OctaviaSpencer – Credits Rolling

We all know Charles Dickens’ classic story A Christmas Carol. A somewhat awful person is visited by the ghosts of past, present and future in hopes that they will learn from their mistakes and become a better person. Spirited is the modernized version. Clint Briggs (Ryan Reynolds) is considered to be irredeemable; he doesn’t care what anybody thinks about him. But Present (Will Ferrell) wants to give Clint a chance to turn things around. And so begins a most magical adventure…

I feel like we’ve been waiting for Spirited to release for forever. It’s been sitting in the coming soon section of Apple TV+ all year long. Luckily it did not disappoint.

Although it took some time for me to become invested in the story, once I got there, it was all smooth sailing for me. I wanted to know why Clint was such an asshole and I doubted whether or not he really could change. It was such a breath of fresh air to have Reynolds play a different kind of character. The same can be said for Ferrell. He didn’t bother me like he usually does and his scenes with Reynolds were so entertaining.

The film would not be complete without Octavia Spencer. As Kimberly was a great addition not only as Clint’s work colleague, but also as a love interest for Present. I also loved seeing the different ghosts. I wish Past (Sunita Mani) had been featured more as I found her important to the story. Yet-To-Come (Loren G. Woods and Tracy Morgan respectively) was probably my favorite due to the fact that his looks and voice did not match whatsoever. And then of course there was Marley (Patrick Page) who audiences may remember from the original.

Turning this into a musical was a brilliant idea. The songs were catchy and the choreography exceptional. Combine the two with a Christmas backdrop and you have a winner. I may have been unsure about some of the actors’ singing talents, but I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised.

Overall, Spirited is a holiday treat for the whole family to enjoy. Despite the slow start, it really picks up and whisks you away for two hours. It has a good moral and some twists along the way that keep you on the edge of your seat.

Rating: ♥♥♥.5

I am not a fan of Melissa McCarthy so I don’t know why I watched this. Spoiler alert: it was bad. I didn’t have a good feeling about it going in, but somehow that didn’t stop me. I wanted to give Thunder Force a chance. I should have listened to my gut feeling telling me to run far, far away. Instead I wasted two hours of my life. I sacrificed myself so that you wouldn’t have to. You’re welcome.

Picture a world where villains have been wrecking havoc on humans for years. Emily Stanton (Octavia Spencer) has dedicated her whole life devising a plan to get revenge on the ‘Miscreants’ that killed her parents when she was a child. Together with the help of her estranged friend Lydia Berman (Melissa McCarthy), they team up to become Thunder Force, a superhero duo who will stop at nothing to achieve Emily’s dream and save the world.

I have to admit that the movie did actually start off on a promising note. I liked the backstory on Emily and her parents as well as how she became friends with Lydia. The two were so different, but had great chemistry and meshed well together. It wasn’t until they had a fight and decided to go their separate ways that it all went downhill for me. I couldn’t’ really get back on board afterwards.

I did not find the movie funny at all. I like a very particular sense of humor and this was not it. At times, it was as if the jokes were trying too hard and they all fell flat. I have also noticed that the projects created by Ben Falcone and which star his wife Melissa McCarthy never tend to do well. I don’t know who keeps green lighting them to get made. I also, for the life of me, cannot understand why Octavia Spencer would star in something like this. That woman is a queen and she seemed very out of place here.

While the title has an impressive line up of side characters in Jason Bateman as The Crab, Bobby Cannavale as The King, Pom Klementieff as Laser, Melissa Leo as Allie and Taylor Mosby as Emily’s daughter Tracy, they couldn’t do anything to save it.

Overall, I really did try to give Thunder Force a fair shot. Unfortunately, going forward, I will stick to my initial instincts and continue to skip out on the Falcone/McCarthy team ups.

Rating: ♥.5