Category Archives: Doc’s Movie Reviews

Wolfs

Posted on by

When actor David Hyde Pierce got the first script for the TV comedy Frasier, he thought it was terrible because they had written the same character twice. Frasier and Niles were basically the same character and he thought it would be a failure. Of course, Frasier turned out to be a hugely successful show.

The new Apple TV + movie, Wolfs, starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt, debuted this weekend on the streaming service and Clooney and Pitt play extremely similar characters, much like Frasier and Niles.

An accidental death in the hotel room of the DA leads to her calling for help. George Clooney showed up as a fixer (think Mr. Wolf from Pulp Fiction) to take care of everything. However, Pitt showed up too, with the plan of also taking care of everything. When they are forced to work together against their better judgment, they discover that this case has much more to it than they initially thought.

After seeing trailers for this movie, it was one of my more anticipated films of the remainder of the year. Now since seeing it, Wolfs is okay. It has its strengths, but it also has some glaring weaknesses as well.

The biggest strength of the film is easily the chemistry between Clooney and Pitt, whose characters are never named during the film. They have such wonderful comic timing during their interactions and their moments on screen stand out so well. They are basically playing the same character but the auras of both men create something different, unexpected. There is a third actor, Austin Abrams, who plays the kid who adds to the ambiance of the movie.

The biggest weakness of the movie, unfortunately, is the story. It is very messy and convoluted, and not in the good way. Everything that is happening around these two fixers lacks any real context to it and the story is chocked full of fixer cliches that we have seen in other films. The story has too many branches and the final explanation, which is done through exposition, of what was going on just does not work, and makes the film feel somewhat anticlimactic.

The film moves quickly and does have plenty of entertaining moments, especially between Clooney and Pitt. I wish there was a movie where these characters were together but it had a better script. Overall, I did like what was good about the movie more than what was bad bothered me.

3.2 stars

My Old Ass

Posted on by

My Old Ass is a coming of age movie that tosses some unexplained magic in the story centered around taking mushrooms that provides us with a lovely little movie with some wonderful new actors.

The movie features Maisy Stella as Elliott, a young teen who is preparing to leave home to college, and is anxious to get away from everything. When she and her friends partake in some mushrooms, Elliott is approached by Aubrey Plaza who is playing a 39-year old version of Elliott, and she begins to warn her younger self about things she should avoid.

Somehow, older Elliott is able to put her number into younger Elliott’s phone (listed as ‘My Old Ass’) and they could communicate across time, showing amazing cell service.

Maisy Stella does an amazing job leading this movie, providing us with the emotion and confusion that would go along with this, as well as bonding, in a way, with her older self. Aubrey Plaza is perfect as the older Elliott, but she just is not in the film enough. Aubrey Plaza disappears for a big chunk of time in the middle of the film and you can feel her lack of presence. Still, when she is on screen, she is electric and she has amazing chemistry with Maisy Stella.

There is a real likable character introduced to us named Chad (Percy Hynes White, from Netflix’s Wednesday) who Elliott tries to avoid, but they have amazing chemistry as well and Chad is just such a wonderful character that the crowd is rooting for him despite what the story was telling us.

I do think that this could have been more emotional and I was left wanting more when the screen went to black, but I was entertained throughout the run time of My Old Ass. I would have liked more scenes with the two Elliotts, but what we got were really great.

3.85 stars

The Wild Robot

Posted on by

Animated movies have been on a roll lately. I have two 5 star animated movies during the summer (Inside Out 2 and Transformers One) and now we have another exceptional animated movie hitting the theaters this weekend.

The Wild Robot is from DreamWorks Animation and tells the story of a robot named Roz that was designed for helping with tasks being stranded on an island with a plethora of animals. When a gosling hatches from an egg that Roz had found, the baby goose imprinted upon the robot, believing her to be its mother. A somewhat helpful fox with possible ulterior motives named Fink befriends the odd couple, they start to train the gosling runt what it will need to survive the upcoming migration.

There are so many wonderful things about this movie. It has a tremendously fulfilling coming-of-age story that included an underdog type story of the runt, soon to be named Brightbill. There are several moments throughout the story that are funny, feel-good and touching. The story does take a turn about halfway through as the migration happens. One would think that the migration would be the big event of the film, bringing the story to a close, but there is much more after that happened.

The story is emotional, and it sneaks up on you. You are just going along and enjoying what the movie is doing and, suddenly, your eyes are misting up because there is something there that touches you unexpectedly.

The voice work is amazing. In particular, Lupita Nyong’o as Roz and Pedro Pascal as Fink do exceptional work. Roz is a machine that finds that there is more than just her programming and Fink is an unlikable sneak who discovers what it means to have friends. Both of these arcs are emphasized by the wonderful voice work of these two top notch actors.

There are other excellent voice cast members including Bill Nighy, Kit Connor, Ving Rhames, Mark Hamill, Catherine O’Hara, Matt Berry and Stephanie Hsu.

The animation is spectacular. It is difficult these days to release an animated film if your animation is not competitive. The background of this film are spectacular and almost makes one think they were actually in the wilderness. There are a couple of times during action beats that the animation gets a little shaky. I know the reason for that, but it stood out in a picture that is such a piece of art otherwise.

However, there are some wonderful action beats in the film too. In the first half of the film, I was gasping in shock over some of the surprisingly dark moments of the movie. Let’s just say that the circle of life is on display in this movie in several moments.

The themes of this movie are wide spread and one of the most relatable of the year. In fact, there are themes here that will appeal to just about any segment of the viewership, from motherhood struggles to overcoming challenges to friendship. I would venture to say that everyone would find something to connect to in The Wild Robot.

I’m not going five stars with this one, but it is close. There are just a couple minor complaints that bring it down, but The Wild Robot is still a magnificent family film that is perfect for both parents and kids. Beautifully animated with exceptional voice acting, this is another huge win for DreamWorks.

4.9 stars

Blink Twice

Posted on by

This is the second film this weekend that I found on streaming that I had missed while it was in the theaters. Blink Twice is the directorial debut by Zoë Kravitz and it was another film that I wanted to go see in the theater but just could not find the time.

According to IMDB, “When tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum) meets cocktail waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie) at his fundraising gala, sparks fly. He invites her to join him and his friends on a dream vacation on his private island. It’s paradise. Wild nights blend into sun-soaked days and everyone’s having a great time. Nobody wants this trip to end, but as strange things start to happen, Frida begins to question her reality. Something is wrong with this place. She’ll have to uncover the truth if she wants to make it out of this party alive.”

Naomi Ackie was excellent as the lead character in this film. She brought every bit of emotion and you believed her at every turn. She had great chemistry with Channing Tatum and, when it came time for her to be feral, you accepted it easily.

The mysterious nature of the story worked well as the audience were brought along the ride with Frida. Truthfully, when the reality is revealed, I was shocked at the situation. That is always a good sign when a movie can fool me.

Besides Ackie and Tatum, there is a strong cast of actors involved here including Christian Slater, Kyle MacLachlan, Haley Joel Osment, Geena Davis, Alia Shawkat, Adria Arjona, Simon Rex, Levon Hawke, Liz Caribel, and Trew Mullen.

I had no expectations for this film and it was so much more than I thought it would be. I went in without much knowledge of the story and it was worth my time.

3.75 stars

Afraid

Posted on by

I came across Afraid on Vudu/Fandango this week and it was a movie that I had missed while it was in the theaters. I had intended to go see it, but things just never worked out, so I was somewhat excited to see it show up on streaming.

However, this was a disappointment of a film with an ending that was wholly unsatisfying.

According to IMDB, “The Curtis’ family is selected to test a new home device: a digital assistant called AIA. AIA learns the family’s behaviors and begins to anticipate their needs. And she can make sure nothing – and no one – gets in her family’s way.”

We have seen this type of movie before. It is very much similar to the M3GAN film from a few years ago which was also produced by Blumhouse. Honestly, it was predictable and lacked any originality, although the switch up at the third act was different. Problem is that that same switch up was also really dumb.

I do like John Cho as an actor, even though he is really not given that much to do in this movie. He was considerably better in 2018’s Searching, which deals with an online search to find his missing daughter. This is a considerable step down from that much more intelligent and engaging script.

Even still, the first part of the film was decent enough, but it went off the rails very quickly. AIA became crazy very quickly and became dangerously unbalanced not too much longer after that.

I was not the only person who missed this in the theater (by looking at its box office), but I would not say that anyone needs to find this on streaming. Perhaps it is worth a view when it comes up for free on Netflix or one of the other streamers, because it is short and gets over in a hurry. of course, it does not do much along the way either.

2.45 stars

Transformers One

Posted on by

Whoever put together the first trailer for Transformers One should be fired.

The first trailer I saw for this animated movie, a return to the world of Cybertron and the Transformers, was one of the worst trailers I have ever seen. I hated it so much that I almost decided to skip this movie. The job of a trailer is to get a viewer more excited to see a movie and this one nearly stunted my viewership.

I have had some terrible Transformer movie experiences, with The Last Knight being one of the worst, so seeing this first trailer filled with some many unfunny moments nearly ended me. However, the second trailer which, I believe, came out of San Diego Comic Con this year was so much better, which confused me. Then, we started getting word of mouth from people who had seen it, some of which, were claiming that it was the best Transformers movie ever. I had a difficult time wrapping my head around that idea with that first trailer still front and center in my mind.

Well, they were 100% right. Transformers One is the best Transformers movie ever put on screen and should be considered as one of the best movies of 2024.

I know… who would have thunk it?

The film dives into the origin of Optimus Prime, called Orion Pax (Chris Hemsworth), and Megatron, called D-16 (Brian Tyree Henry), showing us how these friends became the iconic characters that we know of all these years.

Orion Pax and D-16 were minor bots, who could not transform and who were working mining Energon in the mines of Cybertron. Orion Pax had a vision to reach for more than what life had given him and he caught the eye of the one remaining Prime, Sentinel Prime (Jon Hamm).

There are so many great moments through the movie that I could not believe it. I was not sure that I wanted Optimus and Megatron to have been best friends only to become mortal enemies. That trope feels as if it has been used too much, but it works here way more than I ever thought it would. It helps to bring a real emotional kick the film and the story does a wonderful job of showing how these two characters went from friends to bitter rivals. You believe it. It was well earned.

Scarlett Johansson played Elita-1 and Keegan Michael Key played B-127 (who will become Bumblebee) and they both did a great job. All of the voice actors were exceptional in their roles, especially Chris Hemsworth and Brian Tyree Henry who had the difficult task in stepping into famous and well-recognizable voices. Hemsworth in particular had to follow in the footsteps of Peter Cullen (EYG Hall of Famer) whose work as Optimus Prime has been iconic over the decades. Hemsworth seemed to be able to make the role his own. Perhaps that was because they started him off as Orion Pax and not in the mantel of Optimus Prime.

The film looked great and the action worked so well. The humor, which was so terrible in that first trailer, worked so much better in the context of the film that I was shocked. The film did not feel like a parody of the Transformers as that first trailer had seemed. Even the moments from that trailer that did not work, was so much more entertaining when they came in the film. They were dispersed beautifully and never felt like it was trying to take over the film. Did ever joke work? No, but how many films can say that every joke worked? Very few.

I loved the Transformers when I was younger and they were first on TV. As many others, I was scarred after the 1986 movie made me suffer through the death of Optimus Prime. I hated the Michael Bay movies, which seemed to get worse with every one. I was hopeful with the release of Bumblebee and the fairly likable Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, and the comic from Image Comics, written and drawn by Daniel Warren Johnson is a great hit every month. I really thought Transformers One would send this franchise crashing back to the bottom, but I was wrong. It is one of my favorite movies of the year.

5 stars

The Deliverance

Posted on by

I was surprised to see the name Lee Daniels attached to this Netflix horror movie. Daniels has directed such films as The Butler, United States vs. Billie Holiday and The Paperboy, none of which moved into the genre of horror. With a great deal of curiosity I went ahead and pulled this up on Netflix.

It started out listed as based on true events.

According to IMDB, “An Indiana family discovers strange, demonic occurrences that convince them and their community that the house is a portal to hell..“

The Deliverance hooked me right away, with its depiction of this black family from Indiana. Ebony (Andra Day) was rough and troubled, dealing with her issues through alcohol and anger. The fact that there was little redeeming qualities about Ebony made the character and the film more intriguing. Her three children struggled to try and find their own way through the difficulties presented to them by their mother. Ebony’s mother Alberta (Glen Close) moved in with them to try and help them with their troubles while dealing with her own health issues. Each character was angry and expressed it in a variety of manners.

Andra Day and Glen Close were both great with their performances. They brought the deep-seeded frustration and regret to the forefront. Caleb McLaughlin (from Stranger Things) also does a very strong job with his role of one of Ebony’s suffering children, Nate.

After about an hour, I was fully invested. The problem was that, when the film started to transition from the familial problems into the haunted house ones, the film lost a lot of steam and became just another haunted house movie. The final act of this movie was tremendously bad and spent every ounce of good tidings that it spent the first part of the film building up.

I really wish this film had taken a different path because it started with a very compelling group of characters with problematic family issues and slipped into a cliche-ridden, disappointing haunted house film.

2.5 stars

Rebel Ridge

Posted on by

This was on my queue at Netflix for the last week, but it was a film that I was not sure I was intending on watching any time soon. However, a friend of mine said that he liked it so I decided to give this a chance. I am really happy that I did because Rebel Ridge was an excellent film.

I have heard people refer to this as a Rambo-esque film, and I can see some connections, especially First Blood. However, the feel of these two films differ as does the main protagonist.

According to IMDB, “Terry Richmond enters the town of Shelby Springs on a simple but urgent mission– post bail for his cousin and save him from imminent danger. But when Terry’s life’s savings is unjustly seized by law-enforcement, he’s forced to go head to head with local police chief Sandy Burnne and his combat-ready officers. Terry finds an unlikely ally in court clerk Summer McBride and the two become ensnared in a deep-rooted conspiracy within the remote township. As the stakes turn deadly, Terry must call upon his mysterious background to break the department’s hold on the community, bring justice to his own family– and protect Summer in the process.“

The film provided a potential star-making turn for Aaron Pierre, who played Terry Richmond. He carried himself with a confidence and a force that made you believe that, despite being in what seemed like an unwinnable situation, he would come out of it on top. His screen presence was off the charts and he seemed to match with Don Johnson, who played local sheriff Sandy Burnne.

I really enjoyed the manner in which Terry went about his business. It was not as much about revenge as it was justice. The inclusion of Summer kept him grounded and I was very happy that it did not just devolved into a big gunfight.

This seems to be a thinking-man’s action hero and it makes Rebel Ridge down to earth and intelligent. It started out with that yucky feeling of police dealing with an African-American man, but it became more than just the racism.

I enjoyed this Netflix film quite a bit.

4 stars

Speak No Evil (2024)

Posted on by

This is the most recent film that showed way too much in its trailers. I wish I had not seen some of them and more was left for a mystery.

However, the new Speak No Evil film starring James McAvoy is an intense film, with some dark tones, but also some strange humor mixed together.

According to IMDB, “A family is invited to spend a whole weekend in a lonely home in the countryside, but as the weekend progresses, they realize that a dark side lies within the family who invited them.“

The darkness of the film is prevalent throughout and James McAvoy embodies that darkness brilliantly. You are never quite sure what he is doing or why he is doing it. His manipulation of the Daltons is amazing and more subtle than you would think.

I was very impressed with young Dan Hough, who played Ant. This character is really tragic and Hough is excellent at portraying this role without the ability to talk. There is such an aura of sadness surrounding Ant that you connect to the boy without any difficulty. Of course, the one scene that is in the trailer really should have been left as a movie surprise.

The tension of the film is built up well as the strange occurrences keep happening. There always feels like a reasonable excuse, but you could tell that there was more under the surface than you think. It felt wrong to be laughing at some of the things that I was laughing at.

The third act of Speak No Evil was wild. I found myself engaged throughout the film and I really found the performances intriguing and the characters interesting.

3.75 stars

The Killer’s Game

Posted on by

As a fan of the WWE, I was always going to see The Killer’s Game. It was not just because of Dave Bautista in the starring role, but also because of the debut of Drew McIntyre, a current WWE superstar.

According to IMDB, “…Veteran assassin Joe Flood, who is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness… authorizes a kill on himself to avoid the pain that is destined to follow. After ordering the kill, he finds out that he was misdiagnosed and must then fend off the army of former colleagues trying to kill him.“

This was not a great movie, but I enjoyed it despite that. The best part of the film was easily Dave Bautista, who was engaging and entertaining. I thought he was great in everything that he had to do, from the physical and brutal killings to the more softer and emotional bits. He was funny too.

I am going to say that there were some glimpses of Bautista’s acting skill in this film. Yes, it was mostly an action fest, but Bautista has a future in more challenging roles and we can see how successful he could be.

Some of the other assassins were fun, but were nothing but cannon fodder. Drew McIntyre was one of these, and it was fun to see him. He seemed like he was having a lot of fun playing this character.

It was fun and I did enjoy Bautista. Is it a great movie? No. If you are a WWE fan, you’ll think this is a hoot. If you find big violent action films unenjoyable, then you should stay away from this.

3 stars

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Posted on by

It has been literal decades since the release of Beetlejuice and this weekend we finally arrive with a sequel to the 1988 comedy. Michael Keaton, Catherine O’Hara and Winona Ryder resume their roles from the first film in this sequel, also directed by Tim Burton.

I will be honest. When I first saw the trailer for this sequel, I was not very excited. It looked like this movie was going to just revisit the same bits as the 1988 film did and I saw no reason to get excited for this. I do like Michael Keaton though and I had some hope.

After seeing the sequel, I found it to be a fun film that is definitely worth a viewing, even if it is far from perfect.

According to IMDB, “After an unexpected family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia’s (Winona Ryder) life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid (Jenna Ortega), discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened. With trouble brewing in both realms, it’s only a matter of time until someone says Beetlejuice’s (Michael Keaton) name three times and the mischievous demon returns to unleash his very own brand of mayhem.”

The cast of this film is sensational. Michael Keaton pulls of Betelgeuse with the deft touch of a master, losing not one step from the first film. Jenna Ortega is a wonderful addition to the cast, making a perfect daughter for Winona Ryder’s Lydia. Catherine O’Hara is over the top as Delia Deetz, who was recently widowed. The cast was excellent and pulled off the comedy with an ease.

I do have to say that I thought the storylines going on in the movie were very messy and chaotic. Some of them felt as if they were there just to fill time. The individual plot points did not form together into a tight and cohesive story. Instead it was much more of a disjointed tale. Some of them worked well, especially in this type of a movie, but the overall story was not what this movie will be remembered for. Some of the storylines in this movie could have easily been removed from the movie and there would be little to no change in what happened.

The world of the dead is totally fascinating and fun to watch as the film treks though it. The special effects were great most of the time and the extended use of practical effects made the dead world feel like it was in the same world as the original. For most of the time, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice looked great.

There is a fantastic scene involving “MacArthur’s Park” near the end. I loved that. Michael Keaton may be the best lip syncher in movies.

I had fun watching this sequel. It is far from a great movie and the story is completely messy. I think you could easily take Willem Dafoe and Monica Bellucci out of the film without missing a beat and you would never miss them. Still, the drawbacks of the film did not detract from my enjoyment of the film. It was worth my time and I would recommend it, especially for those who were fans of the 1988 Beetlejuice.

3.6 stars

Strange Darling

Posted on by

So I had not intended on seeing this today. I had my tickets to The Crow and Blink Twice and I went to Cinemark to go to a 10 o’clock IMAX showing of the Crow. However, when I go there, I realized that my ticket was for 10 PM. I was there about 9:45 AM so I had messed this up. I looked at The Crow schedule and could not find one that would work for Blink Twice, and I had to readjust everything. Strange Darling, which had interested me, but did not fit with the original schedule was showing at 10 AM and that meant I had to substitute The Crow later for Blink Twice (though I may have chosen poorly after seeing The Crow). With my new ticket, I went to Strange Darling and I was so pleased that all this mess happened, because I loved this movie.

It is difficult to give a synopsis for this film. I’ll say this… there is a serial killer out there and a woman from a one night stand was being chased.

I can’t go into anything more without spoiling the movie and this was very original and well done.

The film was split into a six chapter format, but the story was told jumping around the chapters (I think it started in chapter four). This allowed the story to unfold in a most intriguing manner, keeping everyone on their toes for what was actually going on and pays off in a big way. The film is able to play with expectation and perspective amazingly well.

It was extremely violent and bloody, but none of it felt gratuitous. Inf act, I would go as far as to say that the violence worked so well that it created an artistic flare of gore.

Willa Fitzgerald starred as “The Lady” with Kyle Gallner, who was listed as “The Demon” and both of them give remarkable performances and carry most of the movie on their shoulders.

I was engaged with this story from the opening scene and it never faltered with every surprise and scene switch. The script is tight and effective. The direction, from director (and writer) JT Mollner, is excellent. Top line performances fill the moments. I had no idea what was coming next and I found myself completely thrilled. One of my favorite thriller/horror movies of the yea.

4.6 stars

The Crow (2024)

Posted on by

My expectations were very low for this remake of the 1994 cult classic film The Crow. I was not sure why they remade the film and it did not look like it had a purpose to exist. However, I was hoping to be wrong about my low expectations.

Unfortunately, the film did not reach my low expectations.

According to IMDB, “Soulmates Eric (Skarsgård) and Shelly (FKA twigs) are brutally murdered when the demons of Shelly’s dark past catch up with them. Given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself, Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right.“

There are a ton of problems with this movie. I did like Bill Skarsgård in the role of Eric (even though the short hair/mullet felt wrong). He certainly brought his abs to the screen. He was fine with what he was given so I would not say that Skarsgård was one of the problems.

The first hour of the movie was slow and kind of boring. They spend time introducing the characters, which normally I like, but this just did not seem to work. The writing on these characters was just weak and I was not invested at all.

This is also a major problem because I just did not get into the pairing of Eric and Shelly. They did not feel like soulmates to me and that truly hurts the story since the power of love is meant to be the key to Eric’s resurrection.

There is plenty of violence, especially in the third act. However there was a scene in that third act that took place at an opera house that just did not make much sense (because of the noise of the gunfire) and it was taking me out of the story.

Speaking of the story, it felt very much of a slog throughout the film and needlessly messy with the rules of what was going on.

There is not a way to do a review of a remake of The crow without comparing it to the original movie. It may not be fair, but it is unavoidable. This film is just so much worse than that film from 1994, there really was no reason to do a remake. There was nothing new or exciting added to the 2024 film to justify the remake or to have it stand on its own. I can’t imagine why, if given a choice, anyone would decide to watch the new film over the Brandon Lee film.

I do not think that this film will break into the group of movies competing for the worst movie of the year (I think it is up to 6 now), but it is not too far off from it. The Crow was unnecessary and more boring than it should have been.

1.4 stars

Jackpot

Posted on by

The Purge meets Running Man, but as a comedy. This is how I would describe the new film which debuted on Amazon Prime this weekend, Jackpot, starring Awkwafina and John Cena.

The film is set in the near future where California had passed a law saying that their lottery jackpot winners could be hunted and killed within a day and whoever killed them would receive the jackpot instead. This is a bizarre premise, but it certainly speaks to the selfishness and greed of the human race.

Struggling actor Katie Kim (Awkwafina) accidentally wound up in the lotto drawing and won the largest jackpot in the state’s history, 3.6 billion dollars. She did not even realize that she had won and she was unaware of the strange rules associated with the win. So when people started trying to kill her, Katie was shaken.

That is when Noel (John Cena) arrived and offered his help, for 10% of the winnings, to keep her alive until the bell rang, signaling that the chance to kill her and collect the winnings had passed.

This was really stupid. The premise is slightly interesting and yet this felt way too easy for everyone to be involved. Some of the dialogue was atrocious and they were forcing humor into the film at times.

And yet, I did not hate this movie. I do not know why, but I found myself reasonably entertained by this mess.

I think the biggest part that I liked was the presence of Awkwafina and John Cena. They were really funny and had great timing, taking the admittedly weak writing and making it considerably better. Their interactions were great and I was willing to put up with what the movie had going on because I enjoyed their comradery.

I also enjoyed the appearance of Simu Liu, who appeared as a rival Lottery Protector of Noel, just at an apparently larger level. It was a Shang Chi reunion with Simu Liu and Awkwafina.

I am not saying that this is a great movie. It clearly is not. I am saying that I had fun watching it and that it will probably fall into my guilty pleasure category. As for the rating, I am not recommending it to anyone, but if you are a John Cena fan, there is a lot that you will find to enjoy.

2.8 stars

My Penguin Friend

Posted on by

Based on a true story, My Penguin Friend is a sweet tale of a penguin that befriends a man who had save him after being covered with oil.

The penguin, nicknamed Dindim by another character in the movie, has bridged the gap between humans and penguins, spending part of the time with the penguins and then a chunk of the time miles away with Joao (Jean Reno).

The film started out with a tragedy from the past for Joao and his wife Maria (Adriana Barraza). The tragedy darkened the lives of the couple for years before the little penguin showed up to give them purpose once again.

I have to say that a couple of the kids in this movie are just charming as could be. In particular, Juan José Garnica, who played Miguel, was remarkably bright and had a smile worth a million dollars. He shone through the early scenes of the film.

Yes, some of this film was cheesy and silly, but what did you expect with a protagonist that was a penguin? The really silly parts did not detract from the film for me and helped build that relationship between Dindim and Joao, inspired from the tragedy of his past.

The film looked great and many of the scenes of the penguins felt real. I am not sure if this was CGI or if they had shots of real penguins, but the fact that I was not sure tells you how effective the effects were.

The story was also surprisingly emotional at times, as I found myself nearly tearing up during a few moments.

While the film is not overly deep or complex, there are some solid themes in it about friendship and loss that make this more than just a funny animal story. This was a decent film that, at just over 90 minutes, does not overstay its welcome.

3.5 stars