Spaghetti Kitchen (Y3) - Countdown Time!!

[Ezen Baklattan]

@cookie - As if waiting for Ethan and Xillix wasn't enough - you've got a review dropping soon here. 

[cookie]

11 minutes ago, Isle of Pasta said:

@cookie - As if waiting for Ethan and Xillix wasn't enough - you've got a review dropping soon here. 

I swear to god if you pull a Xillix I'm going rush into Prince of Egypt and torture you for two pages

[Ezen Baklattan]

The Number One Dime

 

I was definitely a big fan of the first installment of the franchise, to the point where I actually feel guilty that Me & My Shadow won Best Animated Feature. It was a rollicking good time with sharp animation, sincere heart, and an overall great sense of fun and joy. I mean it in the best sense that this franchise may be CAYOM's answer to The Adventures of Tintin. I was very excited to read this sequel, and now I'm going to tell you how it follows up with the original.

 

The darkness of tone has been discussed a lot in this movie, and aside from a few creepy transformations, gun violence, and some of the darker elements of Scrooge losing everything (I admit that Huey's "death" wasn't too impactful for me, simply because it was kind of obvious he was going to be okay, but I'm getting ahead of myself), I didn't seem to mind the tonal spread too much. It does sometimes come off as a bit awkward in the more cartoonish style of the animation, but it's still an interesting wrinkle to the family friendly movie, and since it ultimately does have a happy ending, it should be just fine for kids.

 

One issue I had with this is how the film is a bit awkwardly paced, with some of the action sequences being a bit too frequent and drawn out, but I still can say with confidence that I was never truly bored. The plot beats had a pretty smooth flow and a pretty strong logical coherence. I'm not sure I was a big fan of the time travel bit at the end, I might have missed something that makes the next point moot, but I personally would have gone with a spell to reverse the golden touch, but that's just me.

 

The characters as a whole are pretty fun to watch, and Launchpad McQuack easily steals the show in this. Glomgold also gets a pretty good redemption arc, but I do think the time travel stuff at the end kind of undercuts it a little. Magicia is also a hoot as a villain, while Scrooge himself is always fun to watch. The emotional beat of him needing to be closer to his family is a bit predictable (and was explored a good bit in the first film), but it rings pretty sincere a lot of the time.

 

As a whole, it really is a blast to watch, though. Most of the problems arise from the film not quite perfectly dealing with the baggage that comes with a bigger scope, although the film still offers an exciting and ambitious animated odyssey that's nonetheless thrilling to watch. While it might not have the precision of the first film (which I still ultimately prefer), the film is still a spectacle of ingenuity, fun, and excitement.

 

 

B+/A-

 

(You get the Congratulations video because it's probably closer to an A-)

 

 

 

[cookie]

Just now, Isle of Pasta said:

I might have missed something that makes the next point moot, but I personally would have gone with a spell to reverse the golden touch, but that's just me.

Magica had destroyed the world economy, turned Bouncer into a dragon and Huey, the council and everyone else Magica turned into gold would have suffocated days ago.

 

There was no turning back without the candle.

[Ezen Baklattan]

11 minutes ago, cookie said:

Magica had destroyed the world economy, turned Bouncer into a dragon and Huey, the council and everyone else Magica turned into gold would have suffocated days ago.

 

There was no turning back without the candle.

Fair enough - I'm not too big into the "time travel solves everything" trope, but it's just a quibble at this point, and the movie isn't just that.

 

 

[cookie]

26 minutes ago, Isle of Pasta said:

Fair enough - I'm not too big into the "time travel solves everything" trope, but it's just a quibble at this point, and the movie isn't just that.

 

 

If I'm allowed to keep the dark tone for Scrooge 3

 

 

Merlock is going to cause some irreversible effects.

He knows about the time candle and his first course of action will be to destroy it.

Edited April 28, 2018 by cookie

[Ezen Baklattan]

Ripper

 

Creating a procedural police thriller on tracking down a serial killer in Victorian London sounds awesome enough, but when you get Tom Hardy in a sharp leading performance as a detective hellbent on finding the truth while facing opposition within his own ranks, it's just a really good time. With vivid design and effective pacing, I wasn't anything closed to bored for a single moment, and film ends on an exciting note that will leave you reeling after the credits roll. It's simple, it's sharp, it's to the point, and it's just a damn well made movie that offers an exciting alternative to typical summer fare.

 

 

B+

 

(Personally I'd push Henney over Hardy, though)

 

[Ezen Baklattan]

Two notes:

 

1.) I've read through August. There is a SLIM chance I drop a Top 25 tomorrow.

 

2.) @YourMother the Edgelord @Rorschach I'm upping the grade of My Peoples to a B from a B-. The parts that worked really worked for me.

[YM!]

1 minute ago, Isle of Pasta said:

Two notes:

 

1.) I've read through August. There is a SLIM chance I drop a Top 25 tomorrow.

 

2.) @YourMother the Edgelord @Rorschach I'm upping the grade of My Peoples to a B from a B-. The parts that worked really worked for me.

Out of likes but thank you.

[Ezen Baklattan]

Just now, YourMother the Edgelord said:

Out of likes but thank you.

 

[Rorschach]

3 minutes ago, Isle of Pasta said:

Two notes:

 

1.) I've read through August. There is a SLIM chance I drop a Top 25 tomorrow.

 

2.) @YourMother the Edgelord @Rorschach I'm upping the grade of My Peoples to a B from a B-. The parts that worked really worked for me.

Kk

[Ezen Baklattan]

SILENT HILL review should drop in the next few hours. Maybe THE CHRYSALLIDS too.

 

Call of Duty

 

I remember reading this in 2.0, and it's a fairly typical war movie elevated a good bit by Greengrass's direction. I'm not sure why some of the reviews are pretty harsh here, but I did ultimately enjoy it for what it was, even if the subject isn't something I'm terribly interested in. Not sure what else to say, honestly, but it's a decent time.

 

 

B-

[YM!]

15 minutes ago, Isle of Pasta said:

SILENT HILL review should drop in the next few hours. Maybe THE CHRYSALLIDS too.

 

Call of Duty

 

I remember reading this in 2.0, and it's a fairly typical war movie elevated a good bit by Greengrass's direction. I'm not sure why some of the reviews are pretty harsh here, but I did ultimately enjoy it for what it was, even if the subject isn't something I'm terribly interested in. Not sure what else to say, honestly, but it's a decent time.

 

 

B-

Agreed. 

[Ezen Baklattan]

Silent Hill: Innocence Lost

 

One of my bigger issues with last years The Amityville Nightmare was the way it tried to force in far too much plotting into just 108 minutes. With the lengthy summary, I was a bit nervous at first, but it definitely is not the case that @Xillix fell into the same trap twice.

 

This is a truly effective, creepy, and unsettling horror movie. Not all of the pieces of the story are quite easily understood, but I don't think the film was set up that it was absolutely necessary to get every detail. The atmosphere is truly well done with some exceptional cinematography, and the actors all give good performances, with Theron maybe getting the juiciest and most entertaining material. Sometimes it does stretch itself out a bit too much, but I can't really say I was ever bored reading it.

 

Safe to say, while it isn't perfect, it's definitely one of the stronger forays into horror I've seen in CAYOM, and perhaps the best of this year. But I still haven't read everything, so there is a very good change this may change. We shall see.

 

 

B/B+

[Xillix]

2 hours ago, Isle of Pasta said:

Not all of the pieces of the story are quite easily understood, but I don't think the film was set up that it was absolutely necessary to get every detail.

Yeah, I tried to sort of walk a line between not spelling everything out completely but making sure it was easy to at least get the gist of it. If you actually play the first game through without knowledge of all the other supplementary material and what have you you're pretty much guaranteed to wind up completing it with no fucking idea what was supposed to be going on. Partially because a lot of important plot background is buried away in optional sidequests most players won't even know exist unless they're the "wander through the entire town all the time instead of going where you're told" kind of person, partially because a lot more of the plot background is only found in items/documents you don't need to find or examine to finish the game, and partially because a lot of stuff just was not explained/didn't make sense at all until later games and supplementary lore-focused material came out.

 

Thanks for the good review!

[Ezen Baklattan]

Yeah, it's definitely a struggle to make video game adaptations like that. Saw it a bit in BioShock too.

 

BTW, brace yourself @Hiccup23. The Chrysallids is on deck.

[Xillix]

I'm out of likes for the first time ever :0

[Hiccup23]

4 minutes ago, Isle of Pasta said:

Yeah, it's definitely a struggle to make video game adaptations like that. Saw it a bit in BioShock too.

 

BTW, brace yourself @Hiccup23. The Chrysallids is on deck.

 

I am more nervous than I was in Avengers: Infinity War 30 minutes ago. 

[Ezen Baklattan]

The Chrysallids

 

@Hiccup23, let me preface this review by saying this: You've got a knack for coming up with really interesting and thought provoking premises. Even when they don't always work, you often bring a unique and exciting perspective to CAYOM. However, when it does work, you get The Chrysallids.

 

The story, centering on a group of young people trying to escape their oppressive homeland to pursue a safe haven where they won't be prosecuted for who they are, is certainly compelling, especially in today's sociopolitical climate. This is helped in part by the strong performances from the cast, including Jude Law in an effective villain role that recalls Charles Dance in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. While some of the characters don't always get enough to work with, their story is tense and compelling, and even without a full understanding of what's happening, you feel you have just enough to be on the ride easily. (One character, Rosaline, is introduced without any real introduction - definitely try to make sure you're clear when a character is new to the story.)

 

The world building is fairly interesting, indeed, but I do wish we got a bit more explanation for how it worked. This is to say that what we got was pretty interesting and maybe a highlight of the movie, so I was hoping to see a bit more of it than what we got. The ending does open the possibility for continued explorations in this world, although I'm not sure if the book actually has any sequels or not. Regardless, this is a world I look forward to exploring a bit more.

 

While the pieces don't come together perfectly, there's no doubt that this is compelling cinema, and it's full of intrigue and surprises that kept me engaged the whole time, and its message and direction are strong enough that it's easy to overlook its flaws. 

 

 

A-

[Hiccup23]

Thank you!!