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Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
Not the worst but disappointing.
Perhaps I was expecting too much or got the wrong idea from the trailer, but I went into the cinema thinking I was seeing a film primarily about Credence, the Dumbledore/Grindelwald relationship plus some Nagini, with the main four (Newt, Tina, Queenie, Jacob) being somehow intertwined in the events that take place. Instead, I got a history lesson about the Lestrange family.
Not saying that the Lestranges are uninteresting, but the film builds it up so much and, in the end, reveals that Credence is not part of the Lestrange family at all. And it goes even further with a plot twist that Credence is actually a Dumbledore, so you're left wondering why you even had to learn about the Lestranges in the first place (and how on earth Grindelwald knew about Credence). Some people reckon that Grindelwald lied to Credence about his origin, but if that's the case, it would make the whole film, or at least the ending, seem like a false cliffhanger to lure people into the next instalment. (I mean, imagine in the future after seeing the third film and you're watching the ending of Crimes of Grindelwald on DVD, thinking 'oh, but Grindelwald is just lying'. The ending would feel dead).
I think one big problem was that there were too many characters. Being only the 2nd film in the series, it is crucial that the main four are continuously developed well. However, this movie struggles to do so, especially with Tina, who appears to be reduced to a minor role. Instead, it focuses on other characters like Leta Lestrange and Dumbledore, which is great but it means you've almost lost the foundations of the series. It also introduces Yusuf Kama, who you couldn't really care less about but is unfortunately important.
The pacing is also a tad off, which I think is linked with the too-many-characters issue. In a film like Avengers: Infinity War, you have a lot of characters but most of them are grouped together in a scene (so you really only have about 3 plot lines to follow). In Crimes of Grindelwald, you have many characters but they all seem to have their own scenes and are doing their own thing (so you have to follow what each character is doing). And many of the scenes are slow paced, so by the time you return to a certain character, you almost forget where they were before.
The positive aspects of the film included Eddie Redmayne's portrayal of Newt. He is still able to capture that clever albeit shy personality. Johnny Depp is also convincing as Grindelwald. After reading/watching the Harry Potter series, you get the idea that Voldemort is more dangerous than Grindelwald, but Depp brings such a powerful, seductive and manipulative presence which makes you question whether Grindelwald is actually more dangerous.
Seeing Hogwarts again (plus the Hedwig's theme) was definitely a highlight. I also particularly enjoyed the film music. I'm glad James Newton Howard brought back all the themes from the first film, and added new themes like the haunting Grindelwald theme.
Overall, however, nothing much really happens, which is disappointing. Simply put, Grindelwald gathers up his followers and Newt finally picks a side. It feels like Crimes of Grindelwald suffers from the "middle movie syndrome", where it is just setting the scene for the real, juicy part of the story to come in the next film. I can see why many critics have given negative reviews.
Voldemort: Origins of the Heir (2018)
Definitely not for me... had to wash my eyes out by rewatching the official Harry Potter films.
I did try to keep an open mind, knowing that this was a fan-made film. Unfortunately, I was unable get pass the first 15 minutes.
Firstly, the story ideas in this film strayed too far from Tom Riddle's original backstory in the books to my liking. Particularly the whole Soviet Wizards idea and the founders' descendants gathering in the Room of Requirement. It was emphasised a lot in the books that the only thing close to friends that Riddle had were his followers, later known as Death Eaters. So it was difficult believing that Riddle continuously met up with these other students during his time at Hogwarts. Also, changing Hepzibah's death into something more dramatic ended up being disappointing - being a huge fan of the books, it just didn't seem like a Riddle thing to do (although, for this version of Tom Riddle, I guess it was acceptable).
Secondly, the acting and the script is very poor. From the scenes I watched, the dialogue seemed forced, which isn't a good sign. The actors just didn't seem to "live" or "become" their characters. But, of course, I understand that they're amateurs and not professionals. Often bad acting can stem from a bad script, which I believe is the case for this movie. Some of the dialogue was cringe-worthy, especially that first conversation with Riddle and McLaggen. Speaking of which, I was gobsmacked when McLaggen said she was a 2nd year student - she looked old enough to be 5th year student. If it were possible, they should have cast someone younger because her saying "I'm only a second year" sounded ridiculous. Going back to the script, apparently the better scenes, which I have yet to see, were the ones based off J.K. Rowling's writing in Half Blood Prince.
As many have stated, special effects are commendable for a low-budget movie. Whilst it sometimes resembled some sort of video game, it was mostly acceptable. There was a review on Wikipedia about the special effects being even better than the ones in official Potter films - unfortunately, I cannot agree.
I would have liked to see a bit more with costume/make-up/hairstyling. Particularly the look of McLaggen could have been better - she's supposed to be living in the 1940s-1970s. But instead, especially as a Hogwarts student, she looks too modern. Because she's a main character, it did become a bit distracting. Music was not bad but also not memorable or fantastic.
For the sake of this review, I did glimpse a few of the later scenes of the movie but I couldn't watch all of it. However, after seeing this, I was compelled to go back to Chamber of Secrets and Half Blood Prince to re-watch Christian Coulson's, Frank Dilane's and Hero Fiennes-Tiffin's portrayals of Tom Riddle to forget this fan-made film.
San sheng san shi shi li tao hua (2017)
Avoid this film unless you already know about it and are a hard-core fan.
I watched this film during an excursion for my Chinese class. Since I'm studying the language, the best way to learn is to listen to people talking in Chinese, so we watched this film as it was just released. Just to put it out there, I don't usually watch Chinese films. I'm more into films like Inception, Pirates of the Caribbean, Finding Neverland, The Dark Knight, etc.
Did I end up being able to practice listening to some Chinese? Yes. Did I enjoy the movie? No. I thought the movie was really bad. I'm tempted to say it was rubbish.
Firstly, the plot. I think, in some weird way on a thin thread, the plot works if you can follow it. However, I went into the movie with only a brief synopsis/summary of the story, and half the time I had trouble following the story. This is partially because of the constant cutting between present time and flashback sequences - I often couldn't distinguish what time I was in; I had no idea whether Yifei Liu's character was supposed to be blind or not. The incoherent plot was also caused by the bad pacing of the film – it would jump between quick, short, action-packed scenes to long, drawn-out confessions of love.
I'm not a particular of the romance/drama genre so I won't consider this main theme when I'm rating the film. However, this film is absolutely loaded with romance and love. It tries to play with your emotions and, unless you're absolutely taken with the film, the attempt is futile.
Secondly, the characters. Most of the characters were played well. The performances by Yifei Liu and Yang Yang were not bad. There were, however, some moments that were cringe-worthy, either because their romantic lines were so cheesy or the actors were not as convincing in these moments.
Thirdly, the filming. The action scenes were quite entertaining. Costuming is very beautiful and effective in reflecting the Ancient Chinese context. Film score (music) was forgettable.
Visual/special effects are not so effective. Some scenes that showed vast landscapes/shots, like the underwater shot at the beginning, were breathtaking. However, there a moments where the effects are not so effective, such as the dragon(?) fight scene. Some visual effects didn't look real and made the film almost look like an animation feature. I can't help but compare these effects to other films I've seen, like Inception or Star Trek Beyond, where the effects are much more realistic and believable. (It is possible that this film had a much lower budget – I'm not sure).
Therefore, I recommend this movie to people who are interested in the Ancient Chinese theme, can handle romance overload, can ignore unrealistic visual effects, and like seeing a tiny bit of action. I do not recommend this film to people who have not done any pre-reading about the film. Even watching the trailer is not enough. (Besides, one of the trailers I watched only hinted about the love story – nothing about the context or the fantasy world it was set in).
Generally what I thought - I lost two hours of my life.
Star Trek Beyond (2016)
Loved it!
After seeing so many negative reviews, I decided to upload one because I actually loved this movie. I thought it was so good that I saw it twice in cinemas (the first and only time I've ever seen a movie more than once in cinemas).
Note: I'm speaking as a person who has seen the original series, the original movies and the new alternate reality movies.
I was quite intrigued by the plot/story line because it took into account some things I hadn't really considered before when watching Star Trek, such as Kirk's uncertainty about what he's trying to achieve and the interesting twist where the smaller the ship (the swarm), the more powerful it is (against the Enterprise). Destroying the ship, although it has been done before in previous films, was a good idea for this film in my opinion. In the last two movies, we see how the ship is basically what brings the crew together and gives them strength against their enemies. For them to be without it tests the bonds within the crew.
I like how the crew was separated into different groups; Uhura and Sulu, Kirk and Chekov – we almost saw a father/son relationship, Spock and McCoy – we saw their dislike for each other but ultimately their need for one another. When they're in these pairs and later when they come together again, you can really see the comradery within the crew, each person contributing something and looking out for each other.
On a side note, I'm glad they moved the Enterprise away from Earth – it would have bored me if the fight was on Earth for a third time after the last two movies.
The extra bit of humor in the film was like the 'cherry on top' for me; I had fun watching it.
I liked the new character; Jaylah. I think Boutella did a great job – you could see such strength and fierceness but also the innocence and vulnerability of her. Elba as Krall was also not bad but slightly forgettable.
I'm not particularly taken with the angle that this new series has chosen for Spock. I'm not sure if it's because I've gotten used to Nimoy's Spock, who is mostly devoid of any emotion. I just felt uncertain in the scene when Spock was crying and then laughing. But I guess that's what the writers consider as half-human/half-vulcan.
After seeing what I think was a bit too much action/explosion in Into Darkness, this one toned it down a little bit, which I was satisfied with. My favourite sequence was the Enterprise destruction because of the fact that it caught the Enterprise off-guard in the most unexpected way and the tension kept me at the edge of my seat when I saw the crew struggling to hold the swarm off.
Visual/Special effects were great. Make-up was fantastic as well. And I love the slight alteration of the Starfleet uniform and the new 'survival' suits.
Michael Giacchino is incredible. I love the music he has already composed for the series and it just seems to get better. We still get to hear both the Star Trek theme from the original series as well as Giacchino's new one since Star Trek (2009). And now Giacchino has composed a few new themes, my favourites from this movie being "Night on the Yorktown" and "Crash Decisions". The sequence of the Enterprise entering Yorktown was extraordinary; the combination of visuals and grand music just made me feel like I was melting in my seat. It was amazing.
I think this is a great film. I walked in the cinema so excited to see another installment and I was thrilled throughout the whole movie. I recommend it to both Star Trek fans and those who know nothing about the series (although I suggest you do a tad bit of research before actually watching it). I also recommend you watch this film open-minded with no strict expectations, eg. It's not ideal to watch it if you're a hardcore Trekkie expecting it to be like past Star Trek films/TV episodes. I think it's better than Into Darkness, it's possibly on par with Star Trek (2009) but I can't say because they both have a very different atmosphere. Overall, it made me feel somewhat like I was watching an episode from the original series.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)
So glad Captain Jack Sparrow is back and excited for the next one!
If you're looking for a Pirates of the Caribbean film filled with fantasy, pirates, action, adventure and fun, this is the movie for you. However, don't expect it to be on par with the first movie of the beloved franchise.
I found the storyline of the film easy to follow, unlike what many reviews have stated. Yes, it does take ideas from previous films (eg. undead enemies who can't walk on land), but the story still feels fresh. Some people complain that the storyline was incoherent. I disagree; it was easy to follow - they're all looking for the trident and Salazar wants revenge. It was an easier plot to follow than At World's End, which I had to watch a few times and later research to fully understand the various plot lines and character arcs.
The film seems to tread on fine line between witty, clever humour and stupid, not-so-funny jokes. For me, I enjoyed it and found it fun to watch.
However, there were some elements of the story that were unnecessary. Firstly, the wedding scene. I have no idea why they filmed something like that. It was just out of the blue, served no purpose to the plot, rather revolting to watch, and a scene you could just remove and the film would still be the same. Even Wikipedia doesn't bother mentioning it as part of the plot. Secondly, the British Navy. They are somewhat prominent at the start of the film but once Jack and his crew set sail, they're just killed off later.
Captain Jack Sparrow is still my favourite character and I wouldn't want to watch a PotC film without him. However, in this film, I admit that he seems to lack some of his wit and cleverness, and appears drunker and, dare I say, a bit stupid. Even in On Stranger Tides he was still smart and could conjure up ways to overcome the enemy. Eg. I believe the original Jack would know the value of his compass and never give it up like he did in this one. It is possible that the writers of this film wanted Jack to look like he was past his 'prime' time and really had lost his luck. If that was the reason, I can accept that. Despite this, there are still moments where we get a glimpse of the original Jack and his wit, like when he's threatening to throw Henry overboard or when he's teaching Henry how to properly raise a sword.
Henry and Carina – I think they're great. I think Thwaites and Scodelario did a great job. In their defense, it is hard to make your character stand out when you've got such interesting and popular characters like Jack and Barbossa.
The enemy, Captain Salazar, was menacing. I think he was a better villain than Blackbeard (On Stranger Tides). It was probably the backstory between Salazar and Jack that allowed me to understand him a bit more, which I think is crucial; understanding a villain's motivations.
I like the action sequences, particularly the scene where they're rescuing Jack and Carina from execution, young Jack doing the boot leg turn to evade Salazar, and when Jack and Henry are trying to escape the sharks. Unfortunately, you don't get to see much impressive sword fighting like you do in the first three films. All you get is Salazar taking a couple of swipes with a sword whilst Jack blocks him.
I've read some ridiculous complaints about pacing – the pacing in this film was fine. Honestly, there are films out there with much worse pacing. (I watched some other film recently and the horrible pacing made it even more confusing than it already was – it kept switching between flashbacks and present time, large scale yet really short action scenes to long confessions of love, etc.)
I was quite impressed with the CGI and visual effects. Particularly of Salazar's dead crew and the shot of the sea separating apart. I really liked the sequence where Salazar is unleashing the sharks because I thought it looked quite realistic.
The music, as always, is magnificent. It's one of the main reasons why I love this franchise. This film has a different composer – Geoff Zanelli. People have mentioned that he is just reusing themes from previous films, which I affirm. However, since I love all of those themes anyway, I'm not complaining. You do get to hear some new themes from Zanelli. I think when you watch the film again you can hear those themes more clearly (since the first time you're still absorbing all the impressive CGI effects). My favorite theme is Salazar's theme ("El Matador Del Mar") and the new action theme ("I've Come With the Butcher's Bill").
In conclusion, I believe Dead Men Tell No Tales is a great movie. I don't think it's as bad as some people say, so I encourage you to watch it if you're looking for a movie of adventure and fun. Whilst it doesn't quite live up to the first three movies, it's still a few steps up from On Stranger Tides.