Hustle

 

Hustle is a sports comedy drama starring Adam Sandler and Juancho Hernangómez. The story follows NBA talent scout, Stanley Sugerman, played by Sandler, who discovers an unknown street ball player, Bo Cruz, played by Hernangómez. With the pressure on, Sugerman must try to get Cruz NBA ready, which if successful, could change the trajectory of both of their careers.

The plot was authentic, earnest and engaging throughout; though a bit predictable. There was strong character development for Sandler and Hernangómez’s characters. This is the first time I've seen Hernangómez act and I thought he did a really great job in this co-leading role. He did a great job portraying a man, down on his luck, who really needed this shot. I also quite enjoyed the pairing of Queen Latifa as Stanley's wife Teresa Sugerman and Sandler. It was unexpected but they had great chemistry together. There was also an impressive amount of active and retired basketball players that made cameos or had parts in this movie and they were all surprisingly very good in their acting.

I’m starting to really appreciate Adam Sandler’s transition to more serious roles. This is the second film where he’s taken this risk, that I’ve really enjoyed. I thought the story did a great job of mixing in comedic moments while also being raw and genuine in the storytelling. This is definitely a movie I would recommend.

Encanto

 

Encanto is the story of Mirabel, a young girl surrounded by a magical family. When the magic starts to fade she must try to find the key to unlock the door to their salvation.

The beautiful, bright cinematography and costume colors were a great compliment to the fun, festive soundtrack with catchy tunes.

I found the plot to be engaging and family friendly. It was a great coming of age story about discovery and growth. There were strong themes around embracing your gifts, not taking people for granted and appreciating them for all of their contributions, big or small. I also liked seeing the unbreakable bonds of family and how love can conquer all.

I enjoyed the diverse representation of Afro-Latinos. I also appreciated the intermixing of the Spanish language to make the film more realistic.

There was descent character development and I really felt like anyone watching this movie will be able to see themselves in someone.

I really enjoyed Encanto. It was a beautifully told, heartfelt, tearjerker that is a must watch for everyone.

Jurassic World: Dominion

 

Jurassic World: Dominion is the third film in the Jurassic World franchise and the sixth and final installment of the Jurassic Park series, starring Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill. It picks up after Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) where humans now must live amongst the dinosaurs that were released four years prior, but not everyone wants to live in harmony. When Owen and Claire, reprised by Pratt and Dallas Howard, witness a kidnapping, they must embark on a rescue mission to save the ones they love.

The plot was full of nostalgic call backs to some of the scenes from the first Jurassic Park including touches of the original soundtrack and a reunion of the 1993 cast, but there were too many side stories and their attempt at brining everything together was messy. At a certain point the story got lazy and I felt like too much was borrowed from the original movies. Also, a good amount the dialogue was corny and not well written.

Regarding the casting, I liked that they were able to bring everyone back for the big finale. I also appreciated that there was an addition of a couple of more diverse characters. I liked how the cast was able to play off of one another, even though how some of them were introduced didn't make much sense. Also, the lack in character development, made the motives for some of these co-stars actions perplexing.

In the end, this one is for the fans. It wasn’t a great story or very realistic, it was more a hodgepodge of cool ideas that didn’t have a clear and concise direction but because I am a fan I still appreciated the nice full circle moment to close out the series.

Everything, Everywhere, All At Once

Everything, Everywhere, All At Once is an action comedy-drama starring Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu and Ke Huy Quan. Evelyn, a hard working but struggling owner of a laundromat, is living a rather mundane life with her husband and daughter, when she is unexpectedly recruited for a mindboggling undertaking of multiverse jumping that may give her the power to save the world.

The plot was extremely unconventional and quirky. It was definitely a movie that I struggled with comprehending at first. I had to understand that once you let go of what is real and what is not, you can start to appreciate the underlying values of the film. The themes around family acceptance, fighting with love and carving your own path to happiness were relatable. 

I thought that Asian cultural representation throughout was genuine and the intermingling of Mandarin and English was authentic. The costumes and cinematography were also quite eccentric which I think helped lead to unique and crisp fight sequences.

As for casting, you can never go wrong with Michelle Yeoh. She is a star and I am so glad she is getting opportunities to showcase her full range as an actor. I was engaged with her character's arch and evolution from a more reserved person to someone sure of themselves and confident in speaking their truth. She and Ke Huy Quan had great chemistry and worked well off of one another. I hadn’t seen Ke Huy Quan in a movie since The Goonies, and after hearing about his 20 year beak from acting, because of his desire to see more quality roles came out for Asians, I was impressed that he didn’t miss a beat. He brought a naivety and a kindness to his role. He also did his own stunts, which was one of the highlights of this film for me.

Everything, Everywhere, All At Once is a wild ride with its new take on the idea of the multiverse and though not necessarily my style, I did think it was bold and unabashed in its delivery.

Lost City

 

Lost City is an action adventure comedy starring Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum. It is the story of grieving romance author, Loretta Sage, who writes about the treasures of ancient cities. When she reluctantly takes on a book tour with her cover model, Alan, she is kidnapped by eccentric billionaire, Abigail Fairfax, who wants her help finding treasures of a lost prehistoric city.

The script was cute with some funny bits. There were great themes around grief, love and authenticity. The plot was entertaining with an engaging and unique plot twist.

Sandra and Channing had strong chemistry and played well off of one another. I liked how this was a strong female-led film. Sandra’s character, Loretta, was fully formed. You were able to see the evolution from a recluse to a confident, brave and adventurous person. 

There was a descent amount of diversity in the casting with the addition of Da'Vine Joy Randolph and Oscar Nuñez. Da'Vine Joy Randolph brought the comedy although her main monologue was really corny and not needed. I didn't love Oscar's role, I thought it was too creepy, but I did love Brad Pitt’s cameo. It was unexpected and he was actually quite funny as well. Daniel Radcliffe is starting to get typecast. I would have liked to see his character in a different light. Overall, the majority of the cast fun to watch but were one dimensional. I would have liked to see a deeper dive on everyone, especially Channing’s character Alan.

In the end, Lost City was a fun movie. Not necessarily one I would watch again, but not a bad choice for a lazy Saturday afternoon. 

Top Gun: Maverick

 

Top Gun: Maverick is the long awaited action sequel to 1986's Top Gun. The film stars Tom Cruise reprising his role as Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell. He’s now a test pilot that has managed to stay in the military while still pushing the envelope for the last three decades. But not everyone wants him to succeed so as a final straw he is sent to the United States Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program aka "Top Gun", where he must train a group of younger, top in class pilots, for a highly dangerous top secret mission, while also coming to terms with his own past.

Rarely is a sequel, which is made 30+ years after the original even close to as good, but this was an exception to the rule. I was pleasantly surprised with this film. It was the perfect way to bring in the nostalgia of the original in the soundtrack and in parts of plot while also giving a refreshing new story. The film was full of high action sequences and the script was funny but also at times quite emotionally charged. The themes around forgiveness, growth and moving on were also prevalent throughout.

I thought that Tom Cruise did a great job leading this cast which was a mix of seasoned actors and new comers. He picked right up where he left off with Maverick, which was kind of a disappointment that his character hadn’t evolved much over the last 36 years. He was still struggling with letting things go in his past and a lot of his decision making was still career stunting. He and Miles Teller played well off of one another. I have seen Miles in a couple of movies now and can see the range he has. He brought in a quite leadership while also having this underlying anger and trauma of past. He was the perfect casting for the role of Rooster. The character development for Maverick and Rooster was strong and you really felt connected to and wanted to root for them. The rest of the characters in the cast weren't as developed with the majority of them being one dimensional. I would have liked to see a deeper dive on the 10 or so actors that were supposed to be the important pieces to this Top Gun class. Additionally, there was a descent amount of diversity with the extras but the main characters were all white and mostly male. It would have been nice to see a wider difference in ethnicities and genders for the main cast.  

Even with those critiques, Top Gun: Maverick was still one of my favorite movies that has come out this year. I would definitely recommend this film for all. I’d also suggest bringing some tissues as there were quite a few teary moments. And if you haven’t seen the 1986 classic, I would just suggest watching that one first, so that you could fully appreciate all of the call backs from it. 

Senior Year

 

Senior Year is the Netflix produced comedy starring Rebel Wilson. Wilson plays Stephanie, a high school popular girl and head cheerleader who thinks she has her dream life planned out, only to be subjected to a life altering, sabotaging injury that puts her in a coma for 20 years. When she wakes up she has to figure out how she’s going to move forward with her life.

The plot was a cool idea but the script ended up being very predictable and also unrealistic at times. It gave me Never Been Kissed and Easy A vibes. There were funny parts but there were also a lot of awkward, cringey parts and plenty of corny jokes too. I liked the references to the early 2000s with the music, fashion and the homages to Brittany Spears were also cute.

I appreciated the diversity in gender, sexual identity and ethnicity in the casting, however the majority of those minority cast members were one dimensional. I would have liked a deeper dive into those characters stories. Rebel did a great job leading the cast. Her character was complex; a juvenile in a woman’s body, someone who was immature and selfish at times but deep down had a good heart.

Overall Senior Year was an entertaining and heartfelt film with great themes around not letting high school define you, being your authentic self and only caring about what the people who love you think about you. Even though this isn’t a movie I would watch again, it was still a fun mood lifter.