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Film reviews

Love Hurts Review

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When there is a film with Ke Huy Quan, expect it to bring grandeur with mesmerizing characterizations full of personality. His acting makes audiences think back to his role as a child in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. He still brings fascination that shines wonderfully on the screen many decades later. His role this time around is as a successful career man trying to deal with many life and death issues. The past, however, is what comes to haunt him. Love Hurts is one-of-a-kind and quirky with excellence. 

Quan plays Marvin Gable, a realtor who has had a life with many deadly trails. He is in the mindset of assuming life is good, but it’s about to get a whole lot worse. As he is navigating his days with his colleagues, fragments of his past come back to him. There are various strange signals, and chances of danger. An anonymous message comes into his life, and from there, Love Hurts spirals. There is a whole lot of negative impactwhich comes on gradually and then accelerates. The instigator of the past scenarios which comes back around for vengeance is Rose Carlisle (played by Ariana DeBose). Another individual that comes into the picture is The Raven (played by Mustafa Shakir). Both characters are part of Marvin’s life before his career achievements. The antagonist is Alvin ‘Knuckles’ Gable (played by Daniel Wu), and he is also Marvin’s brother. A trail of deceit and vengeance grows rapidly and turns into a rollercoaster ride full of genius moments.

Love Hurts is wonderful because of the way fantasy decreases and then increases vividly. It goes from Marvin seeing red flags and then progresses to when Rose comes into the picture. Once Rose comes around, the duo dynamically evolves into scenes which are part of a wild death match of an adventure. The action correlates with having a humorous tone while also being visually enticing. Quan and DeBose are a duo of extravaganza. Love Hurts will dazzle its audiences to the max. It is a new direction that does not have to be taken seriously. Before seeing the movie, I was not expecting much. But it turned out to be more than what I was hoping for. The continued trails of trial and error, and the harsh previous events create a tornado of twists and turns. 

In terms of expectations, I will try to put my comparisons into cinematic terms. Think of John Wick meeting Office Space. Both find a pattern to tie together. John Wick for the action sequences and Office Space for the characters’ personalities. When the scenarios involving conflicts and enemies occur, the movie is filled with a climax like Everything Everywhere All at Once. Quan was in Everything Everywhere All at Once and he won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance while the film even won Best Picture. Love Hurts has a lighter, more subtle plot than Everything Everywhere All at Once yet still well worth seeing. Three out of four stars.

Film reviews

Wicked Review

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The film’s introduction is enchanting and succeeds in preparing viewers for a musical adventure making its way to The Emerald City. By utilizing an opening logo like The Wizard of Oz and then topping it off with flying monkeys, Wicked gets off to a positive start. However, the foundation is not strong enough to sustain the entire film. Wicked is a Broadway musical adaptation that needs improvement. While the presentation of musical numbers abounds, there are not as many as audiences anticipate. The backstory is tolerable as is the scenery and settings that are visually stunning. The continuity is where Wicked tends to fall flat.

The story is about two witches, Elphaba (played by Cynthia Erivo) and Glinda (played by Ariana Grande). Elphaba is green and that makes her a turn-off to the world. Glinda on the other hand is pink, cute, and glamorous. They are assigned to be roommates, and soon their friendship blossoms as they find connection in their fantasy environment at Shiz University. The witches’ experiences involving miracles, munchkins, and musical fun is where Wicked attempts to build upon the fundamentals of the storyline more than it does on finding musical connections.

The most interesting part of the story is the opportunity to meet the Wizard (played by Jeff Goldblum). This is definitely the most monumental segment of the film. The green train making its way to the Emerald City dazzles with amazement. The songs are joyful, but do not have frequent transitions the way they do in the musical version. This is why the chance to visit the Wizard offers audiences more to look forward to.

Because I have seen the Broadway musical, I felt the film fell off track more than it should have.  Some of the interconnectedness in the movie version simply does not make sense. Overall, the performances of Erivo and Grande are magnificent, but the pacing of the movie is lacking.  There is going to be a Part Two, so perhaps there will be several improvements made to this grand introduction before continuingwith the story. Despite all the frustration and shortcomings I’ve noted, the film still a gem-like quality which lead to feel-good moments for people of all ages, in particular, fans of the musical.  

My appreciation for Wicked remains tied to the theme of friendship. The performances of Erivo and Grande showcase their magical touch at displaying joyfulness in Wicked. With Erivo playing the witch who is trying to overcome her ugly side, and Grande thriving on her good looks, Wicked is like a duo between beauties trying to compare their best elements. The era before Dorothy still has a positive connection before all the events in The Wizard of Oz. Unfortunately, the backstory of Wicked struggles to portray these positive connections. Given that there is a second film in the making, I still have faith in thechance for a continuation with some much-neededimprovements. Despite the film’s shortcomings, Wicked has that touch which is sure to enlighten many. Two-and-a-half out of four stars.

Film reviews

Monkey Man Review

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This is an experience which will make audiences’ blood rush. A new hero is born due to revenge that has been endured for so long. Monkey Man just keeps giving with angry vibes of classic destruction. The film is directed by and stars Dev Patel in a role that is like Slumdog Millionaire meets John Wick. The streets of India are full of dark allies and Patel’s direction and performance are wickedly rapid. With all the jumps and craziness in Monkey Man, I felt like there was an army of monkeys getting into fights all around me. Patel, however, is the strongest and most ruthless of them all.

In Monkey Man, the film introduces us to Kid (Patel), a young man living in a world of anger and destruction. At night he is astreet fighter at a club run by a man named Tiger (played by Sharlto Copley). Kid wears a gorilla mask when he is a street fighter and fights to help ease his anger. He feels rage from his childhood days when his mother was murdered. Kid has tried for much of his life to let go and take his fears elsewhere, but without success. Due to his continuous fights and earning little money, fighting has not helped him grow as an individual. Kidtakes a job at a high-end club and puts together the pieces of the wealthy men involved. With the help of a colleague named Alphonso (played by Pitobash), Kid’s anger eventually leads him to a connection with the man who killed his mother. This is where the rage really sets in.

Once Kid finds out who was involved in the killing of his mother, the true ape side of Patel’s character explodes. He goes on a tirade of destruction in which he destroys criminal operations, destroys bad people, and destroys businesses. Soon the authorities are on to him. But Kid won’t stop until he feels there is true justice for his mother. India’s landscape is theplayground for Kid’s destruction and the bad guys keep appearing out of many different corners. Patel’s angry side shines vividly in Monkey Man. How bad do things get? How violent does the film get? The answers to these questions are part of this film’s bonkers adventure.

As part of this massive display of revenge and destruction, I found the film to be very effective at tying in culture. The death of Kid’s mother had to do with land and poverty. The concept of unnecessary suffering fueled additional anger which causedrapid damage throughout the film and led to one of Patel’s finest performances.

With fighting and violence on the streets, Patel plays onedangerous man who is a winner as both an actor and as a director. This movie is a vivid heart-pumping rollercoaster rideand truly one of the top films of the year so far. I found this film full of clashes and explosions to be an insane and triumphant experience. Four out of four stars for Monkey Man.