New Movies for the Fall of 2021

NO TIME TO DIE

ACTION/ADVENTURE  

PLOT: The 25^th James Bond movie. Bond has to stop a creepy madman named Lyutsifer Safin who is making bio-weapons and the love of his life Dr. Madeline Swan has a past with the villain.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  Daniel Craig as James Bond is intense.  All the things you enjoyed about Bond in previous film he smashed all the myths in his first film Casino Royale.  He does in his latest and last Bond movie where he is caring man and  wants to retire from the business but he is forced to come back to save the woman he loves and the world.  Paloma (Ana de Armas who was in Knives Out) as a new spy is great, attractive, funny and can handle herself.  The action is these movies are always good.

WHAT IS WRONG:  Does the public really want a female Black Bond? Nomi (Lashana Lynch Captain Marvel) can hold her own but people are used to a male Bond.  The film is long 165 minutes and the movie audience has been home so long can they endure the length.  They placed a lot of political correctness in the film too.

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  If you are a fan of James Bond movies, yes and it is Daniel Craig last Bond movie.  It has many things of the old movies and many things you don’t want but it is still worth a look.

 

THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2

ANIMATED/DARK COMEDY 

PLOT:  The bizarre and funny sequel to the last movie.  Wednesday (Chloe Grace Moretz) lost a science project and feeling bad so Gomez (Oscar Isaac )and the family goes on a road trip.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  Chloe Grace Moretz as Wednesday, the cool, creepy smart daughter of the Addams clan. The rest of the cast is great as well Oscar Isaac as pathetic, passionate Gomez and Charlize Theron as the strange, sleek Morticia.

WHAT IS WRONG:  Thank goodness it is a computer generated cartoon or it would be a massacre!  It is fun but odd and it becomes crazier as the movies moves forward.

SHOULD YOU WATCH: If you like the last movie or if it is your first time seening this movie they are drawn weird but that is part of the fun.

CANDYMAN

HORROR

PLOT: The sequel to the 1992 slasher movie.  Anthony (Yahya Abdul-Mateen ll Black Manta in Aquaman) is an artist who finds out more than he bargain for about Candyman and himself.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  The acting is good and some deaths are quite disturbing and creepy.

WHAT IS WRONG:  Politically correct about Black people oppressed.

SHOULD  YOU  WATCH:  YES!  If you like the first Candyman you will enjoy this.

 

VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE

ACTION/COMEDY/SUPERHERO

PLOT:  The sequel to Venom.  Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) and Venom are unlikely partners and so they do not agree and they literally split up.  Meanwhile Cletus Kasady/Carnage (Woody Harrleson) becomes Brock and Venom’s rival.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  If you like Venom you will enjoy this.  It explores Cletus Kasady and why he is a sadistic killer.  Eddie and Venom act like a married couple – always arguing.

WHAT IS WRONG:  Venom was little strange and the sequel is very strange if you see this film and not the first.

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  If you like the first movie.  It is very funny and very violent.  It has some sad scenes of Cletus who wants to be a normal human being but cannot.

 

Action Fantasy Movies Go Full Chop Suey

SHANG CHI AND THE TEN RINGS

ACTION/ADVENTURE/ FANTASY

PLOT:  The origin of the martial arts and mystic fighter from the Marvel comics of the same name.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  The fight scenes, the beautiful magical lands and the comic relief by Awkafina and his evil father Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung). Surprise cameos what you wouldn’t expect.

WHAT IS WRONG:  The origin villain is not Xu Wenwu but Fu Manchu in the comics but many Asian Americans dislike the character so they made changes.

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  YES if you like Marvel movies and the character.  Delayed so many times because of Covid- 19, it is worth the wait.

 

SNAKE EYES

ACTION/ADVENTURE 

PLOT:  The origin of the most popular character of GI Joe.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  The fight scenes and Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians) is very attractive and a good actor.

WHAT IS WRONG:  In this film his origin is different than in GI Joe and he is a loner but speaks while in the other movie he does not talk. 

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  Only if you like Golding and the fight scenes.

 

A Quiet, Cruella Summer

 

QUIET PLACE 2

HORROR 

PLOT:    The Abbot family still trying to survive aliens and savage men.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  Very suspenseful.  How do you keep silent when you’re in pain or scream when something frightens you.

WHAT IS WRONG:  If you don’t like sequels.

SHOULD YOU WATCH: YES!  The cast and the exciting thrills are worth the wait.  If you like this sequel as of this writing there will be a Quiet Place 3.

CRUELLA

COMEDY 

PLOT:  Prequel on why Cruella DeVil is so evil.

WHAT IS RIGHT: The two lead actresses Emma Stone and Emma Thompson wicked to the core.  The soundtrack and the clothes are amazing.

WHAT IS WRONG:  Doesn’t seem like a Disney movie.  It is too dark for kids.

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  YES! If you like Emma Stone and Emma Thompson being delightfully devious divas this should be seen, along with other new movie releases..

Finally, Summer 2021: Theaters Bring New Movie Releases

 

FAST AND FURIOUS #9

ACTION

PLOT: Dominic “Dom” Tretto and his team decide to go on another wild mission and we find out Dom has an evil brother, Jakob.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  Unbelievable action sequences wrestler John Cena is the brother Jakob and the comic relief of Tyrese Gibson as Roman and Ludacris as Tej is great.

WHAT IS WRONG:  The stunts are becoming more and more insane and no other gets hurt!

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  If you enjoy the Fast and Furious franchise up to now you will enjoy it.  It is becoming hard to believe, but this film is still good--indeed, one of the best new movie releases of 2021.

 THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT

HORROR/THRILLER

PLOT:  A young man is possessed by a demon and kills someone.  The Warrens have to prove to the court of law that he was possessed by the Devil.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  The film is unsettling  and the acting by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as Ed and Lorraine Warren are very good as with the rest of the cast especially  Ruairi O’ Connor as Arne taken by a demon.  They reference  the bible and God in the film-very rare in Hollywood.

WHAT IS WRONG:  Some predictable jump scares.

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  OH YES!

NOBODY

ACTION/THRILLER 

PLOT:  Hutch Mansell (Bob Odenkirk, TV show Better Call Saul) is a mild-mannered family man.  He has a pretty wife teenaged son and cute little daughter. He has an aging father David (Christopher Lloyd, Back to the Future) who he visits often. He gets robbed in his home. Mansell is not an average man and finds out who the burglars are. He is still angry and takes the bus where thugs taunt the few passengers.  He assaults most of them but one is Yulian Kuzentsou ‘s (Alekesi Serebryakov) brother.  Yulian is a Russian gangster who wants vengeance. Mansell is up to the challenge.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  The movie is action-packed!  Very funny and very violent.

WHAT IS WRONG:  The beginning is slow to show how mundane Mansell’s life is excessive.

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  YES!  It is written by Derek Kolstad who wrote John Wick  films so you know what to expect.

UNITED STATES VS BILLIE HOLIDAY

BIOGRAPHY/DRAMA

STREAMING ON HULU

PLOT:    Another film about the talented but tragic singer Billie Holiday and how the FBI did many things to bring her down so she would stop singing the song Strange Fruit about lynching.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  Newcomer Andra Day. She captures a lot of raw emotions.  Diana Ross was fantastic as the drug addict singer and so is this actress.  The cast is excellent as well.

WHAT IS WRONG:  The movie is epic but you think the film is over and it is not.

SHOULD YOU SEE IT:  YES!  It is a story of Ms. Holiday that hasn’t been told and now it is.

BODY BROKERS

CRIME DRAMA

PLOT:  Drug addict couple robs to get drugs but the guy wants to stop.  They meet a recruiter to help rid of his addiction but it is a racket to find other addicts to keep the top people in business.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  It is mostly newcomers so it looks authentic.

WHAT IS WRONG:  Scary but is it true?  Is it a drama? A thriller?

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  Acting is good but wait until on demand or cable.

MORTAL KOMBAT

ACTION/FANTASY 

PLOT:  An updated version of the popular video game.

WHAT IS RIGHT: The action sequences and special effects have improved from the 1995 movie.  The comic relief was very good thanks to Kano (Josh Lawson).

WHAT IS WRONG:  It is very good but very violent – I guess like the video game.

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  YES!  If you like action, martial arts and fantasy this is for you.

The Ultimate Showdown! Thoughts on Godzilla vs Kong 2021

Note: This was written prior to the movie release in late March.

At last, the monster showdown is coming to theaters and HBO Max March 31.

                This is going to be in short-EPIC!

                Fans of both giant beasts are looking forward to watch this battle.  The last time these two fought was 1962.  It has been 59 years and endless  date changes when the film is released out because of the COVID 19, does Netflix have the movie or HBO!  It was March 26 then they pushed it back for the (hopefully the final date) March 31.  It will be the best action movie of the year, since it's the only film released so far! 

The plot of movie is unknown but the title tells all.  There will be other monsters in the flick but there are only two that matter.  The director Adam Wingard claims there will be only one winner.  The film should have two different endings to satisfy the fans of each monster.  In the 1962 film it was unclear who won.  There are two versions of the one in 1962 and believe it or not the American version was actually better than the Japanese version.  There was a rumor that Godzilla won in the Japanese version while the American version it was King Kong.  It was said all along Kong would be the winner and Godzilla the villain in the 60’s version.

Trailer # 1:(American) January: If you are a Godzilla fantastic you are happy the first trailer came out from all the delays but you won’t like it because King Kong punches Godzilla in the face, hits him again and blocks his atomic breath from Godzilla’s dorsal fin and a bone also from him.  How Kong got it is a mystery until the film is released.

Trailer# 2: (Japanese) February: If you are a Godzilla fan this one you will like somewhat better. Godzilla gives Kong a bitch-slap and he is falling down HARD!

My Trailer #1: Narrator:  Finally, a sequel people want to see!

My Trailer #2: Dr. Ishiro Serizawa:     Let (King Kong hits Godzilla) Them (Godzilla hits King Kong) Fight!(Godzilla and Kong attack each other!)

Why King Kong is Important- The original King Kong was a movie in 1933.  The special effects by Willis O’Brien were amazing at that time.  It told the story of a big gorilla worshipped on an island and Fay Wray while making a movie was a sacrifice to Kong and he was infatuated with her.   To many it was a different version to Beauty and the Beast.  To very few it was Kong was a black man who would die for a white woman. It was a success.  Many other giant gorillas followed but special effects guy Eiji Tsuburaya  in Japan was impressed with King Kong and wanted to make his own monster-Godzilla.

The Origin of Godzilla: In 1954 a kaiju- which means strange creature in Japanese and Godzilla was the first.  Godzilla was taken more seriously than now. Atomic explosions in Japan awakened the towering dinosaur.  It the original film Godzilla was called Gorji which means a beast and a whale. They inserted Raymond Burr know for Perry Mason and Ironside in the English dubbed version in 1956 so the film could sell to an American audience.  They made a sequel Gigantis The Fire Monster because they couldn’t use the name Godzilla but this movie started monster versus monster and the rest is history.

KING KONG VS GODZILLA 1962- Willis O’Brien wanted to make another King Kong movie fighting of all monsters Frankenstein!  Thank goodness they paired him up with Godzilla.  The plot I don’t really remember but the fight scenes weren’t exactly state-of-the art but it the two icons, giant size titans didn’t disappoint!  The movie showed them their powers and how they can use them against each other!

SHOULD GODZILLA AND KING KONG TEAM UP? Many fans speculate that the two super beasts will come together to attack an even more destructive giant creature they cannot defeat individually.  I am okay with that but the ad does says “one will fall” there should be a winner in this kaiju showdown.  Honestly, I don’t want them to team up. I want monsters attacking each other until there is ONE winner.

IF THE FILM IS SUCCESSFUL- If the movie is a hit lets have more giant monsters attack each other like Godzilla vs. Gammera. King Kong vs. Cloverfield and the ultimate monster tag team Godzilla and King Kong vs. Mechagodzilla and MechaKong.  That I would like.

WHAT IS RIGHT:  The monsters fighting!  Minor spoiler-the action doesn’t start right away.  It takes about 40 minutes and there are only 3 fights but they are AMAZING!!

WHAT IS WRONG:  The plot and the people.  No one is interesting really except the  Jai (Kaylee Hottle) young mute girl who talks to King Kong in sign language and Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry) as a black conspiracy theorist who provides much comic relief.

SHOULD YOU WATCH:  If you can watch the film on the big screen.  It shows how marvelous and spectacular and dangerous these giant beasts are.