Tag Archives: Movie Review

Wakanda Forever Movie Review

Tags : Movie Review

The people of Wakanda fight to protect their home from intervening world powers as they mourn the death of King T’Challa.

Why did I come to this movie again?

I didn’t love the movie, Black Panther. There were too many instances of lazy writing, and because of that the theme (what there was of it) of the film suffered. I wasn’t any more excited to see the sequel, which is why I waited until it was streaming. My expectations weren’t high.

4 of 5

Characters

Queen Ramonda was the center of the story…until she wasn’t. Frankly, Angela Bassett was doing an amazing job, and killing her off (spoilers) disrupted the flow of the film. The writers could have left her as the main character. She had lost plenty and only had one thing left to lose. Her grief was palpable.

Until it wasn’t.

Although they needed a better set up to the queen betraying Okoye. The same clumsy handling of this kind of thing was in Black Panther, and I wish the writers had learned their lesson.

I might get some hate for this, but Princess Shuri isn’t main character material. She’s an awesome supporting character, and that’s where they should have left her. The actress did a great job, but once again, the writing wasn’t strong enough to carry her through. She could still have been Black Panther with her mom alive.

The bad guy was…flat. *whining voice* Bad men killed my people 500 years ago, and I’m still mad about it! Ugh.

The writers tried to mirror Shuri’s journey of familial grief with Namor’s, and while I give kudos for the attempt, the execution lacked.

3 of 5

Did I care what happened?

Somewhat. They brought Everett back, which I enjoyed. And until they killed the queen I was 100% invested in her. The plot itself was utterly predictable, so I didn’t even have that to keep me interested.

4 of 5

Plot Holes

It’s a Marvel movie with questionable writing. There were plenty of plot holes big enough to drive the Wakandan’s giant vibranium ship through.

My hubby pointed out a really good one…Namor’s people got snapped by Thanos. Did they not bother to figure out what had happened? If they were smart, they would have done some investigating, and when they found out there were beings and things MUCH more powerful than them, they should have come up to say hello to the rest of the world. Or at least make contact with Wakanda.

Also, in 500 years Namor has never had a teenager who wanted to be “part of this world?” Not likely.

3 of 5

How many times did I yawn?

I only got bored because the writing lacked. The action and pacing of the film itself was okay.

4 of 5

Cool Factor

Cinematography and special effects were top notch, as usual.

5 of 5

The End

Without a better setup between Shuri and Namor’s grief (it was there, but it wasn’t great) the end lacked.

I did love the very, very end when you find out about T’Challa’s son. I actually didn’t see that coming and was pleasantly surprised.

4 of 5

Overall Enjoyment

I gave Black Panther a second chance (it wasn’t better for me the second time) but I don’t think I’ll watch Wakanda Forever again. Is there some cool stuff in there? Yes. Do they deal with grief in an okay way? Yes. Was any of it good enough for me to kill almost 3 hours on it again? No.

3 of 5

Total: 30

That’s a Green Belt!

White Belt: 1-10
Yellow Belt: 11-19
Purple Belt: 20-25
Green Belt: 26-30
Brown Belt: 31-35
Black Belt: 36-40

The Amazing Maurice Movie Review

Tags : Movie Review

This story follows Maurice, a goofy streetwise cat, who has the perfect money-making scam. He finds a dumb-looking kid who plays a pipe and has his very own horde of rats, who are strangely literate.

Why did I come to this movie again?

Same reason as last week, I’d been wanting to go to a Sundance film, and saw this movie, which looked adorable, on the website, and it was playing at the theater with the recliner chairs!

Oh, and it’s based on a story by Terry Pratchett, one of the most brilliant authors ever.

5 of 5

Characters

In general terms the characters of this film were fun and delightful. Again, this story is originally by Terry Pratchett, so it would take a lot to ruin anything about it.

The rats were hilarious. When they told us where they’d come up with their names I laughed and laughed. Keith is adorable and very down to earth.

Maybe I was in editing mode, and therefore my brain was looking for issues, but I thought they could have done a better job showing Maurice’s true colors and how it was actually hard for him to make a different choice when it mattered. His arc didn’t feel very fleshed out.

The girl, Malicia, was a little over the top for me. It felt like they shoved her in there because the movie wasn’t quite clever enough on its own.

The bad guy was very cool. And creepy. Oh, and the piper was a real piece of work!

4 of 5

Did I care what happened?

I did. Most scenes built on the mystery and conflict of the previous one, which kept the story moving forward. Because I didn’t believe Maurice would abandon his rat buddies, there wasn’t as much tension as there could have been there.

4 of 5

Plot Holes

I don’t remember any plot holes. Nothing pulled me out of the film, which is good.

5 of 5

How many times did I yawn?

The movie only dragged in a few small sections. No yawning.

4 of 5

Cool Factor

In any Terry Pratchett tale, the cool factor is how stinking clever the man is. I loved that the rats were named after things they read on the garbage. Even though I thought Malicia was over the top, she did add to the fractured fairy tale vibe of this story. Each character was distinct and fun. The animation was top notch, and the voices were amazing.

5 of 5

The End

The bad guy was, as I mentioned, very creepy. His demise was both horrifying and satisfying. My only complaint was, once again, that Maurice’s arc felt flat and forced. His shining moment should have been more intense. His decision to put his friends over himself better grounded in his character.

4 of 5

Overall Enjoyment

While I have a few complaints about the film, I did enjoy it. There were a handful of kids in the audience, and they thought it was great. Lots of laughs throughout the movie from everyone, and everyone walked out smiling.

4 of 5

Total: 35

That’s a Brown Belt!

White Belt: 1-10
Yellow Belt: 11-19
Purple Belt: 20-25
Green Belt: 26-30
Brown Belt: 31-35
Black Belt: 36-40

Polite Society Movie Review

Tags : Movie Review

Ria Khan believes that she must save her older sister Lena from her impending marriage. After enlisting her friends’ help, she attempts to pull off the most ambitious of all wedding heists, in the name of independence and sisterhood.

Why did I come to this movie again?

I’d been wanting to go to a Sundance film, and not only did I get a preview for this one on social media, which looked adorable, but it was also playing at the theater with the recliner chairs!

5 of 5

Characters

Ria is a bull-headed teen who thinks she knows best, even though she knows she’s being dumb. Or is she? I liked her character arc. The writers didn’t make it easy on her, which was awesome. I thought she carried the idiot ball a little too long, but then she was right, so I’m not sure how to feel about that.

The mother of the groom was an awesome villain.

I couldn’t look at Ria’s sister without seeing the actress as the crazy woman in The Umbrella Academy, but her character in this film was cute.

4 of 5

Did I care what happened?

Yes. The film went back and forth between Ria’s life being a train wreck that I couldn’t look away from, or a mystery that had to be solved. Pretty good tension, especially between Ria and her family and then her friends. I only got a little bored a few times.

4 of 5

Plot Holes

There were a few plot holes. One was explained away by techno-babble, which I guess worked.

I don’t remember anything yanking me out of the film, so that’s good.

4 of 5

How many times did I yawn?

The only dragged in a few small sections. No yawning.

4 of 5

Cool Factor

The cool factor ended up being these crazy fighting moves that were so cheesy that we were all laughing, but we were also all loving it.

The spectacle of the wedding was beautiful.

5 of 5

The End

The end was almost over the top for me. However, I did find myself laughing out loud and cheering in my head, so that says I must have liked it.

4 of 5

Overall Enjoyment

I went into this movie expecting a cheesy film with some crazy Kung Fu moves. I wasn’t disappointed. The characters were solid, the plot held together nicely, and I laughed a bunch of times. Being a student of the martial arts for many years, I really enjoyed the action bits. Even the stuff obviously on wires.

This film embraced its cheesy self, and it was better for it. I’d recommend it if you’re looking for fun action and silly dialogue with the conflict of a family trying to do the right things for one another (even if they’re ill-advised) tying it all together.

4 of 5

Total: 34

That’s a Brown Belt!

White Belt: 1-10
Yellow Belt: 11-19
Purple Belt: 20-25
Green Belt: 26-30
Brown Belt: 31-35
Black Belt: 36-40