The Summer In Review (2014)

Here is my long awaited review of this summer's movies, or at least the ones I saw. I didn't get to all of them, but I'm happy with what I did see.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

Total waste. I already talked about this movie so I won't go too much into detail, but I'll just say again that this is one of the worst examples of corporate filmmaking in years. It does have some good aspects, but the negatives kept me from even remotely enjoying this movie. 1 Star

Godzilla

I'm writing this on the same day I wrote my initial Godzilla review, so go read that. Not perfect, but still an enjoyable night at the movies. 3.5 Stars

The Purge: Anarchy

I don't know what to say about this one. One hand it's terrible. The acting is weak (except Frank Grillo), it's not even remotely scary... and yet it was tons of fun. The concept of the Purge is dumb, but it works as a social satire. It was an improvement over the first Purge movie, which took this great concept and turned it into a weak remake of The Strangers. This one was showing us city streets during the Purge and all the insanity going on. It's my guilty pleasure of the summer. 3 Stars

X-Men: Days Of Future Past

I didn't think it was as great as some other people did, but it was still a great franchise fixer. It's rare to see a broken down franchise like this one return to glory, so it was cool to see. The cast was great, the action great, and the story very ambitious. I do wish they answered some questions (How is Xavier alive?), and it was bit less populated with plot holes, but it was still great. I hope they keep the old X-Men cast, although the new one is pretty great. 4 Stars

Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes 

This was an outstanding movie, one of the best big budget summer blockbusters in years. I loved it, I loved every bit of it. Well, maybe Jason Clarke and Keri Russell could have been a bit less bland, but that's the only issue. It was an epic story, with one of the best post apocalyptic worlds I've ever seen in a movie. It did a great job selling the tragedy of what's happened, especially with Gary Oldman's character. I love how you can understand every character, even the villains. No matter how evil Koba is, or how some of the human blatantly and cartoonishly hate the apes, you still understand where they're coming from. Andy Serkis needs an Oscar. Badly. That man is a genius. Well done. 5 Stars

Wait, what do you mean there's no Pixar movie this year?

Guardians of The Galaxy 

What can I say about this that hasn't already been said? This movie is a total blast. It was funny, action packed, exciting, suspenseful and incredibly entertaining. The visuals are incredible, but its heart still manages to be bigger than its effects budget. It shows what happens when the filmmakers care about making a good product, despite it being a big budget summer movie. 4 Stars

Boyhood

I don't really equate this with summer since I saw it in October, but it did technically come out in the summer. I'm not writing a third review of it, so I'll again say this is an outstanding movie, easily the best of the year. 5 Stars

Godzilla (2014)

 

As promised, here is my review of this year's Godzilla movie. I was really looking forward to this movie, it was easily my most hyped movie of the year. The marketing was great, really selling that this was finally the perfect American Godzilla movie, the one that the 1998 movie wasn't. That movie is kind of a guilty pleasure for me. I know it's terrible, I know that as a Godzilla fan I should hate it, but the movie is fun in a stupid way, even though the movie did virtually nothing right. Luckily, this movie was a big improvement.

Let me say that Godzilla is easily the best part of this movie, which is more than I can say for the 1998 movie. Everytime he showed up in that movie, a part of you cringes, simply because it's such a poor representation of the character. Here, it's different. This IS Godzilla, executed perfectly. He steals the show everytime he's onscreen, and it was so great to see the radioactive breath. When his back fins start to glow blue, it's a great moment, you know what's coming. I loved this Godzilla, full credit to director Gareth Edwards for getting him right. I disagree with the people who say Godzilla didn't get enough screen time. Sure he doesn't show up until later in the movie, but that's the way it should be. I'm glad they went for a slow build, just like the old Japanese Godzilla movies did. The best Godzilla movies were the ones that focused on the human characters, while the weaker ones focus on Godzilla as the protagonist. It's better to wait to see him. Besides, the wait to see him isn't astronomically long like in Peter Jackson's King Kong (Which I liked, for the record), he does show up in due time. And man, was his first appearance great. The buildup is fantastic, starting from the long shot of the beach. You know what's coming. Then they keep building up until the soldiers fire those rockets, revealing his neck. Then he turns and roars, the classic Godzilla roar. It was such a thrill to see. I guess it's true that the MUTOs were more of the centre of the movie than Godzilla was, and that's a problem. Even so, I thought Godzilla got a nice amount of time in the movie.

I also loved Bryan Cranston, though that's a given. He's probably the best actor alive, and he didn't disappoint. It would have been easy to imagine him phoning this in, being a Godzilla movie and all. But that misses the point: Cranston isn't capable of phoning in a performance, he's simply too incredible an actor. I loved his character arc, I loved his quest. That whole opening was actually pretty great and emotional. Much of that comes from Cranston (And the fact I was so hyped to be watching a new Godzilla movie didn't hurt), but also the writing. It's all very emotional, more than you would expect from a monster movie. 

Now for the problems. Yes, there is way too much of the MUTOs. I didn't mind them as monsters, but we say way too much of them. The whole point of the movie is to destroy them, and Godzilla just kind of acts as a wild card in his own movie. Also, the image of the MUTOs eating nuclear missiles was.... odd. Really, that's what they want? To eat missiles? Cranston was easily the best character. He was the only one with a real character arc, the only one who actually has a goal he's building towards. I also hated how soon he leaves the movie. Part of that is the advertising's fault. It basically promised Cranston vs Godzilla, and that couldn't be farther from the true. The fights with Godzilla and MUTOs were fun, but hard to see. Why must all American giant monster movies be shot at night and/or in the rain? I want to see Godzilla fight a monster on a bright and sunny day, not when the fights are hard to see. Godzilla 1998, Pacific Rim and this movie are all guilty of this. Also, the fights are too brief. Here's an example. We see Godzilla show up to fight the MUTO, and he charges at the other monster. We then cut to people watching a TV showing the fight for maybe two seconds before going back to our main human characters. Seriously! I don't want to see Aaron Taylor-Johnson and friends, I want to see the fight! I know I just said it's better to focus on the human characters, but not in a situation like that. I expect Edwards to know what the audience would want to see in that situation. That's another problem, Aaron Taylor-Johnson. He's not a bad actor, but he sucked in this movie. He was about as emotive as a block of wood, and he spent what little effort he gave unsuccessfully trying to hide his British accent. He absolutely sucked, which is a shame. Elizabeth Olsen was.... wait, Elizabeth Olsen was in this movie? Huh. I had no issues with Ken Watanabe, he was fine as the exposition guy. I always liked him and it was great to see him here.

I know it sounds like I'm trashing this movie and yeah, it has plenty of problems. But I had a good feeling leaving the theatre, I did enjoy it. There was plenty of good here. It wasn't perfect by any stretch, but at least it was a Godzilla movie. If nothing else, I'm glad they finally got him right. I'm glad they're making a sequel. I can't wait to see this version of Godzilla again, and hopefully they'll iron out all of the bugs in the next one. 

Why Do We Love Frozen So Much?

As I'm writing this, Frozen has been in release for close to a year. It currently sits as the fifth highest grossing movie of all time, and sits as the highest grossing animated movie of all time. The costumes and merchandise are everywhere; you just know you're going to see lots of Elsa's, Anna's and Olaf's this Halloween. Type in the letter "L" on Youtube, and "Let It Go Frozen" is the second result. It seems every singer, pianist or any other musician has performed a cover of this song. Again, this is nearly a year after it came out. The movie took home the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, making it Disney's first ever win in this category, not counting movies made by Pixar. As of October 17th, 2014, the soundtrack for Frozen sits at number 18 on the Billboard 200, meaning it is still one of the best selling albums a year after release. I've seen more than one store bearing signs on the door saying "Frozen products sold here." In short, Frozen has become a full blown pop culture phenomenon, in an era where these phenomenons are few and far between. Sure, we have billion dollar movies all the time. But in this information age, stories come and quickly, and we barely remember them. Remember Transformers: Age of Extinction? Well it currently sits as the eleventh highest grossing movie of all time, but I don't hear people talk about it, and this is only a few months after it came out. A movie comes to theatres, people talk about it, tweet about it, and then move on to something else. That's the way the world is now, fast to the point you barely notice anything. So why is Frozen different? How did this movie break the rules, how did it become a phenomenon?

Let me start off by giving my thoughts on the movie. I love Frozen. I love it to death, I think it's a masterpiece of an animated film. The story is incredibly clever, especially in the way it allows Disney to parody itself. The characters are wonderfully loveable, and the character depth is stunning. The songs are perfect, possibly the best soundtrack Disney has ever done. I think it's a misnomer to call this a kid's movie. Kid's movies suck, I strongly believe not a single good kid's movie has ever been made. No, it's family movies that are good. Movies like Frozen, Toy Story, The Lion King and Shrek. Movies that adults can enjoy just as much as their child. A kid's movie is a cheap piece of entertainment that only young kids will enjoy, and no adults will find enjoyable. These are movies with no plot, no character, and just piles on the stupid jokes to mindlessly entertain children. (I'm looking at you Shark Tale) Just because something is for kids doesn't mean the filmmakers don't have to think. Kids like good plots, they like good stories. I know I always preferred watching Beauty And The Beast over Mac And Me as a kid. Frozen gets this, and doesn't talk down to its audience. It treats them as intelligent people and expects them to think. I had a huge smile on my face all throughout the movie, and I'm thrilled that this movie got the attention it deserves.

Now, why has Frozen stuck around? How did it become so popular, and how did it keep that popularity up? I think it's simple. It stuck around because it's really good, and people loved that. We live in a cynical world, where movies are ruled by dark gritty realism. I love Christopher Nolan, but his effect has damaged Hollywood. Not everyone is as talented as he is, and it would appear that Hollywood's attempts to capitalize on his success is to make everything dark and depressing. The examples are everywhere: Man Of Steel, The Lone Ranger being some of the most noteworthy ones. But here is an example of something that is bright and uplifting, something that puts a smile on your face. That doesn't mean Frozen just plays a lot of bright colours and cute songs in an attempt to make the audience smile. It does it through the characters, the songs, and the message. At the end, everyone feels like  they have been through a great journey with the characters. At the end, it feels like you're with friends. I can see why children identified with Anna and Elsa, especially why they wanted to see the movie over and over again. The identified with wanting to be noticed by those you look up to, they wanted to see the sisters to come together. The idea to not have Elsa be a true villain was a genius move, and I don't think the movie would have any lasting power if they did make her a villain. Kids loved Olaf, who was not just there for jokes. He had a big heart, he was loveable and kind. The love story was great, and Kristoff provided a good male protagonist to attract boys to the movie. Throw a thrilling quest, outstanding songs and some of the best CGI animation ever done, and you have a recipe for a movie  kids would want to see again and again. But kids can't drive themselves to the movies, and that's where Frozen also finds success.  This movie is so relevant to older audiences. At its core, Frozen is a coming of age story, and story of self acceptance, two things that every adult has had to deal with. Elsa struggles with her powers, which I view as a metaphor  for self doubt, something that everyone experiences as they grow older. Finally, she learns to accept herself and take her place in the adult word. Anna has to grow up, and stop being such a jokester and start to see herself as an adult. Every adult can look at that and smile. And again, the idea of wanting to be noticed by someone you look up to is something everyone can remember doing as a child. That's why "Do You Want To Build  a Snowman?" is a perfect song for the movie. There is something beautiful about those piano chords, something powerful and nostalgic, something that reminds you of your own childhood in a way you can't explain. Pair that with lyrics that could melt the heart of  even the harshest cynic, and you have something that hooks you at the beginning of the movie. The way the song goes from hopeful to tearful is extraordinary, and full marks to Kristen Bell for her incredible vocal performance. And the movie doesn't let up from there. Adults can get dragged into the tragedy of the story: how Elsa leaves Anna alone because of her great love for her, something Anna doesn't know. That makes their resolution all the sweeter. I would expect adults to love this movie as much as children, and that goes a long way in explaining its popularity. Once the adults fall in love with a kids movie, that's how word of mouth really spreads. Parents talk about it on Facebook, Twitter, and tell their friends to take their kids to see it. They see it, and then they fall in love. And what happens next? The kids want to see it again, and the adults are only too happy to go back: but maybe they'll bring a friend this time, or invite another family. Then in comes the merchandise. Every kid is going to want the toys, and that is really how the popularity spreads. Once demand for the movie spreads outside the theatre, you know you have something special. Then there's the soundtrack. Let It Go got tons of attention, and for good reason. It's outstanding, a tour de force vocal performance from Idina Menzel. It wasn't long before other musicians tried to cover it, which they done: in droves. Covers of the song are all over Internet. Once this movie hit the Internet, there was no stopping it. The memes popped up, the song covers, the scene recreations. The Cold Never Bothered Me Anyway trended on Twitter.  The world quickly fell in love, and it should come as no surprise. The movie deserved it, and people couldn't get enough.

What I just described is what made the movie a hit. But there are tons of hit movies. Snow White And The Hunstman was a hit, but people didn't talk about it years later. How did Frozen go from hit to phenomenon? Well to really understand that, you have to go back to the movie season of 2013. Man Of Steel, The Lone Ranger, World War Z, The Wolverine and Star Trek Into Darkness ruled the box office. I'm not saying they're all bad, but they were all dark and gritty. There was little joy, especially in Man Of Steel. Not to say they didn't have their moments (Again, except for Man Of Steel), but for the most part these movies embraced darkness: dark movies for a dark and cynical world. Then Frozen comes along. It was bright, colourful and funny, while still being powerful and emotionally resonant. People just wanted to smile in November 2013, and Frozen realized it better than anyone. People laughed, cried, smiled, sang and smiled again. The power of this movie carried it acclaim and love. Dark movies can be good: The Dark Knight is one of my all time favourite movies. But often times, the movies that are remembered are the ones that bring people joy, the ones that give them more than entertainment, the ones that leave an impression. Movies that bring magic to people's lives. Frozen was able to do that, and that's what movies are all about.

The success of Frozen should serve as a lesson. Darkness and grittiness are fine, but we need balance. We need movies like this, movies that add something to your life. I'm glad this movie got its success, and I can only hope it will bring joy to people for decades to come. Somehow, I think it will. This generation of children will pass this movie down to their children, I have no doubt. This will stand the test of time, and that is the best compliment you can give anything.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

In past years. I've done a post called "The Summer In Review," where I give my thoughts on the summer's offerings of blockbusters. I still plan to do that, but I decided to give two movies separate reviews in addition to that. One is Godzilla, if only because I did a fair bit of Godzilla coverage in my previous blog. I've also decided to give a review to The Amazing Spider-Man 2, for a number of reasons. Let me say this right off the bat: if you like this movie, you may not want to read this post. It's going to be equal parts review and rant. I have a ton to say about this movie. It's more than a movie, it's kind of a snapshot of moviemaking in the year 2014: and I wish there was something better to represent it than this. HUGE spoilers ahead.

I guess it makes sense to give me thoughts on the first Amazing Spider-Man movie. Like I said in the last post, I can still access my posts from the original blog. And so I'll copy and paste my Summer In Review from 2012, one of my first ever posts, rather than write a whole new bit.

 "....Don't get me wrong, I liked a lot of it. Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone were great, as was Rhys Ifan. The plot worked well and I thought it was a good alternate look at Spidey. But this movie was lazy. We never find out what Peter's father was working on (that good ol' "save it for the sequel" pet peeve again), the Lizard, one of my favourite villains was weak with bad CGI. The 3D, which was supposed to be great was weak, and they killed George Stacey too early in the series. They also forgot to include Spider-Man's quips. He didn't make jokes in the last series, he was supposed to here, and they didn't really do that, except for that one scene. Uncle Ben's death scene was bad. It happened too quickly and didn't really affect me emotionally. And the crane scene sucked. Overall a moderately good reboot, but left a LOT to be desired. 2.5 Stars"

So there you go, I wasn't looking forward much to the sequel. It was the first Spider-Man movie I didn't see on opening day. I saw it a couple of weeks later, purely because I felt an obligation. What did I think? Well I think I can sum it up very easily:

I hate this movie. Hated it.

I don't just hate this movie, I disrespect this movie. And I don't disrespect many movies.

I guess hate is a strong weird, there are things about this movie that very good. The problem is that the movie as a whole is such a mess that it's easy to forget the good aspects.

What did I like? Well, I did love the two leads. Let me be clear: I don't think Andrew Garfield has quite mastered Peter Parker. He's not bad, but I do find he can be a bit too cocky and a bit too much of a showboat. That being said, I love him as Spider-Man. He's quippy, he's funny and energetic. Several of the scenes as Spidey got a laugh out of me, and that was good. The costume was great and the web slinging effects were excellent. I loved Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy. Stone nailed the character. She was very smart, competent, kind, funny and extremely charismatic. Stone and Garfield have outstanding chemistry, it should come as no surprise that the two are a real life couple. Every scene they were in was just fantastic. I also loved the visuals. Normally I don't compliment that, I think that visual effects these days kind of make all movies look the same, or at least these big budget tentpoles. That wasn't the case here. I really felt like I was in a comic book. The fights were great, the action was great, the CGI was very good, even realistic. Electro's powers were a great visual. I really bought him as a man made out of electricity, and what that means. He just looked great.

That's basically the extent of what I liked. I'm just going to go over the obvious bad stuff, and delve into more later. Electro was stupid. Yes, the effects were good, but that's it. The character was a joke. His motivations were silly at best, his dialogue awful, and his motivations terrible. I won't spoil it, but it may be the worst villain motivation I've ever seen. They clearly tried to rip off Jim Carrey's turn as The Riddler in Batman Forever, specifically the scenes before he turns evil. That movie wasn't great, but at least they set up that Edward Nygma had a real dark side before he became The Riddler, and you buy it when he turns evil. Here? Not at all. You just roll your eyes at it. And what was with that death metal song playing when he decided to become evil? Man. Green Goblin was okay. Dane Dehaan was good, in an over the top way. His design wasn't great, but I don't know what else they could have done. The Green Goblin doesn't translate to the big screen at all, so they had their work cut out for them. Biggest problem with him was his arc, or lack thereof. In the Sam Raimi movies, Harry had an arc. He starts of as Peter's best friend in the first movie, and we see that relationship devolve from there. You can say all you want about Spider-Man 3 not giving that arc a good finale, but at least the first two movies did a great job. Seeing Harry find the Goblin's room at the end of the second movie was thrilling, a brilliant way to end that movie. Now? There's nothing. He and Peter meet, talk briefly, and suddenly remember they're friends. If Peter missed his old buddy Harry so much, why was there no mention of him before? You don't care about their relationship at all, and that means we don't care when Harry turns evil. Oh, and Rhino was in this movie. Yeah. Oh, and so was Norman Osborn, in a brief and unintentionally funny cameo. Oh, and they set up Felicia Hardy, aka Black Cat. Oh, and they set up Doctor Octopus and the Vulture.

Noticing a problem? Yes, this way is way over cluttered, and this where I lose respect for the movie. Sony clearly didn't learn any lessons from Spider-Man 3. That's why I didn't really blame Raimi for Spider-Man 3, and I don't entirely blame Marc Webb for this one. Neither get away blameless, but I think it's clear Sony is more at fault here. That's why I disrespect this movie: it's not art, it's product. I know, all summer tentpoles are like that. But let's look at the Marvel movies. Are they product, meant to make tons of money? Of course. But they still try. They still put in an effort to tell good stories. They cast good actors, they hire good directors. Are all of them good? No. But they all put in an effort to be legitimately good movies, and I respect that. Even Man of Steel, as much I despise it, at least tried to be something good. It didn't try to cram Parasite, Brainiac and Luthor in there. But Amazing Spider-Man 2? This movie is just product, trying to cram in all the references they can, and trying to bring in as many characters (Read: chances to make toys) as they can. I even heard a story that the CEO of Sony was directly involved in creative decisions for this movie. Not the head of Sony Pictures, the CEO of Sony, the mega company that tries to sell you new cameras and phones. The fact he was trying to have a direct hand in this movie is telling of just what Sony wanted for this. They had no interest in making something decent. Instead, they just tried to cram in characters and set up a Sinister Six movie that nobody wants. That's why I disrespect this movie, because it's not a movie, it's not art. It doesn't deserve to be talked in decent terms.

Oh yeah, one more thing. Bare in mind, this is a huge spoiler for the end of the movie, so read with caution.

They do kill of Gwen at the end of the movie, and they do it well, at first. The scene where she dies is suitably heartbreaking, and credit to Andrew Garfield for selling it. Then, the movie does a surprisingly good job of showing Peter's mourning. They do a timelapse of Peter at Gwen's grave, and it goes through the scenes. We're lead to believe he visits her grave every day, and it really is sad to watch. We're also informed that Peter has stopped being Spider-Man. When this was happening, I kept on saying to myself "Fade to black, fade to black." I felt this was a perfect place to end the movie, a very gutsy place to end it. It would have been an Empire Strikes Back style ending, where everything is down. Peter is no longer Spider-Man, and the woman he loves is dead. They then bring us to a scene at Aunt May's house with her and Peter, and they give us an even better place to end the movie. Aunt May asks Peter what he is doing in life, and he admits he doesn't know. Garfield is great here. He plays a young man who has lost everything, someone who is just going through the motions of life, not really caring. He then walks upstairs and opens his closet, and stares at the Spider-Man mask, which presumably has been sitting there for months. Again, I found myself saying "Fade to black." End the movie. Perfect. We've had out tragic event, the great timelapse, the talk between Peter and May, and finally a somewhat optimistic ending. It subtly implies Peter is going to put the mask on and try to put his life back together. But no.They bring in the Rhino and actually bring us another action scene. Seriously. Rather than end on a powerful and emotionally subtle ending, they decide "Nope, as Spider-Man movie has to have a happy ending!" No guts. And so Spider-Man puts on the mask again, and we're treated to action and a horrendously over the top Paul Giamatti who should really know better. It clashes terribly with the previous scenes and renders the last ten minutes pointless. I was thankful it ended at this point, because I couldn't take anymore. The filmmakers had an opportunity to redeem the whole movie and they blew it. Unreal.

This movie did the incredible. It virtually killed my interest in Spider-Man movies. After growing up with these movies, I've found myself feeling apathetic towards the future of this series. I don't  care to see Amazing Spider-Man 3, Sinister Six or anything else. Well done Sony. 

Boyhood Part 2

All right, let me try this again. I had a hard time summing up why I loved Boyhood so much right after seeing it, the whole experience was too fresh. Let's try again.

Boyhood is an incredible emotional journey that everyone has been on. You weep for the death of childhood, you cheer for the birth of adulthood, and you weep again. You know this kid, you've spent his entire life with him. When he grows up, you grow up. Everyone in the world has been on this journey. It could be argued that Mason's characterization is somewhat vague throughout the whole movie, but I don't think this is the case. He's young, he's finding himself. We see him slowly develop, slowly begin to become interested in photography. We see he's become a good kid, we see that he cares for his family. It's an emotional journey. The movie begins with his mother picking him up from school when he was a toddler. I quite recognize the dialogue the two of them share, dialogue that every young child has with their mother. Then, we see him as an adult. That dialogue has stopped, and instead he and his mother are having grown up conversations. There's a part of you that wishes they could go back to the old days, when life was so much more simple.

Mason is the not the only character to grow, and I loved that. It's mentioned that his parents were in their early 20's when the children were born, nowhere near ready to become parents. The father starts of as a weekend father. It's mentioned he spent a lot of time in Alaska, and decides to become a musician rather than settling down and finding steady employment. He clearly loves his children dearly, but has no clue how to be a father. As the movie goes on, he starts to grow and mature. He tries to become more of a father, trying to set up more of a connection with his kids. Then we find out that he has found work for an insurance company. He then settles down, remarries, and buys a minivan. He really becomes more aware of what his shortcomings are. He may have been an irresponsible parent, but at least he tries to fix his own faults. I deeply felt sorry for the mother. She deeply loves her children, but is also not ready to be a parent. She makes many bad decisions throughout the movie, and spend huge amounts of time trying to fix them. That's life, it's full of trying to fix your mistakes. That being said, her mistakes do lead to various terrible situations. She marries two men a different points throughout the movie, both of which turn out to be alcoholics. She does not have a great life, and all she ever does is sacrifice for her children. We don't know what her interests and likes are, but that's okay. Neither does she. Early on she mentions she put her entire life on hold for her children, thus giving up her own enjoyment of life at times. She also goes throughout a lot of change, but not all of it is positive. She ends up becoming a sad character who you pity, but certainly don't hate. All she ever did was try to raise her children, and she should be commended for that.

As I mentioned, the mother ends up marrying two alcoholic men, and these men lead to some horrifying situations. And yet, Richard Linklater does not turn them into cardboard cutout jerks. They have dimensions. The first man originally comes off as charming and kind hearted, and later we find out about his alcoholism. His drinking gets worse from there, and he becomes abusive. And yet we do see him as a person for a while, and see more sides of him than the abusive monster he became. We certainly don't like or pity him later on, but we do at least get to know him. The second marriage is much shorter, which shouldn't be surprising. We assume that the mother would get in a divorce as soon as she saw the first hints of alcoholism. The second one however, there is a drop of pity towards. Again, he comes off at first as likeable and kind. He is a former soldier who went on several tours of Iraq and Afghanistan. We can assume his alcohol problem is a result of PTSD. We never see him hit anyone, but we do see him talking terribly to the children. It's a brief character, but I'm glad he was in the movie. Life is full of people that we know for a brief time and then forget, only to revisit in brief memories. That's what this movies feels like, memories. We briefly remember the little moments throughout the movie, as the characters would. It's like revisting memories of our own childhood.

Again, go see this movie. It's ingenious, like nothing I've ever seen before. Highly recommended.

Boyhood

I've been working on more than one post for this blog, as well as living life, thus my lack of posting. Even so, I'm going to go ahead and review this now, while it's still with me. I just got back from seeing Richard Linklater's Boyhood. In a word: masterpiece.

I loved everything about this movie, from start to finish. It's really like nothing I've seen before. 

Yup, that's my review! Shortest one ever, by far. I've been sitting at my computer screen, trying to put what is so great about it into words. That's really all I got, folks. Go see it, a pretty incredible movie. Well done Richard Linklater.