Tag: IsabelaMerced

Superman

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The newly reinvented DC Universe is here and with it a brand new Superman adventure. This time around it’s no origin story – instead it picks up in the middle of a war between two neighbouring countries. As an alien himself, Superman (David Corenswet) is forced to face his roots with his human upbringing as Clark Kent.

With James Gunn at the helm, I was cautiously optimistic. Having enjoyed both Guardians of the Galaxy and The Suicide Squad, I was looking forward to seeing his take on the iconic comic book character. Mixing his signature blend of comedy and heart, we have the most human version of Superman there’s ever been and that was quite refreshing.

It is no doubt that Corenswet looks the part of our hero. I didn’t know what to expect though I think he did a good job. Superman isn’t supposed to be full of depth, but having this version of him show a more caring side worked. Rachel Brosnahan’s version of Lois Lane was spot on. I like how she had her own stuff going on alongside her relationship with Clark. That being said, the chemistry Lois shared with Clark was sweet and believable; it was probably my favorite of the recent versions we’ve had. Nicholas Holt is a menacing Lex Luthor. At times I really wanted to punch him because he was so annoying, but I was equally as charmed by him because he was doing it so well. Special shout outs go to Skylar Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen, Edi Gathegi as Mr. Terrific, Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, Isabela Merced as Hawgirl and Sara Sampaio as Eve Teschmacher. I’m already looking forward to hopefully seeing much more of them as this universe expands.

While the film boasted a vibrant color palette, some beautifully shot moments and mostly convincing CGI, it wasn’t without its faults. There was a lot going on storyline wise and I’m not sure they were all completely necessary. This meant that there was also an abundance of characters and at times it was hard to keep up with them. And although I liked how it picked up right in the middle of a battle, I did find that choice a bit disorienting and it took me a minute to get situated.

It’s no secret that superhero movies have been on a downward spiral over the last few years. DC, in particular, has put out some subpar films that never fully captured the hearts of its audiences. I always tried to defend them, but I knew they could be better. While this was not a full return to form for the franchise, I definitely think Superman was a step in the right direction.

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️.5

Turtles All The Way Down

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Turtles All The Way Down by John Green was first introduced to the world in October of 2017. Now, the beloved book has been adapted for the screen. Aza Holmes (Isabela Merced) is trying to live her life as normally as she can which isn’t easy due to her obsessive compulsive disorder. When she reconnects with her old crush Davis (Felix Mallard), she is swept up in the mystery of where his business tycoon father disappeared to.

Like many others, I devoured Green’s novel when it first came out. It’s been some time so I cannot confirm or deny as to how close they stuck to the original material. But I am happy that this one finally got the same treatment that many of his other pieces of work have received.

Merced completely brings Aza to life. The way in which she depicted her difficulties was nothing like I had seen before and I mean that in a good way. We saw the good, the bad and everything in between and I found that to be really refreshing. I truly believe that people who deal with the same disorder felt seen while watching this.

The rest of the cast were perfectly chosen for their roles. I absolutely loved Daisy (Cree), Aza’s best friend. They were there for each other through it all and she brought some much needed comedy to the film. It was nice seeing Mallard in something outside of his usual stint on Netflix’s Ginny and Georgia and Judy Reyes was a spot on choice for Aza’s mom Gina. I also appreciated the inclusion of J. Smith-Cameron as Professor Abbott and Poorna Jagannathan as Aza’s therapist Dr. Singh.

While Turtles All The Way Down did seem to target more of a teenage audience, I am still glad that I watched it. It’s not often we see OCD depicted in this way on screen, so I have to commend the choices that were taken to make it happen.

Rating: ♥️♥️♥️

Madame Web

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Sony’s newest Marvel offering comes in the form of Madame Web. Cassandra (Dakota Johnson) is a paramedic who lives in New York City. She develops powers that allow her to see the future which she can use to change it. When revelations come to light about her past, she forms a relationship with three young women who are bound for greatness.

Ever since I saw the film yesterday, I’ve been wrecking my head trying to formulate my thoughts about it. This was one that I was super excited for; the cast is great and a female version of Spider-Man more than sparked my interest, but it ended up being one giant disappointment.

The first letdown was the script. A lot of the dialogue came across as forced and unauthentic. As a result, a variety of the scenes were uncomfortable to sit through because you could tell that the actors were doing what they could with the source material and it just wasn’t translating properly.

Another issue that I had was that pacing. It took awhile to get going and it was as if some scenes didn’t get the focus needed while others got too much. The sequence in the subway that developed into a cab chase lasted for awhile while Cassie’s visit to Peru was only five minutes. It didn’t make sense.

One bright spot was the chemistry between Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced and Celeste O’Connor. They gelled together well enough and their camaraderie was realistic. Cassie was like an older sister to Julia, Anya and Mattie and if we do end up getting a sequel, I look forward to seeing more of them all together. Adam Scott as Ben, Emma Roberts as Mary Parker and Zosia Mamet as Amaria were also welcome additions. Another missed opportunity was Tahar Rahim’s villain Ezekiel Simms. He was one of the worst villains I have ever witnessed! I found him incredibly dull and didn’t care when he was on screen.

I’m sad that Madame Web was such a misfire. There was potential hidden deep within, I just don’t think it was properly brought to fruition. I feel bad for the cast, but it’s not their fault as they did all they could. I hate to say it – the future of superhero films is not looking too good.

Rating: ♥️♥️

Rosaline

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We all know about Romeo and Juliet’s doomed love, right? But did you know that before Juliet, Romeo was in love with a maiden called Rosaline?

Rosaline (Kaitlyn Dever) and Romeo (Kyle Allen) were the perfect couple. They dreamed of running away together, their families be damned, if it meant they could be together forever. When he meets Juliet (Isabela Merced) at the masquerade ball, Romeo falls head over heels in love with her. Suddenly jilted by the love of her life, Rosaline will stop at nothing until she finds out who this new woman is. Who she didn’t expect it to be is her cousin.

A modern retelling of Shakespeare’s tragedy, Rosaline was actually pretty cute. Dever shone as the lead, captivating me from the get go. Her comedic timing and meddlesome ways made for some great scenes that had me giggling. I’ve seen her in a variety of projects now and I must admit that she always surprises me.

The other cast and characters were fun to get to know too. I thought it was brilliant to dumb down the role of Romeo; the way in which Allen did this added a different element to the story and made it somewhat unpredictable. Merced did a fine job as Juliet, though I would have liked to see more of her. Bradley Whitford portrayed Rosaline’s father and Minnie Driver who played Rosaline’s nurse Janet didn’t have nearly enough screen time, but who were still welcome additions. And then there was the gorgeous Sean Teale who starred as Dario. His chemistry with Dever was palpable from the very first moment they laid eyes on each other and I just couldn’t wait until they got together.

With costumes that had me truly believing I was born in the wrong century and a soundtrack that gave me major Bridgerton vibes, Rosaline was a much better film than I gave it credit for. While it wasn’t perfect all the way through and at times seemed to drag on a bit, I really did enjoy it.

Rating: ♥♥♥