Change Your Image
Katieehalt
Reviews
Depp V Heard (2023)
Misleading & incomprehensive
This "documentary" attempts to present itself as unbiased and neutral, but by the end it was very clear that its purpose is to generate sympathy for Heard. This is clear in its ommission of many important facts & evidence that anyone who actually watched the trial knows about. This makes it extremely misleading to those who did not follow the trial. Notably, Camille Vasquez & Dr. Shannon Curry were strangely given almost no screen time even though they played instrumental roles in the trial. The "documentary" also tried to make it seem like the general public supports Depp because they're bias and because of his stardom; the reality is that they support Depp because they watched the trial & overwhelmingly believe that Heard was lying on the stand.
The Son (2022)
Nicholas was just poorly cast
The script seemed choppy and not believable, especially in the beginning; I had that feeling where you're acutely aware that they are actors doing a scene. More importantly, the film needed a much, much better actor to play Nicholas, someone who could do the role greater justice especially with Hugh Jackman as the lead. The film did touch on some very important themes including the pain and mourning that can come from divorce, especially for children, and also of course the difficulty of trying to understand and help a loved one with depression. The film felt a little long and drawn out, but had a very emotional and impactful ending that made it worth it.
Cooties (2014)
Scares, laughs, and a great cast!
This film had great scares and laughs! The jump scares were done very well, and the film kept me on edge in a great way. Fantastic cast--I watched for Elijah Wood and Rainn Wilson and was pleasantly surprised to also see Nasim Pedrad. It also had an interesting storyline that made me think. Maybe the bloodthirsty kids were a metaphor for a teacher feeling "devoured" by their students and their profession, feeling drained, overworked, and wishing for a better life somewhere else doing something else. I think it was a really fresh take on zombies, definitely not the typical zombie film. Another great Elijah Wood indie film.
Jurassic World Dominion (2022)
Needed more Chris Pratt
Had some of the best dinosaur chase scenes I've ever scene, but why did I leave feeling like Laura Dern's character Ellie drew focus the whole movie? I was literally there to see Chris Pratt who needed more lines in general especially with Bryce Dallas Howard. Storyline definitely needed work and did not meet expectations.
Sweet Magnolias (2020)
Puts the "Sweet Magnolias" on an undeserved pedestal
This show is entertaining enough. My biggest issue is how it way too often puts the "Sweet Magnolias" on a pedestal and puts down all others, especially the men. Wow, do I get tired of watching how they put down the men, making them flawed and weak while the women are the supposed picture of perfection. Thank goodness for Ronnie who finally gave Dana Sue the reality check she deserved, pointing out that she always expects others to change but never tries to change herself. The other characters (unrealistically, in my opinion), idolize these women. It makes me feel like the show was created by southern women who like to bask in their own perceived rightousness, when in reality they aren't as great as they think they are. They claim to be good Christians but lack forgiveness and generosity towards those who are broken, even after they have demonstrated remorse; I'm so tired of watching Maddie relentlessly hate on Bill even after he has expressed constant remorse. She continually shows her immaturity while Cal just praises her for moral superiority.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
#SaveDaredevil
9/10 just for bringing Daredevil and Tobey back. #SaveDaredevil .. Oh, and for the scene where Andrew's Spiderman saves MJ. Point deducted for trying to get us to believe that Dr. Strange would poorly plan and execute a spell and for doing a memory wipe.
Spencer (2021)
Best work of Kristen's yet
It is amazingly refreshing to see an A-list actor actually do the work to get the accent right for their role; it's so distracting when they don't. I've never been a huge fan of Kristen's acting, but this film shows how far she's come. She's the bright light in this otherwise relatively slow and dull film.
A Simple Favor (2018)
Could have been great
This film should have let us understand and get to know the characters better (by showing us, not telling us). Blake Lively was stunning to watch, and I wanted more -- I wanted to see what she did behind the scenes, if she ever had a true moment of doubt, or how she interacted with other people. Anna Kendrick's character was pretty dislikable for all the screen time given (seriously, why did she sleep with her half brother?) and seemed to change drastically and unrealistically over the course of the film. We didn't get to know Alex's character very well either; at times he seemed like a really good person and then other times not at all. Like I still have no idea whether he really loved Anna's character or not. And maybe they could have shown us why he was attracted to Blakes character to begin with and his side of the story as far as his career failure.
Normally, you can get to know the characters and get invested in their path and choices, but we didn't know these characters well enough to even make predictions of where things may or may not go, which is normally what keeps you hooked, but this movie was all over the map both with characters and plot. If they had focused on the characters and simplied and tightened up the plot, it could have been truly great. I had hoped that Blake's character had another side/some goodness in her, so was a little disappointed in the later half and the ending with her becoming even more chaotic and a murderer. I had thought that Blake's character and her husband Alex were messing with Anna's character all along. But then you learn the Blake's character really doesn't care about her husband literally at all? That was also an unexpected character change. Final note is, if Blake's character didn't want the insurance plan messed up, maybe she shouldn't have reached out to Nicky so often and she shouldn't have left clues for Ana's character. I would've expected her to be more clever than that, but I guess not.