Bo Burnham is an artist who is one of a kind. He got his career jump started with his Youtube Channel, got millions of subscribers, and by the age of eighteen he was one of the youngest comedians to perform on tour. He has a creative mind that has produced many brilliant comedy specials and films. His comedy special Inside, (currently on Netflix), which he starred in and directed, is clever and often fun to watch, but it can be cheesy and sometimes confusing. And while I found myself laughing at many points, the special pushes the envelope with some of its subject matter.

Burnham shot this comedy special from inside his home (hence the name) over the course of a year. The concept of a comedy special being shot totally inside a home due to the COVID-19 pandemic is creative, and Burnham enhances the film by singing throughout it and rotating the scenery by filming from many rooms of his home. And while Burnham never loses his touch with connections and taglines, this special was just a bit eccentric. Many people may find much of his subject matter funny, but some of his topics may not be funny to a lot of people. I am not judging his subjects as good or bad, but I think he tries too hard at times.

I do have respect for Burnham, but I believe that in Inside he often crosses boundaries that shouldn’t be crossed—mostly with some of his bits on mental health and some scenarios with social media. He often tries to present serious matters in a funny manner, but in real life they would not be funny, and they weren’t funny here. So Inside gave me many moments of confusion—mostly by wondering whether Burnham’s crossing of boundaries on sensitive topics is necessary.

I do give Burnham credit for the technological aspect of Inside. He lays out the rooms in a structured order as he progresses through the special. Burnham also fits the part of being Covid-bound by making himself look like he has not taken care of his personal hygiene. Burnham always has a talent for fitting his scenes and dressing himself for the parts. So the film is technologically amazing, but I found the writing too dark and overly exaggerated.

Overall, I would rate Inside as an average comedy special. Burnham does possess true comedy talent. This film is just is all over the place and confusing with regard to many of its subject matters. It is generally light-hearted, but has some unexpected and unnecessary harshness. So I had mixed feelings about this special, which I give a solid 2-1/2 stars.

Greenland is a global disaster film that is more realistic and captivating than most end-of-the-world flicks. The cosmic collisions and segregation of individuals for safety, combined with the global disaster scenario, heighten the suspense of Greenland. The film is vast, with its worsening environments building more danger as the film progresses. That is what gives Greenland its originality, with its setup of worldwide danger. But the film does leave us wondering how it would be possible for the cosmic collisions to happen so fast.

Greenland focuses on a family with some challenges. Gerard Butler plays John Garrity, who is facing challenges with his wife Allison, played by Morena Baccarin. They have a son, Nathan, played by Roger Floyd Dale, and they are trying to make their situation work out. The concept of them sticking together and working together becomes essential, because in a matter of moments their lives are at risk. They come across news that the world is on the ledge of peril from natural disasters caused by comet fragments. The world is in danger and that danger is growing.  The family only has one hope of survival—to make it to a government sanctuary for safety. As others around the world try to find safety in the sanctuary, the chances become slimmer because the government has set up parameters for who gets to go the sanctuary and who does not.

Greenland had me deep in thought, wondering how the natural resources of our world would face such a catastrophe. Given the many months of the challenging COVID-19 pandemic, I kept thinking how the realistic disaster in Greenland would be handled if a global disaster (separate from the COVID-19 pandemic) happened in real life. Most of the survival in the film involves the characters fending for themselves and going around the parameters that have been established by the government. The film does a good job of helping us understand to why the parameters are avoided throughout Greenland.

The film has a moment where there is a selection process of individuals who will be allowed to make it to safety. The process almost feels like some of the processes that were used for vaccinations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The individuals in Greenland get selected via phone and receive wrist bands. The selection process made me wonder—if this situation happened in real-life, would they select and separate individuals due to lack of assistance? This is also an example of parameters being avoided, because the characters realize that they need to stick together, and that going by the orders may not allow them to be together to keep each other safe.

For director Ric Roman Waugh, this is his second perilous film with Gerard Butler. The first one was Angel Has Fallen (2019). That film was the third in the Fallen franchise, but Greenland is a step up from Angel Has Fallen. Angel Has Fallen was repetitive, whereas Greenland is more original and a ride of suspense. Greenland is a worthy watch.

With the Fast franchise, I have enjoyed a variety of them, but up until the death of Paul Walker, the continuation of the series has been hit or miss for me. At this point, it is becoming repetitive. The setup with spy operations, crazy destructions among cars, technology, and people jumping between all the destruction is what to expect each time there is a new Fast film. F9: The Fast Saga, however, finally establishes a separate storyline that has some value. That is because of how the storyline gears on the past of Dominic Toretto (played by Vin Diesel).

In F9: The Fast Saga, Dominic’s brother (who he has been estranged from for years) comes back into Dominic’s life with a vengeance. His brother is Jakob (played by John Cena). Jakob is recruited by the criminal mastermind Cipher (played by Charlize Theron). Jakob seeks revenge towards Dominic for all the years they have been estranged, and Jakob has got many gadgets of destruction that may put Dominic and his team at risk. Dominic has always been the person reminding others in all the other films that family is important. But he did not keep Jakob close, and now Dominic must pay the price.

I enjoyed the storyline between the brothers in F9: The Fast Saga. The collisions and creative evil plans held my attention, but I did not find them that spectacular. I found though this had its moments of developing the inner conflicts between Dominic and Toretto, but still just repeats the technological elements of the suspense. I feel that if F9: The Fast Saga kept up more with plot developments from the past, then it would keep having a purpose for its repetitive car destructions. The film is just like a Michael Bay movie where the explosions is what is the goal of the enjoyment of the film.

Thinking back to the previous films they were more realistic. They were all just racing. It is now racing added with jets, planes, and its starting to become out of focus. Of course, though it is just a strategy to make money. However, F9: The Fast Saga I still found myself to have my moments where I did enjoy its suspense. More for the cinematic pleasure moments and in the IMAX format. Overall, I am going to F9: The Fast Saga two stars. It is average, but its hit or miss. Its main selling element is the stars Diesel and Cena.