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An Exceptionally Original Creation from the Mega Studio Disney Pixar Have you ever wondered what’s going on in your head when you feel all the feelings you feel? Like when you’re happy to see your significant others, mad for being left out by your friends, or even sad for being cheated by your romantic partner? (I certainly hope the latter one didn’t and won’t happen to anyone of you!) Well, wonder no more! Disney Pixar is here to answer your questions, though you may need a spoonful of imagination to grasp that, with its latest film ‘Inside Out’. The film focuses on Riley (Kaitlyn Dias), a bright and cheerful eleven year-old girl whose life seems always surrounded by happiness. We get too see what’s going on inside Riley’s head through the five emotions she has, Joy (Amy Poehler), Sad (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), and Disgust (Mindy Kaling) who live inside the Headquarters. Those emotions not only react but also reflect what Riley feels towards her environment. One day, she and her family moves to a new neighborhood and that seemingly simple event threatens the status quo in the Headquarters. Will she finally get a grip of her emotions? And more importantly, will she adapt to the new situation? First of all, let me give a huge applause to Pete Docter (known for his award-winning ‘Up’) and the team for creating such an incredibly creative and original piece. They excelled in taking something that’s so apparent in our everyday life (who doesn’t feel the feelings mentioned above?) to a whole new level. The story is also very well-thought with just the right amount of imagination. So the film is neither too ‘out-there’ nor too by-the-book. That’s an important thing since what they try to convey in ‘Inside Out’ is actually very scientific. I know that because I learned all that mind and emotions thingy in a class I took in college. Never thought my class would come handy in this movie-review stuff. They also managed to insert moments that will resonate to anyone seeing the film. The final result is a heart-warming and touching film without being overly sappy. Though it doesn’t achieve the emotional peak like ‘Up’ did, ‘Inside Out’ will still make the manliest man alive trying his best to hold the tears from streaming down his cheeks. Oh have I mentioned that this film is hilarious too? Out of the five emotions, Disgust is my favorite and the best laugh-inducer among them with her witty and sarcastic lines. Another thing to adore from this film is its striking visual. Definitely a feast for the eyes! This film of course has its own flaws. One of them is the explanation regarding all the things in Riley’s head and how they work at the beginning of the film feels a little bit too fast. So viewers might get a bit confused to grasp all of that at once. The duration of the film is also a bit too short (or maybe it’s because the film’s so good it just passes by without me noticing the duration?). But don’t worry, all those flaws don’t affect the quality of the film much and they are covered by tons of the other goodness of the film. (NOT SO MINOR SPOILER AHEAD. YOU’VE BEEN WARNED)
Seeing this film, I can’t help but admiring the message it’s trying to say. Throughout the film, we’ll see that Sad is always ignored and pressed by the other emotions, especially Joy. I see that as the representative of human who naturally denies any vulnerable feelings. The film then concludes that any one of the emotions can really complement each other, even sadness. So the point is: don’t be afraid to embrace your feelings. It’s okay to be sad, because sadness allows you to be vulnerable and open yourself to people around you. By doing that, you’ll feel relieved and guess what happens when you feel relieved? You feel joy. Overall, ‘Inside Out’ gives an interesting look at what’s going on in people’s heads that is as exciting as it is very original. Best Animated Feature for the next awards season? Yes, please! Score: 4.5/5 Note: MAKE SURE you don’t come late to the theater to catch the heartbreakingly sweet short movie ‘Lava’. Be careful, the song (which happens to be the entire dialogue of the short film) is extremely contagious you won’t stop humming it on your way back home!
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ANOTHER ADRENALINE-PUMPING SEQUEL TO THE MI FRANCHISE 2015 is definitely the year of spies. Up until now, there are at least three spy-themed films that have been invading theaters around the world (‘Kingsman’, ‘Spy’, and the one that we’ll talk about in this review). Not to mention there are another two (that I’m aware of) upcoming films that involve spies as their main characters. The soonest one is Guy Ritchie’s ‘The Man from U.N.C.L.E’ and the other one is the 24th Bond film, ‘Spectre’. While waiting for those movies to come out, let’s discuss about the newest installment of the famous MI franchise, "Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation". While visiting one of the IMF (Impossible Missions Force) quarters in London, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is kidnapped by a mysterious villain. It turns out that the man who kidnaps him is part of the highly-skilled terrorist group the Syndicate, the one that he’s been trying to prove the existence of. Meanwhile, the whole IMF team is accused by the CIA of being ineffective after a series of events that prove whenever the team goes, chaos will follow. The government then shuts down the entire IMF and relocates all of its valuable assets to the CIA. Faced with that situation, Ethan and his team is forced to work undercover (well they always do, but this time from the CIA) to vanish the Syndicate once and for all. Will they make it? Let’s first talk about the obvious stand-out of the film, the action scenes. Thanks to the assured direction from Christopher McQuarrie, all of the action scenes in the film are guaranteed to make your heart beats faster. It’s thrilling and well-executed. If you think the plane scene you saw in the trailer was thrilling enough, wait until you see the underwater scene in the film. That particular scene is the star among the already great action scenes. Another highlight of the film is the world-famous score. I personally think the score really makes the opening scene goosebump-worthy. In fact, it is the best opening-scene I've seen so far this year. Credits also go to the sound department who successfully made the score, the gun shots, and the punches sound so clear and heart-pounding. They deserve some award recognitions for doing that! And what’s a good sound without the equally good performances? Tom Cruise is more than capable to carry the weight as the main character. Can we all just praise him for being so fit in his 50s? I mean, come on, his physicality will make all the young guys in the world feel as ashamed as they feel envy of him. Including me (poor you, Dan!). Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, and Ving Rhames (even funnier than Pegg with his one-liners) are good too in their respective roles. Let’s not forget about Rebecca Ferguson as the newest addition to the film. She gives a convincing and attention-demanding performance as the femme fatale Ilsa Faust. I’ve spilled all of the positive notes of the film. Now it’s time for its counterpart, the not-so-positive ones. My main problem of this film is I find it not memorable despite all the glorious action scenes. The story is indeed smart (how nice I am to still put compliment in the supposedly all-negative paragraph) but the writing is just a bit weak for me. Yesss I know some of you might argue that this kind of film is not the appropriate place to talk about some writing stuff. But forgive me I just can’t stand not talking about that. The motivation behind Hunt’s obsession in chasing down the Syndicate isn’t convincing enough. (MINOR SPOILER ALERT!) There’s this one scene where he’s being confronted by his team mates about his motivation and he replies with some unclear response, neither confirming the accusation nor giving his actual reason behind it. And as far as I’m concerned, it’s not revealed until the end of the film. Still about the writing, the conflicts revolving Illa Faust are unnecessarily too convoluted. Maybe it was my brain that wasn’t bright enough to digest all that. What I’m trying to say is it could have been, and it should have been, simpler.
There's another thing that crossed my mind while watching it. The film is somehow exploitative towards Fergusson's character. As much as I adore her striking figure, something just felt wrong every time she appeared half-clothed. It almost felt the only reason she did that was only to arouse the viewers. But then again, spy films do have the tendency to make its women showing off their bodies. Maybe it's to emphasize the sexy-yet-deadly quality in those characters. Or maybe it is just what it is. Overall, ‘Mission:Impossible Rogue Nation’ is an above average action film that will entertain you, though it may not remain in your long-term memory. Score: 3.5/5 |
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AuthorA self-acclaimed movie guy who likes to socialize |