Alita: Battle Angel. 

My review mirrors that of @Brumfondl

also 7/10

I finally gave in to peer pressure and watched The Lion King (1994). There wasn’t any reason I didn’t watch this film earlier, I just never got around to it. It wasn’t on the list of films I never intend to watch.

I actually knew surprisingly little about The Lion King, despite it being ancient and regularly referred to by people I know. I knew the cub Simba was first in line to be king, that there was a cat named Nala (AKA my neighbour’s daughter’s cat), there were two songs performed by Elton John, and that it was set in Africa (duh!). That was about it.

I was absolutely astounded when I first got my hands on the film about a week ago, to discover that the lyrics to “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” in the film are completely different from Elton John’s version. How did I not know that? Upon viewing the film, I was also surprised to hear celebrity voices for Mufasa and Zazu (the rest I didn’t recognise, but IMDB has revealed a few more well-known people). With the notable exception of Robin Williams playing the genie in Aladdin, familiar voices were not something I was accustomed to in Disney 2D animated films. With modern 3D animation, celebrity voices have become the norm, although not always for the best. I took some delight in Rowan Atkinson’s Zazu appearance, but to me James Earl Jones was not a good fit for Mufasa. Perhaps that’s because he played the ‘bad guy’ in Star Wars, while in this role he’s clearly a nurturing parent and accomplished king.

I really wanted to believe there was some good in Scar. It turned out he really was the dodgy uncle he seemed to be from the beginning. Scar was simply bumped from first in line to second in the order of succession. No other motivation for his actions was suggested that I recall. Surely there could be a little more back story there? Some deep-seated resentment or historical grievances perhaps? Reading about the development of the film, Scar was originally the leader of the baboons, but failing to develop the revised character more was a big oversight in my opinion. While particularly disappointing in the case of Scar, I felt the characters lacked depth in general. Other than Simba simply (and predictably) not mentioning his royal connections to his (annoying) new friends, everyone (thing?) was simply as they seemed. The Lion King is as far as I know an original story, there was no need to be faithful to any book or prior production (not that Disney is known for such adherence), so I would have liked to have seen some more character development all round.

The music was okay. The Lion King originally wasn’t going to be a musical, and the musical numbers which ended up in there were quite sparse, to the point of feeling like an unnecessary add-on. I’d probably have stripped it down to just “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” and used the time on other things.

That’s the criticism over with. The 90-ish runtime flew by. I did have a brief intermission in the middle, but the film was by no means tedious to watch. That’s a common criticism even my favourite films can’t escape.

The animation was good. I prefer 2D animation over 3D techniques.

If I had children, I’d probably add it to my movie collection. I’d watch it again, but The Lion King is certainly not going to displace Beauty And The Beast (1991) as my favourite Disney classic. Now, let's see what The Lion King 2019 brings to the table.

alita  5/10

too long, too badly written, too much eye candy, too much james cameron

spiderman into the spiderverse  6/10

a visual treat but beyond that so what ?

blackkklansman 8/10

cheated by oscar ! lol

The Favourite 6/10 Not quite what I was expecting.

The Hurricane 6/10 I think they made Carter out to be a bit more of a hero than he really was (although I do believe in his innocence, he certainly was no saint), and I hate the way film makers invent characters and situations just to make the movie more interesting; it's a true story so stick to the facts!

SirHumphreyAppleby:

 

I finally gave in to peer pressure and watched The Lion King (1994). There wasn’t any reason I didn’t watch this film earlier, I just never got around to it. It wasn’t on the list of films I never intend to watch.

 

I actually knew surprisingly little about The Lion King, despite it being ancient and regularly referred to by people I know. I knew the cub Simba was first in line to be king, that there was a cat named Nala (AKA my neighbour’s daughter’s cat), there were two songs performed by Elton John, and that it was set in Africa (duh!). That was about it.

 

I was absolutely astounded when I first got my hands on the film about a week ago, to discover that the lyrics to “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” in the film are completely different from Elton John’s version. How did I not know that? Upon viewing the film, I was also surprised to hear celebrity voices for Mufasa and Zazu (the rest I didn’t recognise, but IMDB has revealed a few more well-known people). With the notable exception of Robin Williams playing the genie in Aladdin, familiar voices were not something I was accustomed to in Disney 2D animated films. With modern 3D animation, celebrity voices have become the norm, although not always for the best. I took some delight in Rowan Atkinson’s Zazu appearance, but to me James Earl Jones was not a good fit for Mufasa. Perhaps that’s because he played the ‘bad guy’ in Star Wars, while in this role he’s clearly a nurturing parent and accomplished king.

 

I really wanted to believe there was some good in Scar. It turned out he really was the dodgy uncle he seemed to be from the beginning. Scar was simply bumped from first in line to second in the order of succession. No other motivation for his actions was suggested that I recall. Surely there could be a little more back story there? Some deep-seated resentment or historical grievances perhaps? Reading about the development of the film, Scar was originally the leader of the baboons, but failing to develop the revised character more was a big oversight in my opinion. While particularly disappointing in the case of Scar, I felt the characters lacked depth in general. Other than Simba simply (and predictably) not mentioning his royal connections to his (annoying) new friends, everyone (thing?) was simply as they seemed. The Lion King is as far as I know an original story, there was no need to be faithful to any book or prior production (not that Disney is known for such adherence), so I would have liked to have seen some more character development all round.

 

The music was okay. The Lion King originally wasn’t going to be a musical, and the musical numbers which ended up in there were quite sparse, to the point of feeling like an unnecessary add-on. I’d probably have stripped it down to just “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” and used the time on other things.

 

That’s the criticism over with. The 90-ish runtime flew by. I did have a brief intermission in the middle, but the film was by no means tedious to watch. That’s a common criticism even my favourite films can’t escape.

 

The animation was good. I prefer 2D animation over 3D techniques.

 

If I had children, I’d probably add it to my movie collection. I’d watch it again, but The Lion King is certainly not going to displace Beauty And The Beast (1991) as my favourite Disney classic. Now, let's see what The Lion King 2019 brings to the table.

 

Now that is a well written and thought-out review. You did miss the whole "Hamlet with fur" aspect of the plot though...

BlueShift:

 

Now that is a well written and thought-out review. You did miss the whole "Hamlet with fur" aspect of the plot though...

 

Thank you. The first I heard about the similarities to Hamlet were after I posted that review on my Facebook wall. I'm not too familiar with Hamlet as it was not one of the works of Shakespeare I was forced to endure at school. Closest we got was Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead in 5th form, following The Scottish Play in 4th.

Just watched "Keeping Mum" which I had recorded off TV1. It is now available on TVNZ OnDemand. 7/10

A pastor preoccupied with writing the perfect sermon fails to realise that his wife is having an affair, and his children are up to no good.

British black humour and Maggie Smith at their best. Also stars Rowan Atkinson and Patrick Swayze.

A must see and don't blink cause you will miss the twitch of the curtains.

Sorry, Spoiler alert, but I must add, think of the 1944 movie "Arsenic and Old Lace".

Captain Marvell 6/10

I wanted to love this movie, but it's hokey for large chunks and attempts to be funny fell flat for me most of the time ( I didn't read a lot of comics as a kid so I don't have a full back story to try and relate, though I have seen every Marvel movie made. I am not a fan of pulp culture references unless they are designed to make the movie better, and should be seamless. These seemed jarring and done for the sake of doing it. 

Agreed Coulson and Fury were a bit weird to start with but I did find it pretty impressive. 

Took too long to get started for me, and parts of the story just didn't link together. 

Watched the retelling of Robin Hood starring Taron Edgerton & Jamie Foxx yesterday on iTunes. 

Can't say whether I enjoyed it or not...Its styling was somewhat distracting, as it had a "Fascist Germany in the 1930's" feel to the garb worn by the baddies and nobles, while the commoners wore more traditional non-medieval clothing that still didn't quite hit the supposed timeline. 

It appeared that at one stage the Roman Catholic Church and Nottingham were responsible for the entire Crusade...together. Then it appeared that Nottingham was part of England after all. I think. 

Action sequences were very Guy Ritchie-esque...slow-mo into fast pan, into slow-mo and then an explosive "kaboom" moment...punches, arrows, swords, whatever - all got the same treatment. 

The "technology" was a bit our of whack too - Gatling-style arrow guns, used by the Moors in the Middle East and then by the Nazis guards/Sherriff's men, but everyone else got a single bow. 

Will there be a sequel? It was set up for one. I doubt there'll be one. 

Too confused to really enjoy it. Entertained too much to hate it. 

5/10

Handsomedan:

 

Alita: Battle Angel. 

 

My review mirrors that of @Brumfondl

 

also 7/10

 

I quite enjoyed it and would give it a 7/10.

I did however find myself saying, as soon as the credits started, was "they better make a sequel". I wanted to see more of the world they had spent two hours building.

Based on the box office performance though we may be lucky to see one. 

Cloud Atlas 7/10

Hard to describe this effort from the guys that bought us The Matrix. It's 6 different loosely linked stories in different eras from the 18th century to the 23rd century. Some of the scenes only last 10 secs or so before it jumps to another time frame. Very odd.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout 5/10

The latest MI saga is a bit of a let down. Very heavy on the action but I found the first 90 minutes very confusing with who exactly was on who's side. The last 30 minutes wasn't bad but overall it lacked something the recent MI offerings had.

SJB:

 

Mission: Impossible - Fallout 5/10

 

The latest MI saga is a bit of a let down. Very heavy on the action but I found the first 90 minutes very confusing with who exactly was on who's side. The last 30 minutes wasn't bad but overall it lacked something the recent MI offerings had.

It is a Tom Cruise produced franchise designed to show case Tom Cruise to prove he can still be a He-Man at 56. He certainly can not act and never has been able to. He doesn't need the money except to give to the C of S which really does not need it.  Risky Business, Top Gun & Rain Man are the only movies I have every watched that had TC in. I don't know but it could just be the VERY cheesy smile and the platform shoes but he always seems to come across narcissistic. Yea, I do not like Tom Cruise as an actor which is a pity because if it had been anyone else doing the MI franchise or Jack Reacher or even maybe the latest Mummy movie I would watch those movies.

I think you are being a bit hard on the guy.

He has made some excellent movies including

Born on the Fourth of July

A Few Good Men (including a classic courtroom scene with Jack Nicholson)

Interview with a Vampire

Collateral

Valkyrie

and recently American Made

Most of those don't have a single cheesy grin in them.