It Follows

It Follows, it may, but you won't want to. I was so very excited to go see this movie and I was terrified because it was supposed to be, "One of the scariest horror films in years." But instead, it felt like a movie I would have been shown in school or church to try to steer me away from having sex, but of course minus the nudity.

Speaking of nudity, GROSS! That's all I have to say, the scariest part of this movie would have to be the old naked people that are the "curse." When my niece and I left the theater we both were super confused by why they didn't explain where the curse came from. Instead you are left to just wonder, which didn't really make things scarier by any means, it just made it odd.

Does anyone remember this guy from Mean Girls? Of course you do, because when you saw the movie and he said his ridiculous sayings they stuck with you and they were funny. Well, in It Follows, it's not funny, but it's not really scary either. Maybe if someone would have shown these kids Mean Girls there wouldn't even be a movie to make. Okay let's get back on track, so instead of you get chlamydia and die, you get a creepy (only because they are nasty naked) person following you around trying to kill you. I think there was maybe one part where I jumped, and it was only because something hits a window.
Now, I can't totally discredit the whole movie because I thought the acting was pretty good. I love Keir Gilchrist, he has been one of my favorites since United States of Tara. And despite the plot being, interesting, and the actors doing a great job, it just doesn't leave much to be scared about. Last but not least, I do have to say the main actor, Maika Monroe, has some serious "ride or die" friends, if you will. I won't tell you why but if you watch you'll find out.

So, if you can get around the nasty nudity, which it does say graphic nudity for why it is rated R, but some nudity is good, some is bad, and this is definitely categorized as bad, but if you can get past it then I would say watch it, at least RENT IT, because it is pretty weird. If nudity is not your thing, skip it.

Get Hard

Get Hard, oh how I wanted you to be funny. At times, you were funny, I had a few chuckles here and there, but overall, pretty bad. Obviously I knew going into this movie that there would be a lot of what I refer to as "stupid humor." I have been a diehard fan of Will Ferrell's since SNL, but his last few movies have made me sad. As for Kevin Hart, he is so funny and I thought, no way can you put two funny dudes together and have it not be spectacular, even on a dumb level. I was wrong.

I know there are people out there who will disagree with me and say, this movie was hilarious. I heard several rolling from laughter in the theater, but it just didn't do it for me. The homophobic prison rape jokes get to be too much. While it is funny to see Will Ferrell join a gang, because we all understand it is something that could never actually happen, it couldn't carry the movie. I don't usually agree with RottenTomatoes.com but despite disagreeing, I always check to see how they rated movies. On the Tomatometer it was given a 33% with fans saying 65% liked it, unfortunately, I think that is about where it will stand. I lean more towards the Tomatometer in this case though, it was funny but not enough that I would ever pay for it again. I won't buy it, but I would maybe give it a second chance if it's on TV some day.

In my personal opinion, if you love Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart, you might enjoy it, so it's worth a rent. However, if you don't like either of them, or you don't like Will Ferrell, which seems to include a number of people nowadays, probably SKIP IT.

Fruitvale Station

Fruitvale Station is based on the true story of Oscar Grant III. I am embarrassed to say that I did not remember this story until my manager brought up wanting to see the movie. I was living in California when this incident occurred in 2009. I heard here and there about a white cop shooting a young African American but that's all I remembered.

As so many horrible things do in our society, as soon as the next horrific thing happened, I forgot about this story. But, as soon as I saw the preview for the movie I knew I had to see it. I knew it was an Indie film, and if you haven't learned already, I love watching Indie films. According to Wikipedia.org this movie was filmed in 20 days which is incredible. I am unsure whether or not that fact is accurate, but if it is, wow.

I have done a great deal of research about the true facts of this movie and what actually happened. When it comes to true stories I like to find out just how much is actually truth. The underlying point to this story is that justice needs to be served. Oscar Grant was not a "stand up citizen," he had many problems which are documented all over the wonderful world wide web. He sold drugs, went to jail, cheated on his girlfriend (mother of his daughter), and was unable to retain his job. Some of these things are depicted in the movie, there is an added scene which appears to be added to make you feel a sense of connection to the character in a positive manner. But despite who Oscar Grant was or the mistakes (big and small) he made, what happened was unacceptable.

In the movie and through interviews from those who recorded the incident on their phones it appears that Oscar was involved in a scuffle. A fight, is what the police called it, but someone who witnessed it said it seemed to be no more than two guys wrestling. Despite what the fight was or wasn't, cops showed up on the scene. It all lead to Oscar being forced to the ground by a couple cops, face down on the ground, unarmed, a cop pulls his gun and shoots Oscar in the back. This is the fatal shot that (eventually) ended Oscar's life. The officer was charged with manslaughter.

This is a personal side note based on my research, but the officer was given 2 years including time already served, which is LESS than the minimum for manslaughter. However, the officer was let out after 11 months served. To me that is absolutely unacceptable. This is where the justice system failed. I think this movie is completely worth renting. Not only because it is a real life story but because it may cause us to look at the discrepancies within our justice system.

Lee Daniels' The Butler

The Butler, what can I say? I'm going to be honest, I had absolutely no want to see this movie. I have a hard time tolerating Oprah Winfrey (I know I'm the minority) so the fact that she is a lead in this movie made me want to steer clear. On the opposite end of the spectrum I have a great amount of respect for Forest Whitaker and I think he is a brilliant actor.

This is the true life story of Eugene Allen. A lot has happened throughout this man's life and I cannot imagine what it would have been like to recap what it was like to serve under multiple presidents. I understood this film to be the story of a man working as hard as possible to give his family everything.

It is painful to watch at certain points when you watch his eldest son say horrific things to him or learn about his younger son going to war. Watching as Eisenhower talks about how he doesn't necessarily agree with desegregation in schools and knowing that he is that man's butler.

I cannot imagine what it was like to be Mr. Allen and live this life. It was hard for me to watch because at some points I felt like he was doing so much at that time eventually being honored by President Reagan but at the same time having to deal with Presidents who still saw him as just the butler. I know that this is a man's life story and deserves to be respected, however I felt as if the movie was a little long. I wouldn't say that that warrants a "don't watch." I would say if you are interested in the movie go ahead and RENT it, it is worth a view.

Blackfish

This is absolutely, 100% one of the best movies, let alone documentaries I've ever seen. I saw this film on the recommendation of my friend Salwa Sabet and I can not say thank you enough! I have tried to convince everyone I come in contact with to watch it.

I think most kids grew up wanting to go to Sea World. Heck, I was super excited to go to Sea World just a matter of years ago when my parents offered to take me. I, however, am sad to say that will be the last time I ever go to Sea World. It is a sad reality as we get older to realize how animals are treated in things such as the circus and theme parks.

I know for myself I never stopped to think where do they keep these huge animals all the time? I just assured myself, they take care of them and enjoyed my entertainment. It is in that statement alone however that I find the true issue. Animals, especially ones as large as killer whales, were not ever meant to be entertainment for the masses. They are these absolutely amazing creatures who are meant to swim free for miles and miles each day.

This documentary is absolutely a must see for everyone. I don't care if you "don't want to watch because it will make you sad." How do you think the whales feel? I made my mom watch it and she usually only watches movies with happy endings. It is ridiculous what Sea World has done and especially in the cases of their own trainers being injured. Please please please I beg of you, watch this documentary! It will change your life, okay maybe not, but it will change your outlook on Sea World.

In case you missed it, SEE IT! I saw it in the theater and again once it was released.

Rapture-Palooza

This movie is just stupid funny. I am slightly obsessed with Anna Kendrick, she is amazing. I think I've covered this before but I fell hard for her in the first Twilight, so regardless of how terrible some of her films may be, I will see them all.

My guess is this movie was made in the wake of This is the End. Someone decided hey it's really funny to make fun of those who believe in the apocalypse, so let's jump on this bandwagon. It wasn't a terrible idea and although I'm probably in the minority I laughed more during this movie than I did during the previously mentioned.

Before you even start the film you will see one of Craig Robinson's funny moments in the film which I'm going to be honest, I watched over and over and laughed. "Who is a sexy beast, I am a sexy beast." It's funny and ironic so what more could you want.

If you enjoy dark humor/comedy and are not easily offended than I say go ahead and watch this one. It was funny and if I am looking for a no thought worthy but laughable film I would watch this again. Wouldn't pay to see it in the theater, but would rent it again.

Mud

Pay close attention, are you focused in? Great, now the important news. Matthew McConaughey has lost it. I have known this for awhile but kept my opinions to myself, for the most part, because the majority seem to find him incredibly irresistible. Now, while I don't disagree that he is pretty to look at, his acting has been mediocre typically.

This is one of those movies, one of those movies you want to be good but instead, it is just mediocre. The two boys who are in the movie did an amazing job. I don't think it is their fault I didn't love the movie, because I really enjoyed watching them.

I'm honestly not sure what to say about this movie that for the majority you can't get from watching the trailer. I thought the trailer was interesting and that's why I rented the movie, but I felt like I could have taken away the main concepts from just the trailer. I hate that. It is by far one of my biggest pet peeves, I want a trailer to give me just enough that I want to see the movie, but once I see it I don't want to feel like I should have just stuck with the trailer. I'm rambling at this point.

Realistically the only reason I rented this movie was to see Reese Witherspoon because I adore her. This is one film RottenTomatoes.com and I will always disagree on, they rated it very highly, I however would say skip it. My apologies, Reese, I so wanted to like this movie.