Last movie you watched......

I don't disagree Kevin Smith is limited. But he's very good at what he does. I really liked Clerks II...thought it did a nice job of getting at that 30-something angst when you realize you're probably too comfortable in your little rut and nowhere near maximizing your potential. I'm curious to see what he does with the characters in their late 40s and early 50s. My guess is there's more to the movie than the very meta idea of making a movie about a day in the life of the convenience store.

I also thought Red State was pretty good.

 

Can't wait to see this. Based on one of my all time favorite books "American Prometheus."

 

Two other people and I were there for the 8:20 showing of Nope. Really enjoyed it. My daughter - one of the other two - said it reminded her of Sorry to Bother You, which was also odd and really good.

 

The Gray Man. Above average action flick, from Netflix. Courtesy of the Russo Brothers and great cast (Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Billy Bob Thornton and the dude from Bridgerton).

 

In the search for air conditioned activities, Alice and I saw Top Gun Maverick yesterday. It was ludicrous, terrible, and highly entertaining all at once. I mean most Marvel movies require less willing suspension of disbelief than this did, but on the other hand, jet planes go vroom and the action flight sequences were terrific.

 

Just to do something with my oldest went to see Thor, kinda hokey but I’ve always enjoyed watching Natalie Portman.

 

Agreed. Above average because Evans and Gosling are mostly hamming it up humorously. Otherwise, it’s just every action trope piled together with some CGI smash-smash, which the Russos do better than most. A fun 2 hours, but not worth pausing when you get a glass of water.

 

Top Gun: Maverick is getting a lot attention, but my favorite Tom Cruise reboot is definitely the Mummy. It is cheesy/awesome. Cruise seems to be taking the whole enterprise with a giant shaker of salt, the effects and stunt sequences are well-done, Annabelle Wallis makes an awesome heroine, Jake Johnson is a fun sidekick and Russell Crowe is good as Hyde/Jekyll.

Cruise hired a bunch of Mission: Impossible writers to graft MI action sequences onto an incoherent storyline involving ancient Egyptian daggers.

 

Maverick was good, predictable and definitely worth the price of admission. Cruise delivers, he’s a God damned movie star and an excellent producer. His movies are entertaining and he isn’t promising anything he doesn’t deliver. He doesn’t push an agenda outside of the movies, he doesn’t pose as some political spokesman, he doesn’t push his religion on the public. I don’t want to know what kind of private life he has because he doesn’t make his public life anything more than about his movies.

 

Did a doubleheader today to beat the heat.

Nope: Enjoyed it, though not as much as Peele's first two. Daniel Kaluuya is awesome as always.

Then, because, why the hell not, Maverick. For the 8th time. Mostly this is a consequence of the AMC A-List and being able to see 3 movies a week and studios not releasing as many movies as they once did, but it's also because I simply love the hell out of the movie (but no, I would not have paid full NYC ticket prices eight times. I don't think...). And two months after its release, today's showing--4 p.m.--was packed and filled with applause. People are still flocking to it. I'm assuming it'll be back in Imax eventually as the summer slate gets pretty weak from here on out so might as well put it back on the giant screens.

Last week saw Where the Crawdads Sing. Hadn't read the book so didn't know any of the twists or turns. The story is enjoyable, the swampy setting cool, but some of the performances are just kind of off. But I see it's doing well, which is nice to see for a non-action adult drama.

Watched Gray Man and enjoyed the ridiculousness of it and Gosling and Evans' quips. Also fun seeing Julia Butters, who was so good in small role in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

 

And here I've been, trying to keep myself from going to see it for the third time!

Seriously, I think it's just because it's such a watchable, and simple but entertaining movie with a decent human story that everyone knows, and can root for.

There's no stress, no fuss, no politics, and no violence or gratuitous bad language or sex. Just a good, easy, eminently watchable film that makes for a good day at the movies. And people are liking it. Film-makers should take note.

 

Here's how I'd grade the major action sequences (without giving really anything away):

Bangkok: A
Plane: B-
Vienna: C+
Hospital: B
Croatia: A

The final fight is really well done. Looks real. Looks dramatic, too.