used_to_like_movies Reviews

65 (2023)

Decent movie, plot is lacking

[6/10 · 11 March 2023]

The Good:

Awesome recreation of a wild dangerous world full of dinosaurs and threads of death and struggle for survival. The suspense and fear is better than Jurassic Park.

Really cool Sci-fi tech featured, really awesome play on someone (Driver) struggling to survive a primitive world while also having highly advanced technology, but still facing challenges Top-notch cinematography, lighting, and CGI makes you feel very immersed into the world and situations

The Bad:

The plot is extremely basic and predictable. Man faces a few obstacles that he overcomes, most of them the same situation, that's about it. There's only two characters basically, and the dialog between them is limited. This works for a bit, but there's not enough development of the characters, and it's easy to just not care about what happens to them one way or another.

It could have been much better if there was more objectives in the plot, more characters or build up, more on what happened before and after the situation on the planet.

Mr. Robot (2015–2019)

Pilot showed so much potential, but subsequent episodes are crap.

[3/10 · 21 July 2015]

I, like many others, thought the pilot was phenomenal. It showed a computer security software tech, Elliot, who wanted to make a revolutionary change in the world using hactivision and to take down an "evil" corporate empire. I was looking forward to a new fantastic show about how computers and technology —and the people in the field/hobby, can make a huge impact in the world.

Immediately after the pilot —in the subsequent episodes, the show took an instant plummet. The plots became all about selfish self-loathing shallow characters in desperate and pathetic overly-dramatic situations. It became focused on excessive hardcore drug use, low-life lifestyles and ghetto drama, and intentional use of "shocking" topics such as homosexuality, beating up a homeless man for no reason other than to show someone is psycho, and cheating. These topics are COMPLETELY opposite to what is appealing to most people interested in computers and technology, so I'm confused as to who this show is trying to appeal to.

The narration reminds me of Dexter, but what is said is mostly nonsense and not nearly as sophisticated. The audio is off on the show, the music is so loud that it overpowers the dialog. The actors sometimes mumble or talk too fast and it's difficult or impossible to hear what they say.

The writing is all over the place, it's like they are trying to take what has worked from different shows and mesh it into this show, but it just doesn't work. I think it's pathetic when shows always try to have a "catch" right at the end of an episode, it becomes way too predictable and boring, and they have done lots of that so far.

I do like the music and cinematography, those are great and highly appropriate.

The "FSociety" group have been setting up shop in abandoned arcades, but the show has not shown anything about video games! It's like they're trying hard to make the show seem cool. If they stopped focusing on drug abuse and addiction and started focusing more on computers and video games and that lifestyle then the show would have a lot more appeal.

But overall this show has quickly become a disappointment and is drifting away from what most have hoped for. It is not a show that is centered on technology, hacktivision, digital revolution, and the computer lifestyle that so many are craving, and instead is becoming just another mindless TV drama hoping to shock viewers with outlandish situations.

Under the Skin (I) (2013)

Stunning sci-fi flick, outstanding cinematography

[10/10 · 23 August 2014]

I thoroughly enjoyed this sci-fi film, and it has stunning cinematography. This is science fiction at its finest. You're thrown into the middle of a plot and are left to figure out what is happening, and why. Things get more and more strange and bizarre as details are slowly revealed. It's a thrill ride of exploring human desires and emotions along with some shocking extraterrestrial events. Scarlett Johansson's performance was phenomenal, as it always is. Some complainers claim that her acting is poor in this role, but she plays the role of the character perfectly (I won't reveal exactly what that role is, see for yourself).

For me this was one of the few films that I had no idea what would happen next, and the audience is left to use their imagination about the events unfolding. I felt true suspense and excitement while watching some scenes, which is very rare with so much of the generic Hollywood garbage. This is definitely a film that many will hate as you are left to use your brain and imagination, and the plot is not fast-paced and spoon-fed. Also, the science fiction aspect and shocking scenes will be too much to handle for the mild viewers. Oh yeah, and there is the bonus of Scarlett Johansson finally revealing her sexy voluptuous body... something nearly everyone has been wanting to see.

Rush (I) (2013)

One of the best movies I've ever seen

[10/10 · 13 December 2013]

This is seriously one of the best films I've ever seen, and I've seen several on the top 250 list. The cinematography is stunning, every race scene was poster-worthy. The acting is superb... I never really cared for Chris Hemsworth prior to this film, he seemed so arrogant and one - dimensional in his prior films, but he proved that he has depth and solid acting skills in this film. I also feel that his acting skills have matured recently because he was great in Thor: The Dark World. You really get the sense that he is larger than life as James Hunt, and that he is a true playboy.

Hunts rivalry with Niki Lauda is epic, it really is a remarkable story of two men risking everything to one-up each other in life and on the race track. There are so many twists and turns in the story, and it flows really well.

Of course the race scenes were the most action oriented portion of the film, and they were epic and visually stunning. My heart was racing (pun intended), and I got totally lost in the moment and it felt like I was in the film so to speak. This is one of those movies that are made for the big screen too, I highly recommend that you see it in theaters if you get the chance.

The film is severely under-valued to have made as few box office sales as it did. I went on a Friday night, the night it was released, and the theater was only about 10% occupied. It's a shame that people flock to crap like Harry Potter, Twilight, Transformers, etc. and don't but nearly as much emphasis on truly well rounded films like Rush.

Top Gear USA (2008–2016)

Nowhere near as good as the UK version

[5/10 · 8 December 2013]

Simply put... this is nowhere near as good as the UK version. The biggest problems are the hosts... they are so dull and lack enthusiasm and true passions for the cars. They try to act humorous, but it comes off as tacky bad jokes... whereas the UK hosts are truly hilarious even without trying to do so. At times the US hosts are completely annoying in their own ways, which detracts from the vehicles they're showcasing. Only one of the hosts, Tanner, has a background in cars; Adam is a comedian and Rutledge is just an actor with minimal prior acting experience. I'm sure they could have found true car enthusiasts who also had some acting skills. In particular, James on the UK show has been a car enthusiast for nearly all of his career. His critiques of the cars are extremely thorough... he points out all the pluses and minuses for every vehicle in exquisite details. Plus on every single episode I bust out laughing with his non-schelant humor.

Also, the challenges on the USA version are lacking entertainment value... I can't go into details right now but you'd just have to see one episode of the UK version to see for yourself.

They need to revamp this show with new hosts, and the producers need some mentoring from the UK producers.

Frozen (I) (2013)

Just 'OK' in my opinion

[6/10 · 8 December 2013]

Warning... the reviews on here seem highly over-rated, and are likely those of Disney employees trying to boost the rating.

** Spoilers ** I give this a 6/10, as the story lacks depth and creativity. Sure, it's a movie geared towards kids... but a good movie should also appeal to adults. Some parts were just beyond imaginable, and several begging questions went unanswered. The whole premise is that two sisters are raised in a huge castle, and their parents are king and queen... and they are princesses (wow Disney, so original). One of the girls has magic powers (basically the ability to shoot ice, like Frozone on The Incredibles), and the parents want to keep it a secret, so they keep both kids locked in the castle for the next 16 or so years, they don't even let them interact with each other... and they parents are out of the picture for the rest of the movie (bad parenting skills... you thing?).

Finally the day comes when it's time for the girls to be introduced to people outside the castle (their 18th birthday??? The day she becomes queen??? who knows, its never explained). The daughter who shoots ice is portrayed to be the one of importance ( first born maybe? again, never explained), while the other is seen as basically out of the spotlight... she falls in love with pretty much the first guy she has laid eyes on in her life, and besides that both daughters magically have all this real-world knowledge and can speak perfectly fluent English (even though they pretty much have had minimal human interaction for nearly their entire life).

So then, the ice princess' powers are revealed (they were concealed up to this point), and the town fears her... and then the entire rest of the movie is about her running away and living in fear of her powers (with the exception of the evil prince, who is trying to gain control of the town as the ice princess is battling her emotions... oh no!).

The whole movie just seems so mindless and cliché... it has all the classic cliché Disney recipes, and is just not that memorable in my opinion. My daughter was even getting bored and restless through the endless irrelevant dialog. It just didn't seem nearly as creative or entertaining as Tangled, Beauty and the Beast, or How to Train a Dragon (yes, I realize this is Dreamworks)... and just felt like a rushed story thrown together to expand Disney's holiday toy lineup.

I think one of the few things they got right though were the rock trolls, the snowman, and the reindeer... those characters really drove the entertainment value for the film.

Jobs (2013)

Just OK, but worth the watch

[7/10 · 3 December 2013]

This movie certainly has its shortcomings (Bad casting for Kutcher, bad writing, lack of certain key details of Job's life (that you can see if you watch his documentaries)), but for me it was watchable. I'm slightly fascinated with Job's story since he has been the most revolutionary person over the last 15 years when it comes to technological advancements, in my opinion. So I was looking forward to see this movie.

When Kutcher was first presented, in the totally fake-looking makeup of Jobs in his later years, I felt like the movie was going to bomb hard. To my surprise, I did quickly grow more accustomed to Kutcher as Jobs as the movie progressed, presenting the upcoming of Jobs. I think they should have casted someone else to play Jobs as an older man. Anyways, back to Kutcher... I have a hard time accepting him in a serious, professional role due to his childish roles on That 70's Show, and Dude Where's my Car.

Kutcher does look shockingly similar to Jobs in his 20's and 30's, and he is a famous actor, so I can see why he was casted. He nailed a few scenes, but had the writing been better and his performance been slightly more dramatic, this had the potential to be a great film. I personally think that they should have used the same director and writers as from The Social Network, the facebook movie, because that was a seriously good movie on several levels... plus it is a great movie about the story of someone starting from nothing and creating an extremely popular and successful company.

Match Point (2005)

Absolutely stunning and fulfilling drama!

[10/10 · 22 December 2011]

After watching my first Woody Allen movie a few weeks ago, Midnight in Paris, I decided see more about what he had to offer. My mother highly recommended Sleeper, but I decided to start with some of Allen's more modern work, and along came Match Point.

This is one of those few movies that leaves you fully engaged the entire time you're watching, everything flowed so naturally until I found myself gasping and my heart pounding as the credits began rolling. The characters were well suited for their roles, and the acting was all suburb. I did not feel that anything was left out, or that any line was not absolutely relevant to the story.

Jonathan Meyers was highly inciting and sophisticated in his role (as Chris Wilton), and the way his character battled between love and lust was a true showmanship of his acting skills, as well as Allen's amazing ability to capture genuine human emotions. I was recollected with all the feelings and justifications I've put myself through while pursuing relationships of love and ones of lust, and especially the conflicts of both at the same time as you can see with Meyers' character.

Scarlett Johansson brought her best performance I've yet to seen, she brings on the sex appeal without being slutty about it... and I have to admit I have a new found lust for her thanks to this film. She plays the role of the incredibly hot, but yet not so successful woman who every man wishes to sleep with... yet is torn by the fact that she will likely not be a suitable long term spouse. It's absolutely shocking how well Johansson was able to capture that persona since she's been so highly successful for most of her life.

The whole twist with the moral of the movie, "luck," as well as the epic battles between love and lust, how Christ Wilton handled his dilemma, all the character's masterful roles, and Woody Allen's exceptional capture of human emotion makes this movie the absolute best drama/romance movie I've seen in a very long time, if not ever.

Once (I) (2007)

I really don't understand the appeal of this movie...

[6/10 · 19 November 2011]

So the "Guy" is a pathetic, desperate, failing musician... and even goes as far as to ask this the strange "Girl" who he just met if she "wants to f***?" I can't decide what's worse... how awkward that scene was, or the fact that she decided to continue to see him after his pathetic desperate plea for pity sex. This is just one example of the many, many, awkward and completely unmotivated scenes in this film.

And after seeing each other for a few months, the couple doesn't even stay together and they go off back to their sad desperate lives (This isn't necessarily a complaint since that's pretty much how most relationships end up as anyways).

Everyone who told me about this movie insisted that it was a "beautiful love story," and that "the music is so good,"... well I admit the one song is fairly catchy, but they sing the same damn song throughout the entire movie! What's worse is that the song repeats itself a lot, so really you end up hearing the same course over and over again throughout most of the entire film.

Maybe I'm just a little upset that this isn't a "happy" love story, with "normal" people falling in love... but I guess it's not too bad if you think of it as a peculiar love story, where abnormal people have a bunch of awkward moments together while singing the same song together until they ultimately decide to drift apart.

Blade Runner (1982)

Enticing Sci-Fi Movie, a must watch for Sci-Fi fans

[9/10 · 30 May 2011]

I recently watched this for the first time, and I'm quite pleased with this film overall. I love the classic Star Wars movies, and this plot and settings seems like Star Wars/Terminator/The Fugitive/Robocop mixed together; very exciting.

The visuals, cinematography, lighting, and 80's special effects make this movie worth watching on their own. However, the plot seems to jump around a lot, and even skips some major build up; some scenes just happen as if everyone knows what's going on, and the viewer is expected to put the pieces together. But I guess that's part of what makes this movie good, people are allowed to make of it what they wish, instead of being spoon feed all the details.

Despite the plot skips, this is an excellent film. The twisted futuristic concepts and visuals are a creative work of genius. At some parts I forgot that I was watching an 80's film, as some scenes are so brilliantly done that they seem like a feasible glimpse into the future. But then I'm brought back to reality with some of the 80's hairstyles and 80's movie aspects; like random scenes with midgets, old digital displays, and the fact that nobody had cell phones or ipads.

Also, this is some classic Harrison Ford acting, if you're a fan of Ford, or Star Wars, or anything Futuristic or Sci-Fi, you must watch this film at least once.

Limitless (I) (2011)

Surprisingly good!

[9/10 · 2 April 2011]

I have to admit, when I saw the trailer for this movie I though it was going to be upsetting, like so many of the generic movies are these days, where a common, fictional idea is thrown into a boring and predictable plot (think "Universal Remote")

To my surprise, the plot remained down to earth and entertaining. It is a real good example of what happens in real life, when someone comes across something of great power (or money), and how so many people will try to screw you over to obtain it. Also, there is a great side story which reflects everyones struggles to obtain and maintain a meaningful romantic relationship with someone, and the struggles people go through to become their ultimate, ideal image of themselves; while battling with greed and moral issues.

The little tiff between McCormick, De Nero, and the foreign guy was a little tacky, it was by far not one of De Nero's best performances, but it was good enough to not be distracting.

Other than that, all other aspects of the movie were very good. The visuals were perfection, and there were was a new effect that I've never seen in any other film (sort of like the Hitchcock effect on speed), which was pure visual bliss.

Overall, a superb movie which I believe many will enjoy.

Sucker Punch (2011)

Do NOT watch this movie, unless you like getting sucker punched.

[1/10 · 27 March 2011]

I'm not sure how this movie got such rave reviews by some people, oh wait yes I can, the ONLY people who can possibly like this film are fantasy/anime/comic book junkies!

Where do I begin... First and foremost, the biggest upset of this movie is the plot, which flip flopped back and forth, with no real point or purpose for the most part - and not in a creative/unique way. The plot starts off in some wannabe 'Inception' idea, with a fantasy inside a fantasy. Baby Girl goes from about to get a lobotomy (odd enough as it is), to going to a story inside a story, which ends with the lobotomy ending (basically the story in between the lobotomy was never explained outside the fantasy, and couldn't have happened since the lobotomy happened from the beginning of her entering the insane asylum).

Now for the second level of the story: So Baby Girl and her pose are trying to escape their slavery from the burlesque/whore house, and they must obtain 4 items and a "mystery" in order to escape, which is all fine and good. However, in the process of obtaining these items, Baby Girl and/or her pose enter the third fantasy/story aspect of the film, which is COMPLETELY NON RELATED TO ANY OTHER ASPECT OF THE FILM, and is replaced with pretty much every popular fantasy/fiction battle scene from the last 30 years of movie history. From a generic samurai sword/battle battle, to a Nazi war scene with some mech machines, to a scene literally right out of Lord of the Rings with Orcs, a castle, and dragons, to a Unstoppable(runaway train scene)/Matrix/Terminator/Defuse a bomb scene, the plot is a mess! I was waiting for some fairies, elfs, werewolves, vampires, or unicorns to come up next, but I'm sure they are saving those for sucker punch 2!

Aside from the plot, there were some other major issues. The soundtrack consisted of about 3 songs (or at least the same artist since they all sounded the same), It was so predictable that there would be nothing but hard chick rock. I think the movie tried way too hard to emphasize the hardcore, tough chick act; yet they still always have to have women look like little sex dolls when they battle, with perfect makeup, tits hanging out, and short skirts.

The volume of the audio was WAY off, in some dialog scenes the words were barely audible, yet in the battle scenes, the sound was so loud that you couldn't even think, and after the movie my ears were ringing as if I were standing right next to the speaker at a Metallica concert. I even plugged my ears at some points to attempt to save my hearing, and I could still hear the sound perfectly. I'm sorry but blasting music does NOT make a movie better.

I typically enjoy fantasy/super hero movies, but this one failed on all levels for me. I feel there was almost no effort in the writing of this movie, almost as if it were an after thought. The actors all seemed second rate, the crying was clearly fake and lacked emotion. Oscar Isaac seemed like he was trying too hard to be like Joker from Batman, yet he showed no genuine emotion in the scene where he executes the two girls (that execution scene had no place in this film, it made no sense, look around the theater after this scene and you will see most people scratching their head).

If I could rate the CG alone, it's easily an 8 or 9 out of 10, but the terrible plot, mediocre acting, and overblown-everything ruined it for me. If you honestly enjoy this movie, you have to be lying to yourself, or foolishly attempting to defend it based solely on the fact that it has fantasy/comic book aspects.

Alice in Wonderland (I) (2010)

I really wasn't that great, could have been so much more

[1/10 · 26 April 2010]

Sure it was called "Alice in Wonderland" and had Johny Depp as a lead actor, but the movie really didn't live up to it's potential and I'm quit surprised that it had nearly zero appeal to me. I absolutely loved the original Alice in Wonderland, such a brilliant and creative film.

This one just plain didn't make sense, not in a way that was intended to be creative and imaginative but it was confusing and many scenes seemed like they had no purpose or meaning to the story.

Sure visually there were good aspects to it, and they had the big name actors and directors and such behind it, but when it comes right down to it a bad movie is a bad movie no matter what title or actors are a part of it.

The actress who played Alice was not that appealing either, she lacked acing skills and seemed so out of place. Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter was just so ridiculous that it went beyond being Mad to being psychotic and delusional (As bad as his Charlie and the Chocolate Factory roll). Everything was just blown out of proportion and they needed to knock it down to a more realistic level, and had a story that at least made sense and tied in somehow. Some scenes were straight from the classic movie but slightly modified to be more appealing somehow but that all failed, honestly I was just waiting for the movie to end from nearly the first scene.