Movie review of Joker

Joker - 9/10

As of right now, this is the movie of the year for me. Joker has surpassed all my expectations. Kudos to the director, Todd Phillips and Joaquin Phoenix for this beautiful, thought provoking masterpiece. Todd Phillips pushed this to Warner Bros and DC for almost a year to get it done for a R rating which was brilliant. I still can't believe that Todd Phillips, a comedy director known for the Hangover trilogy and other comedies did this beautifully violent movie and he got his cinematographer, Lawrence Sher as well.

There are a lot of things I love about this movie. The pacing was slow and at first I thought, it was perhaps a little too slow. But it was well worth the wait for the complete transformation cause when you see Arthur turn completely as Joker in all his glory, it was just breath taking. The color and tone was colorful yet bleak and you can feel the sense of dread and repression.

I have to say, the cinematographer, Lawrence Sher had some really cool shots. There were quite a number of them which can be really good posters or wallpapers. I loved the subway,  the staircase shot and the hospital shot with the footprints. You will get it when you watch it. Absolutely brilliant. The way the cameras captured the acting was essential to the story telling of Joker.

Casting. Let's talk about the supporting actors first. Robert De Niro plays a character which is like a role reversal of King of Comedy and he played it to a tee. A fitting tribute, I might add. It was perfect casting him as talk show host, Murray Franklin cause besides the King of Comedy vibe, there was another iconic De Niro character tribute as well. Frances Conroy (Six Feet Under) was also great as Penny Fleck, Arthur's mom. And last but not the least,
Joaquin fucking Phoenix. Brother of the late River Phoenix. The cheebye Caesar from Gladiator. Johnny Cash from Walk the Line. And now Arthur Fleck from Joker. A very underrated actor who loves to choose weird or unconventional roles.
His portrayal of Joker will definitely be one to be remembered. To me it is up there, as a very close second to the late Heath Ledger.  The slow gradual transformation from Arthur Fleck to Joker was fucking amazing. Just notice Joaquin's eyes at all the pivotal moments. Just from that alone, you can see what a good actor he is. The crazy weight loss, and lines are a bonus. The most difficult part was the iconic Joker's laugh which Joaquin Phoenix mentioned was very tough. What was amazing was you can feel the pain and the anguish from the laugh which he created and it changes as the movie goes on. If he doesn't get any recognition or an Oscar for this, I'm very sure a lot of people are gonna be pissed. I sure will be as well, even though I think the Oscars are bullshit. This is truly acting at its finest. If a god like Robert De Niro approves  of Joaquin's acting, then you know shit just got real. Thank you Joaquin Phoenix.

Plot. This stand alone origin story is one of a kind. Don't think of it as a comic book movie. If all those comic book fans who are gonna hate this for not being true to the comic, I say fuck you and fuck off. There never was a proper origin story for the Joker to begin with and there have been several. So shut the fuck up and enjoy the movie. The good thing is Todd Phillips has said that it will not have anything to do with any upcoming Batman movies. And to be honest, I truly hope there will not be a sequel for Joker. As much as I want to see more of what Joaquin Phoenix can do with Joker, let's just leave it as it is.

I really loved the 70's feel. From the soundtrack to the set and costume designs. Another fitting tribute to an iconic 70's movie was Taxi driver. Another iconic De Niro character, Travis Bickle which was why adding De Niro into the casting made total sense. I really loved the reference a lot cos it has always been my fav " hand gesture". I even have the fucking poster of Travis Bickle doing it.

It was also damn cool of them to do a tribute to the late Heath Ledger's Joker. Ace in the hole and the police car bit. Solid.

All in all, Joker is a magnificent movie and you have to watch it in the cinemas. Well worth the weekend price as well. It has been a while since I have been this excited for a movie and will definitely be watching it for the second time.

Piece of advice when watching Joker, watch it without any disturbance. No food or with someone asking you 5000 questions about the fucking movie. Devil is in the details. Enjoy the experience. Send in the clowns.

Movie review of It: Chapter Two

It: Chapter Two - 6.5/10

It: Chapter Two is a pretty decent movie and you have to watch the first one to understand what the fuck is going on. It's not the kind of movie where you can just watch the sequel without watching the first. 

I did enjoy Chapter One when I first watched it as I was curious on how it would turn out. Would it be as good as the mini series done during the 90's? Would it be as crazy as the book written by Stephen King who apparently was on cocaine when he wrote it? 

I was also apprehensive on how Bill Skarsgard would portray Pennywise the Clown cos Tim Curry did an excellent job in the mini series. Got to admit, Bill Skargard was fucking excellent and creepy especially when he does his eyeball thing and that wasn't CGI at all. The fella really could do that.

The casting for the kids in Chapter One was good. And the adults version of them were good as well in Chapter Two. The ones who stood out for me were Bill Hader, Bill Skarsgard and James McAvoy. Bill Hader and James Ransone (Eddie) had some funny lines and good chemistry. James McAvoy was perfect as adult Bill Denbrough. Even Jessica Chastain acted well. One of the funnier scenes, was the cameo none other than the master of horror himself, Mr Stephen King. That scene was hilarious.

Now all the scare scenes were done well and there were some creepy fucking scenes. One of my fav was the head scene. That whole scene was like a big tribute to John Carpenter's The Thing. Even Bill Hader said the classic line from The Thing. 

All in all, It: Chapter Two is a decent movie to watch but watch the first one for the full story. It isn't really a very scary horror movie but good enough.

Movie review of Rambo: Last Blood

Rambo: Last Blood - 6/10

Last blood, I would say is a fitting end to the Rambo franchise even though it was the shortest movie of the series. Read that the movie was heavily edited after test audience and it was still being edited even right before opening day. It was very obvious especially early part of the movie. 

The first part of the movie was a tad bit boring. The things Rambo does after he came back to America (Rambo 4) were weird. Taming horses and digging tunnels? Really, John? 

The action however comes towards the end and it was glorious violence and gore. There were some really solid kill scenes especially the very last bad guy. Brutal yet typical Rambo. 

I didn't really give two shits about the rest of the cast and Gabrielle was annoying and deserved what she got. Fuck her. I'm here only for Stallone. Fuck everyone else.

It was pure nostalgia when you see Rambo go apeshit and starts prepping. The whole prepping scene was awesome and you get to see his iconic bow as well. That's the Rambo I knew when I watched first blood as a kid. 

Because of the violence and kills, the end scene is worth the ticket money itself. Never mind how the bad guys got there or how ridiculous it got cos at this point, all I wanted to see was Rambo doing what he does best. Kicking ass and taking names. And that is exactly what he did only in a very violent way.

As much as I love watching Stallone as Rambo, Sly has gotten old and it's a good thing he ended the Rambo series with Last Blood. This movie is solely targeted for Rambo fans. Even the credits scene hits you with a wave of nostalgia. You'll remember all the classic scenes and it makes you want to go back home and revisit all the previous Rambo movies again. 

If you have never watched Rambo before, don't bother.

Rambo: Last blood is worth watching on a weekend. 

The last lines were poignant and perfect.

Rambo: I've lived in a world of death. I tried to come home, but I never really arrived. A part of my mind and soul got lost along the way, but my heart was still here where I was born, where I would defend to the end the only family I've ever known, the only home I've ever known. All the ones I've loved are now ghosts. But I will fight to keep their memory alive forever.

Movie review of Ad Astra

Ad Astra - 5/10.

Ad Astra which means "To the stars" in Latin, is a visually nice movie to watch. The production level is very high and there were some scenes that were nicely done. However I found the pace of the movie a little too long and draggy. Whatever emotions I felt from the characters were waned out by the pace and the length of the movie.

Casting was good for Ad Astra. Brad Pitt was pretty decent. Although I felt he was kinda bored and didn't really go all out. There were two scenes I felt he was solid was the one with his father and the tear scene. That was good. 

For a brief moment, I felt Ad Astra was a sequel for Space Cowboys cos there were 3 actors from it. Tommy lee Jones, Donald Sutherland and the captain of the space shuttle who couldn't land at Mars. I can't remember his name. There were very little scenes of veteran actors, Tommy Lee Jones and Donald Sutherland. Although Tommy Lee Jones looks damn old. he is so old,his eye bags looked deflated. Still he is a brilliant actor.

All in all, Ad Astra is a decent Science fiction movie but it is forgettable. I wasn't wowed nor was I bored after I left the cinema. It is a kind of movie which you will only watch once and never watch it again. 

If you wanna watch Ad Astra, watch it on a weekday if you have nothing else to watch. If not just wait for the cable release.

Movie review of Avengers: Endgame

Avengers: Endgame - 8.5/10

Finally time to write the review for Avengers: Endgame. A 3 hour rollercoaster of a movie. Wow. Just wow. What an end. The movie was near perfect and I would love to buy the blu ray and I have watched it in the cinema for the second time. A feat that hasn't been done in a long time. There is a high chance that I might even watch it in the cinema for the third time.We'll see.

Got to hand it to the Russo Brothers for an amazing job directing Infinity Wars and Endgame. It is definitely no easy task and they did a great job. The emotional ride was one of my favs for this movie. You have scenes that will evoke different emotions. You have tear jerkers, wow factors and scenes that makes you go WTF.
The tear jerker scene would of course be the ending. Robert Downey Junior has been pivotal as Ironman and it was sad to see him for the last time as Tony Stark but that scene was necessary.
Wow moments are definitely the battle scenes and fucking Thanos being an absolute bad mofo. I was squealing with excitement when Cap wielded Mjolnir and I went absolutely apeshit when everyone came around and Cap said Avengers Assemble.

Endgame is one of those movies I can watch countless times and be thoroughly entertained.