10s Movie Review - The To Do List

Director: Maggie Carey
Genre: Comedy
Runtime: 104 minutes
Year: 2013
Starring: Aubrey Plaza, Bill Hader, Alia Shawkat, Sarah Steele, Johnny Simmons, Rachel Bilson, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Andy Samberg, Connie Britton, Clark Gregg, Donald Glover, Nolan Gould, Scott Porter

Description: Feeling pressured to become more sexually experienced before she goes to college, Brandy (Aubrey Plaza) makes a list of things to accomplish before hitting campus in the fall.

Review: Brandy Klark is the smartest girl in class. Her room is filled with diplomas and awards and a brilliant career is in the works. She has a bunch of great friends and a wonderful summer job at a local pool. So nothing to complain about right? But there is. While Brandy knows everything about math and history, she knows absolutely nothing about sex. So it’s about time for extra lessons.

In order to brush up on her knowledge, Brandy makes a to-do list of sexual acts and then works through her male circle of acquaintances. Her sister has some tips and her mother brings along a tube of lubricant. All this has to lead to deflowering in the place where half the city lost their virginity, in a parking lor at Beaver Creek (no pun intended).

Those who find that Beaver Creek is funny, will have fun with “The To Do List”. The film is a string of lame jokes, flat jokes, predictable jokes and non-funny jokes. Someone pushes Brandy into the pool, Brandy loses her top, Brandy takes a bite of a fake turd that turns out to be a real turd, Brandy applies mayonnaise instead of sunscreen. The to think that these aren’t even the weakest jokes.
Since the characters barely impress either, all attention to the film quickly disappears. And it’s kind of questionable why all those well-known actors show up for this movie. And I find it kind of offensive that pressuring your friend into having sex before going to college, just to fit in. Or is that just me?
“The To Do List” is a comedy that pairs explicit sex talk with lame jokes and characters that remains as flat as a dime. I liked Bill Hader, but I always like Bill Hader. So, that’s a plus!

Rating: 2/ 5

10s Movie Review - Thor

Director: Kenneth Branagh
Genre: Adventure/ Action/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 115 minutes
Year: 2011
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Kat Dennings, Stellan Skarsgård, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Renee Russo, Idris Elba, Jaime Alexander, Colm Feore, Ray Stevenson, Clark Gregg, Jeremy Renner

Description: The powerful but arrogant Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is cast out of Asgard to live amongst humans in Midgard (Earth), where he soon becomes one of their finest defenders.

Review: Superheroes often carry a big burden. Whether it’s trying to control their super powers or hiding their identity; a hero has a big responsibility and has to deal with that daily. And that’s no different for Thor, the God of thunder.
The fate of the world is again hanging by a thread and the man with the hammer is the one to fight the evil. After he unleashes an ancient war with the Frost Giants, his father Odin banishes him for ignoring his orders and sends him to Earth. There it seems that Thor is unable to handle his hammer Mjolnir, until he shows that he is a true hero will he rekindle his powers.
Thor has a rich background story, as well from Norwegian mythology as the comic books that started in 1962. Thor is the only God amongst the Avengers. He comes from a world other then Earth. His world is visualized amazingly, it looks stunning.
Once Thor joins the Earthlings, there is room for humor. At first, Jane thinks he is a homeless guy, but when S.H.I.E.L.D. shows up Jane knows there is more to him. The humor never overshadows the action and the comedy is mostly very dry and always well-timed.
The creators try to avoid the black and white view on good and evil as much as possible. This makes for an interesting battle between brothers Thor and Loki, even though you know which one embodies good and which one is evil.
This is one of those films that makes or breaks due to the casting of its main hero. Chris Hemsworth stars in his first major role and he is the perfect choice. Hemsworth is undoubtably one of the most beautiful peope Hollywood has to offer, but with that he is also extremely charismatic and has humor that suits his character. Natalie Portman, who plays his love interest Jane, is mostly seen as the better actor of the two, but she never manages to step away from Hemsworth’s shadow. It feels more obligated for her.
“Thor” is a great film, highly entertaining and fun.

Rating: 4 / 5

10s Movie Review - Iron Man 2

Director: Jon Favreau
Genre: Action/ Science Fiction/ Adventure
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 2010
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Jon Favreau, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson, Mickey Rourke, Leslie bibb, Olivia Munn, Don Cheadle, Kate Mara, Paul Bettany, John Slattery, Clark Gregg, Garry Shandling

Description: With the world now aware of his identity as Iron man, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) must contend with both his declining health and a vengeful mad man with ties to his father’s legacy.

Review: Two years before the sequel was released, “Iron Man” was an unsuspected hit. It was a straight-forward comic book tale that made it special due to its great lead.
Although the first film wasn’t very surprising, the last scene where Tony reveals to the public that he is Iron Man, was. This created the path for a sequel. Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, is nothing like the other superheroes out there. Heroes like Spider-Man or Batman see their task as a burden and try to keep their identity hidden. But Tony is someone living the good life and not being ashamed of it, but simply has an eccentric hobby that he uses to fight bad guys. This is no different in “Iron Man 2”.
Tony makes it seem easy to live as a superhero with his identity out in the open and you wonder why some of them want to keep their identity hidden. Well, the government pressures him to hand over his inventions. And his character reveal draws the attention of a Russian criminal that has some unfinished business with the Stark family. This Ivan Vanko gets, after his first confrontation with Iron Man, help from a guy named Justin Hammer. He is a weapons manufacturer who is always one step behind Tony. An alliance with Vanko could work for both Hammer as Vanko.
Ivan Vanko is played by Mickey Rourke, who got his Hollywood comeback due to “The Wrestler”. But in “Iron Man 2” there is not a lot for him to do. Babbling in a Russian accent, but mainly silent, he is mostly physically present in the action scenes. Another newcomer to the film is Scarlett Johansson, who is Tony’s new assistant. First it seems like a thankless role, until it’s uncovered who she really is. But the best newcomer is Don Cheadle, who takes over the role of James Rhodes from Terrence Howard, who played this role in the first film. A character being played by a different actor than the previous film is a tough job, but Cheadle nails it and we’ve already forgotten about Howard.
The intention of a series is that you see a clear development in characters, in this cast Tony Stark. But at the end of “Iron Man 2” he is just the same guy as the first film. In doesn’t dig deep enough to give Tony the development he needs.
“Iron Man 2” is a fun and very entertainment sequel, that is mainly good because of an excellent performance by Robert Downey Jr.

Rating: 3/ 5

00s Movie Review - Iron Man

Director: Jon Favreau
Genre: Action/ Drama/ Adventure/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 123 minutes
Year: 2008
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard, Clark Gregg, Leslie Bibb

Description: After being held captive in an Afghan cave, billionaire engineer Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) creates a unique weaponized suit of armor to fight evil.

Review: “Iron Man” was the first movie in the MCU. Tony Stark is on top of his weapon imperium and he loves the good life: gambling, fast cars, beautiful women and fancy gadgets. Stark is good at making weapons, but never really thought about the people it might affect. After a demonstration, Tony is kidnapped in an Afghan cave. He has to replicate the ‘Jericho’, some sort of super rocket. Instead he makes an armor to escape.
It's an origins story: the hero, that lives a life without purpose and decides to use his expertise to fight evil.
Tony Stark is, on paper, not a very sympathetic paper. He is a hedonist, makes weapons, is a bit arrogant and a real womanizer. And since he is the hero, you have to make him likeable somehow. And by casting Robert Downey Jr. that actually happened. Downey Jr. is completely believable, but he never seems to take himself too serious. And it’s really hard to dislike him.
The film isn’t as action packed as you might think, but has a great build-up of the main character.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Captain Marvel

Director: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Genre: Action/ Adventure
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 2019
Starring: Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Jude Law, Annette Bening, Lashana Lynch, Clark Gregg, Djimon Hounsou, Gemma Chan, Lee Pace

Description: Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races.

Review: In 2017 there was “Wonder Woman” and we finally got a good movie starring a female superhero. And it was directed by a woman. It was an easy watch without being too feminist. But this was DC. Marvel has been overshadowing DC for years now, but here DC beat them. But Marvel has an answer, in the form of “Captain Marvel”.
We know her as Miss Marvel in the comics, but was promoted to Captain Marvel (which is a man in the comics). Born as Carol Danvers, we see her as a member of an intergalactic taskforce fighting against the Skrulls, a shape-shifting rase who is at war with her people, the Kree. When Carol crashes on Planet Earth in the mid-90s, she has to fight the Skrulls on her own. Carol meets S.H.I.E.L.D.-agent Nick Fury, who she teams up with.
Having Fury in this film is a big win. Played by Samuel L. Jackson in several other Marvel films, he finally gets a more substantial part in one. And I love him in “Captain Marvel”. He also has great chemistry and interaction with Brie Larson, who plays the titular character very well.
The film has a great 90s vibe, and not only due to the setting, clothes and music. Also when you look at the action scenes.
I’m a little late to the party, seeing “Captain Marvel” just now. I expected something completely different, but was pleasantly surprised. I highly enjoyed “Captain Marvel”.

Rating: 4/ 5

00s Movie Review - When a Stranger Calls

Director: Simon West
Genre: Horror/ Thriller
Runtime: 87 minutes
Year: 2006
Starring: Camilla Belle, Tommy Flanagan, Katie Cassidy, Tessa Thompson, Brian Geraghty, Clark Gregg, Derek de Lint, David Denman

Description: During a babysitting gig, a high-school student (Camilla Belle) is harassed by an increasingly threatening prank caller.

Review: Jill just broke up with her boyfriend Bobby, because he made out with her best friend. They talked it out over the phone, which caused Jill’s phone bill to go over the limit. Her father want her to earn the money back and take on a babysitting gig. On the night of a huge school party, Jill is stuck babysitting for the Mandrakis family. They live in a remote mansion. When Jill arrives, the kids are already in bed, so it seems to be a peaceful night. Because she doesn’t know the house, it starts scaring her a bit. Especially when Jill starts receiving creepy phone calls from a stranger.
“When a Stranger Calls” is a remake from the original film from 1979. But like most horror movie remakes, it’s not a memorable film. It’s filled with clichés. It takes at least an hour before the mystery caller becomes really threatening, before that it’s just false jump scares. Not even jump scares, just simple scares. And the characters are all very flat. The motives for the stranger are also lost.
“When a Stranger Calls” is a perfect film to watch when nothing else is on TV. And is easy to forget. Not a great horror film.

Rating: 2 / 5