"The Super Mario Bros. Movie" (2023):

Is it the greatest story ever told?
No!
But I had a lot of fun watching it, nonetheless.

I loved the humor overall, and if you ever played a Nintendo (Mario related) game, you got a lot of references and "aha" - moments (pun not intended).

My only real gripe would be that Luigi came a little short, in a movie, that is titled "The Super Mario Bros.".
He could have gotten a little more screen time.

Oh, and Francis is definitely my new spirit animal. ;)

Also:
- "There is no escape! The only hope is the sweet relief of death."
- "Ooh, fresh meat for the grinder."
Seriously: how could you not immediately fall in love with her?

Plus: the OST is amazing!

Now - how to end this?
Ah, I know:

"Now, that's a happy ending.
Or is it?
Because everything's over now, and all that's left, is you and the infinite void."

XD

Oh, don't worry. The place I'm watching these from is unlikely to go anywhere. And since I made that post, I finished the entire run.

So now I'll wait a week or so before starting Zeta at the same website. The way I've described it to people is a War Opera; that is an epic tale or saga of very few people.

One thing I'll give the show is that some of the scenes are very atmospheric and the sound design does a lot of heavy lifting.

From the eerie space breathing of a formation of Zakus, the trilling sawtooth of the laser comms, or even the terror of the underwater scenes as giants drift though water.

James Bond: Live and Let Die (1973)

Great film. I especially love its theme song Live and Let Die. Since Paul McCartney composed it, it was basically a given that it would be a great song.

1883 is a captivating series that excels in narration, acting, and pacing. It explores profound themes in just 10 one hour episodes, feeling like it's about everything and nothing at the same time. I deliberately exclude the rest of the franchise, as I couldn't finish Yellowstone months ago due to its forced drama, haughtiness, and false pride. Similarly, I have no intention of watching 1923. 1883 deserves to be recognized on its own merits and is the best series I've watched in 2024.

In the spirit of Halloween, during this week I watched the first four movies of the Alien franchise.

The first movie is a timeless classic. In my opinion, the top three reasons it became a cult film are the sets, the design of the aliens, and the mix of horror, science fiction, and survival against alien parasites. As fourth, the female lead.

The second movie begins to drown into fancy special effects. Oh, James Cameron... And oh, those maternal instincts! My excitement dropped back to a disappointing low.

The third movie is the franchise totally falling apart. It has a forced tone with a script that's better off forgotten and a cringeworthy ending. Sigourney Weaver as co-producer? Well, this shows why sequels often aren't the best creative choice, they tend to be more about nostalgia and profit.

The fourth movie, which was the last one I watched, reminded me that once a topic loses its charm, it usually stays that way. It was nonsense from start to finish.

Instead of wasting more time on the rest, which I expect will be just popcorn movies, I think I'll revisit that amazing first movie again to honor its legacy and impact, not just in cinema but also in video games. The entire Alien franchise should have been a single film.

Last movies i happened to have watched were Room 1408, Hot Fuzz, Dead Space Downfall, Dead Space Aftermath.

Found the first movie to be fun with it's plot involving a writer with barely any audience but a dedicated audience nevertheless all the while having a strained relationship with his partner due to the loss of their daughter, him investigating a haunted hotel room after which similar to Army of Darkness in the Evil Dead Franchise you get like 4 or so different endings for the movie. Would recommend.

Second one's nice for what it provides. The beginning introduction for the protagonist's a little cheesy but i suppose that was intentional to go along with the oober dooper serious work ethic as a police officer when his peers tend to slack off. Love the buddy cop dynamic. Will say it did not help with my perception of british people being from an entirely different planet given the ones i've known. It's like a dwarven kingdom with different clans over there. And who could forget the classic ever so loveable, the one, the only "The Greater Good" memes.

Third one's animation can be choppy depending on who you ask, backgrounds are 3D renders. But i overall enjoyed the story and the visuals had charm to them, the angles and lighting were nicely chosen, music well placed. I recommend checking out this one, the motion comic, the wii game and the game for which the previous 3 serve and function as prequels to. Oh yeah and the Extraction comic can also be something to check out.

Fourth one functions as a sequel to the previous movie and a prequel to the second game in the franchise. It features different 2D animation styles in different segments of the movie akin to a particular movie i don't happen to remember the name of at the current moment so feel free to remind me if someone knows. 3D animation is really barebones, models look even cheaper than what you'd normally find on Sketchfab. Would recommend for a watch, both this one and the previous have their distinct vibes and so i'd imagine depending on the viewer you'd end up coming to one more than the other, or perhaps you'll enjoy neither or both.

Coco as in that Disney/Pixar movie themed after Day of the Dead. It's enjoyable for what it is and was recommended to me years ago by someone that celebrates the holiday that also confirmed that it doesn't do anything drastically weird. (Some Disney movies - such as Lion King - do things that are blatantly odd.) I'll rewatch Coco around this time of year (October/November) when the tv channel Freeform (owned by Disney) decides to air it.

Kill Bill: Vol. 1
I can't believe it took me this long to watch it. Probably some of the most fun I've had watching a movie recently. Stylish, over-the-top and hilarious - with a killer soundtrack too. Will watch the second one soon.

You may want to check out The Book of Life. When the trailers for Coco first dropped a lot of people felt like they were just ripping off that movie. In the end I wouldn't say that's quite the case, but there are definite similarities, so if you liked one there's a good chance you'll like the other, and it's only fair to give the one that came first a watch.

I'll certainly watch The Book of Life if I see it airing on tv. I might have to check some of the other kid channels for that one. Yes, I do like to watch kid animated movies because I'm overcompensating for the fact that my actual childhood was filed with movies like The Shining. Yes, it's a great movie but I shouldn't have been shown it when I was eight. Still it isn't even the worst thing that a parent wrongly thought I should see as a child.