Films You've Seen in 2024
Apr 26, 2024 13:47:42 GMT -8
Post by Jeremy on Apr 26, 2024 13:47:42 GMT -8
Abigail is a darkly funny horror-comedy from Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (the duo behind Ready or Not and the last couple of Scream installments). It's about ten minutes or so too long and kind of tonally uneven in spots, but delivers the thrills - along with some comically over-the-top violence - once it gets going. (One glaring issue is in part the fault of the marketing, in which the Big Reveal made halfway through the film was put front and center in the ad campaign.) The cast is clearing having fun - Alisha Weir is a talented young actress who brings both effective menace and vulnerability to her scenes, and Angus Cloud gets some amusing lines in what was sadly his final acting role. The only star who doesn't click is Dan Stevens, whose scene-chewing performance starts to wear thin after a while. But it's an entertaining film all around, even accounting for the way it cribs one of its key contributions to vampiric lore from the aforementioned Ready or Not.
Lisa Frankenstein is a frustrating film from Zelda Williams (daughter of Robin), with a script from the usually-better-than-this Diablo Cody. The seriocomic tone is confusing and muddled, the dialogue overly twee, and the film's unironic validation of its central characters is ludicrous, building to a laughable finale. (Kathryn Newton, who is a lot of fun in Abigail, feels miscast and at sea here in the title role.) The film will undoubtedly gain its share of followers for its outcast themes and oddball protagonist, but it never quite feels as firmly assured as Jennifer's Body (the movie it's clearly attempting to capitalize on); instead, it just feels like the filmmakers watched Heathers and missed the point.
Migration is a mediocre animated film in standard Illumination style, boosted by the occasional funny line from Danny DeVito and the overall lack of anything Minion-related. The most noteworthy aspect of the film is the villain, who boasts one of the worst character designs I've ever seen in a major animated production. Leaving that aside, I can confirm that this is a perfect "background" movie - it never required so much as 50% of my attention, and I was able to fold a lot of laundry while watching it.
Lisa Frankenstein is a frustrating film from Zelda Williams (daughter of Robin), with a script from the usually-better-than-this Diablo Cody. The seriocomic tone is confusing and muddled, the dialogue overly twee, and the film's unironic validation of its central characters is ludicrous, building to a laughable finale. (Kathryn Newton, who is a lot of fun in Abigail, feels miscast and at sea here in the title role.) The film will undoubtedly gain its share of followers for its outcast themes and oddball protagonist, but it never quite feels as firmly assured as Jennifer's Body (the movie it's clearly attempting to capitalize on); instead, it just feels like the filmmakers watched Heathers and missed the point.
Migration is a mediocre animated film in standard Illumination style, boosted by the occasional funny line from Danny DeVito and the overall lack of anything Minion-related. The most noteworthy aspect of the film is the villain, who boasts one of the worst character designs I've ever seen in a major animated production. Leaving that aside, I can confirm that this is a perfect "background" movie - it never required so much as 50% of my attention, and I was able to fold a lot of laundry while watching it.