Category: Movies
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Inside Out and When Marnie Was There
I’m late posting this, but I saw both Inside Out and When Marnie Was There with the kids, and boy was THAT an emotional wringer. Â But in the best way. Seeing them both that close together makes for an interesting comparison – both movies focus on a girl dealing with the emotions of adolescence. Riley…
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Movie Review – Tomorrowland
We saw Tomorrowland, and quite enjoyed it. Â It felt to me like a throwback to the 80s kid adventure movies, with a modern budget. Â It isn’t perfect, but the visuals and the solid kid actors make it worthwhile. The story centers around two people – Frank Walker, seen both as a 12 year old inventor…
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Movie Review – The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
I FINALLY got to see a show at the North Park, and I was thrilled that it was this one, Studio Ghibli’s The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.  Isao Takahata’s latest is a beautiful and heart-rending re-telling of the Tale of the Bamboo Cutter.  One day, a bamboo cutter sees a glowing stalk of bamboo in…
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The Hobbit Movies – Thank God THAT’S Over
I was never your biggest Tolkien fan – I had read the Lord of the Rings once as a kid, but the movies got me back in.  There seemed to be a genuine desire to stay true to the source material, and most of the changes made you could at least make a case for it…
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Movie Review – Big Hero 6
Took the kids to see this at an advanced screening, and had a blast. Â It is technically a Marvel movie, though the book is not exactly well-known. Â Consider this in the vein of How to Train Your Dragon, in that a lot of the same parts are there, but plenty was changed to work better…
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Movie Review – Guardians of the Galaxy
I saw an early screening of Guardians of the Galaxy Thursday night, and let me tell you, I had a blast! Â I may have only read the actual Guardians comic that was the biggest influence on this after the movie was announced, but I’ve quickly fallen in love with these a-holes. Â Of course, I did…
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Movie Review – X-Men: Days of Future Past
The X-Men movie franchise has had it’s ups and downs. Â The first two movies were very good despite the myriad changes and tweaks to the characters, while X-Men 3 and X-Men Origins: Wolverine were on the rough side. Â First Class was good, but went a long way towards making the continuity issues worse (How much…
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Movie Review – Godzilla
Japanese kaiju (or giant monster) movies have been part of my pop culture since I was a kid, and my older brothers watched the various Godzilla and King Kong movies. Though I probably got the most enjoyment from the Gamera movies as they appeared on Mystery Science Theater 3000. Â Even without Pacific Rim appearing on…
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Movie Review – The Amazing Spider-Man 2
I’ve been meaning to write this for a while – The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was a tough movie to get my head around. Â It’s really two movies, a great Peter Parker movie, and a decent Spider-Man movie. Â The personal moments between Peter and Gwen, and Peter and Harry, and Peter and Aunt May are all…
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Movie Review – Captain America: The Winter Soldier
I’ve been a Marvel guy since I first read my brother’s few remaining comics (the ones my Mom hadn’t tossed, that old story), but Captain America never appealed to me. Â The costume seemed like a bit much, and he just didn’t seem to be as much fun as Iron Man or Spidey, and didn’t have…
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Movie Review – Muppets Most Wanted
The Muppets have never been an obsession for me, as they are for some of my friends. They know all the Muppet lore, can break down each movie in a scholarly tone, and name you all the cameos in each one. For me, I remember enjoying the show, and seeing a few of the movies…
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Movie Review – 300: Rise of an Empire
I got in to see 300: Rise of an Empire at an advanced screening (thanks, Buffalo.com!) and I left shaking my head. It’s basically the ‘rest of the story’ about what’s happening in Greece while the Spartans are kicking messengers into pits and defending gates. Themistokles is a Greek general known for his cunning, trying…