The Last Movie Star (2018)

The Last Movie Star is a film is about an former Hollywood star coming to terms with the fact that his best days are behind him and reflecting on the mistakes he's made over the years. Although the film is a work of fiction, parts of it are semi-autobiographical, and there are even scenes with Burt interacting with his younger self.

Overall the plot is pretty simple: An aging movie star named Vic Edwards (played by Reynolds) is invited to attend a weekend-long film festival in Nashville and he is told he will be receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award. After talking it over with an old friend of his (played by Chevy Chase) he decides to attend. However, when Vic arrives in Nashville he soon learns that the festival isn't the glitz and glamour, red carpet event he thought it was going to be. Instead, the "Film Festival" is a being put on by a small group of fans and takes place at a bar. After a rough first night in Nashville Vic decides to ask a girl named Lil (played by Ariel Winter), who has been tasked with driving him around town for the weekend, to take him to Knoxville where he grew up. So they go. Vic visits various important places from his youth, and all along the way offers up words of wisdom to Lil who herself is at a crossroads in her own life.

I don't know how this film is going to land with general audiences, but I enjoyed it. Is it the best film that's going to hit theaters this year? Probably not, but it feels like a very personal film and Reynolds gives a genuinely touching performance. I recommend checking it out.

I give it a 3.5 out of 5

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The Spider-Man Films

Spider-Man is one of the most iconic characters in all of comic book history. So, it's only fitting that there have been several big-budget films made starring the wall-crawler, and after rewatching them all, I've come up with my worst-to-first ranking of all 7 Spider-Man films. Venom (2018) will not be included because Spider-Man isn't in it. Additionally, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) isn't included because this list is only for live-action films.

#7 The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

This film is a mess. Sony tried to jam so much into the 2+hr runtime and none of it really works. Jamie Foxx as Electro doesn't work, the hints to a Sinister Six movie feel tacked on, the Green Goblin storyline feels shoehorned in, etc. Plus, the filmmakers had no idea what to do with Paul Giamatti and that is one of the great crimes against cinema.

#6 Spider-Man 3 (2007)

Toby Maguire's last film outing as Spider-Man suffered from being overstuffed with villains. In an effort to 'give the people what they want' Sandman and Venom were shoved alongside the James Franco turning into Green Goblin subplot that had been building since the second film. The Venom storyline (with someone other than Topher Grace) or Spider-Man vs Sandman could've been interesting movies on their own.

#5 The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

This movie is a total mixed-bag. For every thing the film gets right, it gets just as much wrong. The Lizard is a good Spider-Man villain but this film doesn't build Dr. Conners up as a mentor to Peter. Emma Stone knocks it out of the park as Gwen Stacy, but Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker skateboards to Coldplay... 

#4 Spider-Man (2002)

This is an overall solid superhero flick. It's well paced, pretty well written, and the cast is good. There are a few flaws and some of the CGI hasn't held up that great, but if you're looking for a Spider-Man film you can't go wrong with this one.

#3 Spider-Man 2 (2004)

Of every film on this list this is the one that I feel is the best Peter Parker story. That's not to say Alfred Molina isn't great as Dr. Otto Octavius, or that the Spider-Man elements are bad because both of those aspects are good. However, it's a film about choice, what it means to be a hero, the risk involved etc. and that sets it at the #3 spot.

#2 Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)

Tom Holland continues to be my favorite big-screen version of Spider-Man. Even though I didn't like this one quite as much as Spider-Man: Homecoming, I still had a good time and thought the movie was a ton of fun.

#1 Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

Unlike Spider-Man in 2003 or The Amazing Spider-Man in 2009 which featured Peter Parker getting superpowers and being a hero almost immediately, this film shows a a kid who is still learning and making rookie mistakes throughout. Yes, there is a lot of good comedy and yes the MCU tie-ins are nice but it is that aspect of feeling like this is a real teenager who wants to be an Avenger but still has a lot to learn that makes me enjoy this film above the others. Plus, Michael Keaton.

Tomb Raider (2018)

Movies based on video games are usually pretty bad, but I think they broke the curse. Now, I'm not going to lie, I was in the the bag for this movie when I saw the first preview. I like the 'Tomb Raider' games, I love action-adventure movies, I think Alicia Vikander is a good actress, and even though they're not good I enjoyed the two Angelina Jolie films... so take this review with a grain of salt.

Now, without spoiling the plot for anyone planning to see this movie, here are a few thoughts I have about this one: Alicia Vikander kills it in this movie. It's easy to be on board with her from the get-go, and she was definitely a great casting choice. There are some really cool action scenes, but the pacing in this film has a few issues. It's overall an exciting adventure film but there are one or two spots where it starts to drag a bit. The effects are mostly solid with only a couple of CGI shots that look like they could've been done better.

Overall, I give this one a recommend. I had a lot of fun with this film and the issues I did have are just minor nitpicks. It's probably one I'll end up picking up on Blu-ray when it comes out.
A solid 4 out of 5.


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The Life and Death of Peter Sellers

Released in 2004, The Life and Death of Peter Sellers is, of course, a biopic about the actor Peter Sellers and stars Geoffrey Rush in the lead role. 

There's a lot to like about this one, but it isn't without it's flaws.

It's a bit of an uneven and oddly paced movie, spending a lot of time on Sellers' troubled marriages while breezing past whole sections of his film career in a matter of seconds. I understand the film is  really supposed to be about the man behind all of those iconic characters, but I still would've liked to see more of a balance between the troubled personal life and the career in front of the camera. Also, for a film called "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" his actual death, and the circumstances around it, are only told to us via a brief few sentences of text at the end of the film.

On the plus side, this is a film about an interesting, complex, egotistical person so it's not hard to get into. In addition to that, the cast surrounding Geoffrey Rush consists of Emily Watson, Charlize Theron, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Stephen Fry, all of whom are good in their roles.

Overall, while I was pretty entertained throughout, I'm not going to give this one a real strong recommend because it's not a "must-see".

3 out of 5.

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