The Invisible Man Review

What’s spookier than someone you literally cannot see?

If you haven’t heard of “The Dark Universe,” it’s essentially Universal’s play at a cinematic universe but with reboots of their classic horror films. It started poorly with Dracula: Untold, and then remained unsuccessful with the release of The Mummy. Things were looking bleak until they struck gold with their latest release: The Invisible Man.

Adapted off of the 1933 movie of the same name, this one takes a more modern approach both in the themes of the movie and the technology that drives the events forward. The story follows Cecelia, a woman who escapes an abusive marriage with a wealthy tech entrepreneur. She then hears that her ex-husband committed suicide shortly after and everything seems fine—until mysterious and sinister things start happening to her and the people around her.

Now, this movie is certainly not perfect. The atmosphere and tone of the movie is more suspenseful and scare-driven, but it doesn’t fully achieve that. There were a lot of moments that were fairly predictable and when you know what’s coming, it tends to let some of the tension out the sequences. It’s not like that the whole movie—the second half has a lot of interesting twists and turns—but it’s certainly notable.

Part of what really makes this movie work, however, is how unique the filmmaking is. With the antagonist being invisible, it really opens up different spaces and shots. Their usage of negative space is something you don’t see very often in movies but it works particularly well when you have no clue what the psychotic sociopath (who happens to be invisible) is doing or where he’s coming from next. You could be looking at a completely empty room but it still causes you to wonder is “Where’s he hiding?”

The camerawork is also so smooth that it never takes you out of it, it feels like you’re moving naturally with the characters and settings as the scenes progress. Pair that with the attention to detail in everything and it all just feels really fleshed out.

And of course like with everything she’s in, Elisabeth Moss takes the movie to another level. Her acting and raw emotion in every scene brings an intensity to the scenes that likely wouldn’t have been there without someone as talented as she is. The stark contrast between how her character acts at the beginning of the film compared to at the end is staggering and goes to show how much of a range Moss has.

In the end, The Invisible Man is definitely a quality movie. The story is well thought-out, the characters are interesting, the actual filmmaking is creative and all-around strong. It’s the whole package. Just don’t go in expecting something that’ll chill you to the bone, because it’s not quite the tense, suspense-filled horror that it was trying to be. Go give it a watch nonetheless.

The Hall Score: 8.5/10

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Uncut Gems Review

An original film that’s both chaotic and magical

Uncut Gems, created by the Safdie Brothers, is a passion project that has been in the making for a decade and it shows. There has been hype surrounding the film ever since the trailer dropped and it was applauded at film festivals, but it’s now available everywhere and is a MUST-WATCH 2019 movie.

The story follows a gem dealer (played by Adam Sandler) in the diamond district of New York who makes a high stake bet including a rare gem and an NBA player to pay back his debts. Between the struggle of making it happen, he has to deal with both his family and his enemies.

And there’s a lot to unpack in these two hours of screen time. I was reeling coming out of the theater because it was seriously one of the most chaotic movies I’ve ever experienced. The intriguing part is, despite that, it was fairly easy to understand what was going on at all times. Part of what keeps that possible is brilliant, concise writing that holds it all together.

To bring that to the next level is an exemplary performance from the leading man Adam Sandler. When you think about Sandler, it’s usually comedies that come to mind, but he brings an intensity to the role that is unmatched. It’s sensational, I really can’t imagine anyone else playing this character to the extent that Sandler did.

Everything around him was great too. The supporting cast, including Kevin Garnett surprisingly, did very well. The shots and camerawork is brilliant. The score drives the pace of the movie forward in a way that only top tier movie score does. The overall feel of the movie is just fantastic. It’s also extremely unconventional, it does a lot that other films aren’t willing to do, even when it’s coming to a close in its jaw-dropping climax.

Uncut Gems is one of the best movies this year. It’s unique and outlandish, yet authentic and intimate. It’s extremely entertaining throughout, keeping you engaged from beginning to end, while also being extremely thought provoking. The Safdie Brothers brought their best to a project they’ve been working on for a LONG time and made it all worth it by creating a masterpiece to remember. It seems like people are divided over it, but it would be my top movie of 2019 if another work of art, Parasite, didn’t come out earlier in the year. Go watch this movie and form your own opinion, I promise it’s worth it.

The Hall Score: 10/10

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Little Women Review

Greta Gerwig is amazing, that is all

Little Women has been made many times, but director Greta Gerwig created something truly special with this modern movie iteration of the classic book. She brought together a cast that is insanely talented to prove that there’s more magic to be brought to this story and wow, did it work.

For anyone who hasn’t seen or read this 150 year old tale, Little Women follows a family of four girls (played by Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, and Elizabeth Scanlen) who are growing up in the mid 1800s.

As I said in the beginning, the cast is what really brings the pizzazz. Each of the four girls bring their own style and shine in their individual moments. Ronan and Pugh are especially good, but that doesn’t mean Watson and Scanlen aren’t strong in their own ways. To complement them, you have an amazing supporting cast of Laura Dern, Meryl Streep, and Timothee Chalamet to really bring out the best of the wonderful writing of this film.

That’s also not to say that the acting performances are the only thing that make this movie enjoyable. The sets and shots and beautiful, which is where I send my compliments to Gerwig. She knows how to make a film both beautiful and fun, and she has done it multiple times now. Greta Gerwig is a name that anyone who likes movies should know.

It’s engaging, it’s satisfying, and it’s everything you’re looking for in an end-of-the-year holiday movie. I don’t know how memorable it will be in the long run with it being pretty formulaic and not bringing anything super new to the table, but you should get your family together and go see this movie in theaters anyways. It’s something that almost everyone will enjoy.

The Hall Score: 9/10

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Star Wars IX Review

The end of an era… but did it go out with a bang?

It’s finally here, the conclusion of a story decades in the making. The Skywalker story line has reached its conclusion and in Star Wars fashion, everyone is conflicted on it. It seems like the fan base for this franchise is constantly arguing about whether its content is good or not, and this one is no different.

I will start off this review by warning everyone that I am a big advocate for The Last Jedi, so my opinion may differ from you, the readers. With that said, just take everything I say with a grain of salt and as always, I encourage watching for yourself and making your own opinion.

The story follows the Resistance as it concludes the journey of our heroic trio of Rey, Finn, and Poe. The band of fighters faces its greatest threat yet: a Sith lord that returns for his vengeance.

So I don’t want to say I was disappointed because I thoroughly enjoyed the movie as a whole. I mean come on, it’s the same Star Wars we all know and love. I did, however, feel that there was a lot of potential wasted. Let’s start from the beginning.

From the very first scene, the pacing of the movie is extremely fast. A big part of this is because JJ Abrams (the director of the film) wants to finish the story his own way, which is fair, but it makes it confusing and hard to follow at times. Star Wars super fans that nitpick everything will find countless plot holes I’m sure, but just know: the writing and story isn’t perfect and there’s a ridiculous amount of plot to sort through in the two and a half hours we’re given.

It all makes sense when you look back at the context of it all. I mean, who thought that bringing in multiple different writers and directors trying to keep one singular trilogy consistent was a good idea? The tone of the movie just felt conflicted because the story direction of Rian Johnson completely went against what Abrams was trying to do. The film felt like it was at war with itself, and that’s pretty much never a good sign for a solid and complete story.

I also feel like they played things extremely safe. Similar to The Force Awakens, it has a very formulaic style to it that relies on nostalgia and doesn’t want to take risks. Again, there’s a reason for this, that being that they didn’t want another The Last Jedi situation of an entire fan base going to war and creating controversy. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as I said earlier, it loses a lot of its potential for greatness. There’s so much that can be done here with a bit of artistic liberty, but alas, we get the same old same old. There were actually some decisions made that I vehemently disagree with but I see why they did them.

BUT in the end this is still a Star Wars film above all else. It has the magic that has been there from the beginning of the very first film. You still have all the light sabers and force powers and stupid jokes that brought us into this expansive universe and kept us there. The music from the legendary John Williams is ever-present and wonderful. There are still moments of awe and pure fun that define this franchise. You’re going to see a Star Wars film and that’s what you get, flaws and all.

I should probably say something about the actual ending but to be honest, it felt similar to the rest of the movie: rushed. It’s unoriginal and forgetful, but it wrapped things up at the very minimum level that it should have. It’s a low effort send off, but certainly not at a Game of Thrones level where it will ruin the image of the property for many people.

They could’ve done more to make this one a true conclusion to remember, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t watch it. I can recommend this one to all Star Wars fans, picky or not, and say that I look forward to what comes next in this universe past the Skywalkers. It’ll be interesting to say the least. Hopefully the fans will calm down by then.

The Hall Score: 6/10

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Hobbs and Shaw Review

Fast and Furious continues to get more outrageous… and fun

The best thing about the Fast and Furious franchise is that it knows what it is. It’s crazy, absurd action sequences that you almost need to turn off your brain to enjoy, but it’s extremely well made and impossible to not have fun watching unless you just over-analyze it. Hobbs and Shaw continues with this trend, introducing their first superhuman trying to destroy mankind as we know it.

The story follows the team-up of two unlikely allies, agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) and assassin Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) as they work together to extract a virus from Shaw’s sister (Vanessa Kirby) and keep it out of the hands of a mechanically enhanced, self proclaimed bad guy (Idris Elba) trying to purge the world of weakness.

And the movie does what Fast and Furious does best: gripping action all the way through. From London to Samoa and everywhere in between, it’s hard to not be entertained by the crazy car chases and the brutal fights. This is especially so once they get to the final showdown, which has one of the most creative and fun brawls I’ve ever witnessed on film in the beautiful landscape of the previously mentioned Samoa.

Where most action movies drop the ball is when the movie moves away from what defines the genre—the action. Hobbs and Shaw remedied this with endless humor between the two titular characters. Despite how much the characters themselves hate each other, you can feel the strong chemistry between Johnson and Statham every time they get the chance to relax and insult each other back and forth with their quick wit. The two are absolutely phenomenal and it made the movie feel better paced and it never lets the crowd get bored.

I really have no criticism of this movie, it did exactly what it set out to do: entertain the fans with a blend of intense, over-the-top action and witty humor. It’s one of my favorite movies this year and it surely sets a precedent for what a quality action movie looks like. I’m not sure how the Fast and Furious movies keep getting better, but I’m looking forward to seeing where the family goes next.

The Hall Score: 8/10

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The Lion King Review

A beautiful but emotionless remake

The Lion King is one of the greatest animated movies of all time, no doubt about it, but how does that translate to “live action?” It’s more CGI than anything, and boy does it look good, but a lot of the magic that made the Lion King the classic that it is just feels gone from the new Disney rehash.

The story follows pretty much exactly how the original one went. Simba is to be king one day but his uncle Scar has other plans that involve a whole lot of betrayal. Simba then has to stand up to family to take the title that is rightfully his.

So as I said before, this movie is absolutely gorgeous. The animals looks smooth and natural, the environment is lush, and it’s realistic as technologically possible. The problem is, we’re here to see the Lion King, not Planet Earth.

With keeping the animals looking like they should, you lose a lot of what makes animated movies fun. You lose the colorful choreographed music sequences, you lose the larger than life action, and you lose some bits that are absolutely hilarious. That famous hula distraction scene? Gone.

You also lose a lot of the emotion that animation can express. It’s hard to make a lion look sad, or happy, or enraged. You can’t really tell what the characters are feeling beyond what the words are conveying and the tone of voice, and even those don’t do enough most of the time. The scene where Mufasa dies (Sorry if that’s a spoiler but the original has been out for 25 years so deal with it.) just doesn’t have anywhere near the same impact as it once did because as Simba is “crying,” he has the straight face of any normal lion.

The cast did redeem it quite a bit for me though. The musical performances were hit or miss depending on the vocalist singing them, but the new cast were all perfect for their roles. Donald Glover and Beyonce both did stellar jobs as the two lead lions, while Seth Rogan and Billy Eichner brought a new take on Timon and Pumba that was different, but resulted in laughs nonetheless. Even John Oliver made his role funnier than it once was.

Overall, this movie feels like something that didn’t need to happen. It did happen though and many people will enjoy it nonetheless. If you’re truly interested in seeing how they interpreted the Lion King 25 years later, go and give this one a watch. In the end, despite the new version’s flaws, it’s still the Lion King at heart, and it’s extremely difficult to not like a story as good as this one.

The Hall Score: 5/10

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Midsommar Review

One of the best and most disturbing films this sommar

After just how good Hereditary was, expectations were high for Midsommar. Ari Aster had done a stellar job of crafting a horror that was both beautiful and terrifying. With his sophomore attempt, he decided to go a different route and while it’s not as scary, it’s beautiful in its own way.

The story follows a young couple who travels to Sweden to participate in a midsummer festival with some friends. While everything starts out fine, things start to take a strange and twisted turn as the days go on.

Midsommar is one of those movies that will both captivate you to the point that you can’t stop watching and disgust you to the point that you want to stop. It’s this internal clash throughout most of the film that brings a sense of dread and disturbance to any innocent soul who goes to watch this, especially in theaters.

And it really is beautiful. Midsommar is hands down one of the best movies I’ve ever seen visually. The way they use light and color along with special effects here and there just adds a sense of dream-like quality to all the weird happenings throughout. It feels like one big drug trip that gets more intense as time goes on. This coupled with the masterful usage of sound that Aster has become known for creates an experience like no other.

But boy do they go hard on the gross imagery. There’s not a huge amount of it besides small things here and there that unsettle you, but they don’t hold back when things start to get going. The gore is extreme and there’s one sex scene that is so unsettling, it’s hard to describe in words. Apparently the movie was rated NC-17 for a few weeks before Aster convinced the MPAA to knock it down to R and I don’t doubt that fact one bit.

Just don’t go in expecting Hereditary. Midsommar is an extremely slow burn that gives you so many thoughts and feelings that it’s hard to register what you saw coming out of your first showing. This is one that you’ll need to see two or three times to truly appreciate everything that Aster put together in his latest creation. It’s slow, a bit too slow at times, but when everything starts to come together in the end for one grand conclusion, it’s all worth it.

Midsommar is one of the best movies this year and there’s no question about that in my mind. It’s certainly not for everyone, and many won’t get what all the hype is about, but it’ll go down as a masterpiece of filmmaking from our era. If you have the patience and the stomach for it, go see Midsommar in theaters before this sommar is over.

The Hall Score: 9/10

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Yesterday Review

A cute little romance hidden under the disguise of a Beatles-themed fantasy

When the trailer for Yesterday first dropped, my first thought was “This is such a unique concept.” That concept shines through in this fun little adventure but it comes across as more of an extended dream than anything else. It’s not perfect, it’s pretty cheesy, but it’s exactly what it needs to be.

From the director of Slumdog Millionaire, Yesterday follows a singer-songwriter Jack Malik (Himesh Patel) who gets in an accident during a global blackout. When he wakes up, he finds that the world has no recollection of The Beatles ever existing. He then uses their music to become an international star, but his rise to fame challenges both his relationships and his morals.

As much as they advertise the music side of the story, it really does feel like this is a romance with Beatles undertones to the narrative. The main journey through the story besides his rise to fame is how that affects his relationship with his best friend, Ellie (Lily James). She is a deciding factor in much of the movie and is ultimately what matters most to Jack.

That’s not to say that takes away from the movie at all, although it does get a bit cheesy here and there. The movie is still a enjoyable as ever and will bring a heartwarming smile to anyone who watches it. Sure, the film stumbles over itself a few times, and Patel doesn’t give a particularly inspiring performance, but you’re not looking to see a masterpiece of cinema here. You’re going to see a movie that makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside.

If you’re the nitpicky type that’s going to be taken out of a movie because it’s not accurate to reality in the slightest, this one isn’t for you. If you want a rocking dream of a love story, Yesterday is worth the watch and is certainly enjoyable despite its flaws.

The Hall Score: 6.5/10

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Toy Story 4 Review

A better ending than Toy Story 3?

In an age of reboots, remakes, and Disney driving things into the ground, my original thought when I saw Toy Story 4 was announced was that this is an unnecessary film to get more money out of nostalgia. While that thought isn’t technically wrong, I was still overjoyed with the result.

The newest adventure of Toy Story follows the gang going on a roadtrip with Bonnie (Madeleine McGraw) and a newly created toy, Forky (Tony Hale). When Forky misunderstands his life as a toy, things quickly go awry. Woody (Tom Hanks) and Buzz (Tim Allen), along with some old friends, must work together to help Forky and keep Bonnie happy.

The first thing I noticed was just how good the animation looks. It’s absolutely stunning the advances we’ve made in how detailed the visuals can be now. There are moments where I can’t help but just stare at the lighting, the movement, or in one scene, the cat.

That doesn’t mean the original magic of Toy Story is gone though. The cast is back and better than ever with laughs and smiles aplenty. The new addition of Forky provides some scenes that are absolutely hilarious while also bringing a nice little message to the movie that both kids and adults can take to heart.

The flip side to that brings the main flaw of the movie and that’s the supporting cast. While the main characters of Woody and Buzz and Forky shine, along with a few people who help along the way, the majority of the old friends from the originals have little to no real screen time. They’re almost entirely ignored and that’s a shame with how great some of them have been in the past.

The thing that truly surprised me was that I thought this iteration wrapped the franchise up even better than Toy Story 3 did. Of course we don’t know if there will be more, as we all thought the third would be the last and here we are, but I certainly won’t be complaining if they decide to end it here. It’s hard to explain without spoilers but it just brings a new sense of closure, especially with some of the toys you’ve grown to love.

Toy Story 4 is an emotional tale that focuses in with a more character-driven arc and makes you love these toys more than you already did. There’s multiple themes that the film portrays that can be understood by all ages, despite the film being primarily directed towards children. Expect that classic nostalgic magic from every Toy Story before it and don’t forget the tissues. Go watch this movie.

The Hall Score: 8/10

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Rocketman Review

What Bohemian Rhapsody should have been

Following the mess that Bohemian Rhapsody was, my expectations for Rocketman were not exactly high. That being said, the movie was a pleasant surprise that exceeded my hopes in every way.

Directed by Dexter Fletcher, the man who tried to reclaim Bohemian Rhapsody from how Bryan Singer left it, Rocketman is a musical that tells the tale of Elton John’s rise to stardom with a heavy fantasy theme throughout.

The first thing that needs to be said is that Taron Egerton as Elton John is fantastic. He brings both the emotion and the flare that truly made you believe that this was Elton John. There’s no other way to describe his performance than wonderful and Oscar nomination-worthy.

The rest of movie wasn’t lacking either. The different musical numbers were grand and super fun to watch. The story is gripping and brings emotions of all kinds. He didn’t pull punches on how dark John’s life really was at times but he never went too far as to take away from the overall tone. Fletcher promised a fantasy and that’s exactly what he gave us.

The only real criticism I had was the first act of the film that felt a bit slow. It starts off going through John’s childhood and while it was nice to set the scene of how he grew up, it could have easily just started a bit later in his life. The movie just didn’t really find it’s stride until Egerton bursts onto the screen.

Overall, Rocketman is a fantastic musical that brings smiles, laughs, and tears. It doesn’t hold back, it doesn’t hide his sexuality, and it certainly doesn’t bore you. If you have any sort of love or appreciation for the music of Elton John, this one is a must-see.

The Hall Score: 9/10

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