Recently Seen Movies - 12 - Page 99

Originally posted by: Metamorphosis

I'm genuinely curious.

How is Mike a "jerk" this season? I haven't seen the latest season yet, but this "Mike is such a jerk" has been going on since the second season itself, an accusation that falls short owing to the common sense and better analysis of the character.

Plus, I feel the writers have been entirely ignorant of his existence ever since the second season ended. He had no arc other than being El's boyfriend — as a character he deserves much better who was in so much focus in the first two seasons. The writers keep adding more and more characters, while ignoring the existing characters (Mike, Will, Nancy, Jonathan, and Lucas). Apparently, he was the only character (well, Joyce and Mike) I cared about all 3 seasons, which is why his treatment in the 3rd season disappointed me. Haven't seen the 4th season yet.

It's actually baffling to me the choices they have made with Mike. Mike is throughout the first three seasons presented as the most empathetic of the group. Always reaching out for Eleven, Will and his other friends. Here all he does is act distant and serve as character fodder for Eleven and Will. And they are pretty much setting Will up for a S5 arc, so he also gets closure. But I am not really sure what Mike's arc supposedly is. Weirder still because Finn is probably the second most successful of the child actors.

Thor: Love and Thunder

I was looking forward to this for two reasons.

First, Taika Waititi's Ragnarok infused new life into the Thor franchise with a magnificent blend of humor and action. Thor films were tepid, with The Dark World being almost listless. Ragnarok completely changed all that.

Second, Jason Aaron's The Mighty Thor story arc is well acclaimed. It is one of the most emotional superhero origin stories, chock-full of character development and growth.

So it was exponentially more disappointing to see Love and Thunder fail to deliver. I mean there was so much potential - a God Butcher determined to end all Gods, a mortal taking on the mantle of God in desperation, and a God searching for himself after centuries of existence. There is a lot of depth and gravitas to create a compelling story.

Instead, we get a half-baked narrative with barely any character development. Christian Bale gives his all and performs every scene with finesse. But he's barely there and his progression is so anti-climactic.

Valkyrie is completely wasted and reduced to a functional alcoholic. [And where is King Valkyrie's Queen, I ask.] The Guardians are seemingly reduced to flowerpots. Thor is just a comical insecure caricature of himself. Jane Foster as the Mighty Thor gets a few poignant moments before being sidelined for ill-timed jokes. Believe it or not, the best part of the movie for me was the screaming goats.

Taika Waititi's zany and quirky humor is the downfall of this movie. In a story that required more emotion and empathy, the jokes are forced and don't land. And the whole Zeus sequence is just a Last Jedi gambling den fool's errand which could have been eliminated for more development for the Thors.

In hindsight, Love and Thunder should have been a Disney Plus TV series. An 6-8 episode mini-series would have given the amount of time and space for Gorr and the Thors to get a proper fleshed-out narrative. It would have given breathing room for jokes to be seamlessly woven into the emotional stakes at play rather than forced in.

Christian Bale and Natalie Portman are phenomenal accomplished actors. It is a travesty that Marvel has been unable to harness their potential right. Thank God Ragnarok didn't do Cate Blanchett dirty. I might have to watch it again tonight. Hela to me is the best MCU villain so far. No other villain has managed to make me both terrified and horny at the same time.

For those familiar with Jason Aaron's Mighty Thor - the end credits scene is a bit predictable although it may not be fully what you expect. But Love and Thunder is worth it for the mid-credits scene. And the ending - it's great to see Thor back with a purpose. I can let go of Iron Man. Captain America always felt like a righteous tool. But Thor can be fun and sexy. Alas, superhero movies don't do full-frontal nudity.

Also, MCU Phase 4 is testing my patience. No word of Secret Wars or A-Force yet. Barring, No Way Home, all films have not met their potential.

The Umbrella Academy S3

Our quirky apocalyptic superheroes are back for another adventure. This time with twice the characters. But it really isn't twice the fun. Barring the new asshole Ben, we barely get to know the Sparrow Academy.

The story took a while to gain traction and become interesting. But the last two episodes just felt incoherent and disjointed. It didn't have the impact of the previous two seasons.

Season three has its highlights but pales in comparison to the previous two. Even the musical moments don't have the necessary impact. The song choice and fight choreography are more tepid this season.

I think Klaus and Diego are the best part of the season. They have been pigeonholed and sidelined the freaky and angry type, but we finally get to see some depth with them. Viktor's transition was also smoothly handled.

Overall, TUA3 is an entertaining show, but doesn't provide the high quality that we have been used to.

Moon Knight 🌙

Easily, the best Disney+ Marvel series so far. Oscar Isaac is a beauty, a beast and a phenomenon, all rolled into one. I love him. He has my heart.

The mythology of Egyptian Gods was greatly woven into the storyline without it being excessive or having to read up to understand the show.

I happened to watch the BTS for this show and was amazed to learn they did not shoot this in Egypt at all. Tremendous effort and jaw dropping VFX. It has the right balance of humour, action and comedy. I enjoyed it so much. The end credits are amazeballs omg.

5/5

I wrote all that in last post

But forgot to mention the top movie of 2022

Everything everywhere all at once , just chef's kiss

Just go in blindly like i did and you will atleast enjoy it.

Ms. Marvel

The show is a fun breezy six-episode watch. The vibe is colorful and festive. There is also a galore of teenage shenanigans that make it entertaining. I enjoyed seeing the action sequences in Karachi. There is also something heartwarming about seeing actors and music you know in a mainstream US show. My favorite was the finale and post-credits that sets up the Marvels.

There are some loose plot points like Aisha and the Clan Destine, why did Aisha go her own way. Why is the department of damage control so interested in what is going on?

Disney also completely changed Kamala Khan's origin story and powers. They also changed the Clan Destine and Kareem (Red Dagger) from comics too.

It is a shame that the show had low viewership. I think anyone who gives it a shot might end up enjoying it. But even I had very little interest at first. I feel that Disney simply didn't promote it enough.

Zombivili

Damn! This movie is everything a zom-com should be. Why this isn't a pan-Indian hit blows my mind.

The movie begins with the expecting couple Sudhir and Seema Joshi moving to Dombivili for Sudhir's exciting new job. Their joy is short-lived as a zombie outbreak turns their life upside down. Now with a rag-tag bunch of other neighbors, they must find a way to survive.

Zombivili is a hilarious and well-paced film with an engaging storyline. The makeup, visual effects, and mannerisms of the zombies are spot on. The ensemble cast of survivors performs brilliantly. And at the core of the narrative is a story about corporate greed and class divides. A must-watch.

The Boys Diabolical

Dark. Twisted. Gratuitously violent and gruesome. The irreverent companion to The Boys has the twisted humor and dark cynicism of the series in quirky animated shorts. I prefer the live-action series - the action felt a bit too - cartoonish?

Janhit Mein Jaari

The movie is entertaining and provides an important social message. The performances are earnest and the humor is light and breezy. But the film is extremely heavy-handed with its messaging and attempts too much.

There was absolutely no need for a romance track. The movie could have easily been about a working woman's conflicts with her parents. The romance, the pining friend, and the election campaign, all add bloat. The motivation to sell condoms could have been established right at the beginning itself. The ending gets in-your-face preachy.

I also felt that it oversimplified some issues. Protection and abortion shouldn't be pitted against each other. Both have their place. Condoms also protect against STDs that the movie doesn't address at all. I guess pre-marital sex and hookup culture or gay men are still taboo.

I think it is still a decently made and important film. It is also refreshing to see a woman leading a social message film after seeing the two AKs dominate the scene. For the majority of India, it is still a big and important step. But when an episode of Sex Education covers so many more issues succinctly - I can't help but lament over how far behind things are.

Major - Decent movie, visuals are decent. But, at places, I felt the pacing felt slow. Adivi Sesh, Prakash Raj, and the actor who played Major Sandeep's teacher/coach during his NDA journey were the stars of the film. Otherwise, it was a decent movie but certain parts could've been improved. Actress playing Isha (Major Sandeep's high school sweetheart to wife) was okay but could've done better in certain scenes).

Originally posted by: Myrah_2020

Major - Decent movie, visuals are decent. But, at places, I felt the pacing felt slow. Adivi Sesh, Prakash Raj, and the actor who played Major Sandeep's teacher/coach during his NDA journey were the stars of the film. Otherwise, it was a decent movie but certain parts could've been improved. Actress playing Isha (Major Sandeep's high school sweetheart to wife) was okay but could've done better in certain scenes).

@bold -She is Mahesh Manjrekar's step daughter.