Movie Club Volume 7

Hey, Happy Rainy Monday!

I’m working through a backlog of TV shows and movie requests that I’ve received. In addition to watching the Marvel Universe for the first time, I’ve also been watching the movies below and the entire first season of Ted Lasso. I’ll review that once I’ve completed season two, but I at least wanted to get my thoughts out regarding the movies you see here. As always, if you have other requests for things I should be watching feel free to let me know.

Movies that I watched since Volume 6:

• Good Will Hunting — This was one of the best movies I’ve seen in quite some time. Robin Williams is one of the best actors ever, and the story, plot, and casting all magically lined up for a cinematic masterpiece. I don’t know how Matt Damon and Ben Affleck made all of these movies about Boston that are all so similar yet so different at the same time.
• Spiral: From The Book of Saw — This was a Saw movie, like the other Saw movies, starring Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson. Once you get past the initial sticker shock, I thought this was one of the better entries in the franchise. It still had the weight of Jigsaw’s looming presence without Jigsaw himself, and the twist at the end of the movie added quite a bit of intrigue.
• Thor — Most of the MCU movies I’ve seen so far have been generic romcoms with a bit of action sprinkled in, but this movie was the first one that felt like a legitimate comedy. I still don’t understand how or why Thor is on Earth and not defending the other 8 realms, but that’s neither here nor there. I’m just glad they somehow found a way to work Kat Dennings into the MCU.
• Field of Dreams — After watching the Chicago White Sox / New York Yankees “Field of Dreams” game earlier this year I figured I should actually watch the movie. I feel like if I had watched this movie as a child it would’ve been one of my favorite movies ever. It had enough plot to keep things moving, it didn’t add a ton of filler and kept the movie short, and it tugged enough at the heartstrings once you realized what was going on. Every movie doesn’t have to be “Good Will Hunting”, and that’s perfectly fine with me.
• The Forever Purge — Purge movies don’t get enough credit for being terrifyingly realistic, to the point where you go over scenarios where this could happen in real life. The thought that one day the U.S.A. would collectively decide that enough is enough and that we’re going to start strong-arming governments, businesses and everything inbetween by force is both horrifying and believable. I also love the overarching lessons about humanity in each of these films. I’m really sad that this is going to be the last one.
• Resort To Love — This was a lighthearted, predictable romantic comedy that was very entertaining. I enjoyed seeing a more serious side of Jay Pharoah, and Christina Milian does a great job of playing a hopeless romantic.
• Clickbait — This is a TV series rather than a movie, but this is one of the best shows I’ve seen in quite some time. I loved the acting, the plot twists, and how each episode centered around a handful of characters. The plot was unique enough that this felt new, while also being open-needed enough that they could re-do this if needed. I highly recommend that everyone watch this show as soon as possible.

If you are enjoying this newsletter, please pass it on to a friend (or three) and tell them to sign up here.