Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) directed by James Gunn

At this point in time, I know just about every line and every shot of this film. Every line that brings out so much emotion while providing excellent character development and every shot that makes this film one of Marvel's most beautiful. Guardians of the Galaxy is my favorite Disney/Marvel film and while some have issues with its peculiarity, its offbeat action and humor make it the most enjoyable for me. This film introduced the world to some of the weirdest characters in the galaxy, yet it still remains one of the most fun and rewatchable science-fiction films of the past decade.

This film is unforgettable because of its characters and remarkable use of a soundtrack to tell its story. Every character in this movie is beautifully written and has their own unique story that is told so well. Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax, Rocket, and Groot are all household names at this point and they develop so much over the course of this singular film. Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, (the voices of) Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel were all perfect choices for their respective characters and have so much unbelievable chemistry together, which made their performances that much better. Even though this film does not escape the Marvel standard that had been set years before, it still manages to provide a better family dynamic than previous films. What makes this my favorite MCU film is the fact that it took the group dynamic that had been established in The Avengers but perfected it even more, making it more personal and relatable. Both groups of heroes had to get together to save the world, but in this movie, they actually learn to like each other towards the end, flawlessly setting up the characters for the rest of the trilogy. There might have been a few lines of cheesy dialogue here and there, but Guardians of the Galaxy still surpasses many superhero films when it comes to making the story charming while keeping the plot intact.

The other, most obvious part of this film that anyone can enjoy is its soundtrack. The compilation of classic soft rock with 60's and 70's love songs makes this film so much more than your average popcorn film, and it serves an actual purpose too. It's revealed that Peter Quill's mother made him the mixtape when he was young and this provides the driving force for his character through not just this movie, but the sequel and Infinity War as well. This mixtape was designed very carefully by director James Gunn and rightfully so. From the opening dance scene in the caves to the love scenes to the dance-off with Ronan in the end, every song in this film is beautifully chosen and fits every shot perfectly. Other parts of this film that I loved were the cinematography and the action. Up until this movie, there was never an emphasis on camera work in the MCU, but that definitely changed with this addition. It was also the most colorful and eye-popping movie until then, accompanied by fantastic action and awesome choreography. In particular, the scene on Nova where they all meet for the first time was so much fun and introduced their personalities very well too.

My only issue with this film was its main villain Ronan the Accuser. James Gunn delves deep into the history of the Guardians and absolutely does his source material research, but Ronan was still given the least amount of character development time. He was a very standard antagonist and there was nothing interesting about him in the slightest, other than his scary purple hammer. However, he served his basic purpose for the film and even introduces the Infinity Stones into the cinematic universe.

Accompanied by one of the best soundtracks in film history, Guardians of the Galaxy blends together every element that makes a space opera phenomenal. This film turned out to be one of Marvel's finest works, despite its irregular characters and story. I would strongly, strongly, strongly, recommend this movie to any fan of the space genre, since it stands on its own so well as a memorable and engaging action adventure.

My Rating: ★★★★★

Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) directed by Ron Howard

For once in my life, I was excited for a Star Wars film. Even if it was just a prequel revolving around a supporting character, there was something about the premise that drew me in. Or perhaps it was Donald Glover appearing as a young Lando. That sounds more my speed. Besides that, Solo: A Star Wars Story is a solid entry into the franchise that helped solidify this legendary character's background before his entry into the rebellion.

Since I am not a Star Wars fan, I do not have very high expectations when I see another of these films. However, one of the elements of this one that I enjoyed so much was the fact that it felt more like a smaller, standalone, production than the massive films that built the world around it (even though this movie still has every money-making tactic of a blockbuster). Not being enthusiastic about this franchise makes me appreciate how much detail and quality filmmaking this movie actually contains. I feel that a large part of this is due to the incredible directing of Ron Howard, as this entire film is very smooth and paced well. It definitely did not feel like more than two hours and the story went along nicely. While I would have enjoyed a bit more exposition about Han's life towards the beginning, I was able to easily jump in and understand the events occurring. I also believe that Howard's expertise was needed to give this film a fresh feel from the rest of the franchise. He was able to make us care about (most of) the characters and provide an entertaining and original plot. One of my favorite relationships in the film was between Han and Chewbacca. Seeing how they met and developed their friendship was very sweet to see. And I'm sure it brought out a lot of nostalgia for hardcore Star Wars fans, given that, y'know... Han is dead and all. One last detail of this movie that I loved was the score and how much it reminded me of the original films' scores. John Powell and John Williams are once again getting that Disney money while still creating an excellent soundtrack for a memorable film.

My absolute favorite part of this film, and the main reason I was attracted to it, was Donald Glover's performance as a young Lando Calrissian. He was able to embody that charming and seductive personality that Billy Dee Williams did so very well decades ago. Glover honestly stole every scene that he was in and blended humor with his own minor subplot beautifully. A performance that I did not enjoy as much, however, was the titular character of Han Solo, played by Alden Ehrenreich. While he is a great actor and fit the look very well, he just simply did not have the same energy and charisma as Harrison Ford's portrayal. This was especially seen in Han's scenes with Qi'ra, his love interest played by Emilia Clarke. Clarke is another fantastic artist that handles her role very well, but the two did not have any chemistry between them in the slightest; their scenes together were painful to watch because of their lack of any decent emotion. Woody Harrelson, on the other hand, was great in his role as Tobias Beckett. Harrelson seems to play the same type of rugged but weird character in every movie, but there is no denying that he does it well, even though he was quite predictable in this film. Little things that also irked me in this movie included a writing detail and the introductory design. For the first thirty minutes or so, this movie looked quite disgusting. Even though it was set against the industrial backdrop of Corellia, the color grading was disgusting. It got better into the second and third act, but I was worried that this movie would be an eyesore. I also did not enjoy how they explained how Han got his last name Solo. Him being the "only one of his kind" and therefore calling him "Solo" was very lazy writing in my opinion.

Solo: A Star Wars Story is a great addition to the franchise and excellently builds the origin story of one of the most beloved characters in film history. While there is a lack of engaging characters and plot, the directing and movement of the film help to make it stand out from the rest. Die-hard fans of this franchise will either love or hate this movie, but I personally enjoyed it very much.

My Rating: ★★½

Downsizing (2017) directed by Alexander Payne

I am not entirely sure what I was expecting as I rented this film from Redbox. I love Matt Damon and the supporting cast who I knew were in this movie, but I was not certain what would come out of the actual story. Unfortunately, Downsizing turned out to be a jumbled, tone-deaf mess. Damon and his co-star Hong Chau were among some of the only positives of the film, but even then it was not nearly enough to make it worth the $1.50 rental.

This film is riddled with problems from the beginning. Throughout the whole movie, the pacing is very slow and uneven, which made it so difficult to watch. The movie is way too long, topping out at two hours and fifteen minutes and it dragged the story on forever. One of the introductory scenes where Damon's character Paul is actually undergoing the downsizing procedure took almost ten minutes to show and I nearly fell asleep. One might think that an Oscar-winning director could handle an awkward pacing issue, but apparently not. As for the story, the plot lines were so blurry and not able to blend together effectively. The first and second acts went well together, showing what Paul's new life was like at 5 inches tall and without his wife by his side. The third act, however, is where everything took a turn for the worse. It drastically altered in tone from a lighthearted sci-fi drama to an apocalyptic survival drama. The central theme of the film is saving the planet's ecosystem by shrinking yourself to produce less waste. This made sense for the film, but the introduction of methane gas coming from Antarctica and bringing upon the apocalypse was so sudden and not developed at all. Damon's Paul and Chau's Ngoc sailed to a new society where they had been preparing to escape this said apocalypse, but all of these new plot details came with no foreshadowing or development in the slightest. This entire third act did not remotely fit in with the story set before it and it was wildly far-fetched, even for a movie that's about shrinking people down (practically ripping off Honey, I Shrunk the Kids).

Characters in this film did not have any resolution at all, besides a half-attempted romance between Paul and Ngoc. These characters did not have any time to develop, probably because the writers were too focused on making the message of the film as incoherent as possible. Many concepts like global warming, over-population, and self-identity came up in the film, but none of them were fully explored. I feel that Alexander Payne, the director, had a message about Earth that he wanted to convey but was not sure how to do it. If the movie would have focused on one message, it would have been much clearer. The writing could have built up to the apocalypse or it could have focused on Paul's life changing as a miniature person. Either of these would have boded better for the story. The last small issue that I had was Hong Chau's character Ngoc. Even though she provided a lot of decent humor for the second and third act, her accent and mannerisms were very unnecessarily exaggerated. She had been living in the United States for a while after escaping as a refugee, but there is no reason why she had to have such a stereotypical, broken-English accent. One thing that I did like about the character of Ngoc was that the actress was actually Vietnamese. No whitewashing, which was pleasant, but there were still issues.

Matt Damon and Ngoc Chau were some of the only positives in this film as they did bring some nice light to their characters, no matter how broken the story was. I also enjoyed the small cameos by Jason Sudeikis, Neil Patrick Harris, Kristen Wiig, Laura Dern, and Christoph Waltz. I just wish their miniature (pun intended) roles would have been larger. The design and sets in this film were great to see too, as actual miniature neighborhoods and buildings were built for the establishing shots. This small aesthetic worked well for the movie.

Downsizing is not a great film by my standards, as the story was off-putting and the message unclear. It truly felt like an SNL skit that was turned into a full-length feature. But instead of going the comedy route, it desperately reached for any kind of dramatic premise. I would not recommend this extinction-of-the-human-race film unless you really, REALLY want to see Matt Damon in a fat suit.

My Rating: ★★

Deadpool 2 (2018) directed by David Leitch

Deadpool 2 took a complete turn from what I was expecting going in. Wildly different than the first, this film still manages to be a crude, offensive, and hard R-rated superhero blockbuster that is sure to please any fan of the genre. With another hilarious performance from Ryan Reynolds and some new characters that stole the spotlight, this is definitely the perfect "family" film.

The greatest piece of this film is also what makes it so different from the first: the wild cast of characters. While the initial installment in this franchise focused solely on Wade Wilson and his revenge on the man who screwed up his life, this "second coming" was utilized more as a team film. This was done excellently as the movie is not only held up by Reynolds, but by the entire supporting cast as well. Returning characters Weasel, Dopinder, Blind Al, Colossus, and Negasonic Teenage Warhead were still up to the same quality as before (and NTW is gay!). Their individual stories were given plenty of time to develop while new characters were introduced. The new characters were definitely the best parts of this film and rightfully stole it from Reynolds. Brolin played Cable, the hostile and robotic time-traveler who was seeking to prevent the deaths of thousands, including his wife and daughter. His performance was just as dark and frightening as one might imagine an angry Josh Brolin would be like. Except this time, he had to do a bit more work than just snapping his fingers. Zazie Beetz's Domino was also an exceptional addition to this team of heroes. She provided some of the best choreographed action shots in the film and her character was very lovable and optimistic. While these two characters were the greatest additions, I was still hoping for more screen-time for them. Then again, this film is a precursor to the inevitable X-Force film, so it makes sense for the story to focus a bit more on Wilson.

More parts of this film that I loved were the humor and action. The most obvious difference between both films is the amount of budget it was given. Since the success of the first in 2016, Twentieth Century Fox has definitely seen the potential that R-rated superhero films have, especially in how much money they can bring in. This is apparent in this film, as the action scenes and design were much better. This is also due to David Leitch directing, who is known for his work as a stunt choreographer and director of John Wick and Atomic Blonde. His specialty is stunt work and this worked well for this movie, as the action scenes were beautifully brutal. This movie was also much more drama-driven and emotional than the first, leaving less room for the humor. I believe that is what made this one that much better, because even though the humor is scarcer, it hits even harder. The best humor in this franchise stems from the subtle jabs and pokes at other works and makes the film that much more self-aware. The end credits scene in particular was absolutely hilarious, as Deadpool used Cable's watch to go back and erase his appearance in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, as well as Ryan Reynolds' Green Lantern role offer. There were also some great cameos in this film that surprised me, such as Terry Crews, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, and Bill Skarsgård (I was expecting a Pennywise the Clown joke, but we sadly didn't get that).

The only aspect of this movie that I did not enjoy as much as I wanted to was Julian Dennison's character Russell. He played the mutant child Firefist learning to control his anger and was the central piece of the story throughout the film. However, his character was not built as well as I thought he could have been. He is first made out to be a naive kid who is angry at the orphanage employees for abusing him, but he is unnecessarily volatile through the entire thing. Russell acts out in the prison in strange ways that did not make sense to who he was before. He wanted revenge on his previous captors, but was willing to burn and kill all of the other children in the orphanage along the way. This might seem like small details to some, but it irked me how underdeveloped Russell was.

Once again, Reynolds shines as the mercenary with a mouth in Deadpool 2. This film is quite a bit different from the first, but exceeded my expectations in many ways. I would strongly recommend this film, as it is yet another fun and action-packed experience with one of the crudest characters ever written.

My Rating: ★★★★

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) directed by Milos Forman

AFI Top 100: #33

It took me a while to finally see this film, but One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a wild and strange dramedy with incredible performances and a great story. However, I am not sure whether I absolutely love or wholeheartedly despise this classic film. It has some elements that make me uneasy and some parts that purposely make you question your own morals, but I think that is what makes this story so great. It can be interpreted different ways to fit what you believe to be the intended message.

The most interesting elements of this film are the performances and overall effect of the film. Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher are absolutely the best parts of this film. Even though they both play characters that are wretched people, they are able to embody it very well to work with the decent story and cast. My biggest internal debate is whether I love or hate McMurphy, the main character played by Nicholson. I hate him for being an asshole rapist and the way he treats people. I hate him for selling his girlfriend for sex and abusing women the way he did. I hate him for being slightly racist towards all of the people of color in the film. But I love him for bringing the entire group of patients together in the end to help them form better and healthier relationships with each other. I love him for the satisfying ending that he brought upon himself, bringing the light to a lesser character. And I love him for helping to further the plot efficiently. McMurphy is a very complicated character and even though he is downright despicable in many scenes, there is no doubt that Nicholson was the right choice for this role. The writing, however, makes me not feel for McMurphy as a human being at all, which diverted my attention to some of the more minor characters. Which, one might assume, is what the screenwriters were trying to get the audience to do. In that case, it worked beautifully. I also loved the motif of meeting as a group for the therapy sessions. This was a great part that helped to further the story along nicely.

My issues with this movie include most of the elements of the plot and the way some of the characters were treated. The pacing was very slow in the beginning but thankfully picked up more towards the end when McMurphy was not the main character of interest anymore. This film also started as more of a comedy and could not figure out a distinct tone until the end when it was clear that it was written as a drama. It might be more of a personal preference, but I am not a fan of films that do not have a clear goal in mind for the story. Even though this movie provided plenty of character development, it was not understood that McMurphy was attempting to escape until halfway through. But by that time, I was more focused on the other patients' stories. Notable roles include Danny DeVito and Christopher Lloyd, as they were some of the most interesting characters in the film. Because of the lack of clear goal, the film was excruciatingly long and looking back, many scenes were unnecessary. I also did not appreciate how women were treated in this film. There were no female patients and the only women seen were either old, bitchy nurses or sex-crazed girlfriends with no substance. I am surprised, however, with how well the one Native-American character was treated, as he became the main character after McMurphy had died.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a peculiar but interesting story about the patients of a mental health hospital and the man who single-handedly changed their lives forever. While I don't much care for the main character or loose plot, this film contains some of the best performances and most shocking moments that you might ever see on screen.

My Rating: ★★★½

Kodachrome (2018) directed by Mark Raso

Kodachrome is a very interesting Netflix original film that is worth checking out. Jason Sudeikis plays a young record signer who learns his father, played by Ed Harris, is dying of cancer. They then have to reluctantly go on a trip together with his father's nurse in toll, played by Elizabeth Olsen, to get his father's last roll of kodachrome film developed. While it follows a generic idea, many of the plot devices and characters are great. The performances from the entire cast were fantastic and made this movie a decent watch.

The best parts of this film were the performances and some of the plot devices. Jason Sudeikis, Ed Harris, and Elizabeth Olsen are the main roles in this film and they have surprisingly excellent chemistry together. They all gave great - not amazing - performances and definitely brought life to their characters. This film definitely made me appreciate Sudeikis' acting abilities, as it shows that he can do more than just comedy. Even though his character was a bit comedic, he is able to effectively play a dramatic role and that was amazing to see. One of the best scenes in the entire movie, however, was between Harris and Sudeikis. The entire film, the father and son were bickering and arguing about different aspects of their lives growing up. The best scene comes in the end, when Harris' character Ben is lying on the hospital bed opening up to his son in a moving monologue. Harris is truly a great actor and was able to show much emotion during this scene, unlike the rest of the movie. While it did feel out of place for his character to suddenly change like that, it was a pleasantly positive ending for this character. I also enjoyed the original plot devices throughout the movie. There are not many "re-connection"-type films that give the grumpy old man a photography and arts career, but this one incorporated it well. I would have never expected Harris' character to be in that field of work, but the photography and music motifs seen in both him and his son were original and well-written.

My biggest issue with this movie was its extremely generic plot. A reluctant son takes his old, dying father on one last trip to relive his glory days. This plot has been used endlessly in hundreds of different movies and thus made this film very predictable. There was nothing fresh for the genre, other than the creative plot devices I mentioned above. The first act of this movie introduced us to everything very fluently, but the second and beginning of the third act were lagging very badly. The story seemed to progress at a snail's pace, and given that it was already predictable, became dull in many spots. My other issue with this film was the relationship between Matt and Zoe, Sudeikis and Olsen, respectively. Given this movie's familiar tone, it was obvious that they were going to end up together in one way or another. However, when they spent the night together the first time, their relationship was not developed well at all. They were simply drunk sharing a room together, but acted as if they had been flirting for weeks. The writing did not treat Zoe bad at all, as she had her fair amount of backstory, but there was no substance behind why she wanted to get with Matt. There was also a lack of decently imaginative cinematography, save for the very last shot. The shadowy backgrounds of Matt and Zoe reminiscing through Ben's photographs and clicking in and out of frame was typical, but it was cute and I still enjoyed it nonetheless.

This movie is a decently emotional ride that is absolutely suiting for a Netflix original. If you happen to stumble upon it, I would definitely recommend it as the cast is great and the story is effective. Don't expect an Oscar-worthy film but Kodachrome is a good entry into the father-son drama genre.

My Rating: ★★★

Avengers: Infinity War (2018) directed by Anthony Russo, Joe Russo

Avengers: Infinity War is one of Marvel's best. Not only because of the impressive cast of characters but because of their ability to tell all of their stories fluently. Seeing all of these characters that I have grown up with finally come together was definitely one of the most surreal experiences I've ever had. And I'm sure that many others can agree. With a few standout performances and a mind-blowing ending, this movie has solidified itself in history as a remarkable achievement in filmmaking.

The best part about this film - which is the part I was most worried about - was its ability to effectively tell so many stories in a limited time span. I have been worried for months that with so many characters, the overall story would be imbalanced and too much emphasis would be put on a few characters. While that is slightly true, the Russo brothers did an amazing job of giving every single character their due screen time. Except Hawkeye and Ant-Man, which I am still very angry about. I mean seriously, Scott would have HANDLED that situation in Wakanda with his enormous stature. Anyways, I digress. The many character interactions in this film were great to finally see, especially the introductions of the spunky charisma of the Guardians and the mystical peculiarity of Doctor Strange to the rest of the Avengers. My only issue with having so many stories was that at times it still seemed a bit all-over-the-place. I had to put the previous pieces of the plot back together in my head before the next scene would start in order to understand which part of the universe we were heading to next. Overall, however, they all worked together very fluently for the ending. Which brings me to another praise. The pacing in this film was extremely smooth and was done expertly. This movie really draws you in the entire time and does not let you go until you are shaking (and probably crying) in your seat. It did not feel like two and a half hours, which was very impressive.

All of the characters' stories were balanced well with each other, but some just seemed to go on for a bit too long. The main offender being Thor. Thor has definitely proven himself to be one of the best-developed characters in the past year (thank you Taika Waititi) and has made his way to one of my favorite characters in this universe, but his plot in this movie dragged on forever. It was important for him, Rocket, and Groot to get his new weapon ready to kill Thanos, but his entire plot revolved around the creation of the weapon, which could have been told much quicker. However, the very first scene of the film involved Thor and the Asgardians and absolutely put the fear of everything into the audience's bones. Killing off Heimdall and Loki in the first ten minutes of the movie really put Thanos' power into terrifying perspective. Josh Brolin's portrayal of Thanos in this film is definitely one of Marvel's best villainous performances. He was given enough background to work with the story but Brolin made the character haunting as all hell. Along with his brilliant performance, the ending of this film really shook me and the rest of the theater. It was a complete 180 from what I (and many others) expected to happen. I feel like it's not a coincidence that all the original Avengers plus a few more were left alive, but I still have no idea how they are going to get themselves out of this one. Even though many beloved characters disappeared into the wind, the most emotional death for me was Spider-Man. When Peter simply said "Mr. Stark, I don't feel so good," I knew what was happening but I refused to accept it. That scene alone showcased Holland's incredible acting while reminding us that he's still a kid.

Even though this film contains one of the most emotional endings in any superhero film, some of that emotion was still taken away from me. In our current world of social media and constant communication, us fans know that a Black Panther sequel, Spider-Man sequel, and third Guardians films are already in the works. Simply logging on Twitter will let you know this information, and knowing all of this takes away from the impact for me. There is no possible way that they would permanently get rid of some of their biggest revenue-earners. Because of this, the ending was mostly shock value for me, even though it was indeed very bold of Marvel to wipe out more than half their characters. I feel if they would have shown cities around the world getting wiped out (don't forget that Thanos killed half the universe, not just our heroes), then it would have been a bit more jaw-dropping. Some of my other issues with this film are the extended sacrifice sequences and Captain America's underwhelming role. There were too many moments in this film where a certain character would have one of the stones and another would try to sacrifice themselves to Thanos instead of him getting the stones. This honestly became a motif in the movie and was overused a bit. The final part that annoys me was Captain America's dull role. He had maybe five or six lines in the entire film and I thought he was going to play a much bigger part. Cap may have his time in the light in the next film, though. We will have to wait and see.

A conglomeration of stories 10 years in the making, Avengers: Infinity War is a spectacle that is not to be missed. An impossibly large cast and an exciting story make this film the worthy blockbuster that it is. While it still has some problems, Marvel could not have delivered a better or more emotional film for the "end" of their universe.

My Rating: ★★★★