Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo

Screenplay written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely

Based on the Marvel Comics by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby 

Starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo and Scarlett Johansson

Caution for potential spoilers ahead!

11 years ago, Marvel released the first Iron Man movie, and nothing has been the same since. Every year since then, Marvel has released movie after movie introducing us to more and more amazing superheroes to fall in love with, and more villains to root against. Every year I kept thinking how could they top themselves, then they released last years Avengers: Infinity War which merged many Marvel superheroes including The Avengers, Black Panther, Doctor Strange and more. After that movie ended with such a cliffhanger, myself and every other Marvel fan have been eagerly awaiting Endgame-- dare I say, the glorious, bittersweet end to the past 11 years. 

The movie begins just a short amount of time after the tragic events at the end of Infinity War. The remaining Avengers; Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), James Rhodes (Don Cheadle) and Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) are joined by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Nebula (Karen Gillan) and Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) and together they plan to track down Thanos (Josh Brolin) and steal the infinity stones to reverse the actions they caused. After Thanos reveals that he already destroyed the stones, Thor kills him. The movie then picks up 5 years later, with Scott Lang aka Ant-Man (Paul Rudd), returning from the Quantum Realm and proposing that they travel back in time through the Quantum Realm to stop Thanos from ever getting the 6 infinity stones. 

This movie is an amazing way to reward all the loyal Marvel fans who have been following these heroes for more than a decade on screen. Everything that happens in this movie is so incredibly satisfying for someone who has seen all the movies. The time traveling aspect may seem a little corny at first, but it is actually the perfect way to bring in some characters from all the other movies one last time, and to give some characters the happy ending they deserve. The merging between the different movies in Endgame is even better than in Infinity War-- as this time we get to see some characters from Thor, Doctor Strange, Captain America and even the latest lady hero, Captain Marvel. 

For those who maybe haven't seen every Marvel movie from the past 11 years, you will still thoroughly enjoy this movie you may just miss some references, or you may not cry so hard with nostalgia like the rest of us!  

The Marvel movies have always had a lot of comic relief thrown in with the action, but this one seemed to hit harder with the comedy. It seemed to hit harder with all the emotions actually. Thor brings a lot of comedy, since he is now an alcoholic with a beer gut and no more chizzled abs. His character has gone through tremendous loss and is experiencing a lot of guilt from not killing Thanos, so he is in rough shape in the beginning of the movie. But, his condition does give for some big laughs. Even though this film has less of the characters we know and love, it adds a few of the older ones we didn't get to see in Infinity War like Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Ant-Man. 

As fas as acting performances go, Chris Hemsworth wins the gold with his new version of chubby and sad Thor. Robert Downey Jr. brings some real change to Tony this time around, while he's no longer the arrogant and selfish man he has been in the past. Paul Rudd is fantastically hilarious again as Ant-Man, Mark Ruffalo brings a new level of acceptance for being The Hulk, Scarlett Johansson brings a lot of emotion this time around to Black Widow, Brie Larson is a bad-ass as Carol Danvers, saving the day more than once.  The whole cast does an amazing job. I was so happy with the smaller cameos from people like; Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie), Rene Russo (Frigga), Evangeline Lilly (The Wasp), Hayley Atwell (Peggy Carter), John Slattery (Howard Stark) and Tilda Swinton (The Ancient One). 

The 3 hour run time may seem a little daunting at first, but it flies by with all the non-stop excitement. It pays homage to not only the Avengers but the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so brilliantly it will give you goosebumps, make you laugh and undoubtedly cry. There is a scene of the Marvel women all together that did all three for me actually, I thought I would combust. 

10/10

Someone Great (2019)

Directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson

Written by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson 

Starring Gina Rodriguez, LaKeith Stanfield, Brittany Snow and DeWanda Wise

Netflix's newest original movie, Someone Great unfortunately is not something great. Gina Rodriguez was the only factor drawing me to watch the movie, given the trailer doesn't really scream "I'm the next greatest romantic comedy."

The movie, set in New York City, follows Jenny (Gina Rodriguez), a music journalist who is fresh out of a 9 year relationship after her boyfriend Nate (LaKeith Stanfield) would not agree to move to San Francisco for her new job, let alone even try long distance. Heartbroken but trying to make the most of her final days in the city, Jenny and her two best friends, Blair (Brittany Snow) and Erin (DeWanda Wise) partake in one last wild night together in NYC. 

Someone Great's plot is rather thin and not very interesting. It's essentially the three girls trying to score concert tickets while getting high a lot, drinking a lot and occasional flashbacks to Jenny and Nate's relationship. I understand that it's a "moving on" story, but I'm just a little tired of movies where the main plot line is, having a wild night. Aside from that, the montages of Jenny and Nate saved the movie a little bit. The chemistry between them is believable, and they're scenes together were always very adorable, so that did make me feel something. 

I wasn't that connected to any of the characters either. While I was attached to the idea of Jenny and Nate's love, Gina Rodriguez's character was kind of annoying outside of the relationship. Jenny is supposed to be this music journalist who is going to work for Rolling Stones but thats the first and last you ever hear of her passion for music. Blair was the uptight friend with a bit of a wild side and Erin was the "go-with-the-flow" friend who did have some commitment issues. That's really all the information about the girls we get though. We also get some random cameos from Rosario Dawson and RuPaul? 

Also, does Robinson not know how female friends act with each other? It seemed like she was constantly trying to remind us how close their friendship was because they were constantly exchanging "I love you's." Nobody is saying I love you to their friends that often. 

While this movie made me chuckle a couple times, the comedy was usually a little cringeworthy. This film's biggest selling point is the love story between Nate and Jenny. Even though it begins with their break-up, the flashbacks to their story is actually very endearing to watch. The soundtrack is also really great. Sadly, this movie just adds to the semi disappointing recent track-record of Netflix original movies. 

5/10

Us (2019)

Directed by Jordan Peele

Written by Jordan Peele

Starring Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Elisabeth Moss and Tim Heidecker

This new psychological thriller is the newest creation from the great mind of Jordan Peele, who brought us Get Out. Us works on so many levels, and will keep you speculating on the meaning behind everything. Peele gives a nod in many scenes to films that have inspired him, like The Shining-- and like The Shining this film will keep you guessing on the edge of your seat. 

The story follows Adelaide Wilson (Lupita Nyong'o), her husband Gabe (Winston Duke) and their two kids Zora (Shahadi Wright Joseph) and Jason (Evan Alex). The family returns to the beachfront home in Santa Cruz where Adelaide grew up. Being back to her childhood home isn't all great memories for Adelaide, as she went missing when she was a little girl after wandering away from her parents on the boardwalk into a fun house. While trying to relax with her family and their friends the Tyler's (Tim Heidecker and Elisabeth Moss), Adelaide can't help but shake the feeling that something is going to happen. Her worries become a reality when four doppelgängers break into their house in the middle of the night, ready to wreak havoc on the family. 

Wether it was paying homage to movies from the past with a reference from Home Alone or with a brief scene of the family's car driving through the hilly forest to their vacation home, much like the Torrance family in The Shining driving to the hotel-- Peele left us with lots of fun easter eggs to unveil. There is so much speculation to be pondered with the meaning behind this sinister group of doppelgängers harassing this seemingly nice, middle-class family of four. A movie that from the trailer looks like a simple home invasion thriller like The Strangers, is really much more. Maybe Peele is trying to show us how we as a society view foreigners in our own country like invaders in our own home, when they're really no different than us. 

This film left the actors a fantastic opportunity to shine, while playing two versions of themselves. Duke as Gabe is a goofy dad who shows off some mighty comedic chops, unlike his first big role in Black Panther, but as his evil counterpart we see a big, silent monster who stops at nothing to try and harm his adversary. Both the children in this movie do such a good job playing the two roles. Evan Alex's doppelgänger, Pluto, is an animalistic demon who likes to play with fire and Joseph's Umbrae is a creepy version of her own self who can run laps around Usain Bolt. Perhaps the best performance from the movie though is Lupita Nyong'o. As Adelaide she is a worried mother who is suppressing some serious childhood trauma, but as Red she is terrifying. She wields a pair of sharp scissors and wide curious eyes, assisted with a raspy breathy voice that will make your skin crawl. I would be shocked if there wasn't already Oscar gossip for her performance. 

The cinematography and score really add to the element of horror in this film as well. You can tell that Jordan Peele is really flexing his horror movie biceps with Us. Seeing what he will come up with next after his first two big hits, now that will be interesting. 

8/10

The Silence (2019)

Directed by John R. Leonetti

Screenplay written by Carey Van Dyke and Shane Van Dyke

Based on the novel by Tim Lebbon

Starring Kiernan Shipka, Stanley Tucci, Miranda Otto and Kate Trotter 

After reading the book by Tim Lebbon,  I was really excited to learn that it was being adapted into a movie made for Netflix. While Netflix's track record for horror movies has not been too great after the failure of Bird Box being adapted from its novel, I still decided I had to give this movie a chance. Especially since it stars Stanley Tucci. 

The story follows 16 year old Ally (Kiernan Shipka) who lost her hearing in a car accident at the age of 13, and is now deaf. The world suddenly becomes under attack by creatures called "vesps" that were released from caves, and hunt only by sound. Their only solace in this new world of destruction is silence. 

If this plot sounds oddly familiar to you, thats because it is basically the same as John Krasinski's A Quiet Place. While you can't call The Silence a total rip-off because it was adapted from a novel that was written before the release of A Quiet Place, it is really bad timing and a horrible coincidence for this new movie. The only real difference between the two movies is this one is set while the apocalypse happens rather than in the aftermath. The whole movie seems to be racing to the finish line, with a short 90 minute length, it seems like it could've been an episode of a TV show. There was a random sub-plot about an antagonist religious cult of some sort, that was trying to kidnap Ally? That seemed a little rushed and too random.

I try not to be too critical upon movies based on books leaving out things from the book because let's face it, you can't include every little detail. There's gotta be some differentiating between the novel and movie adaptation. However, this movie had some drastic differences like being set in an entirely different country for one.

This movie wasn't all bad though, regardless of the lack of horror and suspense-- I am still a sucker for a post-apocalyptic movie, so I enjoyed that aspect of it. Stanley Tucci and Miranda Otto did a good job as the parents of Ally.

5/10

Unicorn Store (2019)

Directed by Brie Larson

Written by Samantha McIntyre

Starring Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Joan Cusack and Bradley Whitford

This film originally premiered at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival and didn't reach the public eye until it hit Netflix in early 2019, and I think there is a reason for that. For a film to open at TIFF and then skip theaters and go to Netflix isn't necessarily a bad thing, with Netflix producing many good movies now-- but Brie Larson's directorial debut unfortunately is not one of those quality Netflix products. 

Unicorn Store is about a woman named Kit (Brie Larson) who is a kid at heart. After Kit is dismissed from art school she moves back in with her parents (played by Bradley Whitford and Joan Cusack), where she decides to join a temp agency and work at an office job. At this job she is tasked with pitching a campaign for a new vacuum cleaner, when she receives a mysterious invitation to "The Store" where she meets the salesman (Samuel L. Jackson). He tells her that she can make her childhood dreams come true and be the proud new owner of a unicorn, if she follows a few demands first. 

I wanted to like this movie so badly, considering how much of a Brie Larson fan I am. After her monster of a great performance in Room and other great movies like Short Term 12 and Trainwreck, I had high hopes for her starring role in this as well as first time directing. This movie wants to be a quirky, weird coming-of-age story but it doesn't achieve that. Most of the time it's really corny and just a little awkward, frankly. Half the time I was confused wether this was supposed to be a kids movie, because of how much it really focused on glitter and unicorns. 

The characters don't have much depth either. Kit is a young women who doesn't want to grow up, and is obsessed with glitter and wacky outfits and getting a unicorn. She's not your average character from a coming of age movie who just does not want to grow up, she's just immature and we never really get to know where that personality came from. However, that isn't a negative testament to Larson's acting performance in the film. Kit is a young-spirited, optimistic women and that is definitely portrayed throughout the movie. Larson gets a chance to show her comedic skills off a bit with her acting in this movie. The supporting performances were just okay. Seeing Sam Jackson in a pink suit, afro with strings of glitter, and selling unicorns was a bit out of character for him. A little too tacky for me, to be honest. But, you can tell how much fun he and Larson had making this, so that makes it better. Cusack and Whitford do well as Kit's parents too. 

Unicorn Store isn't an all bad movie. It has some funny moments, mostly from Brie Larson. It has some fun, aesthetically pleasing outfits and sets. The sub-plot of not wanting to grow up, and everyone having a little magic in them, is definitely a unique one. Just the delivery of it all is a little sub-par for me. 

4/10