MINI MOVIE REVIEWS (#MiniMovieReview)

 

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Tinsel & Tine Mini Movie Reviews

by Le Anne Lindsay, Editor

If you want it good and fast you’ve come to the right place. For movie reviews that is!  T&T’s #MiniMovieReview – A lot said in a modicum of words…

If you’re curious about my rating systems I’m a member of The Large Association of Movie Bloggers, so I tag them in order to be included in their collective ratio of movie ratings.

But my main system for reviewing is based on trying to write for the average moviegoer looking for escape, cause that’s me too. I look at whether the movie delivered what I basically expected and then assess the surprises, both positive and negative. I care about being engaged, if I start thinking about work, or what I’m going to eat or wear the next day, then the movie hasn’t delivered the escape I crave. But if it captures my attention and imagination and leaves the real world outside, then I think it’s basically good! Of course it’s impossible not to have an opinion on the writer and/or director’s choice of storytelling framing, devices, tropes, but really, whether I agree with their intentions is immaterial to me; as I try to evaluate if I feel they’ve hit what they set out to do in moments or overall tone. Then I add in acting, directing, costumes, cinematography etc.. but for me, those things carry more weight during awards season.

Note: You don’t need a Facebook account to read the entire review – after you hit See More, if a prompt to log in or sign up pops up, just hit Not Now.

THE LION KING
director Jon Favreau

Philadelphia Film Critics Circle
Film Scribes Podcast #60

SPIDERMAN: FAR FROM HOME
director Jon Watts

YESTERDAY
director Danny Boyle

TOY STORY 4
director Josh Cooley

LE ANNE LINDSAY, EDITOR OF TINSEL & TINE JOINS PHILADELPHIA FILM CRTICS CIRCLE:


LATE NIGHT
director Nisha Ganatra

MIB INTERNATIONAL
director F. Gary Gray

SHAFT
director Tim Story

X-MEN: DARK PHOENIX – Done
director Simon Kinberg

SECRET LIFE OF PETS 2
director Chris Renaud

ROCKETMAN
director Dexter Fletcher

MA
director Tate Taylor

ALADDIN
director Guy Ritchie

WINE COUNTRY
director Amy Poehler

POMS
director Zara Hayes

BOOKSMART
director Olivia Wild

THE INTRUDER
director Deon Taylor

AVENGERS: ENDGAME
director(s) Anthony & Joe Russo

The MCU took us on a decade long Fantastic Cinematic Journey and all the culminations in EndGame played out as they should. The next chapters should be interesting, but I doubt will ever be as meaningful as what we’ve been through.

Best line: Thor: “I’m totally from the future”

Best character arc: Thor with a beer belly,dreadlocks and dressing like the Big Lebowski

Best of the endings: Thor back on the Gaurdians of the Galaxy Ship dominating Quill

Post Update: 5.2.2019: I joined THE BLACK TRIBBLES Radio Show Live at Philly Cam to talk AVENGERS: ENDGAME

BREAKTHROUGH
director Roxane Dawson

TEENSPIRIT
director Max Minghella

LITTLE – Done
director Tina Gordon

Catching up with a very quick #MiniMovieReview for LITTLE, opening week I promoted the below LA Times interview featuring all the fabulous black women involved: Tina Gordon, Regina Hall, Issa Rae and the outstanding comedic timing, not to mention producing skills of Marsai Martin!

I really enjoyed the movie, it’s predictably satisfying, good momentum, I like the little floor piano scene thrown in as a nod to Penny Marshall/Tom Hanks BIG. There’s a number of funny lines and moments not seen in the trailer, and one scene that hits home better than the trailer – when “Little” Jordan is forced to go to school and meets her gorgeous teacher Justin Hartley (This is Us), her eye flirting is so on point you’d swear there was a grown woman inside those Target overalls.

SHAZAM!
director David F. Sandberg

THE BEST OF ENEMIES
writer/director James Kent

Tinsel & Tine #MiniMovieReview via Emma Tramble BEST OF ENEMIES – I invite a number of friends to see the preview screenings with me, but I love that this friend was moved enough to write a review… (see below)

Unfortunately, it’s not a review in support of the movie, but that’s fine cause it’s honest and I agree with her on most of her assessment, my emotions danced from one feeling to another as well, although I don’t think I got to 🤬😛

 
I will say The Best of Enemies in terms of storytelling and movie making, is well put together, you feel engaged and moved. It’s just that you thought you’d feel emotionally invested in Taraji’s character, Ann Atwater and instead it’s Sam Rockwell’s character, C.P. Ellis, which of course is conflicting, as I’ve never cared about a Klansman before…
 
 
 “I saw a preview of this movie yesterday. Frankly, I would advise people to save their money. At the end of the film, people were clapping. My emotions moved from being mildly inspired to disappointed to furious. In typical Hollywood fashion, this movie manages to make the white man the real star of the film.
 
They re-fashion the KKK into a group that only terrorizes white people. The black people, especially Taraji P. Henson’s character, become backdrops for the white character’s story. The black folks are never fleshed out and made to be fully realized people who are standing up for justice. If you do choose to see this travesty of nonsense, guard your mind. This film will lull you into thinking that racism wasn’t that bad in a southern town in 1971, even though the Klan had a huge presence and was part of every governmental agency”.🤬– Emma Trabmble
 
 

T&T the Large Association of Movie Blogs (aka the LAMb) rating: 3 outta 5

 

 

START HERE – THE AFTERMATH
writer/director James Kent

We see so many movies based around the Holocaust, but I don’t remember seeing one like this, set during the transition of power, when Germany is under the rule of the British army and you still have many loyal Nazis scattered and desperate, living among regular German people, all living in the ruins, and wealthy Germans who may or may not have been loyal to the Führer, regardless, must give up their comfortable positions and homes in the immediate aftermath of the war.
I’ve seen Jason Clarke playing a man whose flaws get the best of him in the last few movies – “Serenity”, “Winchester”, Chappaquiddick” “Mudbound” “All I See Is You”, it’s nice to see him a little less flawed in “The Aftermath”. T&T LAMB rating: 2.5 Outta 5

GLORIA BELL – DONE
writer/director Sebastián Lelio

US – Done
writer/director Jordan Peele

CAPTAIN MARVEL – Done
director Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck

 

GRETA
director Neil Jordan

OSCARS 2019 MINI RECAP & RED CARPET PICKS (Pics)

A STAR IS BORN – DONE
director Bradley Cooper

FIGHTING WITH MY FAMILY – Done
director Stephen Merchant

ALITA BATTLE ANGEL – Done
director Robert Rodriguez


ISN’T IT ROMANTIC
director Todd Strauss-Schulson

WHAT MEN WANT
director Adam Shankman

SERENITY
director Steven Knight

Almost 25 years later cast of MY BEST FRIEND’S WEDDING
director P.J. Hogan

THE KID WHO WOULD BE KING
director Joe Cornish

GLASS
director M. Night Shyamalan

MARY POPPINS RETURNS
director Rob Marshall

VICE
director Adam McKay

LAMBCAST END OF THE YEAR BEST OF 2018 MOVIES
Host Jay Cluitt

IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK
director Barry Jenkins

ROMA
director Alfonso Cuarón

GREEN BOOK
director Peter Farrellv

Based on the real-life story of a working-class Italian-American bouncer Tony Lip ( Viggo Mortensen) who became the chauffeur to the highly educated, Dr Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali) a renowned classical pianist, and the concert tour they took together down south using the infamous Green Book which guided black travelers to hotels and restaurants blacks were allowed to patronize.

Despite any fictionalizing of either character, and despite once again being reminded of the bigotry and hatefulness of the segregated South, this movie is winning, Farrelly delivers a very funny (situational & character driven humor) and thoughtful film with all the right beats. Never heard of the real-life Dr. Shirley & Tony Lip, but hopefully a relationship of this nature actually existed. Adding to it, a Christmas theme, giving Green Book the makings to become an annual classic.

Tinsel & Tine #MiniMovieReview 5 outta 5

CREED 2
director Steven Caple Jr

COLD WAR
director Pawel Pawlikowski

FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD
director David Yates

STUDIO 54 DOCUMENTARY
director Matt Tyrnauer

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND &
THEY’LL LOVE ME WHEN I’M DEAD
director Orson Welles & Morgan Neville

WIDOWS
director Steve McQueen

BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY
director Bryan Singer

FIRST MAN – Brought over 3/15/2020
director Damien Chazelle

A STAR IS BORN
director Bradley Cooper

THE HATE U GIVE
director George Tillman,Jr

 

VENOM
director Ruben Fleischer

Mini Movie Review Tom Hardy in Venom Sony Universe

Tinsel & Tine #MiniMovieReview VENOM did fantastic opening numbers at the box office $80M. The film stars Tom Hardy and is directed by Ruben Fleischer who directed Zombieland (2009) which I really liked starring Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin. But Venom was a disappointment for critics and Marvel fans like myself who were highly anticipating this character being dark and brooding and instead they tried to create a wise cracking bad-ass like Deadpool and comically hip like Guardians of the Galaxy. It’s not actually not part of the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe for those not in the know) its produced by Columbia pictures, in association with Marvel, and down the line it’s supposed to have some cross over with the current Spiderman (Tom Holland), which is where this Venom character originated both in the comics and was the villain in the 3rd Spiderman movie with Toby Maguire. The idea is that Sony, is trying to start its own Comicbook movie Universe. Which isn’t that easy to do, remember Universal tried to jump into this arena last summer with Tom Cruise in The Mummy which failed miserably and put the Dark Universe on the shelf for now. And even Warner Bros DC comics struggles to compete with the MCU. However, audiences were pretty happy with Venom so the Sony Universe looks to be on track. And I admit the movie is fun, Tom Hardy is appealing in sloppy sexy kinda way, but it takes too long for him to bond with the Venom alien symbiotic. And Michelle Williams is wasted in the role of the love interest, it’s almost like she said, Gwyneth, Natalie, Evangeline all get to play superhero girlfriends I want a cash cow role like that too.

THE HOUSE WITH A CLOCK IN ITS WALLS
director Eli Roth

A BOY, A GIRL, A DREAM
director Qasim Basir

THE PREDATOR
director Shane Black

PEPPERMINT
director Pierre Morel

KIN
directors Jonathan & Josh Baker

THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS
director Brian Henson

PUZZLE
director Marc Turtletaub

Turtletaub was motivated to direct Puzzle for a personal reason.

“It’s a story about a woman who’s a mother and a wife living in suburban Connecticut, doting on her husband and her sons. And I knew that woman – it was my mother. I grew up in suburban New Jersey, and she doted on my dad and me. When I read [the screenplay], I felt like it was a story I could tell.”

THE MEG
director Jon Turtletaub

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT
director Christopher McQuarrie

MAMMA MIA HERE WE GO AGAIN
director Ol Parker

HOTEL ARTEMIS
director Drew Pearce

THE FIRST PURGE
director Gerard McMurray

Tinsel & Tine #MiniMovieReview THE FIRST PURGE prequel is as tight as its predecessors in The Purge franchise. Writer James DeMonaco’s Purge formula always works to deliver relevant social commentary and satisfying violence; each time there’s just enough of a new slant to keep you riveted.

This time the movie is helmed by a strong black cast – check out interview with Joivan Wade.


OCEANS 8 – INCREDIBLES 2 –
JURASSIC: FALLEN WORLD
Screened via MoviePass


to deliver relvant soc

WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR
Director Morgan Neville

ADRIFT
Director Baltasar Kormákur

SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY
Director Ron Howard

BREAKING IN
Director James McTeigue

LIFE OF THE PARTY
Director Ben Falcone

TULLY
Director Jason Reitman

AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR
Director Anthony & Joe Russo

 

A QUIET PLACE
Director John Krasinski

THE LEISURE SEEKER
Director Paolo Virzi

 

ISLE OF DOGS
Director Wes Anderson

 

A WRINKLE IN TIME
Director Ava DuVernay

 

More on Ava DuVernay on Tinsel & Tine:

DIY filmmaking, marketing and distribution w Ava DuVernay

LOVE, SIMON
Director Greg Berlanti

 

TOMB RAIDER 2018
Director Roar Uthaug

 

RED SPARROW
Director Francis Lawrence

 

ANNIHILATION
Director Alex Garland

 

GAME NIGHT
Director John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein

 

PETER RABBIT

Director Will Gluck

 

FILM STARS DON’T DIE IN HOLLYWOOD

Director Paul McGuigan

 

 

FIFTY SHADES FREED

Director James Foley

 

WHILE YOU’RE HERE CHECK OUT
T&T’S FIFTY SHADES TRILOGY PAST BOOKS & MOVIE REVIEWS

BILAL A NEW BREED OF HERO
Co-directors Khurram H. Alavi & Ayman Jamal

 

MOST ANTICIPATED MOVIES OF 2018
Large Ass Movie Blogging Association

 


PHANTOM THREAD
Dir Paul Thomas Anderson

 

CALL ME BY YOUR NAME
Dir Luca Guadagnino

 

THE POST
Dir Steven Spielberg

 

MOLLY’S GAME
Dir Aaron Sorkin

 

LADY BIRD
Dir Greta Gerwig

 

Other GRETA GERWIG Tinsel & Tine Posts:

NO STRINGS ATTACHED (2011)


FRANCES HA (2013)


MISTRESS AMERICA (2015)


MAGGIE’S PLAN (2016) 

20TH CENTURY WOMEN (2017)

PITCH PERFECT 3
Dir Trish Sie

 

I love this franchise, I’ve watch Pitch Perfect 1 & 2 more times than a grown woman should admit. Pitch Perfect 3 is not as tight, but at this point, I’m in it for the familiarity of the characters and a few good mash ups, the rest of the story well… for me, it’s not that important.

WONDER WHEEL
Dir Woody Allen

 

THE MAN WHO INVENTED CHRISTMAS
Dir Bharat Nalluri

 

THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING
Dir Martin McDonagh

 

Disney/Pixar COCO
Dir Lee Unkrich

 

JUSTICE LEAGUE
Dir Zack Snyder

 

Post Update: 11/19/17 Just saw the Critics gave JL a 39% splat on RT: I completely disagree with most of their reviews…

except maybe on Steppenwolf being a bit routine as a villain. But so many critics wanna talk about Joss Whedon stepping in for Zack Snyder at the end and now there’s two warring styles going on. No there’s not. If anything, it’s a good balance, but I believe if Snyder had stepped away quietly at the end, and Whedon came in unbeknownst, no one would be saying anything about differing tones.

Gal Gadot is a fine Wonder Woman, but she’s not a good actress, I don’t know why she’s the only one who seems to get praise. Still, together this team worked. I thought we got good introductions to the personalities of Cyborg, Aquaman and The Flash, not limited by the 2 hour run time. And if it had gone over 2 hours then the critics would be complaining about that.

Thought the Flash’s I’m a novice still excited about my super powers attitude was fun and the perfect contrast to Cyborg being resentful of his powers. And AquaMan is just plain HOT! Personally, I can’t wait for Jason Momoa to helm his own movie!

Original Post
#JusticeLeague Black Tribbles had a grand squad of Tribbles out in full force for Justice League Movie earlier this week, including yours truly – Le Anne Lindsay aka Buttercake Tribble. Check out our #moviereview & in depth discussion on this fifth installment of the #DCExtendedUniverse in theaters now.

But remember, it’s SPOILED TRIBBLES, so if you don’t wanna know stuff, wait until after you’ve seen the movie to listen.

Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen & J.K. Simmons

My #CinemaSneaknSnack consisted of an array of sushi take-out from Ruby Buffet my fav when going to Riverview Theater

DC-Comics DCComicsMovie.com Allied Philly Warner Bros. Entertainment Ratpac Entertainment Cruel and Unusual Films  Music: Danny Elfman, Screenplay: Chris Terrio,  Joss Whedon,

T&T the Large Association of Movie Blogs (aka the LAMb) Score: 4 outta 5

 

MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS
Dir Kenneth Branagh

 

MARVEL’S THOR:RAGNAROK
Dir Taika Waititi

 

ALL I SEE IS YOU
Dir Marc Forster

 

PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN
Dir Angela Robinson

 

BLADE RUNNER 2049
Dir Denis Villeneuve

 


BATTLE OF THE SEXES
Billie Jean King vs Bobby Riggs

AMERICAN MADE
Tom Cruise

What a crazy, awesome story!

Tom Cruise delivers all his charm as Barry Seal TWA pilot, turned CIA Agent, turned Colombian Cartel Associate, turned FBI informant, and so much more! The whole thing is a blast ✈️

T&T’s the Large Association of Movie Blogs (aka the LAMb) Score: 4.5 outta 5

VICTORIA & ABDUL
Director Stephen Frears


KINGSMAN:THE GOLDEN CIRCLE
Director Matthew Vaughn


HOME AGAIN
Open Road Films


mother!
Darren Aronofsky

I am so impressed with Silver Screen Riots review of Darren Aronofsky’s mother! I just didn’t feel like breaking it all down and finding the beauty in the madness. I understood the allegories, and appreciate there was a lot to dissect, but didn’t have the energy to put it into words. Glad he did!

mother!’ is not the movie you think it is but it remains one of 2017’s most provocative and engaging examples of auteur filmmaking. Captivating and challenging, brutal and bloodcurdling, steeped in madness, fraticide, infanticide and matricide, ‘mother!’ sees Darren Aronofsky direct with skillful fury and great social conscience, crafting an emotionally draining and visually exhaustive parable of religion, environmentalism and time itself. But in all honesty, it’s probably not for you.” READ MORE – Matt Oakes Silver Screen Riot

THE ONLY LIVING BOY IN NEW YORK
Amazon Studios

Many Mini Movie Reviews
On That’s Show Biz

THE HITMAN’S BODYGUARD
Ryan Reynolds & Samuel L. Jackson

 
 

CLICK HERE FOR 2016 & 2017 #MINIMOVIEREVIEWS

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