Mike Goes To Movies

Hamilton (2020) It's no news that, for the past number of years, Lin Manuel-Miranda's Hamilton has been the hottest show on the Broadway circuit. Taking a very 'white' story of the Founding Fathers of America -  particularly Alexander Hamilton - and giving it a contemporary edge through a racially-diverse cast and a fusion of hip hop, R&B, rap and other music genres, was an absolute winning formula for greatness. And now, thanks to the House of Mouse, many of us no longer need to spend our life savings to see the show live! What a treat it was - Hamilton was pretty much everything it was hyped up to be: fantastic music, great performances, a moving story, and a lively theatrical production! LMM's magnum opus tells the life of Alexander Hamilton (whom he plays in the show) right from Hamilton's early days in America, his important role in the Revolutionary War, his personal and family life with , and then his time with Aaron Burr, and the other Foundin...

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 ...

Toy Story 4 (2019) It is a true testament to the excellence of the Toy Story series that sometimes you actually wish for the films to not hit you as hard as they do. The visceral emotions that this series evokes is on par with anything you will find in a non-animated or 'adult' film. Woody being replaced by Buzz, Buzz realizing he is only a toy, Woody being shelved for his broken arm, Jessie and Lotso's backstories, and, of course, the tragic scene in Part 3 where our beloved toys accept their deathly fates taking each other by the hand and waiting for whatever comes next... goddamn... Like it's three predecessors, Toy Story 4 has its own debilitatingly-impactful moments - though I will surely not spoil them here. In fact, the general story and arc at the core of the newest instalment may be one that will strike home for adults more than for its adolescent audience making it a film that people of all ages should make an effort to go out and see. Again, it would be...

Aladdin (2019) Ugh... I think the most succinct review I could give to this film is to put in one of those frowny-face emojis... Here is yet again one more uninspired live-action remake of a beloved Disney classic. This one had an uphill battle right from the get-go knowing it would have to compete with the late Robin William's tour de force performance as the Genie. However, truth be told, Will Smith's go at the role is not the worst part of this film. In fact, though Smith is no Williams, he does an adequate job at the role and tries his best to put his own spin on it (though it is difficult not to see Genie as simply being a blue-Will Smith). Aladdin is a strange beast as it is a mixture of recreating the original film verbatim and then also adding in some new plot points for Jasmine and the Genie.  The depth of these two characters are noticeably upgraded while the title character's arc remains quite unremarkable and relatively uninteresting.  Jasmine contends wit...