Diary
May 2026
La La Land
fun and i can see the appeal, but not too overly hyped like most.
The Devil Wears Prada
Fun time with Seb. Very funny and makes me excited for the sequel.
April 2026
The Evil Dead
Despite being a bit campy and featuring an outdated idea that Sam Raimi (the film director) himself has regretted, it's a wonderful time that continues to scare modern audiences. The final stretch where the movie goes off the rails in the best way possible and essentially is just Raimi trying out different scare tactics is second to none some of the best fun horror put on screen that I've seen.
Michael
I watched it for my birthday with my brother and friend. Although I of course enjoyed the songs being played, it doesn't mean this PR move by the Jackson estate is worth being praised.
Speed Racer
What do you get when you mix collage and pop art, maximalism, anime action from 1960s to about '90s, and just a pinch of surrealism of Spy Kids? The final result is 2008's The Wachowskis Speed Racer, a bold re-examination of what action movies could be. Growing up, I watched many great auteurs and directors that my father had adored...only through children and family movies. Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox, George Miller's Happy Feet, Martin Scorsese's Hugo, and of course, the Wachowski's Speed Racer. All films I vaguely remember watching over and over through Red Box rentals, Netflix's DVD mail-in service, or whenever it may appear on cable. Even at a young age, all those movies (sparing Happy feet) would just memorize me, making me feel things that I wouldn't truly be able to understand until I grew up. From the four I've listed, Speed Racer was the one film we actually owned on DVD. It was a rarity by 2009 for our household to actually buy physical media, as my parents were open and quick to try new technology. As the years went by, I've revisited the film less and less. Now over a decade since my last watch, Speed Racer becomes even more bold than when it originally released. Even by the early 2010s, comic and anime adaptations had rules made, decisions that decided forcing fiction to our reality was better than adapting reality to fiction, and a specific film language had developed. Even when it gets close to the source material in plot lines or maybe adapting the characters to screen, something just doesn't work. Whether it's the over reliance on getting claps for the bare minimum of accuracy to costuming, to not understanding why a character or story is so revered, to simply using it as a vehicle to their next event film, it's become very easy to root against them. Enter: Speed Racer. What makes Speed Racer work is the reasons it failed at first. A post-modern narrative film centered on breaking almost every single conventional rule of modern filmmaking and editing? To the adults that watched it in 2008, it's no wonder it got so much flak. 2008's top blockbusters were The Dark Knight, Iron Man, and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Comparing those films to this one, it's clear why audiences were so surprised and overtly negative to this film. The entire film essentially plays the premise very straight, which unlike The Dark Knight or Iron Man, doesn't mean serious or grounded stories. It means the main racer's name is Speed Racer and no one bats an eye. That's the true magic of Speed Racer. It doesn't care just how ridiculous it looks, it doesn't care to flash Speed's outfit like it's the most important part of his character, it doesn't worry that much of the film is centered on the family instead of pure racing, and it definitely won't care if you think children film's can't be post-modern and instead must be fun nothingburgers. Once you accept that this is a heartfelt letter to all things art and individuality, you begin to believe. Believe in legends, believe in being bold, to believe in the very essence that life is art.
Mile End Kicks
This film is messy. It's like a stream of consciousness, jumping across a couple different plot points with little cohesion. Yet, by the end, its intimacy and adoration for what its characters are and represent make up a lot of its faults. Across a span of about three months, the audience becomes familiar with Grace. She finds herself in Montreal, Quebec, as she plans to write a novel centered around Alanis Morissette's album Jagged Little Pills. In her new life away from home, she comes face to face with a multitude of problems, ranging from falling for two men, to money complications, sexual frustration, inability to work through her trauma. It's a lot, most subjects loosely connected together through interlinking themes or ideas. Some of it works, some of it doesn't. This is primarily due to the story dropping much of its plot points by around the time the second act truly begins, only for it all to come back during the climax. A bit forceful, but it makes sense. This isn't a story of solutions and trying to see what went wrong from a bird's eye view. This is a story of someone going through a messed up period of their life and only realizing everything is wrong as their head submerges deeper into the sludge of it all. It's a great story that is uncomfortable and at times feeling lost, but I can overlook due to how great the central themes and ideas come through. It has an amazing understanding of what indie darlings look and sound like, showing a mirror to the very audience who likely perpetuates the current "indie darlings" of the late 00s and early 2010s that otherwise would be ignored today. If you are any way educated or know music history of the internet indie boom, you'll get the most out of this film. This film definitely isn't made for everyone, but instead it's for a subset of a subset of a subset of freaks who likes looking at another freak and just...feeling seen.
ChaO
ChaO is a shallow love story that gets some points for having some okay animation eye candy. The soundtrack isn't really memorable, the voice work was at times questionable, especially with the main character Stephan, and the story holds many issues. The primary one is centered on why the audience should root for Stephan to succeed in maintaining his relationship with Princess Chao. Sure, it's explained in the story that it's done to further his goals and as well further the relationship between mermaid people and humans. However, it fails to realize the human element. Once Chao gets introduced into the story, she is shown time and time again adapting to the human world and their cultures. As well, multiple times does Chao actually demonstrate the love she holds for Stephan with superfluous gestures and a true effort to win his love. As for Stephan, he belittles the fish lady and very rarely offers any advice to Chao on how to love properly. It's not an uncommon trope in these stories, but at least by the third act, the audience should see and identify why they should care for Stephan. Sparing the climax of the feature where this comes around, Stephan is a boring, cynical, hateful pairing that only gets development in small bursts before being overshadowed by an outburst or lack of interest in Chao. The rest of the feature in terms of score and cinematography isn't memorable, though the style and visual gags it has is charming. I wished they could draw more varied women, as excluding a few examples, the primary design of most women in the film is curvy, thin, pretty ladies. This clashes heavily with the men's designs, as they are quite varied, ranging from more standard lanky men to round and cartoonish. It makes it so the message of the film becomes really muddled, which was already on thin ice at its conclusion.
Jerry Maguire
Although I adore Tom Cruise in this leading role, I do find myself finding the feature just okay. It has some great comedy bits, some interesting ideas around parents and their kids, and it's just so easy to be charmed by the charismatic and the over the top sports agent that is Jerry Maguire. Whatever thoughts you may hold for Cruise is dashed away in this film, as I guarantee there is one scene in this that will sway you to find the movie star even a little endearing. I had a dumb grin throughout the feature, leaning back in laughter with how many jokes are well executed. However, funny if you know the film, I feel the movie really lacked a certain heart. It has its moments, even points where I can say it was cute. Yet, I do think due to the fact it had to switch back and forth from Jerry Maguire learning to love to sports dealings at times mood killing. Here I thought it was finally time to develop a bit more for Dorothy Boyd, the love interest of Jerry Maguire, and perhaps flesh her out beyond being a single mother and wanting to stick with Maguire. It happens quite a bit of time before the film just ends. A bit disappointing, as there are so many great points in the film where Maguire really develops as a character, becoming an almost renewed man at 35 years young. Other highlights include Rod Tidwell, as he plays an amazing wingman and investment for Maguire. The rest of the film is okay. The score is nothing that sticks to my head, the cinematography might be impressive at times, but many times over it's just a standardly shot mid 90's film. The coloring for certain scenes must be highlighted, as when they lean into specific sequences having a tint or color, it makes the film all the more striking and interesting. It's overall just an above average romcom, where I had hoped to get a bit more of the "rom" than the "com'. Fun time, especially in a room that's big fans of Cruise having to play a "well adjusted" person.
The Drama
An examination of the current cycle of judgment and expectations. It does play its final stretch safe, which was a bit disappointing considering just how amazing its second act is. The film lightly touches on a couple of subjects, but I do find they handle it with care and the necessary restraint that otherwise could've led to a way worse story. The score and acting is the highlight of the feature. The score really elevates many scenes, whether it's adding to the tight composition of the shot and the character's stress, to the illustrated loneliness that feels as though it's a part of incomplete puzzles. The acting from the whole cast is wonderful, but Robert Paterson just inches above the rest with his ability to really portray it all. In part is due to the fact he's one of the few continuous perspectives we receive in the feature, but that doesn't discount just how well he plays this impulsive and constantly thinking intellectual stuff that slowly befalls the curse of the race to find the endpoint of knowledge of anything. Don't look up anything, go in blind, and don't be afraid to laugh at it and be a part of the drama.
Clerks
Crude, rough, and a brutally relatable experience of working at any level of retail. Clerks is a bit dated, but as well, holds a certain charm that hasn't been easily replicated from the many years past its release. It's a simple film, really. Dante, just a standard retail clerk, is called in on his day off. He comes in, then the film is a series of stories that are loosely defining his day at work. That's really it. Sparing a few locations that Dante and his slacker friend Randal travel to or appear in, it essentially all takes place in the convenient store. Yet, that's all the film needs. What really makes the feature is the writing and lo-fi presentation. Most lines are delivered with a bit of amateur charm that matches the dialogue. All of it flows as if it was just an improve, just a casual back and forth that was maybe vaguely similar to a conversation you probably had with a coworker. They curse, they use ridiculous analogies, they talk about pop culture. Movies just didn't really...do that up until then. Film would more often than not do homages by recreation, or reference only the big names. Star Wars and its sequels are mentioned by name, known by fans and nerds, but something you would put in a debut film? The discussion question wasn't even centered on the more popular ideas like the main characters or theories around the story. Instead, it's a tiny detail that doesn't detract from the experience, but eventually you may think when you speak to the same guy for a few years. At its heart, its writing and simple cinematography breeds creativity due to the inherent limitations of such a small production. Moments like Dante and Veronica laying with each other on the counter floor chatting away, or the simple joy of watching Jay and Silent Bob deal outside of the store and eventually dance away the night. Simple moments that tell thousands of words of character relations and where their ideals lie without needing to film a scene where they express such ideas. Its comedy balances both the absurd scenarios the audience witness with the more grounded story focused on the relationships between the main cast. A great time, if you are willing to overlook some of its more dated euphuisms, it's a hilarious look at the life of retail that continues to ring true. Ridiculous customers, doing things that are above your paygrade, and really starting to get the ick from your friend that you've known for too long now.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
I didn't expect much from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. Despite many online fans getting excited for the prospect of the game "Super Mario Galaxy" being adapted for the big screen, I accepted that wasn't going to be the case. Although a lot of films have started to adapt other works with great success while naming themselves after the original, it's still pretty easy to find cases where it's just the name that is taken and little else. My expectations in general was that the movie would be just an okay time, with simple continuations of the character arcs that were introduced in the last film. It wouldn't blow me away, but it didn't need to. It just needed to be a fun adventure animated feature. Then the movie started. Most of the complains I had when I had watched The Super Mario Bros. Movie were carried over, including its fast pace that left little for the audience to absorb moments, underutilization of specific characters that seemed interesting, and finally it feeling like more a product than a movie with its overindulgence to fill time with references. But at the very least, an attempt at the standard hero's journey was made. For its sequel, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, it feels even more phoned in than the first film. They set up ideas, like the dynamics of Bowser and Mario, the implications of Peach and Rosalina's past, and the idea of new worlds to explore. Yet nothing is allowed to breathe or be reflected on. The film doesn't need to be this deep, emotional, raw story that's supposed to critique and analyze the issues of society or the character's torment and struggle to improve themselves while they fail. It can just be as simple as "the characters go on an adventure". What makes that adventure then is then the set pieces and tiny moments of development characters get naturally by trying to reach their ultimate end goal. Films like Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade are great examples of fun adventures movies that feature simple, but effective, character development. As for The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, the first half features the beginning of those ideas. Mario's arc is partly trying to get with Peach, partly trying to hash his relationship with Bowser. Luigi...doesn't get anything, which applies to Yoshi as well. The Princess Peach arc is the attempt of self discovery, but the conclusion was quite deflating and almost dismissive of the idea of it. Bowser and Junior arc is rekindling their relationship, which only really happens for about three scenes across the whole film and concludes before even the halfway point. That leaves Rosalina, in which it can boil down to being not at all present. When looking from this point of view, it illustrates the main issue of this movie: It just isn't interesting at all. The closest the audience gets to intrigue is the references, ranging from mimicking Mario games and their imagery, to a multitude of Nintendo references from their rich history. Even I cannot be a sour puss and say I didn't at least grin once to a reference because I just so happened to recognize it. Though I also realize that doesn't substitute actual storytelling or aid in much of making the film actually interesting. A good film, especially one that's adapting a previous work, can of course feature little touches and references to what they are adapting from. A good reference doesn't hamper or require homework from the general audience, but instead be a nod to the fans. Even though I may not enjoy their films much, the MCU does this very well. Sometimes they may overindulge, but for the most part, they understand the general audience is going in without previous knowledge. For The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, most of these references are quite empty, wasting the time of the story and the characters they got to learn from the first movie. Am I saying they should remove the references? No...but balance is necessary. This isn't aided by the pacing of the feature. The first half is quite fast, but there are very tiny moments to breathe at the very least. Once the second half begins, it's very much felt as though they pressed fully down on the gas and aren't going to let up until the credits. By then, it's exhausting and a bore to sit through. The references begin to feel as though they are trying to jiggle keys in front of the audience to get any sort of reaction, explosions and slow-mo to make it appear as though something grand has occurred, and nothing is allowed to progress beyond the literal physicality of the characters changing locations. Again, nothing needed to be high art, but at the very least it needed to actually be good. "Oh, it's a Mario movie, so why does it matter?" The same way why a Sonic movie having a bad story wasn't a good thing until the third movie, where suddenly it becomes something that is praised for and seen as a great positive to have. Just because the source material is light on its story doesn't mean it can't have good stories told about it. "Oh, it's a children's animated movie, so why does it matter if it's good or not?" The same reason why you likely prefer to watch something like The Lion King, Moana, or Kiki's Delivery Service over something like The Emoji Movie or Foodfight!. All of the listed examples are children films, but the ones I listed as likely preferred to be watched all have something in common: a story anyone can enjoy no matter the age and without any sort of pretense of being for irony or due to being made for children in mind. Just because a movie is made with children in mind doesn't mean it needs to be created to suit children only. A good story can be told a million ways, which means it can be made with a mature audience in mind or with an "all ages" mentality. Don't downplay how much a child may understand a story, as although they may not be able to articulate their ideas well or understand everything, they will feel it. Isn't that the end goal of a story, to cause some sort of emotional reaction from the audience? It can be happy, sad, anger, displeasure, triumph, failure, longing; all valid feelings that may come from a story. As it stands, it's better to experience Mario and his friends playing their games over watching them in this film. It's fun of course to have something we adore adapted to something else, but I would say it's a good feeling only when it's adapted well.
March 2026
Project Hail Mary
A grand adventure that pays homage to 2001: A Space Odyssey and Interstellar, but also standing shoulder to shoulder to those titans with great success. Project Hail Mary is theoretically an above average sci-fi comedy drama. When reflecting on the picture, many of its issues come to the surface first before the positives. Complaints like it feels there are multiple endings in the picture, how the runtime is really felt in the middle of the movie, or the quick turnaround to most problems that leads to the tension deflating before it can really affect the audience. All of these complaints are true...yet the movie pushes past that with great stride. Most of the positives land on Ryan Gosling, playing a middle school science teacher and former molecular biologist named Grace, as he gives his all for the role. Nothing feels insincere or forced, which could've easily been the case for these types of movies. It's a somewhat familiar character he's played in the past across his career, but it works so well here due to the dry wit and rambling aspect of the character that plays on Gosling's natural charisma. Though, I must say the best person in the film was Sandra Hüller, playing the essential leader of the project Eva Stratt. The humanity that is mixed with a duty that weighs heavy on the character has Hüller stealing the spotlight whenever she is present on screen. This isn't even to mention the wonderful secondary character that Gosling spends most of the picture as his co-star, Rocky. Puppeteered by James Ortiz and his team of "The Rockyteers", the character that lacks facial features comes alive thanks to the script. I've heard many complaints about the humor of the feature, which has been compared to a certain style of "epic bacon" or it being "reddit". That style of humor, which can be defined as being "cringe" or what has been deemed as currently uncool and dated, is not a valid criticism. It does resemble that style of humor, with one scene coming to mind having a reference to the "Whoomp! (There It Is)", but the characters also all aged approximately where their humor would line up with that. Essentially, the same style of writing as when an older person is featured and they joke the same way they would've when they are younger. It feels bad to watch, but succeeds at what is needed in terms of characterization and setting the necessary mood the audience may need to know for character dynamics. The cinematography and the sets are incredible. It's so amazing to see a high budget film without being afraid to get close or far with the subjects. From behind the scenes, so much was created practically, which is appreciated when it's become increasable easier to "do it in post" or just give a half-hearted effort to make it look nice. It plays with screen formatting, happy to try so many camera framings. So many different camera framings occur throughout, that if one doesn't work for you, the film is already trying something new. The average blockbuster has become comfortable with a formula, but Project Hail Mary isn't. This film has such a big heart, so much so that the issues that do come like the ones that were mentioned earlier get overpowered by its love. It shows love for humans, for the stupidity and the brave that has led to where we all are at now. It loves that we feel sentimental about the insignificant, as that's what makes us human. It loves that sometimes mistakes are made because we love too much. The film wants to leave you loving the world a bit more. I can say that it succeeded in that.
Stand by Me
One of the best coming of age stories I've seen. Rob Riener just knows how to craft features that ages like wine. Words just fail when I want to describe just the joy and heartbreak I felt while watching this movie, so I'll instead just say I am happy to still remember my childhood friend Gabe to this day. I miss ya bud.
M
An incredible film that has its social commentary continue to be relevant, though its age remains ever present. The film M is a well written mystery thriller centered around the police, the public, and the crime underbelly trying to find who is the child murderer that has remained in their town. Each side has a reason to find the killer, ranging from civic duty to almost apathetic annoyance that it's disturbing the businesses they run. Under Lang's view of the world, it's interesting to see what is seen as controllable versus uncontrollable, with either side being able to give their arguments. The conclusion, however, isn't dependent on those perspectives, as instead it draws from what it deems as above the morals and law we all operate in within a society, concluding that humans themselves must determine what is best for all. Examining the film outside of its amazing screenplay is a more aged feature. It has an incredible cast of actors, though some fall a bit flat when they aren't the leads. The camerawork has its moments to shine, but as well many more times it feels as though they are still figuring out how to really show off the dynamics of the cast and the words they are saying. It comes together in its introduction and in its final act, but its middle does have some issues in pacing and imagery. It has glimmers being so forward thinking in some scenes, but then just as many points feel as though it is a feature from 1931. It's an important film either way, though it's more "some of its parts" than the entire feature being the reason it's so remembered.
Twilight
I am so thoroughly lost.
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Slightly better than the last one, but it's pacing is what kills it from being a clear step up.
Sirāt
After the film began to roll credits, there was a group of two that sat behind me that began to discuss what we just witnessed. I sat quietly, eavesdropping to see what the opinion they had. They noted the film was fine, with the highlight being a scene centered around a child and one of the main adult leads. Then they complained heavily that after a certain event (if you've seen the film, you can easily deduce the moment) that shifted for them to be "pure shock value" with "no reason to do so." This was also the same two people who during the final sequence were loudly whispering to each other about whether a character will make it or not over towards safety and made multiple gasps at the multiple shocking turns the film had taken during its third act. Sirāt is an incredible movie that really lulls you into believing it's a completely different type of feature with its first half. An older man named Luis, alongside his son Esteban, travels to a rave to find his missing daughter. Through that rave, he discovers a group of rave-goers that say his daughter may appear at an upcoming rave. From there, the film fully kicks off. What makes it an incredible time is that first half, as if the entire film was like its second half, it wouldn't be as gut-retching and horrifying to witness unless the first half occurred. The first half of the feature is your typical band of outcasts, coming together through unlikely means to reach a common destination / goal. The second half is more experimental, willing to express the grief and sorrow the journey hides below its initial joy. It's emotional, gripping, and brings a new appreciation to the interactions that raves bring in, likely written off by most who watch this feature. The biggest feature of the film is easily the music. Well composed, rich in production, and both thematic & characteristically relevant to the journey the characters go through. At points, the music illustrates best what everyone in the film and the audience watching are truly feeling. The final track that plays during the climax is one of the best sequences of the year, which isn't easy to say for a year with so many great needle drops and incredible final sequences with similarly great final tracks. This won't be a film many will find or watch now, but I do hope in the reflection of 2025, this film is mentioned alongside the other amazing features the film has.
The Report
Although the subject matter at hand is quite important, that in itself doesn't make the film important. It features a great stretch around the real frustration and desire to expose the truth on sometimes difficult subject matters, the film has a difficult time really beginning and ending the narrative. By the end, it shifts from conspiratorial exploration of the CIA's very real inability to take accountability of what heinous actions it decided to take post 9/11 to a very standard political drama. At a certain point, the actual powerful ideas and very real ideas that are present in the film's first half are very much diminished and non-existent in its back half. It's more interested in exploring the real life people behind these actions, which is still important to highlight, but is more afraid of being direct about the systematic issues that plague the issues they face. If it is brought up, it's then to point to and direct the frustration again at the individual. Sparing the writing frustrations, the overall feature is shot fine. Some interesting compositions appear, but the lack of intent makes a confusing watch. The primary antagonist, if we may so refer to it as such, is observed often with a Dutch angle...to an overzealous amount. If done to highlight a couple of times where the line was overstepped by the man, or to even showcase each time he did something that is very clearly illegal, then that would've been a better solution than what was in the film. Instead, it's every appearance, leading to a feeling of the film talking down to the audience to ensure they understand that he is, in fact, a bad guy. I will highlight, however, the recreated described integrations as being done tastefully and with a clear intent to disturb the audience. All the sequences built to a larger image, revealing more about the cast apart from the integrations, and truly showcased what actions written on paper or said by a person actually looks like.
Umamusume: Pretty Derby - Beginning of a New Era
A fine action film that really punches above its weight in its action setpieces. For the majority of the feature, the film is a simple and fine journey for a "Uma" (Horse in Japanese) to climb the ranks to become the best. In following Jungle Pocket, it does make a cozy time watching her really try her best and root for her to beat the odds. The surrounding parts are odd, however, as much of the development of her competition and world isn't really explored (spare the main antagonist). As such, most of the weight that isn't directly related to Jungle Pocket's journey feels simple, uninteresting, and at points seeming unnecessary for the journey. Luckily, the film really does flesh out Tachyon, the primary rival to Jungle Pocket, really well to the point of endearment. A perfect foil to her, and watching the utter insanity on display as she pushes the theoretical limits of racing is at times breathtaking. The animation and cinematography during the races are actually great, already grafting into my head how high tension racing could be depicted as. Tight angles, split paneling for reactions, and the on display emotions makes the skin crawl. Certain points feel as though you are watching a fairy tale on display, other times it's as though you are witnessing a grand win that will be history. The races are the reason to catch this movie, especially the Satsuki Sho race. If a sequel ever comes, and if they iron out the issues around making the in-between points of the story more engaging, then I can see it being a really damn good action film. It's already so promising with the action sequences, so I can see it surpassing itself if given the chance.
Hoppers
Unlike Disney Animation, I have kept up a bit better with Pixar's output up to this film's release. I did miss out on Luca, Lightyear, and Elemental, but I have seen the rest of Pixar's 2020 releases. For the most part, their films have been a mixed bag for myself and many others. No longer that remains true, as Hoppers is a surprisingly great new feature from the studio. It features amazing animation, great composed music, and a shockingly interesting plot. It lulls just a tad in the second act, but it's more than solid in its first and third act. As well, one of the scientist characters that got quite a bit of screentime really lacked any development, but it didn't hinder my experience that much. It's simply a good time, one that I recommend to anyone who enjoyed Pixar's output from the 2000s to try, as it really does feel similar to those films compared to the films of the 2020s.
