DB Reviews- Mary Poppins Returns

Poster from DVD Release Date

Good day, everyone! It's me, DB, back for another PLEASANT review! This time, I give you my review of Mary Poppins Returns. WARNING: THERE ARE SPOILERS! This film was released in December of 2018! 

In this film, Mary Poppins, played this time by Emily Blount, returns to help the Banks family get out of debt, i.e. pay off a mortgage, in her own magicial way. Not only that, she also helps them find happiness after Michael Banks loses his wife by teaching them that although she's gone, she is never forgotten! This film is packed was fun songs that can be Disney hits. 

I thought that Blount must've seen the original Mary Poppins a lot, because she sounded like the original version of the character, played by Julie Andrews. Perhaps that's what she needed to do in order to learn about the character prior to filming. Is that a good thing to do? In her case, it is in my opinion, but you can decide that too if you've seen the film! 

Lin-Manuel Miranda, of Hamilton fame, played Jack the lamplighter. He was the Bert in this film, from his accent all the way down to his shoes! I thought he brought a little of his Hamilton rap when he sang in a few of the songs. That accent fits him in this role! 

Ben Whishaw plays the adult Michael Banks in this film. The young Banks in the original film was played by Matthew Garber. His character was nervous and worried through most of the film, a natural reaction by a person who has to pay a mortgage before the bank forecloses on that person's house (which is a bad thing, btw). Although he wasn't my favorite actor, I can definitely see the expression he showed when on screen. 

The kids were played by Pixie Davies, Nathanael Saleh and Joel Dawson. I thought they were good in this film. I know it can be tough directing kids their age in a movie, but I think they did a good job performing these characters despite that. 

The thing that put this movie over the top for me was the songs! These songs were fantastic! I could hear Radio Disney play these songs over and over! My favorite was "Can You Imagine That". I also loved "A Cover Is Not The Book", "Trip A Little Light Fantastic" and "Nowhere To Go But Up". I felt that each song in this film played the same role as the songs in the original film. For example, "The Place Where Lost Things Go" (the Academy Award nominated song) was the slow song in this film, just like "Feed The Birds" was from the original film. Let me tell you I will definitely be buying this soundtrack, or at least a few songs from it! 

I like what they did with the Royal Doulton Bowl scene. That scene was definitely a nice tribute to the original film. The animation was solid and clear. Plus, it had a little action too! You can also tell how different the animation style is today from how it was when the original Mary Poppins first came out. 

So overall, this film isn't as "practically perfect in every way" in comparison to the original film, but it definitely is A MUST ADD TO YOUR DISNEY LIBRARY! I will definitely add it to mine! Thanks for reading! Be sure to check out my new Youtube channel. Just search DB Reviews in the search bar! Part of the DB Network! 

Oh, by the way, Angela Landsbury made a cameo at the end of the film. So did Bert himself, aka Dick Van Dyke, but he played a different role in this film. Plus, good news for those of you that loved Admiral Boom! This character is in this film too, played by David Warner. Although I think he got his "timing" mixed up! 

DB Reviews- Ralph Breaks The Internet

Image from IMP Awards

Hello, reader! It's me, DB and I'm back to give you another AWESOME review! This time, I review Disney's newest hit film Ralph Breaks The Internet! WARNING: THERE ARE SPOILERS, SO IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED, PLEASE GO SEE THIS MOVIE FIRST BEFORE YOU READ! 

In this movie, BFF's Ralph and Vanellope must journey to The Internet to find a replacement steering wheel for the Sugar Rush game. There, they meet some new friends, interact with some characters from other Disney properities (including all the Princesses) and Vanellope finds a new game  called Slaughter Race, a racing adventure game that she becomes a part of at the end of the film. 

The story was definitely well written and easy to follow. I like that in movies. I think that if a writer wrote a script for a movie, that person should make the script easy to for the movie goer to understand what's going on in the film. I think that Josie Trinidad, the head writer for this film and her team did a great job at doing just that! 

John C. Reilly returned as Ralph, the "bad guy" that wasn't so bad in the original movie, Wreck-It Ralph. I think he does a good job in this role and I do hope Disney brings him back for a 3rd film if they make one. I like him in Chicago and I think his protraying Ralph is just as good. 

Sarah Silverman returns as Vanellope, the kid racer and "princess" from Sugar Rush who is Ralphs's BFF! I think she does a good job as this character, but her singing voice does need some work! Although, I won't be surprised if kids called Radio Disney to request the DJ to play her song " A Place Called Slaughter Race", which she did with Shank from said game. 

Speaking of Shank, Gal Gadot, aka Wonder Woman, provided her voice for this character. She did a good job! This was a different role for her, having previously played an Amazonian Princess! 

Bill Hader played J.P. Spamley and Alfred Molina, aka Doctor Octopus from the original Spider-Man trilogy, played Double Dan and his little brother. Both were good at their respective roles. Hader was uncredited and I think he should've received a credit! 

I thought the game Slaughter Race looked like a Disney version of Mad Max with a little Grand Theft Auto. The goal of the game is to steal Shank's car, which is a pretty valuable item in the video game world! If Disney teamed up with a video game developer, like Activison or Insomiac, to create an actual Slaughter Race video game, I would buy it! I think Disney should do the same with Sugar Rush. That would definitely challenge Mario Kart! (I like Mario Kart a lot and I'll probably like Sugar Rush at lot too!) I think Slaughter Race should get a T for Teen rating, while Sugar Rush gets an E for Everyone. Hey, I wouldn't even mind playing Fix-It Felix, Jr if they made that one! That could get an E too! 

I also thought that the Disney Princesses teaming up to save Ralph was a nice touch! All of them working together and using their abilities together was a very memorable scene and a good one too! All of the original voice actors/actresses (except for Snow White, for which I think her original actress passed away) reprised their roles in the film! Plus, Jacques and Gus Gus made a cameo, along with a whole ton of other Disney characters, like Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy and Eeyore from Pooh! Even Grumpy of the Seven Dwarfs and Nick Wilde from Zootopia made appearances. 

The Stormtroopers and C-3PO from Star Wars also were in the film, with Anthony Daniels reprising his role as 3PO! I think that all the different characters from different Disney franchises added to the fun. 

Oh yeah, did I mention Sonic The Hedgehog? Yep, he's in this one too, with his voice actor, Roger Craig Smith, reprising the role. I guess Sonic must have a good agent cause he's done a gaming series with Mario and has a role with Wreck-It Ralph! 

Overall, the film was PURE DISNEY FUN! I give it 4 STARS! If they do a 3rd film (which they probably will in the future), I think they should take a look at console games, like ones for the PS4 or Switch. Then they could feature Mario (and his bro Luigi or Yoshi. Can't forget about them!). Thanks for reading! 

Felix and Calhoun were in this film too (with their voice actors, Jane Lynch of Glee fame and Jack McBriar, reprising the roles) but they mostly had their roles reduced a bit. This was more of a Ralph and Vanellope movie. 

DB Reviews- The Mule

Poster from IMDB

Hello everyone! Welcome to my review of The Mule, the newest film from director (and star of said film) Clint Eastwood! WARNING: THERE ARE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW! If you don't want to be spoiled, then please go see the film before you continue reading! 

This film is inspired by true events. In the film, Eastwood (of Dirty Harry and Unforgettable fame) plays a Korean War vet and horticulturist named Earl Stone. He's estranged from his family and desperate for money. So, he becomes a "mule" (a person that transports drugs from one location to another) for a cartel from Mexico. Hot on his heels is Colin Bates (played by Bradley Cooper), a DEA agent set out to bust the cartel for drug dealing! 

Clint Eastwood is a legend in Hollywood! Even though his character got mixed up with some bad people, I like him. I thought Eastwood did a great job handling the emotional scenes in the film, like the one where his character's wife dies from cancer. Also, I like his insult comebacks! Those were clever! Plus, his advice to Cooper's character was good and should be used in the real world! Will he get an Oscar nomination for Best Actor? We will have to see! He uses the money he gets in a Robin Hood way, by giving it to the people and places that need it most. In a way, he touched other people's lives, like George Bailey from "It's A Wonderful Life". 

Bradley Cooper plays Colin Bates, a DEA agent that was based off the real DEA agent in the true events that inspired this movie. I think he did an OK job in the role. I felt that the scene where he and Eastwood's character had the chat where Eastwood's character offered him advice was a good scene that helped us learn more about his character. We need more scenes like that in movies. 

I like Eastwood as a director too! He did a good job directing Sully. I think his work on Sully was better then this film, but he does know his stuff! 

The story was OK. I don't know much about what actually happened, so I can't say if the writing was on point or not. The film was a bit slow and I do think Eastwood needed to add some sort of scene where his character shoots the bad guys. He is known for doing that in his westerns. 

So, overall, I'd give this film 3 AND 1/2 STARS! I also like the song choices in the film, especially "I've Been Everywhere, Man!" from Johnny Cash! I think that song definitely suits Eastwood's character well, since he's been almost everywhere around the USA! Thanks for reading! 

If you want to use any of what I say in this review for any trailers or TV ads for this movie, you may do so! By the way, Laurence Fishburn was in this movie too as the lead DEA agent in charge! 

DB Reviews- Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

Poster from IMDB

Hello, my fellow wizards! It's me, DB and after a LONGGGGGGGGGGGGG time, I'm back with another movie review! This time, I review the newest Wizarding World flick Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald! WARNING! THERE WILL BE SPOILERS! SO, IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED, THEN PLEASE SEE THIS MOVIE BEFORE READING THIS REVIEW!

In the movie, Newt and his friends must deal with Gellert Grindelwald, who has escaped custody to offer "freedom" to the Wizarding World! Newt also tries to rekindle his relationship with Tina, while Tina looks for a boy named Credence, who is essantial to Grindelwald's plans!

Eddie Redmayne returns as Newt. I think he was a good choice for the role. He portrayed the characters actions and emotions very well. We could easily tell what he was doing in each scene thanks to his acting.

Zoe Kravitz, the daughter of rocker Lenny Kravitz, reprises her role as Leta Lastrange. She was a cameo in the previous film, but she got much more screen time this time around. She's the Bellatrix to Grindelwald! As far as the acting, I think Ms. Kravitz could use a bit more work.

Jude Law protrays Albus Dumbledore, a younger version of the headmaster we're accustomed too in the Potter films. I thought he was OK in this role, but he wasn't quite as good as Michael Gambon was in the Potter films.

Johnny Depp protrayed Gellert Grindelwald in this film. I am definitly a Depp fan! To me, he's one of those not so many actors that can really adapt to his role in any movie! This role was definitely a darker one for him compared to his Capt. Jack Sparrow role in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. I thought he made a great villain in this film! Could he get a nomination for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar? Possibly! Grindelwald was previously mentioned in the Potter series, but I think Depp did a great job in bringing this villain to the silver screen!

I liked the story, but what I really liked was all the nods to the Potter franchise! Nicolas Flemel, the creator of The Sorcerer's/Philospher's Stone, made an appearance (played by Brontis Jodorowsky), as well as the stone itself! I thought the set where Grindelwald and his followers met also appeared in one of the Potter films. Also, we made a return trip to Hogwarts, a place we haven't seen since Deathly Hollows Part 2! The Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom made a return, albeit with Dumbledore teaching (since this movie took place prior to the events of the Potter films). I think the Potions classroom returned too, along with The Great Hall!

The special effects were FANTASTIC, definitely up to par with the Potter films and the 1st film in this franchise!

Like I said, I liked the story. It expanded the Wizarding World to Paris, France (which got an earlier release date for the movie, November 8th). J.K. Rowling, you are a fantastic storyteller!

Overall, I give this film 5 OUT OF 5 WANDS! I will definitely be buying it when it comes to digital or Blu-Ray, whichever I choose! Thanks for reading!

DB Reviews- The Incredibles 2!

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Hello everybody! It's me, DB! I know, it's been a LONGGGGGGGG time since I uploaded a movie review, but I'M BACK BABY! This time, I give you my review of the long awaited sequel to the The Incredibles, Incredibles 2! WARNING: SPOILERS ARE IN THIS POST! So, if you don't want to be spoiled, please stop reading and go see this film! Then, you can come back and read on!

The Incredibles 2 picks up where the Incredibles left off...about 14 years ago! After stopped The Underminer (I know, great villain name, right?), The Incredibles STILL have to lead a normal life without using their powers! They do just that until Elastigirl, Mr. Incredible and Frozone are invited to a secret meeting with the head of a communications company and his sister. They are invited to perform a publicity stunt to help gain trust and support in Supers. Elastigirl is chozen to carry out super hero like missions while Mr. Incredible is babysitting the kids.

Elasigirl saves the day on many occasions, including saving a train that went crazy on the track from crashing! She also had to find out who was behind all the events she was saving people from! That who is a new Disney Supervillain called the Screenslayer!

While she's out saving the day, Mr. Incredible has a pretty hard time with the kids. He tries helping Dash with math, tries to fix things up with Violet (after an incident where she reveals her identity to a boy she was supposed to go to a movie with) and finds out that Jack-Jack has powers! So, he asks Edna Mode (who was disgusted that Elasigirl's suit was made by a competitor) to take care of Jack-Jack. Eventually, he (plus the kids and Frozone) joined Elastigirl on a ship where Supers were to gain legal status! They find and stop the Screenslayer!

First off, I liked this movie a lot! It definitely had the action that the 1st one had! I'm glad Elastigirl got her chance to shine in the spotlight in this one! Perhaps for the 3rd, the story writers will give the kids their chance!

I'm glad the folks at Disney brought back the original voice cast. I thought they were good choices for each character. I know a lot of you will know who voices Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) because you know him from the hit TV series Coach! Holly Hunter, the voice of Elastigirl? She actually had a role in Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice! Plus, Samuel L. Jackson, aka Nick Fury, returns!

I think the Screenslayer was a WAYYYY better villain then Syndrome! He (or should I say She) had the fake voice down and this villain also used something that's very common in today's society, the screens on our TV's and smartphones, to take over peoples minds! That, to me, is perfect crazy supervillain stuff right there! She looked like a darker female version of Iron Man. Speaking of which, I think Screenslayer could've given The Avengers a run for their money! I compared her to Iron Man because she was a genius with tech, just like him!

This film also introduced a group of new Supers, including Voyd, who's powers reminds me of that weapon from the Portal series of video games. Perhaps Disney could do some spinoffs with these new heroes!

The story was good. It was easy to understand what was going on during each scene. All the voices were clearly heard with each character. I liked the writing and I thought the music was good too.

So overall, I thought this movie was one to go see! Was it better than the original, no but it made it to par with the original! My review: This movie was INCREDIBLE! I'm definitely getting it when it hits the stores on Blu-Ray with digital copy! Plus, I think Disney should do an Incredibles crossover with The Avengers! Now that would be fun! Thanks for reading!

Plus, if you work for a newspaper and you want to print this, you have my permission! Also, I liked the scene where Frozone's wife didn't hide his costume!

Also, Edna Mode resembles Hetty from NCIS: Los Angeles, doesn't she? 

DB Reviews- Ready Player One

Image from Ain't It Cool News. 

Hello! It's me, DB and I'm back to bring you my review of Ready Player One, the newest Steven Spielberg movie that's in theaters as of this post! WARNING: SPOILERS ARE HERE! 

This film's plot is centered in 2045, where people from around the globe are leaving reality and heading into the OASIS, a multi-player world where people can escape and be whoever they want! There, 3 challenges have been made by one of the creators of OAISIS (who has passed on). The first was a race, the 2nd was to play through the movie The Shining (even with the blood gush and the twins) and the 3rd was to play Adventure on the Atari 2600. 

One kid, Wade Watts (aka Parzival in the game), had to play all those challenges and get the secret gold easter egg before the company Innovative Online Industries (aka IOI, though it looked like 101 in the film). He forms the High Five clan with a few other players, all of which he meets both online and in the real world and he falls in love with them. 

I liked the story because it was simple. Hero goes on a grand adventure, falls in love and defeats the bad guys. Simple and easy to follow was this story! BTW, this movie was based off a story itself (a book). 

Tye Sheridan (from The Tree Of Life) played Wade. I thought he did a good job as the hero of this massive online world! His character seemed to have a lot of pop culture knowledge and I thought he brought that knowledge to the big screen well! 

Olivia Cooke played Samatha Cook, aka Art3mus. I could see her doing more love interest roles like the one she did in this movie. She did a good job in this role. 

Simon Pegg (of Mission: Impossible fame) played Ogden Morrow, aka The Curator. His role as Curator certainly fooled me, because he used a different voice. 

The special effects were off the chart! My favorite challenge was the race, the 1st challenge. That race had all sorts of special effects going on! I think that could be made into a for real 3D ride at any theme park, even Universal! The only problem I had with it was (and this is me personally) there was no Mario character to use a Mario Kart in the race! There wasn't even a Mario character at all in the movie, just the mention of MarioKart! 

Speaking of famous video game character, there were a lot of them and a lot of pop culture characters in this movie too! Also, it wasn't just the characters that were used. It was cars, spaceships, anything used to travel in any series that became a pop culture hit. I know Steven Spielberg must have friends in high places because he needed the rights to probably most of these characters to use them. Batman, The Iron Giant, Mobile Suit Gundam and even Marvin The Martian had cameos as playable avatars in this film! 

Plus, there was a good amount of nostalga in this film! When someone ordered pizza at the beginning, the pizza came in a metal box containing the old school Pizza Hut logo! Now that was cool! Also, the Atari 2600 video game system was featured in this film! The only way to see those nowadays is to buy one at a yard sale or have someone show you theirs! 

The game Adventure, the 3rd challenge, featured a secret that players had to find in order to complete the challenge. That secret is a REAL secret, or was a real secret when the game first came out for the Atari 2600. I studied that online. Not only was it a real egg, it was the 1st easter egg ever in a video game! (Thanks, mom). 

Mr. Spielberg did a good job directing this film. I would put this film up on the top tier of his all time greats, like JAWS or Jurassic Park. He good the pop culture down to a science! 

Overall, this was a well made movie! The action was fantastic and the special effects put this movie over the top in a good way! My review: This movie is BETTER THAN "JAWS"! Nice work, Mr. Spielberg! Now that's saying something! 

Thanks for reading! BTW, the Delorean from Back to the Future and the Batmobile from the 1966 Batman series (that starred Adam West and Burt Ward) were both in this movie! 

DB Reviews- The Greatest Showman

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Ladies and gentlemen, kids of all ages, welcome to my latest review! It's me, DB and I'm happy to bring you my review of The Greatest Showman, starring Marvel Cinamatic Universe legend Huge Jackman! WARNING: SPOILERS! If you haven't seen this film yet and you don't want to be spoiled, then please go see the film before you continue reading this post! 

The movie is a story of how Phineas Barnum (aka P.T. Barnum) went from rags to riches. He was mistreated as a boy, but fell in love and ultimate became The Greatest Showman on Earth!

Huge Jackman was fantastic as P. T. himself! This isn't his first Hollywood movie musical gig (that honor belongs to Les Miserables), but he definitely nailed it in this one! I thought his singing voice was pretty good too! Grammy nom? Idk, but we'll see! He traded in his adamantium claws for a singing voice!

Zac Efron was good in this film too, playing Barnum's partner Carlyle, a composite character who is based off of Barnum's real life partner, Bailey (hence the name of the circus). I'm happy to see Efron back in a musical. I think Efron is better in musicals then in adult comedies. The musical film is Efron's genre, I think. Did he do better in this musical then he did in Disney's High School Musical? Not much. I think he was a little better in HSM, but this role was really close!

Efron isn't the only Disney graduate to appear in this film! Zendaya, of Shake it Up fame, was in this too! I like her voice. Her acting was good, but her voice is one that teen girls and boys will eat up, if they haven't already! I think Efron and Zendaya's duet "Rewrite The Stars" will be played on every teen radio station for years to come. I think it will definitely be heard on Radio Disney too! I like that song! I thought it was well done! It was different to see Efron singing a duet with someone other then his HSM sweetheart!

Speaking of songs, the music was phenomenal! I liked "Rewrite The Stars" and "This is Me". This version of "This Is Me" is a different, more serious song! I say that because "This Is Me" was a song title that was used in the Camp Rock series. But this version was far different! I hope the song wins at the Oscars!

The actors who portrayed the circus acts (along with Zendaya) were good. The bearded woman had a great voice!

I also liked Loren Allred's (who played the singing voice for Jenny Lynn, played by Rebecca Ferguson) "Never Enough" was good!

The sets were great, the costumes were great and even Paul Sparks, who played the guy from the Herald (the New York one, not the Boston one) was a great criticizer in the film!

Overall, I give this film a 5 STAR PERFORMANCE! I think, wait, I know you all should go see this film! You will love it!

Thanks for reading!

DB Reviews- The Post

Image from IMDB

Hello and welcome to my review of The Post! It's me, DB! WARNING: SPOILERS! 

This film takes place around the start of the 1970s, just a few years after the Vietnam War. In this film, The Washington Post, led by America's first woman publisher Kathrine Graham (played by Meryl Streep), is in a race against the New York Times to publish previously top secret government papers that expose US Presidents Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson of lying to the people about the War. She teams up with her editor Ben Bradley (played by Tom Hanks) to bring forth the truth, while risking their careers at the same time! 

That's the story in a nutshell. I thought the story was not bad at all. It can be followed easily once you get what's going on. I like it! 

The movie had an all star cast, let by Streep and Hanks. Meryl Streep plays Mrs. Kathrine Graham, a widowed publisher of The Washington Post, America's first! I thought she was good in this kind of role, since's it's a far cry from her role in Mamma Mia! She has played serious roles before, so this was nothing new to her. Best Actress nod? I don't know, but let's see what the Academy thinks. 

Tom Hanks protrayed Ben Bradley, the editor of the Post. Like Streep, Hanks has the power to play mutiple roles and perform well at them! This role isn't my favorite Hanks character (that honor belongs to Woody and Sully), but he was OK at this one. This character reminded me of the newspaper editor from the Superman franchise. 

Steven Spielgberg directed this film. I give him 2 thumbs up for this one! Will it be as memorable as his other classics, like JAWS, ET or Jurassic Park? I don't know, but it's close! I'd root for him if he got the nod for Best Director in next year's Oscars. 

John Williams, of Star Wars fame, scored the film. Pairing Williams with Spielgberg is like pairing peanut butter with jelly. They just click! I think they might be besties, since Williams also scored Spielberg's other classics, like Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind. 

I've always loved the sets of films that take place around the 60s or 70s. This one is no different! Seeing the classic cars, the buildings the way the looked during that time and the clothes! Speaking of the clothes, I have to give a thumbs up to the costume department! I like what the workers at the printing press of the Post wore, especially the hats! I also liked Streep's and Hank's costumes; I thought they looked very businesslike! Best Costume design nod? That's a definite yes! 

Overall, I give this film 4 out of 5 stars. The only negative that I had was that some of the characters smoked. I don't like smoking at all! My review: A PULITZER PRIZE WINNER! Thanks for reading! 

By the way, if you didn't know this, the Vietnam War was a costly war, one of which that didn't go in our favor. Will this movie change your opinion on JFK, Johnson or Truman? That's for you to decide! 

DB Reviews- Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Image from StarWars.com

Hello everyone! It's me, DB, back with another AWESOME movie review! This time, I review the latest movie in the Star Wars franchise, The Last Jedi! WARNING: THIS REVIEW DOES CONTAINS SPOILERS! PLEASE SEE THIS MOVIE BEFORE YOU READ MY REVIEW!

The First Order has the Resistance on the run! They've been tracking the Resistance through hyperspace! Now, it's up to Rey to bring the hero Luke Skywalker back to restore balance to the universe! Plus, we learn how Kylo Ren (aka Ben Solo) joined the Dark Side! Also, we learned that a bomber ship can destroy a HUGE Empire ship!

That's our story in a nutshell! I think the writers did a good job with the script, making twists and turns while keeping the story going in the Star Wars universe, a story that started back in the 70s with Episode 4!

Adam Driver does a great job as the villain that replaced (but isn't as strong as) Darth Vader, Kylo Ren! He had me thinking that he was going to defect to the Resistance for a good minute! He makes the Kylo Ren character convincing! Will he get a nod for Best Supporting Actor? Maybe. Will he get a nod for Best Villain? Probably. I'd say he has a better chance at Best Villain. I wished he kept the mask, though!

Mark Hamill came back to reprise one of the most famous characters in Star Wars and motion pictures history, Luke Skywalker! He definitely aged and so did his character! I think that Luke was better in Episode 4 then in this, but I am glad that he came back to help the Resistance! He even pulled an Obi-Wan Knobi when he let Kylo Ren take him down, a nod to Episode 4, of course! Plus, I'm glad he went back to his old Luke hairstyle from the original films during the final battle with Ren!

Sadly, this film marked the last one for Carrie Fisher, the original Princess Leia! I would put Leia on my Top 10 list of favorite Star Wars characters. I think that LucasFilms (the folks who made all the Star Wars films, including this one) should've dedicated this film to her. Her character was looking after her people of the Resistance (yes, I've said that word a lot in this review), even when they were depleted. For those of you that don't know yet, Carrie Fisher passed away after the making of this film. Rest in peace, Ms. Fisher! You will definitely be missed!

I also like Finn, played by John Boyega. His acting was good and his character knew a thing or two about the ships in the First Order! I also like Daisy Ridley's Rey, the newest Jedi! She can kick some serious butt with her weapons! Plus, Yoda was in this! I like Yoda and his voice actor, Frank Oz!

The score was fantastic, definitely up to Star Wars par! John Williams did a great job scoring this film! His scoring is the most famous pieces of music in motion picture history! I think the score can be found on CD, so I definitely (yep, that word again) think you should go buy it!

The action was up to Star Wars par too! Not much Jedi fights (save for the final scene), but lots of stuff got blown up! I like when stuff gets blown up in the movies, unless it's good guy stuff.

So overall, we've got a great story, some great acting, some great music and great action! To me, that's a recipe for a fantastic movie! My review: 2 LIGHTSABERS UP! If you're reading this and you work for LucasFilms or Disney, you may put that review on the DVD or Blu-Ray of this film. I'm definitely buying this film when it comes out to Blu-Ray or digital! Oh, and Benicio del Toro, The Collector from the Marvel Universe, was in this film!

DB Reviews- Thor: Ragnarok

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Hello all! It's me, DB and I'm back after a while to bring you another review! I give you my review of Thor: Ragnarok, the 3rd installment of the Thor franchise. WARNING: THIS REVIEW DOES CONTAIN SPOILERS! 

In this film, Thor returns to Asgard to find out that his brother Loki told the people of Asgard about him being a "hero".  After seeing through Loki's tricks, Thor, with Loki, goes in search of his father Odin. They find him just before he passes on. We then are introduced to the main villainess of the story, Hela, who intends to rule Asgard. She breaks Thor hammer, thus sending him to a far away planet, where he meets up with The Hulk and a former Valkyrie and they team up to stop Hela!

I thought that this film was a good film. The story can be confusing at times, with so many twists and turns in it,. But it does get up to it's eventual goal. 

Chris Hemsworth reprises his role as Thor, God of Thunder. I think Marvel made a good choice in casting Hemsworth for this role. He's lived up to the Thor hype so far. He has the language and humor of Thor down pat! I also liked his new look in this film. It makes him look like a more modern Thor. However, I also still like the long, wavy hair. Thank you, Stan Lee, for that haircut! 

Mark Ruffalo reprises his Avengers role as the Hulk. I like that Marvel is continuing to add other heroes to films in different franchises. They did that with Spider-Man: Homecoming and now they've done it in this film as well. I think Ruffalo makes a pretty good Hulk. I'm glad they added in more lines for the Hulk to say in this film. Plus, I felt that this Hulk's voice was better then Ed Norton's version's voice. 

Tom Hiddleston is back as Loki, the god of mischief and Thor's brother. I feel like this role is the role in which Hiddleston will be remembered by, like Christopher Reeve's Superman or Daniel Radcliffe's Harry Potter. Once people see him, they'll think "That's Loki". Hiddleston's Loki is pretty good. He's got the Loki lingo down! 

Cate Blanchett did a fantastic job as Hela! I liked her attitude with the character. She was definitely a Marvel Villainess! I also liked her costume. It reminded me of Maleificent from Sleeping Beauty. 

The special effects were great. I thought that Thor's glowing eyes were cool, yet creepy at the same time, just like WWE's The Undertaker. The action was pretty solid, too! 

I felt that when Thor faced the Hulk in that planet that was run by Jeff Goldblum, that fight was more like a promo for Marvel's Contest of Champions mobile game. I would've given that game physical product placement instead of doing a fight like this. 

Overall, I enjoyed this film. My review: 4 HAMMERS UP! Thanks for reading! 

DB Reviews- Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Image from Rotten Tomatoes

Hey all! It's me, DB, once again! I'm bringing you yet another cool movie review! This time, I review the classic sci-fi hit Close Encounters of the Third Kind. This movie is celebrating it's 40th anniversary this year! WARNING: DON'T READ THIS BLOG BEFORE YOU SEE THIS MOVIE! THIS BLOG CONTAINS SPOILERS! 

I did mention that this is a sci-fi, but I think this movie had a little bit of everything in it! It had some horror scenes, adventure scenes, even a little bit of comedy! I think that everyone should see this movie! If you're a horror fan, sci-fi fan or whatever fan, you should see this! 

I loved the India scenes! I thought they were well shot! The use of the sand effect in the beginning of the movie  was good. The singing in the middle of the film was ok too. 

I didn't like Richard Dreyfuss's character in the beginning. I didn't like the way he treated his family in this film. But, his character was the hard working man who had his life changed when he first saw a UFO! The change was definitely needed! 

That was the basic story and I like stories like that. They're easy to follow. Mr. Spielberg did a good job writing this one! 

I LOVED THE FINALE! The finale with the HUGE spaceship (bigger width wise then Independence Day's ship) was a cool light show! This is a scene that could definitely be done as a show in a major theme park. Perhaps Universal Studios could do a show like this! (They do have a ride based off of Spielberg's hit ET, so why not do one of Close Encounters?) 

The score was good too. John Williams (yep, that guy that did the Star Wars score) was brought on to score this film. I liked that fact that he did an entire song based off of just 5 notes. These 5 notes would bring him more fame and are 5 of the most recognized notes in Hollywood history! I like John William's work as a whole, not for just this film, but for the other films he did too, like Star Wars! 

The person I mentioned before is none other than Mr. Steven Spielberg himself! He directed this film. You know him as the guy behind Jurassic Park, Raiders of the Lost Ark, JAWS and ET! This was one of his 1st films as a director and we know he would have a legendary career at doing just that! In  my opinion: You should get this guy to direct your film! He is fantastic! I like this and a couple other movies that he did (Raiders and ET). 

Overall, this was a fantastic film! The story was easy to follow, the scenes were great (especially India) and Mr. Spielberg added a bit of everything to this film, from horror to action to sci fi, etc! My review of this film (for those of you who are working on the Blu-Ray release of this film, you can use this line) is: THIS IS INDEPENDENCE DAY BEFORE INDEPENDENCE DAY! It was THAT DARN GOOD! Thanks for reading! 

Happy 40th, Close Encounters! 

DB Reviews- Ducktales 2017 reboot

Hello all you Disney Duck fans out there! It's me, DB and I'm back to bring you another review!

Image from Screen Rant

As you can probably tell, I'm doing a review for the 2017 reboot of Ducktales, Disney's classic TV show where Scrooge McDuck, his nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie, ace pilot Launchpad (before he worked for Darkwing) and Webby go on grand adventures in search of treasure or just to escape or stop the diabolical doings of many classic villains like Magica Despell, The Beagle Boys and Flinthart Glomgold! 

Let me get a negative thing about this series out of my chest. I think that this series needed the original voice actors from the hit show back in the early 90s. Back then, this show was a Disney Afternoon staple! I loved this show back then! The voice actors from the original version of this show gave each character their own personalities. Each of these actors became famous for portraying each character. The voice actors on the new reboot? I don't think they're quite as good as the original actors, with the exception of Donald. The person that did Donald's voice did a real good job! He sounded just like the classic Donald that we know and love! 

With that out of the way, I have to say I like this reboot. It's not bad at all! Each episode has a story that's easy to follow and has action scenes, which is a must for a Ducktales show! Some parts of each episode are based off of the original early 90s series and other parts are based off the comic book stories, especially those created by Disney duck legend Carl Barks! 

The easter eggs featured in the 1st episode were really neat! The animators made all sorts of references to the classic version of this series as well as references to the other HUGE MEGA hits of the Disney Afternoon era! Some of the eggs included: The lamp from Ducktales The Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp (which is a film that I definitely enjoyed when I was younger) and the robot with the 3 lights on it's head, which is a reference to the classic version of this series. Dewey even mentioned Cape Susette, where Baloo, Kit, Mrs. Rebecca Cunningham and Molly reside in the series Talespin (a series that I highly recommend you to see! It's out on DVD now!). Also, the men in the meeting with Scrooge mention St. Canard, the home of the "terror that flaps in the night" himself, Darkwing Duck (which is another great series!). Also, the Junior Woodchucks were mentioned in episode 1! 

I noticed that the creative team behind this version of the series changed a few things around. They made Mrs. Beakley and Webby into totally different characters compared to their classic 90s counterparts. Mrs. Beakley is more serious in this version of the series then she was in the 90s version and Webby is more adventurous! I think that some fans of this show might find Webby's more adventurous side appealing. They might say that this version of her is better then her 90s version, though the animators did make a reference to the 90s version by pinning Webby's doll to the wall. Also, Huey is the only one of the nephews wearing a hat in this version, though each nephew's respective color is still the same. I remember that all 3 of the nephews wore hats in the original series. Do I like the new Webby and Mrs. Beakley? Yeah, though I like the new Webby better. However, I don't think I saw a Chip and Dale Rescue Rangers reference. I think they should do one of those in a future episode. 

I could see this series getting a good 4 or 5 seasons on Disney XD! Perhaps even 6! I think that they should put Gyro Gearloose and Gizmoduck in future episodes! Also, I think that they should make more Disney Afternoon references! Perhaps they could have Darkwing or Chip and Dale or maybe even Bonkers make cameo appearances. 

So overall, I like this reboot! The original is still 10x better, but still! I think you should see an episode or two of this reboot. Also, I think that Disney should look into rebooting more of their Disney Afternoon series, like Darkwing Duck. They have to get Jim Cummings (Darkwing's voice) back for that reboot! I'd love that! 

One more thing. I even liked the new version of the main title song in this series (even though it was only in episode 1). I've always loved Disney music and this is one song I like a lot! My review: I give this series a "WOO-OO"! 

"You might solve a mystery, or rewrite history! Ducktales!" 

DB Reviews- Smurfs: The Lost Village

Image from DVD Release Dates

Hello everyone! It's me, DB and after many, many months of not blogging, I am back for my review of Smurfs: The Lost Village! WARNING! This review does contain spoilers!

The story centers around Smurfette, the only female Smurf in the Smurfs village. However, she wasn't a real Smurf at first. Gargamel, the main villain of the Smurfs universe, created her from a lump of clay and sent her to find the village and capture the Smurfs. But, with the help of his powerful magic, Papa Smurf turned Smurfette into a real Smurf and she joined the team!

In this adventure, Smurfette was curious about her role in the Smurfs. While she was finding her role, she finds a new Smurf, one that she, and the rest of the other Smurfs, have never seen before! Against Papa Smurfs orders, she, Hefty Smurf, Brainy Smurf and Clumsy Smurf set out on a grand adventure to discover who the new Smurfs are and stop Gargamel from completing his latest scheme to take all of the Smurfs magic and become the most powerful wizard of all!

First off, I like the fact that the writers gave Smurfette a back story in this film. It helps set up the climax of the film and I think it was needed in the Smurfs universe! The story in the film itself was good too. A little too much, but still good.

Secondly, I think this was Demi Lovato's best film since the Camp Rock series! To me, she did a very good job as the voice of Smurfette! Smurfette was originally voice by Lucille Bliss in the original, classic cartoon. Now Demi has done the same for a new generation of Smurfs fans! Great job, Demi!

I think Rainn Wilson did a good job voicing Gargamel! Hank Azaria (of the Simpsons fame) played the role in the 2 live action films prior to Wilson, but I think Wilson still did good as the animated version of Gargemel. He brought the 60s cartoon style of the character to the big screen and to me, that was needed for this film.

Joe Manganiello (of Magic Mike fame) protrayed Hefty. I liked Hefty in this film. We can definitelly see that Hefty has a crush on Smurfette!

Jack McBrayer played Brainy Smurf. You might remember McBrayer as Fix-it Felix, Jr from Wreck-It Ralph!  It's good to hear his voice in roles other than the famous video game character, but his role as Brainy wasn't as good as Felix. I can't wait to see (and review) Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2!

Frank Welker did a good Azreal, Gargamel's cat! Is it as good as his Scooby-Doo? Nope, but it's still good! He's well trained in animal voices for cartoons!

Another great addition to the Smurfs universe was made in this film, the introduction of an all female Smurf group! Julia Roberts portrays the leader of this group of Smurfs. She has added a good voice tone to this character. It's a deep voice, but not as deep as Papa Smurfs, who himself was voiced by Mandy Patinkin, who did good too. Michelle Rodriguez and Ellie Kemper did good as Smurf Storm and Smurf Blossom, especially Rodriguez!

I think the animators did a great job designing the characters and bringing them into the CGI world for a third time! Even Gargamel looked like he did in the original cartoon!

So overall, there are alot of good things in this movie (which I mentioned, a lot!) Smurfette's backstory was definitely needed, the voice actors did (yep, I'm saying it again) good and the story was (here it is, one more time) good too!

My review: Smurfs: The Lost Village is ONE TO WATCH! Thanks for reading!

DB Reviews- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

Image from Slashfilm

A TREASURE TO BEHOLD!

Ahoy, mateys! It is I, DB, here to bring you my review of the final(?) film of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Dead Men Tell No Tales! Be warned, landlubbers, for this review contains a bounty of spoilers. So if ye be looking to read this review without seeing the film first, I suggest you set sail to see it, then come back to read my review. If anyone works for Disney, you may use my review for ads for the Blu-Ray/Digital copy of the film!

Johnny Depp returns to helm the seas once again as Captain Jack Sparrow! This time, Jack and his merry mates set sail to find the legendary trident of Poseidon. With this trident, all of the people who were cursed (like Orlando Bloom's Will Turner, who makes two appearances in this film) will be free of their curses! Jack must use the help of an astrologer named Carina Smyth, who was sentenced to be hanged for accusations of being a witch. She must use the stars to find the legendary trident. But Captain Salazar, a famous Spanish captain who vowed to rid the world of pirates forever, has come searching for the trident too, to free himself and his crew from death! He makes a deal with Jack's pirate rival, Barbosa (Geoffrey Rush, returning) to find Jack and kill him. By the way, Will's son, Henry, joins the fray in this film!

Also, it is revealed that Jack's compass, the one that doesn't point north, is also cursed, but it's cursed to help it's owner find whatever he or she desired.

Ok, now for the review,

If you're looking for some swashbuckling adventure, then this is the film you must see! I felt the story was good. It was easy to follow, which is something that I like about storytelling.

Depp returned as Jack Sparrow. He definitely grew in to this role! He made this role happen and I think he will be forever linked to Capt. Jack Sparrow! Even though he's done other movies, like Blow and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I think most kids today will still see him as Jack. Depp has created a legendary Disney character!

Geoffrey Rush returns as Capt Barbosa, the previous Captain of the Black Pearl before Jack. Just like Depp as Jack, Rush's Barbosa has grown into one of the most recognizable characters in Disney history. Also, like Depp, Rush has developed a character that kids will see him as for all eternity. To me, both Depp and Rush did good in their roles and not just in this movie, but throughout the franchise.

Javier Bardom protrayed the film's main villain, Captain Salazar. I liked him in this role. He was a classic style villain, killing pirates to get what he wants. He had a classic villain backstory too, one which I think was good for his character. Does he crack the top 25 in my list of favorite Disney villains? No, but I still think he did a good job.

Benton Thwaites played Henry Turner, the son of Will Turner and Elizabeth Turner. I think he needed more practice from his dad to be a swashbuckling hero.

Kaya Scodelario played Carina, the astrologer in this film. Her character was the one that was to be hanged because people accused her of being a witch because of her astrological talents. That's one of the very few things that I didn't like about this movie. I know that this movie was set in the times of the pirates, but still you can't hang someone just because of their talents. Overall, I thought she was OK in this.

Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley both make appearances, but both didn't get much screen time at all!

My favorite part of the film was the action and boy was there action! I loved the pirate ship fights in this film, my favorite being the fight between Salazar's ship and the Black Pearl, a legendary Disney ship!

I also loved when Salazar's ship opened it's front, like a monster opening it's mouth to chomp on someone! That was both scary and cool at the same time, especially when it happened when the sky was dark and stormy! Whoever came up with that idea should get a promotion!

One other thing that I didn't like, though, was that the shopkeeper had a sign that said no dogs and no women. I get the no dogs part, but the no women? Come on!

Also, I think they should've used X Atencio's recording of the line "Dead Men Tell No Tales" from the attraction in the trailer for this film! I think it would've work perfectly! X Atencio was one of the Imagineers that worked on the original Pirates attraction. He was tagged to record that line in the attraction, which is why I think that recording should've been used in the trailer for this film and maybe even in the film iteself!

Overall, I'd say that this film is A TREASURE TO BEHOLD! It's got good action, great action, a good storyline and it's an adventure film! I think that Poseidon's trident should be a part of the ride that inspired this franchise! I think it should go next to the Aztec chest in the treasure room!

Thanks for reading! I must set sail to my next review! See you then!

DB Reviews- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Image from ComingSoon.

Hello, all my fellow Marvel heroes and heroines! It's me, DB and I'm back to bring you my review of Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 This review does contain spoilers, so if you don't want to be spoiled while reading this, please stop reading it and go see the movie first. Then, you can come back to read this to know what my take on the movie is.

First off, the Guardians are back in an all new adventure! After stealing some very important "batteries" from an alien race, the Guardians are saved by Peter Quill's father (played by Kurt Russell). There, Peter learns of his heritage...and he learned that his father killed his mother! Yeah, he didn't like that too much! That lead to a HUGE battle between the alien race who wanted their batteries back, the Guardians (along with a few others, including Peter's other father) and Peter's biological father.

To me, this movie didn't get off on the right foot. I think the jokes were bad here, even worse than mine! That was the big turnoff for me. THEY NEED BETTER JOKES!

Chris Pratt reprised his role as Peter Quill (aks Starlord). I think he's ok in the role, although this role is still not my favorite Marvel MCU character. I think he needs to "buff up" his game a little for this character.

Dave Bautista (who we WWE fans know as Bastista) returned as Drax. This character is a destroyer, but he needs more things to destroy! In this role, Bastista needs to unleash his Animal form like he did in the WWE! However, it seems like he's accepted his role as part of this team, or this family as he called it.

Zoe Saldana reprises her role as Gamora. I think Mrs. Saldana is still a good pick for this role. She's fierce when she needs to be and Zoe does a good job showcasing that fierceness in the character.

Bradley Cooper has returned as Rocket Raccon, the hero who stole the batteries in the first place. This raccoon definitely knows his stuff when it comes to weapons and he certainly shows it in this film! I liked the scene where Rocket made the enemies bounce up and down with a gravity defying weapon! Also, the darts in the trees was very clever! The stealing of the batteries, however, was not so much.

Kurt Russell played Ego, Peter's biological father and the main villain in this film. I don't see Mr. Russell as a villain type. He's more of a hero, like he was in Sky High and Escape From New York. That's why I don't think this role fits him very well.

My favorite character in the movie was Baby Groot, voiced by Vin Diesel (who voiced the older, original Groot in the first film). He was cute and he'll trip you up good if you get him mad! Diesel had his voice made to sound like one of the Chipmunks for this role.

Michael Rooker played Yondu, the person that took Peter away from Earth, but raised him like a son. I though he was OK. This movie was a role turn for mr. Rooker's character, turning from a bad pirate to a great father role saving his son from a planet exploding. I thought Mr. Rooker did OK in this role.

I'm a fan of Oldies music, and this movie had plenty of it! The best song that was chosen was Brandy (Such a Fine Girl) in my opinion. So if you're a fan of 70s music, then you may like this movie's soundtrack!

Overall, I give this movie 3 out of 5 stars. At the end, the credits said The Guardians of the Galaxy will be back and they're right. Marvel is planning on making a 3rd film in this franchise. Will the Guardians meet up with the Avengers? Perhaps in Avengers: Infinity Wars. Thanks for reading!

DB Reviews- Assassin's Creed

Image from ComingSoon.net

A FILM TO WATCH! 

Hello everyone! It's me, DB and I welcome you to my review of Assassin's Creed, the hit film based off the video game series! This film stars Michael Fassbender of X-Men fame as Cal Lynch/Agular, the films main characters. This review does contain spoilers, so if you don't want to be spoiled yet, please stop reading and go see this movie. It's on iTunes now! Then you can go back to reading this review.

The film's story takes flight in two places, the Abstergo Foundation building (home of the Templars, the Assassin's rivals) and in 1492 Spain, during the Granada Wars. In this film, Fassbender plays two people, both connected by ancestry. He plays Cal Lynch, a convicted suspected murderer who is saved by the Foundation, who forces him to relive the action and adventure moments of his ancester, Agular, also played by Fassbender. Agular was once an Assassin, a part of a secret organization of skilled martial artists  that protected a young prince. They ran their organization by mottos, with the biggest one being "we work in the dark to serve the light". Kinda sounds like Batman, doesn't it?

Later, Cal finds out that the Foundation was part of the Templars, who were searching for a mystical item called the Apple of Eve. According to the movie, the Apple was to contain the code of free will. The Templars wished to use this to eliminate the Assassins once and for all. But, based on his experiences as Agular, Cal learned that he was also a member of the Creed (the Assassins) and, along with his fellow inmates (who were also Assassins members and relative to past Assassins themselves), managed to stop the Templars!

Fassbender plays a double role in this movie. He plays Cal, the suspected murderer who relives the past as Agular (through an item called the Animus, which was a chair in the original games, but a mechanical arm in the movie) who then relied on his Assassins blood to save the day! I thought he was good. A little crazy at times, but still good. I think fans of the video games might like Fassbender as Agular! I won't be surprised if he gets asked to use his voice for the character in future games.

Jeremy Irons was the main Templar villain in this film. His character in this movie was definitely dark, even more darker then his role as Scar in the Lion King. I think the role of the villain definitely suits Mr. Irons well in movies. It definitely suited him in this one! Could we see a future villain in a future Assassin's Creed game? Only fans can decide that!

Marion Cotillard played Sofia. I thought her role was ok. I think that she should not return in a future game.

Brandon Gleeson was in this film, too! He didn't get much screen time. He played Cal's father, a man who needed to kill his wife per the cause of the Creed. You might remember Mr. Gleeson as Alister "Mad Eye" Moody from the Harry Potter series.

I thought the action scenes were great! The stunts were performed very well! I even liked the "Leap of Faith" jump, which was a 125 foot freefall, one of the highest performed by a stunt person in at most 35 years!

The only negative of this film was that a few scenes, to me at least, made the film a little bit of a psychological thriller. I'm not into those kinds of movies because of their style (which is horror), something I don't like at all!

But, overall, I give this film 3 1/2 out of 5 stars, or blades! This is why I called it A FILM TO WATCH! Thanks for reading!

By the way, this film does make references to the original games. Like I mentioned before, it has the Animus, which is originally a chair used in the games. They also added a bunch of weapons that were used in the video game series, like the pistol's from Black Flag and the Bow from Assassin's Creed III.

Does this movie make me want to play the games? Probably not, since I'm not into games that are usually rated M for mature. The same thing goes for Mortal Kombat, though I liked the live-action movie based off that game too!

DB Reviews- Beauty and the Beast 2017

Image from Trailer Addict

BEST FILM I'VE SEEN IN YEARS! 

Disney's classic tale as old as time gets a live action remake! It's me, DB and I welcome you to my review of Disney's Beauty and the Beast! Set in a small village outside of Paris, this movie tells the tale of how a prince turned into a beast, how he had to earn the love of a beautiful girl who loves books and how a curse was broken. This beast had to learn to love this girl and earn her love in return before the last petal of an enchanted rose fell. 

I loved the animated version when I was a kid and the live action version, to me, was just as AWESOME! The effects were really great, the story was on point with a few new things added to the mix, the actors were good and even the music was good too! 

Emma Watson did a good job portraying Belle, the beautiful Disney Princess that loves books. I think Mrs. Watson does very well in movies that involve enchanted things (remember her role as Hermoine in Harry Potter?). Her singing voice wasn't that great, but her acting was! 

Dan Stevens did a good job too as the Beast! The Beast needed to have emotions throughout the film and I thought Mr. Stevens did a good job portraying those emotions as the movie progressed. The Beast, at first, was a frightening thing, but as the movie played through, he was supposed to start feeling love and happiness and I thought Mr. Stevens did a good job acting all those emotions out on screen. I even like his song "Evermore", one of the new songs featured in the film. 

Luke Evans was Gaston in this film. He did a good job because he brought a darker version of the Disney Villain to the live action scene, something that some of you might think was needed for this character. I liked that too, though I have to say my favorite dark Disney villain is Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty. 

Josh Gad, of Frozen fame, played LaFou. LaFou is Gaston's sidekick. I've heard the news about Gad's character being being gay in this film.  I don't mind it at all! I can see it all through out the film when Gad was on screen. His singing voice is ok, given the fact that he already has a few Disney songs under his belt in Frozen. 

Kevin Kline was even in this! He played Maurice, Belles eccentric father. I liked it. I learned that he's known for his eccentric roles, so this fits him perfectly! 

Ewan McGregor did a good Lumiere, the living candelabra. He had a higher pitched French accent, which was different then his animated counterpart. I liked that. His version of "Be Our Guest" was more spoken then sung. I didn't like that as much, but the special effects during the song was amazing! 

Sir Ian McKellen was the voice of Cogsworth, the clock. His performance of this character was definitely different then the animated counterpart. He gave him a deeper voice in the live action remake. I thought it was good. 

Emma Thompson protrayed Mrs. Potts. I thought she was the best of all. Her voice sounded great for the character. Not quite Angela Lansbury (who boycotted the film because she thought it was not a good idea), but still great! 

I definitely liked that Disney added some new things to this film that were not in the original film. They gave us a new character (Maestro, played by Stanley Tucci), a few new songs and more story that we didn't see in the original. I think that some of those new parts were definitely needed! 

For example, I think that the story of what happened to Belles mother was needed! However, this involved a very dark and very real part of France's history. This took place during the period of time that the film was based in. This is called the Black Plague (or Black Death, according to Wikipedia), which took place during the 1330s. Belle's mom, unfortunately, caught the deadly disease and passed away.   

For the music, I would say the best new song is "Days in the Sun", which replaced "Human Again" in this film. The best song performed from the original film that was featured in the remake was "The Mob Song". I thought Mr. Evans had the good chops for this song! I would nominate "Days in the Sun" and "Evermore" for best original song adapted for visual media! "Gaston" was not too bad. Thompson's version of the title song wasn't bad either, though I still like Lansbury's version better. 

The story was brilliant! Is was definitely on par with the animated version! The costumes were good as well as the sets! 

Overall, and I repeat, BEST FILM I'VE SEEN IN YEARS! I can't wait till it comes out on Blu-Ray and Digital! I definitely recommend that you bring your family to see it! You could even see it twice, three times, or a million times! 

Should this film get a nomination for Best Picture? I say, a million time, YES! Best Actress for Emma Watson? I would say OK! 

Thanks for reading! 

UPDATE: This film was NOT the first to feature both Watson and Thompson. They co-starred together as Professor Trelawney and Hermoine Granger in the Harry Potter films. 

DB Reviews- Captain America: Civil War

Image from JoBlo.com

Hello everyone! It's me, DB, and after many months, I'm finally able to bring you my review of Captain America: Civil War! WARNING: This review does contain spoilers! So, if you don't want to be spoiled yet, stop reading this and go see the movie. Then you can come back to read this. 

I gotta say, I LOVED THIS FILM! The story was great! I know Marvel did not intend to use any parts of the original Civil War comic book story line, but I noticed references to it during the film. For example, the Slovakia Accords are the MCU (that's Marvel Ciinematic Universe) version of the Superhero Registration Act. Also, the Scarlet Witch destroying a building is reference to the school exploding at the beginning of the Civil War story in the comics. I thought that the writers of this film did a great job taking the Civil War comic story and making it their own in the film.  

The acting was good too. Chris Evans and Robert Downey, Jr reprised their roles as Captain America and Iron Man. I felt that they were good choices when they were chosen to play the roles in their hero's respective franchises. In fact, everyone in this film did a good job! Almost everyone that had roles already in the MCU came back to play them again in this film! Plus, I can't wait to see Tom Holland's Spider-Man in Spider-Man: Homecoming later this year! 

The action was great! With a Marvel movie, you have to have fantastic action/special effects scenes and lots of them! This movie did not disappoint in either! It had tons of action! 

I know this review was short, but I didn't have much time to make it. 

Overall, I give this film 5 out of 5 stars! The story was great, the action was fantastic and the actors did well. 

On a side note, I do like how Marvel intertwines their movies with their TV series. What I mean is, Marvel adds elements of their latest movie into episodes of their hit TV shows, like Agents of SHIELD, which I'm a HUGE fan of! I even met Elizabeth Henstrige and Brett Daulton once! I like that! 

Anyway, thanks for reading! 

DB Reviews- Hidden Figures

Image from winnipegmovies

Hello there! It's me, DB and I'm back to bring you another review! This time, I give you my review of Hidden Figures, the movie that stars Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae as three colored women who changed NASA for the better! This review does contain spoilers, so if you don't want to be spoiled, stop reading and go see the film. Then, you can read on to see what I have to say about the film.

This film got a nod for Best Picture at this year's Oscars. I can definitely see why! The film is about 3 women who work for NASA as mathematicians working to get an American into space before the Russians in 1961. This film revolves around the lives of those women.

First off, I liked the story a lot, especially since it was based off a book that in turn was based off actual people and events. The story was long, as was the movie, but it was good. You could understand what was happening during each scene thanks to the story. I thought it was well written!

Secondly, I thought Taraji P. Henson did an AWESOME job portraying Kathrine Johnson, a woman who helped calculate the launch and landing trajectories for the mission that was flown by late astronaut John Glenn. She was powerful! Her portrayal of Mrs. Johnson was excellent! She was loud when she needed to be. Her emotions were on cue and perfect! Also, I thought she worked well with her fellow coworkers in the film, especially Spencer and Monae and even Kevin Costner. She also believes in the Lord!

Speaking of Spencer, I thought she was good in this film. She has a calm voice, so she didn't raise it too much in this movie. Her emotions were on time too, which means she could portray those emotions well during a certain scene. I thought she did well handling the IBM machine too!

Monae was good as the 3rd Hidden Figure. She spoke with a southern accent, which I thought fit her role well, especially since her character is in Virginia.

Kevin Costner and Kirsten Dunst also made appearances in the film. I felt that Costner did ok in this. Is this my favorite Costner film? No, Field of Dreams is. But, Costner did pretty good in this one. He was tough, but fair. Dunst didn't have much screen time as the others did, but she did good. Still, I liked her better as MJ from the Spidey movies.

Jim Parsons was in this too, but he didn't get much screen time. He definitely sounded and acted like Sheldon, his character from the Big Bang Theory, in this film.

I also liked the nostalgia in this film. This film was set in 1961, so the set designers had to make sets relevant to that time period. There were a lot of classic style cars in this film, which was needed.

The film also revolves around segregation, which was a HUGE thing back in the 60s. This film was set 2 years before Dr. Martin Luthor King Jr's epic "I Have A Dream" speech. Back then, they had different bathrooms, different restaurant entrances, even different schools for both white and African American people. They portrayed that here in this movie because these 3 women lived during that time. These 3 women changed the course of NASA in that period!

My favorite scene from the film was when Costner's character broke down a Colored bathroom entrance sign, thus allowing the women of both races to enter that bathroom at the same time whenever they needed to or want to.

Overall, I'm glad the Academy chose this film as a nomination for Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress. 4 STARS! The story was long, but I felt that this story needed to be told. The acting was good, the sets were good. Everything was good about this film!

Before I close this post, I wanted to talk about segregation. Like I said, this was a big thing in the 60s. This was a tough time in America. This was the time where colored people and white people treated each other differently, rather then equals. You could easily see that in this movie, especially during the scene where Spencer's character and her kids sat in the bus. She and her kids sat at the back of the bus since this movie took place before Rosa Parks, who sat at the front of the bus and gain big attention doing so. During this time, important people, like Mrs. Parks, took a stand! In his Dream speech in 1963, Dr. King reminded the people that when our country was discovered and created, it was created with equality in mind. He reminded us that we are supposed to treat each other equally, no matter what the color of our skin was. During his speech, he said, and I quote, "I have a dream that my four little children would one day live in a nation where they would not be judged by the color of their skin but by the conflict of their character. I have a dream today!"

I proudly salute Mrs. Parks, Dr. King and the 3 genius women that this movie was focused on. Where would the USA be without them and the hard work that they did?