Optimus prime has the same code and the Transformers TV series, like Captain America 1, is plain awesome.

Really? I thought it was ok. Actually, better than the usual Marvel fair. Though, it did seem a bit like Rocketeer: Round 2 to me. And in that comparison, I don't think Captain America holds a candle to the Rocketeer film of the 90's. It's not surprising that they're so similar, though, since, aside from the similar period setting, both films feature the same director.

That's sad to hear. I was really looking forward to seeing that one. I probably still will, even if just for Michael Douglas. He's usually great in everything he's in.

Spider-man (2002)

In my opinion this can't be topped. Tobey Maguire is perfect as spider-man, better than Andrew Garfield. The Marc Webb movies were over stuffed with jokes and quips but Sam Raimi's had just enough and felt more comic booky than Marc webbs. This whole thing won't be comparison’s so I'll stop here. I haven't seen Tom holland so I don't know how well he did but he seems good, but even if he's great I'll still prefer Tobey maguire because those were the one's I grew up with. Some of the CGI was a little early 2000's-y but most of it looks very good. And the whole

The whole movie is great along with the whole trilogy. Even the 3rd one.
5/5

Finding Dory

After my initial dislike for Pixar's last few outings, Inside Out and The Good Dinosaur, I learned that it is always a good idea for Pixar to only make one movie a year. That way, they can concentrate all their efforts on making a single solitary animated film, and not trying to put out two in one year.

When Ellen began to premiere the trailers for this movie on her YouTube, and on her talk show, and on her Facebook, and on her Twitter, etc. (you get the picture), I was mildly excited. I might have raised an eyebrow or two, and was not exactly sure how to react. But, then I remembered all of Pixar's other efforts to make a sequel, and realized that Toy Story 2 was the only one of them that ever did anything for me. I remember enjoying Toy Story 3, up until the ending, which ruined everything for me. I recall the global hatred for Cars 2, and how the mere existence of the sequel had begun to besmirch the likability of the first Cars movie--which was, and still is, one of my all-time favorite underrated Pixar flicks. And I could not forget how I had actually liked Monsters University when it was first released in 2012...until I realized that the storyline and the new cast of characters would, in fact, not be in line with the first Monsters Inc movie--where was Squishy by the time they started work at the factory, and how could they have just met in college when Mike specifically says that he and Sulley have known each other since the fourth grade?

But, I cast my cynicism and nitpicks aside, and kept some sense of optimism for Dory's new movie, the memory of watching Finding Nemo for the very first time in my kindergarten class. I went into this movie spoiler-free, reading hardly any reviews, and not knowing how the movie would end.

And it was fantastic. I laughed, I cried, and I clapped right along with the rest of the theater audience, once the movie was over. The animation was as beautiful as ever, the way the story unfolded was brilliant, even if the truck scene] was a bit of a eye-roller, albeit hilarious.

I also really liked Piper the short film that preceded the movie, as well as the end-credits scene where a couple of familiar Pixar characters return briefly. Overall, I'm thoroughly glad Pixar has made a sequel that I can re-watch and not dislike. It's nice to see my favorite animation studio back on top.

"Finding Dory": 9.8/10
"Piper": 9.7/10

The Right Stuff

I rented this from the library, along with The Social Network and Martin Scorsese's The Aviator, two of my all-time favorite movies. It's an incredibly fun, 192-minute-long thrill ride about a man who is constantly setting speed records, while a group of other men are busy with reaching new heights of their own.

Check it out if you are a fan of 2001, or other super-long movies about outer space.

9.5/10

Last edited by Mickey (June 21, 2016 (03:04pm))

Les Miserables 2012

This is a great film.  Beautiful story line.  Of all the movie versions of this book, this one is the best.  It is the closest to the book.  The singing is fantastic.  I rate it 10/10.  If you like the book, you should watch this film.

Interstellar

This is another great film.  Visually stunning.  Interesting story line.  Christopher Nolan always makes a good movie.

Independence Day: Resurgence

I am a tightwad by nature, and it was Tightwad Tuesday so my beloved wife and I went, compromising since the 4th was a Monday.

Loved it!

Now, it's hard to top the original, and the character development wan't as full as the original, but man was it intense!  It started out slow but revised history to reflect the events of 1996 in the first movie.  It's like in Star Trek 4, the cast went back to 1987, so people in real life would have hauled Kirk, Spock, etc off to a convention, but history was changed for the movie to remove the Star Trek franchise from the movie's history.  In the same way, humans over the past 20 years benefited from the technology aliens left behind from the first movie, building a defense force.  It was also wonderful to see a woman American president who isn't a corrupt criminal protected by her own kakistcoracy.

Except for Fighter Pilot Fuller (Will Smith), the original cast was there, including former president Whitmore & his daughter, Jsmine and her son Dylan, David Livingston (Jeff Goldblum) and his father, and Dr. Okin, who was hilarious!  The secretary of defense, whom Whitmore fired int he first movie, returned as the new secretary of defense (I think).

Most of the new generation resistance cast didn't seem as interesting, but I liked many other new characters: The African warlord, David's interpreter, and a crew of treasure hunters.

It's a Roland Emmerich. Dean Devlin movie, so not a cent was spared on special effects.  Liberties were taken at the expense of real science everywhere, but it's a movie.  They're supposed to be an escape from reality.  All the spaceship sounds in Star Wars movies shouldn't be there, but we don't get mad.  However, after the plot started swinging in gear, it was non-stop action, and a constant feeling of "Oh, gosh!  How are they going to get out of THIS ONE?"  And since it's an Emmerich film, the focus was on everyday people overcoming a world-changing situation against insurmountable odds.

I conclude with my thoughts on the ending.  I've avoided specifics on the plot and I will here, but am adding a spoiler to be extra cautious because it is about the ending.

I loved it, and recommend it for a fun and intense two hours.

10 Cloverfield Lane... AWESOME! So well written, such an interesting and refreshing film. The last 20 minutes are a hit or miss for most of the people, I knew what to expect but to me it still felt out of place, so other than the last 20 minutes of the movie I honestly loved it.

The Great Escape - 1963, Starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough

This is a very good film on a mass escape of prisoners from a German POW camp during WWII. While a few details were changed, (such as having an American playing a prominent role in the escape) this movie follows the true story for the most part.

All in all, I really enjoyed the Great Escape, and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in WWII, has seen other Steve McQueen films such as the Magnificent Seven, or who can stand the somewhat depressing ending.

The Little Prince

You're all stop motion animators, so you should watch this. The stop motion segments are beautiful, and over all it's a pretty darn good movie. You can tell that the director, (as well as the rest of the team) really poured his heart and soul into it. It's on Netflix, and it's not very long, so there's really no reason not to watch it.

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