Moviewatcher122's 2016 Film Diary: June

June 1



"Why are you doing this, why are you helping us?"
"I can't become king if someone else already sits on the throne."

Out of all the David Cronenberg films I've seen, this is the only one that is just as great as Videodrome. It's a very powerful movie that amazed me from start to finish, had a great performance from the likes of Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts and I just liked what it had to say overall. It was a fantastic movie and it's one of Cronenberg's top tier films.

June 2



"You're a hooker? Jesus, I forgot! I just thought I was doing GREAT with you!"

This was a pretty funny movie for the most part. I loved Dudley Moore's one-liners and I did enjoy the title character, but after the first 30 minutes it's not AS funny. Also the story isn't very original either, but I still enjoyed this movie and it still has it's moments after the first 30 minutes. I just wished it was a little more consistent when it comes to laughs.

June 4



"It's the zombie apocalypse! Come on, we're scouts! We're trained for this!"

I remember thinking how stupid this looked when it came out. It really didn't look good and those unskippable ads for this movie on YouTube didn't help its case either. I still decided to check this out of curiosity and it wasn't bad at all. It still had a stupid opening that made me roll my eyes, but it does sort of redeem itself after that. It's an entertaining enough movie if you can turn off your brain and look past it's weak points. It does have some really good zombie kills and I liked how some of the effects here looked practical and there is some fun to be had with this, but I think one of the weakest points of this movie is the comedy. It can be very juvenile at times and the use of toilet humor and phoned-in sex jokes can be off-putting at times. It still did have it's moments when it comes to humor, but for the most part it was hit or miss. For what it's worth, this movie does deliver on what you'd expect from the title and it's never boring, so it's worth watching if you like these kind of cheesy horror-comedies. If not then you're probably better off skipping.

June 5



"You're not going to poison anymore kids!"

Class of Nuke 'Em High on the other hand was pure trashy fun. While it's not as good as something like The Toxic Avenger or Terror Firmer, it's still a very fun movie and it just had a really interesting concept with some creative ideas.

June 8



"Sometimes you got to get through your fear to see the beauty on the other side."

Honestly I can't say I'm too surprised that the reception for this movie wasn't that good. Hell, I was even a little skeptical about it, but I was surprised by some people calling it Pixar's worst movie. I just wasn't sure about that as I don't think Pixar will make anything worse than Cars 2. After seeing it I was pleasantly surprised. Sure the story is pretty simplistic and not the most original concept Pixar has came up with and it is predictable, but despite that I think this movie does a good job of what it's trying to do and it works very well on an emotional standpoint. I was still interested in the characters and what was going to happen to them and even though it's predictable I think this is one of those cases where the journey is more important than the destination. So while it's not Pixar's best by a long shot, I think it's pretty underrated and I liked it more than I thought I would.

June 10



"He took the officer's word over Hillary's. I can't say I blame him, nobody does."

This is another instance where I had a feeling this movie wasn't going to be good just from a minor problem at the very beginning that I just happened to catch. I was caught off-guard when this movie started without any production logo which seemed weird to me, but then right when they started talking a production logo showed up with the dialogue in the background. OK, that's just bad editing as something like that is enough to take someone out of the film. If they could just start with the production logo with the first lines of dialogue then it wouldn't have been as distracting.

With that said this movie started off average, but it started to get worse as it went on. The biggest problem I had with this movie was the story and how it was written. It has no idea what it wants to be or what message it wants to convey as it starts off as a movie about racism to a coming of age that takes place in the 60's. The writing is just so muddled that it's hard to care about what's going on. The dialogue is pretty bad too and at times it's so bad that it actually made me laugh. Hell, there were moments here and there that were so bad and out of place that they were borderline comedic like Nicole Kidman pissing on Zac Efron's jellyfish sting and this one part where Zac Efron says the N-word. Just the way he said it sounded like how a white guy would say it when he's granted permission to say that word. That's how bad his line delivery was there. The acting was also weak with Zac Efron who can't do a serious role to save his life, Matthew McConaughey who delivers one of his better performances, but still failed to impress me and Nicole Kidman and John Cusack who are normally very good when it comes to acting, but here they were just not good. Despite everything I said, I don't think this movie is terrible. I do think it has its heart in the right place for the most part and the few unintentionally funny moments made it tolerable at times, but it just something that failed to connect with me.

June 13



"You should have seen the Atlantic Ocean back then."

I took a quick break from X-Men to watch this as it sounded intriguing. This was a really cool movie with great acting and chemistry from Burt Lancaster and Susan Sarandon, a very smart script and a perfectly executed and timeless story. It's a great movie that has aged very well and I'd highly recommend it.

June 15



"Everything they've built will fall! And from the ashes of their world, we'll build a better one!"

Looks like that this is the most divisive film in the X-Men franchise. It has differing scores on Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB and even fans of X-Men and comic book fans in general tend to either love it or hate it. I personally loved it and I think it might be my second favorite movie in the series. While it may not be as cleverly-written as the previous two films and it isn't quite perfect, it's still a very fun movie. The character development is still very strong, the storyline is very epic and interesting from start to finish with the apocalyptic battle at the end being very intense and this is the type of movie I'm glad I saw in theatres as it really enhanced the experience. Quicksilver's scene was also great as well even though the one in Future Past is still better and it does have some good comic relief to break some of the tension. Yeah I haven't mentioned this a lot while giving my thoughts on the other X-Men movies, but one of the many strong points in this franchise is the humor which has mostly been consistent from film to film.

Like I said this movie isn't quite perfect as it does drag a little at times and there's also Wolverine's cameo which was enjoyable, but also kind of pointless at the same time, but it's still a great addition to the series and I'd be glad to watch it again along with the other films in the series.

June 16



"They look like drug addicts."
"Well, they are drug addicts."
"Oh my God. You hired drug addicts?"
"Who'd you expect me to hire? The Red Cross?"
"They seem like very polite boys."
"I don't like having drug addicts in my house."
"Oh no, Rosalie. Don't think of them as drug addicts. Think of them as killers."

This was a very funny dark comedy. What really makes this movie work is the characters and how they react to the situation and the plot itself. I also thought the acting in the movie was good with actors like Kevin Kline, River Pheonix and Tracy Ullman delivering good perfomances and William Hurt and Keanu Reeves stealing the show as the drug dealers. Not much else to say other than the fact that it's a solid dark comedy.

June 18



"First there was the collapse of civilization: anarchy, genocide, starvation. Then when it seemed things couldn't get any worse, we got the plague. The Living Death, quickly closing its fist over the entire planet. Then we heard the rumors: that the last scientists were working on a cure that would end the plague and restore the world. Restore it? Why? I like the death! I like the misery! I like this world!"

Wasn't sure what to expect from this, but I ended up liking it due to how ridiculously fun it is. I mean it does have its share of corny dialogue and over the top acting, but that's part of what made this movie enjoyable for me. It's a fun post-apocalyptic movie that isn't trying to be anything it isn't and it's honestly one of Van Damme's better films.

June 21



"For God's sake! For some reason you're always shooting down my dreams."
"Because you get the kind of dreams people get after putting opium in their brownies."

I wasn't really feeling this one. It did have a plot that sounded good on paper, but it turned out to be standard Woody Allen fare. It had it's moments and it is never boring, but some of the jokes were forced and I just felt like this movie could've been better. Only Woody Allen completionists must watch this movie.

June 22



"You're crabby today."
"I'm not crabby, I'm pensive."

This was a decent directorial debut for Jodie Foster and it's a much better effort than The Beaver. The story isn't the most original, but it works. The performances of the cast members here do the best with the material they are given and the script is decently written even though it has a couple instances of awkward dialogue. It's not something I'd go out of my way to watch again, but I liked it and it's something I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to someone as it is worth watching once.

June 23



"I wanted to express how cold, how pitiless this city really is."
"Nobody touched you for two days?"
"Spitting doesn't count."

This was a stupid, but at the same time very funny movie which is just what I was expecting from a movie about singing roaches. It's a funny movie that doesn't take itself too seriously and it's worth watching if a movie about an apartment infested with talking and singing roaches sounds like it would be a fun movie. However if you think it sounds stupid or are scared or roaches then you might wanna skip it.

June 23



"I couldn't remember the reason for living, and when I did it wasn't convincing."

This was an interesting morality tale. It was well-acted, had a good premise and it was well-executed for the most part, but at the same time it's kind of lacking something that makes it stand out, so while it's a decent effort from Woody Allen, I still think it could've been better.

June 24



"If Santa Claus can hit every house in the world in one night..."
"No, I don't believe in Santa Claus."
"Of course not. That's ridiculous. That's one man flying all around the world and dropping presents down a chimney. That's ridiculous. One man hearing everybody murmur to him at the same time... that I get."

This was a very interesting and funny look on religion. I was also impressed by how they didn't just tackle Christianity, but other religions as well. It's not quite perfect as it does drag on and I think it could've been developed a bit more in terms of things to say, but it was still worth watching.

June 25



"Do not pass go! Do no not collect 2 shiny ranger badges!"

This was a bland movie. It was occasionally funny, but the plot was uninspired, most of the jokes fell flat and the characters weren't very likeable. Not a terrible movie, but it doesn't have too many redeeming qualities.

June 26



"Everyone comes to Zootopia, thinking they could be anything they want. But you can't. You can only be what you are. Sly fox. Dumb bunny."
"I am not a dumb bunny."
"And that is not wet cement."

This was pretty good even though it's a little overrated. It did have a very creative premise that they took advantage of very well, had a lot of interesting ideas, it was consistently funny and the casting was very good with each of the actors being the perfect guys for their respective characters. It's not quite perfect though as it does feel a little overlong at times and I feel like they could've cut at least 5-10 minutes of it to make it run quicker. Like the sloth scene for example which even though I thought that scene was very funny, it does go on for a little too long. Regardless, I really enjoyed this movie a lot and it is very well-written as far as kids movies go. I just didn't fall in love it like most people did.

June 29



"The Screaming Skull" is a motion picture that reaches its climax in shocking horror. It's impact is so terrifying that it may have an unforeseen effect. It may *kill* you!"

No, the Screaming Skull is not that scary as the movie itself would have you believe. It starts off pretty promising, but the more it goes on the less interesting it becomes and the only thing that keeps it interesting is MST3K's commentary which is the reason I watched this movie. As a whole it's nothing terrible or even bad, but it's nothing really special. It's pretty much the definition of mediocre.

MST3K Rating: 9/10

June 30



"Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers."

While I didn't think this was as great as it's reputation makes it out to be, it's still pretty solid. Marlon Brando is great as always, the dialogue is very good with many of the lines being iconic and I like how it felt like watching a play although it was originally a play. While it's not a great movie it's still a classic in my eyes and it was a good one to end the month on.

June 6



"Who am I?"
"If you knew the kind of person you used to be, the work we did together... People don't change, Wolverine. You were an animal then and you're an animal now. I just gave you claws."

I actually wasn't sure if I had actually seen this movie. I knew I saw it when I was a kid, but I wasn't sure if I watched the whole thing and the only thing I remembered from it was that scene where Magneto drains out someone's blood. That is why I had it marked as want to watch for a long time because I barely remembered anything about it to accurately rate it. Because of that I've been behind on the X-Men franchise. I've been wanting to do an X-Men monthly focus for the longest time ever since 2013 when the other Wolverine movie came out, but it just kept slipping my mind.

After watching it I noticed that the aforementioned Magneto scene was around an hour into the movie, so I might've seen the whole thing, but since I'm not sure and because most of it felt new to me I'm not going to count it as a re-watch. I think this is one of those times where the sequel is better than the original. It had a better story than the first one, but it also is better in pretty much every way. The character development is strong, the cast does a great job, the action scenes are great and the special effects still hold up very well. It's a great sequel and it definitely makes me want to watch the rest of the series.

June 11



"Charles Xavier did more for mutants than you will ever know. My single greatest regret is that he had to die for our dream to live."

This is definitely a step-down from the previous X-Men movies, but it's still not as bad as everyone says. It does have it's flaws as the writing is all over the place at times and it's probably the most strangest X-Men movie and it kind of lacks the character depth that X-Men and X2: X-Men United had, but despite it's problems I thought this was a fun movie. I still thought the characters were just as interesting as before and I liked some of the new characters they added even if there was a little too many and the action scenes and special effects are really good and it's just a fun movie from start to finish. It's far from perfect and I can understand why this one isn't very well-liked, but it's a fun superhero movie that doesn't take itself too seriously and can be enjoyed if you can look past it's imperfections.

June 12



"When you said you were going to kill him, I thought you were exaggerating."
"Do I look like a man who exaggerates?"

X-Men Origins on the other hand is a terrible movie that deserves the hate it has gotten over the years. The idea of an origin film on Wolverine really sounded good on paper and it's a concept that should've worked, but unfortunately the way it was executed was terrible. The writing was really uninspired, the characters were not interesting in the slightest and Ryan Reynold's appearance as Deadpool, well in the Deadpool movie he proved that he was the right guy for the role, but the way Deadpool was characterized here was just awful. This was just a boring and poorly-written origin story and it really should've been better than it already is. While there's at least a couple things I liked about this like the helicopter scene and it did have a couple of OK ideas, it was just a mess for the most part and I probably would've liked this a lot more if I saw it when it came out and wasn't very critical with movies back then. Growing up sure is fun...

June 12-13



"Mutation. It is the key to our evolution. It is how we have evolved from a single-cell organism into the dominant species on the planet. This process is slow, normally taking thousands and thousands of years. But every few millennia evolution leaps forward."

After the failure that was X-Men Origins: Wolverine, they made the right choice by scrapping future X-Men Origins stories they had and instead just made one movie that shows the origin of all the other X-Men characters and it all works so well. This is a great origin story and it's on par with X2's level of greatness. All of the characters are developed so well, the storytelling is very well-done and it's serious enough while also being fun at the same time and has a good sense of humor as well. This was a great movie and like most of the other X-Men movies I've seen so far, I wish I saw this one earlier.

June 14



"All those years wasted fighting each other, Charles... to have a precious few of them back."

I'm just going to cut to the chase right now, this is the best X-Men movie in the franchise. Out of all the movies in the series this one has the best story and they do amazing things with it. It was also great to see the original cast members again since it been 8 years since we've seen them by the time this movie came out and they're great as always. Also the new character Quicksilver who has never been in an X-Men movie prior to this steals the show with that one scene he was in which was just mind-blowing. Everything about this movie is fantastic and now I regret not seeing this in theatres because now I'm singing this in my mind.

"If I could save time in a bottle
The first thing that I'd like to do
Is to go back in time
To the opening day of Days of Future Past
Just to get the best experience of it with you"

June 27



"What kind of monster are you?"
"The Wolverine!"

This is more or less what X-Men Origins: Wolverine should've been. The story was executed a hell of a lot better, had much better writing, the characters were actually developed and it's not boring. It was actually really fun to see Wolverine fighting in Japan and I saw the extended cut and I can say that it really added to the movie as it was delightfully gory. Just like X-Men Origins, this one gets quite a bit of hate, but in The Wolverine's case I don't think it's quite deserved. It's not perfect, but it's just what I expected from a Wolverine film and it was very entertaining overall.

June 19



"You realize that suicide's a criminal offense. In less enlightened times they'd have hung you for it."

Even though I liked the remake with Brendan Fraser, I can easily say this is by far the superior version. While the newer version was predictable at times, this one is the opposite of predictable. It was a very funny movie with tons of clever gags and great performances from Dudley Moore and Peter Cook who plays a hilarious version of the devil. It's a classic comedy that's just as funny today as it was back then.