Top Ten Favorite Films / Video Games Of 2018

My Top Ten Favorite Films / Video Games Of 2018

The time is here again in the best of times the worst o times.  As always, if something obvious is missing, I haven’t experienced it or enough of it to justify… or I don’t agree. Here it goes:

Top Ten Films Of 2018

1.)Film Of The Year: Avengers: Infinity War: For not only having such a monumental task

ahead of it and high hopes, but for meeting those hopes in ways both intentional and

unintentional in the pinnacle of blockbuster filmcraft.

2.)Isle of Dogs: For being so full of a combination of whimsy, laughs, heart, surreality, and drama.

3.)Mandy: For being such a distinct vision and top notch awesome cage and that soundtrack.

4.)First Man: For its directorial / cinematagraphy and soundtrack taking one to space with some solid

performances within.

5.)Incredibles 2: For being as fun, funny, and colorful as we wanted delivering on the past.

6.)Annhilation: For making one think with a mindbending plot and unique visuals.

7.)Creed 2: For in a way wrapping off the Rocky saga in style.

8.)Deadpool 2: For making us laugh...again with upped drama and meta nature with its cast.

9.)Bad Times at the El Royale: For being filled with dark twists and solid performances in its aesthetic.

10.)Ready Player One: For mostly doing a good job with its adaptation...of spectacle and nostalgia.

Honorable 10-13:

x11.)A Quiet Place(SHHH)

x12.)Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse(META)

x13.)Solo: A Star Wars Story(token star wars slot/lando)

Top Ten Video Games Of 2018

1.)Game Of The Year: God of War (PS4): For not only being what we wanted but even further...beautiful, epic, perfect gameplay , even slightly innovative

pushing the medium.

2.) Super Smash Bros Ultimate: For everyone being here...and more. With pitch perfect gamepaly and tons of single player and online content.

3.) Red Dead Redemption 2: For being massive, beautiful, epic, detailed, immersive and packed with content online and off.

4.) Celeste: For being surprisingly hard, beautiful, with that soundtrack and customizable pitch perfect controls and platforming.

5.) Tetris Effect: For having tight gameplay, beautiful trance enducing visuals and an absolutely incredible soundtrack.

6.) Spider-Man (PS4): For bringing back the cool to Spider-Man with amazing swinging, visuals, combat, and plot feeling like a classic story.

7.) Mario Tennis Aces: For making mario tennis really cool once more with tight gameplay and tons of single player content.

8.) Far Cry 5: For being big and packed with things to do and ways to blow them up with a big world and characters.

9.) Spyro Reignited Trilogy: For being the games we loved wrapped up in a beautiful new crisp bow.

10.) Dragon Ball FighterZ: For being the true MVc4...colorful dbz touch fast gameplay.

Honorables 11-13:

x11.) Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire(classic RPG!)

x12.) A Way Out(co-opFares!)

x13.) Soul Calibur VI(Customs!)

(also shoutout 14 and 15?16? I'm not sure... the Bayonetta 1 and 2 HD Switch ports were great and amazing games I played, Telltale The Walking Dead Episodes1 and 2 were great and almost the end but not a full experience.. full release of Dead Cells quite neat)

ONWARDS

Holmes and Watson Review

Holmes and Watson
Director: Etan Cohen
Cast Headliners: Will Ferrell, John C Reilly, Rebecca Hall, Ralph Fiennes, wasn't too sure who else counts
Original Release Date: December 25, 2018

Will Ferrell and John C Reilly coming together have been comedy events of note every time in the past. Both in Talledega Nights and Step Brothers (with technically even Anchorman 2’s cameo counting) the two legendary comedians made audiences laugh with bizarre insanity and hi-jjinx. Holmes and Watson takes a very special duo to the same place again but for a very public domain parody in Sherlock Holmes. There’s laughs and fun to be had but also many, many, many at times irritating flaws.
After an unnecessary flashback the supposedly famed detective Sherlock Holmes (Will Ferrell) and his partner Dr. John Watson (John C Reilly) are given a mission by the Queen Victoria (Pam Ferris) to stop the nefarious Professor Moriarty (Ralph Fiennes). Along the way the team up or otherwise interact with the likes of mortician Dr.Grace Hart (Rebecca Hall) and her assistant Millie (Lauren Lapkus), Inspector Lestrade(Rob Brydon), or their assistant Hudson(Kelly Macdonald).  Various shenanigans ensue.
That’s about all one needs to know since that’s about all there is. It’s a period piece parody that mostly sticks to Londonion tropes with occasionally clever or occasionally very stupid dips into the meta or modern. Ferrell and Reilly are both great at hamming up their roles. Holmes is the usual big dumb goof he plays with some humorous forays into “deduction”. If most takes are intelligent his is being dumb that others take as smart. It’s typical stuff but leads to some laughs in an otherwise pretty lowbrow silly script. Reilly’s Watson is a bit more effective with his retorts and accent aided by a manic nature. For one looking for more of this duo it delivers on that when it can. Everyone else is just a bit player for a gag whether its Hall’s role per her gender(with some funny stuff in the romantic area if even brief) or Ferris’ Queen being both exposition or the center of some of the best gags. No one else really makes any impact although of course some celebrity guests appear like Steve Coogan as Gustav Klinger, Hugh Laurie as Mycroft Holmes, and WWE star Braun Strowman as .. Braun who  have some gags that should be seen.  Fiennes is barely in the film at all actually although his villainous plots are felt.
“Plot” is a grand word to put on this film. It is perhaps one of the most basic takes on a Holmes mystery ever possible which may be best for what is done. There’s some fun surprises in terms of jokes and mania that feels as surreal and fun as one would want but some may role their heads at how low it is. The production, costumes, music and etc is all typical with “action” being seldom if ever. It’s mainly people talking and doing silly things which fits in director Etan Cohen’s court.
See this movie with some hesitance. Fans of the titular Holmes and Watson actor duo will get some cheap laughs and it’s a dumb silly way to spend an afternoon. But oh boy can it be dumb although the value is at times felt. 6.6 out of 10

Aquaman Review

Aquaman
Director: James Wan
Cast Headliners: Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, many oceanic others
Original Release Date: December 21, 2018

                There’s a lot of “obscure” characters out there but few have faced the public gentle jabbing as DC Comics’ Aquaman. Decades of the “talks to fish” member of the Justice League have not quite played up his large list of lore from the comics nor has he gotten much of a role in the big screen. The DCEU changed this recently with this Aquaman film giving a full aquatic experience after the brief taste in 2017’s Justice League film. It’s every bit as epic, silly, fun, and unique as one would want if having many flaws. Note that this is from whose had it be a bit of a dream so this may affect things but to anyone it’s not a dull time as a whole.

                Smartly this is nigh-almost-entirely a standalone tale from the rest of the DCEU despite a couple of nouns / references thrown around (and some very minor plot holes / character interactions and depictions compared to the whole). The present tale of Arthur Curry / Aquaman(Jason Momoa) is shown alongside glimpses of his past.  He finds himself becoming re-acquainted with the water-wielding princess Mera of Xebel(Amber Heard) as they go on a quest to stop King Orm from conquering the world as Ocean Master(Patrick Wilson). There’s also the enemy x-factor of the likes of the armored suit using David Kane/ Black Manta(Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) and his father Jesse Kane(Michael Beach). Helping multiple sides of the conflict are undersea figures like King Nereus of Xebel(Dolph Lundgren), advisor Nuidis Vulko(Willem Dafoe), and Aquaman’s parents Atlanna(Nicole Kidman) and Thomas Curry(Temuera Morrison).

                It’s a large cast for an attempted epic tale and admittedly most get lost in the shuffle of exposition and various sub, crab, and fish people factions who try to join or survive under Orm.   Through it all Momoa’s Aquaman is a likeable lead mixing brawny surferde swagger with ferocity and charm even if it’s perhaps purposefully to the points. His film gives him much more of a chance to shine and a bit like Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman he mostly works. Heard’s Mera gets more of a chance to shine as well and is very much as competent a combatant as he is although she has some cheese to her delivery. There’s jokes both clever and dumb with emotional heft never quite getting that deep.  Dafoe and Lundgren’s undersea characters amongst others do remain as mere exposition spewers (at times extra cheesified by the echo effect of underwater). Morrison and Kidman have a bit more of a nice bit part focus although they are seldom seen.

                DC films haven’t been on a villain quality streak lately and this continues that trend. Wilson’s Ocean Master Orm is very generically cheesy “meh” with the typical kind of “wants to rule it all” motivation with just perhaps a bit of effective vile royal sneering but that’s a road which many token villians have walked down. This does give some slight personal stake between him and Arthur but slight may be an exaggeration. Luckily the plight of Abdul II’s Black Manta is much more of a focus even if still on the sidelines. His interactions and action scenes are quite fun and vengeance filled even with some hoke.

      This is not quite a movie being best at being small. It’s best when it’s big, crazy, and effects filled as possible which it delivers on highly.  Director James Wan steps into his biggest shoes possible after a career of smaller horror takes. It works very well. One must take note of the fact that this is mainly a CGI generated film in terms of backgrounds and locations. Very few things take place on the surface (nor with characters who come from there). It’s all about crazy varied , unique aesthetics from the neon-lit city of Atlantis to desert temples, dinosaur islands, or sunken ruins.  It can be colorful and awe-inspiring. It can also be very cheesy and seem like some foreign discount film. This seems to vary between the two depending on what’s happening at the time but when it sings true it sings strongly true. There’s some incredibly massive battles and duels which occur with all manner of scary or beautiful creatures and locations.  Sometimes it can be too fast but that’s something the DCEU tends to struggle with when it doesn’t do it well.  Rupert Gregson-Williams score also has some great electro, synth style numbers between sometimes jarring use of pop / rock music (or otherwise fitting).

                “A lot” is word to describe Aquaman. It attempts to fit almost all of the heroes mythology in one film. That makes it epic and varied but also it leads to a very long run time. There’s a ton of that action , whether wanted or not for being gloriously cheesy, yet there’s also a lot of things which can drag too. It’s a lot of movie in the movie (almost 3 hours) which could maybe due to be looked at for a tighter focus although by the end its satisfying.

   In some ways this stands as one of the better DCEU films for being so colorful and fun in its big scale. It’s a simple plot truly which may make the meandering questionable but through this its everything the others are not. This is big, blockbuster film making at its core and while there’s some cheesy and weaker aspects one can’t say that it’s been done very often before or could have been done much different. For Atlantis!  8.03 out of 10  

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse Review

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse
Directors: Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rotham
Cast Headliners: Shameik Moore, Jake Johnson, Hailee Steinfeld, Liev Schreiber, many many others most with web-powers
Original Release Date: December 14th, 2018

Animated superhero films may remind oneself of the Walmart bargain bin. Theatrically they've been limited to the likes of the Incredibles or Megamind or Lego Batman...purely comedy. However the lattermost is what should be taken note of since it showed that these movies can deserve a big budget and big attention. Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse is the first theater-tier animated CGI piece for the web-slinger and it certainly makes the case for it. It's a colorful, wild, reference, heart-filled time that will surprise what it means to be a Spider-Man or Marvel film while being nearly everything one would want in some way or another.

The set-up is something wholly unique to most Spidey films. This is a world where a Spider-Man/Peter Parker(Chris Pine) is, refreshingly, an older veteran and fierce competent fellow at his game. He contends with the likes of the infamous Kingpin/Wilson Fisk(Liev Schrieber), Green Goblin/Norman Osborn(Jorma Taccone), and the seldom seen deep lore Prowler who are up to a nefarious plot. Events soon bring in the young teen Miles Morales(Shameik Moore) to having powers of his own and leaving this Peter out of the picture. This is all very comics accurate but luckily for the film its much more.

Miles finds himself meeting Spider-People from multiple other dimensions in whats one of the best highlight factors. There's the primary part of another, older veteran who failed at his life as Spider-Man/Peter B.Parker(Jake Johnson) who acts as a reluctant mentor to Miles. Joining him is Spider-Woman (in comics “Spider-Gwen/Ghost Spider”)/Gwen Stacy(Hailee Steinfeld) where it wasn't Peter who got bit, the hilariously hard-boiled detective archetype Spider-Man Noir/Peter Parker(Nicolas Cage), anime-visualed Japanese SP//DR mecha using schoolgirl Peni Parker(Kimiko Glenn), and literal spider-pig wacky cartoon animal Spider-Ham/Peter Porker(John Mulaney). Together this crew aims to stop many more villains from tearing the dimensions apart.

The film definitely is at its best when its big, crazy, and varied as possible. It must be noted though that it would have, and does work, as merely a Miles movie too. Miles goes through a nice youth focused arc mirroring Peter and Moore's performance adds to that for the most part. There's some genuinely decent drama with his cop father Jeff(Brian Tyree Henry) and his uncle Aaron(Mahersala Ali who's role must be seen for its semi-depth). Some of the supporting cast gets lost such as his mother Rio(Luna Lauren Velez) or even Mary Jane Watson(Zoe Kravitz) but there's just so much else going on. Luckily this is a bit ridiculously cool Aunt May(Lily Tomlin) who becomes almost like Alfred Pennyworth from DC.

The same lost-in-the-shuffle applies to some of the periphery Spiders as well. Glenn's Peni and Mulaney's Porker have the most jokes from their visually distinct styles adding to some action beats but are very bit players late in the film. Cage's Noir is a perfect role for him with jokes more towards his out-of-time nature although he doesn't get many lines either. Steinfeld's Gwen is more of a central role with a cool drumming, competent angle that adds to the lineup. One perhaps wonders what other spider-people are out there.

One sings true most of all in Johnson's mentor “hobo” Parker. He is perfectly schlubby which adds to the role. He's depressed, chubby, lazy, and broken. This is used to both comedic and emotional effect. Perhaps one of the best arcs of the film is his as he grows. As an audience we're so used to seeing the end of a Peter lifecycle. Here we get the end and its uniquely interesting.

The villainous side is not much of an impact due to the acid trip nature of whats going on. The likes of Taccone's Goblin(here, as many, monstrously different showing the Ultimate Marvel influence), Tombstone/Lincoln Thompson(Krondon), more cyborg than usual Scorpion/Mac Gargan(Joaquin Cosio) and a surprising take on Doctor Octopus are mainly thugs for battle scenes. Prowler brings to mind an evil Black Panther-meets-Deadpool and has some exciting chases with more of a bigger personal stake that are intense. Schreiber's Kingpin goes for more of a generic mafioso accent and take on things although he has some slight sympathy (perhaps borrowed from the Netflix take?) and an entertainingly ridiculous physical strength although in the end he's nothing to write home about.

What ties all these together is the script. It's a very funny, zany and at times epic movie. Although directed by a tag team of Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rotham it was helped produced by acclaimed animators Phil Lord/Chris Miller. This can be inferred from its meta tone and reference packed. It truly is The Lego Batman Movie of Spider-Man with references to old cartoons and movies from the 60s to Tobey Macguire. However it takes on a bit more of a focused , actual narrative between that.

Where it also shines as a piece, an art piece really, is the visual experience. The CGI graphics are so colorful, stylized, and perhaps a bit overwhelming. It looks right out of a comic book with sketchy lines used and panels. There's even at times actual Spider-Man comics used! This helps the many humorous “origin stories” that occur. Sometimes the frame rate for this stop motion / comic look can appear odd but it also makes it strongly stand out in the genre. It's a color overload of comic candy. There's also some great music by Daniel Pemberton that's very hip hop and drum inspired between its electro mania. There may be a bit too much pop and rap music but remember this is Sony here who has always done that.

The movie has some lessons about great power and responsibility but “ultimate”ly it keeps things very easy breezy fun. It is a treat for Spider-Man fans who don't mind a bit of twists and alternate takes on the lore. If anything they would know that's some of the truest Marvel out there. It is simple, comic fun for anyone. Of course stick through all the credits for a laugh. 8.65 out of 10

Mortal Engines Review

Mortal Engines
Director: Christian Rivers (Executive Producer Peter Jackson)
Cast Headliners: Hera Hilmar, Robert Sheehan, Hugo Weaving, Stephen Lang, Jihae, some many attempted others
Original Release Date: December 14th, 2018

There was a time when the name “Peter Jackson” meant something very great within films. He was the director who gave us the legendary Lord of The Rings film series of masterpieces with such other things as his take on King Kong and the slightly-less-masterpiece Hobbit prequel series (sounds familiar...).   Now he, or rather his protege Christian Rivers moreso who is actually in the director's seat while he heavily executive produces , are back with an adaptation of the cult hit and acclaimed in their own way Mortal Engines novel series. One must respect more original ideas in this landscape of repeat blockbusters but intention and heart are two different things.
The genre and premise must be noted for being unique. Thousands of years from now planet Earth is nigh-unrecognizable after our descendants ravaged civilization with super weapons alongside a coincidental movement of tectonic plates which dried up oceans and created mountains and lava rifts. The people of the setting now live, for the most part, on “predator cities” which are mobile tank machine fortresses that wander the wastelands. These can range in size from the massive citadel and high society that is London to smaller community craft and raider vessels. Some live in the skies on balloons or planes or stationary as “stagnate settlements” as well. A big part of the conflict seems to be between the predator cities and the “Anti-Tractionist League” who oppose them.  The world building is fascinating but at times only the frontmost elements are explained which perhaps is a sacrifice for the film medium.
Events transpire to where protagonists are found in Hester Shaw(Hera Hilmar) a scarred young woman from the wastes who has a revenge mission in mind as she joins forces with historian Tom Natsworthy (Robert Sheehan).  They oppose the London forces who have leadership in Mayor Magnus Crome(Patrick Malahide) and Head Guild leader Thaddeus Valentine(Hugo Weaving). Elsewhere x-factors exist like Anna Fang(Korean musician Jihae) and the cyborg “resurrected man” Shrike(Stephen Lang voicing a CGI creation).  It's a web of factions and motivations that may seem intriguing but ultimately make a typical plot borrowed from cinematic pieces seen many times before. One wonders what the effect is in the novel as well.
Part of why the plot is typical is due to the characters within. Neither Hilmar's Hester nor Sheehan's Tom bring much charm. Hester is an attempted fierce heroine but comes across as slightly hollow aside her gumption and some emotion through her backstory which wavers between cheesy and effective.  Sheehan as Tom attempts to have humor but none of the humor really lands aside from maybe some no name wastelander interactions. This also applies to his Londonian friends in Leila George as Katherine Valentine(daughter of one of the villians) and apprentice worker Bevis Pod(Ronan Raftery) who barely get any lines or things to do aside a moment of exposition or so.   Some similiarly small to medium impact but a bit of highlight (to an extent) roles are in the cool combat skills and demeanor of Jihae's Anna Fang(who definitely has the highest kill count of the piece) and shop owner Chudleigh Pomeroy(Colin Salmon). 
Luckily the villainous side is much stronger on the memorable front. Hugo Weaving has made a career out of playing bad men and Valentine is no exception. He's cocky, confident, ruthless and egotistical as one would want if coming across as slightly one-dimensional. However he sure can have a menacing look while he's giving orders. Malahide's Crome is in the same ballpark as well although to lesser quality. There's some decent stuff in their leadership bickering.  Lang's Shrike is also really cool feeling intentionally so inhuman. The CGI effects which move him can at times appear less than spectacular but he's also got such a cool look with his glowing eyes and rotting cyber flesh. Imagine the Terminator for a steampunk age. It can become expected but when he shines he shines. As a whole this is a film where very little shining can happen but it does exist.
  What the film lacks for in character and narrative it makes up for in style. The setting is so unique and it's highlights are the machines themselves. They're grindy, smoggy, crunchy battle pieces right out of some futuristic Industrial Revolution. This is one of the most steampunk films to make it to the mainstream in this way although it leans slightly more into fantasy epic which is befitting of the talent behind it.  The visuals and backgrounds are sometimes incredibly impressive and massive but other times melt into a CGI blur. Technically with Jackson in the backseat driving one would blame this on a debut director but one must consider River's primary previous experience was second unit on.... the Hobbit series. It makes sense then that he goes for CGI overload versus practical approaches. This is understandable but it seems that the jumpy direction gives these mixed results between cheese and spectacle. The action can be at times infrequent but also pulse pounding particularly when Mad Max-esque chases begin to occur or the seldom times foot combat or chases happens. It seems a missed opportunity to not have  more city-on-city action since these are like land space or naval ships but apparently that occurs more in the novel and later in the series both things we'll never see. Expect a lot of plane warfare which is very typical but adds to some big explosive spectacle when it isn't overly-glossy.  Some of the music by Tom “Junkie XL” Holkenburg also adds to the excitement (interestingly he worked on Mad Max Fury Road although it is a softer orchestral sort of approach to the guitars of that) but the pieces of note are few and far between.
Mortal Engines could have probably been so much more and one fears for its franchise potential with the box office already in a busy season. In busy seasons a film must be a “must see”. New franchises won't exist until that occurs but this tried. It's a weird, new , big world that has some crazy fantasy realms and action that's dragged down by lacking most of the narrative soul and characters that made Tolkein's work so good. It's not terrible, but it isn't too amazing either. Purely, decently, ok.  7.4 out of 10