Movie Review: Zootopia

As time as gone by, I have gotten a lot of request. However, I have noticed that I can't review every movie, unless I will be just going on without a structure. So, before going on with the review, I am going to establish my 3 rules.

1. DVD/Blu-Ray release only. I can't do a written review of anything in the theater because last time I sat through a movie in the theater I didn't like, I felt like I got robbed. I don't like that feeling, because it leads to pure rage.
2. No documentaries. Each of these have a focused audience, and talking about them, whether I am a part of that audience or not, is pretty pointless.
3. No R-Rated movies. I have to warn people about certain content. If I miss something, they are mad at me, because this is basically free advertisement. I'm saying this because I got a request for Pulp Fiction, and that review will mostly be me warning about content and scenes. I don't want to do that.

I put these rules with the review, because Zootopia not only fits these rules (it came out on DVD earlier this week), but it is one I feel I didn't give it the proper review when I first saw it. Not only is it my favorite film of the current year so far, it is the best Disney film I have seen as an adult. I had struggles with Disney movies after 2006, I had some issues with every one of them. I even had a change of heart towards Frozen as I have watched it after my original review.

The Pros: These are some of the best characters I have ever seen from Disney. Major and Minor characters all have their own personalities and they all leave an impact in one way or another.
Visually, the film does a fantastic job making full use of an animals separate quirks and characteristics into the world. Rabbits have a small hop in their walks, sloths have slow movements, all the mammals match the animals they are based one and it is used to create this world that is build to fit all their needs.
It is a complete story! You know how hard that is to find nowadays? There is no baiting for a sequel, no plot holes, no stupid plot twist, and NO POST CREDITS SCENES. Everything in the movie adds up and I actually left with a feeling of full satisfaction. Even in 2014 and 2015, my favorite films of those years, I left waiting for a sequel and not feeling complete. Yeah, I loved those movies, but it's like getting a good steak. However, Zootopia felt like not only getting a good steak, but also getting some great sides with it (Mashed Potatoes, mixed vegetables), so it was a full meal.
Any age can enjoy this movie. The animation and humor is good for both kids and adults, plus Easter Eggs throughout the film for everyone. Yes, even adults who like Breaking Bad will catch an Easter Egg in this movie.

I have nothing negative to say about this movie.

The Argument: I know some people will claim this is a liberal message about equal rights, but I am going to argue that. This isn't about equal rights, it is about equal opportunities. Instead of just giving everyone a free pass to just do whatever and let the government cover it, the movie ends with characters getting the opportunity to do something similar mammals didn't. In a world, where the strongest animals becomes police officers, we see a rabbit become one of the best officers they have seen in that city, because she worked for it. This films main message is about following your dreams, despite what others say to you. I saw this film as a motivation for me. I left this movie feeling more confident in myself as not only a writer, but as a creator.

Final Thoughts: I was surprised by this movie, more than I thought I would. In a world where film companies never learn their lessons, Disney proved that they do. This is not the first anamorphic film Disney has made, but this is their best major film release with this idea. If you haven't seen it, do so.

Album Review: Decyfer Down's The Other Side of Darkness

Decyfer Down has had an interesting history. The only original members since the band first form are the two guitarist and everyone has changed since their first Album, End of Grey (Which is a fantastic album). Their album before this one, Scarecrow, was not really impressive to me and it felt like the band lost what made them stand out. Their new album, The Other Side of Darkness, that released earlier in this month reminds me of what makes them stand out and that they haven't lost that element. I was almost in tears when hearing this album for the first time.

The guitar work is the best part of this album. It is the low tuning and heavy riffs that really made their first album stand out to me. It gives me a new sense of headbanging music that I could not sit still while listening, but still was not afraid to soften itself in songs where it needed it.

The singer has finally found his element. Scarecrow felt weak because it felt like the vocalist was trying too hard to be someone else, and not use his own vocal talent. He learned his lesson! His voice now adds kind of a smooth, Southern Rock style to go with the heavy guitars and it surprisingly complements it in the best way possible.

Bass and Drums also stand out and make the rhythm just as important to the mix. So many young bands forget that a bassist and drummer (or lack thereof) can make or break a band. These new members know what they are doing and they truly stand out on their own.

As an added bonus: They did an acoustic version of one of my favorite song from their first album for this one at the very end. It felt like a beautiful tribute to members that left the band over the years.

Final Verdict: 9/10! The reason it isn't perfect is because the Christian message the band shares may not appeal to everyone, but I can't pick a song I didn't like. Definitely check it out!

Album Review: Devour the Day's S.O.A.R

When a band is still young, they can either develop into something unique to their genre or fade into the rest of the others because they don't have anything that stands out about them. Sadly, a band I had hope for still hasn't found that thing that makes them unique.

You can try to argue that a new band takes two albums to do that, but bands like Breaking Benjamin, RED, and even Flyleaf has had something that made them stand out on their first album and have developed that further. Devour the Day has yet to find that thing with their second album, S.O.A.R.

It is 10 songs and only 2 of them sound different from the others. That is something that really needs attention. This is a hard rock band and I got bored listening to them.

The guitar work is good rhythm, but nothing special about lead. Their isn't a guitar riff or even a solo that stands out and with that it all fades together. Drums and bass hold the beat, but that is it.

The lyrics aren't even interested. They use analogies that have already been used and nothing is really that interesting with the writing. If Devour the Day doesn't want to fade into obscurity, they need to change it up and make themselves stand out. Right now, they aren't doing that.

Final Verdict: 5/10. Sadly average for a band that really needs to find something that can make them stand out.

Songs I liked: Lightning in the Sky, Save Yourself
Songs I don't Recommend: Step Aside, Quicksand, S.O.A.R

Movie Review: Batman: Under The Red Hood

That's right! My favorite Superhero movie is not only a Batman movie, but a direct to DVD animated film. Where Marvel has been doing well with Hollywood release features, DC Comics has been giving us something better in other formats. The best example is in fact this movie, Batman: Under The Red Hood. When I first saw it, I had one nitpick about it. As I watched it again and again, that nitpick was gone and I began to love it more and more.

I'm not going to do a pros and cons kind of review this time because I really don't have any cons to this movie. Instead, I am going to talk about all the good and even mention a bit of a warning to those who have not seen it.

The film looks and sounds better than even some Hollywood animated films. It has your attention throughout. The voice acting is top notch. People who are popular on TV shows more than movies are providing some voice acting that matches the characters perfectly. Jensen Ackles (Supernatural) and Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) are two actors that are a part of this film and they match the characters they are given and makes them feel realistic, even for an animated feature. The one voice actor I first had an issue with was John DiMaggio as the Joker, but when I watched it the second time, I understood his interpretation of the Joker and it is now my favorite Joker, next to Mark Hamill's portrayal of the character in the original animated series in the 90s. Bruce Greenwood voices Batman and it is his first time doing it, but it is incredible. He sounds like Batman in the way he should with a film and story like this.

The movie is only 75 minutes long, but that means no filler! Everything contained within the movie is plot focused and keeps the story movie without delaying it (take note Marvel). There are no plot holes. It follows it's comic book story line and keeps it focused on just the one movie instead of trying to introduce a sequel. The ending is open, but solely to say that Batman's adventures are far from over. We will see more Batman and we will always get more material from this character.

Another thing this movie does is not only introduce us to character Hollywood hasn't even done, but has given us a character Warner Bros. has avoided for a long time; Jason Todd, the second Robin. The Batman Animated series we all know and love gave us Dick Grayson (The First Robin who became Nightwing) and Tim Drake (The Third Robin) and skipped Jason Todd. Why would they do that, some people may wonder. It was because Jason Todd was much more violent and rebellious than the rest of them and was the only one who officially died. This character is what Batman believes to be his biggest failure. I'm not going to spoil anymore because it is an amazing story.

This movie catches 2 things other Batman movies have failed to do; show Batman as a detective (think of one film that has truly highlighted that from Hollywood), and show what the relationship between Batman and Robin really is. Batman and Robin are more than just mentor and student, it is Father and Son. Bruce Wayne took in children who were recently orphaned or came from trouble upbringing, showed them a better life, and trained them to someday become heroes and icons as well.

This movie makes you think about your own life. Seeing a character like Batman, one we painted in our heads as the greatest Superhero of all time, face his failures and own up to his mistakes, made me want to do the same thing. Nobody is perfect, everyone is human, we all make mistakes and who better to show us that than the icon of most people childhood.

Warning: This movie has some brutal scenes. Even though it has the PG-13 rating, it is on the border between that and the R rating. The movie even starts with a scene that is kind of hard to watch if you are a young kid. It can be brutal and violent at time, much like the comic.

Overall: If you have not seen this movie, I urge you to see it. I even have a copy of it if you need to borrow it. If you are not a fan of violence, I still recommend it. It capture everything that makes a great movie and leave a mark to do better. I do not know if we will get anymore good DC films from Hollywood, but I am more than satisfied with what I have gotten already from the direct to DVD films, and this is my favorite above all of them.

Movie Review: The Avengers

Superhero movies can be either fresh and interesting, or a repeat of previous films. When it is fresh and interesting, it stand out and makes you want to actually read comic books. When it is a repeat, it just makes you want to wait until the next movie and hope they backpedal to fix the problems of the first film. No company is more guilty of that than Marvel. Yes, I don't like Marvel's Cinematic Universe. While it is impressive that all the films connect, one of them struggles to stand well on their own.

Where we got some good stand alone movies, like Iron Man and Guardians of The Galaxy, all the sequels tend to repeat the same plot while leaving some plot holes to be filled by the sequel. However, people tend to ignore it and just say "It's perfect! You have to love Marvel!" And I say, "You are wrong." Marvel is not perfect. They are just as flawed as other movies are.

To prove it, I am taking apart what some have called, The Best Superhero Movie of All Time, The Avengers. Where I liked the movie the first time I saw it, every time I watched it after... My eyes kind of started seeing the problems behind all the flare.

The Pros: There is nothing wrong with the casting in these movies. All the actors properly portray the characters we got in the comics. The action is eye candy and can be enjoyed by just watching it. When I first saw it, I was sucked into solely the action and I ignored all the problems. It is also our first time seeing Hawkeye in action. He is the best lesser known Marvel character out there and it is nice to see he is well represented. It is quick to catch your attention, so it is good if you need a movie to distract you. Thor is my favorite character in the movie. He is well represented by Chris Hemsworth and he does have the best lines in the movie.

The Cons: The characters are poorly written. Iron Man is a prick, Captain America is a Boy Scout, Nick Fury has no personality outside of yelling and complaining, Black Widow is a cock tease. and Loki is a bratty child. If you met anyone like them in real life, you would think the same way. That is the difference between a good character and a bad character. The action, even of impressive, is just CGI. I have seen movies, like Transformers and Man of Steel, get crap from critics for the use of CGI, and this movie gets a free pass when it looks exactly the same, even worse in some cases. There are some huge plot holes throughout the film. For example, what is the Tesseract? We hear what it can do and it's functions, but what is it? The movie explains nothing about it and  it is crucial item for the plot. This is the same plot as all the Iron Man movies; The hero is introduced, the hero makes a mistake, bad things happen, the hero makes a resolve, the day is saved, and an open end announcing a sequel. This was so well received Marvel has repeated it over and over again after this movie with all their sequels. I haven't like a Marvel movie sequel after this one for that reason.

Final Thoughts: I don't like this movie, but I know I am a minority. People have their reasons for liking them and I will respect that. For some, it may be an incredible movie, but for me, it is nothing special. My favorite Superhero movie will be brought up Monday March 28th. 

Movie Review: X-Men: Days of Future Past

Welcome to Super Hero month!

The X-Men film franchise had been interesting for more than one reason. Where none of them have 100% followed the comics, they have still been proven to be some of the better comic based movies in the market today... except for X-Men: The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. However, I don't think I would benefit by talking about those two movies, because after those movies we got three more movies that proved to be leagues better and have given us something great as stand alone movies. Those movies being X-Men: First Class, The Wolverine, and today's movie, X-Men: Days of Future Past.

I picked this movie not because I liked it, but because it was also my favorite movie of 2014. Think about that... 2014 gave us Godzilla, Guardians of the Galaxy, The Fault in Our Stars, The Lego Movie, and How to Train Your Dragon 2, and This is my favorite film to have come out that year.

The Pros: It is a completed story, which is hard for any sequel to do. However, because of the subject the film presents, it works better than any other sequel I have seen. Time Travel is very hard to present properly, but this movie managed to do it incredibly well without plot holes. We see both old and new characters in this film franchise. Even though not all of them get speaking lines or anything like that, the scenes still work really well without dialogue. The Sentinels! I have been wanting to see this things since the original X-Men movie came out, and they are threatening! You see just what they can do at the beginning of the movie and it gives you a full understanding of the threat that is present among these characters. Magneto! This is still one of the best written characters I have seen from Marvel and both Ian Mckellen and Michael Fassbender shows us just that. The cast still shows us all the powerful characters we loved in previous movies. When we see something tragic, or scary for the character, we feel it. Every character death hits hard! That is what it is supposed to do and I loved that when I first saw it and when I watched it again before writing this review. When a new power is presented, they do their best to explain that and I appreciate that. This movie has some of the best CGI I have ever seen and mixed practical effects into the movie as well, making the visuals fantastic. It is a great film to look at and it feels good on the eyes.

The Cons: I myself do not see it as a con, but I'm sure others will and I'll get some person complaining about it. It is not 100% accurate with the comic. I have to argue this, would you have wanted to see it if it was about Kitty Pride (Shadow Cat) going into the past? Think about that.

Final Thoughts: I'm not going to give a number rating this month and see what happens, because I can't give any of these movies a number. I didn't think I would like this movie as much as I did. I was surprised by it and that is something I haven't had in a theater in a long time, because I see every movie without expectations and an open mind, even when watching something for a second or third time. This is the best X-Men movie when have ever gotten. I love this franchise and I am looking forward to whatever Bryan Singer and the guys at Fox give us next in this franchise.

Movie Review: The Bourne Legacy

Every great franchise always has a black sheep, one item not as good as the rest. Look at any franchise, whether it be movies or video games, that is not as well received by the fan base. For example, Star Wars has The Phantom Menace, Sonic the Hedgehog has Sonic Boom, Final Fantasy has Final Fantasy XIII, and the Bourne franchise has this movie, The Bourne Legacy.

Meant to be a side story that was taking place around the same time as the Bourne Ultimatum, The Bourne Legacy was meant to show us that Jason Bourne was not the only super assassin that was made. However, it wasn't as well received by critics or fans of the original trilogy. The question is, why? That is what I am hoping to answer. Is it as bad as people say it is? Well, yes and no.

For anyone wondering, I did watch the original trilogy and they are all fantastic action movies. The reason I am talking about this one instead of the original movies is because I have gotten a collective positive response to those, and mixed feelings on this one.

The Pros: The action scenes are still awesome, well shot and choreographed, as well as having very little CGI. They are still a blast to watch and enjoy. Most of the casting is really good. Edward Norton does a very good political villain and other side characters are also well acted. The movie also explains how the super assassins are created and what is needed for most of them. It also works as a good setup for the next movie coming out this year. The female lead in the movie was also a good character, just like in previous movies. She was very helpful and her actions made the plot move along in a good fashion.

The Cons: I don't know what it is, but I can't get behind Jeremy Renner as an assassin. I don't know if it is his bland character, Aaron Cross, or just his performance. I don't think I have seen a movie I liked him in. He's just one of those actors I don't personally like. He is boring to me. Before anyone mentions the Avengers, I promise, I am getting to that one. It borrows elements from previous Bourne movies that makes it feel formulaic. The building jumping, the silent assassin sent to kill him, the girl helping him, it felt a lot like The Bourne Ultimatum. The last action scene is pretty dragged as time goes on. As it goes, I found myself hoping it would just end and the last thing would be a fist fight between Aaron Cross and the silent assassin, but that didn't happen. It also leaves a huge plot hole, that I am hoping they filling in Jason Bourne (the fifth movie). The films biggest focus revolves around Aaron Cross is trying to get a medication he needs to still function and they are trying to make it so he doesn't need them. The question is, why didn't Jason Bourne need them. They are part of the same program, so why didn't Jason need them and Aaron did. Hopefully they explain that.

Final Thoughts: 6/10, I wanted to originally give it a 5/10, but the action scenes are too good to miss. It is definitely the weakest in the franchise, but it still has things to enjoy. I actually encourage people to see this and make their own opinion about it. I may not watch it again, but I understand why people do or don't like this movie.

Special Announcement: As far as movie reviews goes, the month of March will be my first focus month here on the blog, and I am putting a focus on Superhero movies. I have already picked my movies and here is how it will go. I will start with a recent comic book movie I liked, one I didn't like, and end the month with my favorite superhero movie of all time. I will let you, the readers, predict and guess what they are. Until next week!