10 points if you have ever heard of this movie. 20 if you've actually seen it. I found this movie hidden in Netflix and decided to check it out. I was just mostly interested in Brittany Snow because I love her in different roles. I think she is an underrated versatile actress. So, this movie is about a girl (Snow) who agrees to a dinner party where a game is to take place with other guests. If she wins the game then she gets the money and bone marrow that her brother is in desperate need of. You can guess from the title that the game is would you rather and players are
eliminated each round. And by eliminated I mean killed. It's a very intense game. I will say that I read the synopsis of the movie on wikipedia before I watched it. I do this a lot when I find a movie that has potential and want to decide if it's worth watching or not. Because I read the synopsis, I knew exactly what happened and how it ended. That was okay for me. I ended up watching it anyway and I liked it. As always, there are spoilers ahead.
Let's start with plot and characters. As I said before, Brittany Snow was really good. Throughout the movie she has to be upset and she held it the whole time. She wasn't too annoying with it either which is rarely done. There are only a couple cringe worthy moments. The best one was a guy that sliced his eye with a razor blade. Don't worry, you don't actually see this. Even though, showing an eye sliced by a razor was done in an early 1929 silent film but that's a different conversation. It's not necessarily gory but I would consider it to have a fair amount of violence. I actually think there was room for more blood and guts but it was tastefully done and I respect that. I actually expected more blood but it was really glossed over. Brittany Snow's character wins the deadly game (surprise!). What was a surprise was the ending. I wouldn't necessarily call it a twist but it was definitely interesting. It was part of what made this seemingly corny movie an actual good movie. I'm not going to reveal what it was because you should just take some time to watch it but damn, it was good. Of course the normal topics with these kind of movies comes up. Like, how far would you go for the people you love and how should you treat other people. The acting overall wasn't the best ever but it worked.
Now to technicals. The best subtle thing about the movie was the coloring. It had a slight yellow, sickly feel to it which really went well with the action of the movie. It wasn't very noticeable though. Like I said, subtle. There were also some good camera angles and shots that I appreciated. Overall, this was a better movie than what I expected it to be and it has its merits. I love finding little gems on Netflix. Not all "horror" movies are the same and play to certain stereotypes. Some times they surprise you. Go watch it.
So now comment below and let me know your thoughts. Any thoughts. I'm not particular.

Let's take a minute to talk about the gloriousness that is Mad Max: Fury Road. I recently went to see this with a friend about a week ago and I haven't stopped thinking about it since. Once the movie ended and the credits started to roll the whole audience just sat there in silence for like three minutes. It was that good. I love when films can do that to me and just make me really like it. Most movies I can see where it's going and they're pretty predictable but this one wasn't that.
I will start by saying that I have not seen the original Mad Max films and knew nothing about this movie going in. I had seen like one trailer and I didn't really get anything from it besides Tom Hardy was in it. Sometimes it's fun to go into a movie with no expectations. I had heard from Facebook that it was a good movie so I was curious as to how. I was not disappointed. I'm a fan of action movies and I really enjoyed that this movie had action with a purpose. It wasn't just useless action with a weak storyline.
I will admit that for the first half hour of the movie I was thinking, "what the fuck am I watching?" Once I got past that, it turned in to a really good story. What I found most interesting is that the director, George Miller, chose to just give the audience all the pieces they needed to put the story together without actually telling them. There is very little dialogue throughout the film but I really didn't think about that until after the movie. It just didn't feel that way watching it. Probably because I was anxious the whole movie. That's the sign of a good movie. If the director can get the audience to completely lose themselves in a story that has little dialogue then he has won. It just made sense in the film. There was a lot of action and blowing up things but, there were a couple times that I actually gasped and put my hands over my mouth. I don't normally do that at movies but I got really into Mad Max.
Alright, on to technicals. My one complaint is obvious green screen at one part when Tom Hardy's character, Max (duh), is coming out of a cave on a cliffside. It pulled me out of the moment noticing that and especially because it should have been super easy to just put him in front of a rock face and edit it that way. Maybe the budget was spent and it was at the end of the shoot. The fire was okay but not great. I can look over that because it didn't bother me and was about as good as CGI fire can get. The best part of the film was the color grading. It just totally blew me away. I recently watched a youtube video on how the colorists did the color grading and it's just beautiful. The rich, saturated colors were impressive and really added to the film. The night scenes were cast very blue and, again, beautiful. I noticed a common color trick of contrasting blue cast with usually orange light. There was one scene at night that had a kerosene lamp that really used that contrast. Another scene had the characters drive in to a sort of sand storm and it seemed to flash black and white with the lightening strikes. It was so brief that I couldn't tell if it was black and white or just blue. Either way it was visually stunning and creative.
Now to plot/characters. My number one reason for going to see Fury Road was Tom Hardy and I have no shame in that. Total fangirl right here and I loved him in his role. He has this way of grunting that says more than any line of dialogue and the little actual dialogue he had in the film was, to me, funny or touching. He does a really good job of getting into the character he is supposed to be portraying. Charlize Theron was also very good and this was probably the best role i have ever seen Nicholas Hoult in. Second tier actors were also good. At first it seems like Max is going to be the big hero saving some females but really they end up saving themselves. There are definitely some female empowerment under tones in Mad Max and it's great. Like I mentioned before, the director actively engaged the audience. Little exposition was given and the audience is just forced to go with it and figure things out by themselves. Miller does this in a way that isn't confusing, except at the beginning, and it treats the audience like they aren't stupid. This is something more movies should do. He gives the audience everything they need in a way that doesn't compromise the action. The director could have done more voice over or shown more flashbacks but the movie does not need it. The clues are in there. They just aren't handed to you on a silver platter. I have to say, on a scale from 1-10, I would give this movie an 8.5. Just go see the movie already. I'm anxious for the next time I get to enjoy it again.

Today's adventure is the Disney classic Ella Enchanted. It was between this and Sin City. We'll save that one for another day. So, back to Ella. Having to literally do everything she is told is definitely an interesting concept. I think everybody can relate to that feeling at least once in their lives. Of course there are plenty of one-liners and funny quips to keep the movie moving. Anne Hathaway does some really good acting here as Ella. She's a take charge and empowered woman who can save herself and, that is refreshing for a Disney movie. Some parts get a little sappy for my taste but that's alright.
So, now on to technical notes. The color palette of rich, warm colors adds to the fairy tale world the movie is set in. Basically all of the scenes with the giants are pretty CGI showing. I understand where the technical difficulties come in but, those problems could probably be better solved with the new technology we have. It could have also been movie budget. Which is a factor often overlooked. Clever angles and cuts do make those scenes better. That silly talking snake needs to go though. Overall, Ella Enchanted is a solid movie that is easily enjoyed when watched occasionally. This has been a pretty short review but that happens sometimes. Stay tuned for commentary on the hilarious Pitch Perfect 2 that is out in theaters now.

Get ready for some amazing insights from me about movies (sarcasm). I'm just a girl with a thing for anything but reality. I have seen hundreds, if not thousands, or movies in my life by now and it's time to start sharing my thoughts with the world whether you like it or not. I do have a degree in digital cinema and am currently pursuing a masters in cinema studies so I know a little more than the average bear. I like a lot of weird movies and have managed to find some bizarre films through Netflix and other movie sources. So, if you come keep coming back periodically then you'll get a good smattering of movies you have heard of or seen and movies you haven't.
To start off, I'm going to talk a little about The Matrix. Because why not? Of course this is a great movie to start with. It also happens to be the movie I watched earlier today. I have seen this movie many times before, mostly in bits and pieces. Clips have even been shown in some of my film classes. The biggest visual aspects of The Matrix are the color and the special effects. Color plays a big part in the audience's feeling during a movie and with this movie the drab life Neo is living in the beginning of the film is shown with green, almost sickly, tones that are muted. You don't need to notice this to understand that he thinks his life sucks. That's the beauty of the understated color manipulation. The defining feature of The Matrix are it's effects. They are still considered pretty amazing about 15 years after it was filmed. Technology has changed a lot but the way they used it is timeless. I think the coolest part is the slow motion, badass scenes where the actors were harnessed in front of a green screen that had numerous cameras in a semi-circle around them to get that frozen, 180 degree look. That is amazing. Movies nowadays can take the audience out of a moment if they become aware of the CGI used. Yes, most films use CGI however, the goal is to make it look like something could reasonably be real with a little 'willing suspension of disbelief.' The only moment in The Matrix that did that was at the beginning when the agents make it so that Neo can't speak by basically melting his mouth, if you will. The technology, not to mention prosthetics, just weren't quite ready for that. For being a computer simulated type movie, it's great that that was the only real time I specifically noticed CGI. Oh, wait, there was one tiny moment of some flames later in the movie that looked bad but I'll overlook that one.
Let's talk about plot and acting. I would have liked to see more action and a little less of the talkity talk, but that's probably just me. The budget probably only allowed for so much ass kicking which, was awesome when it did happen. Best actor? Agent Smith. Duh. Worst actor? Trinity, maybe. I like Keanu Reeves and think he can do certain things and certain emotions well. He had his moments as Neo in this movie. Trinity, on the other hand, had me cringing a couple times with sappiness and predictable lines that just made me roll my eyes. That could be more on the fault of the writing I will say. Lawrence Fishbourne as Morpheus was pretty good. His character kind of agitated me with his inability to say anything useful in the film. Morpheus is supposed to be the leader of this group and the one basically in charge but I just don't feel like he earned it. He didn't do anything particularly great that any of the others couldn't do. I  would have liked to see more bad assery from him.
Overall The Matrix is a good movie. I can't say the same for the sequels but that's for another day. It will still be referred to and used as a cultural reference for years to come. I also see it still being a case study in many film classes for it's advances in the year it was filmed. So, go watch it. Or don't. Just watch out for glitches in the matrix and don't trust anybody named Agent Smith.