Reviews of films and movies.
After watching Weathering With You, I decided to immediately jump into an earlier Makoto Shinkai work I had been meaning to watch for a while now: The Garden of Words (言の葉の庭).
And after watching Shinkai’s 2013 film, I can’t help but feel like it is able to present similar themes and imagery as Weathering With You, but in half the time and in a more affecting way.
Perhaps Makoto Shinkai’s Weathering With You (天気の子) faced some unfairly high expectations after the global success of Your Name. But while Shinkai’s stunning vision and creative storytelling is still present, something somewhere stumbles. And that leaves the film struggling to avoid comparisons and struggling to give itself its own memorable voice.
The 2002 short film Voices of a Distant Star (ほしのこえ) is one of Makoto Shinkai’s earliest works. But for anyone who watches it after having already enjoyed his more recent films, it is easy to see the talent and depth he would bring to his work later on already present.
I first watched Mamoru Hosoda’s Summer Wars (サマーウォーズ) a couple of years ago after enjoying Wolf Children. It’s been a while since watching the film again, so I decided to pop the Blu-ray in. And it was a little eye-opening to see some parallels between the film and what is happening in the world today.
Kamen Rider Zi-O: Over Quartzer stays true to the series itself. Don’t sweat the details and just hop along for the ride.
I am only now getting the chance to finally watch Kikaider Reboot almost six years after it was first released. The film that aimed to, as the title indicates, reboot the Kikaider franchise is slick, gritty and certainly with some flaws. But ultimately, a great look at the potential for what could have been a revitalized franchise.
One of, if not the first Alfred Hitchcock film I ever watched was The Birds. I think it might have been when I was in 8th grade or a freshman in high school when I caught it on TV somewhere.
The 2016 animated film The Red Turtle (La Tortue Rouge/レッドタートル ある島の物語) is a stunning and thought-provoking work that leaves you mesmerized by its deceptively simple plot and minimalist approach to its visuals.
I’ve made it clear a couple of times that Zyuohger might be my least favorite Sentai season. So going into Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger Returns: Life Received! The Earth’s Monarchs’ Decisive Battle! (帰ってきた動物戦隊ジュウオウジャー お命頂戴！地球王者決定戦), I probably had low expectations. But perhaps that was all for the best as I ended up thoroughly enjoying the movie.
Lupinranger VS Patranger VS Kyuranger (ルパンレンジャーＶＳパトレンジャーＶＳキュウレンジャー) is a paper-thin film that may please only fans of each series for the mere fact that they get an extra hour with them.