Derek Simonsen

I respect Bill Burr's attempt at unifying millennial truth with old-traditional values. I see points for both sides. One scene I feel rather upset at what the message Bill is trying to convey and the other I'm laughing in mutual agreement. I thought it was more funny than upsetting. I can see how people might rate it lower cuz of its over-generalizations, exaggerated stereotypes, and hyper masculine beliefs. These are common flaws of those born in that 1960s/70's era. Still, the acting is good and it's funny enough to be worth watching.

Woahhh this movie was bad. Like really bad. Sure the cinematography and CGI was phenomenal but woah there was like no emotional backbone to this film. The characters were stereotypes of either teenagers, military soldiers, stoic fathers, and caretaker/emotionally supportive mothers. Also, what it means to be a "man" in this day and age. It was shocking. I've lost my appetite for these type of films. They should've left it as it was and not ruined it with a look at Jake Sully's life after his transition into the avatar body. The mystery of it was good and it made sense. Not like this sequel, which makes no sense, has no clear direction, is full to the brim with cliches, and is so isolated in its attempt to resurrect old narratives about household dynamics, teenage attitudes, and ideas surrounding masculinity and femininity. Truly disappointing. The ending action scenes were also so dissatisfying. I was expecting a war, kinda similar to the first one. So wack.

No Hard Feelings inexcusably glamorizes pedophilic tendencies, transactional relationships, and ideas of masculintiy/feminity with very little regret. Making this movie a comedy was its worst mistake. Jennifer Lawrence was not enough to hold this film together. A drawn out story line, poor script writing, and raunchy encounters between two characters that were incredibly uncomfortable with their roles, didn't help either. The combination of over-acting, forced character interest, and cringy dialogue exceedingly make it out of reach for any viewer to become even remotely emotionally involved with it. There are few but far between moments that glimmer hope for an authentic story line. Perhaps, a premise for deconstructing hookup culture and demonstrating a more real outlook on what a healthy romantic relationship is. The scene where Percy sings and plays the piano was emotionally touching, but it wasn't enough to carry the rest of the films dead weight. I thought maybe after that things were going to change and become more authentic but I was truly wrong. I'm glad I didn't see this in theaters.

Such a strong, realistic narrative with intricate story telling and exceptional acting. The film leashes itself to an appalling situation that a terribly unpresenteted mother has to endure in the face of legal inequalities, gender inequalities, and overall human cruelty. The cultural disparity between rich and poor, the egotistical attitudes harnessed by the emotionally dissatisfied wealthy, the life-sucking forces parents can be when unmedicated and uneducated about mental health! Jeezus! This series has everything. So firmly gripped in reality. The imagery is priceless. It tells more than anything. The flashbacks of Sean drunk, angry, and unhinged paint the cruel power dynamic abuse victims and abusers present. Also, the flashbacks of Alex and Sean in the beginning stages of their relationship vs. her current relationship with him, shows the deception and unpredictability that goes with becoming involved with an abuser. It's psychologically twisted and obscenely accurate in relation to our sex/romantic culture. So many women go unnoticed because of the unfairness of the judicial and social systems.

Excellent acting by Ben affleck. His ability to traverse in this movie and convince us he’s a person with mental illness was phenomenal. The message was also good, showing us that people with mental health issues can have special abilities. Particularly useful in todays work force. There’s definitely a stigma around people with mental illness and being handicapped when it comes to working. Even though this characters has Austism he’s able to use it to his advantage and successfully balance his double life as a hit man. Despite the unrealisticness of it, the message is strongly conveyed. I also enjoyed how the relationship between Ben and the woman unfolded. She was attracted to his uniqueness and I think his mental illness played a part in that. He was still able to express love despite the restrictions his conditioned had on him. And she felt it. The romantic value was subtle and not emphasized, but still was nice to enjoy.

Not really much of a movie reviewer but I’m well educated enough to know when a movie is bad or not. And this one is bad, like really bad. I felt I needed to express myself with this one in hope I can save one or two peoples time. During the opening scene, I just had that feeling in my gut that Kristin Stewart’s performance was going to be a tough one to bear through. You know it’s bad when you get scared for the actor/actress when they start saying their lines and doing their thing. I felt embarrassed for her. She was totally out of her element. Don’t get me wrong, she was great in twilight but this is just not her area of expertise. Leave it to kierra knightly or an actual British actress to take this one one. Kristans accent was so forced, she had to make herself so quiet just to make it semi believable she was English. If she was any louder nobody would’ve taken her character seriously. On a side note, the whole bullemia thing was totally over used. I understand that it was a large part of princess dianas story but showing it more than once is just filling in the gaps at that point. It becomes repetitive. There was probably one or two scenes that were actually enticing and had made pulled into the story. The scene at the pool table between princess Diane and prince Charles showed a legitimate part of the story. The unfair power dynamic between the two and the, “ hush hush” talk that goes on behind closed doors, is incredibly insightful for us to know. It was impactful. If only the rest of the movie had this emotional depth this scene had. It’s a shame.