Tag: Netflix

Senior Year

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Everyone knows Stephanie Conway (Angourie Rice). Popular, smart, head of the cheerleading squad and dating the hottest guy in school, she is a shoe in for Prom Queen. But when a cheerleading stunt goes terribly wrong at the school pep rally, she falls into a coma. Twenty years later, Steph (Rebel Wilson) wakes up to a whole new world. Believing she cannot move on with her life, she decides to go back to high school to claim that prom title once and for all.

Like many of the films Netflix puts out, my expectations are never very high. I had to learn that the hard way. Maybe that’s why I ended up liking Senior Year as much as I did. It was exactly the type of movie I needed to indulge in this weekend.

The best part of the whole thing was the soundtrack. I was immediately transported back to the early 2000s with all the songs I used to love listening to on repeat. Who else still remembers the lyrics to Sk8er Boi and Candy? Each scene was perfectly paired with a nostalgic throwback that, paired together with the timeless butterfly clips and bell bottoms, made my heart soar.

Another positive came about with the movie’s humor. Rebel Wilson is known for her comedic chops and this was no different. After discussing it with my husband, we decided that she is the female Ryan Reynolds as she tends to play herself, but that’s all part of her charm. Thanks to the rest of the cast, the laughs kept coming.

I had no idea there would be so many familiar faces here. Mary Holland as Steph’s best friend Martha was a great addition whereas Sam Richardson as Seth and Zoë Chao as Tiffany threw me back to when they starred in The After Party together. There was also heartthrob Justin Hartley who portrayed Steph’s ex boyfriend Blaine and Chris Parnell who starred as her dad Jim.

Senior Year is one of those movies where you know exactly what you are signing up for. You may also know how it is going to end. That still doesn’t stand in the way of you smiling, laughing and enjoying yourself anyway.

Rating: ♥♥♥

Along For The Ride

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Based on the novel by Sarah Dessen, Along For The Ride is a coming of age story. It’s the summer before college and Auden (Emma Pasarow) has moved in with her father (Dermot Mulroney), his trophy wife (Kate Bosworth) and their new baby in the quaint beach town of Colby. When Auden finds that she can’t sleep, she stumbles upon Eli (Belmont Cameli), a fellow insomniac. The two decide to embark on a nightly quest filled with all the things Auden missed out on growing up.

Having never read the book, I was curious about the movie from the moment I saw it on Netflix. I liked the idea of two people who are seemingly complete opposites coming together in the dead of the night to knock off items from a bucket list while falling in love in the process.

A big sell for me here was it’s cast. Although I wasn’t familiar with either Pasarow or Cameli, I thought they did a good job in their roles of Auden and Eli. They brought great chemistry to their characters’ relationship. Dermot Mulroney has always been easy on the eyes and it was a pleasant surprise to see Kate Bosworth in something again. I used to be a big fan of hers back in the early 2000s. With Andie MacDowell as Auden’s mother, it was pretty well rounded.

Another aspect I loved was the portrayal of female friendships. Auden becoming close with Maggie (Laura Kariuki), Leah (Genevieve Hannelius) and Esther (Samia Finnerty) was a joy to watch. We need more of this! I also loved the relationship between Auden, her mother and her stepmother. And how could I leave out the aesthetically pleasing pastel colored beach vibes?

Overall, Along For The Ride was a cute film that fans of the teenage romance genre will enjoy. It wasn’t anything groundbreaking and pretty predictable, but it serves as a great summer flick.

Rating: ♥♥.5

The Adam Project

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The Adam Project follows Adam Reed, (Ryan Reynolds) a fighter pilot from 2050 who accidentally crash lands in 2022 instead of 2018 while time traveling and stumbles upon his younger self (Walker Scobell). Together, they team up to find their father Louis (Mark Ruffalo), the creator of time travel and the only person who can stop his partner Maya Sorian (Catherine Keener) from furthering altering the timeline forever.

I was under the impression that Ryan Reynolds was taking a break from acting, yet here we are. While he once again played another version of himself, I have to say that I wasn’t bothered by it this time around. His jokes were all on point. I also really loved the camaraderie he had with Walker Scobell. That young man has such a future ahead of him. He embodied everything about Reynolds and had it down to a T.

Unfortunately some of the other cast were underused. It would have been nice to have more scenes with Adam’s mom Ellie (Jennifer Garner) and his wife Laura (Zoe Saldana). I would have loved to know more about them.

Boasting plenty of CGI, fight scenes and time travel, The Adam Project is a fun film for the whole family to enjoy. It is very much what you see is what you get. It’s not something I will run back to watch anytime soon, but I appreciated it for what it was. The family dynamics added a little something extra that made it worth while.

Rating: ♥♥♥

The Weekend Away

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Based on the novel by Sarah Alderson, The Weekend Away is about best friends Beth (Leighton Meester) and Kate (Christina Wolfe) who meet up in Croatia for a girl’s trip. Beth has just had a baby while Kate is going through a divorce. After a crazy night of partying, Beth wakes up and discovers that Kate is missing. She’s not answering her phone, her purse has disappeared and the police don’t seem concerned. With the help of Zain (Ziad Bakri), Beth races against time to piece together what happened, with each clue becoming more deceptive than the last.

When I heard that Netflix was coming out with a new book to movie adapation, I raced to buy it. I always try to read the book before the movie and let’s be real, most of the time the former is better than the latter. I devoured it in one sitting and was completely swept up in the story; surely there was no way the movie would be done justice. I just wish I hadn’t been right about that.

My first problem with the film was the acting. It was subpar at best. Even Leighton Meester who I’m a big fan of wasn’t able to save it. There weren’t any standout performances and some of the characters lacked depth. At least we had the beautiful Croatian background to keep us happy.

For the most part, I have to admit that the movie hit the most important plot points. It drove me crazy that they changed the main character’s name and the initial location, but I digress. Where it all went wrong was during the climax. That final twist is make or break for me and I really don’t like what they did with it here. It changed my whole outlook.

Overall, The Weekend Away was fine, but if I’m being honest, you are probably better off reading the book. I promise it is so much more worth it.

Rating: ♥♥

The Royal Treatment

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Outspoken Izzy (Laura Marano) runs her own salon in New York City and dreams of one day leaving her life behind to travel the world. Prince Thomas (Mena Massoud) is about to marry the woman (Phoenix Connolly) his father (Paul Norell) and stepmother (Teuila Blakely) have chosen for him. When Izzy has the chance to do the hair for the royal wedding, sparks between her and the prince while learning that it is okay to follow your heart every once in awhile.

Giving off major A Christmas Prince meets The Princess Switch vibes, The Royal Treatment was a cute story about being true to yourself regardless of what your family and society thinks. I like how headstrong Izzy was and how she helped bring Thomas out of his shell. I was rooting for them from their very first meeting at the LaMott Hotel. The chemistry could have been stronger, but I was all for that scene in the wheelbarrow.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t much else to enjoy here. The plot lacked substance and I felt like the story dragged at times. Had it been fleshed out some more, I think it would have been much better. Laura Marano’s accent was overdone and grated on my nerves. I also couldn’t believe that I was watching Mena Massoud as the prince. I guess he really has been struggling to find work since Aladdin.

Overall, the movie was fine, but that’s about it. If I’m being honest, I expected to enjoy it the same way I do the above mentioned titles and couldn’t help but feel rather disappointed with the outcome.

Rating: ♥♥

Brazen

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Popular mystery novelist Grace (Alyssa Milano) is busy on tour for her latest hit when she receives a phone call from her sister Kathleen (Emilie Ullerup) asking for her help. What Grace doesn’t know is that in addition to teaching at a fancy private school, Kathleen moonlights as a webcam performer, hoping the extra funds will aid her in the nasty custody battle she is facing with her ex (David Lewis). But when Kathleen is brutally murdered one night, Grace finds herself sucked into the case, as if one of the storylines of her books is playing out in front of her. Teaming up with investigator Ed (Sam Page) and his partner Ben (Malachi Weir), they race against time to find the killer before he strikes again.

Based on the book by Nora Roberts, Brazen didn’t exactly scream amazing to me, but I was still curious about it. I’m a fan of thrillers and the plot for this actually sounded interesting enough. It also wasn’t completely predictable and I didn’t see the twist coming from the very beginning.

That being said, there wasn’t anything special about it. The cast were decent enough with some familiar faces, but the acting seemed dull and without very much passion. Grace and Ed were cute, despite the blurred lines of her getting involved in the case. I did like Ben’s character and I appreciated how the police captain (Alison Araya) was female.

While Brazen is not a film I would rush to watch again anytime soon, it wasn’t as bad as I was expecting. It more or less kept me engrossed the whole way through and the build up had a proper pay off. I do think it could have been so much better though.

Rating: ♥♥

2021 Wrap Up

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It’s hard to believe that another year has come to an end. In some ways, it was like I blinked and 2021 was over. Starting out in another lockdown (which definitely impacted my maintaining this blog) was rough, but then halfway through, movie theatres opened up again. Nothing will ever beat walking into that large auditorium, settling into those chairs and buckling in for a life changing journey.

2021 brought many great films that certainly made making this list a difficult task. Some I forgot along the way. Some made themselves known to me more recently. And others I wish I could erase from my memory all together. There are also a few that I think I generously rated, but what can you do?

So without further ado, here are my top 5 best and worst of the year.

Best

  1. Promising Young Woman
  2. West Side Story
  3. In The Heights
  4. Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
  5. Encanto

Worst

  1. Space Jam: A New Legacy
  2. The Green Knight
  3. Thunder Force
  4. Locked Down
  5. Tom and Jerry

Don’t Look Up

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When Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence), an astronomy grad student and her professor Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio) discover a comet within the solar system, they can’t believe their eyes – until they realize that it is on its way to Earth. Upon embarking on a media tour that takes them to the White House, it seems that nobody really cares that they are all going to die. With only six months until the comet makes impact, Kate and Randall will do whatever they can to get the world to just look up.

Don’t Look Up seemed so promising. The cast, which boasted big names such as Meryl Streep, Cate Blancett, Jonah Hill, Tyler Perry, Kid Cudi and Ariana Grande, was one that grasped my attention as soon as the trailer hit Netflix. And I almost hate to admit it, but this movie was just such a miss for me. I guess I can’t really say I’m surprised since it’s not a subject I am very familiar with, however, I still wanted to give it a go.

Films with so many famous people in it are not always successful. This was one of them. Some characters had more screen time than others and some were also not very likeable (though I think that was kind of the point?) I must admit that Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence had good chemistry together. I also loved seeing Meryl Streep portraying The President.

While this was pegged to be a comedy, I did not think it was very funny. Sometimes humor tends to go over my head and I found myself missing out on the various supposed jokes.

Overall, I understand what Don’t Look Up was trying to achieve, I’m just not sure it landed all too well. I expected much more from the movie and can’t help feeling disappointed since it was my last film review of the year.

Rating: ♥♥

Single All The Way

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Tired of his family’s judgement on his single status, Peter (Michael Urie) begs his best friend Nick (Philemon Chambers) to come home with him for Christmas so they can pretend to be in a relationship. The plan seems perfect since everyone in Peter’s family thinks they should end up together anyway, until his mom Carole (Kathy Najimy) interferes and sets him up on a blind date with her trainer James (Luke Macfarlane), causing everything to go haywire.

Single All The Way is a great holiday rom-com and I love that it is Netflix’s first with same sex representation. Despite the predictable storyline, I was still swept up in the joy of it all. The scene, in particular, of Peter dancing with his two nieces to my favorite Christmas song My Only Wish (This Year) by Britney Spears will live rent free in my mind for months to come.

I have to give a special shout out to the cast. Not only was the chemistry between Michael Urie and Philemon Chambers adorable, but some of the supporting members were too good for words. Kathy Najimy shined as Peter’s mom. I loved her meddlesome ways and how supportive she was of her son. Jennifer Roberston of Schitt’s Creek fame was hilarious as Peter’s sister Lisa and who could forget Jennifer Coolidge as Peter’s aunt Sandy? The woman is amazing in everything she does and this was no exception.

Everything about Single All The Way was perfect and just what we need for this time of the year. There may not be anything special about it, however, it will leave you feeling all warm in fuzzy inside.

Rating: ♥♥♥

Tick, Tick…Boom!

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What are we meant to do with the time that we have? That is the question that Jon (Andrew Garfield) can’t help but ask himself as he attempts to write the next great American musical. Preparing for the showcase that will make or break his career, Jon feels pressure from everyone and everything around him. His job waiting tables at the Moondance Diner is not stimulating enough, his girlfriend Susan (Alexandra Shipp) dreams of something more herself and Jon’s best friend Michael (Robin De Jesus) transitions from a life of fantasy to something more stable in the advertising industry.

There was no question in my mind that Tick, Tick..Boom! would be a revelation. Anything that Lin Manuel Miranda touches is, let’s be real. His directorial debut saw him adapting Jonathan Larson’s life before his untimely death right as he finally broke into Broadway.

Andrew Garfield was mesmerizing as the titular character. I knew the guy could act, but I had no idea whatsoever that he could sing. Everything that he brought to the role of Jon was amazing to watch. More stunning performances from Alexandra Shipp and Robin De Jesus helped strengthen the film. And who could forget Vanessa Hudgens as Karessa and Joshua Henry as Roger, friends of Jon’s through and through. It also wouldn’t be a Miranda production without some cameos from other much projects of his.

An ultimately sad story, Tick, Tick…Boom! was really something else. I love how it made me think about just how I am spending my time here on this Earth. The fact that this took place during the AIDS epidemic in the 1990s only added to that notion. Mixed together with a stellar soundtrack, this is a movie that I won’t soon forget.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥