Men Light movie. I went in pretty blind so I was not that disappointed. Besides next year, after nearly a two-year delay The New Mutants will be released, which probably and hopefully be the beginning of a new series of X-Men films.

I guess Dark Phoenix will have to be a rental. Three weeks is pretty bad though... I don't think I ever saw that coming. Usually we wait a few weeks before seeing a movie to avoid the crowds. My sister and I are generally anti-social.

We decided we're gonna see Men In Black International later today. So, I'll comment on that later. I may see Annabelle Comes Home and Childs Play later. My sister and I are suckers for horror movies. I have no idea why... XD

Looks like we have a lot in common, Jedi. I don't like crowds either and they have reached some low points in the past few months. People who don't shut up for example or keep laughing when there is nothing to laugh at. Couple of months ago I think a fight has nearly been avoided when the movie was over. Popcorn was already thrown. Not to mention the lit-up smartphone screens. The lack of respect is just terrible. Yet I always make it a point to see a movie within at least two weeks and preferably on the last showing of the day.

Also I'm a sucker for horror movies too.

I seem to be in Wachowski mode recentely.

Last week I've seen The Matrix Trilogy and yesterday I saw Bound.

The Matrix trilogy. 5 stars.

Great movies, great script, directing, acting and score. It gives an interesting insight on the question: what are we? Are we real? Are our lives a simulation without us knowing?

I remember back when the movies were released I was always thinking about a MacGyver/Matrix fanfic but that had more to do with the fact that Neo's real is Thomas Anderson and Agent Smith refers to him as Mr. Anderson.

Bound.

The Wachowiski's directorial debut. Violet and her boyfriend Caesar are connected to the mob. Caesar has to launder two million dollars one of his associates had skimmed. Violet sees this as a way out of her relationship with Caesar and asks her new friend Corky to help her steal the money. Only when Caesar finds out, he starts panicking since the money was meant to be returned to his boss, Gino Marzzone, who is on his way to his place. Meanwhile Violet and Corky's plan has been set into motion.

Bound's history is rather interesting and only got deserved recognition after The Matrix premiered. The movie is pretty good with a lot of twists in it and is considered to be strong movie with solid directing. 4 stars.

Just saw the new Spiderman movie last night. It was fun! There are some turns and twists in it to keep things interesting!

Original Sin.

At the end of the 19th century Don Luis Vargas, a rich businessman tries to find love with his mail-order bride Julia. He completely falls in love with this mysterious woman from America. Only hours after her arrival they get married and he gives her full access to his company and bank accounts. After some time she disappears and Vargas finds his accounts depleted. Obsessed he goes to find her with the help of a private investigator. Soon he will learn that nothing is what it seems.

The movie stars Antonio Banderas and Angelina Jolie in the leads. I never expected this movie to be set in the 19th century, could've well been set in the present times and made for an even better romantic mystery or erotic thriller. The movie however tries with it's plot twists and suspense but doesn't entirely deliver in the end. Yet, I can't blame them for trying. 2,5 stars.

The end credits use a great song by Gloria Estefan called You Can't Walk Away From Love. Very rarely, if not ever, a song manages to touch me from the start. I even rewinded the end credits to hear it again. The song is very fitting since it both applies on both characters. Banderas who gets obsessed by Jolie and Jolie who tries to get away from him, while they actually belong together.


In a way it reminded me of the song used in Bitter Harvest when MacGyver and Carmen are talking outside. You can feel the emotion in the music and the lyrics. Also this song would've fitted The Endangered.

Child's Play (2019)

The re-imaging of the first Chucky movie. Chucky gets an upgrade to the 21st century and is now a doll that needs to be connected to an app where it can learn and adapt to things in the daily life without limits including killing. When a seemingly defective doll is returned to the toy store where Karen works, she decides to take it home for her son Andy. Andy quickly makes friends and gets interested in the doll but things take a turn for the worse when the doll sees how unhappy Andy is about his mother's new boyfriend. Soon Chucky goes on a new killing spree with his eyes set on everyone who tries to get in-between him and Andy.

The film is getting mixed reviews but in all honesty, it's done way better then expected. As if they finally know how to do it. And speaking of It, it's from the same producers and they didn't back down in anything. It has gore, profanity and humor all the way. Maybe these guys should try to reboot Hellraiser. Though the movie is criticised in tone, I think it's fairly straight. Interestingly the comedy aspect is what turned the fans off with Bride and Seed of Chucky. The movie clocks down around the 90 minute mark, though the ending could've been a little longer. Mark Hamill's voice acting was great by the way. 3 stars.

Never heard of a reboot, remake while the original series is still going with Cult of Chucky released only last year and a tv-series coming soon. I also heard that Don Mancini, the kid who played Andy in the original and Jennifer Tilly lacked interest in the reboot. No word on Brad Dourif though, yet the original series lives on for the moment with the new tv-series coming where Chucky will be voiced by Brad, Don Mancini will write the scripts and will leave room for Tilly.

La vie d'Adèle AKA Blue Is The Warmest Colour.

Adèle is a 17-year old student who's your average teenage girl. She goes to school, talks about boys with her classmates and thinks of her future as a teacher. Eventually she falls in love with a boy but does not find herself satisfied. On her way to her first date, she sees a young woman crossing the street with blue hair. Intrigued she looks at her when they pass each other. Adèle eventually ends her relationship with the boy and dreams about the mysterious blue-haired girl. After going to a womens only bar she meets the girl again and they start talking. The girl introduces herself as Emma, a fourth year arts student and a couple of years older. They start a relationship together and after a few years they move in together but the strain also creeps in their relationship while Emma tries to make a career as a painter and Adèle tries to make a living as a teacher. Emma experiences a lot of difficulties and is hardly ever home making Adèle feel lonely. As a result she starts an affaire with one of her male colleagues. Emma finds out and throws Adèle out of the house. Again years pass before they meet each other again when Emma has an exposition of her paintings in town. Adèle goes to the exposition on her own but realizes Emma went ahead with her life without her.

This is quite the alternative drama if you're into that sort of movie. The movie is raw and about as real as it could get, it's almost filmed documentary style. It's considered one of the best movies of 2013 and both actresses delivers great performances. The film however has a nearly 3 hour running-time for a movie that exists mostly out of dialogue, which is pretty long and sometimes I wonder if they couldn't split the movie in two. The movie is based on the first two chapters of a graphic novel and they shot nearly 800 hours of footage. They trimmed it down to 170 minutes, still a lengthy-sit and some scenes drag along, especially in the middle but the ending makes up for a lot. In case you might want to give this movie a chance, please be advised that the movie contains scenes of nudity, though it's not the main focus, it's about a girl who tries to find her identity and realizes she might be a lesbian. In all a decent, yet overlong movie on emotions and how to live with certain issues. 3 stars.