An Update on the Direction and Future of Jake's Blog of Entertainment

A short post, but one that I feel was necessary to make. Now to get one thing out of the way, the blog is not going anywhere anytime soon and will be continuing on for as long as I see fit. That being said, outside commitments have forced me to not be as active as I should. To accommodate this, I have looked for new ways to find the right balance. And they are as follows:

1. I will post a review for only one movie each month as opposed to reviewing nearly every movie I see. This generally means that if these particular movies move me in a way that makes me feel like they deserve special recognition, then expect a review to be posted. This way I will be able to offer up a more honest and detailed response and not something that was rushed out so I could move onto the next post. These will start either next month or the month after, with the review posted at the end of the month.
2. Each month I will post a review of a movie from the past that I would like to give my thoughts on. These will be called Retro-Reviews, and expect these to start up next month or the month after alongside the current movie reviews. For these, I will usually pick a movie of my choosing to review, but I am open to any suggestions from you guys, which you can drop off here in the comment section below. This could also include other forms of media, such as TV Shows (whether it be individual seasons or a full series overview,) comics, and video games. Retro-Reviews will be posted at the midpoint of each month.
3. In The Mind Of is where I give my overall thoughts on a particular character in the realm of fiction. Same as Retro-Reviews, it will be a character of my choosing, but I am open to any suggestions that you can leave here. 
4. Due to conflicts, a gradual decline in its popularity, and my evergrowing frustration with the show itself, I will be limiting the amount of Walking Dead posts I make to simply reviews for the current season and possibly past seasons for Retro-Reviews, character spotlights for In The Mind Of, and three Top 10 Lists for moments, episodes, and characters once I give the first eight seasons a rewatch (whether I count future seasons will be determined in the future.) Now that's not to say I will be doing this just for The Walking Dead; I will generally be posting lists and predictions less frequently as time goes, instead saving them for special occasions. 

And that's it for this post, guys. As always, tune in for more posts coming your way and be sure to leave any suggestions that you have here in the comments below :)

Ant-Man and the Wasp (SPOILERS)

It takes two to make a thing go right...

Well, to put it simply, this was much needed therapy after the trauma that was Infinity War. The first Ant-Man was a fun if simple venture in the MCU, but this one is probably just a little bit better in that regard. Now let's get into why:

UPS

1. Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lily make for a great superhero tag team. It's pretty awesome to see Hope get in on the action this time around, and seeing her fight alongside Scott is a welcome sight to say the least. They were really fun together and I can't to see their next outing...well, until they get out of their current predicament first...
2. It's really funny and touching. Like I said, this was much needed after Infinity War, and this more than lived up to that. You'll be laughing your head off at one point from Luis on truth serum to feeling all warm inside seeing Scott have some quality time with Cassie and the Pym family being reunited after being separated for so long. It just a sweet little tale being told. 
3. Ghost was a decent villain. While not being super standout like many of the other villains in Phase Three, she's better than the last major female villain, Hela, in that she was given a substantial amount of screentime and development. I also like that she wasn't a true villain and more someone who was just desperate to survive. Thankfully, she managed to fulfill her purpose (even if the means of which are a little so so, which I'll get to,) and I hope to see her return as a possible Avenger in the near-distant future.

DOWNS

1. Michelle Pfeiffer was a little wasted with her role. Though the movie's plot is revolved around getting her out of the Quantam Realm, she still has limited screentime and her sole contribution overall was providing a Deus Ex Machina in using powers she obtained out of the blue to help Ghost retain her life force. Overall, Pfeiffer's is a welcome addition to the movie, but it wasn't enough for an actress of her standing.
2. Sonny Burch was a bit of a nuisance throughout the movie. Despite him providing some of the funniest moments in the movie by introducing truth serum, he is mostly just an afterthought that's disconnected from the rest of the plot, which makes him kinda distracting to watch. Like Michelle Pfeiffer, this is a true waste of a good actor in Walton Goggins.

OVERALL

Ant-Man and the Wasp was a solid improvement over the first one and an enjoyable yet safe experience in the MCU.

And that's it for this post, guys. Tune in for more on the way :)  

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (SPOILERS)

Welcome to Jurassic World...

Jurassic Park is one of my favorite movies of all time. As time went on, it spawned several sequels, several of them which...weren't very good. After two disappointing outings (one which I dislike and the other I find to be a guilty pleasure,) the closest the sequels ever came to capturing the spirit of the original was Jurassic World, but nostalgia doesn't necessarily equal quality or anything despite the movie having some incredibly awesome moments and Chris Pratt being the leading man, so where does Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom fall in this regard? At first, I thought this movie was gonna be quite easily the worst of the lot, considering that the trailers did it no favors and it looked to be borrowing heavily from the one I dislike the most, The Lost World. Let me be the first to say that the marketing for this movie did not do it justice, at all. This movie is better than it seems, and overall it had the potential to be the best one since the first. I'm not kidding! Ultimately, I'm incredibly torn with this one, and here's why:

UPS

1. The cast is great. Again, Chris Pratt is always dependable when it comes to being the leading man, and he shares great chemistry with Bryce Dallas Howard, who is given a far better role here (no high heels this time 'round.) Rafe Spall, Toby Jones, and Ted Levine do fine as the villains of this piece, James Cromwell has a brief but overall decent role, and Jeff Goldblum and B.D. Wong make the most of the spare screentime they're given, but the real standout is Isabella Sermon as Maisie Lockwood, who is easily the best child to come out of the franchise, which is saying a lot. Overall, these actors make the most of a film that could've made better use of them all. 
2. J. A. Bayona's direction. When I said that this movie had the potential to be just as good as the first, well that maybe in part to its director. Bayona shows that he is a capable director who can show off his skills in the midst of everything else, and it's his competent direction that manages to carry this movie the whole way through...well, until...

DOWNS

1. The ending. Dear God, this has to be one of the most clunky, haphazard, and downright aggravating conclusions to a film ever! Not only does it exaggerate the plot to ridiculous levels, but it also has the Indoraptor (who was actually kinda cool; again, the trailers didn't do this movie justice) die an extremely lame and anticlimactic death, introduces a truly awful plot twist (you'll know it when you see it,) and starts to get incredibly preachy with its messages before turning them over on their heads and closing out with a sequel hook. Again, if it weren't for this whole end sequence, this movie would be so much better. 

OVERALL

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom was easily the most frustrating movie of this year. It could have been a fantastic surprise...but that ending...UGH! Definitely not as bad as it seemed to be, but could have been so much more. 

And that's it for this post, guys. Tune in for more on the way :) 

Incredibles 2 (SPOILERS)

Where's my Super Suit?...

In a time when folks my age were around the age of the kids today, there was one movie that almost everyone would know, love, and quote, especially the tagline of this post. That movie is none other than The Incredibles, which was essentially Pixar's answer to DC's Watchmen if you will. It's a beloved classic by now, yet there hasn't been any talk of a sequel...until now. 14 years later, the Parr family and friends have finally returned to our screens for another round of being super. Of course, was it worth the wait? Simply put, I'd say yes. In my honest opinion, I find Incredibles 2 to be better than the first, despite a few problems here and there. Let's get down to why I came to this conclusion:

UPS

1. The action and animation were pretty top-notch. It had a different feel from the first, but one that I could say was much better in all regards. The animation was vibrant and gorgeous while the action was intense and fluid in every motion. Overall, a huge thumbs up to the crew for their outstanding work here.
2. The family dynamics were given more time to be showcased and developed. Whereas the first focused more on Mr. Incredible's arc and story, the whole family gets a chance to shine here and there isn't a single one sidelined or left out of focus. However, that's not to say that one of them doesn't manage to come out on top, because...
3. JACK-JACK STEALS THE SHOW! Seriously, if all else failed, Jack-Jack could easily carry this movie on his shoulders, hands down. From his interactions with the other characters, to the extent of his vast array of powers, every moment of screentime that he's given is enough to make one feel joy and laughter. He really is that great :)

DOWNS

1. Screenslaver is a really weak villain, or at least a major step-down from Syndrome. While I figured this to be a given since Syndrome is such an iconic villain to compete with, I still felt they could have done a little better with this character. From the lack of truly standout moments of villainy to the incredibly obvious reveal of who the character really was, it was just majorly disappointing how this character was handled, even when I wasn't expecting too much.

OVERALL

I really enjoyed Incredibles 2. Definitely one of my favorites of the year and a major step-up from the first, I'd say it was definitely worth the wait. Now let's not wait another 14 years for the third, shall we ;)

And that's it for this blog, guys. Tune in for more on the way :) 

Solo: A Star Wars Story (SPOILERS)

I've got a good feeling about this...

Well, it was probably happening one way or another, I guess. Whether you like the Star Wars franchise or not, it is safe to say that almost everyone knows who Han Solo is. From shooting down Greedo in the Cantina Bar, to finding himself trapped inside a case of carbonite, all the way to meeting his tragic death at the hands of his own son, he is a character who has more than ingrained himself into the world of pop culture for a while now so it seems quite inevitable that the Star Wars executives would want to capitalize on that success and give it a film that explains everything that happened to him up until Luke Skywalker and co meet him for the first time. The question is, was it really necessary? Honestly, the idea is a nice thought, but alas, this was a film that really had no business being made, serving up a product that really didn't deliver on anything that was truly exciting or fresh in terms of what we expect in Star Wars. That said, it's not all bad, and here is what I enjoyed about SOLO, and what I didn't: 

UPS

1. Alden Ehrenreich was surprisingly solid as a young Solo. I, like many, many others, was quite uncertain about how well he would do with his performance since he had little to no resemblance to Harrison Ford. What certainly didn't help matters was the news of an acting coach being hired for him. All in all, it looked like a recipe for disaster. That thankfully was not the case, as Ehrenreich was able to channel the core aspects of the character to a tee, playing him exactly as Ford did all those years back. All in all, he was certainly a pleasant surprise who was able to carry this otherwise mediocre venture the whole way through. And I do believe it's safe to say that he shot first this time ;)
2. Han's relationship with Chewie was very well handled. I think that if they really wanted to make a Han Solo movie, they would just need to take all the scenes focusing on him and his Wookie pal and go from there, because all of it made for some of the best parts of the film and was convincing enough to show how close these two are to each other and how no matter what happens, they always got each others' backs. 

DOWNS

1. The rest of the cast was, for the most part wasted. Donald Glover, who otherwise was solid as Lando, was not the scene stealer the trailers made him out to be, while others like Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, and Paul Bettany did their very best with otherwise lackluster material. I think they were fine otherwise, but more could've been done to make them and this movie even better.
2. It was boring. SO boring. Like I said before, this movie didn't really offer up anything new and exciting, which would be fine if it didn't feel like such a slog to sit through. The only scene that I found to have any thrills whatsoever was the part where they were flying through the asteroid field and trying to escape the giant space monster, but once that was over it returned to being a snooze fest. 

OVERALL

SOLO: A Star Wars Story was about what I expected while simultaneously being better and worse, if that's really possible. It wasn't as disappointing as The Last Jedi was, but it still isn't very memorable either. 

And that's it for this blog guys. Tune in for more on the way :)  

Deadpool 2 (SPOILERS)

He's Back...

Love him, hate him...it doesn't matter. What matters is that the Merc with the Mouth has returned for more wild, wacky escapades. After suffering through a showing that did a massive disservice to the character, Ryan Reynolds got the showing he deserved when the first film came out in 2016. Now, in the year 2018, we have gotten the follow-up to that venture, and was it as good as, or even exceed, the original? Honestly, no, but that doesn't stop this movie from being an enjoyable ride all on its own, and in this post, I will break down what made Deadpool 2 work so well, and what didn't:

UPS

1. Ryan Reynolds still soars as the titular antihero. He retains his witty nature from the first film while also adding some real, raw emotional depth to an otherwise wacky character. It serves to bring a more nuanced performance to the table and one we will not soon forget. 
2. Josh Brolin is awesome as Cable. Though this wasn't his year-defining role (we already know what that was,) Brolin still delivers a solid interpretation of this character, sharing great chemistry with Reynolds and the other members of the cast while having a very dark and tragic backstory surrounding him. Overall, great character who provided some interesting morally grey areas to explore. 
3. There were some neat cameos and surprises in this movie. For example, they actually managed to get the cast of the new X-Men trilogy to stop by for a hilarious gag, and even Brad Pitt got a cameo as an Invisible Mutant who joins the X-Force only to hit a live wire, but the biggest and the best, of course, is that of the MOTHERFUCKING JUGGERNAUT!!! Yep, that's right, he, like Deadpool, got a chance at redemption and it paid off tremendously. 
4. This movie was surprisingly emotional. For starters, Deadpool loses the love of his life, Vanessa, and then there's Cable's whole backstory involving the death of his family at the hands of Russell. These moments truly pushed the movie into darker and edgier territory, and while that kinda came at the cost of some good humor, it still proved to make the movie that much deeper and tense, so it served its purpose well. 
5. Finally, 2 out of the 3 post-credits scenes in this movie were glorious. If there was any better way to laugh at and mock the shortcomings of Ryan Reynolds, THIS was the way to do it. 

DOWNS

1. It wasn't as funny as the original. While I was fine with the darker elements of the plot, I still think it could've had a lot more humor to balance those elements out since this is, well, Deadpool. It doesn't help that it rehashes a lot of jokes from the original, so while a few standout scenes held a laugh here and there, I wasn't too impressed. 
2. The other post-credits scene. Aside from those two mentioned above, this one kinda ruins the movie by having Wade go back in time and save Vanessa, which essentially undoes the whole freaking plot. Again, this is Deadpool, so something that outlandish is plausible in his universe, but still, as he said, that's just lazy writing...
3. No Stan Lee cameo. Granted, the guy is going through a lot right now, but still, his presence is sorely missed :(

OVERALL

I liked Deadpool 2 despite the first one being better. It's always good to see this character in action and I can't wait to see what he does next.

And that's it for this post, guys. Tune in for more on the way :)