Category: Movies

Mortal Kombat (2021)

My love for cinema truly became apparent to me in my early teen years, but my love of the Mortal Kombat video games started at the age of five.

I remember with perfect accuracy my parents’ hesitancy to get the game for my older brother Adam and I, but they eventually gave in to our wishes (provided we got along). The following years resulted in many hours playing MK 1-4 with friends (most notably my best friend Greg) on button mashing, face punching, gut kicking, head decapitating, limb ripping, organ exploding bliss. That is not to mention the 1995 original film (with a theme song that never grows old) that still delights today, despite a sequel that proved to be one of the worst films mankind has ever known.

Tags 2021, Chin Han, Joe Taslim, Josh Lawson, Lewis Tan, Ludi Lin, Max Huang, Mehcad Brooks, Mortal Kombat, R, Rated R, Tadanobu Asano

"Top Tens", and others Movies

My Predictions for the 93rd Academy Awards (expect some history to go down)

Post author By Mark A. Lester
Post date April 20, 2021
No Comments on My Predictions for the 93rd Academy Awards (expect some history to go down)

When Parasite won the Oscar for Best Picture last year, it was truly one of the only great moments of 2020 (the lockdown was only a couple weeks away). Now, nearly 14 months later, the next Academy Awards is occurring (and, more importantly, the hopeful end of this horrible pandemic).

I will try my best in my predictions to answer all the questions that are on the table before Hollywood’s big night: As always, you need to guess in every one of the 23 categories (they meshed sound mixing and sound editing) if you have a pool you are participating in, so here are my predictions.

Tags Mank, Nomadland, Oscar Predictions, Oscars, Predictions, Promising Young WOman

3 1/2 Stars Movies

Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)

Truth be told, my knowledge of “March Madness” is very low (which would surprise no one who knows me). I truly picked Gonzaga to win without knowing until later that they were undefeated, so it should come as no surprise that I have not really watched any games this year.

Why do I say all this? Because the real march madness I have waited for (even more than the “SnyderCut”) since witnessing the ending credit scene of 2017’s Kong: Skull Island has finally arrived, in the ultimate movie monster matchup of Godzilla vs. Kong. In fact, I quickly realized that I have awaited this film since my dad showed me the original (and rather badly dubbed) 1960s version, which has had me on #TEAMKONG ever since.

Tags 2021, Brian Tyree Henry, Godzilla, Godzilla vs. Kong, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, King Kong, Kong, Kong Skull Island, Millie Bobby Brown, PG-13, Rated PG-13, Rebecca Hall, Team Godzilla, Team Kong

3 1/2 Stars Movies

Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)

Post author By Mark A. Lester
Post date March 21, 2021
1 Comment on Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)

IMDB may have the director of 2017’s Justice League as Zach Snyder, but that was far from his original film.

The origins of the “Snyder Cut” are now well known: When the film was being finished in early 2017, Snyder had to back out after the tragic suicide of his daughter, Autumn. Joss Whedon (who helmed the first two Avengers films for the MCU) stepped in, and the film was changed drastically. The film’s 4 hour run time was basically cut in half to two, the tone of the film was much lighter, and composer Thomas Holkenborg (better known as Junkie XL) was replaced by Danny Elfman.

1 Star Movies

Tom and Jerry (2021)

Since the 1940s, Tom and Jerry have been “frenemies” before the term was even invented.

Although I was not a huge fan of them growing up (I was more a “Wile E Coyote/Road Runner” fan), they are still the first thing that comes to mind when I hear “cat and mouse”. Although I am not a parent (and have not been in contact with kids such as my nephews for sometime due to the pandemic), I am hesitant to say that kids today are still fans of the original T&J shorts as their parents or grandparents were. This brings us to the live action Tom and Jerry film, which left me (and I assume many others) with more than a few questions: the biggest being, “Who is this film made for?!?!” (An honorable second place goes to “Why was this made?”)

Tags 2021, Chloe Grace-Moretz, Colin Jost, Ken Jeong, Kids movie, Michael Pena, Tom and Jerry

"Top Tens", and others Movies

The Top 20 of 2020

Top 20 films of 2020

Escapism was essential for everyone in 2020, which would explain why I saw over 50 releases from the past year (not to mention catching up on older flicks I had yet to see).

Regardless of whether I saw them in theaters or on streaming services (like most others did), it was nice to have certain hours of my life to keep me away from the outside world. Of course, the better films made me look at the world in a different way. That sounds like a lesson from Film School 101, but it is true.

4 1/2 Stars Movies

Nomadland (2020)

When it comes to name recognition, it seems like the third time is definitely the charm for director Chloe Zhao.

While I have yet to see her debut film (2015’s Songs My Brothers Taught Me), I did manage to see her second film, The Rider (2017), the story of a young cowboy recovering from a near fatal accident and needing to find a new path in life. It takes more than one movie or so to discover a director’s true voice, but Zhao certainly is going down the path of intimate film making (it also helps that her first two movies were written by Zhao), which is more than evident in her third feature Nomadland.

Tags 2020, Chloe Zhao, David Strathairn, Frances McDormand, Nomadland, R, Rated R, Three Billboards, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri

4 Stars Movies

The Way Back (2020)

To describe the career of Ben Affleck as “varied” would almost be an understatement.

After making it in the spotlight by winning the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (with his good friend Matt Damon) for 1997’s Good Will Hunting, he stretched into the “Razzie” territory with films like 1998’s Armageddon (which Affleck has comically given his own thoughts on), Pearl Harbor (2001), and 2003’s mega dud Gigli.

Tags 2020, alcoholism, Basketball, Ben Affleck, R, Rated R, The Way Back

2 Stars Movies

The Little Things (2021)

“It’s the little things that are important, Jimmy.”

Says the veteran cop to the hotshot rookie detective, and is something heard before in other films. Sadly, the reason The Little Things turns out very subpar and forgettable is, to be honest, the little things.

Tags 2021, Denzel Washington, Jared Leto, R, Rami Malek, Rated R, The Little Things

3 1/2 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 4 Stars Movies

The Small Axe Films (2020)

Post author By Mark A. Lester
Post date January 25, 2021
2 Comments on The Small Axe Films (2020)

Since the mid-2010s, “binge watching” has become a thing of human nature.

TV series and mini-series have been gulped up faster than pizza at a teen sleep over, which has happened even more so in the last year with people spending more time at home due to COVID-19. While most binging seems to be associated with TV series (most notably reruns of “The Office”), some series undoubtedly have taken a more cinematic approach (this was what started with “The Sopranos” and one of the main reasons why it was so revolutionary.) While I have more than enough TV/mini series I have yet to catch up on (since I watch too many movies), I have yet to see the line get more blurred between mini-series and movies as I have after watching the five “episodes” of Small Axe.

Tags Black Panther, John Boyega, Letitia Wright, MCU, Small Axe, Steve McQueen, The Trial of the Chicago 7