Tag: movie-reviews

Twisters “Review” & Longlegs “Review

Release date: July 19, 2024 (USA)

Director: Lee Isaac Chung

Music by: Benjamin Wallfisch

Story by: Joseph Kosinski

Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures, Universal Pictures

Based on: Characters; by: Michael Crichton; Anne-Marie Martin

Debated separating these two reviews as I’m behind. To be honest you’re not missing out on anything so lets tame the beast of these two.

Twisters starts off with a fun group of characters and loved seeing Nik Dodani…..however, that’s shortly lived before you’re left with the worst character of the movie Javi played by Anthony Ramos.

Every time he was on screen I was tuning out. I’d have cut his whole character out. Focused on David Corenswet (The new Superman) being the opposing group and made a better movie.

There’s some stakes created about an hour in. That’s ruined by the lack luster energy going into the finale. It’s not a bad movie, but it’s only just above average with a tornado level of 5.5 / 6 out of 10.

Loved Glen Powell and his wrangler buddy. The tornado wranglers were the best parts of the movie. Honestly thinking back to how tuned out I was after that intro I’d go with a 5.5 / 10 barely above average movie. Let’s get into Longlegs a better movie but still only a 1 time viewing experience.

Release date: July 12, 2024 (USA)

Director: Oz Perkins

Distributed by: Neon

Budget: <$10 million

Cinematography: Andrés Arochi

Produced by: Dan Kagan; Brian Kavanaugh-Jones; Nicolas Cage; Dave Caplan; Chris Ferguson

It’s a good thing these movies are cheap to make because this is very niche audience focused horror movie. I wont spoil this movie as for some, this is a good movie with some aspects preventing it from being better.

On the contrary the reason why people don’t like this movie as much are the reasons why I enjoyed it. So check it out and be prepared for a slow burn of a feature before getting into the good stuff.

Even then the good stuff is short lived with Nicolas Cage on screen. I wanted more from his character! That being said this had some excellent performances in moments however it wasn’t enough to keep myself and my brother in law engaged as he ended up falling asleep during this.

A 1 time viewing experience for sure but I wouldn’t go above a 6.5/10 into a solid good. Just a good for this one.

All going well next week Deadpool & Wolverine comes to save the end of summer 2024. Some gems dropping between then and November. Let me know what Fall movies you’re looking forward to after D&W.

Thanks for reading this double dose of ehh and here’s hoping we can fill the top 10 with 9’s before December. I believe there’s 4 more titles left to bump off then the true contenders fight it out for the 2024 top 10 list for Popped. Blog

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Kill(Hindi) “Review”

Release date: July 4, 2024 (USA)

Director: Nikhil Nagesh Bhat

Distributed by: AA Films

Production companies: Dharma Productions; Sikhya Entertainment

This is the first Hindi movie I’ve seen in quite some time and the trailer does a good job to prepare you for what type of movie this is.

On the other hand I didn’t do my job of explaining the movie to my wife whom had a very different experience.

Let’s get into the “Review” shall we.

Kill is almost two movies which takes roughly 45 minutes to setup the movie Kill that is shown in the trailer. I was pretty much hooked from the get go with some small character setup and introduction into what “Kill” was.

I wont go into spoilers as this was a true rollercoaster of a movie but this earns its R rating for sure. Packed with SO MUCH ACTION and intense amount of gore. My wife was cringing and eerring during this movie.

Sadly though the first 45 minutes despite having my attention. Had my wife bored and asking how long has this movie been on for. Then the tables shifted as the movie “Started” and everything we’d had seen thus far was child’s play in comparison.

It would have been nice to learnt more about certain characters and their groups (Without going into spoilers). Without setup from other sources, it was confusing going in trying to understand who’s who and who belongs to who’s group. You work it out by the time the film “starts” however that could be a hurdle at first for the films pacing.

Pacing was what killed it for my wife. While I’m at an 8/9 my wife was at a 3. An hour in we get an epic sound track you expect from a Bollywood movie. We ended up coming out of the film at an 8.5 for myself and a 5 for my wife. She’d watch this on streaming where I’d be happy to watch this again on the big screen.

Sadly my local theatre ends it’s showtimes today but hopefully you’ll be able to catch it somewhere near you or on streaming at some point down the road.

Thanks for joining us here at Popped! For another Popped “Review”, Longlegs should be up this weekend and Twisters next week before we get the big chimichanga movie that is Deadpool & Wolverine :D.

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Despicable Me 4 “Review”

Release date: July 3, 2024 (USA)

Directors: Chris Renaud, Patrick Delage

Distributed by: Universal Pictures

Box office: $25.4 million

Music by: Heitor Pereira (score); Pharrell Williams (songs and themes)

Produced by: Chris Meledandri; Brett Hoffman

This will be a shorter “Review” as by now you’ve probably seen the first 3 and learnt the formula to these movies.

“Despicable Me 4” delivers another hit with its signature mix of humor and heart. This installment delights fans with a blend of new characters and beloved favorites, showcasing the continued growth of our favorite personalities.

Poppy stands out as a fantastic addition to the crew, bringing a fresh dynamic to the group dynamics. As is the summer trend Poppy has a cat which stars in one my favorite scenes.

The movie is a great fun ride that keeps audiences entertained throughout, mostly. Making “Despicable Me 4” a must-watch for fans of the series and scoring a Popped score of 8/10.

By the way, unless your little one is enjoying the minions flying/floating across the screen there’s nothing at the end of this movie. Saving you 6minutes.

Story Time

If you’d like to know a little more about this film then let’s carry on shall we.

Due to some rivalry based on an incident during Gru’s child hood. A new villain whom has his own minion army (That of cockroaches) has escaped maximum prison and is out to take Gru’s newly born baby son.

Placing the Gru family into a safe house by the AVL company. This forks our story between the Gru family living as a “normal” family with 3 assisting minions. With the remainder minion army going off to the AVL. Thus the Mega Minions were born (Queue the power puff girl theme tune).

Enjoy seeing our loveable bunch living in their new lives while flipping back and forth to our heroic minion fantastic 5 crew “Saving” the lives of everyday citizens.

Hope you enjoy and as I mentioned from the top. Another hit addition to this franchise but quite possibly the final one? Unless they keep coming up with new villains / missions this felt pretty wrapped up for Gru. Maybe the kids take over next? Another recent trend for bigger movie franchises.

Thanks for reading everyone, appreciate your time and support.

If you’re celebrating the 4th of July happy 4th everyone! For everyone else around the globe, enjoy “Despicable Me 4” only in theatres!

Popped Review – 8/10 “Despicable Me 4”

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Fly me to the moon “Review”

Release date: July 12, 2024 (USA)

Director: Greg Berlanti

Story by: Bill Kirstein; Keenan Flynn

Distributed by: Columbia Pictures

Budget: $100 million

Music by: Daniel Pemberton

With this being an early showing and yet to be released I wont go into spoilers. However the trailer does pretty much set the scene for this just over 2 hour ride.

“Fly Me to the Moon” takes viewers on a journey that’s both emotional and visually captivating, albeit with a few bumps along the way. The film’s greatest strength lies in its stellar cast, who deliver performances that truly elevate the narrative. Each actor brings depth and authenticity to their roles, making the characters memorable and relatable.

One of the unexpected delights of the film is the cat, whose presence adds a quirky charm to the story. It’s amusing to see cats becoming such a prominent feature in movies this summer, but hey, I’m not complaining! This feline actor holds its own among the human stars, providing moments of levity and even some surprising emotional weight.

The film does take its time to get going, with a first hour that feels a tad slow. However, this deliberate pacing serves to set up the second half, which is where “Fly Me to the Moon” truly shines. The buildup pays off with a gripping and impactful conclusion that is both satisfying and thought-provoking.

In summary, “Fly Me to the Moon” is a film that rewards patience. It’s not without its flaws, but with great acting and a powerful ending, it manages to leave a lasting impression. If you can appreciate a slow burn and have a fondness for well-acted dramas (and cats), this movie is worth the watch.

I was back and forth on the rating, however using my scaling chart I’d go with a 7/10 just locking in the 7 as I could see myself watching this again down the road. Great watch and excited to hear your thoughts once the movie officially releases come July 12th.

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A Quiet Place: Day One “Review”

Release date: June 27, 2024 (USA)

Director: Michael Sarnoski

Story by: John Krasinski; Michael Sarnoski

Budget: $67 million

Distributed by: Paramount Pictures

Based on: Characters; by Bryan Woods; Scott Beck

I’ll be separating this “review” as two parts:

Part 1 Spoiler Free – Part 2 Spoiler “Discussion”

Spoiler Free “Review”

If you’re a cat person or even more so a cat parent this movie will have you on the edge of your seat. Best character was the cat. We’re introduced to our therapy cat when Sam, our main human character played by Lupita Nyong’o is in a hospital being treated for her cancer.

You decide, is Sam driven by the love of pizza. The love of her father and the small things in life or the power of companionship? Something to think about as you watch this third installment that’s a prequel to the Quite Place franchise.

As seen in the trailers and it didn’t occur until seeing him in the movie. But Henri played by Djimon Hounsou is the guy from the island in Part 2. Possibly next year with the third part we’ll get to see what’s going on with him and the family we were introduced to in Part 1.

With the movie having a lot of quite scenes sadly they ran a little long or got boring before momentum built back up once more. Something keeping this movie back from being great is it never felt like the characters were in danger unless they purposefully did something stupid to get themselves into dire consequences.

Our other character alongside Sam is Eric played by Joseph Quinn. I’m not sure his connection to the franchise if any but these three human characters are played well enough. Sadly I just never connected with them and had all my focus on the cat.

This movies energy felt like part 2 rather than part 1. Nothing really seemed to have happened. No stakes were planted to keep you engaged. I really hope for part 3 to possibly wrap this franchise up, they look back at what made Part 1 so great and focus on that energy and feeling. I want the silence to feel impactful. I want to be silenced myself as I’m along side the characters on screen.

It’s moments attempted to create connection that failed and when they failed it prevented this movie getting on my possible re-watch list. With that I’d give A Quiet Place: Day One a 6.5/10. It’s another installment to this franchise giving “origins” to some characters that maybe we’ll get to see developed in a later installment. Let’s hope they find the secret formula before they create to many installments and ruin the franchise with mediocrity.

Spoiler “Discussion”

Some light spoiler discussion.

Who turned off the car alarm twice in this movie? (Yes the scenes were that quite / long / boring I had these thoughts in my head).

Is this an advertisement for therapy animals? Specifically by maybe a cat adoption agency or for hospital therapy?

How comes they talked during scenes with no surrounding noise when they already established they can only talk with surrounding noises? Continuity is a little broken in scenes. (Don’t worry no Abigail rants for this one).

Little bigger spoiler talk

When everyone is being evacuated already being informed to stay quite……wtf did a bunch of people start screaming O.o. Stupid!

It’s the decisions the humans made that kept me from being attached to anyone but the cat.

Does the cat make it? It was on my mind the whole time. Guess you’ll have to watch the movie to find out.

7/10 for cat lovers.

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The Watchers “Review”

Release date: June 7, 2024 (USA)

Director: Ishana Night Shyamalan

Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures

Based on: The Watchers; by A. M. Shine

Cinematography: Eli Arenson

Music by: Abel Korzeniowski

I didn’t know this was based on a horror novel until now. Fun fact 😀 – The Night Shyamalan family name was what brought my interest into this film. The Watchers was directed by his daughter Ishana Night Shyamalan.

Her prior works were “Old” back in 2021 along with “Knock at the Cabin” in 2023 as a second unit director to her father who Directed them both. Knowing this information I can definitely see her style coming through which sets her apart from her fathers work. If Old was a dud, Cabin had promise, then I see her work improving which may give insight into this review before diving into the movie itself.

The Watchers sets this movie up perfectly to hook your interest. Some of the most epic of designs shown without being shown to the viewer. Less is more approach was taken and the sound work was let loose to captivate.

The feature introduces the audience to this expansive world within an untouched forest in western Ireland. We find ourselves following the story from the perspective of Mina and her MVP of a bird.

Something strange is going on within this forest, many individuals have gotten lost never to return. What happens when one goes past the sign of no return?

Well the Watchers shall be sure to inform you of this rather quickly upon nightfall. Stay within the light. Don’t turn your back to the mirror. Don’t open the door after dark and don’t go near the burrows. The Watchers see you but you don’t see them.

This will be a non spoiler review so I’ll be vague until the end when I tag spoiler section for all to be prepared.

Mina finds herself joining 3 other individuals whom fate aligns with her own. Stay within the shelter at night. Venture out during the day for resources / food and surrender this as her new way of living.

I’ll leave the story here for you to explore and if interested in somewhat more of a tease stick around for the tid bit spoiler section at the end.

I mentioned it earlier but I can’t express my love enough over the sound work in this film. I felt like things were around me. There was literally a scene that stole my breath away in complete tension. Who every created these watchers made the coolest designs.

Now before jumping into spoiler ish town. I’m giving this a personal rating of 6.5/10. It could have been a 7 and for others maybe a 7.5 however without going into further details I’d love you to explore this title and let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Spoilers ish Town

Less is more was a key, however the more you see of these Watchers the less I was intrigued and more disappointed the film went a generic direction.

If you’re into D&D / Lore & Fantasy then you could very well dive into this feature and have a feast of it. That’s why my 6.5 – 7.5 rating comes from as you may enjoy the feature more or less upon those factors.

Not knowing this was based on a book I felt the story should have ended 20 minutes earlier and left to be baked in the oven a little more to flesh out an epic sequel.

It had what it needed to be a solid great movie but ended up being a good movie. I had a good time and enjoyed the journey. Just sad the film fumbled the ending.

Looking on the wiki I see this was impacted by the SAG-AFTRA strike. Maybe the book has a different ending and there’s hope for what made the beginning and middle so awesome?

Lastly yellow bird MVP.

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Haikyu!! The Movie “Review”

Release date: May 31, 2024 (USA)

Director: Susumu Mitsunaka

Distributed by: Toho Co., Ltd.

Adapted from: Haikyu!!

Welcome back to Popped everyone it’s been a little while and same goes for this anime Haikyu!!

Looking up when this series last released it was back in 2020 if you want to revisit those times. This series began back in 2014 and decided to wrap up with anime with 2 movies.

Dumpster Battle is part 1 of those 2 movies. Literally without missing a beat I felt as the film picked up from the end of season 4. Doing a great job for those new to this series you could jump in and get hyped with this movie alone and watch these parts alone or catch up with the 4 seasons prior to part 2 releasing.

Honestly a shorter review of sorts as this is literally a part 1 of a series finally so going over story would spoil the series. That being said if you came because you enjoyed the show then you’re going to love it as it felt like an extended episode focused on our main character and his friend/rival in the tournament that’s occurring to wrap this series up.

It feels like part 2 will have to pack a lot into it however that’s the path chosen for this show and I’ll be there for the finale. A solid 7 /10 from myself. Looking forward to the next sports anime unless I give Blue Lock a go prior to his first feature length film.

Let me know your thoughts down below of this movie for Haikyu and I’ll see you again in the next batch. Potentially Furiosa & Babes which I’ve yet to catch up on.

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IF “Review”

Release date: May 17, 2024 (USA)

Director: John Krasinski

Distributed by: Paramount Pictures

Box office: $59 million

Cinematography: Janusz Kamiński

Edited by: Christopher Rouse; Andy Canny

Watched this movie Thursday evening and a mixture of being busy and not caring enough sadly for this film I waited till now to write up this review.

If you have kids by the way I do highly recommend this feature. It’s just my 34 practically 35 year old self where the last 30 minutes I was honestly falling asleep (I was tired so any “boring” hit me hard).

The trailers kept the content shown very specific and direct on its focus of the IF’s. Literally leading up to the start we had 4 minutes of pre show going over the different IF’s and about the movie. Someone by me said “They just showed the movie and spoiled it” mind you 30 minutes from then you could hear them laughing and having a good time.

IF is a heartwarming movie that beautifully portrays the theme of “The power of imagination & the everlasting bond with our imaginary friends”.

*Potential spoiler warning*

The story delves into the emotional journey of dealing with loss, both in childhood & adulthood. Showing how these imaginary companions can serve as pillars of support throughout our lives.

I was enjoying this feature until roughly the last 30minutes where the story took a path, I felt was aimed toward children than the story route I had personally been on till this point. While I would personally rate IF as a 6.5 / 10, it does shine through its cute narrative and heartfelt moments that tug at the heartstrings. IF captures the essence of innocence & resilience, making it a touching tale for audiences of all ages.

The final scene at the end of the movie was the journey I personally wanted to see but again if you have children I’d strongly recommend IF.

Performances all round were great and Cailey Flemin crushed her scenes which in particular without spoilers made certain scenes in the hospital my favorite scenes.

It’s sad that Garfield arrives this coming week which will totally walk over IF specially in the states as it’s a holiday weekend. With some breathing room before Inside Out 2 I hope IF does well and I look forward to the emotions you unlock and feel as you watch IF in theatres.

Thank you all very much for coming by Popped for another movie review. Birthday is on the 21st and I’m excited for a few movies coming up this weekend. Garfield review should be here Thursday morning the 23rd. Wuvering Waves releases the night of 22nd and Furiosa is coming out this weekend also which are both on my top 10 predication list which I’ve just updated totals for IF.

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Last Stop In Yuma County “Review”

Release date: May 10, 2024 (USA)

Director & Written by: Francis Galluppi

Cinematography: Mac Fisken

Music by: Mathew Compton

Produced by: Matt O’Neill, Atif Malik & Francis Galluppi

Distributed by: Well Go USA Entertainment

What an unexpected delight and treat after yesterday’s viewings. I was going to watch Planet of the Apes once more however decided to check out Last Stop In Yuma County. I’m so pleasantly happy to have made this decision.

Not seeing a trailer and intrigued by the high reviews coming out I had no idea what I was sitting down to watch. Within the first 15minutes I was eating up Rhubarb Pie and loving it. If you’re unsure, I feel like by 15 minutes you’d know if this movie is for you or not.

Last Stop In Yuma County excels in creating an intense sense of suspense that keeps audience on the edge of their seats throughout. The expertly crafted atmosphere, enhanced by the captivating music, truly elevates the viewing experience.

A standout aspect of the film was how well the characters are seamlessly integrated into the story. Their depth and development play a crucial role in building tension and adding layers to the unfolding narrative. The gradual unraveling of the tale, fueled by the interactions between the characters, is masterfully executed and keeps viewers engrossed from start to finish.

As I said from the top, within 15 minutes you’ll know if this movie is something you’ll eat up or save for later when you catch it on digital.

To keep it brief for those that hadn’t watched a trailer prior to this review. This is a spectacular movie that introduces you to a scenario where you simply go to fuel up before hitting the road at the final gas station of Yuma County. However the truck from that morning has yet to arrive and thus you either wait for the truck in your vehicle or take a seat within the attached diner and wait for gas.

Now throw on some gasoline to the situation with two individuals rolling in whom happen to have just robbed a bank that very morning and there you have your thriller movie Last Stop In Yuma County. A gem of a movie that climbed from a 7 to 8.5 and finished personally at a 9/10 feature.

Loved the cast, they all did a fantastic job and I want to go no further as you take a seat with some Rhubarb Pie that you’ll die for experiencing this spectacle.

Appreciate you coming by and checking out another Popped Review ❤ special shout out to DirtySciFiBuddha for liking several of my most recent reviews and others of the Popped community like Jerzona, Raven, Foxreviewsrock, Bacco Lu & DanLovesFilm. You’re all awesome and I appreciate you taking the time to check out Popped Reviews.

Beware of potential spoilers ahead:

Just watched the trailer for first time after writing this review….. Unless you want to see the movie. Avoid the trailer haha. I think it still holds up as the movie was executed so well however that trailer is filled with spoilers.

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Poolman “Review”

Release date: May 10, 2024 (USA)

Director: Chris Pine

Distributed by: Vertical

Production companies: AGC Studios; Shiny Penny; Wicious Pictures; CatchLight Studios; Barry Linen Motion Pictures

For a movie not on my list what so ever and happen to see it releasing this week with 3 other titles the dice were rolled. When a 3 sided die is rolled 9 times and there’s 3 1’s,2’s &3’s the decision was made to watch all 3. If it wasn’t to try hit 50 movies in 2024 I truly would have been home watching WWE as during this performance it was announced: Logan vs Cody!

What can I say about this movie other than it was very slow only picking up at the final 30 minute mark and didn’t get me interested until then. The trailer did a fantastic job drawing me in unlike the film did.

With such an incredible cast I was hoping this would have been the better movie of the day. I was bored. Everyone did a fine job with their acting. The story once it picked up was okay. But it wasn’t anything worth sticking around an hour to get into the slight interesting content.

The film is about a Los Angeles pool cleaner Darren Barrenman played by Chris Pine as he’s approached by a femme fatale to help uncover corruption in a shady business deal.

If you’re into the movie by this point then maybe it’s a movie for yourself. I’ve watched slow movies before that were worth the pay off getting to the end. I’ve watched artsy movies that have entertained and intrigued my curiosity. But sadly nothing hit and thus it makes the number 1 slot for me personally on my bottom 5 movies of 2024 thus far.

But hey May 25th is looking very cool specially since that’s my wife’s birthday :D. We’re going out on the 18th for an event and doing nothing on the 21st for mine so maybe I’ll get to watch this match before we go out for dinner.

That aside, go watch Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, have an epic time and I’ll go finish the 3 movies that released this weekend by watching “The Last Stop in Yuma County” and hopefully have a better time than the performances watched today.

Do you have a bottom 5 list yet for 2024? How about movies you’re looking forward to in Summer and the remainder of 2024? Let me know in the comments and keep an eye on my 2024 lists tab on the home page to follow along with my predictions of Summer 2024 Grossing.

Thank you all for reading another popped review and I’ll see you right back here tomorrow.

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