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Reviews
Mythbusters Jr. (2019)
Finally - the right continuation of Mythbusters
This was the direction the show should have continued from and not replacing the original guys. Using the next generation to continue these discoveries makes a lot more sense. And they found a great mix of kids.
The BFG (2016)
Under-appreciated
This film, being by Raoul Dahl, is a very British story and Spielberg really captures that well. Special effects are beautiful, the BFG is expressive and engaging, and Sophie expresses angry orphan quite well. Overall, this is a great film. It is not a direct take on the book, but most people seemed to prefer that with Lord of the Rings, so why not here as well. It never needed to be overdone to be charming.
Being a fan of John Williams, I appreciate his very magical music. It doesn't have to be Harry Potter to be magical. . . and pretty.
MythBusters: The Search (2017)
Try Something Original not Reimagining
Don't try to replace Adam and Jamie. They are true originals. Try something new with a new name. This is worse than awful. It is sweet that they are educated and definite fans of the Originals but it doesn't need to be done. What was original about the show will be gone. New ideas to try is still not something original.
I love the idea of a Reality search for something; just not a new Mythbusters. Why not just a new show. Same folks who loved Mythbusters but name it something new with new intentions, new ideas, more original. This group really deserves to do something original; yet more of a spin-off from the Mythbusters. New Name. New People. New Show. New concept.
Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
Classy Soundtrack Required
It is my belief that a soundtrack makes or breaks a film. Honestly, where would Star Wars be without John Williams? In this case I think Kingsman would have benefited greatly with a classier soundtrack especially including the end credits. Trading Places was able to bring classical and modern together to make a great movie, so I believe it would have been possible.
Beyond that, I did like the story. It was fun to see Colin Firth and Samuel L. Jackson in characters outside their normal options and to see how they stretched with these characters. In that sense, I considered this a fun movie.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (2011)
Alan Rickman - Yes! The rest of movie - NO!
Alan Rickman did an awesome job with his portion of the story - his character was never separate from the book character. But the story was so rewritten as to miss many points that were important to the story. I understand how writers want to make the story their own from the original book writer but the value in the story comes from characters. Harry Potter was an introvert played by an extrovert actor. There were bits of the story from the book such as the final between Voldemort and Harry that went so much deeper to me in the book. Some of that value was lost in how the film portrayed the scene.
Many shots were filmed so dark as to be almost too dark to be seen. It was a dark story but did not need this lack of creative styling. As much as I love the books is how much I hate this film.
The only other positive credit I would give this film was to return to John William's music for the final scene into the beginning of the end credits! Because I appreciated Rickman's and William's parts, I gave higher points than this film deserved.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)
Didn't have to be the book word for word to make a better film
Dawn Treader is my favorite of the Narnia books. There are aspects in the original story that make it a beautiful story. The story has been rewritten completely to make it a dark and violent story - granted, with a bit more action. There are few enough stories in the world that could have rated an honest G rating and I think Dawn Treader is capable of that. The story of the Dawn Treader is a journey, but in order to keep the action, the beauty in the story is decreased.
For someone who has not read the story, I suppose it would be a good story with lots of action and a clear cut storyline. However, because I am a fan, the story is horribly rewritten to a PG rated story - the journey is forced to have a purpose it was not written with. I don't think that was necessary.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
My thoughts . . . .
I will start by admitting that I prefer John Williams' music and I am something of a purist when it comes to the story. I went to this film with low expectations and my expectations were met.
While I know that some really enjoyed the emphasis on the teen hormone thing, I felt like it was at the cost of other bits of the actual story. To fill bits that had been removed, new bits had to be written that were not in the book and in several cases, completely out of character for the ... character.
There is too much book to have a scene by scene movie - no books can ever be done that way without becoming tedious. I feel, however, that if the characters are retained in all their purity, any necessary story revisions can be dealt with. That is where I saw the most frustration with the movie. Harry of the book, the introvert boy who needs to become a hero, is not the extroverted Harry of the movie. Nor is there a flamboyant Dumbledore in a purple suit to go to an orphanage to meet Tom Riddle for the first time. Minor bits, I suppose, but they were meaningful to the true color of character. Those losses tainted what should have been an OK film. I didn't expect good or excellent but I did hope for "OK".
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
Music Matters
Perhaps with Book 7 coming out a couple of weeks later, I never really was excited about this film. However, when I finally did see it I was pleased with some parts and very disappointed with others.
On the positive side, the director did instruct Michael Gambon better this time and while I still don't really like him in the role of Albus Dumbledore, the performance was an improvement over the last film. Imelda Stanton was absolutely perfect as Umbridge - she almost looked like a pink toad - and the cats were wonderful.
Also, aspects of the books that had been ignored were returned to this book. Only Harry would call the Dark Lord, Voldemort. EVERY one else called him 'You Know Who'.
Another positive was the exit of the twins which had to be spectacular though I did miss the swamp. A bit earlier than in the book but I felt that as long as every one stays in character, a bit of change to the story is acceptable.
However, I am not sure that someone who has not read the book would truly have been able to understand the film. Like Book 4's film, it felt somewhat disjointed. Knowing that the upcoming films are getting more intense, it is probably time to accept that the only people seeing the films will have to have read the books.
The one thing I felt didn't help the film was the music. Because Books 1 - 3 were filmed with John Williams' music, a high standard had been set. Patrick Doyle was OK enough for the 4th film and I am willing to listen to the soundtrack album. However, the music for this film was just plain bad. It came in too bombastic in places with no direction. There was nothing about it that would make me want to listen to it again and again (I am a soundtracks buff so I do listen to a lot of movie soundtracks). It did not move me in anyway and for the first time in a very long time I left during the end credits. It just did not impress me at all.
There are many films that have done poorly that might have done better with different music. With the high standard already set for the Harry Potter series, they may want to return to bigger named composers.
One Night with the King (2006)
Favorite Bible story?
The story of Esther has always been a favorite story of mine, so why wouldn't i like a movie version? It would have to be the lead female. This is a character that would be the Jewish comparison to Helen of Troy. She should have been able to walk into a room and stopped the hearts of the men who would otherwise be screaming 'protocol'. The actress playing Esther did not seem to have that kind of carriage within her.
There were also sub-plots such as the boy turned eunuch that didn't seem to work at all. A simple messenger would have sufficed and not need to be a potential boyfriend.
The best scene, however, was my favorite from the Bible in which Haman recommends to the king what should be done for the man whom the king wished to honor. Ironic that the best scene should be taken almost word for word from the book of Esther. Was that a clue?
Nanny McPhee (2005)
A Perfect Fairy Tale
It is hard to capture a perfect fairytale in this modern world. Yet, the makers of Nanny McPhee did find one with the necessary ingredients. Children are not unrealistically good. Adults are not perfect nor truly evil; just like normal selfish adults. The magic in the story comes from one person and spreads to the other characters. The story, while not set in our modern times, certainly hints at some modern themes.
There was brilliant use of lighting and colors to portray moods and emotions. Dark intense colors gave the home more of a sense of mourning and growing anger. As life becomes for fairytale-like, the colors, though the same shade, seem to lighten and become more welcoming.
As for actors, I loved Colin Firth as the father. The children really behaved as if they were actually siblings - working together and fighting all the time. Kelly McDonald was sweet and Emma Thompson was incredible.
While this may not be for everyone, I do think that the story has something for both children and adults.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Harry Potter, the Photo Album
I love the books, but I still recognize that a book this large cannot be placed into a 2 1/2 hour movie without some revision. That was not the problem. In fact, I only see two problems with it: the director and Michael Gambon as Dumbledore.
The director chose to edit his screen play to work only for people who have read the book. If you have not read the book, this film would be moving too fast for any sense to be made of it. The best description I would place on the movie is that it feels like a magic world photo album montage of the events in the book. One of the things I have found interesting in the previous movies were the segways - very smoothly showing the passage of time. This film did not seem to flow at all. There was no recognition of the passage of time.
As for Michael Gambon, I am still a fan of his for the film genres that he does best. I do not consider Albus Dumbledore to be best played by him. Dumbledore is tall, thin, and with a strong sense of humor and whimsy - not traits Michael Gambon portrays very well. I love his past films where he plays the darker side of humanity with its levels of duplicity. Dumbledore is being played too dark, too over-reactionary, and not much of the presence Albus Dumbledore has in the books. I know that he will not be replaced but if I had my preferences it would have been Peter O'Toole who better fits the description in the book. Sir Ian McKellan would also be ideal but I suspect he had been playing wizards longer than he preferred.
On the positive, the twins were well prepared for the next film in which they do have starring roles. Ralph Fiennes was wonderful as Voldemort - exactly what I imagined. And, of course; Daniel, Rupert, and Emma have shown their growth as actors.