Mike Goes To Movies

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker If you didn't have enough of my initial rambling review of The Rise of Skywalker, here is my second half, spoiler-filled (likely too-long) breakdown of the film. Here we go... SPOILERS AHEAD: The Good: Reylo! As with the previous two films, the tense and mysterious connection between Rey and Kylo Ren (now known to be a Force dyad!...) continues to be the highlight of this trilogy. And it all comes to a breathtaking and heartrending end here. Now, for most of us, it was no surprise that Kylo would turn to the light in the end. This whole saga is built around the redemption arc (specifically when it comes to the Skywalker fam). And, as he set out to do in TFW, Kylo does ultimately follow in his Skywalker grandfather's footsteps and returns to the side of the Jedi when it is most needed in order to destroy Palpatine. Like the spectacular team-up fight in TLJ, the rousing visual of Rey and Kylo side-by-side wie

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) Disclaimer: Though there are no explicit spoilers here, there is general discussion of the film that may warrant SW aficionados wait until they have seen the film before reading (though I'm sure they have all seen it by now anyways...) Let's all just be honest for a moment, it was self-fulfilling that this film would not please everyone. Star Wars is one of the most beloved franchises in the history of pop culture and The Rise of Skywalker was to be the final instalment of the original 42 year and nine-film long saga. If that wasn't daunting enough, what is, is the fact that Lucasfilm dug themselves into quite the hole with not plotting out this final trilogy ahead of time. The damage of this studio decision is awkwardly apparent throughout ROS. Following this trilogy's pattern of fan-service and retreads (TFW), to breaking molds and moving in surprising new directions (TLJ), and now back again to fan-service (ROS), this new

Ford v Ferrari (2019) I am not a car guy. I'll say that as bluntly as I can. I don't get (or buy into) the lifestyle of shiny, fast or expensive, brand-name cars, and I likely never will. A car to me is a vehicle that gets you from Point A to Point B. Sure, I appreciate when a car is made with good-sounding speakers for music to blast or seats that can heat your ass in the winter, but that's more-or-less as far as it goes for me. For this reason, Ford v Ferrari was not a film I was personally lining up to see. However, I am a fan of James Mangold as well as Matt Damon and Christian Bale (really, who isn't?), and when the film started receiving rave reviews I ended up going out to see it earlier than I originally predicted I would. And, in the end, I was generally impressed with the film. Ford v Ferrari is the based-on-true-events story of Caroll Shelby (Damon), a former race car driver, now-turned car designer, and Ken Miles (Bale), a current race car driver/mech

Living With Yourself (2019) In this golden age of television there are a few base requirements that are usually needed for me to choose to invest my time and get onboard with a new show. That is, the show has to: 1. have an original concept/premise; 2. be well written and acted (obviously); and 3. not be a procedural (I am so so over cop, medical and legal shows). Here are a few examples of recent shows that I love: Fleabag, Bojack Horseman, Russian Doll, The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel, Succession, Barry, Killing Eve, Rick and Morty, Watchmen and probably some others I can't think of right now. P.S. feel free to comment below if you want me to review any of these particular shows. Living With Yourself is a perfect example of a show that more-than-meets my criteria. It is an intimate and insular show with a great premise, great writing and a fantastic performance by Paul Rudd (and also Aisling Bea). Some may actually find it a little too low-key as it is very much a character piec

Doctor Sleep (2019) Oddly enough, the latest of Stephen King's book adaptations is one of the toughest reviews I've had to write. I have a lot of conflicted thoughts and emotions about this film, and, largely, this is because it is a sequel to a very classic film - one of my favourites in fact - and, in my opinion, the best horror film of all time. Unlike many sequels, however, Doctor Sleep is a legitimate continuation of the story as it was penned by King himself in 2013 (whether he should have done so is an entirely separate discussion). Now, writer/director, Mike Flanagan, had a uniquely difficult task as he decided to make this film a sequel to both The Shining the book and the film - and for those King diehards, you know that there are significant differences between the two. Lastly, is the fact that The Shining was made by one of the all-time greats, Stanley Kubrick, and no matter how much you want to, or try to, you cannot help but compare Doctor Sleep to The Shining

The Irishman (2019) Without a doubt, The Irishman is one of the most anticipated films of this year, if not the past number of years. Not only is it the return of Martin Scorsese to the genre that, in a large way, he built his career upon, but it also reunites him with some of the most prestigious actors of this generation (a number of whom starred in those early films of his). It is not hyperbolic to state that crime/mob cinema would not be the same without Martin Scorsese. No, he did not invent the genre by any means, however, he definitely redefined it. In many ways, The Irishman is the culmination of Scorsese's career and it is him coming full circle around to where he first began. Scorsese's first acclaimed hit, way back in 1973, was Mean Streets (his third directorial feature and second crime film) starring a young Robert De Niro and Harvey Keitel, both of whom return in The Irishman. Mean Streets was a new, gritty take on urban organized crime that he would continue