Colin South

1917 is a brilliantly shot movie; with a plot line to do more than back it up. The “one shot” style chosen for the film is a fantastic choice in a multitude of ways. First, it depicts the life of soldiers in a way we haven’t seen before. It leaves out nothing. The much more subtle thing is that it causes the film to have near perfect pacing. There can be no “rushing” as you are only watching one scene. That still leaves the problem that it could be slow though, but it isn’t in any way. Every sequence is captivating and provides an action that further advances the plot. Two scenes in particular are some of the greatest shots I’ve ever seen. The “singing scene” and the “final delivering of the message scene” are both masterpieces of cinematography. Overall 1917 is an amazing movie that you must experience on the big screen.

“What if” is a great rom com in a world where so many are dry. Normally I watch romantic movie to laugh. Not at the jokes, but how bad the movie is. The jokes I’m supposed to laugh at however, I find to be nothing more than sad attempts at a slightly strong nose exhale. “What if” is the opposite of that. The jokes are highly amusing and had me laughing countless times. The comedy part of the movie is nailed. The romance part of the movie is also quite enjoyable. The plot line works while being somewhat predictable. This movie doesn’t change the movie scene in any way, but it is without a doubt a fantastic movie to sit down and watch for enjoyment.

(Spoiler warning) To put it simply, this movie does not deserve the hate it is receiving. Is it perfect? No, far from it, but expecting this movie to be perfect is the wrong mindset. After the failure that was “The Last Jedi” this movie simply could not have been the best it could have been. It did not have the set up it needed. In due to this, the first act of the film is subpar. The first act very much suffers from Spider-Man 3 syndrome. They have to take the time to establish the plot for this movie as well as correct some mistakes from past films. The first act of the movie also feeds into this problem by having the first portion of the film be nothing more than a glorified search and find. Midway through the second act however is where the movie takes off, and it doesn’t look back. J.J Abrams has the mindset of once the action starts; it does not stop, and it works very well in this movie. It doesn’t feel very rushed after the first act. The second act is well written and provides an enjoyable experience. The third act is what you payed for. The battles of this movie are phenomenal, and the closing does not disappoint. I would argue that the ending battle scene is equivalent to that of endgame. The score, the acting, the writing, and everything else is just nailed. The ending is emotional and extremely satisfactory. All the character arcs are wrapped up nicely and it provides a great conclusion to the trilogy. It fixes several of the mistakes from past films while giving an amazing new story. The message of hope and love has never been so prevalent in a Star Wars film and they nail the themes perfectly. Overall; the film is extremely enjoyable, and provides a great emotional payoff. A must see for anyone who remotely enjoys Star Wars :)