Rocketman

Fascinating, riveting, perhaps all true, perhaps all a part of the man's delusional state during his drugged up periods. No one truly knows. Really good, really good.

overall it accomplished what a biopic actually should do, help you understand the man behind the legend. It dissects Elton to his smallest elements, honestly yeah, not a film about Elton John, but the man, the broken, complicated man no one really got to see behind the pomp and celebrity.

It's a lot like Ray, both about brilliant pianists and their stories. Is piano and drugs linked or something? What else can I compare it to... scratching at the thought... there have been actually quite  few biopics of genius musicians that are similar that I've seen... Besides this one being very musical styled, yeah this does remind me a lot of that beatles one, kinda in the same vein as the tom hanks movie that thing you do... well it's a very inspired film. Oh I got it, that movie I saw once about Frankie Lymon or whatever his name is. Anyway, I think the film makers knew we'd kinda had movies like this before so it didn't bother retreading all that same old stuff. Regular guy becomes super star celeb, ends up doing drugs and crashes and burns, then goes and gets help, wash rinse repeat.

The true story here is about the screwed up family Elton John came from and his struggle with his demons and lonliness. It doesn't at all say he's healed, he's done with his struggles, it doesn't say that, but it says he's found a way... found a way to come to some sanity. I was thinking, that's all we can do... this world will indeed strip you raw of any sense of decency and sanity you have. What does one cling to to stay afloat in it. Luckily despite trying to kill himself for years, he did have true friends to rely on and that leveled him out. Plus it hints that his old self was dead, and he embraced being Elton John, not that he was ever going to be who he was in the past ever again. It's kinda tragic that way. We get to know young Reginald, then we have to watch him get lost in Elton John, but Elton John is a great person so he himself accepts what he's become....  Glad I decided to go see it...

So I don't know what to tell everyone. There are some great movies in theaters now... I recommend Shaft. Rocketman though that's on its way out. Godzilla's fine, thrilled me. Avoid Dark Phoenix, nope doesn't work... uh, I mean if you have kids begging to see it, yeah toy story 4, Aladdin, fine, not all that, but it's ok. But yeah consider going and spending money on something that's really powerful experience, that's my advice.

Toy Story 3 redux

That's what I felt it was after seeing it. It truly is the official Toy Story 3 in my mind... Though I have to admit to myself I didn't feel it was totally needed or even added much that hasn't already been said by the previous two sequels. Lots of missed opportunities to include or continue story lines left over from the first film or bring more depth to the new characters, and eh, it's a little under cooked is the best way to describe it. It feels "new" pixar not the old pixar that was aiming for near perfection.

I saw or glanced more movies than that one today... A few thoughts on movie going for me. It is harder now. I don't particularly like going and being around other people's kids, or feeling so damn alien and out of place. I've already experienced the reflexive antagonism towards blacks that's imbedded in all people outside that nappy african world.... I know how emo that sounds, and maybe I should f'n stop being a pussy and deal with the facts of life, but it's how I feel. It's hard to fit into the way society is so f'n tight butt about us blacks walking around in it. It's a shame and I think it damn sucks. You just feel like, Oh lawdy lawd better not piss off them white folk and their kids, oohh lawwdy lawwd. Am I thinking that shit in 2019? For real? Fuck them damn kids...

Well it's a very mixed bag film. Jokes are tossed every which way and some work great others not really... Essentially it's about wtf happened to Bo Peep's character. It's kinda movie that simply would not even have happened if Toy Story 3 didn't suddenly have Bo Peep just not in it... The flash back at the beginning should have been in Toy Story 3 to explain or even point out the fact that this happens, toys get sold or given to new kids. Kinda the main plot of TS3 so it would have foreshadowed what Andy would do, give away his toys...

Andy's constantly present in the film despite his being long gone and that part is amazingly well done... But it makes Bonnie seem insignificant to Woody, etc. And ultimately the film concludes that she is. She's just this new Andy who one day will drop them all off at a garage sale or something one day and the show's over... I guess I have to re-watch toy story 3 to try to get my head around this stuff. Is this movie basically re-telling the same story of Woody's fear of his owner growing up and not knowing what he's going to do when that happens??? It basically does. Woody's main issue in this is the same one he had with Andy. What will he do when Bonnie grows up? The last film and even Toy Story 2 conclude that Woody bringing joy to a child matters more than whatever the fate will be for him and his friends... fine... but then this film backpaddles and says fuck it, who cares about having only one kid, let's have an infinite amount by being played with at a carnival or wherever... so yeah it contradicts the message of the other two films, or am I wrong on that? I just don't know... That's what I took away. I'm happy for Woody but that theme is sloppily handled in this film as Woody does indeed abandon Bonnie who apparently doesn't much care for him, so he says screw that kid....

My movie would have had Woody kinda actually become collectible figure at Andy's Toy museum and store or something, some damn thing to make his ending not seem so open and inconclusive... I have some thoughts and grievances as a true old school toy story fan not the new generation of punks who don't know a damn thing about the classic original and only like the silly jive talkin black sounding dolls. Is this coonery in a big budget pixar toy story movie, did I just watch that shit? No shame?

Self aware movie too, like it knew it wasn't that good, so it said f it and just told tons of jokes to compensate for the weak story. As for where it stands, I do indeed place it above toy story 3, but it does not touch 1 or 2, those are truly solid, well done toy story films. Not really a fan of 3 and 4 seems like a remake of 3 because they knew 3 was hot ass.

Saw chucky or caught its ending... I thought it was rather pedestrian, passable... nothing hyperbolic like the youtube reviews say. It's ok, shit ending, not that spectacular really. Comparable to any by the numbers average horror movie. It's not that bad not that great.

Also glanced shaft. Now that's a good movie.... surprised cuz I was thinking it'd be what the reviews say and Tim Story is a lame director to me, but it was f'n great at points. The guy playing shaft's son he's pretty decent and doesn't distract you with his blandness too much though he disappears in scenes featuring real much better actors, but he still brings something... Sam Jackson is just having fun, and that's why the movie works. It's like just watching a day in the life of Sam Jackson and he's having fun and not just doing the movie for a check. The movie does TRY. It's not what the reviews say. It's good. Wanted to just stay in the Shaft universe oh man.... I miss that universe... I was there for the first Sam Jackson Shaft. Seeing him back, and no, any review saying he's not playing the same shaft is bullshit. That same pissed off, take no shit attitude is exactly who he was in the first movie... Sam knows what he's doing...

Gonna be checking out Rocketman since I do indeed love Elton John, who the hell doesn't...

Lastly, some dude who's popular online has commited suicide. Ending this on a happy note aren't I? Well I did indeed come across his stuff on youtube one day so I do know the guy existed and was rather amused by his weird antics online... He literally killed himself because of the internet. Fuck... Because of what? Dude? If there ever was a case of being out of touch with reality it's his. I feel sad for anyone who lives online and lets the internet take away their sense of normalcy to that extent. Gladly I grew up in dial up days. Thank God I remember not having this shit. Damn, that does take balls, post a youtube suicide video, then actually jump off a bridge... I guess it does. Wow, just no justifiable reason to do it imo. The net is nonsense, ignore it... don't let people get to you on this thing.... trust me...

All Flat

My little review of the new All That...

I'm not going to be nice. I'm not going to be mr. kid friendly so if you don't want to read honest thoughts then fine go read the safe studio approved comments or reviews which is sadly what the net has degenerated into, corporate sycophants and their politics back and forth.

Watched it. I'm an All That maniac, was literally there watching the show in all its ups downs, side ways, weird and mediocre and great comedy bits.

Well I'm 33 years old now, honestly it's kinda like watching some damn nick jr show or something at this point, i'm gonna say they're not aiming for me. But I did always kinda feel like All That catered to all ages to some extent. It wasn't insulting to your intelligence. Nothing much on Nick was back in its golden era. I detested anything on the network that was purely stupid and didn't try to be good in any way.

And All That was a ground breaking comedy show. It was primarily Black and Latino inspired. I gravitated towards that because I was what they were representing funny urban hip 90s comedy... so it fit my whole personality really... It didn't feel white. It had hip hop acts, was called "all that" black slang, and the intro was practically a rap video.... Nick had the balls to do black inspired tv shows back then and it worked.

This one is not black enough. It's not... It's freakin, waaaaay too safe and the kids are too damn young. It's like watching a damn faggy disney show... I liked that some of original all that cast was kinda attractive and hot and were more mature. Freakin go watch the show, they were teens and were pretty far beyond puberty not little children. I don't care to watch children doing anything for any length of time. And the greatest joke of the original All that was that, they took the kids and made them ACT like adults, no one generally acted like kids though they were kids. The show had some kind of internal disdain of childhood or something. It didn't mind taking more mature routes with its bits.

I'm torn. I want this to be good, but it's tired. The show's not what it was and not what it should be which is a massively more contemporary version. Acknowledging that time has passed, that we're in a technologically advanced era. Maybe people don't even watch tv anymore. They can't... it's what it is. It's a 90s show's corpse being dragged back to life in 2019. It's not fitting and it's not there yet. Maybe it will be... All I know is that All That had a weirdness to it that felt like it came from the cast, not that the cast was normal and then tossed into a blender of weirdness. Kel still has it, Lori, Josh. They are freaks. They're freaks like ME. The whole original All That cast before it becamse tame and normal was full of freak actors who had some screws loose and that's what made it work... These new babies. They're f'n babies. They know nothing about life yet and are still too young. They have not had their spirits crushed and metelle tested by life yet, I don't see them in the same vein as the original tough sobs that really were talented comedians working very very hard on that show.

Gonna have to step it up. Not impressed...

Like nothing caught me and made me say WOW... that's not All That. That's not All That. If the show doesn't make you say WOOOOOOOOW, then it's just drake and josh or some stupid mediocre shit like that... Nothing against the kids, lovely, but yeah its not their fault, they're doing the best they can and they're little and don't know anything.

Would have preferred the game shakers girls. They were Nick Kids... and by now they're older and have earned their stripes. Surprised they were not asked to be on this show, they were the new All That to me the way they acted. Odd decision... well that's all..

Aladdin

I've been debating whether to review it here... Ultimately I conclude since I was around when the original came out, it's relevant for me to discuss it...

Yeah, I remember the time of the original Aladdin vividly. I went to the movies rarely since my family didn't do movies much, I mean, when we did go it was rare as crap or in one instance I was invited to my friend's birthday party and was taken to the movies during that time so that was how I got to experience the theater for the first time. That was magic.

I saw the Aladdin name on the side of the theater back then, even saw posters in the lobby. Me and my family were all about jurassic park and that was what dominated that time period more than any of the disney stuff and that was a mistake. I later viewed Aladdin on VHS and it would have blown my face off in the theater if I actually went to see it back then, probably could have if I just asked hard enough but I remember thinking I don't care about that movie...

What's up with this live action remake jazz going on. Am I for or against it. I'm like thinking this isn't really my cup of tea. It only diminishes the original's greatness to make an inferior rehash with little to no changes or enhancements or anything... It's akin to something like King Kong or like the thousandth peter pan retelling. In essence this movie reminded me so much of the 2003 peter pan. Good but if I had the option, I'd stick with the disney movie, or fox's peter pan and the pirates, so much more creative juices flowing in those versions. Hell even Hook warrants a mention, it's so different its a cult classic...

Same thing different year. It's just the original Aladdin story but done with will smith and slightly changed, but I found myself bored when it just retreaded the exact beats and story elements and even dialogue of the original film. Those moments brought the film down and just made no sense to include. I wondered why they didn't bother cutting out the repeated bits or do something new with it.

Laziness sadly. They were lazy and didn't want to spice it up too much. Only when they did and added totally different stuff was it actually good and engaging, otherwise you're just watching weak sauce live action Aladdin parody or something.

Not saying I'd have wanted MORE gilbert Godfrey as Iago but yeah, this Iago is a non-entity and has no flare or nothing... forgotten him already.

Are there better movies that tell a similar story and are more interesting? Yeah, just go watch arabian nights tv movie for starters, infinitely more interesting and deep and that was hell of a lot less budget and money but it doesn't trying to so hard to be a robin williams classic it's just being its own thing...

It's a decent flick is the best I can say about it... sorta like john carter of mars or mary poppins returns (perfect analogy same story told without as much punch)  and the guy who plays Aladdin is such a fanboy of Aladdin, he saves the film for me because of his earnestness to hit the same exact tone of the original Aladdin performance and capture Aladdin's soul in live action. That's where the movie wins most. Yes it's just a bland boring re-read of the original Aladdin script, but the actors have a passion for the story and it does come through. They grew up on it and none of them betray the soul of the original characters and tries to make us all see them as the real deal, that part was enjoyable. Otherwise, it's a the same thing you have at home on blu ray but watered down and not that different, they played it pretty safe honestly.... which is not even what the original aladdin did, I must say... that movie's pretty ballsy in places and that's what I liked in Disney movies back in the day. Yes fun for kids and stuff, but not insultingly saccharine... And lastly, it's a musical, but the musical parts are completely disjointed and don't fit... This has got to be one of the most internally conflicted musicals films ever made. The movie is not shot like a musical, only 3 characters sing, there's no feeling of this being a magical musical world where anyone can break the 4th wall at any time. Yet we have random singing bits that honestly don't impact or mean anything except to stand out and look parody-ish. You can see the embarrassment to be singing in the middle of a scene on the actor's faces. Even they know the movie would have worked fine without breaking out in song. It needed more narration so it could feel like a classic story being told through song and dance, not a legit movie that just happens to have songs sprinkled in it... they dropped the ball on that one...

Anyway it's good for the kids.... If you're expecting something new and amazing, no not really....