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An error has ocurred. Please try againThis all started with Jest. Upon reading his description during his introductory scene, Brendon Urie immediately came to mind. As I envisioned him in future scenes, I began to wonder who would play the other characters... and a list was born.
Reviews
And Just Like That...: Tragically Hip (2021)
In defense of Miranda
I think I understand where some people are coming from in their frustration over Miranda's character development.
Personally, I think this series is handling Miranda's character development better than it's been handled in a long time. As a person who identified with almost everything about Miranda's character from the OG SATC, and someone who continues to identify with her character now, I felt the need to chime in that, where Miranda truly lost herself as a character was when she "gave in", married Steve and moved to Brooklyn. In doing so, she sacrificed so much of who she was and what she had always valued. At the time, it felt right. It maybe even felt like a natural character progression. As a "Miranda" back then, I despised how they took this wonderfully independent "just me" character and turned her into the dopey "sacrifice for love and family" person of the final season and movies.
But, in AJLT, I finally see Miranda again. After years of trying to be this "new Miranda" the family woman, maternal yada yada that society makes women think is the be all, end all of success is what has finally broken her. She's a terrible mother and a terrible wife because that's not who she ever was and she feels like an imposter and she's spent the last 17 years trying to be someone she's not... does it excuse what she's done? No.
But it does explain a lot more. Had she grown up in a time like Charlotte's daughter is now, where gender norms are no longer so rigid, she may never have found herself feeling even remotely tempted to marry Steve and "settle down." She may have still had Brady, but her parenting as a single mother would likely have looked a lot different.
There's a lot this reboot could be doing better. But Miranda, I think, is the ONLY thing they've done perfectly.
Aladdin (2019)
Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular
Every shot of this movie takes me back to the Aladdin show at Disney's California Adventure. Anyone who's seen the live stage "Musical Spectacular" cannot deny the magic of this live-action movie. Many of the dance/musical numbers and stunts were rough & campy (like you'd expect from a stage show rather than a big-budget movie) but that's what made it so special (to me). There was even the musical curtain call at the end... I half expected to see an epicly animated puppeteer beneath Iago as he followed Jafar around, plotting, scheming and quipping hilariously on Jafar's shoulder! If this movie fell short in any way, it was the lack of dialogue from Iago.
It's true. Will Smith is NO Robin Williams. He had some enormous shoes he could never hope to fill... and, to his credit, he didn't even try. Will Smith played the Genie HIS way. Had he tried to be Will Smith being Robin Williams, he would have failed and people would have hated him for trying. Many hate his performance anyways (my husband barely made it through the first scene without chiming in his disappointment).
You can't go into this movie expecting a remake of such a magical cartoon classic. For starters, there's Robin Williams' timeless performance. But there's also things they can do with animation that live action just cannot replicate (even with CGI). It's an adaptation, plain and simple. It is a different spin on a classic tale (what isn't these days?) and I think it was well-done.
I may have some sentimentality attached to this review as my grandmother & I LOVED the musical at Disney's California Adventure (though she mistakenly thought, all those years, that it was actually Robin Williams on stage!). But, I also grew up watching the Aladdin cartoon. I remember how ill-received the Return of Jafar was when it became known that Robin Williams would not be voicing the Genie. But, truthfully, the actor who played the Genie on stage did an amazing job making the role his. There is no replacing Robin Williams.
So, let's address a few other arguments. I've read some reviews that disagree with Jasmine's "sudden" feminism and desire to be Sultan. I question if these reviewers have ever even seen (or listened to) the original. One of Jasmine's first statements is "IF I do marry, I want it to be for love." The key word there is IF as in she may have eventually decided to NOT marry at all if the right suitor had not come along. Many of her laments throughout the cartoon centered around her feeling imprisoned by her role and duties as a princess and how she just wanted to be free. I will admit that her song in this movie (Speechless, I think it's called) was a little much and felt a little out of place with the original music. I prefer "Lucky Bird Inside a Guilded Cage" from the DCA Musical to this song from the movie. But, as a strong, independent woman ) I don't see anything wrong with Jasmine's character development or portrayal as a strong-minded woman.
I give this movie 9 stars only because well, can it truly BE perfect without Robin Williams? But also because, as one reviewer mentioned, the movie did seem to represent more of Indian culture (many of the musical numbers are reminiscent of a Bollywood feature) than of Arabian culture. It is quite stunning though and I enjoyed every minute of it!
Gotham: A Dark Knight: No Man's Land (2018)
😥 ...waiting
Oh. I was so enthralled. Jerome was the PERFECT joker-to-be.
We were promised that Jeremiah was ACTUALLY the Joker all along so, when Jerome died, I was sad but also anxious to see what Jeremiah would bring that could possibly be better than Jerome.
So far, though Jeremiah is quite perfectly devious, he is NOT the Joker I expected. Jerome had that nailed. Jeremiah is the exact opposite of Jerome... He is calm, cool and possesses a Riddler-like level of intelligence and thoroughness in his deviousness. Oh, he's good. Very, very good. He's scary.
He is not, however, the Joker. He lacks the delusion, the pure delight of the chaos he brings to Gotham. He has a calmness I saw in Heath Ledger's Joker but, even Ledger was quite unhinged. Jeremiah is far to composed to call himself the Joker and I find myself quite disappointed.
Gotham: A Dark Knight: To Our Deaths and Beyond (2018)
A nice breather
This episode was a nice break from the full-speed freight train of Jerome/Jeremiah/Joker's storyline.
A break, yes. Boring? Not in the slightest!
I enjoy every opportunity to watch Penguin & Riddler... especially together.
Riddler has always been my favorite villain and though I'm not overly fond of the love story with the Doc.
It works though. I mean, who wouldn't fall in love with Moreno Baccarin? She is, far and away, the most beautiful woman I've ever seen... beautiful, seductive and knows how to portray a powerful yet seductive woman with grace!
Which brings me to the other story... I LOVE the Ra's al-Guhl story. The League, his insistence that Bruce is his inevitable heir!
The Barbara Kean side, however, made me want to scream. I've never liked the direction they've taken Barbara on this show. It's hard to imagine how she'll ever become Jim's wife and the mother of Batgirl/Oracle.
But this storyline took it all too far. I'm all for girl power. I love to see women in strong roles. DC has its fair share, too (Birds of Prey, Catwoman, Talia al-Guhl, Supergirl, the list goes on...). But Barbara as the demon's head? Killing all the men because they say a woman can't lead the League? It hit the girl power way too hard (much like the CWs Supergirl which is dripping in so much girl power it makes me want to shoot the TV!).
This storyline drove me so nuts. I'm so glad it's over (sort of) and Ra's is back. Not looking forward to the girl League vs. Ra's League. DC has much better League stories at their disposal... they didn't have to make this crap up. 😡