Exactly. Too many of these movies are veering toward 2012 (what I consider the nadir of disaster movies) and away from the effectiveness of stuff like Jurassic Park. And yeah I actually like Abrams, but one of his weakest points is his ability to convey stakes. His two Trek movies had a similar problem.
I liked that the first Trek had more of a personal stakes, it was just a guy out for revenge on the enterprise. As for Into Darkness.....I don't remember what the overall plot was other than Khan lol.
I was thinking of the destruction of Vulcan. That should have been immensely traumatic for Trekkies but it doesn't land as it should
oh, yeah. I didn't really feel anything for the planet (and everyone on it) but I thought the way they had Spock's mom fall right when teleporting and he beams up to the ship still reaching out for her.....damn, that was well done.
captain america: civil war fantastic great dialogue, loved the political conflicts, the conflict with friendships, good character development, fantastic cast. very good all around. loved it more than i thought it would. a really thoughtful and entertaining movie. it was paced very well and there were few cliches too. captain america: this won't change what happened iron-man: i don't care that's what i'm talking about. hope the spider-man and black panther movies turn out good.
My favorite movie of the year. The action is so top notch and everyone had their moments even though there were a ton of characters. Stand outs were BP, Antman and Spider.
Warcraft (2016) Solid movie. Not great, not terrible. Disappointed with the way it ended, it kinda stumbled. Wouldn't turn it off if it was on TV. Acting was eh apart from 3 mains - Travis Fimmel and Paula Patton I really, really liked. Toby Kebell's delivery of Durotan I enjoyed as well. There were quite a few deaths and a major twist (which made me like a character a lot less haha). Actually really liked Travis Fimmel as Lothar, especially after the death of his son. Definitely packed in a LOT (different races, regions, characters) in two hours. Feels a bit rushed and dissatisfying on that end. But I followed the story well enough. I think there's a been a bit of exaggeration about how confusing it is, though. It's very clear who the villain is within the first ten minutes (Gul'dan) and what he is trying to achieve, especially with the way he is trying to do so. It follows Garona, Lothar, Durotan, Khadgar, and Medivh pretty well for what it could. I'm at least somewhat interested to see how the sequel turns out. There was a lot going on, some mediocre performances, and quite a bit of exposition. But it didn't turn me off as much as it has seemed to with most critics. I just really liked seeing this story and these characters and it entertained me enough. I didn't really cringe at anything and didn't dislike anything too strongly. There was enough that I liked (certain actors, some of the action, deaths and twists, and some silly humor here and there) to make me think it's just a solid video game movie. Could have been better, definitely. But I don't think it's as bad as it is being made out to be. All in all, fairly entertaining movie. Don't hate it, don't love it. I like it. I admit I'm familiar with a few of these characters and where they're from, though. FWIW; I have never played the Warcraft games and have barely touched WoW. Whatever I know is from Hearthstone, and reading on Wiki.
The Huntsman: Winter's War (2016) Jessica Chastain & Chris Hemsworth looked good and kicked ass! Loved 'em and they fit this movie super well. If it weren't for them though...This movie would have felt like a disaster. Emily Blunt was truly awful which is sad and surprising to say considering she's usually on point. She's been amazing in everything else I've seen (3 favorites of mine too - The Adjustment Bureau, Looper, and Edge of Tomorrow). Just didn't buy her performance here at all. Very cringey - especially a couple of lines she had at the end. Story was meh and some things weren't explained well either. So besides Chastain and Hemsworth, there's a few fun action scenes, good cinematography and on point humor. But otherwise pretty disappointing, esp considering the major role Freya (Blunt's character) had in this. Went to Stuckmann's review after and he's pretty on point:
I agree with the Honest Trailer a lot with War Craft. I wasn't a fan of the WOW and haven't played the RTS in like 15 years so I was so lost and thought it was boring. I have friends who are into the game and world and thought it was amazing.
Watched Sisters last night with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler and it was just as meh as I expected it to be
Good lord is Vidas Secas boring. It had some memorable moments and nice shots, but human misery alone isn't a plot. I've only seen two films from the Cinema Novo movement, but it just doesn't seem like my style.
Every time someone mentions it I want to tell them to just watch the De Palma film for the same emotional experience