Movie Reviews

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

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  • Title: Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
  • IMDb: link

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald movie reviewThe sequel to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them spends most of the first half-hour getting the previous film’s major characters together once again. Mixing in a younger Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) and introducing, but failing to develop, Johnny Depp as the villain Grindelwald, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald then attempts to steal a bit of the magic from the Harry Potter films.

While it provides more imaginative creatures and amusing awkwardness from Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), the film is littered with problems including an awkwardly-structured plot, a ponderous opening act, a disinterest to do anything more than hint at the core relationship that fuels the plot, and a lack of any sort of conclusion.

Much like the previous film, The Crimes of Grindelwald offers fun, but mostly forgettable, entertainment. There are some nice additions here, including Law as the younger Dumbledore and Zoë Kravitz as a woman with feelings for both the Scamander brothers, but the script fails to make the best use of the talent at hand.

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The Nutcracker and the Four Realms

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  • Title: The Nutcracker and the Four Realms
  • IMDb: link

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms movie reviewAdapted from E. T. A. Hoffmann‘s short story “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King,” The Nutcracker and the Four Realms offers big budget Disney family entertainment filled to the brim with special effects and lessons about believing in yourself and sticking by family in tough times. While it incorporates much of the ballet’s music into its score (and adds a couple of notable ballet sequence as well), The Nutcracker and the Four Realms goes for a more straightforward Wizard of Oz-style tale with a young female protagonist lost in a magical world.

Mackenzie Foy stars as Clara Stahlbaum. Still grieving over her mother’s (Anna Madeley) recent death, and struggling to get along with her father (Matthew Macfadyen) and siblings (Tom Sweet and Ellie Bamber), Clara discovers a magical world her mother created which is divided into Four Realms (Flower, Snowflake, Sweet, and a rebelling realm which is no longer mentioned). Traveling to the new world by way of her godfather (Morgan Freeman), Clara goes in search of a key which has the power to change the world and literally open the last secret left to Clara by her mother.

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Suspiria

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  • Title: Suspiria
  • IMDb: link

Suspiria movie reviewSuspiria is an art house horror film that is a bit too convoluted at the beginning and too obvious at the end. Somewhere in the middle, however, there’s an interesting tale of horror, thrills, and gore (lots and lots of gore). The film from director Luca Guadagnino throws us immediately into the odd world as we struggle to make sense of the rambling incoherence of a troubled girl (Chloë Grace Moretz) to her psychiatrist (Tilda Swinton). While initially dismissing the story as nothing more than the ravings of a troubled mind, Dr. Klemperer becomes more concerned once the girl goes missing and begins looking more closely at the prestigious dance company that may have driven her to an early grave.

At the same time, the school admits a talented American student (Dakota Johnson) who quickly becomes a favorite of Madame Blanc (also Swinton). Despite being the newest student, Susie (Johnson) shows a remarkable understanding of the dance company’s trademark piece (which it turns out is far more than a simple dance). The film features one terrific scene which clues audiences in on the power of the dance while Susie, apparently, remains unaware.

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Science Fair

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  • Title: Science Fair
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Science Fair movie reviewDirectors Cristina Costantini and Darren Foster‘s documentary Science Fair takes a cross-section of students from across the world earning entries into Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Including interviews from past winners to provide context for the prestigious event, the focus on the documentary are the students who competed for the top prize in 2017. Featuring interviews and documentary footage of winning individual science fairs to earn entry into ISEF, Science Fair is a compelling look at the top scientific high school minds taking their first step into a larger world.

While not all the subjects of the documentary will win, Costantini and Foster take care to showcase the intense dedication each has to their project (astounding work with real-world applications to help make the world a better place). The subjects range from teams from the most prestigious magnet school in the United States and the science teacher pushing her students to succeed, to entries from Brazil and Germany, and a shy young woman in South Dakota whose school is more concerned with their losing football team than her qualification for ISEF.

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Bohemian Rhapsody

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  • Title: Bohemian Rhapsody
  • IMDb: link

Bohemian Rhapsody movie reviewWhile Bohemian Rhapsody had a troubled road to make its way to the big screen (including firing director Bryan Singer halfway through production), the biopic centered around the lead singer of British rock band Queen satisfies largely due to a terrific lead performance from Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury and the band’s extensive discography that fills the film with music without needing to repeat itself.

One of the most interesting choices of the film is using the music of Queen not just to underline specific events and themes but foreshadow, and even explore, them. Staying true to the biopic formula, Singer and his cast deliver a film that builds slowly, focused primarily on Mercury (to the detriment of the other band members) and climaxes in Queen’s performance at Live Aid which provides true movie magic.

While not as inventive as the Queen themselves, the film is a fitting tribute to the band’s legacy, a humorous response to those who wrote the band off early on, and a nod to the band working to include the audience in their music, particularly the live performance. It also proves to be an intriguing character study of Mercury himself.

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