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Film reviews

Fly Me to The Moon Review

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A film that gears on NASA tends to have components that are multi-step. There is the subject of space, science, and politics. It is all about how those aspects move around its theme. Fly Me to The Moon is one-of-a-kind to that extent. Directed by Greg Berlanti, Fly Me to The Moon is subtle with certainty. Its beginning brings historic value to the era of NASA. Its characters are just too rich for the film itself.

From my saying, “Its characters are too rich,” the intelligence side does not mend smoothly. Fly Me to The Moon is created more for the commotion of its high-profile celebrities in a NASA storyline. The layout is stimulating. The project itself is perplexing. Blasting from amazement has a generous number of blockades.

The film begins with Cole Davis (played by Channing Tatum). Cole is a director for NASA. The opening brings in a great deal of NASA feeling undervalued. The place has deficits in supplies and staff. The assistant to Cole is Henry Smalls (played by Ray Romano). Cole is by the book and believes his own political beliefs. Henry tries to go with the flow and deal with the turmoil (since it is unbearable).

For clarification, the performance of Tatum is the one to take earnestly. He delivers that presentation of authority to have a purpose. The performance of Romano is inadequate. If audiences expect to see Romano in a role of accomplishments, his is below the surface level. Expect success from Tatum and Romano being a benchwarmer in Fly Me to the Moon.

The marketing direction in the film’s context is the bigger picture of Fly Me to The Moon. The audience will not be flying into space. They will be diving into the advertising aspect of Fly Me to The Moon. This approach is when the exaggerated traits of characterizations evolve. Kelly Jones (played by Scarlett Johansson) swings into the life of Cole. She has that vibe where she rocks the planet. She does it all day, every day.

Cole and Kelly find themselves having to work together. Cole’s mission is to get astronauts to launch into space. The conflict is politics…a gray area. The promotional aspect is what lies in hope. With Kelly handling the marketing, they both start working out strategic plans to deliver the media that can spark attention to the mission of space for NASA. That all faces risks also. The individual Moe Berkus (played by Woody Harrelson) is on the inside of what is true and false. It is the time when lies lead to more publicity. Hence why the characters are overly characterized. Their personalities all have forms of egos with over-done make-up. The realistic and inspiring aspect is lacking in Fly Me to The Moon.

The dynamic of the performances with Tatum, Johannson, and Harrelson is the compelling aspect of Fly Me to The Moon. There is that motive of intelligence questioned. They all play the cards accurately. It is just hard to take them seriously. Too much make-up and overhype. They may play the parts right, but the writing of their roles is out of focus.

With the advertising and profits side of Fly Me to the Moon, the film gives a lot of detail to Omega watches. The products worn by astronauts drive faith in the production. That is because it is looking for its accomplishment. What matters more? Products selling? Are astronauts making it to space? Are astronauts coming back from space? The two-sided factor of advertisements and a space mission remain in their lane.

Fly Me to the Moon is a joyful flick for a two-hour escape of laughs and minor seriousness. The era may have sits, giggles, and historical factors. Fly Me to the Moon is just average. I feel that there are more NASA factors of moving foundations in The Right Stuff (1983), Apollo 13 (1995), and Hidden Figures (2016). Fly Me to the Moon has leads of connection with a more apt meaning, but these three prior films make me soar with inspiration and imagination to many more heights. I rate Fly Me to The Moon at two-and-a-half out of four stars.

Film reviews

LongLegs Review

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LongLegs will terrify its audience. LongLegs will make moments of horror flash simultaneously in the heads of its audience. Nicolas Cage is LongLegs. He plays a sadistic killer with a mental health disorder of many. His performance is stellar, surreal, and breathtaking. LongLegs is a cult of scary moving parts that made me ache in fear. I was mesmerized by what was making me scared with LongLegs.

As one who loves investigative movies and TV shows, LongLegs takes the direction of killings and clues to a level with context. With a secluded setting where roads have no destination to go for miles, there are murders to happen. Writer and director Oz Perkins uses imagery (in many moments) to heighten the scare factor of LongLegs. There are moments when it feels like a strobe light attack. The audience feeling an impact is the definition of monumental with LongLegs.

The time frame around this horror flick is the 1990s. Filming was around Canada, British Columbia, and the United States. Its main character (the one put up to face the evidence of LongLegs) is Agent Lee Harker (played by Maika Monroe). Lee absorbs her head into all the crime scenes assigned to her. Lee is persistent and mentally compelled to solve the murders that have been happening in unexplained patterns. Her assistant is Agent Carter (played by Blair Underwood). Carter is a tenure agent who is just working to get paid. Lee takes on the case much more than Carter.

Lee’s discoveries are the first portion of the sparkling world of a cult in LongLegs. With killings happening at different times, they leave the symbol with the name LongLegs listed. There is also the added layer of killings that have occurred with items from inside the victim’s homes. Many questions are for LongLegs. Why is he killing families in a pattern that is like a triangle? Why is he killing people with items that do not belong to him? What motivates him? Who is next on the list? Time is of the essence as events happen unpredictably. The events will chill its audience to the bone.

It is not only the tactic of Cage’s terror that makes LongLegs spellbinding. There is also the mental health of Monroe’s performance as the detective in the case. In her role as Lee, Lee has a mixed dynamic with her mother for various reasons. Her childhood troubles fuel her rage and persistence in solving the puzzle. Her mother is Ruth Harker (played by Alicia Witt). Ruth has moments that are uncomfortable in many sequences of LongLegs. It is along the lines of questioning based on her characteristics. Could her characteristics correlate to the troubles of the puzzle with the disturbances of LongLegs? There is a treat at every door, in every character, and in every aspect of this phenomenon from Perkins.

I was in fear with LongLegs. There is a moment when Lee is asked by her mother, “Do you still say your prayers?” With that question, I knew there was more than what I was getting into with LongLegs. I felt I was seeing ghosts. LongLegs is a knockout in its sequences to horrify. It is a trail of clues, events, and characteristics that keeps on its invigoration. It is one of the best horror flicks of 2024. My rating is four out of four stars for LongLegs.

Film reviews

Kill Review

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It is an astonishing thriller that holds no limits of mayhem. It is a ride where heads will spin. Every aspect of Kill left me breathless. Written and directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhat, Kill is not one’s typical heist movie. It has moving parts that all come together. It throws fuel to the fire repeatedly and proactively. That is because of its setup of hostages, good guys, bad guys, and a train that is not stopping. Who will make it out alive? Both the good and the bad give everything they have in a train that is a death match for survival.

The film gears on Amrit (played by Lakshya). He is in love with Tulika (played by Tanya Maniktala). Tulika is forced (by her family) to marry a different man. Amrit has a plan to stop this engagement. Amrit joins her on a train heading to New Delhi. However, the halting engagement becomes the least important. Once the train starts to move, it becomes compromised by a gang that is extremely dangerous and lethal. The enemy (behind the criminal operation) is Fani (played by Raghav Juyal). Fani is ruthless and one who terrorizes his feelings of power and authority. Amrit is a trained soldier. When Amrit is in rage mode, he can do lots of damage.

Once people’s lives are on the line, there is more to the moving parts. It is all calculated. The criminals have their eyes on Baldeo (played by Harsh Chhaya). Baldeo is a man of wealth. Fani sees him as one for ransom. The train is a Tetris game. The train has cars in patterns where the ones with Fani are on different ends of the train, and so are the ones with Amrit. The passengers see how life-threatening the conflict is. Everyone does what they can to fight or survive. Once Amrit and Fani do some damage, it is instant death.

The thrilling /vibrations of the film had my heart pulsing. The eyes and rage of Amrit bring that feeling of fear. Amrit’s “fear” evolves into recklessness. It is done right! The film feels like The Raid (2011) meets The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009). That is because hostages are in a tango with massive and never-ending combat. All of which are insane and pushed to the limits. It does with context. The continuity of survival and power keeps getting tested. This aspect begins when the train continues towards dangerous territory. “Dangerous territory” is in all of Kill.

There is a moment where one says, “Think like Ali.” The reference is to the boxer Muhammad Ali. At this moment, one of the groups is trying to find the attitude to fight and continue. Those three words serve as an enticing purpose of the brilliance of Kill. Ali always had hard punches no matter what match, as does Kill.

All the mayhem had me thinking about previous films surrounding India. I thought about the worldwide sensation RRR and Monkey Man. Both of which had stylized mayhem with a structured storyline to keep rising. Kill rises to the depths as well. With similarities (to both films), Kill is the next level of international and cultural suspense. The aspect of battling for connection, importance, family, power, and beliefs is all part of the landscape of the war on board the train. A question kept flowing through my head with Kill. Who is the target if the deadly mission is a success? The mayhem juggles made my head go in circles of stimulation.

With all the factors of lives being on the line and a mission obscured (by Fani and his gang), the train is the conflict. Since it cannot stop, the only way to survive is to keep fighting (until the train reaches its destination). Who will win? Amrit or Fani? Do not miss this one-of-a-kind thriller where the velocity and magnitude of high-octane combat do not stop! It is astonishing and spellbinding. These films are rare to come by. My rating falls at four out of four stars for Kill.