Movie Reviews Archives | Page 60 Of 241

The Only Damsel in Distress is What We Feel After Watching This Flick

Net every twist on the fairy tale convention can work, and where Damsel misses the mark is in providing a reason why she would befriend that serpent in the pit.

Damsel Movie Poster Once viewers know the movie outline to Netflix’s Damsel, there’s hardly any surprise in regard to what will happen to Elodie (Millie Bobby Brown) in this fairy tale turned upside down. That also includes the empathy that’s expected for any princess who gets tossed to the pit, and expected to die because of the serpent that lies within.

There’s a dragon and while she is no true servant of evil, just what this serpentine represents suggests there’s more to this tale than meets the eye. I’d have to give it another view, focussing on this creature’s point of view, and trying to figure out if this beast was ever friendly to humans.

However, this movie is about a mortal woman who is no longer that lady in distress (as the title proposes). She’s able to hold her own, and I doubt she even wants to be married. The prince she meets is not all that charming once he shows his true colours. Also, I kept on thinking about DreamWorks Shrek while watching this work, and thankfully this live-action piece is not intentionally wanting to mirror the demeanour of Princess Fiona. Both are quite feisty, and I rather like it.

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Nobody is Crazy in this Charming Coming of Age Tale

The best way to show how Nobody is Crazy is in showing how everybody should be treated even when adversity is everywhere.

Please check local film festival listings for screenings near you.

Anyone with an obsessive-compulsive disorder is easy to deal with. People just have to be more compassionate and know what to say in order to help them manage the everyday. But for Rafa (Manuel Gutierrez) in Nobody is Crazy, what he has to do is face what makes him the odd man out. He has no friends or people to turn to, and this actor does a remarkable job at selling the fact he can do better.

But when nobody believes that he has made a friend, a masked individual (who prefers to be recognized as Nobody) who claims to be from his future, the film by Federico J. Arioni is masterfully crafted to not let anyone in on the secret. It’s a very thoughtful low-fi time travel cum existential work that deserves continued film festival screenings worldwide. Even though this work was released back in 2019, getting noticed by well known movie celebrations is tough.

Also, I was amused at how this Argentine director puts himself into this movie by playing this hero who pops in and out of existence, like a conscience to offer sage advice to a lost boy.

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The Skinwalkers American Werewolves 2 is More about the Legends and Lore than Scary UFOs

It’s important to recognize the legends and lore that makes up Small Town Monster’s next documentary, The Skinwalkers American Werewolves 2

Available on Demand Beginning April 6, 2024

Seth Breedlove must really love cryptozoology over any other occult topic. In his latest piece, The Skinwalkers American Werewolves 2, he’s found locals who have had run-ins with this beast! And in what’s presented is rather fascinating from a shaman’s perspective.

Although this producer is not always in the field examining some legend like in his Alaskan Bigfoot series, what his documentaries offer is still food for thought. That’s because what he prefers to focus on are the stories from folks who had first-hand encounters. What is presented concerns a shapeshifting creature who can change into anything it wants. And while I half expected this release to include mention of a certain famous ranch, there’s very little acknowledgment. Instead, the dialogue suggests that this polymorph is not alien, but something from local, indigenous, lore. Personally, I think it’s an interdimensional entity.

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When One Percent Warrior is Unstoppable and Fights Back A Hundred-Fold!

One cool aspect about One Percent Warrior concerns its willingness to get meta, and poke fun at itself regarding this industry.

One-Percent Warrior. Blu-ray Casejpg — **Available to purchase on Amazon USA**

Well GO USA

Although I’ve seen this type of story in comedic takes on what an actor wants to change up about his life, One Percent Warrior (1%er ワンパーセンター) is very different. Here, filmmaker Yūdai Yamaguchi crafted a concept that lets fans of martial arts films learn about what keeps some fighters going. Tak Sakaguchi is not simply out to relive his glory days.

As Takuma Toshiro, the passion lies in what makes an actor an actor, and a fighter at his prime. No, it’s about how one channels his chi, but it’s in what being a martial arts action star represents. While this talent is making a new movie in an abandoned factory, things get difficult when two gangs interrupt the process! They are in search of hidden loot.

Suddenly, these actors, directors, and production crew have to rely on their skills and good ol’ fashioned cowboy diplomacy in order to survive! Unlike the comedy Die Hart, we’re not supposed to know what is faked or not. When lives are in danger, it’s up to Tak to save the day!

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A Word to the Wise, Kung Fu Panda 4 Marks Po’s Passing of the Torch

The big question I have concerning Kung Fu Panda 4 is whether another streaming series will get developed to fill in the gap while waitiong for the fifth instalment?

Kung Fu Panda 4 Poster Spoiler Alert

Although the story about Po (Jack Black) is not quite at an end in Kung Fu Panda 4, I’m sure the showrunners have something planned as this six-part saga is coming close to ending. While the first film is partially about enlightenment and seeing a Panda as the reluctant hero, this one is ready to put him on the path of becoming like Oogway. It’s unfortunate all the character and world development from the televised series are not canon. I really want to see Nu Hai, Jing, Bao, and Fan Tong from Paws of Destiny again. Although not everyone will know these series are non canonical, it’s easy to spot the discrepancies.

For example, in Dragon Knight, Mr. Ping’s (James Hong) well-developed backstory is all for naught. Had he gone full on pirate, I’m sure he’d ruffle other feathers! Had he been determined, it would’ve surprised Po’s biological father, Pang (Bryan Cranston) and make for hilarious moments. These two stick around to provide the My Two Dads style comic relief.

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Finding Redemption in Cameron Beyl’s The Veil (2023) Requires Hope and Being Free from Sin

When those skeletons in the closet are ready to rattle them bones, what’s heard than seen in The Veil becomes all the more haunting.

Spoiler Alert

Cameron Beyl‘s film, The Veil, comes loaded with certain expectations, and when I know something about how communing with spirit world might work, everything that gets developed is picture perfect. Not only is the cinematography gorgeous to behold but also the meaning behind this simply titled film is very telling.

Here, what’s presented concerns what happens during a solar storm. In what a young Douglas (Sean O’Bryan), a then priest in training, witnesses while driving down a lonely road one night is a wonderful aurora borealis. Little does he know that its effect will cause him to have nightmares much later in life. That’s because during this green tempest, he nearly runs into an Amish girl (Rebekah Kennedy) fleeing for her life. We assume she’s escaped from some abusive individual.

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