Ice Age: Collision Course (2016)

I was looking for something to watch and I figured I would check something out from Disney Plus and I have always been a fan of the Ice Age movies. I know i have seen most of them and I wasn't sure where I left off, but I knew I hadn't seen 2016's Ice Age: Collision Course which is the fifth film in the series and was directed by Michael Thurmeier  and Galen Tan Chu (Ice Age: Continentel Drift). Everyone's favorite gang of prehistoric creatures is back, but their about to have a whole lot of problems all thanks to Scrat who while chasing his Acorn manages to find a spaceship that just happens to set off so many events including an asteroid that is heading to destroy Earth and the gang has to scramble to save it from happening. The film stars Ray Romano (The Irishman) as Manny, Queen Latifah (Chicago) as Ellie, John Leguizamo (Spun) as Sid, Denis Leary (The Amazing Spider-Man) as Diego, Keke Palmer (Hustlers) as Peaches, Adam Devine (Jexi) as Julian, Jennifer Lopez (Hustlers) as Shira, Wanda Sykes (Bad Moms) as Granny, Simon Pegg (Shaun Of The Dead) as Buck, Seann William Scott (American Pie) as Crash, Josh Peck (Spun) as Eddie, Nick Offerman (The Little Hours) as Gavin, Jessie J as Brooke, Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family) as Shangri Llama,  and Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine) as Gertie.

I liked some of the cameos in the film like the one done by Neil deGrasse Tyson, but even that couldn't really save the film for me. I definitely loved how they explained how the universe came to be all thanks to Scrat, but I thought the film overall was OK. It had a solid premise and they checked all the boxes of turning points, the hook, subplots, and all that stuff when it comes to the writing, but the film just wasn't as funny as any of the other ones that I had seen. One thing that is for sure is that if it was a Disney movie from the start, it probably would have better, but this is why 20TH Century Fox is no longer a thing. There was definitely a lot of potential for this film because I loved a lot of the subplots and I even loved the voice acting and the animation, but a lot of the stuff just wasn't as funny as previous films. They had a who's who of actors in this film and they all did very well, but there is a reason there is not a number six on the way besides the fact that Disney is probably not interested anyways. I always thought that Ray Romano was always a perfect choice to play a Mastodon thanks to his voice and actually most of them fit their characters pretty well. I know the flying dinosaurs were somewhat a part of the film, but I thought their presence could have been a little more than it was. Too much time spent on Scrat and his space adventures which some were funny and some were meh. I am going to give this one an B- for a final grade.

The Little Hours (2017)

To be perfectly honest, I had never heard of the film that I chose for today, but it featured a really good collection of a cast that I couldn't resist watching it. Back in the 14TH century, Giovanni Boccaccio wrote a collection of novellas that has been restored to it's original form in the book The Decameron and director Jeff Baena (Life After Beth) decided that he would write the script and turn it into a film called The Little Hours. The film stars Dave Franco (The Disaster Artist) as Massetto, a guard for a wealthy Lord who gets into something he shouldn't have and now he is on the run. Massetto by chance runs into a priest by the name of Father Tommasso (John C. Reilly) who agrees to take him in under one condition, that he pretends to be a mute. That will prove to be challenging when the nuns in the convent begin tempting him. The film also stars Alison Brie (How To Be Single) as Alessandra, Kate Micucci (The LEGO Batman Movie) as Ginevra, Aubrey Plaza (Ingrid Goes West) as Fernanda, Molly Shannon (Wet Hot American Summer) as Sister Maria, Fred Armisen (Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy) as Bishop Bartolomeo, Jemima Kirke (Girls) as Marta, Nick Offerman (Bad Times At The El Royale) as Lord Bruno, Adam Pally (The Mandalorian) as Guard Paolo, and Paul Reiser (Mad About You) as Ilario.

Have you seen the collection of actors in this film in the above paragraph? That alone should be the sing that you are actually about to watch a really good film. Now I will warn that there is a lot of sexual content in the film because that is what the story was based around in that no matter what we do sometimes even the holiest of people can give in to sexual desires. These are women that are training to be nuns so that they can make their families proud because I guess back in those days it was the noble thing to do. Today we want our kids to go to college and get a great job and back in the 14TH century it was I would like my son or daughter to be a priest/nun. At one point in the film, I wanted to be frustrated with how over the top Audrey Plaza was as she acted like herself, but then again I said this is a comedy after all so I believe it fits the context of what they are doing. Dave Franco deserves all of the honors in the film as he did such an amazing job in the film. I mean John C. Reilly was simply John C. Reilly and that equals great, but Franco deserves some credit as well for everything he had to do. Alison Brie and co were fantastic as well and big props to Molly Shannon who held her own as well. I loved the chaos of the film especially during the witchcraft scenes because it added something different to the film and I loved the cinematography and imagery of it. I definitely think the film is worth checking out and you can find it on Netflix as we speak. I am going to give the film an B+ for a final grade.

Bad Times At The El Royale (2018)

Sometimes films come and go from the theaters and sometimes we just do not have the time to see one even though it was on your list of films to watch. Today's film, Bad Times At The El Royale which was written and directed by Drew Goddard (The Cabin In The Woods) was one of those films even thought it boasted a tremendous cast, I never had the chance to check out the crime drama. You do know what they say, better late than never. The film follows four very different people who check into a hotel named the El Royale, a hotel that divides California from Nevada features the priest (Jeff Bridges), the singer (Cynthia Erivo), the salesman (Jon Hamm), and the runaway (Dakota Johnson). While all four may appear  to be one thing, they each have their own agenda and reason for being at the hotel, but as things begin to unravel they are not what they seem to be. The film also stars Chris Hemsworth (Avengers: Infinity War) as Billy Lee, Cailee Spaeny (On The Basis Of Sex) as Rose, Lewis Pullman (The Strangers: Prey At Night) as Miles Miller, Nick Offerman (Parks And Recreation) as Felix O'Kelly, Shea Whigham (Silver Linings Playbook) as Dr. Woodbury Laurence, and Xavier Dolan (I Killed My Mother) as Buddy Sunday.

The thing that I really liked about the movie was the fact that they sort of divided it into chapters especially if t twas a flashback to show you the origins of certain characters. I love how with the four that checked in, it all played to the very same moment in the film, but you were able to see it in different angles and viewpoints. I do have to say though that things became very interesting when Chris Hemsworth's character showed up because he sort of had a presence to him like he was modeled after Charles Manson. He's dangerous and he believes in his bullshit so much that he thinks and believes that he is larger than life. Now, I thought every actor did an amazing job with their roles, but Dakota Fanning's character was sort of the oddball out. I didn't believe her character's presence was any good and her backstory was kind of lame because it had more to do with a different person. I definitely thought that the film was going to head in a certain direction due to Jon Hamm, but it all changes as the film goes on. Lewis Pullman may just play a bellhop named Miles, but he becomes more and more interesting as the film continues and is definitely someone to watch for because he is just as interesting and important as the others. I liked the cinematography in the film as well as the actual set and costumes and I said before the acting was a very strong point for the film. I definitely think it is worth one watch which is why I am going to give the film an B for a final grade.