Sunday, March 29, 2015

Grave of the Fireflies (1988) Review


This movie is from a studio called Studio Ghibli which is a Japanese animated studio that's a part of Disney.  If you ever do decide to watch this movie make sure you get an american dubbed version. 
This movie about a Japanese brother and sister trying to survive during WWII will punch you in the face. I highly recommend this movie, but this is a movie you have to be emotionally ready to watch before you actually do. This is definitely a film not to watch with children.
Not only is this one of the best animated films of all time, it's also one of the best war films. This film tells the story of WWII from the Japanese side which I'm not used to and it's nice to get a fresh take on a story we have all heard plenty of times. The one thing that makes this movie unique is it's told from the perspective of kids. From a boy about the age of 16 and his sister about the age of 5 or 6.  I have a younger sister so when I was watching this movie it made it that more of an emotional watch. This movie is really well written. It's very important that a movie of this type hits certain beats that not only make the movie flow better, but add emotional impact and character development. This movie doesn't work if you are not connected to the characters. I guarantee that you will get connected to them because it's that well written. Along with the screenplay, it's one of the best original stories I have ever seen.   
For a film that's done in the 80s, the animation is incredible. It's very unusual to praise an animated film for cinematography, but it's impossible not to notice how beautiful this is. Every shot, every second, you could tell they put all their effort into making this film look like one of the best I have ever seen (and that includes recent years.)
You can also complement this film on it's score, the pacing, and just everything. Take my word for it, this is a film you must see before you die. 
When you watch this movie you will cry. You will be amazed at it's beauty. You will never forget how awesome this movie is. It's my favorite animated film of all time and the only animated movie that's in my top 30 of all time. 
I loves movies that the title actually has meaning behind it. Grave of the Fireflies is one of the most meaningful titles to a movie ever. 
You probably already guessed it, but I give this movie a (5/5)
Just remember when you watch this movie you will experience drama like you have never experienced before. Like I said you will be punched in the face. 
I couldn't recommend this movie more.




Friday, March 27, 2015

Home Review

This is going to be a short review because I know you won't want to read a 4 page review about how bad this movie is.
I have a very strong love/hate relationship with DREAMWORKS. They are responsible for How to Train Your Dragon, Shrek, Kung Fu Panda, and even their most underrated film Flushed Away. But they also made some pretty bad films such as Shrek 3&4, Madagascar, Penguins of Madagascar, Mega Mind, Turbo, and I could keep going on, and on, and on. So, you could say I hate their movies more than I like. I had mixed anticipation levels for this movie. I was excited to see what Jim Parsons could bring to a animated character, and that was about it. I was hoping that DREAMWORKS could bring back the magic of Shrek and Kung Fu Panda.

HOME is stupid. It sucks. It's terrible. It's a complete waste of time. All it is, is product placement for Rihanna. Every single time a new song came one (I believe I counted 3-5) it was a Rihanna song and I already hate Rihanna so much.
This movie had a somewhat cool concept, they just executed it terribly. The voice acting was sub par. And all the "funny parts" you saw in the trailer those were the only "funny parts" if you even want to call them that.  Every other joke either sucked or fell flatter than a pancake.
The story was incredibly stupid.
The characters were idiotic.
Everything about this movie made me regret seeing it. It is one of the worst movies I have ever seen.
This movie makes me wish I never left my HOME.
If you're thinking about seeing this movie a better option would be.......well, anything.

This movie deserves a (.4/5)

It sucked. So, bad. Just so bad.


Wednesday, March 25, 2015

My Love of Movies

Movies are my life. I live and breath movies. They are the thing that I care most about in my life (maybe 2nd next to my family.) They matter so much to me. They are ways to escape from reality and go on a journey with hobbits, Jedi, and wizards. They are ways to learn about the real life of Abraham Lincoln, Solomon Northrop, Jackie Robinson, Mark Zuckerburg, and so many others. Movies are such a great way to relax, take a break from the real world and experience the magic. 
Ever since the beginning of time, mankind have been telling stories to entertain and to pass time. It has been as simple as paintings on a cave wall or a bunch of friends sitting around a fire making up stories that soon will influence the way other people tell stories and even the entire world. Story telling is just such an important part of mankind. We would go crazy if we couldn't experience others life and adventures. 
I have a couple of movie memories. One of the first being when I was age 4. I was at my grandma's house and I got in trouble. She put me in a room and put on the original Star Wars unaltered version on VHS. I was glued to the screen. Seeing lightsabers for the first time was one of the coolest things ever. I envy people who haven't seen Star Wars because I want to go back in time and experience the magic for the first time.
When I was little I had a little 14inch VHS player. I basically watched 5 movies on repeat. The first 2 are Toy Story 1 and 2. I watched the first one so much I had to go through multiple VHS tapes. When I was 10 I went to the Toy Story double header before Toy Story 3 came out and before the movie started they had a trivia game. I didn't miss one question. Toy Story was basically the Godfather movies to my child hood. I also watched probably one of the saddest movies ever Disney's Fox & The Hound. I really don't know why I loved that movie so much. I still love it to this day. In my top 5 animated films along with Toy Story 2. I also watched Disney's Robin Hood. Robin Hood (besides Luke Skywalker) was my role model growing up. I loved him so much. I wanted to be exactly like him. The last movie I watched on repeat was Monster's Inc. That is my favorite animated film of all time. I can quote that movie from beginning to end. My childhood basically consisted of watching Toy Story 1 and 2, Fox & The Hound, Robin Hood, and Monster's Inc. I guess I just have loved movies from such an early age. They played such a big part in my life when I was young. When I was age 8 my mom started showing me movies like Rear Window, Vertigo and North by Northwest. When I was 12 I went to go see Jurassic Park back on the big screen. That was the real moment when I decided I was really into film.  I was exposed to perfect film making at an age most people usually aren't. I just love movies so much. 
You can sit around a table with people you don't even know and you can bring up Lord of the Rings, The Avengers, Harry Potter etc... and you can have a hour conversation with people you don't even know. That's the purpose of movies. Movies are meant to entertain. Movies are meant to bring people together. To unite people that wouldn't usually talk to with each other. Movies are meant to please us. Movies are there to make me, you, and everyone else experience things that we wouldn't normally experience.