Kiki’s Delivery Service

There’s nothing really spectacular about Kiki’s Delivery Service, but it holds up well for something that’s 27 years old, and it’s interesting seeing how everything plays out.

Kiki’s Delivery Service holds up pretty well for a movie that’s old as hell. I didn’t have any idea it was so old when I watched it. It’s weird that they translated the term to “witch.” I guess it makes sense with the broom and the familiar and the black and everything. But it sounded like they were saying something more like “mage.” I feel like there’s probably a more positive term they could have used/could have been using other than “witch.” I’m sure the dialogue as a whole was better in Japanese. It’s always a bit weird in the subtitles.

The Secret of Kells

The Secret of Kells has an interesting feel to it, but I wasn't into the animation style overall, and the story didn't really go anywhere.

I liked Song of the Sea, so my friend thought I might also like The Secret of Kells, but I didn't think it was as good. The animation was still interesting, although I've always been bothered by those Samurai Jack-style square fingers. And the cat and the wolf had spiky points for feet, which was really weird. And the cat's "X with a circle around it denotes the nose and mouth" bothered me, too. And I didn't like the linework on a lot of people's faces, like how the same line for Aidan's beard turned into his ear. Okay, maybe I really wasn't into the animation on this one.

Song of the Sea

Song of the Sea is the best movie I've seen this year. The animation style is unique and captivating; the main characters are surprisingly charismatic for being animated children; and the plot is both whimsical and poignant.

I knew about Song of the Sea when it came out, but it didn't seem like anything I needed to see. I was skeptical about the animation style when I first started watching it, but it got better, and I wound up liking it a lot. It's one of those styles that kind of becomes a character of its own.

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens

The Force Awakens really is just like a re-hash of the original Star Wars movies with different actors, and the whole thing is slightly "off," but it was still fun to watch.

I'm not really a Star Wars fan. I made the mistake of watching the first six movies in episode order rather than chronological. Hayden Christensen was terrible. And I didn't get much out of the originals, either. But I kept seeing posts about this one, and I realized you don't get many chances to see a Star Wars movie in the theater, so I went to see it on the big screen.

I'm glad I did; it was worth $3. It's cool that Harrison Ford and everybody is still around to reprise their roles. I don't really see Carrie Fisher as Leia, though; I pretty much just see her as the actress Carrie Fisher. I liked that it felt like a reboot with young actors, although I guess the series in general has been about young people. I didn't recognize Adam Driver at all as Kylo. He looks a lot younger in the movie. BB8 was pretty adorable. His name sounded a little awkward when people said it.

The World of Kanako

The World of Kanako is basically about drugs, rape, violence, mental illness...all kinds of gritty stuff. But the cinematography and soundtrack are beautiful, and I was captivated watching it play out.

The World of Kanako is a pretty crazy movie, but I'm generally into that kind of thing. I love how it hits you right out of the gate with violence; it's all stylized, and really well done. The movie as a whole looks great.

The music stood out, too, especially the parts when it was punctuating something happening on screen, like when it stopped in the middle of the scene with Matsunaga. The animated scene was great, especially the way it ended with the doorbell ringing. I liked the blood-splattered cuts anytime someone attacked Akikazu. Speaking of which, that guy was a superhero - he could really take a beating.

X-Men: First Class

The main plot of X-Men: First Class comes off as extraneous, but the movie is still an entertaining look into the characters' backgrounds. Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy do a great job portraying the origins of Charles and Erik's relationship, and Kevin Bacon hits the right notes as the villain. 

I don't know why I wasn't interested in First Class when it first came out; maybe because I didn't know any of the actors at the time. Now James McAvoy is one of my favorites, and I like Nicholas Hoult from Warm Bodies. I wasn't really on the Michael Fassbender boat before I saw First Class, but now I think he's good. I was a little confused about the casting of Kevin Bacon for the villain, but he did a good job with it. His nose was insanely distracting, though. I guess it's always been like that and I just haven't seen him in a lot of movies. Maybe they could've shot from a more flattering angle. Or maybe it didn't bother anyone else.

I always thought of the title "First Class" as like "elite fighters for the government" or something, and I don't think I realized until I saw the movie that it meant "the first class that Professor X trains." I still don't like Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique; or I don't like the way they're styling this version of her, or both. The suit is just unattractive, and the hair looks so fake. What they did with Rebecca was so much better. And I'd love for them to spring on some CGI or something to soften the look of the greasepaint. My #1 X-Men pet peeve, greasepaint; especially glaring for Azazel this time.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is pretty anticlimactic, especially if you already know all the spoilers. It's not that interesting visually, and there's just not a whole lot going on.

I finally finished the Harry Potter series, and it only took me until four years after the last movie came out. The beginning of this one is really weird. It felt like I came in at the middle of the movie, which I guess makes sense since it's a two-parter. I didn't remember Part 1 at all, though, so I was pretty confused. Maybe they could've done some kind of recap. Or maybe they thought they did. There wasn't a whole lot going on in this movie. I was pretty tired when I watched it, and I was just waiting for it to end already. It probably would've been more interesting if I hadn't found out all the spoilers from the internet.

A Clockwork Orange

A Clockwork Orange is one of my favorite movies (and books). I love the aesthetics, from the framing to the costumes. The dialogue is brilliant, especially the use of Nadsat. The soundtrack is amazing, and the plot is visceral and thought-provoking. Burgess' writing in combination with Kubrick's vision created something truly iconic.

This was the third time I've seen A Clockwork Orange. It's one of my favorite movies, and books. I love languages and different lingo, which is probably why I like it so much. There are so many lines that just strike a chord with me, maybe because they've been reinforced a few times.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince moves along at a decent pace, without too many unnecessary distractions. There's not really anything "magical" about it, but it advances the plot, and it's better than the previous two Harry Potter movies.

I accidentally watched Harry Potter #7 before #6, but now that I've seen this one, I realize I really didn't miss much, even though it felt like I did when I watched #7. I probably should read a synopsis of "the story so far" before I watch the last one, though. I don't remember any of the Tom Riddle business, and apparently I should. I also don't remember what happened with Draco's father, but I guess something did.

A Coffee in Berlin

Niko's interactions with the people he meets in A Coffee in Berlin are interesting, but the unsatisfying ending left me feeling like there wasn't any point in watching it.
The trailer for A Coffee in Berlin looked interesting, and it has a 7.5 on IMDb, which is pretty good. I couldn't remember what it was about anymore by the time I saw it. I like it better that way, though. The trailers always give too much away. I was immediately put off by the "upbeat jazz" soundtrack. It's the kind of music that causes me to completely write off any movie that uses it in the trailer. It makes me feel like the movie isn't going to have any substance. In this case, it took any depth and sincerity out of the movie, and made it feel like I didn't really have to experience what was happening.

Toy Story 3

It was really sad ending the series.

Coraline

Bizarre, creepy, and not entirely appropriate for children.

Havoc

This is worth watching for Joseph Gordon-Levitt's hilarious performance alone. Freddy Rodriguez is pretty distracting if you've ever watched Six Feet Under, though.

Stephen King's It

Compared to the book, this pretty much sucked. I'd love to see what they could do with it now. I demand to see the space turtle that sicked up the universe!

The overall style of it was also terrible. But, all that aside, Tim Curry does a pretty good job with Pennywise.

The Lost Boys

Who knew Jack Bauer was ever this cute?

The Devil's Backbone