by filmtoppings

Brooklyn

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An Irish immigrant lands in 1950s Brooklyn, where she quickly falls into a new romance. When her past catches up with her, however, she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within.

Brooklyn is without a doubt one of my favorite movies of the year. Brooklyn is incredibly stylish, sweet, heartfelt, emotional, and well-acted. Saoirse Ronan delivers my favorite female performance of the year as a very compelling and interesting character who immigrates across the globe and has her life changed in both New York and Ireland. Ronan conveyed every feeling and emotion so realistically, and allowed the audience to relate to her closely. Throughout the film, I felt myself emotionally compelled, at times I was laughing, smiling, and even almost crying at other times, all thanks to Ronan’s deep and strong performance, as well as the way this movie was able to convey every emotion into the film. When Ronan’s character has to make decisions, you are always provoked to think how you would make them yourself. The movie delivers with a great story and screenplay, with a necessarily moderate length, a tad less than 2 hours, but still fits the story perfectly. Everything about the set and costume designing was great as well. I found Brooklyn to be a movie that has something great that has something for everyone, so I definitely recommend a big screen experience for this film.

Brooklyn delivers a great story with fantastic emotions, performances, and has something for everyone, no matter what your taste in film is like. If you want a charming and amazing time at the movies, I would recommend you see this.

11.28.15

by filmtoppings

Trumbo

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Trumbo depicts the life and career of iconic but controversial screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, portrayed fantastically by Bryan Cranston. In the ’50s, during times of the Cold War, Trumbo and many other Hollywood celebrities were jailed and blacklisted for being part of the Communist Party, but against strong odds, Trumbo fights for what he believes is right and what he loves throughout the movie.

Trumbo is a one-of-a-kind film this year, with great performances, an entertaining story, and has an important history lesson. Bryan Cranston delivers a marvelous performance with every move he makes, every word he speaks, and every step he takes, literally, and forward into time. Cranston transforms into the character and is able to deliver the personality of such a complex icon. Diane Lane, Helen Mirren, and the rest of the cast are also great. Trumbo’s adventures and struggles throughout the movie are fascinating and entertaining. It was very exciting to discover the background of many classics such as Roman Holiday. Everything that had to do with movies was extremely interesting for such a film love like me. It may have felt longer than 2 hours, which is the film’s run-time, but I enjoyed the hell out of its nonetheless. In fact, I barely wanted the film to end at times.

Trumbo is able to also convey an important history lesson about a dark time for Hollywood stars, as thousands were blacklisted for their beliefs, something unjust for the American Congress to do. People like Dalton Trumbo had a hard time going through being blacklisted, and this movie does an excellent job conveying that. Trumbo’s redemption story is told very well throughout the film, and is boasted by Cranston’s outstanding performance. This is a movie that requires some patience and will to feel affected by such a thoughtful movie. It’s not a movie you go out to enjoy, but more of a film you see to learn, to understand, and to be touched.

Trumbo is an entertaining, moving, fantastic biographical film with a thoughtful message, great performances, and has a somewhat entertaining factor that still requires patience, but ultimately you will find yourself touched and very entertained by this movie.

11.25.15

by filmtoppings

The Good Dinosaur

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The Good Dinosaur brings an alternate timeline in which the asteroid that wiped dinosaurs off the face of the Earth missed the planet completely and giant dinosaurs never became extinct. Pixar Animation Studios takes you on an epic journey into the world of dinosaurs where an Apatosaurus named Arlo makes an unlikely human friend after a tragic accident that sends him on a journey to return to his family. While traveling through a harsh and mysterious landscape, Arlo learns the power of confronting his fears and discovers what he is truly capable of.

This year has been the first time Pixar, the best studio to ever make animated films, has made two films in the same year. I am quite impressed with how amazing both this film and this summer’s Inside Out turned out to be. With some of the best animation I have ever seen, and a touching and fantastic story, The Good Dinosaur once again brings the magic of Pixar to the big screen. The character development, especially of our protagonist Arlo, and his pet human Spot. In case that sentence confused you, in the film’s alternate timeline, dinosaurs have become more advanced in lifestyle and less primitive than humans. Both Arlo and Spot are developed fantastically, with the film being a coming-of-age story for Arlo, as he strives to “make his mark”, or accomplish something huge, according to Arlo’s “Poppa”, very well portrayed by Jeffrey Wright. Arlo is played by breakthrough actor Raymond Ochoa, who delivers a great performance, especially for a young actor like Ochoa. Arlo and Spot’s friendship was delivered fantastically, as I was convinced and incredibly touched by their chemistry. Arlo learns to love Spot and forgive him for a tragic event that he feels Spot was responsible for, and Spot, having lost his family years before, learns that he isn’t alone as he bonds with Arlo. Eventually they mean more to each other than anything else, delivering a heartwarming story from both sides.

The movie feels rather short, but fortunately this was not an issue at all, as the length of the film was perfect, always delivering a great amount of fun and heart. The film never dragged, and the ending gave me such a great feeling. However, it did take me a while to get attached and feel that it wasn’t going to continue like a cliche film. There was one tragic moment that sets up the rest of the film, and I needed more gut-punching emotion during that moment in order for it to feel more conveying of its emotion. However, the film is later able to convey a fantastic story line that so often made me smile. The animation in this film is some of the most beautiful and photo-realistic animation ever put to film. The CGI had me in awe at a large amount of times. It is a beautiful spectacle and feels so real and perfected.

The Good Dinosaur is overall a fantastic, heartwarming, and touching animated film, once again bringing Pixar’s magic to the big screen for good, with great character development, beautiful animation, and a positive story about family and bravery. It is a must-see on the big screen, ideally to be experienced as a family, and with the glorious 3D effects of the film.

11.21.15

by filmtoppings

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.

11.07.15

by filmtoppings

Spectre

Daniel Craig returns as James Bond in his most likely final film as the iconic spy. In Spectre, Bond discovers that everything he has fought to this day has linked up to one organization – SPECTRE, lead by the menacing Franz Oberhauser (a magnificent Christoph Waltz), who has a dark past with Bond.

Spectre is everything I wanted from a possible Bond finale with Daniel Craig. Enormous, packed with excellent action and wonderful performances, and putting you on the edge of your seat, Spectre brings Bond to the big screen in a way that couldn’t be more satisfying for die-hard fans like me. It includes very familiar elements from the old Bond features, including the awesome gun barrel opening, which hasn’t been used in the very opening since the Pierce Brosnan days. The movie isn’t even afraid to make fun of some of these elements, including the famous “shaken, not stirred” Martini cocktail, and even includes some humor in the fight scenes. Sam Mendes once again does a great job in the director’s chair, previously having done a fantastic job with Skyfall. Roger Deakins did a great job shooting Skyfall, but in Spectre, Hoyte van Hoytema’s cinematography is something far magnificent. Having previously shot Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi epic Interstellar, Hoyte van Hoytema once again amazes with his ability to capture scale, perfect angles, and the need for as little takes as possible throughout scenes.

Daniel Craig once again delivers a strong and badass performance as the iconic hero that has been in and out of cinemas for over 50 years. He is able to convey the character’s emotion, motives, determination, and merciless tone. Léa Seydoux surprised me with such a deep, emotional, and strong performance as the new Bond girl. Christoph Waltz is by far the greatest Bond villain of the century. Having won two Oscars within 3 years, it’s no surprise that here, Waltz delivers a menacing, ruthless, extremely intimidating performance as such a fantastic and convincing antagonist. The movie did a perfect job saving up his character up until the last hour of the film, although he has a brief appearance before. It was very thrilling to see Bond get tortured psychologically by Waltz’s villain, rather than physically.

Sam Smith’s theme “Writing’s on the Wall” is not a great song, but is made such great use of in the opening credits of Spectre, with such amazing imagery like nothing I’ve seen in a Bond film before. The action is movies is so exciting, using such amazing cinematography, sound, and choreographed so well, I could never take my eyes off the film. By the time Waltz was onscreen, I was on the edge of my seat. I couldn’t believe how thrilled I was when Craig finally confronted Waltz, and what comes afterwords. The film ends very well, and I would be glad if it would end the saga, or at least Craig’s story. My one complaint of the film is that this movie and this summer’s Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation felt extremely similar, with very similar plot points, but I found Spectre to be a far greater film, much more thrilling, exciting, and nostalgic to fans.

Spectre may not be as great as Casino Royale, but it brings back Bond in such an awesome, exciting way, that’s definitely worth a trip to the movies, especially for fans.

10.22.15

by filmtoppings

The Walk

The Walk tells the fascinating true story of French acrobat Philippe Petit, who in 1974 hung a wire between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center and walked on it.

Since after Forrest Gump, my favorite drama movie, was released and stole the Oscars that year, not many of Robert Zemeckis’ films have been appreciated and recognized as being his (with exceptions like Cast Away and Flight). The Walk is hopefully a return for him. A visual spectacle with a fascinating topic, The Walk delivers a fantastic storyline, lots told through constant narration from an extraordinary protagonist (like in Forrest Gump). Joseph Gordon-Levitt delivers his best performance yet as the daring French artist, nailing a French accent and perfectly capturing the heart and soul of Petit. He captures every single emotion of the character terrifically and really transforms into the role. Knowing the movie is a true story makes you think more about the movie and the person Petit is. The supporting actors including Ben Kingsley are also great, but the spotlight always seems to be pointed on Gordon-Levitt, never pulling our interest away from him, but we are often wishing a few characters were a bit more developed.

The score by Alan Silvestri, who has frequently collaborated with Zemeckis on features like Back to the Future and Forrest Gump, is once again a wonderful score, brilliant, beautiful in many aspects, and soothing to listen to. The visual effects are, of course, flawless, and absolutely amazing to look at, with the Twin Towers being shown with amazing CGI, and although some details are obviously CGI, they are still very well done, which is a great accomplishment because obvious CGI is often irritating in modern cinema. Robert Zemeckis is a master of visual effects, having perfected them in every movie he has directed. Although the film ended up focusing more on the plot than the visual beauty, it still gives enough times for the visuals to shine. The plot is always sweet, heartfelt, and has entertaining narration from Gordon-Levitt’s Petit. It focuses on Petit’s life, love, associates, and especially his daring dream and soul. It is able to entertain, touch our hearts, and bring the setting to life, while being able to avoid overused biopic cliches such as closing title cards.

The climax of the film, in which Petit finally walks the wire, is the most well-put together, compelling movie scene of the year. With such thrills and 3D effects, you are pulled from your seat to the wire with Petit. In that final 20 minutes, you can feel your heart pounding as you watch this incredible moment in history brought to life in front of you.

The Walk is entertaining, touching, visually incredible, fantastically directed and acted, and easily one of the best films of the year, and one greatest 3D experiences of the decade, following the footsteps of Gravity and Hugo.

10.12.15

by filmtoppings

Sicario

Kate Macer (Emily Blunt), an idealistic FBI agent, is enlisted by an elected government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.

Denis Villeneuve, the director of 2013’s Prisoners, has returned to the director’s seat with another thrilling and powerful flick. Sicario was often marketed as just another action flick with nothing more than cliche gunshots and explosions, but with a director like Villeneuve, I knew that wasn’t what Sicario would ultimately be. Instead, Sicario is thrilling, heart-pounding, powerful, fantastically acted, and beautifully shot. Emily Blunt delivers a strong female performance, probably the best of her career. I have never seen her as such a deep, driven character, and she portrays her role with lots of emotion and fear that feels real. Benicio del Toro’s performance felt very mysterious and dark, which I liked. Josh Brolin is also great, as a fun, laid-back character.

The movie’s cinematography stands out in such an amazing way. Roger Deakins shoots every single shot of this movie with such brilliance and detail. There are some simply breathtaking shots, whether they are large scale shots of a warring Mexico, or shots through night vision goggles of geared-up FBI agents traveling through dark tunnels. Some of these night shots are made terrifying with the effects of the sound and angle at which they are shot. This movie’s cinematography is the best of the year, and definitely deserves an Oscar.

Although not much besides the action happens within the first half of the film, it is often thrilling, and even when there is only the slightest amount of tension, it can be very suspenseful. By the time I was at the final half of the movie, my heart was pounding from all the suspense. The suspense builds up, and is ended in a perfect way. The movie’s ending sums up the film perfectly, and didn’t need to go any further. The movie has some pessimistic themes about the US/Mexico border’s danger, but conveys it in a very realistic way that makes you pulled in even more to the film’s setting and characters.

Sicario is a very powerful and thrilling film, and another strong picture from Denis Villeneuve. With a strong theme, excellent cinematography, and great performances, Sicario has thrilled me like no other film this year, and is a definite watch for ages 15 and up.

10.08.15

by filmtoppings

The Martian

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.

10.04.15

by filmtoppings

Please check out my YouTube channel!

I have recently put up a YouTube channel for which I will be posting videos about movies. For example, I’ll be talking about movies I’ve seen, one’s I’m awaiting, top 10 movie lists, and much more! Check out my first two videos below:

Here is the link to my channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSV89b28SYNKbmAk5PCDtZA

I hope you enjoy watching my videos, and stay tuned for more on my channel in the future!

09.19.15

by filmtoppings

Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials

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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