James Review -Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017)

 

Since the 20th century, across comics, literature, film and TV and video games, people young and old have been mesmerized by superheroes such as Captain America, Batman and Mr. Incredible. There are so many superhero characters with decades of stories behind them, but one superhero stands out among the bunch, created by Dav Pilkey in the 1990s and having starred in twelve books as well as a movie and a few animated TV series. And that superhero is Captain Underpants.

The gist is simple. Captain Underpants was an ordinary school principle named Mr. Krupp, who was grumpy and hated fun, then two kids, George and Harold, hypnotized him and he became the red-caped, underwear-clad crusader of justice Captain Underpants from the kids' homemade comics. Krupp becoming Captain Underpants eventually becomes more than just fun for George and Harold, especially when real bad guys start causing trouble, bad guys such as Professor Poopypants or the Talking Toilets. Produced by Dreamworks, the Captain Underpants movie released in 2017 and I've seen it a few times with my dad and it is wonderful and funny.

Dreamworks' movie adapts both the first Captain Underpants book, the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants and some elements of Attack of The Talking Toilets, covering Captain Underpants' beginnings, featuring Professor Poopypants as the film's main villain, and the ending sees Captain Underpants, George and Harold dealing with Talking Toilets after, spoilers, Poopypants is defeated and his toilet robot is dumped at a scrap yard with its toxic waste transforming a pile of toilets. Captain Underpants is a special kids' movie, full of juvenile potty humor that can fly over a child's head and is picked up by someone older, but it is still family-friendly. 

If anyone wants to see a kids' superhero story involving a superhero running around in his undies while fighting bad guys and you're looking for a laugh, Captain Underpants' books by Dav Pilkey are for you, along with this movie. The film is beautifully animated, full of wacky scenes, and most of the music is incredible. Mr. Krupp aka Captain Underpants is voiced by Ed Helms with George and Harold being voiced by Kevin Hart and Thomas Middleditch respectively, Helms shows range as Krupp and Underpants, emphasizing Krupp's stern, fun-hating demeanor which contrasts with Captain Underpants' playful, friendlier side. You can't go wrong with "tra-la-laaaaaaaa". And I rate this film 9 out of 9. Worth a watch, never boring for a moment.

-James M 

James Review -Tron Legacy (2010)

 

The Grid, a digital frontier created through the most revolutionary film technology created in the 80s. Try picturing clusters of information as they moved through the computer. Were the circuits like freeways and what would they look like? How different could it have been from when it was first created? Then, one day, the viewers got back in... and the world had evolved in ways one couldn't imagine.

In 1982, Disney released Tron, starting off a sci-fi franchise that would never be forgotten. In 2010, after years of waiting, the fans finally got to return to the Grid and not only got to see Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn again, but his son Sam (played by Garret Hedlund) and the rogue program CLU 2 (played by Jeff Bridges). Set decades after the Master Control Program's defeat, the story follows Sam as he is sucked into the Grid on a journey to find his missing father while teaming up with an ISO named Quora as they battle CLU and his forces, who are controlling the Grid. The prologue of the movie takes place in 1989 and shows a de-aged Jeff Bridges as a young Kevin Flynn talking to Sam and, during the later scenes, the de-aging technology is used during Bridges' scenes as CLU, making him a younger evil counterpart to the protagonist's father. Tron Legacy is one of the first Disney-released movies to use de-aging, which was starting to come about in the 2000s before the film entered development.

Moving past de-aging, Tron Legacy is a beautiful-looking sequel to the original movie and has many callbacks to it, such as the identity disk line originally used by Sark, and the special effects for the Grid are finely polished. Since the 1980s, CGI has evolved, allowing the digital world to look different from when it was last seen. While you often see characters with whiter faces, there are clearer colors and textures and the world of The Grid comes with streets and buildings, including a club named after the MCP's quote "End of Line". The two games Disk Wars and Light Cycle racing have received upgrades, now taking place in arenas with crowds watching the spectacles. The iconic title character Tron returns as well, however, he has been corrupted by Clu and assumes the identity of Rinzler. While Bruce Boxlietter returns to the role, he only has a few lines for the new Tron, it's better than nothing.

Tron Legacy gets a 9.9 and is a must-see film. It may have issues and may have bombed at the box office, but its still a fun ride like the original movie. Until next time, Programs.

-James M

Top 10 Good Movies We Watched in 2024 (by James M)

Happy New Year, people. 2024 is just about over, and this year, my parents and I watched some really fun movies, and some of which I didn't think about seeing at one point. Over the many, many movies I watched this year, I will name just ten films that were undoubtedly great IMO. Let's start...

10. Eye In The Sky

Released in 2015, this film stars Alan Rickman prior to his death, and revolves around taking out a terrorist. On the day we watched it, we planned on seeing INSIDE OUT 2, but it turned out the film wasn't free to watch on Disney Plus yet. Time to improvise. So, mom picked out this movie, and I initially got cold feet because it was R-rated until I recalled that I'd seen R-rated movies before and it had been a while since we all saw an R-Rated movie. We watched it and, well, it was really good, teaches you a lot about how things work out behind the scenes when it comes to taking out terrorists.

9. Jojo Rabbit

We got this for Christmas in 2023, and this was the first movie we saw in 2024. Set during the Second World War, the movie follows a boy who looks up to Adolf Hitler, until he finds a Jewish person hiding in the house. As someone who loves World War II movies and movies involving Nazis, this one was quite good, and I am considering rewatching the film in the future. Takkia Wattiti is one funny actor, and his rendition of Adolf Hitler was... wow.

8. Aladdin (1992)

"TEN THOUSAND YEEAAAARRRS can give ya such a crick in the neck!"

I never saw this movie as a kid, even though I saw scenes from it here and there. But, we saw it, and, wow, I see why so many people love it. This is one of Disney's best movies to date, and Robin Williams sold it as Genie. You gotta love animated films, especially when it can go absolutely off the walls in a good way. We will see the live-action remake down the road, and I do want to see the sequels this film produced.

7. Batman: Mask of The Phantasm

One of DC's most valued characters and one of the most beloved comic book superheroes for decades, Batman, next to Spider-Man, has become one of my favorites and, as I am keen to watch superhero films, it was obvious I would watch this at some point. I saw it twice this year, once with my dad, and again with my mom. This is without a doubt a good, and gripping Batman movie, with Kevin Conroy voicing the Dark Knight as the story takes a look at Bruce Wayne's motivations. People are not wrong to say it is the best Batman film ever, and Mark Hamil steals the show as The Joker. I will write up a review of this at some point.

6. Frankenstein (1931)

A classic monster movie and one of the greats. We watched this on Halloween, and it felt right to watch it at the end of October, after watching scary movies for weeks (including the original Beetlejuice movie). The story of Doctor Frankenstein and his monster is well-known, and, for its time, the movie is still incredible to this very day. We all enjoyed it, and I would not mind watching the sequels and the remake and I'd be glad to read the book down the line. Truly, an unforgettable horror movie.

5. Invaders From Mars (1953) 

Another film we watched in October. My dad suggested it, and, well, you can't say no. This one was intense, and dad observed that it left me on the edge of my seat at one point. For a film from the 50s, this is an insane sci-fi classic with a crazy ending. The special effects are not too bad, and the aliens are scary as heck. Jimmy Hunt, the lead actor in this film, will never be forgotten by us modern day movie watchers. Bring on the 80s remake.

4. Oppenheimer (2023)

"We knew the world would not be the same. Some people cried, most people were silent..."

We got this film for Christmas along with Jojo Rabbit, and, past the anniversary of Japan's surrender, we watched it. I'm telling you, this is a long movie, but it is pretty good. Cillian Murphy was an interesting pick to play Dr. Oppenheimer, even though OPPENHEIMER can be hard to follow as it bounces all over the place and gets a little weird at times. And yet, it still tells the story of Robert J. Oppenheimer's affairs and efforts to make the bomb. However, mom prefers 1989's FAT MAN AND LITTLE BOY over this, but OPPENHEIMER is worth the eventual rewatch. OPPENHEIMER does its best to be historically accurate, despite certain issues coming up, and the acting is pretty decent.

3. Forrest Gump

"Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get."

A classic film for the ages. Starring Tom Hanks, FORREST GUMP follows the title character as he talks about his life, which sees him fight in the Vietnam War at one point, and Gump is one of the funniest characters ever. FORREST GUMP is a humorous story, but one full of kindness, and may have valuable life lessons you won't forget. The end of this film, well, it is touching. FORREST GUMP is a must-watch, especially for those who have not seen this one yet.

2. Ultraman Rising

Ultraman. Who can forget it? I remember watching the original Ultraman show as a kid, and, given my love of animation, we could not resist watching this movie. ULTRAMAN RISING tells the tale of a baseball player who becomes a monster-fighting superhero and looks after a baby kaiju. Sure, we've seen someone looking after a baby monster before, but this one is just endearing. ULTRAMAN RISING is a tale of heroism and fatherhood. You gotta feel bad for that baby kaiju, and this is one superhero/monster movie worth a rewatch.

-Honorable Mentions-

Inglorious Basterds (2009)

Damn good movie, that's all I can say. C'mon, you can't resist an alternate history World War II movie, especially when Brad Pitt is in it and Adolf Hitler gets killed off at the end.

Rise of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie

I love the TMNT franchise, having seen the OG movies, the 2007 animated film, most of RoTMNT, Turtles Forever, and the Michael Bay movies while reading some TMNT comics and playing a TMNT game or two. Mom and I loved this, and you can't go wrong with a film like RISE OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES.

Full Metal Jacket

This was crazy as heck, and still enjoyable. It shows boot camp training and, of course, the madness of Vietnam. R. Lee Ermy made for a crazy cool drill sergeant character, and I almost feel bad for him when he got killed by "Private Pyle". I handled this like a champ, and it is a fun war movie. When you see this, you are not in a world of crap.

1. Godzilla Minus One (2023)

We all know the story of Godzilla. In 1954, 9 years after the end of World War II, America tests the H-Bomb in the Pacific, leading to a huge radioactive dinosaur ravaging Tokyo. However, this film changes up the status quo by having Godzilla attack Japan shortly after the conclusion of the war. It starts in 1945, in the closing weeks of WWII, and Godzilla's big attack happens two years later. Focusing on a would-be kamikaze pilot, GODZILLA MINUS ONE is an incredible movie and was the one that ensured the Big G got an Oscar after seven decades. I would love to watch this again, because, next to GODZILLA 1954 and GODZILLA FINAL WARS, this is one of the most important Godzilla films ever.

"Hey, wait a minute! How about you cover one more film?"

I was just thinking, and if I am being honest, GODZILLA MINUS ONE isn't the only movie that is one of my favorite films I got to see in 2024. Sharing the number one spot, we have...

Deadpool (2016)

Okay, the story here is interesting. After mom and I saw the trailer for TERMINATOR DARK FATE in 2019, I got curious about Deadpool, and we saw the trailer for that movie. After seeing what it had to offer, mom objected. And, for a long time, I was against seeing R-rated comic book films like this, but eventually, I decided to watch this movie with my dad. Oh, I am here to tell you now, this R-rated comic book movie was worth watching. Ryan Reynolds is my favorite actor, and he played Wade Wilson so well. Full of action, humor, and good moments, I am happy I saw Deadpool. And this one is more than just an over-the-top bloody action film, it is a comedy at heart, with so many comedic beat. I will be seeing the sequel in 2025 along with the third movie.

Happy New Year!

James M's Review of Batman Forever (1995)

 

Let us take a moment, shall we? The year is 1992 and the sequel to the 1989 Batman movie has come out, it is well received and all seems fine, but then as the reviews come in, there is an uproar from parents that the movie is too dark. So, with those complaints, how do you remedy the problem?

Simple, you try to be less dark in the next movie. It is 1995, three years have passed since Tim Burton's Batman Returns and a new movie is coming. This time, its lighter but still intense. Michael Keaton has been replaced by Val Kilmer, Jim Carrey is playing the Riddler and the new movie is BATMAN FOREVER!

Welcome back in the year of 2022, my friends. After reviewing the first two Batman movies, we're now delving into the movie that followed, my first true live-action Batman movie viewing. As you can see, its Batman Forever. So, what is it about?

Directed by Joel Schumacher, Batman Forever sees the Dark Knight take on Two-Face (who is played by Men In Black's Tommy Lee Jones) while being challenged by Edward Nygma aka The Riddler and ends up taking on an unlikely sidekick in the form of young acrobat Richard "Dick" Grayson after Two-Face kills the young man's family and Batman starts to form a romantic bond with psychiatrist Doctor Meridian Chase (played by Nicole Kidman), who eventually figures out that he is Bruce Wayne.

I saw this movie a good year and a half before seeing the first two Batman movies and, what are my overall thoughts on this one, good friends?

To be frankly honest, it doesn't matter what the critics said back then. Even with the overall tone being lighter than the first two, Batman Forever is actually quite good and engaging. Val Kilmer was impressive and Jim Carrey really did steal every scene he was in as the Riddler, he was so full of energy and still is today. This is perhaps one of my new favorite Jim Carrey movies, even if Mr. Carrey is not the main character of BATMAN FOREVER.

Almost every action scene is nicely shot and put together, the musical score is moving and there's plenty of good moments here and there, such as the scene at the start when Batman tells Alfred he'll get drive through in response to the butler inquiring him to take a sandwich. According to some YouTube reviewers, this scene felt like it was made for a fast food commercial promoting Batman. Superhero movies had some crazy moments then and they still can now, no matter what tone they have.

Mr. Lee Jones did a fine job playing Two Face, showing that he's quite good with his various roles, and he hammed it home in the circus scene when he started acting like a crazy evil circus announcer at one point when Two-Face and his goons hijacked everything and took over the show. Tommy Lee Jones captured the villain's personality well, making him very crazy dangerous just as Two Face is meant to be. Even without the split personality disorder his canon self has, this version of Two-Face is a blast.

Overall, despite certain issues the film may have, Batman Forever is a fun chapter in Batman's history that's worth a watch. If you're a fan of Jim Carrey, you will not want to miss this. If you're a fun-loving Batman nerd looking for some fun 90s goodness, this is a film for you. Batman Forever gets a nine, I look forward to re-watching this sometime soon and remember this as one of my favorites...

See you next time, good friends.

-James M

James M's review of Ghostbusters Afterlife (2021)

 

Welcome back, everyone! Its time we dive back into the Ghostbusters universe... with the long-awaited Ghostbusters III known as Ghostbusters Afterlife, released in November of 2021 and starring Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckeena Grace, Bokeem Woodbine and Paul Rudd of Marvel Cinematic Universe fame.

Original Ghostbusters actors Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver (post-credits) and Harold Ramis (posthumously) also appear in the film, reprising their roles from the original two films with J.K Simmons of Spider-Man and Terminator Genisys fame playing none other than Ivo Shandor, who was mentioned in the first movie and played a major role in the 2009 video game.

Set over three decades after the events of the first two films, Egon Spengler's grandkids visit a house left behind by him after his death and find themselves taking up the Ghostbusters mantle when the threat of a supernatural apocalypse with Gozer's return becomes apparent. In the end, after quite the struggle, the young heroes (with help from Peter Venkmen, Winston, Ray and the ghost of Egon) defeat the returning and seemingly powerful Gozer and save humanity.

With the story out of the way, what do I think of this film and is it good?

Honestly, despite some of the criticism it got, Afterlife is a decent movie and a well-deserved Ghostbusters sequel even if it picks up some plot beats from the first movie such as the threat of Gozer. But thankfully, it handles the Gozer plot in a way that doesn't feel like a retread of the first film. Even the late Harold Ramis is given an honorable tribute with his character getting a well-deserved send-off, rest in peace, Harold, you were amazing.

And you know what, we even have the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot to thank for this. If it weren't for that film, we wouldn't have gotten this. In case you don't know, after Ghostbusters II, the creatives tried to get Ghostbusters III off the ground but had so much issue, they ended up making the 2016 film. When that failed, that's when this film came to be. So in a way, trying to reboot Ghostbusters, only for it to fail, helped ensure that the third installment in the original movie series came to be.

There were quite a lot of Easter Eggs and callbacks to the original movie in many ways, especially when the original Ghostbusters face off against Gozer at the end. Remember that scene in the first film where Gozer asks Ray if he's a god, unlike in the first film, Ray says "yes" this time around. Had he, Peter and Winston forgotten what had happened last time, they would've been in some deep sh*t.

Seeing J.K Simmons as Ivo Shandor was quite welcome, even though Shandor's role was very minor, since we finally got to see the very man who planted the seeds for Gozer's coming years prior to the events of the first film in live action. Better late than never, am I right?

Ghostbusters Afterlife is not only a worthy sequel to Ghostbusters II (and the original movie), its got some of the best cinematography, music and remarkable special effects, especially during the end battle when the heroes are beating Gozer with Egon's ghost joining in. And in regards to how Harold Ramis' character is handled and how Ramis' legacy is treated, it is beautiful, the actor using his likeness knew what he was doing and those final scenes with his ghost is something you're never going to forget.

Well, I don't have much to say at this point. All I can do is give Ghostbusters III aka Ghostbusters Afterlife a solid 9.5 out of 10, what an amazing movie that potentially serves as the finale to the original film series' story. Would we love to see more Ghostbusters' adventures in the future? Of course, if they don't take three decades to do another one like with the third film. God, don't you just hate it when movies go through development hell for decades?

Anyways, I bid to you a happy life and have many good days to come. Sayonara, everyone!

-James. M 

James M's review of Hulk (2003)

 

Greetings again, true believers, we're back to review somethin' green. Its... HULK!

Released in 2003 and starring Eric Bana as the scientist Bruce Banner and his alter ego known as The Hulk, this movie made a lot of money and was kinda mixed with both fans and critics. However, this movie's legacy lives on to this very day, but plans for a sequel were scrapped and the next Hulk movie titled The Incredible Hulk released five years later as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

I saw this film back in 2018 when dad got it on DVD and I watched it again a few years later. And despite what the critics say about films like this, Hulk isn't too bad. Its actually fun, just like every film we've seen that never performed well. Eric Bana was the perfect fit for Bruce/Hulk at the time, even though Mark Ruffalo does play him well nowadays in the MCU.

So, what's the story?

Scientist David Banner, after running experiments for the millitary, getting canned by General Ross and experimenting on himself, has a son named Bruce who picks up some of his father's mutating DNA. David gets into a fight with his wife and kills her when he tries to kill Bruce, who is then put into foster care. Years later, Bruce attends a college and winds up getting dosed with gamma radiation during an experiment.

After a reunion with his father, who has aged since Bruce was a boy, and learning the truth that was hidden from him, Bruce becomes angry and turns into a green monster, he wrecks the area and terrifies David before going on the run. David is then visited by Bruce's partner Betty, who questions him about his work, and later experiments on his dogs, turning them into monsters and sending them after Betty.

Bruce turns into the Hulk and saves Betty from David's dogs, but then Betty calls her father General Ross a day later and the army takes the now-captive Bruce to their base in the desert. But not long after, Bruce transforms into the Hulk again and breaks out, going to San Francisco. Once there, after a fight with the army, Bruce sees Betty and calms down. Meanwhile, David runs another gamma experiment on himself and becomes an entity similar to the Marvel villain known as the Absorbing Man.

David visits the captive Bruce and has a chat with him, revealing that he's become insane and bites down into a power cord, which triggers his transformation into an energy creature when Ross powers it up. Bruce turns into the Hulk and battles his father until he gains the upper hand and the general deploys a Gamma Charge Bomb against both Hulk and David. However, Bruce survives and goes into hiding in the Amazon as a medical doctor.

Many months later, during Bruce's exile, a group of regime soldiers arrive to harass a group of locals and Bruce confronts one of them. "You're making me angry..." He says, "You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." And the film ends with the roar of the Hulk.

That's pretty much the movie. And as I've said before, I think its a decent movie. It may have some issues and dated effects, but the experience isn't as bad as some people would try to make it out to be. The acting and the dialogue looks fine by today's standards and the plot is easy to understand once you know what's going on. HULK gets an 9.9 out of 10, this film is worth multiple viewings. 

As of this post, there is a rumor that the Eric Bana version of Bruce/Hulk will appear in Sam Raimi's Doctor Strange & The Multiverse of Madness. If that is true, then that would be fun to see, anything is possible with the multiverse and multiverse stories can be big (but not big as in the ambitious kind). Now, I sign off with an optimistic smile. See you later, comic book and movie nerds.

-James. M