kcrateau Reviews

Monkey Man (2024)

Because of the haters

[10/10 · 17 July 2024]

So many reviews talking about this being a ripoff of John Wick. Honestly, I though the last 30 min was way better that just watching John wick shoot, punch, reload, shoot, reload, reload, reload.... you get me. I was actually pleasantly surprised that it wasn't a gun riddled hail of bullets for 90 minutes. Those saying it needs more backstory, did you watch the movie? Do you want a prequel to show his life and his mothers oppression under authoritarian rule and government/police corruption? Would that have been an awesome long story to tell? No. Use your brain. It's obvious the backstory. This is a revenge story, not an epic family story telling drama.

I hate that I think that many of the bad reviews and criticism is because this was an Indian film from an Indian writer and an Indian director, but some are just gonna never be happy.

Truly without over rating just to fight the freakin 1s and 2s out there, I call this a 7.5.

Civil War (I) (2024)

Didn't love it. Didn't hate it

[7/10 · 11 July 2024]

I was expecting a little more of a political strategy movie with some idea of why the war started, who were the good guys, who were the bad guys, but I guess the unknown of that is really what they were going for. I was originally kinda bored with the first 30 but As I write this I realize that the buildup was worth the dramatic last 30. I did hear after release that this was built from a press standpoint and I think the political and social commentary was built well within the dialogue. But I guess my tastes for movies would've been for a more dramatic take on the actual fight for the country. I mean the factions and districts that were laid out weren't very clear as to how they formed, how they planned to fight back, it I guess that's more of a miniseries plot than a two hour movie. I'd recommend to give it a watch.

Unfrosted (2024)

Hot Garbage

[2/10 · 5 May 2024]

As a 47-year-old man who enjoyed Seinfeld in the prime of my life, I never thought in my wildest dreams that Jerry would put something so awful on the screen. I think this Is indicative of the Bruce Willis's of the world who needed some money at the end of their career and put their name on something that could be marketed for millions but produce absolute dog crap. I don't Think I laughed the entire movie and was somewhat put off by the childish comedic humor. I'm not sure how this got green lit for production unless someone just said Jerry Seinfeld is directing so it must be gold. Skip this movie please if you can. You'll thank yourself in the morning!!

Stargate Universe: Air: Part 2 (2009) Season 1, Episode 2

Big plot miss on this episode

[7/10 · 25 April 2024]

Ok, so on a rewatch I realized that they have a set of flying remote control ball remotes that seem super stable and controllable. They don't think to punch in the right commands, leave the last button to be pushed and somehow try to have the remote sphere push the last command, sacrificing one time baseball sized drone?

I mean wouldn't it have been worth a few attempts? Even if it was a touch screen that needed a finger then chip off someone's finger and attach it. Again, worth a try before sacrificing one of the passengers.

Hxhehfiwkndvrjekdkdbdhsjskskdbsjsksjdbdbdbhsjsndbdbsjsnsbdbsbbsbsbbs!!

Got my characters in!!:)

The Beekeeper (2024)

Absolute garbage

[1/10 · 3 April 2024]

Omg this could be the worst movie ever made. This is like below Hudson Hawk quality. Some guy goes on a murderous rampage after an old woman he barely knows is defrauded by an entirely way to over the top crime organization thats modeled after a glitzy Wolf of Wall Street type of organization? Can't even finish this movie. Stunt scenes are cut so bad that you can tell they are just jumbled together clips. And oh, federal agents storming a building just stand down to some private security guys with a piece of paper? Alcoholic daughter of the old woman just shows up and has jurisdiction everywhere with absolutely no oversight, especially given that her mother is the main originating victim in the case?? Wow. I'll never get my $6 back from this horrible piece of trash!!!

3 Body Problem (2024– )

So much more to go

[8/10 · 27 March 2024]

If you were one of the ones bailing after two episodes I feel bad for you. I saw comments like "Sci-fi with no Sci-fi" and "why introduce these meaningless characters with cancer...." And if you get to episode 4-5 it gets so heavy into sci-fi that so many fans will miss it if they take the advice of those quick to judgement who claimed it was trash. Yes I found myself asking several plot questions in my head throughout but it was definitely deserved of an each by those who fin aliens, space travel and geopolitical dramas to be their go-to. Watch it and you won't be disappointed. Really looking forward to a next season.

It Comes at Night (2017)

Is there really a story?

[6/10 · 9 February 2024]

Meh, the acting was fine, setting was good, and the score and lighting made for a suspenseful movie. But, and I hate to say this because I often scoff at people using the word pacing, but the timing was so weird. Three days here a few weeks there, kid got sick right away, then the others lasted a few days? They really didn't make me care about any of these characters except for the dad. Barely even knew the wife. The little kid was just like an afterthought. I'm. It saying this was a waste of two hours but I just think there were some things that could've been better. I mean, the whole dog getting infected did nothing to move the story. The dream scene with the son going into the woods did nothing to reveal anything about the underlying threat. Watch it if you want, but I wouldn't say I liked it.

Finestkind (2023)

Balancing out the score for a good movie

[10/10 · 20 December 2023]

This movie wasn't perfect. There were definitely some holes in the plot and a few things I would've liked to see go in a different direction. But you know what? I'm not a director or a producer and it's not really up to me. I take in what's in front of me and if I enjoy the characters and the outcome then be damned with the little arguments over points of the movie that aren't just absolutely perfect. To be fair, Charlie's sudden head over heels relationship with Mable was a little rushed and how the boys got out of any connection to a triple murder donut store shooting is beyond me, but it's a movie. And suspending belief in every logical point is sometimes necessary when trying to watch a 2 hr movie covering a complex week in the lives of the characters. Worth a watch.

Leave the World Behind (2023)

What?

[3/10 · 9 December 2023]

What in the ever lovin F$!& was this movie all about? I was actually pretty intrigued. This was some sort of apocalyptic alien. Invasion type of thriller. And I was pleasantly surprised that the family that is typical in these movies was not some sort of whiny, spoiled brat, dysfunctional group. Mom tempted me at times two rethink that, but she eventually grew on me by the end. But after 3/4 of the way through, there was absolutely no advancement of the plot. You can chalk this up to some creative license or someone trying to be funny about not really telling the full story but damn, this just ended with absolutely nothing to go on. None of the characters arcs were fulfilled. Like Period. Who the hell wants to spend two hours watching a movie that has no ending!?

BlackBerry (2023)

Good until it wasn't

[6/10 · 17 November 2023]

This was an interesting look into the technological craziness that was the BlackBerry before Apple took over and things went a whole new direction with smartphones. I'll say this as I do with a lot of movies. You can gain attention with marketing and promo stuff through the streamers and thru platforms like til tok but the movies have to have more than a 15 minutes window of intrigue. This is a perfect example where I saw a TikTok , thought it looked good, watched it and loved the first half, but then got bored as hell and bailed. Need to understand that interest in this "gimme now" instant gratification culture at least has to have some consistent interesting content the whole way thru.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

Actually hated it

[8/10 · 14 November 2023]

I have this an 8 because I agree that it was a very different take on a romantic comedy that said a lot about mental illness, relationship drama, interpersonal relationships, etc. But I really found none of the characters to have any redeeming or likeable qualities. None of the supporting characters really seemed to bring anything to the table. Mary's past relationship and wipe from Howard was a nice twist. It didn't do it for me because I just don't like the mind bending movies that leave you wanting to hit the fast forward halfway thru, but I could see why some movie aficionados really like the cinematography and the unique story. So you do you if this is your bag. Just not mine.

The Last Ship (2014–2018)

Why? Just Why?

[4/10 · 9 November 2023]

Why must every series that contains an apocalyptic virus or sickness Include people who do the dumbest s!$t ever? And why does every show of this ilk need to have warlords who irrationally want to kill everybody and take everything for themselves when They could all just work together to solve a problem? Unfortunately, it feels like our society today where we can't ever solve a problem together, but we just want it all for ourselves. I mean come on, the guys on the ship have a cure to solve the pandemic across the entire world and some yahoos want to fight their political agenda, and Get everything else themselves? What Does that solve? Getting your own for your hundred or so mindless chimp enforcers or saving like a couple billion people. Really takes away from reality when these shows go down that path. My preferences as a 46 yr old dude just make me cancel the shows like this and go back and rewatch movies/shows that make sense.

A Million Miles Away (2023)

Good story, but not a great movie

[7/10 · 16 September 2023]

While, the story and the plot was very enjoyable and heartfelt, the actual movie itself was not my cup of tea. There were so many gaps and things that happened in a vacuum that you never saw develop. He was running in the street and saw a restaurant, and it just happened. His dad decided to leave the fields and all the sudden he graduated from college. He started at the lab and was treated like a servant and janitor, but all of the sudden was teaching classes. It just seemed to jump around without any real struggle or storytelling of how he got from one place to another. It just felt like a movie that should've been three hours long to tell the real story but it fell short of telling it truly as it happened. Not saying I love a slow burn movie, but this just didn't feel like it told me the whole story about how it really went down.

Foundation (2021– )

Brilliant visuals. Plot not so much

[4/10 · 27 August 2023]

This show has an amazing amount of CGI and great cinematography but after one season and trying to get to the second, I can't stand the overly empathetic dialogue that these people engage in, and I feel nothing for any of the characters in the show. I couldn't care less if one of any of the main characters died today, and would just move on with my life. And would be happy to continue the show, but I can't figure out how any main character really ties into this overall story. This was a show that was meant for people who believed in and followed a comic book, and knew the outcome before we all had to watch the Boring and over thought dialogue between characters we have no connection with.

The Beanie Bubble (2023)

All over the place

[4/10 · 1 August 2023]

This movie was really a mess. I did like the acting and thought the characters were spot on, but damn there were so many plot holes and way to many time jumps. I couldn't really keep track. Would've been better if they just started at the top and went through things linearly.

This movie was really a mess. I did like the acting and thought the characters were spot on, but damn there were so many plot holes and way to many time jumps. I couldn't really keep track. Would've been better if they just started at the top and went through things linearly.

This movie was really a mess. I did like the acting and thought the characters were spot on, but damn there were so many plot holes and way to many time jumps. I couldn't really keep track. Would've been better if they just started at the top and went through things linearly.

Oppenheimer (I) (2023)

Great but long!!!

[8/10 · 21 July 2023]

Saw this tonight at a premier party in Oak Ridge, TN of all places. Packed house. Sold out in all theatres. Gotta admit I wish I had gone to imax just for a few scenes, but really, most of the movie was really about political drama as opposed to the atomic bomb. I was really impressed with the acting and think Cillian Murphy deserves an Oscar. Nolan-maybe. Downey, probably no. I liked him and he did a great job, don't get me wrong, but I'll admit, until I realized the motivations of his character I didn't really understand his significance. Movie could have done a better job at pointing out what the political points were in the second half because I was little lost. I did think that the final third of the movie dragged a little but maybe that's because I was in about my 5th hour at the theatre, with the premier pre activities, and was pretty tired. I will say that, for me, the payoff was, after all the congressional hearings and back room interrogation, the last two minutes. It brought it all together for me. So, while I did love this movie, I can't quite give it past an 8 for some of the aspects that didn't just quite make it the experience I thought it was going to be.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

4 is just for the cast

[4/10 · 6 July 2023]

OK, so I had to check out this version of Spider-Man and while I like some of the cast, like Peter and Gwen, dang this thing had the biggest plot holes I've ever seen. Yes, spoilers ahead. The first part of the movie was OK but then within about 15 minutes, we had a few major flaws. First, the owner of OsCorp gets fired by his head of security? Then we find Peters dad saying the ONLY way for oscorp to continue with the experiments is with his bloodline, so he leaves town and leaves his some behind with the same name for anyone to find? Then Harry, a dying weakling, overtakes three trained guards to get into top secret lab?

Let's also point out that harry is dying from injecting himself with whatever and the green goblin tech suit is sitting right there to heal him. Then green goblin learns how to command a high tech flying suit in an afternoon but also only has like 5 minutes of airtime in the whole movie.

Oh and let's take a guy we haven't seen since the opening scene and stick him in a robotic rhino suit that he just magically know how to control and then leave the movie unfinished and leave the franchise hanging?

This is really the most terribly thought out movie that I've seen in a long time. I like the actors and I thought most of them did a good job dealing with the material but dang this is just really not a good storytelling experience.

Succession: With Open Eyes (2023) Season 4, Episode 10

I can understand the hate

[9/10 · 17 June 2023]

I wasn't so sure I loved the way that this show turned out after four years, but when I sat back and looked at it, the ending really told what the story was all about. We all would've loved to see the three siblings right off into the sunset, howling the company and going on to live all their dreams. But the way Logan raised them, and the fact that they were all imperfect people who none really knew how to run such a large organization, came back to bite them in the rear. Madaen was just the evolution of knowing that this entire industry is run by fools and corrupt immoral people. And nothing that the Roy's could do could really stop the wheel. As many have observed over the last four seasons, I really didn't find a character in this entire show that I liked. But the one I was most disappointed in was Roman. Look past all of the mommy issues and the psychological abuse from his father, but somewhere in the season three and into season four I felt like he was finally turning into someone who could lead the company in a new direction, but then he quickly devolved by the end of the series into the same petulant child, that he was when it first started.

I do find irony in the scenes of the children at the end. Roman finally seemed content with the billions he made, and celebrated with a martini that he always ribbed Gerri about. Should've was now carrying on the legacy of her dad, by following along with a media tyrant, who is willing to do anything to win. And Kendall. I can't take credit for this myself, but I read another review that I think had a spot on take. Kendall wound up in the battery, looking for some thing and with the Statue of Liberty just out of focus, it seem to lend the scene to say that he always thought his mission in life was to have the American dream, but at that point, he knew that it was all a joke, and it would never be his.

Knock at the Cabin (2023)

So many stupid decisions

[5/10 · 11 May 2023]

Okay, I gave this a 5 because the setup and the intrigue made it a movie worth watching. What I hated was a few key mistakes that just didn't make sense. I'm all for loving the story and ignoring the details if a movie really sends it home but come on: 1: you're protective enough to buy a gun and smart enough to put ina locked case but then leave the gun and magazine unloaded? 2: you put the guy who brought three friends to your cabin to make you kill one of your family and already killed two of those friends and you don't put him down immediately when you have the chance? 3: you can drive a vehicle with a flat tire. Real world you wouldn't do that but damn in an emergency, go for it. Or when everyone's dead, change the tire and move on.

And on the ending, some might go one way or the other, but in my mid, if you have built your entire film career off of cool unexpected twists in every movie and then just decide not to, it leaves your fans unsatisfied and wondering why the whole setup just kinda fell flat at the end.

AKA (2023)

Solid flic I would recommend.

[9/10 · 5 May 2023]

This film seemed like the perfect marriage of Man On Fire and Reacher all the way through. Secret agent baddi from the military with a soft spot in his heart for a young kid. I think this guy would be my top vote for Jack Reacher if it weren't for Alan Ritchson.

A few plot holes and I questioned how he could get so engrained in a crime organization like this by just showing up, but I could look through those points due to the timing and fluid story throughout. I was a little lost at the cleanup after the main resolution was over but probably because I was multi-tasking.

Overall, this was solid action and a pretty good foreign made film that I didn't really notice being an American.

Thumbs up.

Oh and a damn good ending piano riff covering Hurt by Johnny Cash. I now wish this was used in way more of the films I've watched. Right on.

White House Plumbers (2023)

Hack of a show

[3/10 · 3 May 2023]

I couldn't make it through the first episode. A couple of baffoons with terrible stories and even though I love the actors, they just couldn't sell me in the first episode on wanting to watch more, let alone finish the series.

I long for the days when a series like this would start off with the biggest story and the best dialogue and twists to keep the viewers attention. It seems anymore that the MO has changed to letting the first few episodes suck and then building into a story because after all, we're paying for these streaming services so I guess we should waste our time and give the new shows time to form up. Well I have no time for that model.

Star Trek: Picard: Dominion (2023) Season 3, Episode 7

Loving it after hating it

[9/10 · 31 March 2023]

I'm beginning to love this show in this season way more than I was in season two. I thought season two Was Way too preachy and whiny and the cast just didn't do it for me. But this third season, bringing back more old characters and tying in their respective personalities, back stories, continuation stories is all working for me. I was a huge STNG fan and this feels like the old crew coming back for one good, well storied hoorah as a bunch of grissled old vets of star fleet flexing their muscles and doing the hard jobs that need to be done. Give this series a chance and I hope you won't be disappointed.

Babylon (I) (2022)

Uh, NO, not a good movie

[2/10 · 22 February 2023]

Oh my God I could not make it through 1/3 of this movie. After 20 minutes I felt like I have been watching for an hour and a half only to be disappointed that I had two hours plus to watch. The insanity of this is made up Hollywood world is just way too much to take and way too much to be enjoyable for someone trying to watch a movie. You can only fill a movie with so many stars and have it have no plot and so much spasmatic energy that it becomes just unwatchable. Maybe it's because I'm in my 40s and I don't care to hear so much blaring screaming and absolute chaos just to make a film seem like it's an art. Skip this.

Shotgun Wedding (2022)

Not as bad I predicted

[7/10 · 28 January 2023]

This movie was one that I thought would be another example of my wife laughing her ass off and me wondering why I had committed two hours of my life to a garbage heap. But, I actually watched it by myself and wasn't disappointed. It actually made me laugh at the right points and I'm not gonna lie that seeing JLo in a thing and and ever disappearing wedding dress didn't help make this movie more enjoyable. I thought the cast was great. I love seeing Lenny Kravitz. Cheech Marin was a nice addition and for once Jennifer Coolidge made me laugh without making me cringe. So give it a try and realize that it's not an Oscar winner, but a fun adventure.

The Banshees of Inisherin (2022)

Pointless

[2/10 · 25 January 2023]

I have watched many slow burn dramas in my life and most of them at least have some kind of nuance that makes you want to keep watching them. Otherwise, why would you watch a boring slow movie, hoping that the end paid off for your two hours of boredom. This movie was neither funny or intriguing, nor well thought out in terms of what a viewer would want to see. Maybe someone thought that they were making an art film that spoke to some obscure relational or emotional Main point but it just didn't connect for me. One of a handful of many films that I have abandoned after halfway through. Hey if you liked it you liked it. I didn't I wouldn't recommend it to my friends. Not quite sure how it's seen as an Oscar nomination.