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samanthawhite
Nobody's perfect but you ain't heard nothin' yet & after all, tomorrow is another day - but Movies/Tv/Film etc. ... they are my precious. When I watch them, I am engrossed, I am the king of the world
Comedy
Rom Com
Thriller
Horror
Sci-Fi
Animation
Musical
LOTR
The Sound of Music
Gladiator
Beauty & the Beast (1991)
X-Men
TWD
Greys Anatomy
Supernatural
Just to name a few!!!
I am no expert, & I may give harsh reviews... I think they're honest & I don't feel like I have to like something because everyone else did, like IT (2017), great classic.... over rated by people who love it because everyone else loves it because everyone thinks everyone else loves it. STOP! Think for yourself!
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
The Lion King (2019)
I was hopeful...
As a 90s kid, I obviously grew up watching everything Disney and The Lion King was a family favourite. I went into this with little to no expectations, understanding very well that it definitely isn't the original so don't compare it as such...
But I am genuinely disappointed. I loved the look and feel of everything to begin with, the intro was great and gave an exciting glimpse into what to expect. It was downhill from there... I know it's meant to look realistic but the lions/lionesses were bland. Scar sounded bored and boring - if the voice actor (Chiwetel Ejiofor) isn't right for the role so you need to change an entire original song to fit, then get an actor who is right for the role! Scar had a great sarcasm and sass in the original movie, this Scar was 0/10 as to what you should see in this character.
There was a lack of emotional expression in their faces that took away from the audience being able to feel the loss of Mufasa, the fear in the cubs faces, the sadness in Simba... it just sucked the life out of the characters.
As a whole the movie was lacking the magic it so rightfully deserved.
I love Donald Glover as an actor and a musician, but despite him growing up watching the original like so many of us, his dialogue still didn't feel quite right - his singing is wonderful though. Beyoncé on the other hand, didn't belong either as a voice actor or a singer. Her version of their duet was over the top and it was like she wanted to outshine DG/Simba.
I really hope Disney can bring new films to life instead of continuing to try (and fail) to recreate old classics as lackluster live actions. People loved the originals for a reason!
Modern Love: Rallying to Keep the Game Alive (2019)
Disconnection in a marriage, it isn't the end!
A great episode that shows Sarah (Tina Fey) and Dennis (John Slattery) in couples therapy to tackle their disconnection from one another and hoping to find what will keep them together once their two kids leave the nest.
I feel like this is a super common concern and issue for couples with kids - You start as a happy couple, settle down and have kids. Your lives focus on being parents and often times we loose each other in the process. Then when the kids are gone, what's left of the original loving couple?
Some couples never see this happening and it isn't an issue, others divorce because of it! It seems like Sarah is fighting for this to not happen and Dennis is there because he has to be. They are challenged to think about what role they play in each others lives and towards the end they are calling it quits. After that, looking and feeling flat/defeated, they head out to a restaurant for a bite to eat or just to wallow in their misery together. But that in itself is enough to wake them both up. They are on the edge, about to push each other off in different directions, but then they look at each other and remember....
2 years later their eldest is off to college and they go off to enjoy a game of Tennis together. The opposite of what we saw from them earlier! Even though we don't see them reconnecting over that 2 years, we see them there at the end after watching them on the edge at the beginning and that's all that matters.
Modern Love: At the Hospital, an Interlude of Clarity (2019)
Opposites hoping to attract
I don't see these two working out - she is confident (kind of), openly loves attention, focuses on her looks and how her life appears to outsiders (social media) and he is an "average" guy who is jovial but self-deprecating.
It felt like she was just dating him as a way to get her foot back in the door without getting hurt. I mean only 3 weeks she and her previous bf broke up over her constant need for gratification from strangers and not respecting her bf not wanting her eye sexing other guys as a way to have them pay attention to her.
I want Rob to have his happy ending and find the girl who loves his love, he seems like he as a lot to give to the right gal but Yasmine doesn't make sense for him. The ending was also disappointing..
Modern Love: So He Looked Like Dad. It Was Just Dinner, Right? (2019)
Daddy issues and confused romance
Maddy has some serious Daddy issues going on here and so she looks for that missing father figure in the older guy at work that fits her image of her father who she lost when she was 11.
Fair enough he looks at it as more than just Daddy Daughter time, no denying of a seriously big age gap but age is just a number after all. I personally don't understand how a much older man could see a long lasting relationship working with someone much younger than he is and vice versa but that's not to say it couldn't work.
I didn't really find it creepy or uncomfortable, it is odd and to actually live in that would be very strange, I mean his daughter was a similar age and she has a son so now Maddys new Dad is also a Grandpa! Wow.
I liked the end, it left it open for the viewer to decide what they are comfortable with. Which in reality, are they happy? Yes. Is anyone psychically in harm? No. So shut up and let them be, they don't have to ensure strangers are comfortable with whatever their relationship is.
Spencer (2021)
Please, dont. Just. Don't.
A fable from a true tragedy and a horrible fable at that!
This just made Princess D unlikeable and annoying and anything remotely interesting and not weird wasn't even true.
Fair enough it wasn't a biopic, but it was a really silly choice to make a weird drama about Princess D. I understand that mental health issues are being brought to attention here but... w.t.f
Just to make it worse, I was expecting something, anything! To happen but it just ended. What was the point of this movie?? Why??
Don't even get me started on Kstew. I genuinely don't see how anyone could praise that performance. She apparently spent 6 months preparing for that accent but couldn't get her head around how to talk in that accent without an odd huffing whisper with every sentence!!
If you're on the edge about watching already, please take this advice, don't bother!
If you're OK with watching a movie and feeling really unfulfilled and agitated, like you just hung out with a really exhausting friend for the day, then this is just for you!
Honeymoon (2014)
Eerie & Intriguing - Could have been a lot better.
The movie starts out pretty basic. Bride & Groom reminiscing of love & proposal at their wedding.
For their honeymoon they go to Beas (Rose Leslie) family cabin by a lake & from the start you get the sense that the place is a little bit off. The beginning of their honeymoon is as you would expect... fun times in the bedroom, bathroom & probably everywhere else they could think of!
They run into Baes old childhood friend Will (Ben Huber), who quickly turned them away in anger before realising who they were - then Wills wife, Annie (Hannah Brown) comes out & tells them they should leave, so Will aggressively grabs her to make her stop talking.
The next morning, after their odd encounter, strange happenings occur at the house & then Paul (Harry Treadaway) is woken by his alarm to head to fishing, when he drops his bate & realises his alarm went off early he heads back to bed to find Bea is missing - he then sets off to find her.
After finding his new wife in the woods, naked at night, they head back to the cabin & then gradually she begins to become distant & strange - not finding things funny, forgetting how to make coffee & french toast, talking to herself in the mirror, rejecting sex etc.
Things get more weird from there & in the end... It's not a happy ending..
Even when Bea is changing, she still genuinely loves Paul & wants to make him happy but you can see something is pulling her away & her erratic behaviour confuses & worried Paul so much - you really feel for the guy who just wants his Honey Bea back!
Rose Leslie & Harry Treadaway, both from the UK are great in this movie & are convincing both with their accents & the love they have for each other as newlyweds.
Overall an enjoyable movie that pulls you in, with an eerie setting & no cheap jump scares, making it feel more unsettling! With a slow build up that can get boring at times, could go with a little bit more of the scary stuff to keep you on the edge of your seat. Worth the watch.
- Slow at times - Average script - Great cast - Intriguing story line
End vote for this film is a 5
Samm.Wise
Would You Rather (2012)
I Would Rather Not
In the beginning of the film, we learn about Iris (Brittany Snow) & her sick brother Raleigh (Logan Miller), who she is struggling to support & help get better.
We are quickly thrown into Iris being invited to a dinner party that you just know isn't going to end well!
This film gets into the gritty parts of ones mind - Will we choose to knowingly inflict pain onto a stranger for the sake of getting further in life (In this case, the competition), or will we sacrifice ourselves?
It was a let down, that with a good cast, we didn't get to learn any of the other characters reasons for being at the dinner party, I feel as though this would have made it more disturbing as a viewer & would draw your heart into it more - to really feel for each of the characters & what they're going through. I think the flip side is, by not getting to know of the others characters backgrounds, we are going in blind, like Iris does.
Overall, I didn't mind the movie, it's one I will forget quickly & to me that's enough of a reason to make me not recommend it to someone else.
- Lack of character development - Felt quick, didn't have enough tension but was on the right path - Could have down with a twist or two (Raleighs fate was either very obvious to you or could have been a shocker... but it wasn't for me)
End vote for this film is 4
Samm.Wise
Asylum (2008)
I feel like I sacrificed myself so you don't have to suffer
The film opens with an 8 year old girl hearing shouting, walks out of her room to sit on the stairs where her 9 year old brother is already watching their parents having a screaming match. The Father ends up grabbing a gun & shooting himself whilst the Mother yells & begs for him to stop.
Flash forward, the little girl is now all grown up & leaving the nest for college. Madison (Sarah Roemer) walks to her new dorm, the janitor warns her of this building which is disregarded by the security man.
We soon learn from String (Cody Kasch) - a fun loving little geek - that the building was an Asylum back in the day where the Doctor performed experiments on teenagers with the belief he could cure mental illness brought on by childhood trauma.
After that, one by one, each of the college kids are killed. Beginning with String - where he is choked by his own string... to Maya ( Carolina Garcia) where her abusive ex cuts her to death, & more, in what comes across as a hallucination to them.
Meanwhile, Madison is dealing with the demons of her past, the suicide of her brother who attended the very same college - as well as trying to defeat the Doctor so the remaining students can live on.
With odd & ominous rock music, sad background of each character & weird Doctor guy... This film was repetitive & sub par.
The opening scene really drew me in & set the tone for the film, a dark & unsettling one. But it failed to impress me for a movie of this genre.
The end was.. an end. It finished with Holt (Jake Muxworthy) & Madison escaping the dorm/asylum & running in the forest (cliché?) then Madison sacrificing herself for Holt only to release the spirits from the Doctor, thus ending his reign of terror & ultimately his existence. Then, after getting out of the forest, the two lovebirds casually hold hands & walk on the road like nothing life altering just happened to them...
Overall, the development of the characters was lacking or rushed & the typical Frat guy Tommy (Travis Van Winkle) felt forced & the humour wasn't there despite them trying.
- Lacking character development - Forced cliché characters - Weird Doctor in bondage with bad make up & a big grudge on everyone just cause - Repetitive - Awful, awful music
End vote for this film is a 2
Samm.Wise
I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House (2016)
I Am the Boring Movie That Makes you fall Asleep
Awful....
I'm not one to judge a book by it's cover so to say, but I felt the cover of this one drew me in, it felt ominous & intriguing.
The main character, Lily, as played by Ruth Wilson is staying in the home of an old author who is in her last days, which spans out a lot longer.
There were eerie moments that weren't just cheap jump scares, Ruth Wilson was wonderful in this role but the movie itself....
When did it begin? It was one of those films that felt like it was still leading you into the meaty part of it... but it never came. Credit to it, I kept saying "in the next 5 minutes something will happen"... Nope... "Ok, maybe now?".... still nothing. So, it had the ability to drag you in deeper & deeper with the belief - the hope! - that something else, anything else, would happen!
I'm no expert in films, but i'm surprised this has so many high reviews on here... maybe too many people are being polite..
The Hollars (2016)
Great cast, Alright Story...
The movie began feeling like there wasn't a proper introduction into the first few characters, I expected it do go deeper through out the movie but felt like it lacked the connection with the audience.
There were some slightly funny moments where I would find myself with a smile & cracking a little laugh but I could feel it would end with heartache, if not by death of the mother than a relationship break down with John Hollar (John Krasinski) & Rebecca (Anna Kendrick).
There was a brief love triangle thing going on with Johns old girlfriend, with her new husband, Jason (Charlie Day) being Johns Mums nurse at the hospital, the first interaction with John & Jason was funny & was confusing for John who ended up being invited over for dinner after being accused of still having feeling for his old girlfriend.
Over all, it felt like some story lines were briefly touched on but weren't explored any further.
With a sad but sweet ending, I would still recommend watching this movie if you enjoy dramas & especially with this lovely cast.
Satanic (2016)
Same but different...
I love horror movies & I was drawn to this movie only because of Sarah Hyland because I was excited to see her in something so different to Modern Family, & to see how that reflects on her as an actress. So with that, I think she did well but I feel as though the movie relied on her being in it quite a bit.
There were a lot of times that the camera was focusing on her for no real reason. Like near the start when Seth & Elise were mucking around with the Ouija board, the camera focused on her making confused or frowny faces... why?!
There were a lot of odd occurrences in the movie like a girl shaking a window from a top floor in an abandoned building (that gets explained though, kind of), weird goth people being grumpy & spitting at them, random homeless people that Chloe will stare at & then the next minute.. they're not there... It doesn't feel like it fits, it's just missing the mark with those things.
They "save" a girl from being sacrificed at a ritual only to discover that she is crazy & she ends up sacrificing herself after they all join the circle together. But before that happens, there is a lot of her dancing in the middle of the room as the other four weirdly watch her... it felt awkward.
I found it annoying when at the house, after Davids shower - they hear a loud crash in the house when they're all in the bathroom... Tell me you wouldn't be peeing yourself at that point? They don't seem that concerned with it all.
Overall, I felt like this movie could have been at least a 5 or 6. Ominous music, no real connection within the movie & average acting from most of them equals a 2. Not worth seeing, I found myself bored most of the time..