luzm88 Reviews

Black Panther (2018)

Subtle and direct punches

[10/10 · 20 February 2018]

I have had the privilege to watch this movie twice this past weekend. The second time was in Baldwin Park, where I was surrounded by my fellow people of color. It was such a wonderful experience both times.

The start of the movie is a bit jarring and rushed, but I am grateful that they included the mythology so early. All the main characters were amazing. Each relationship seemed solid and unique. The personalities felt real. The villains, what can I say? Klaue was a bit on the ridiculous side, serving as a comic relief almost. Still, his point of view added to the richness of the film. Being that "those savages" (Wakandians) did not deserve the riches that they possessed. There was no real reason given as to why he felt this way, but perhaps the point was to leave the reasons open enough for all the various reasons people feel entitled to another's things.

Killmonger, what can I say about him? I felt for him. He was a tough villain to dislike, because, although his methodology/execution is very very flawed, his points are so very valid. Every now and then he would say a bit a dialogue which would cut deep into current issues. His last lines, which I believe went something along the lines of this: "Just bury me in the ocean with my ancestors who jumped ship, because they knew that death was better than bondage". Wow.....

Again, Killmonger's actions were not redeemable, he became as much a monster as those he sought to destroy. He was so blinded by pain, anger, and rage, that he drew pleasure in the idea of one day giving it all back to a world so flawed that would subject a child to horrors and violence.

No movie is perfect. In my opinion, some character's motivations were a bit exaggerated, (W'Kabi losing loyalty to his friend and going against his love because he was upset that his friend did not immediately succeed in delivering Klaue and Killmonger happened to). Some the effects were also questionable. But again, no movie is perfect.

Shout out to M'Baku. Leader of the Jabari and King of sass. Yes, I'm done now.

Wonder Woman (2017)

Great movie and awesome beginnings!

[10/10 · 9 June 2017]

Having just left the movie theater, my thoughts are a jumble. But overall I'm left with this wonderful feeling about what I just saw. I honestly have no criticism. I loved the character'a journey from innocence to knowledge. I loved the action sequences. The story made sense. The characters were like-able. And the important ones weren't forgettable! And that plot twist! I did not expect the Aries reveal! Nor for all the real-ish war depiction. She's a woman who's not afraid to kill and kick ass.

Well, my only critique is regarding the last fight and the villains. How did literally only a handful of people notice the freaking GOD fight happening feet away?! Also the villains in general weren't given much backstory or development. Like the Dr. Poison. Who was she and what were her motivations? But I am willing to let that go as the rest of the plot and movie seemed well put together and I'm hoping for future appearances in the future.

Overall, great movie. Loved this incarnation of Wonder Woman. Can't wait to see more.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)

Great Adventure

[9/10 · 5 June 2017]

My main criticism was that I don't feel like you needed to have seen the previous movie to really get/enjoy this one. You would have missed out on the bonding of the team and the backstory of Nebula and Gamora, but overall you'd be fine.

Overall, though it was a great movie, it felt more like a side story in the many adventures of the Guardians of the Galaxy and less like an actual continuation of their main story. Why? Well, we did have that wonderful cameo of great actors who portrayed the original Guardians. We had our Stan Lee cameo. And, we had Peter Quill's backstory explained. Other then that, I don't yet see how any of this advanced the main plot of Thanos or of any big threat to the Galaxy.

My favorite parts of the movie were Rocket and Yondu's character growth. I felt tears in my eyes when Yondu died. Such a powerful message that parentage and parents can be such distinct things. Also, Gamora and Nebula's sister bonding and reconciliation. Their scenes were so much of what it is to be a sister. One cannot hate in such a way without there being love in the mix.

The only truly plot advancing potential that I saw in this movie were the after-credit scenes. Especially the one with Adam. Only time will tell if any more of this will have an effect on the Marvel Universe. Regardless, this was a great story to tell.

Splash, Too (1988 TV Movie)

Why did you do this to Splash?

[5/10 · 5 June 2017]

As a child, I loved Splash! It was a supernatural rom-com! The rom- com kinda flew over my head, as it was the mermaid part that was really ingrained in my childhood memories.

Re-watching Splash as an adult was still great. I loved the characters that they created, the story, and the message. Madison was such an admirable character, a strong woman not afraid to literally enter a new world. When I heard there was a Splash Too, I was so happy. Then I watched it.

I was so disappointed at the shear lack of continuity. I am not expecting real life logic here, but this continuation completely ignores the MAIN PLOT issue as to why they left. The GOVERNMENT and the WORLD found out that mermaids exist and they did so as cameras were rolling outside a presidential address event. Meaning that EVERYONE should know what they look like. How is it then that they can just come back to society a few years after the events of the first movie like nothing every happened? Wouldn't people recognize them? Would the government just give up on the search for the mermaid?

If this wasn't enough, they just completely changed the personalities of the characters! This is not a critique on the actors who took over the roles, I think they portrayed the new characters nicely, but these were not Madison and Allen! The marine animal conservation spin was nice, but I don't think the story was adequately done.

Overall I was sorely disappointed with the direction, lack of continuity, and destruction of the characters I grew to love from the first Splash.

Beauty and the Beast (I) (2017)

My childhood was not ruined!

[10/10 · 5 June 2017]

I have re-watched this in theaters this weekend, so I come fresh with this movie in mind.

Having said that, my perception of this movie has not changed. I will also add that this story was my favorite Disney story growing up. Having watched it twice now, my experience has remained the same. I still got lost in the story, the imagery, the music, and the singing.

The plot was almost completely the same as that of the cartoon version, with a few additions. I very much loved these new additions as they added depth to the story and closed some plot holes. It also helped to better establish the relationship between Belle and the Beast.

P.S. Loved the gay millisecond! I don't know what all the fuss was about.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)

Good movie in general, but terrible Pirates movie overall

[6/10 · 30 May 2017]

On the whole, it wasn't a terrible movie. If you don't know the franchise, then watching this is kind of cool. This in itself is kind of a backhanded compliment as it's not a good sign that you don't have to watch the previous movies to be on board with this one. Some scenes might be confusing, but overall, you'd be fine.

On the whole, it's an action movie. Simple plot, simple characters, simple goals. They didn't , in my opinion, destroy the characters that they'd built over these past 4 movies.

All this being said, it was a bad Pirates of the Caribbean move! There was no character growth, the motivations for the characters were weak, and the new characters and possible plot points were discarded. Given what we've come to expect from a Pirates movie, this movie was so basic and simple. No new mythology or even no diving in the treasure of mythology that they've already created. I was SO disappointed in the Poseidon's Triton. They found it and destroyed it so easily and quickly. What was the point?!

PLOT ISSUES RANT: Sure it broke all sea curses, but what does that mean? Will there be no new sea curses? Especially given the Davy Jones post-credit scene. What gives? He was dead! Now he's not? As far as I saw, the Triton didn't bring back people to life that had been cursed by/at the sea. If it had brought him back, wouldn't he have been a normal human like Salazar? And what of the witch character Shansa? She seemed like a bad-ass character with whom they did very little and gave basically no backstory. How do they go from On Stranger Tides to this?! This is not to say that On Stranger Tides wasn't without it's issues, but at least it wasn't so simple.

My overall thoughts are that it was a good movie, but a terrible Pirates movie as it ignored the characters and mythology that it's created in favor of a simple sea action movie with ghosts.