Interstellar
I got to see this twice, one of which was in IMAX. Holy crap, it was beautiful. But I saw it a second time to iron out my opinions because I wasn't entirely loving it the first time and I didn't know how I exactly felt about it. On a second watch, I can say it's a solid film. Gorgeous visuals, fantastic acting, and the great family dynamic are its three biggest strengths. My problem boils down to the thinness of the script. There are its fair share of gaping plot holes, including but not limited to:
Spoiler (click to read)
If the whole "love is quantifiable" thing actually happens, why was Cooper only allowed to be in his daughter's room? Wouldn't that negate the whole idea that it was love that brought him there? If love is quantifiable, shouldn't he be able to follow HER instead of the room? What if she never returned?
Why did Michael Caine train his daughter if there was literally NO reason for him to do that. He's basically training her to solve an equation that he's already solved, and he knows that nobody is able to crack it. So why do it in the first place? And then why did he tell her right before he died? What was the purpose of that?
Why did Anne Hathaway suddenly become emotional about her boyfriend even though that completely contradicts her character? Oh, and right as she mentioned the "love is quantifiable" idea, I immediately thought "Oh. No. It's gonna be brought back up." Aaaaand I was right. Luckily it wasn't handled as sappy and terrible as it could have been.
Why did Matt Damon know that it was all a scam?
Why couldn't Christopher Nolan have been a BIT MORE SUBTLE about the metaphor of Matt Damon's name being Doctor MANN?
And also Christopher Nolan and his brother both wrote separate scripts and then combined them, and it clearly shows. But regardless of these flaws, it still is an intense and entertaining ride.
7/10
The Hunger Games: Cathing Fire
I wasn't exactly a huge fan of the first one, but I managed to see this before Mockingjay Part 1 came out, and I'm glad I did because this one is really good. It expands the world of Panem and capitalizes on the themes the first one missed out on. It also made the games way more interesting and intense.
8/10
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1
I blame money.
This movie greatly suffers for being Part 1, or as it's been accurately called, "The Extended Trailer for Part 2." My opinions might be a bit different as I've never read the book, but contrary to popular belief, movies have to stand independently without the book. The events may be strictly the same as they were in the book, but that's the big problem. The book is told as one narrative, with rising events and eventually the climax. The movies were split into two, making the climax of Part 1...just another plot point in the Mockingjay book. So when the climax happened, I thought, "Wait...that's it? I expected at least a bit more than THAT..." And if you're thinking, "Well....that's what happened in the book!!!!!!" then it should have gone one of two ways:
1.) It should have just been one movie (which is the better choice.)
2.) It should have been reworked so that the third act was at least somewhat exciting.
That all being said, I know I have been trashing it up until now, but I didn't HATE this film. Everyone was great in their roles, but Jennifer Lawrence was especially fantastic as always. And I really enjoyed the whole idea of propaganda going back and forth between District 13 and the Capital, so I really enjoyed that political dynamic that was not delved into previously. If any of my complaints about the lack of action have a positive aspect, it means that Part 2 is going to be stuffed with it. And I'm really excited for it.
6.5/10