Split

Many people thought that director M. Night Shyamalan was never going make a hit film agin. Given that, for the last several years Shyamalan has directed disasters like "After Earth" and "The Last Airbender," it is an understatement to say that audiences weren't very hopeful of this film. But boy were they wrong, not only did Shyamalan make a huge comeback, but in the process of doing so, he established further projects to go along with Split. Split is a film about a guy named Kevin, who has dissociative identity disorder, which is a factual mental illness that makes a person think they multiple personalities aside from his own. And Kevin, in particular, has 23 different ones, and a more dangerous 24th one is ready to be unveiled. I won't say more because any further explanation will spoil the plot of the film, but what I can say is that James McAvoy had one of the most spectacular performance I have ever seen in a film. McAvoy is truly an underrated actor in Hollywood, he is extremely versatile, as proven in this movie, and deserves more leading roles outside of Superhero movies. McAvoy literally played 24 different characters in this film, and sometimes switching character in just a fraction of a second. Other than having a great leading character, the plot of an M. Night Shyamalan film never seizes to surprise you, he is the master of twist endings, and a true storyteller. This film touches a lot of real world subjects, stuff like mental illness, abuse, and what human nature tells us to do when confronted with harsh situations. This film was beautifully shot, and had great sets and designs. That is why, for my final verdict, I give the movie Split 5 out of 5 stars, it is truly one of the top 10 films of 2016.

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Deadpool

Deadpool starring Ryan Reynolds was one of the most anticipated movies of 2016, and it sure didn't disappoint. This film didn't try to be something it wasn't, compared to a lot of superhero movies that overpromised and under delivered, I'm looking at you Suicide Squad. Deadpool follows the life of Wade Wilson, a low-life mercenary with a witty attitude and a fast mouth. Wade meets a girl who he instantly falls for, and starts to have a romantic relationship with, soon after he gets hit with the news that he has terminal cancer. Wilson tries to find a solution to his problem and stumbles across a fellow who calls himself Ajax. Ajax promises Wilson that he has the solution for his problem and that he wants a human that he can experiment this new solution on. Wilson having no other hope, agrees and has the procedure. He then realizes that Ajax was tricking him, and Ajax reveals that his body will forever be horribly deformed. He then sets out and seeks revenge on Ajax. The movie follows a simple yet effective plot. It doesn't try to ruin it by adding sci-fi elements, and this simplicity is a breath of fresh air to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The film was beautifully shot, with great cinematography, and the costumes and sets were excellent. But that's not what this movie is all about, the one things that takes it over the top, is the witty comedy that Ryan Reynolds brings to the character of Wad Wilson, I can't imagine any other actor in Hollywood, who could have played this part like Reynolds did. More Marvel movies should take a page out of Deadpool's book, because audiences around the world loved the iteration of the character.  And that is why, for my final verdict I award Deadpool with 4.9 out of 5 Baby hands!

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War Dogs

War Dogs starring Miles Teller and Jonah Hill is a film directed by Todd Philips. This story follows David Packouz (Miles Teller and Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill), in their escapades of being illegal arms dealers that sell to the U.S. government. There is a lot of good things to say about this film, and an equal amount of bad things to say. First things first, this film is loosely based on true events, I say loosely because like in all movies that state that they're "based on a true story," the stuff is overly dramatized, and skewed. This film tells a classic tale of a protagonist down on his luck who tries to turn his luck around by engaging in nefarious activities, eventually leading to his downfall. Miles Teller did a great job in this movie, he is a great young actor, who is proving his versatility to everyone in Hollywood. His character is believable, and relates to the average Joe who is in a rut. throughout the entire movie he sticks to his guns, no pun intended, and doesn't go out of his way to be noticed on screen, he lets the dialogue speak for itself. That brings me to Jonah Hill, unlike Teller, Jonah stands out in this movie, and in consequence makes his character unbelievable, thus breaking the viewers suspension of disbelief. I'm not saying Hill is a bad actor in general, but his choice of acting in this film was not a smart move to say the least. The story in general had a good premise, it was interesting and kept the viewers curiosity till the end. This could have been a classic film, if it wasn't for the poor casting decisions, but on the flip side, the cinematography of this film was excellent, the sets were beautiful, the costumes were accurate to the time, and some of the suspenseful scenes, really had you clinching your fists. Overall, the story was there, the characters were decent enough, and the way in which the movie was filmed was overall great, so for my final verdict, I award War Dogs 4 out of 5 Kalashnikov.

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Passengers

Passengers starring Chris Pratt, and Jennifer Lawrence, is an original concept that thankfully was brought to the movie theater for everyone to see. The entire story takes place on board the star ship Avalon, who's main voyage is a 120 year mission to Homestead, a colony that is a long ways from planet earth. Along the way, a malfunction occurs, which opens up Jim Preston's (Chris Pratt) hibernation pod 90 years too early.He is now faced with a moral decision, that will determine Aurora's (Jennifer Lawrence) fate. The actors were astounding in this movie, Pratt and Lawrence have a believable chemistry between them, and the supporting characters helped drive the film forward. The sets and wardrobe were magnificent, and the movie was shot beautifully. The plot was original, but the way it was structured was cliche to say the least. The typical romance arc left something to be desired, and the twists and turns along the way were average. It was a well executed, but the problem with films now a days, is the constant use of the same recycled romance arcs, and plot twists, which this film was guilty of. I would rocomend to go see this movie, not for the plot of it, but for the pure talent of the characters, and the well shot cinematography. I give this film, 3.9 out of 5 hibernation pods ;).

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Central Intelligence

Central Intelligence starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, and comedian Kevin Hart was a movie that took me by surprise. Central Intelligence is a buddy cop comedy that suffers from the same recycled plot line that Hollywood keeps pumping out, so to say that I was dreading to see this movie, is a bit of an understatement. But then something miraculous happened, about 15 minutes into the film, I was actually caught myself laughing emphatically in front of the T.V.  When the film ended, I realized that I had been laughing for a good chunk of this movie. The comedy shines, and the characters are goofy and weird in their own way. Now there are a lot of problems with this film, Kevin hart plays the same character he plays in every movie he's in, Dwayne Johnson stepped out of his comfort zone on this one, and it wasn't pretty, his acting was terrible, his character was not believable at all. The plot line like I said before is stock Hollywood crap, but besides all that, the comedy portion of the movie really helps it move along, and it's what ultimately makes this movie enjoyable to watch. There are a few cameos from famous actors, but for the sake of no spoilers, i'll leave that for you to watch. Editing, sets, and wardrobe were all average, and the film was professionally shot. When you go see Central Intelligence, you don't go for all of that, not for the acting either, you go for the comedy and the good laugh your going to have throughout the film. Central Intelligence is an enjoyable time for adults, and I award it 3.5 out of 5 Harts.

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Nocturnal Animals

Nocturnal Animals starring Amy Adams, and Jake Gyllenhaal is the debut film of director Tom Ford, who is best known for being a high end fashion designer and having a clothing line named after himself. Tom Ford really went out of his way in this film, pulling out all the stops. The plot of the film begins with Amy Adams' character Susan Morrow, a successful art dealer, receiving a letter from her ex-husband that contains his newly released book titled, Nocturnal Animals. As she reads the book she notices the symbolism of the book, and the dark past it represents. That is all I can tell you, for me not to ruin the illusion this film sets out to have. This is truly an extraordinary motion picture, all of the actors in this film were great, the casting of this film was brilliant, as they hired Isla Fisher for the film, an actress that is often confused with actress Amy Adams,  this is a symbolic character as you will see in the film. Michael Shannon also stars in the film, he played his part so perfectly, every time he was on screen, he stole the show. The cinematography was excellent, the scenes set the mood of the film perfectly, and the wardrobe was top notch. I would recommend this film if your a fan of symbolism, and suspense thrillers. This film takes you on a roller coaster ride of emotions, you actually related to the characters in a very real way, you put yourself in their shoes when they have to face a moral decision, and it is almost too real. This film is definitely not for children, but its a great time for adults. For my final verdict, I award Nocturnal Animals 4.5 out of 5 stars.

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Doctor Strange

Doctor Strange starring actor Benedict Cumberbatch is one of the more interesting films to come out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in a while. The story is about a doctor named Stephen Strange who is on the top of his surgical game, when one night he got into an accident while driving his car carelessly, and his hands were completely maimed. As a result he could not perform anymore surgeries, which was all he knew how to do. So eventually he falls into a depression, while trying to find a solution to his problem. Losing all hope, and relationships with the people around him, he stumbles upon a former patient who, in most peoples eyes, was untreatable, and comes to find out that he was able to walk again. Flabbergasted by what he had witnessed, he asks him how he was able to recover. This led Dr. Stephen Strange to a place called Kamar - Taj. In this place is where he finds ancient beings who have been protecting earth for thousands of years, and it is up to this point where the film really takes off. The exposition of this film is a good build up to to what seems to be one of the best superhero films of  2016. The acting was phenomenal, Benedict Cumberbatch can crush any role that comes his way. The supporting characters such as Christine Palmer portrayed by Rachel McAdams, played a well suited love interest opposite to Cumberbatch. Also Wong and Mordo, who were played by Benedict Wong, and Chiwetel Ejiofor respectively, were very convincing in their roles. The sets and costume design were superb, the visuals of this film really immersed you in this universe. The only complain and I'm just nitpicking here, was that some of the dialogue within the characters was not convincing, one of my biggest gripes with movies now a days, is that directors or writers always want to put a joke in there when the scene doesn't call for it. But overall Doctor Strange was a great time, good for all ages. For my final verdict I award Doctor Strange 4.8 Infinity stones out of 5.

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Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is the latest installment of a franchise we've all come to know and love, Harry Potter. But don't get it confused, although the film released five years after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II, it is not a sequel. Author J.K. Rowling based the film on a textbook with the same name, that students at Hogwarts were required to read. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a prequel to a whole nother epic franchise J.K. Rowling is going to write. The film stars actor Eddie Redmayne who portrays a young wizard named Newt Scamander, who arrives in New York in 1926 with a suitcase full of magical creatures. He is on his way to Arizona to free his thunder bird named Frank. But whilst in New York, several of his Magical creatures end up escaping from his suitcase, and wreak havoc on the streets of the city, while he is trying to catch them all, there is something sinister going on in the wizarding world. That is basically what the whole movie was about, and I've got to say, it worked pretty well. Eddie Redmayne was absolutely fantastic in this film, his reserved yet caring performance of Newt Scamander hit all the right notes. Dan Fogler who played Kowalski, a Nomag that Newt runs into, was easily one of my favorite characters in this film, he is funny, and is the first time a non magical human is seen throughout the entirety of a J.K. Rowling based movie. Katherine Waterston, who played Tina, and Alison Sudol were a great pair of supporting characters. They contrasted with Newt and Kowalski pretty well, and the chemistry between them was subtle yet believable. That being said, the plot of the film was not perfect, for most, one could already figure out who the villain was in the first couple of minutes, and the twist at the end was surly something interesting, but left me with some questions. But for the sake of not spoiling the film, I would suggest you watch it, it is a good time for kids, teens, and adults. For my final verdict, I give Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, 4.5 wands out of 5. 

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