I actually enjoyed this film. I am, however, a big fan of the first two films in the franchise, and given that this entry plays out like the ultimate fan-fiction, fan-service fan-film, it isn't surprising that I enjoyed watching it. The first act was especially good, showing us what went on before the Terminator and Kyle Reese were originally sent back to 1984. It was inventive and the attention to detail from the original story was incredible. If only the other two-thirds of the film were as worthy. I'm afraid the casting of Reese and Sarah Conner were the film's biggest mistakes. These actors brought nothing to the film and might as well have just been placeholder dummies posed in front of the camera. Schwarzenegger is good in his iconic role. He was more believable in this one than the third film if you ask me. And J. K. Simmons stole the show, when he was on screen that is. It was a small part, but it was the best part. The final act of the film was awful, predictable, and despite all the explosions and special effects, ultimately uneventful. As a huge fan of the first two Terminator films, I enjoyed this reboot/prequel/sequel/remake, but I can't imagine anyone else really caring at all. It was at least better than the last two in the franchise, and just like Jurassic World, that's all we can really hope for anymore.

3.0 Stars (out of 5)

Finally a return to the original Pixar we used to love. Inside Out is extremely clever, maybe sometimes to a fault, but also as heartwarming and moving as Pixar gets. I have not been a fan of some of their recent films: Brave, Cars 2, and Monsters University. I'm happy to finally see an original film again (even if it is reminiscent of Herman's Head or Cranium Command). The voice casting was impeccable for the film, with Amy Poehler as the perfect 'Joy', Bill Hader as a hilarious 'Fear', Lewis Black as the fitting 'Anger', Phyllis Smith as 'Sadness', and my favorite, 'Disgust' played by Mindy Kaling. It's like a SNL/The Office crossover with this cast, and it couldn't have been done any better. My favorite things about the film are how it attempts to explain how the mind works in both grand and small fashion with clever and unique concepts. Everything from how we get a commercial jingle stuck in our head to how we grow and mature from an adolescent with simple reactionary emotional responses to an adult with a more nuanced emotional outlook. A beautiful movie, let's just hope they don't go and make a sequel.

3.5 Stars (out of 5)

I really wanted to love this movie. The film starts off with a bang, the first act sees us at the 1964 World's Fair, we hear the song from Carousel of Progress, and get to take a ride on It's a Small World. Overwhelming synergy overload aside, I loved the first half of this film. You really couldn't guess what was coming next, it did a great job of setting up the stakes, and the sequences were fun and clever. However, somewhere after George Clooney's character starts to reveal details about the real Tomorrowland, and his own childhood experiences with a child-shaped android, the film takes a nosedive for me. It becomes more and more clear that we're not going to get a satisfying conclusion and the film just sort of ends, because it wants to. The message is beautiful: to keep hope alive and to never give up on a bright future. But the movie tells us to be inspired, rather than actually inspiring us. They save the day at the end, but it doesn't feel organic, more like they do it because the film's running time was running out. Maybe there's thirty minutes on the cutting room floor that help square it away. I love Brad Bird. I love his directorial style and the messages he tries to convey. I just wish this film did a better job of that and had a better climax.

Seeing the movie opening weekend, they gave us a Tomorrowland pin and E-tickets for the film, reminiscent of the old style ride tickets from Disneyland when it first opened. While I absolutely adore the pin and everything it represents, it's the epitome of everything wrong with this film: They get the props, production design, and feeling right, but without a good and memorable story to hold it up.

3 Stars (out of 5)

As a stand-alone film it doesn't work as well as some of the other films, most notably The Winter Soldier. It feels like a long episode of an Avengers television show, (and I do mean long). I'm exhausted just watching all of these films from the Marvel cinematic universe, so I can understand why Joss Whedon is tired of making them. There's too many characters to pay service to, too many plot-lines to pay attention to, and too much special effects for the filmmakers to get them all done well. (The opening sequence had rubbery digital people as bad as The Matrix Reloaded's Agent Smiths fight. Haven't we moved past that phase of CG?) As one would expect there was some great comedic moments in the film, and clever dialogue in true Whedon style. But the film is drably directed, trudging along its set path, moving from one scene to another, without really sitting long enough to completely take anything in. Surprisingly, Hawkeye had some of the most memorable moments, and I thoroughly enjoyed Paul Bettany as The Vision, although there wasn't nearly enough for him to do in the film. Strangely enough, this was one of the smaller storylines in the Marvel universe, and yet, once again, the fate of the entire world was on the line. It's hard to stay invested after the world has been in peril this many times.

3 Stars (out of 5)

The gimmick of Unfriended is cleverly executed. The entire film takes place on a laptop screen and that's probably the best thing about it... That, and the 82 minute run-time that is. Every character in the film is thoroughly unpleasant, obnoxious, and self-absorbed, which makes it hard for the anti-cyber-bullying message to come across. Don't cyber-bully or ghosts will kill you through Facebook! Other than the poor characterization, the film handles the story well, explaining motivation through well-thought out mouse movements and strokes on the keyboard. Seeing the main character type something, hesitate, backspace, and start again helps illustrate what's going on in her mind. Web searches and YouTube videos help with delivering exposition. While I liked the execution, let's hope this is a one-of-a-kind found-footage film, because I've had my fill and don't need any more copycats (looking at you Modern Family).

3 Stars (out of 5)

This is a fun entry into the series. I only wish it could be the final chapter because so many of the main storylines are wrapped up and the send-off for Paul Walker is done tastefully, leaving me with a feeling of conclusion. But we all know they'll be more of these films... Oh well.

I still liked Fast 5 the best. It was the first one to really figure out what the franchise is best for, fun, over-the-top stunts, with a self-aware attitude. Furious 7 is more like 5 than 6, which was boring and disappointing compared to the others. The new director, James Wan, brought in a fresh feeling to the film. I especially appreciated the locked camera shots that spun when characters were flipped, creating a fun sense of disorientation.

As with the other recent Fast films, its biggest problem is just having too many characters to pay service to. Dwayne Johnson and Jordana Brewster are essentially written out for most of the film to make way for other characters, but I missed them the entire time. The Rock definitely brings an energy to the film that it sorely needs and when he shows back up at the end things pick back up. That might be why Fast 5 is my favorite.

At the end of the day, the real star of these films are the stunts. Having so many real cars being crashed, blown up, and dropped out of the sky, and with little to no CGI, is impressive, and refreshing to see. So much these days is done with computers, so it's nice to see so many practical effects. The film truly is impressive, even though the script is so flat. Out of all the car-racing-heist-movie-spy thriller-series out there, this is still the best.

3 Stars (out of 5)

There is a definitely a creepy vibe throughout It Follows, and once you leave the theater you'll swear you're being followed, but the story and some of the decisions made in the film turned me off a bit. The visuals are incredible, well thought-out and perfectly executed. 360 degree shots and slow pans set a scary mood, and the color grade gives off an early 80's film vibe. Speaking of the 80s, the score is a brilliant mix of slasher style synthesized sound with a modern mix; very loud, very creepy.

The film felt slow, especially considering its rather short running time, dragging on like the creepy people following the main character in the film. The idea of death always following you, ever so slowly, yet still inevitably catching up with you, is always intriguing to me, whether in a zombie film or in this new take. Without much of anything else happening though, this film is just plain boring at times... But that's my take on it. It's still worth admiring for its creepy atmosphere and beautiful craftsmanship.

3 Stars (out of 5)

This live-action rendering of the classic story manages to pull off being true to its source material as well as to Disney's animated feature. I always felt the animated film from 65 years ago was a tad boring. It was dull, albeit whimsical, and it had a couple memorable moments. This film manages to flesh out the story, telling it in a manner more like historical fiction rather than fairy tale. But at the same time it has the look of something more colorful and striking than an even an animated film. There are plenty of playful nods to the animated version, including keeping characters' color schemes intact, some of the interactions between the cat, Lucifer, and the mice that inhabit the home, and the fairy godmother even says "bibbity bobbity boo" at least once for good measure.

The film opens with a fully fleshed out first act, telling us everything that led to Ella becoming Cinderella, something from the original tale that was sorely lacking in the animated one. And the visuals in this were often times so beautiful it took me out of the story, most notably the blue gown and the incredibly perfect incarnation of the live action glass slippers. I saw the film mainly for Cate Blanchett as the wicked stepmother and she did deliver, but so did everything else, and that was a nice surprise.

3.5 Stars (out of 5)

I like this film so very much, and it is unfortunate the amount of bad press it has received. I can see how folks may be turned off by the story, the underdeveloped characters, and the somewhat gory conclusion, but for me this is a great mixed genre sci-fi film that isn't afraid to be both R-rated and cute at the same time.

Chappie the character is amazing. He's likable, well acted, and beautifully visualized with seamless special effects. The film around him, unfortunately, isn't as well developed. The movie takes cinematic shortcuts, skipping past important exposition to instead indulge in a fun montage. It gives Hugh Jackman's generic badguy character a couple of cheesy one-liners rather than a proper backstory.

Despite its flaws, I found myself caring about the main characters and sitting on the edge of my seat to see how it all was going to end. And as a futurist science-fiction nerd myself, I was pleasantly surprised by the ending, (an ending that has turned off most viewers for coming out of seemingly nowhere). This film is miles ahead of Elysium, and I suspect that if it was shot in the same documentary style as District 9, people might have been more responsive to it. In any case, I love Chappie, no matter how bad his move might be.

3.5 Stars (out of 5)

This film constantly straddles the line between comedy and horrific drama. Long sequences of dark humor are always interrupted by the shock of dark reality, usually seen through the eyes of another character. While I thought it was an interesting take on the subject matter, I can see how it could turn off general audiences just looking for a straight comedy or horror film. Ryan Reynolds gives one of, if not the best, performances of his career. It's incredible that he actually plays both of the animals' voices as well as the main character. It's definitely an interesting film, seen from the point of view of someone who may be crazy, knows he is, but really wishes he wasn't.

3.0 Stars (out of 5)