Marq has been my inspiration for 14 years now and whether it’s a main character in my IA book series or my excuse to spend half a grand on a Fender guitar, she’s the Sparks that keeps me stoked. So believe me when I say there’s no one I’m more excited about being my first guest blogger then my old soul of a daughter, Marquette. Plus I need another movie to show my kids when my gym is being used for some program other than gym. Oh. I’m a physical education teacher by day.

Without further delay,

I give you Marquette Winston, unedited (well maybe a little).  🙂

 

Moana is continuing to give a good name to animated films. From the intriguing plot to the astounding soundtrack, Moana brought tears to my eyes at least three different times throughout the movie.

 

Moana takes place around 3,000 years ago on the island of Polynesia. The main character is 16-year-old Moana who is the daughter of the chief of their tribe. She has to face the typical obstacles, like finding out who she is, choosing between right and wrong, and listening to her brain or her heart.

 

The soundtrack helped put this movie over the top. Lin-Manuel Miranda, who is the writer and star of the Broadway musical Hamilton, is responsible for Moana’s soundtrack. The music was island themed and kept the viewers tuned in. I, being a huge fan of Hamilton, loved the way the music was similar to the musical. This is my opinion, but Moana is one of the best singers a Disney “princess” movie is yet to see.

 

This movie is fun and hilarious, but also pulls at the heartstrings. Moana teaches morals and shows a different side of Disney.

I give Moana 9 out of 10 fist bumps.

This is one of those movies that you have to pay close attention to ‘cause there are no pretty colors, chase scenes, or exploding buildings, just story. And make no mistake … it is deep! We jump right into it with the aliens already in position to do whatever it is they’re planning to do. And that’s the gist of it, the question, the premise of the movie, why are they here, and figuring it out through language.
This one is cerebral and just about everything on the screen matters so don’t go to the bathroom. Get your refreshments ahead of time. Try not to fall asleep. Don’t even blink because you could miss something important. You may be tempted to get a few winks in because the movie is slow, but don’t. You will miss something. You’ll find that the Aliens are a small part of the story, something to distract you from what’s really going on, the filmmaker’s slam dunk. Think sixth sense, only bigger … and smaller. You should figure some of it out, but not all of it until it gets there.

The performances are all solid. Amy Adams (Batman v Superman) is haunted as the talented linguistics professor. Jeremy Renner (Avengers) is plenty arrogant as the scientist who plays opposite Adams and Forest Whitaker (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story [YAY!]) rounds out the cast and the diversity quota as a no nonsense, all-about-business Colonel. He’s fast becoming one of my all-time favorite actors.

 
This is one of those films that if you can sit through it twice, you’ll want to watch again to see what you missed or if you got things right. Arrival was refreshing in a sea of action/adventure films but could’ve been a little faster. Great on the concept, meh on the story. Think Sixth Sense, but you still won’t get it. It may seem like nothings happening, but there’s a lot going on in the background so pay attention.

I give this movie 8/10 fist bumps!

I’ll try and give nothing away in this review because I think that’s the beauty of seeing Rogue One: not knowing what to expect. Let’s start with how the film looked. Just when you think special effects can’t get any better, they do. The sets were breathtaking and awe-inspiring and maybe too many to keep track of, but it didn’t detract from the film. The story, which of course is king, was well thought out and not too complicated. The film paid homage in subtle ways to the legendary films that came before it. It was definitely Star Wars, but different … a little darker in all the right places. Even the music was, for the first time, different, but when it was called for, those themes we’ve come to know and love showed themselves, again in subtle ways.

Complete with all the action, adventure, and nick-of-time scenes, Rogue definitely measures up in that respect. Being a Star Wars fan, I had high hopes for something unique, courageous, and spectacular. I think I got it for the most part. With all that Rogue is attempting, it’s difficult to develop a new cast of characters into the Skywalkers and Solos we’ve grown familiar with in just over two hours. But the performances were substantial just the same.

Felicity Jones was resilient and non-wavering as Jyn Erso, and Diego Luna as Cassian Andor was both conflicted and committed. The two create a questionable chemistry on the screen that I found acceptable considering the tasks before them.

Forest Whitaker continues to amaze as the unpredictable and formidable Saw Gerrera, and comic relief in this dark exhibition goes to Donnie Yen as Chirrut Imwe. And … I must say it was a multicultural extravaganza.

I kept wanting this movie to be better than The Force Awakens, and toward the end, I was sure it wasn’t. But the last 30-45 minutes of Rogue One was like Usain Bolt in the last 20 meters of a hundred meter race; about the best I’ve seen. Two words: Darth Vader.

I give Rogue One 8.5/10 fist bumps.

But … more of the same. If you’re a Marvel fan and like the recent influx of superhero movies then this is your film. For me it was at best mildly entertaining, complete with all the pretty colors, special effects, and trademark chase scenes. In all fairness, Batman Begins of the Dark Knight trilogy is my measuring stick for origin stories, and this first installment of Dr. Strange didn’t quite measure up.

Let’s start with the performances. After watching a riveting performance by Benedict Cumberbatch as Khan Noonien Singh in Star Trek Into Darkness and reading the rave reviews on the various sites by fans and critics alike, I was stoked.

But instead of the talented Cumberbatch giving us something unique or memorable we get a bad imitation of Robert Downey Jr’s Tony Stark. That’s right, almost witty, almost funny, and almost brash. As near as I can figure his gift is his photographic memory.

I had, what I considered, both the advantage and disadvantage of knowing absolutely nothing about this character or the story, (sorry comic book world) so I had no preconceived notions, only the desire for a great story with well-developed characters (can one exist without the other?).

I never saw from this rendition of the story a clear motivation as to why this reckless, egotistical Dr. Strange becomes the leader of the sorcerer’s portion of the Avenger’s world just for the sake of being a good person. It doesn’t match up with the character we’re introduced to at the beginning. And … I get the smarts with the photographic memory, but how’d he become such a skilled fighter so fast?

Chiwetel Ejiofor as Mordo just seemed to be there, not a good or bad performance but no depth, workmanlike to fill the diversity quota, and I appreciate that, filmmakers.

I did like Tilda Swinton’s performance as The Ancient One. It was believable and captivating throughout even when we find out her motives are not as altruistic as we were first led to believe. Her strength at first and later vulnerability ground the film and gives it an emotional and human quality.

I really liked the red cloak or was it a cape? I gotta get me one of those.

Another meh point in the film was the villains. Dull, lifeless, and contrived, they didn’t add that hurdle element needed to make the protagonist’s journey worthwhile and satisfying. But wait! They did take manipulating buildings on the set to a new level. Instead of just destruction we have buildings actually bending, transforming, and morphing into … something else? If you like that sort of thing, you’ll love this, reminiscent of the film Inception.

At the end, I didn’t care about the good guys, so I didn’t find myself rooting for them. I didn’t fear the bad guys, so there was no worked up tension inside me when they appeared on the screen, only a “not these guys again.” And the mega-villain at the end was almost comical and childish when he discovered the hero’s resolution, which I also thought, was at best, cheesy.  I did like the music. It awakened my spirit at times but didn’t match the spectacle on the screen.

That’s all I have.

I give this movie 7/10 fist bumps.

There is no shortage of great reviews for the “The Book Thief.” Just the same, I’ll pile on and add one more to the mix. “The Book Thief” is a book for readers who like a great story wrapped in great writing. What I mean by that is, if you don’t like literary devices like metaphor, simile, personification and the like, don’t read this novel.

 

Make no mistake; the story shines through bravely, but Markus Zusak is the master of these literary devices among others, and he weaves them throughout. Sometimes there’s just story and sometimes, beautiful prose it seems for beauty’s sake, and sometimes the two are combined. Zusak tells a story, three years in the making, of foster girl, Leisel Meminger. The Book Thief is set in Nazi Germany 1939, that’s right, smack dab in middle of the holocaust. Through Zucac’s talented pen we get to see what this time must have looked and felt like through the expecting eyes of an innocent, brave, and resourceful girl.

 

If you’re a writer looking for an authentic lesson in great literature, read “The Book Thief” but not as a page-turner, read it slowly, a section at a time. Let the experience have its way with your literary sensibilities. Unless … the spirit moves you, then forge ahead and let the words rush in. I liken “The Book Thief” to the film, “Titanic.” It’s not a book about death (although death is its narrator), but a love story at its finest, a love story about a girl and her family, a girl and her father, a girl and a boy, a girl and a book.

I give this book a solid 9/10 fist bumps.  

https://www.amazon.com/Book-Thief-Markus-Zusak-ebook/dp/B000XUBFE2/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1480531322&sr=1-1&keywords=the+book+thief

I haven’t blogged about anything in a while, so I thought I’d get cracking with a movie review, me being a lover of all things story. I first saw the trailer of Hacksaw Ridge a few weeks ago just before viewing The Magnificent Seven (good film) and was intrigued. This one had good story written all over it, not just a pretty-colors, effects-filled, block-buster, money-grab that we’ve been bombarded with lately but substance. So this weekend I gave Mel Gibson’s Hacksaw Ridge a go, and I was not disappointed. I only had two problems with the film that were not in the very least deal-breakers. I’ll comeback to those.

It was easily the best film I saw all year and in a long time. Here’s why; first off, It’s based on a true story. I don’t know about you, but that always rings my attention bell a little louder. Second, the film looked good. The cinematography was gorgeous and some of the settings, breathtaking. Thirdly, the film sounded good. The soundtrack wasn’t distracting, and I could actually understand what the actors were saying. Too bad at some of these film you can’t have a subtitles option. Enough with the numbers. The film was really good, just sayin’.

Something that drew me in early was the performances. Andrew Garfield had me hoping this was the way Desmond T. Doss really was. I was pulling for him the whole time even when I disagreed with him. This is too funny; I leaned over to my girlfriend and whispered. This guy could play Peter Parker in Spiderman. Duh! He did, and I hated him in that one. But I digress.

Anyhow, Sam Worthington (Avatar) was officer-like and pragmatic as Captain Glover (Desmond’s commanding officer) and Hugo Weaving (The Matrix) was haunted and a walking oxymoron as Tom Doss (Desmond’s dad).

 

The film started with a bit of backstory to establish character and then we were off. The pacing was good and even at 2:19 the film didn’t drag or feel too long (the true test). The battle scene was like nothing I’ve ever seen. It made, Full Metal Jacket, Platoon, and Saving Private Ryan look like kid’s play and was clearly the reason for the R rating. The sequence was fierce, horrifying, and completely necessary and underscored Desmond’s great accomplishments serving our country as a conscientious objector, truly amazing. One scene in the battle sequence had men in Doss’ company covering him from down below Hacksaw Ridge while he helped men above to safety. I saw a lot of men crying in the theater on that one, not me of course.

Oh, yeah, those two things I mentioned earliest. Vince Vaughn (sorry Vince, just callin’ ‘em like I see ‘em) was a distraction as Sergeant Howell. He seemed to play the role he usually plays in film and as person who served in the army, to me he seemed more like a caricature of a drill sergeant then an actual drill sergeant. Luckily those scenes were far and few between, so it didn’t compromise the film. The other problem was lack of diversity. Where were the brothas … or sistas. I didn’t see one … not one person of color in the total 2:19. That’s a problem. And don’t tell me about the time period. People of color have been serving in the military since the Civil War and before. That’s my rant. It’s still a great film that I predict will win more than one Oscar.

My rating for this movie, 8.5/10 fist bumps.