Wonder Woman

Ratings: 9.2/10

Film Class: A

Genre: Superhero Action

Stinger: No

Deal-breaker scenes (spoilers alert): 

- Existence of Ares

- Diana finally "hearing" what the male protagonist was saying to her after suffering from temporary deafness after an explosion

The main reason for reviving this blog. Girl power to the max. Gal Gadot's such a charm this movie was all about her. Yes, about Wonder Woman as well, but the highlight was Gal Gadot. She stole almost every single scene with her in it. Also packed a good dose of comedy. 

First half was pretty good, 2nd half... every fan's fantasy. The ending fight scene was a blast, one of my absolute favourites. And the twist was really unexpected. I like how there were 2 villains that Wonder Woman had to fight back to back, and the movie really reached a climax at the end. Kick-ass graphics, and having 2 gods battle it out amidst probably one of the sweetest scene in cinematic history... priceless. 

It was so good, despite knowing there wasn't a stinger... I stayed till the end of the credits. There were also cheesy parts, but the ending dealbreaker scene, with what the male protagonist said to her... that was it. I couldn't be bothered to hold back my tears anymore. 

Even though it's a rather long movie, 2hr 21 mins, I couldn't get enough of it, Gal Gadot, the action, the graphics... pow wow... pow... wow... Wonder Woman's theme song is so ringing in my head right now, and I know it's gonna stay that way at least for the next couple of days. Guaranteed satisfaction, there's nothing not to love about this film. Love, can stop a war (seemingly superficial yet such a deep quote used in the movie, among other great quotes).

Alien: Convenant

Ratings: 8.1/10

Film Class: A

Genre: Horror Thriller

Stingers: No

I'm seeing double. Though storyline and twist were not exactly unpredictable, the tension was still well built-up. And the good thing about this is that the aliens are not hidden in the shadows. We see much of them in their full glory. More gory than horror, this sequel of the classic Aliens, similar to Prometheus, brings about a more biblical flaire. It's more artistic than sci-fi-y. The pre-posted video trailers help to tie up some loose ends. I took to youtube to figure out some pretty well-made timeline vids of the alien franchise. 

The ending... was a bummer. Absolute cliffhanger, but we know what's coming... the 3rd part of Ridley Scott's alien franchise revival...

Get Out

Ratings: 9.0/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Horror Thriller

Deal-breaker scenes (spoilers alert): 

- hypnosis scenes where protagonist sinks into a hole

Creepy as f*** (pls pardon the language). I don't think there's any other way to say it. On the contrary to some reviews, I don't find it racist. Surprisingly poetic. Cinematography was a stunner, same goes to the storyline which was rather intellectual. Easily one of the best horror thrillers I've seen. The last part was bada**, even up till the last scene... not sure if it was intentional... but there was a shadow of a doubt... about who's in the car who saved the protagonist. 

John Wick: Chapter 2

Ratings: 9.0/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Action

Deal-breaker scenes (spoilers alert): 

- kill scene in the Continental dining room

- last scene of John Wick running from like literally everybody

Off-the-charts cool. Every thing one would have hoped for in the godfather of action-packed movies. Powerful villains, formidable protagonist, car chases, fight duels, lots of bullets flying around, the build up, the straight-to-the-point script and the pencil kills. John Wick is the man you employ to kill the boogieman. Period.

Logan

Ratings: 9.2/10

Film Class: B

Genre: Superhero Action

Stinger: No

Deal-breaker scenes (spoilers alert): 

- when X-24 first came on screen 

- Logan trying to give a eulogy to Professor X

Old, but gold. Raw, country-style cinematography. Doesn't hold back on the gore, and despite it all, you feel so much for the characters, not some brainless action-packed film. X-24's debut was a shocking twist, and you'll be rooting for Weapon X from start to end. Touching, comical at times, but overall a very "real" movie, not typical of other superhero genres. A league on its own.

Arrival

Ratings: 9.2/10

Film Class: A-

Genre: Sci-Fi Thriller

Wow (palindrome). Time out! Time out! My mind was blown! Though not as mind******* as Interstellar, Arrival brings the same flair of intellect to the big screens. It has been a while for a movie of this caliber to be produced, and has "forced" me out of my shadows to once again start blogging. I cannot just not recommend this. If I had known the outcome, I would still have watched it...

Arrival is about 12 spacecrafts which landed in different parts of planet Earth. Not knowing what the intention is, the US military engaged a linguistic professor's help (Amy Adams). Last I recalled, I haven't seen her in such a solemn role yet, until this movie of course. Racing against time, and other countries to break the "language" barrier, Amy Adams must use whatever weapon she can conjure, to avoid a World War with aliens. 

The chemistry of the 2 leads (+ Jeremy Renner) was electric, and the director was way too generous with the tension build up - could only take a breather at the very last scene. It's one of the few times I can literally say I was constantly at the edge of my seat, together with the eerie soundtrack, Arrival felt like a spooky alien horror movie. It was smart too, not just with the use of linguistics (deciphering of a new language) but how the overall concept links with an important element which makes it logical.

Initially I thought the opening melancholy scene was rather short, lack of character build up, lack of audiences' sentimental investment, but then I understood why. Without divulging too much, though with minimal action scenes, Arrival is sure to impress most of its audience, especially Sci-Fi fans. 

Go watch it! It's a win-win situation, it's gonna be a zero-sum game ultimately.

X-Men: Apocalypse

Ratings: 7.9/10

Film Class: B+

Genre: Superhero Action

Stinger: Yes (post credit) 

To stay "alive", Apocalypse, the supposed first ever mutant transfers his consciousness from time to time, only to be betrayed before his last awakening. However, a chance encounter awakens this granddaddy of mutants, who has the ability to unleash the full potential of any mutants' powers. He usually has four "horsemen" by his side, powerful mutants whom he would recruit to fight for his cause (actually I believe their sole purpose is to protect him during the transfer as he's already so badass)... Only this time round, he intends to annihilate the whole (weak) world, to build a "better one". It's up to a newbie team of X-Men to save the world... 

As can be seen from the trailers, Mystique/Raven (Jennifer Lawrence) and Magneto (Michael Fassbender) are the two main leads among the starstudded cast. I didn't know Mystique was that influential, at least not from the original cartoon series, perhaps the director milked it to be so cos of Jennifer Lawrence, kinda felt like she was reprising her saviour role as Katniss from Hunger Games.

The pacing was slower, compared to its prequel, Days of Future Past, because of all the recruitment work by Apocalypse, but there was a good amount of screen time for each character's development. The plot was predictable (betrayal), and convenient linkages and subtle references to the future outcomes of the dynamics of the X-Men were prevalent - *major spoilers ahead* such as Storm and Magneto working together; the love triangle between Wolverine, Cyclops and Jean Grey and why Professor-X's bald. 

I've wondered how Apocalypse, the all-time favourite greatest villain of the X-Men franchise, the immortal who is able to transcend through time (not shown in movie) and able to grow to huge proportions would be defeated in this movie, and I have to say I was rather disappointed in the ending. It wasn't intelligent, it was pure FIREpower. I guess for such a supervillian, it would either take a dragon or a Phoenix to scorch his existence into obliteration. 

Despite the cool action scenes, the CG was lacking, better than our Singapore's most expensive CGI-made movie (Ah Boys to Men), but pale in comparison compared to Transformers or even Captain America: Civil War. 

The characters were not very likable, there was a flair of arrogance resonating amongst the X-Men, and a super duper cheesy scene stole the limelight - it was equivalent to the dancing scene in Guardians of the Galaxy, only this was way better. Let's just say there was a "Superman", faster than a speeding bullet to save the day...

Expect the usual Stan Lee cameo and the post-credit stinger at the end. Not sure if I got it right, but the stinger was probably leading on to the other mutants created by Col. William Stryker, such as Sabretooth and Omega X? Or perhaps something more sinister is to come...

One of the most confusing part for me was figuring out the chronological order of this movie, after such a long hiatus I kinda forgot which movie came first, similar to the Star Wars Saga. Enjoyable nonetheless, it does do justice to its fans. An absolute cheap thrill, for the apocalyptic zombie-like working adults in this modern time.

(After note: My friend told me that this movie supposedly runs on a different timeline, an alternate reality after the previous installment, days of future past. Now that puts things into better perspective...)