Category Archives: Science Fiction

03.15.16
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10 Cloverfield Lane

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10 Cloverfield Lane is a movie nobody had any idea existed until two months ago, when the trailer was released and the movie was no longer kept a secret. The trailers (whose very secretive style comes from producer J.J. Abrams) did not reveal anything about the story but still intrigued me. It was only referred to as a “spiritual successor” to Cloverfield, and never a sequel. We never knew what to expect, and with such an incredible style of marketing, 10 Cloverfield Lane ultimately did not let me down. The thrilling plot buildup always kept me on the very edge of my seat, thanks to spectacular cinematography and directing from first-time feature-length director Dan Trachtenberg. The movie almost felt like a mystery, but much more like a thriller with lots of twists and suspense that kept my eyes on the screen. The cast is outstanding, with a great leading role played by Scott Pilgirm vs. the World‘s Mary Elizabeth Winstead. She conveys her character very realistically, and felt like a terrific protagonist. John Goodman is fantastic in his role as a man who may or may not be a psychopath, and John Gallagher Jr. is also very good in the one other role in the film. There is also a voice cameo in the film that I was not able to catch, but I was informed by the credits, so stay on the lookout for a familiar voice toward the beginning of the movie.

The movie pulled me in from the very moment it started, and I was always guessing how the movie would turn out to be, as many pot points turn out to not be what they seem. The reason I did not mention the plot in the beginning of this review is because it is best to walk into this film without any expectations at all, like I did. The movie’s trailer tells you nothing about the movie’s plot, and I had no idea what the film was actually about. The trailers don’t give you anything about the story, and only teases a few scenes from the movie. I was glad I knew nothing about how the movie would play out or even the basic plot, because part of the great experience sitting through this movie was the suspense and the feeling of oblivion throughout. The movie’s genre and story-line is nothing like Cloverfield‘s, so don’t walk in expecting another found footage film filled with destruction and monster madness. This movie is a claustrophobic thriller with a cast about as large as Gravity‘s, and it’s a much better film as well. My one issue with the movie is that the ending could have been handled a bit better, as it feels like a mystery that can only have two outcomes, and it ends in the one way I was really hoping it wouldn’t. I feel it ended that way for fans’ sake, but it may have been a better film with the other outcome. I did not hate the ending though, it was enjoyable (but also rushed), and leaves a few loose ends for you to guess for yourself. I am so glad I had the opportunity to watch a film like 10 Cloverfield Lane in theaters, it’s definitely worth a watch if you are a fan of thrillers, and want a movie to keep you on the edge of your seat.

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01.06.16
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Star Wars: The Force Awakens

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Thirty years ago, the Empire was defeated and now a new threat, The First Order, has risen from the ashes of the Empire. A scavenger named Rey has come into contact with a droid that contains a map to the legendary Luke Skywalker, who has vanished. Rey and a rogue stormtrooper named Finn find themselves in a monumental conflict between good and evil, that will unite them with both old and new faces from the legendary saga.

With not only high anticipation and high results at the box office, but also having everything we expected from this film to revive the saga, Star Wars: The Force Awakens is able to entertain, bring nostalgia to viewers, and deliver as the most rewarding blockbuster of the year. The movie reintroduces us into the galaxy far, far away with a perfect balance of the old and new generation. J.J. Abrams felt like the obvious choice to direct a modern Star Wars film from the beginning, and he rocked this movie just like I expected he would do.  He is very dedicated,  stylish, and loves to perfect his style to make the setting epic and remind us of the past films. I feel like Abrams is the only director in our decade that can handle Star Trek the right way, and right now I feel the same with Star Wars, although we never know how another director taking on the sequels could go.

The cast and characters in this movie are fantastic. Daisy Ridley killed it as our new female lead, and I love that this movie dares to do something big with a strong female character. John Boyega and Oscar Isaac also rock the new cast as amazingly likable characters. Adam Driver is successful with playing a complex, threatening villain that feels very real and interesting. The balance between old and new characters was great, as we also get great performances from returning stars Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher, who play the classic heroes Han and Leia. I immediately fell in love with this new world and characters, as well as this huge, fascinating setting that Abrams did such a great job with.

This new Star Wars movie feels like such a treat mainly because of how much it is able to remind fans of the past as well as do such a great job with the new generation of characters. The thing that has always made Star Wars so unique is that no matter who you are or what your taste in film is, Star Wars is the movie for you. The prequels released last decade, which I strongly dislike, lack the sense of fun, humor, and great setting that this movie was able to keep so well. I had such a great time with this movie, from the moment the Star Wars logo appeared on screen to when the credits rolled, after over 2 hours of amazing cinematic entertainment. I already cannot wait to see Episode VIII, as this movie left me with so much to look forward to. So as long as you love Star Wars, which you most likely do, and enter this movie with an open mind, The Force Awakens is absolutely the movie for you.

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11.21.15
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The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2

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In the final installment of the Hunger Games saga, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) teams up with her closest allies for the ultimate mission. Together, they leave District 13 to liberate the citizens of war-torn Panem and assassinate President Snow, who’s obsessed with destroying Katniss. What lies ahead are mortal traps, dangerous enemies and moral choices that will ultimately determine the future of millions.

As a conclusion to a strong and beloved series, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 is quite satisfactory. It is able to deliver great action sequences and a better premise than its predecessor.

The first 30 minutes of the film are as bland as Mockingjay – Part 1 was, but instead of going downhill after that, it brings in very exciting action scenes and some convincing emotion that redeems the film and brings in a strong level of suspense. Jennifer Lawrence once again brings her character to life fantastically, and gives the role her best. Josh Hutcherson does a decent job, as he doesn’t amaze anymore as Peeta, and his character often feels all over the place, as he constantly struggles to recover from the events of the previous film. Donald Sutherland is a great villain, being able to portray the hate but also soft side in President Snow. Woody Harrelson and Philip Seymour Hoffman are given enough time to shine in their roles, the latter of which’s last role was in this film,  but many key characters, a few of which lacked screen time in the previous film, are not given too much development in this film, including Effie, Johanna, Annie, Caesar, and even Prim. I needed more development from these characters for their actions to be more effective and for them not to feel neglected. Gale, portrayed by Liam Hemsworth, once again feels too forced into the film, with lots of unnecessary development on his character, and he becomes more uninteresting throughout the film. This time should have been used to develop characters I wished more from.

Like I said before, after the first half hour, which is often rushed and feels too much like the previous film, with lots of unnecessary drama and an imperfect plot buildup, the film warms up a tad, bringing some more excitement, but still focuses on uneven development, like the first Mockingjay film. The cinematography is polished up but not quite perfected, and the visuals were alright. Throughout the film, the war against the Capitol is set up like a Hunger Games, and this felt very effective to both audiences of the film and the characters. The movie often rewards us with great sequences, and those that fans expect the most from often pay off. The way the movie concluded the saga lacked a lot. It was a tad rushed, and didn’t offer everything we still wanted from the saga’s setting and large story. I felt that the end should have tied some loose ends with a few of the characters.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 is a nice treat for fans that makes up for the disappointment of Mockingjay – Part 1, although not as strong as Catching Fire. With some exciting scenes but lots of problems with characters, it’s ultimately worth checking out on the big screen, only if you’re a fan.

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10.08.15
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The Martian

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During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive.

The Martian, like other recent space films such as Gravity and Interstellar, manages to exceed expectations and bring in tons of fun, character, and suspense. Although the marketing may have made it loom to similar to Gravity and Interstellar, it differs vastly with its plot, setting, tone, and overall theme. Matt Damon is excellent in the lead role. He is very charming, funny, and determined to survive. He is written very well, and when the stakes are very high and you know he might not survive, you are brought to high suspense. Jessica Chastain, like always, is badass and powerful in her role. Jeff Daniels, Kristen Wiig, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Sean Bean are also great as a few NASA operatives down on Earth. Everyone else, including Kate Mara, Sebastian Stan, and Michael Pena are great as some Ares 3 crew members.

The directing by Ridley Scott is perfect. Ridley Scott is one of my favorite directors, and has directed some of my favortie movies (including Gladiator), but lately hasn’t been at his best, considering how terrible Robin Hood (2010) and Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014) were. The Martian is a fantastic return for him, and allowed me to regain my faith in his contemporary work, and films of his that are yet to come. Scott focuses the film exactly where it should be (mainly Watney’s survival attempts on Mars, and NASA/the Ares 3 crew’s attempts to rescue him) when it is supposed to be focused on that aspect of the plot. Although the film is nearly 2 and a half hours, the length feels perfect and stretched well. The movie, unlike other recent space films, focuses much less on the visual effects and more on the plot, which in this case is done terrifically, but the visuals are still beautiful when you look at them. The film’s plot is thrilling, exciting, and always entertaining, never dragging or feeling rushed. The writing is great, as it constantly includes tons of humor, and doesn’t take itself too seriously at times. By the climax of the film, I was so thrilled and on the edge of my seat, and when the movie was over, I had a smile on my face because of how fun and awesome this movie was.

The Martian is a great return for Ridley Scott, with fantastic performances, directing, writing, visuals, cinematography, story, and suspense. The Martian is the best movie I have seen all year, is a definite must-see for ages 12-13 and up, and will leave you thrilled, and on the edge of your seat.

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09.19.15
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Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials

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Thomas and his fellows Gladers have escaped the Maze, but they’re adventures weren’t over. They must now face a new set of challenges as they uncover the past of their desolate world.

Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials is the latest addition to the YA dystopian sci-fi genre, which includes films such as The Hunger Games, Ender’s Game, and Divergent. As the sequel to last year’s awesome action flick The Maze Runner, I expected a lot more from this film. One thing you should keep in mind is that I don’t care how differnet this film is from its book. I am reviewing this movie as a film, not a film adaptation. Anyway, this movie starts out completely rushed and would confuse anyone who hasn’t seen the first movie. Unlike the first film, none of the characters are able to deliver any emotion. Nothing is conveyed well or impacts the movie positively. Many characters are brought into the series too quickly and with barely any exposition, a lot of which is needed but lacked. The cast is mostly solid, but lots of the cast is barely needed. The action is decent and often fun, but it usually feels like a zombie movie when it has action, since most of the human race has been infected by a spreading disease from a solar flare. It eventually becomes messy with all the unnecessary twists and turns. The movie’s dialogue never completely knows where it’s going, and feels very cliche and tiring. By the film’s end, it’s completely frustrating and senseless, and leaving audiences not wanting to tune in for Part 3.

Overall, Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials is a complete downfall for its series. Lacking dramatization and originality, The Scorch Trials is ultimately not worth a ticket – or a sequel.

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08.09.15
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Fantastic Four (2015)

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Four young outsiders teleport to an alternate and dangerous universe which alters their physical form in shocking ways. The four must learn to harness their new abilities and work together to save Earth from a former friend turned enemy.

Fantastic Four brings the 4 heroes back to the big screen. For good? Unfortunately not. The movie was only made so that Fox could keep the rights to the characters. And despite the studio also making the film to re-imagine the franchise for a new decade, no good effort comes out of this movie. The  script is lousy, cliche, and couldn’t be more predictable. It’s everything we’ve seen before, and nothing new came out of it. The directing isn’t good either, and although director Josh Trank apparently had a much better version of the movie before its release, Fox interfered and forced him to re-shoot. The result is something that couldn’t be more cliche, and like The Amazing Spider-Man 2, was interfered massively by its studio, resulting in the movie being worse than the director’s original idea. I am tired of this happening in post-productions, especially with high-budget films. I don’t believe a studio is there to avert a movie from the director’s vision, is the director is the most important person behind the camera of a movie.

The cast members are all horrendous. They are not interesting to watch on screen, as they do not bring their characters to life well. Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan, and Jamie Bell all deliver boring performances and aren’t special at all. Sure, they are great actors in other movies, but they didn’t work well with the script in this movie, especially because they didn’t deliver their lines well. Toby Kebbell gives a decent approach at first, but by the time his character becomes a villain, starts saying villain-y things and doing villain-y stuff, he isn’t interesting, either. Like the rest of the cast, Reg E. Cathey and Tim Blake Nelson are extremely boring, as two very cliche and predictable supporting characters.

Like I was saying earlier, everything about the story is extremely cliche, from the themes about family to the opening story about curious children wanting to solve the mysteries of science. There wasn’t a single bit of it I didn’t find to be familiar, just like my first impression of the movie when the first trailer was released back in February. The movie’s pacing is actually alright. It takes its time at first, but later it spends 40 minutes trying to convey the same thing over and over again, and then it ends way too early. It should have been at least 20 minutes longer, although no one would want to sit through 20 more minutes of utter garbage. By the end of the movie, the film’s approach is so awful. The ending is very weak, and they way they try to set it up for a sequel is in the most cliche and frustrating way possible, ti the point that I hope the sequel is scratched along with plans for a shared universe with the X-Men. I can’t yet decide what’s worse: this, or the dreadful 2005 Fantastic Four movie.

Unsurprisingly, Fantastic Four doesn’t satisfyingly bring the characters to the big screen, and more than that, it makes us want them to leave the screen. It’s time to put this franchise to rest.

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07.16.15
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Ant-Man

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The next movie of the Marvel Cinematic Universe finally brings Ant-Man to the screen. Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, master thief Scott Lang must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym, protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.

As Marvel begins to enter a darker phase of films, with films such as Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War coming out, it’s starting to adapt to a very likable new style, with tons of unpredictable humor being thrown into their movies. Ant-Man is able to partly convey it, but is a letdown considering the fact that its from Marvel Studios. Paul Rudd is a superb star, as he coveys all the humor and heart I wanted from him. Michael Douglas gives a decent performance as mentor Hank Pym. I was let down by Evangeline Lily and Corey Stoll. I was expecting a deeper and more emotional character from Lily, and a villain that was more incorporated into the script and convincing enough from Stoll. Michael Pena is able to deliver a charming performance as one of Lang’s buddies, and Bobby Cannavale does an awful job, not to anyone’s surprise.

The style the film takes on is fun, but doesn’t fulfill the story’s needs and character developments. The subplot involving Scott’s relationship and connection with his daughter (and his hatred of his ex-wife’s new fiance, who also happens to be a cop played by Bobby Cannavale) is extremely cliche and has been used hundreds of times in the past decade in cinema. Same with Scott’s training to become Ant-Man, it’s not anything we haven’t seen before or wouldn’t see coming. The dialogue needs a lot of improvement, with too much awkward dialogue and things that kept repeating themselves. I never felt so close to the characters, since they aren’t given enough time to connect with the audience, because the movie is way too rushed, not to mention it’s very short, with a run-time of only 115 minutes. However, the film still keeps the humor from its preceding Marvel movies, and does not fail to entertain. The movie even has a few callbacks to the Avengers to remind you that it’s a Marvel movie, and a post-credit scene worth staying for.

Overall, I was let down by Ant-Man due to its lack of convincing character development, its run-time, and its script, but it is still able to entertain and make you laugh. The film would’ve been much better with Edgar Wright sitting in the director’s chair. Moving forward, I have faith in Marvel that they will do a great job with Phase Three, but I was disappointed with Ant-Man, as it’s meant to be a more moving finale to Phase 2.

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07.13.15
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Terminator Genisys

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By the 2020s, a program named Skynet has taken over the world and wiped out billions of humans via nuclear apocalypse. The remaining humans, fighting for survival against Skynet’s forces, are led by John Connor (Jason Clarke). When John sends Sgt. Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) back to 1984 to protect Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke) and safeguard the future, an unexpected turn of events changes the past completely. Now, Reese finds himself in a new timeline, where he is faced with unlikely allies, including “Pops” (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a Terminator programmed to protect Sarah, dangerous enemies, and an unexpected mission: To reset the future by preventing a sinister app named Genisys from going online.

Terminator Genisys ultimately doesn’t do a great job reviving the beloved classic franchise, but I’m not surprised. The storyline isn’t very good. It takes everything we love about the originals and turns it to crap, with bad characters, performances, and a terrible script. Arnold Schwarzenegger still does great as The Terminator. Even at an old age, he is still very charming and entertaining as his iconic character. Even though his performance is great, none of the other cast members managed to impress me. Jai Courtney didn’t do a terrible job in this film, but he was so uninteresting and I disliked the fact that the story is told from his point of view. Like I predicted, he couldn’t capture the heart and badass of Michael Biehn’s Kyle Reese. Emilia Clarke sure does make a good female badass, just like Linda Hamilton, but she doesn’t deliver her lines and her character’s personality to the audience well. Most of the time, she feels like a teenage girl constantly complaining and hard to stand. Jason Clarke doesn’t actually do such an awful job as John Connor, but he isn’t good, either. The twist with his character is pretty clever, but unfortunately, the trailers ruined it by giving it away. J.K. Simmons’ supporting character is useless and barely used at all. But from the entire cast, the worst performance comes from Lee Byung-Hun: The Korean actor casted to play the iconic T-1000 from Terminator 2. In this movie, the T-1000 is completely underused (he only delivers one line, but it’s enough to convince you he was a horrible casting choice), horribly written, and felt very forced into the script.

I was let down by the cast of this film, but that’s not the only disappointing thing it did to the franchise. The story messed up a lot about what I loved about the original 2 films, and I explained a lot of it in the previous paragraph. I didn’t like the new perspective or stars. The action is very entertaining, and the pacing is just right. However, the dialogue is so predictable, and the movie keeps throwing in these messages about time and the future that are so constantly used in film, that they’re more than just cliche. It doesn’t have the tone of the original movies, and is simply a copy-paste of expensive action movies that failed to impress me (G.I. Joe, Jupiter Ascending, etc.) that Hollywood doesn’t know when to stop making. It’s best to leave this franchise alone forever, and just appreciate its original movies, which helped shape films of its time and genre.

Overall, Terminator Genisys is a disappointment for fans, so I wouldn’t recommend it for any of you Terminator die-hard fans like me, but if you aren’t one, you may think differently about the film…

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06.12.15
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Jurassic World

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Twenty-two years after the events of Jurassic Park, Isla Nublar now features a fully functioning dinosaur theme park, Jurassic World, as originally envisioned by John Hammond. After 10 years of operation and visitor rates declining, in order to fulfill a corporate mandate, a new attraction is created to re-spark visitor’s interest, which backfires horribly.

Jurassic World is a very exciting and entertaining blockbuster, visually. The action is very intense, and I found myself highly enjoying the movie. There is a lot of suspense, great use of sound, intensity, and fright. I was intrigued by the movie’s setting, especially the way they depicted Jurassic World and these people’s plans to revive dinosaurs. I also loved the score, especially because they brought back the theme from the original movie, and how they unexpectedly revive things or moments from the original movie.

Chris Pratt is great in the lead role. His character is engaging and he does great performance wise. None of the other actors did a good job at all, Bryce Dallas Howard was a fun female lead but not as good as Laura Dern’s role in the first film. The two children in the film are also bland and had way too much screen-time, and despite the director’s efforts to make his main character’s intriguing, they instead come out as overused and practically annoying. There is a human character in the film that the movie tries to make look like the villain, and this is the part where the movie fails the most. This “villain”‘s plot was completely bland, familiar, and unnecessary.

The movie is able to remind you well of the original film with the score and visuals, but often the visual effects feel out of place. They’re often done well but not impressive like before. The first one did it well because not only was it something we had never seen before, but they were not overused, and were in the right place. Here, almost everything is CGI, it feels less realistic but you can still sit back and have a great time with the amazing action that’s offered.

Jurassic World manages to entertain, but fails to live up to Jurassic Park’s incredible story, characters, and use of visual effects. I would recommend the film for fans of the saga who simply want to have fun at the movies.

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05.22.15
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Tomorrowland

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Bound by a shared destiny, a teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor embark on a mission to unearth the secrets of a place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory.

Without question, Tomorrowland is the most inspiring, thoughtful, and interesting movie I’ve seen in a long time. With excellent directing from Brad Bird (The Incredibles, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol), and wonderful acting from Britt Robertson and George Clooney, Tomorrowland perfectly captures Walt Disney’s imagination, and inspires audiences that they can all make the world a better place. Personally, I was very attached to the film’s sci-fi setting, characters,and screenplay. The movie’s setting is not your cliche, post-apocalyptic world, but a very original and intriguing setting. I loved the way the future is depicted. It symbolizes what we can do if we reach high enough. Britt Robertson does a great job portraying a young, curious heroine. George Clooney also does a great job in front of the camera, despite the fact that his character is unlikable at first.  There are a few scenes that aimlessly drag on and don’t deliver the information that they are meant to, but other than that, I do not understand why everyone is complaining so much about this movie (it has an unbelievable score of 50% on Rotten Tomatoes). People haven’t quite understood it for what it is, unlike me, who deeply appreciated the movie and disagrees all the critics who are ranting about it.

Just when we thought Hollywood ran out of originality, we received this movie. Tomorrowland is truly astonishing, fascinating, brilliant, well-acted, and definitely a must-see for audiences age 12 and up. Brad Bird, you deserve your applause once again.

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