Drew’s Movie Reviews Turns 6! My Fave Five New Movies I Watched in Year 6

Hello, friends!

Today is a special day. Today is my the sixth blogiversary! I celebrated the occasion by reviewing Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy. If you missed any of those reviews, here they are:

Spider-Man
Spider-Man 2
Spider-Man 3

Since “Year 5” was a bit extended due to my six month hiatus last year, I haven’t seen as many movies during Year Six as normal. However, I still did see some pretty fantastic films during that time. Here are my fave five films I watched during my sixth year of blogging.

5) Aquaman

The DC Extended Universe (DCEU) doesn’t have the best track record. I think Warner Bros. recognized that directors should have the freedom to make their movies their way, even if they exist within the larger universe, which is exactly what James Wan is allowed to do with Aquaman and it payed off. This movie has its share of problems but that doesn’t mean it isn’t still a ton of fun. Wan injects a blend of humor and action with a sprinkle of his signature horror elements in the right spots to create an enjoyable action adventure, leaving me actually excited for a DCEU sequel.

4) Juno

I’ve heard of Juno and how good it was for years but it was one of those films that I never watched for one reason or another. When discussing this year’s Ultimate Decades blogathon with my co-host, she recommended this 2007 film to me and I figured “what the heck?” After watching it I was saying to myself “what the heck!? Why didn’t I watch this sooner?” It is extremely heartfelt and way more captivating than I expected it to be. Ellen Page and Michael Cera were phenomenal, playing off each other’s senses of humor  wonderfully. Dramas are hit or miss with me but this was a definite hit!

3) Spider-Man: Far From Home

After the epicness that was Avengers: Endgame, we needed a more relaxed film. That’s not to say Spider-Man: Far From Home is a walk in the park but it does lack the scale of Endgame. Tom Holland has really come into the role of Peter since Captain America: Civil War, and has probably become my favorite Peter Parker between the three actors to have portrayed him since 2002. Jake Gyllenhaal has a unique take on Quentin Beck, adding to the relatively unimpressive comic book version of the character. The end of the film finally sees Spidey swinging through NYC, making me even more excited for Holland’s third solo Spider-Man film.

2) Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse immediately makes itself standout from other Spider-Man films with its truly one-of-a-kind animation style that makes you feel like you are watching a comic book come to life. We’ve seen plenty of big screen versions of Peter Parker so Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse takes a different approach and presents us Miles Morales, the Ultimate Spider-Man, for the first time. There is a lot to enjoy between the characters, story, and animation. Opening up the multiverse creates literally endless story possibilities and I can’t wait to see what they come up with for the inevitable sequel.

1) Avengers: Endgame

Avengers: Endgame. Wow. What an emotional end to what is now being called the “Infinity Saga”. Marvel Studios crafted one of the finest pieces of pop-culture history. Where Avengers: Infinity War brought together story threads from all the previous Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films, Endgame wraps up those story threads in an emotional and exciting way, closing out the chapters of most of the Avengers we have followed since 2008. It is hard to believe we will see another cultural cinematic event like this anytime soon. Love you, 3000.

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What a year for superhero films, huh? It’s probably good that we are getting a breather from the MCU for now, now that the Infinity Saga has finished. There were some pretty amazing announcements that came from the Marvel panel at San Diego Comic Con this year so I can’t wait to see what Phase Four brings. Unfortunately, the Fox’s X-Men series went out with a whimper with X-Men: Dark Phoenix. Hopefully under the Marvel Studios banner, the X-Men characters can return to their former glory. As for the DCEU, well they seemed to have distanced themselves from a shared universe and are focusing on stand alone stories, which honestly is probably their better option right now.

And that does it for another year at DMR! Thank you to all my followers, and anyone who has liked, commented, shared, or simply visited the site. You all make this worthwhile and an enjoyable experience. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the next 12 months. 🙂

Until next time, cheers!

Ultimate 2000s Blogathon: Juno (2007) by From the Depths of DVD Hell

Kim’s frequent partner-in-crime, Elwood from From the Depths of DVD Hell, joins the Ultimate 2000s Blogathon with his own review of Juno! Check it out at Tranquil Dreams before Kim and I begin wrapping up the blogathon.

Tranquil Dreams

The guest to join this Ultimate 2000s Blogathon is Elwood Jones, my co-host of Movies and Tea and Game Warp Podcast as he represents his own movie blog, From the Depths of DVD Hell. For reviews of movies that stray away from the mainstream and dive into the obscure, cult and foreign selections, this is the place to go! For this blogathon, he chooses to take a look at 2007’s indie coming of age teen comedy Juno.

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Title: Juno

Director: Jason Reitman

Released: 2007

Starring: Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Allison Janney, J.K. Simmons

Plot: After finding out she is pregnant, high school teen Juno (Page) she soon finds herself face with some tough choices of what to do about her unborn child.

Review: Having been brought to the attention of producer Mason Novick after he discovered her blog about…

View original post 1,065 more words

Juno Review

Synopsis
When Juno (Ellen Page) gets pregnant unexpectedly, she decides to put her unborn child up for adoption. While searching for adoptive parents, she finds the couple Vanessa (Jennifer Garner) and Mark (Jason Bateman) Loring and befriends them.

Review
I’ve known of Juno since it came out back in 2007. For one reason or another, I never watched it. However, that has now become one of my biggest regrets of the last twelve years. The only time I have finished a film with a similar feeling was after watching Million Dollar Baby the first time. These are character-driven dramas that have left a lasting impact on me as a cinephile and it’s movies like these that helped influence me to become a movie blogger. If you should take one thing away from this review, it’s that you need to go see Juno immediately if you haven’t seen it at all.

Some movies have characters who are bland and paper-thin, getting very little development or existing only to further the main characters’ story. Other movies have over-the-top characters that feel larger-than-life. However, the best movies are those that have characters the audience can relate to and and connect with. Juno creates these connections with ease. I might not be a woman or know anything about how it feels to be pregnant but I still was able to feel a connection to Juno. Her struggle with her uncertainty, her love for her family, and her feelings to genuinely do what is right are still emotions that I can relate to. To say that I was able to sympathize with a pregnant, teenage girl as an adult male is a true testament to how well written the script by Diablo Cody is.

While a large part of this connectivity comes from the thoughtful, well-written script, another portion comes from Ellen Page as the titular Juno. As early as the first line, she instantly captures your attention and had me laughing. I mean, can you think of a better opening line than “Shut your frickin’ gob!’? From there, she doesn’t let off the charm. From now on, when I think of perfect castings, Ellen Page as Juno will be one of my top examples.

Although I have spent a good chunk of this review so far talking about Ellen Page as Juno, almost all of the same things can be said for the rest of the cast. Late 2000s awkward teen go-to Michael Cera, in one of his first movie roles alongside Superbad, gives a fantastic performance. JK Simmons and Allison Janney as Juno’s father and step-mother respectively are great as her support during this uncertain time in her life. Jason Bateman is more of a comedy actor to me but his dramatic performance as Mark Loring might be one of his best performances I’ve seen. And as always, Jennifer Garner nails her part.

This film is a drama at its core but there is plenty of humor sprinkled throughout. As I said, from literally the first line I was laughing. Ellen Page and Michael Cera bear the brunt of the comedy responsibilities but there are some funny moments from Olivia Thirlby as Juno’s best friend Leah. JK Simmons has some great one-liners as well. The humor may not be laugh-out-loud funny but at the same time, it doesn’t need to be. It’s just the right amount of wit to help connect to the characters and still remain affectionate.

But honestly, Juno‘s greatest strength is how it presents teen pregnancy without becoming preachy. It seems today that teen pregnancy often comes with a negative connotation. Early in the film, Juno decides to get an abortion but then decides against it. Whether you are pro-life or pro-choice, this film doesn’t make an argument for one or the other and it doesn’t demonize nor praise Juno for being a pregnant teen. Instead, it looks at Juno as a pregnant teen and and simply tells a clever and heartfelt story.

I thought Juno was GREAT 😀 The fantastic script is complemented by great casting all around and offers one of the most sincerest stories about teen pregnancy in cinema. If you’ve never seen this before, please be better than me. See it as soon as you can.

Juno was recommended by Kim of Tranquil Dreams.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Jason Reitman – Director
Diablo Cody – Writer
Mateo Messina – Composer

Ellen Page – Juno MacGuff
Michael Cera – Paulie Bleeker
Jennifer Garner – Vanessa Loring
Jason Bateman – Mark Loring
Allison Janney – Bren MacGuff
JK Simmons – Mac MacGuff
Olivia Thirlby – Leah