Unfrosted

7/10

Jerry Seinfeld is an interesting guy, after having one of the most popular sitcoms of all time, he's been limited in his output. The only major projects he's spearheaded afterwards are Comedians in Cars with Coffee and the animated children's film Bee Movie. And now he's co-written and directed a really fictional Netflix comedy account of Kellog's creation of the Pop-Tart and its competition with Post.

This is a throwback to films like Naked Gun or Airplane, movies that are just completely silly, wacky, and gag/schtick heavy. (The co-writers were the same guys who worked on Bee Movie, which may give a hint at the tone of this.) The film is the writers throwing a bunch of stuff at you. Not every bit or line is a winner (Seinfeld's got an interesting style of rapid-fire dialogue that may not work for everyone), but something that works will quickly come along afterward. If you're a fan of 60's nostalgia, Unfrosted is filled to the brim with humorous depictions of famous figures.

The movie is  a who's who of well known or at least experienced actors, usually comedic. Unfrosted is one of those works where you might want to tune in just to see who'll pop up next. Seinfeld and Melissa McCarthy, as the one's overseeing the creation of the Pop-Tart, and Jim Gaffigan as company owner Edsel Kellog III make for a solid trio that work well alongside each other. Unfortunately, there are way too many good performances to list in this. I think we have time to mention Hugh Grant, who's been doing more and more comical performances, but this is appears to be his first pure comedy that isn't also a hybrid film. Here he plays a thespian actor who also plays the Tony the Tiger mascot (seeing Grant in the costume alone is a delight).  Though admittedly he already played a full-of-himself actor in Paddington 2, I found this performance to be just different enough. He plays himself more faux serious and less pomp here. Grant is doing the most ridiculous stuff he's ever done in his career, and the famous actor is completely game for anything. 

A lot of credit should be given to the look of the film. It's very colorful, again evoking 60's nostalgia.

Recommended. I'm not saying this is the funniest movie of all time, but if you want something light that you want to turn your brain off for, then this may be for you.

Spy X Family Code: White

 

7/10

(Full disclosure: I did fall asleep for a small part of the film. I wasn't bored, I'd up my guanfacine dosage for my ADHD and was very tired.)

In this the first film for the anime Spy X Family, spy Loid Forger and his family head up to the northern country of Frigis in order to help adopted daughter Yor find the recipe for a dessert she intends to enter into a baking contest. On the way there, Yor accidentally gets herself involved in a secret military plot. 

This isn't one of those anime movies spun from a show, like the action ones, where you can coast and not worry too much about not seeing the original. Don't get me wrong, the movie does give newcomers a refresher on the basic plot, but the whole world and additional characters felt like a little too much for me (not enough detail). I think the biggest issue is that this is an imaginary, Cold War-esque world with its own helping heap of political backstory and international policy. (I do appreciate the world-building.)

But if you're already a fan of the show, I feel like this may be up your alley. I'm surmising that a main draw of this is the humorous situation the characters get into and the core characters themselves (this really feels a like a character piece for the family). That having been said, I as a newcomer did feel like a lot of the scenes of the family just hanging out went on too long.

There is action, but it mostly isn't till the end. Still, when it happens, the fight scenes are well handled enough. Also, the villain in this isn't too shabby. Since a lack of filler stories for ongoing anime stories can feel basic or lackluster, this guy at least had a bit of a personality to him. His design ain't too shabby, either.

This is one of those show-to-movie adaptations where basically it's television animation that looks a little better. This isn't a huge budget, but I'm not knocking it. The animators were clearly putting in the effort, and I particularly liked the amount of detail in the backgrounds.

Kinda recommended. I think the fans will be pleased, but this would probably be more of a 6/10 for newbies in a story that feels just okay without context.

Velma- Season 2

NOTE: This review doesn't spoil anything this season, but there are a couple sentences that are kinda a spoiler for last season.

6.5/10

In season two, Velma (voiced by The Office/The Mindy Project's Mindy Kaling) tries to catch a serial killer targeting men.

There does seem to be an effort by the writers not to be quite as aggressive with the material that turned off viewers, however it does feel like just a 10% reduction. You've still got Velma being judgey and mean and political/social and hip modern commentary that does feel like it's being thrown aggressively at the screen, but, still it does feel more natural this time. 

I especially think a lot of the characters are more likable this time around. I felt that Fred (Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Glenn Howerton) is funnier and feels more like a character than an over-the-top popular kid/man child. The season manages to expand the characters of Fred's dad William (voiced by original voice of Scooby-Doo's Fred Frank Welker) and Velma's mom  Diya (voiced by The Unicorn's Sarayu Blue). William who was mostly a disapproving father with limited screentime gets fleshed out a little, and he's more fun to be around (though, yeah, there are a lot of rich guy jokes with him). At first, Welker's approach, which was a raspyish, older version of the original Fred voice, didn't work on me, but it's grown. It does have a unique quality. Diya, who's role was more story-driven last time and didn't have time to breath. Here, she turns out to be as ridiculous and fun as most of the other parents.

I also felt the jokes were funnier this time around. Some may complain about the pop jokes, but I felt there were some solid bits.

Though many hate this, I do give the show credit for having a very unique feel that is character-centric, but also high energy weird and wacky. I liked the storyline this season better as the show goes to some pretty weird and unexpected places. (They really go all in on the brains in jars with them just hanging out as regular high school students.) Got to give the show this, it's not boring. One could fault it for repeating the hallucinations storyline, but with Norville (Veep's Sam Richardson) having them this time instead of Velma. However, this part does pay off in the end.

I'd have to say that the strongest part of last season was that the mystery itself was solid. You couldn't figure it out too far ahead of time, and it felt like everything and added up and paid off. This season does this but even stronger. Again, this show knows how to surprise you and there are many twists and turns.

The animation is still strong, continuing with a unique visual style and color scheme, and it's so much more fluid than you'd imagine for a comedy.

Kinda recommended. If you didn't like the first one, it hasn't course-corrected enough to draw you back. I concede that the humor is a mixed-bag, however, but I still had fun. The show is so unpredictable, and the writers do feel like they're enjoying themselves.

Civil War

9/10

This movie follows a group of journalists and photographers as they travel across a United States ravaged by civil war.

First off, the trailers make this more of a film focused on the action and battle movements, while this is actually a more measured piece that focuses on the journalists' journey. This is written and directed by Alex Garland (Ex Machina, Men) and if you've seen his Annihilation, this is kinda the same formula (a group on a journey) minus the sci-fi. When the action happens, it's well executed but the core of the film is a lot of showing and talking about the situation.

Don't confuse this being plot heavy for this being a boring movie. Far from it. This reminds me a lot of The Big Red One in that this is a travelogue looking at the madness of war that is composed of various thematic elements. This movie does a solid job of changing gears from the eeriness of desolate, war-torn America to dark comedy to moments of real tension. Civil War has one of the most gripping, suspense scenes I think I've ever seen.

The main focus of this film is on the musings in the last few years that the United States could go to war. This has a real world message in that an ACTUAL civil war in the United States would be a terrible, bloody thing that'd pretty mess up most people lives. 

For those radicals arguing in favor a civil war, this movie also makes a point that having one in a place as vast as the United States wouldn't be a single concentrated effort. (In this movie we've got factions and smaller rebel groups.) A lot of people may want the Democrats toppled, but how much you wanna bet they all don't have the exact same view on the government that comes after or what they want or what the real threats are? (Did you see the footage of the gathering assembled to stop immigration at the border? There was some infighting between individuals and factions).

The movie also a well-written look at what it is like to be a journalist during war.

Garland makes the scenario audience-friendly (and more importantly audience-money-friendly decision) by not to base this movie off of any real world politics. Texas and California are in an alliance and that ain't happening in the real world (maybe parts of rural California but not all of California). Garland does an interesting job of laying out the hints of how the civil war came without straight up directly telling the audience exactly what went down. 

In terms of visuals and audio, this is pure "cinema." The cinematography is excellent, featuring well-placed camera work and a strong design sense with what is undoubtedly going to be considered one of the most hauntingly beautiful movie scenes of the year. I do not have discerning ears, so audio work doesn't usually stand out to me. Not here, though. I won't go into detail, but prepare for some of the most effective movie sounds in a while.

Kiersten Dunst delivers what is probably one of the best and most distinct performances in her career as main lead photojournalist Lee. She is a cool-headed, hard-headed veteran of war coverage. Dunst really manages to deliver an objective and hardened, but human-beneath-it-all individual. Also really good in this is Dune Part One's Stephen McKinley Henderson as journalist Sammy, the eldest and wisest of the group. I noticed that the guy's stock in in the film world has gone up in the last ten years or so, because he does a quality job as an authoritative but approachable person.

If there any possible flaws to this film, some may find the final act to run a bit long.

Highly recommended, this is such a well-constructed film. Garland delivers his first movie that isn't sci-fi (or whatever genre Men was supposed to be), which has resulted in his most accessible film.

Night Court (2023- )- Season 2

7/10

Season 2 of the Night Court reboot continues to have Judge Abby Stone (played by Big Bang Theory's Melissa Rauch), the daughter of the original show's judge Harry Stone, preside over Night Court and its array of wacky defendants, lawyers, and staff.

This season tries to be more like the original Night Court by focusing more on the defendants and making them wackier. I think I liked the humor better here; it feels like the writers are having more fun. However, if you don't like comedies that are too silly and not grounded, you may not like this much. (There is an episode focusing on British aristocracy that is so painfully one-dimensional. We are regularly exposed to British television these days. We know that's not remotely how they act!)

There are also not as many occasional serious/heartfelt moments (particularly the moments between Abby and defense lawyer Dan Fielding (the original's John Laroquette)) as there were, which I missed.

Laroquette is still the best performance, continuing the character he built up over the years. His uncle-niece-type rapport with Abby remains the load-bearing pillar of the show. I think that the character of Abby still feels a little too much like a try-hard at being a nice person (in comparison to her father who seemed to be nice naturally), however, you can't deny Rauch's enthusiasm in her role.

India de Beaufort as driven but somewhat socially awkward prosecutor Olivia Wilde continues to be the best of the new cast, though I do think they gave her less material to work with this season. Beaufort has this "presence" with her delivery.

They've written sad sack clerk Neil out of the show. I'm not particularly affected by his absence. His actor Kapil Talwalker did a good job, but the character never felt essential and his crush on his superior felt a bit forced and awkward.

Recommended. Not saying NC is the funniest or best written comedy out right now, especially if you don't want your comedy too network simple/broad, but it definitely makes for a fun time-waster with a decent cast.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire

8/10

In this sequel to Godzilla vs. Kong, King Kong, now living in Hollow Earth, comes across a new threat to the surface world. Meanwhile, something seems to have Godzilla on the move, but what?

This transitions really nicely from the last film by focusing on the Hollow Earth that King Kong has found himself home in. The last couple KK films have focused on the loneliness of finding a place for himself and searching for any remaining members of his kind. His journey is interesting affair as he finally gets to encounter other giant gorillas. He's actually strangely the most appealing character, saying so much without dialogue. He never starts anything in this and just wants to live his life, and you kind of feel for him as has to put up with everyone else just looking for trouble.  

Understand that this is the Kong movie featuring Godzilla. The big G really doesn't do much till the grand finale. Though, it's understandable. I've read that Toho has several rules on what cannot be done with Godzilla (which, given how off-brand the 90's American attempt was, it's understandable). They want him to remain a force of nature, which means ixnay on the human-like facial expressions.

I won't speak much about the main villain here (the first original creation since the Mutos in the first Godzilla film) since their appearance is an Oogie Boogie-style slow burn, but they may be one of the best antagonists in the series, having a fun design and having more personality and being cleverer than other giant monsters.

I've heard complaints about the human subplot (a small group traveling to Hollow Earth in order to find out what's bothering Godzilla), but I'm not seeing it. I felt it was interesting enough. This movie builds a lot more upon the relationship of scientist Ilene Andrews (played by Rebecca Hall) and her adopted daughter Jia (Kaylee Hottle), the last of her tribe, and the now older Jia dealing with her identity. Whereas the last film had the novel decision to have two completely separated groups of heroes for each monster's subplot, this one consolidates the group, dropping several characters. Out of team G, they retained one of the more standout members, podcaster and conspiracy theorist Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry), whose comical elements seem to have increased a little in this. (I will miss the his other members and am surprised that the guy who leads the monster observing organization Monarch doesn't even have a cameo, but I understand that director Adam Wingard (who also the last film, the most recent Blair Witch, and Your're Next) probably didn't want to oversaturate the story now that it was simpler and more time was needed for Kong's story. On the Kong team's side, they're mostly back, but the scientist guy is replaced with another guy, Trapper (Downton Abbey/the live-action Beauty and the Beast's Dan Stevens). I don't see the reason for the change (the last guy wasn't irreplaceable per se, but he did well and had a good rapport with Ilene and Jia). Trapper serves as the "speaks for the natural order" guy, and he does well enough. Thing is the script has both him and Bernie be the odd, funny guys, and it feels like the movie only needed one. Though, there a few moments where the "weird guys but in different ways"interaction energy pays off.

Course, most people are here for the action, and like the last film, this one delivers. Wingard exercises a little more creativity with the fight choreography and the effects look great. Although, I think that the last film was slightly superior when it came to intensity. However, it also feels like Wingard and the writers really didn't care about putting the monsters out of harms way (even less than last time). If you have issue with rooting for the big G and KK when they are also trampling a lot of people, this might not be for you.

The special effects are even better than last time. The entire look of Hollow Earth might be one of the most impressive science fiction/fantasy landscapes of this decade (real 70's/80's fantasies vibes).

Last thing to say is that like the last movie the epilogue wraps up too quickly. Would've liked a little more explanation.

Highly recommended. Very entertaining and the overall story feels tighter and more interesting than last time.

Road House (2024)

7/10

In this Amazon Prime remake of the classic late 80's Patrick Swayze action flick, former UFC fighter haunted by his past Dalton (played by Jake Gylenhall) is hired to be head bouncer for a Florida road house called the Road House. He soon finds himself at odds with a gang that's trying to get the place to sell.

This is a movie who's creators understood what made the first one popular: being kinda nuts and campy. There is a lot of entertaining well-choreographed brawling with some pretty unexpected moments. 

Another thing they learned from the original was to keep the villains colorful and over-the-top. A highlight is seeing the villains' sheer frustration and occasional fear as Dalton shrugs off their attacks.

Credit should also be given to the movie for not trying too hard to copy and paste from the original (but, alas, no throat ripping).

However, the movie is bogged down a bit by the plot (this didn't need to be a full two hours). We're all here for the action, and I think many will want the Dalton's personal journey scenes to wrap up quicker. Both this and the original film had a dark backstory for the hero and scenes of him getting to know the townsfolk. However, the original knew to keep things more economic with snappier writing. The townsfolk are just okay and the love interest could've been cut (plus the original meetup between her and Dalton is if the writers said "Let's replicate the meetup from the first film but shoddier"). They should've done more with bar owner Frankie (Shrinking's Jessica Williams), who was a solid character but kinda fades out near the end.

Originally the film's strong suit is the various ways the baddies come up with taking out Dalton, but admittedly one of them, which involves a plot element that is added too late in the film, is one too many.

Gylenhall is well cast as the guy who tries to handle things the nice way but woe to anyone who declines. Broad City's Arturo Castro is funny as a surprisingly naive, good-natured member of the gang.

I liked the change of location from Missouri to the photogenic Florida coast. I also like the look of the Road Shack, it's one of those easy-access-to-the-outside affairs you find in perpetually warm climates. 

Recommended. The original is still the superior product (due to that 80's magic that can't be replicated, tighter script, and, of course, the throat ripping), but this is still a pretty entertaining affair.