Sci-Fi

Power Rangers (2017)


Power Rangers (2017)

Director:

Dean Israelite

Starring:

Dacre Montgomery

Naomi Scott

RJ Cyler

Ludi Lin

Becky G

Elizabeth Banks

Bryan Cranston

Plot:

A group of high-school students, who are infused with unique superpowers, harness their abilities in order to save the world.

Review:

This movie really benefited from me recently watching some episodes of the original series as well as some episodes from one of the newest series. I didn’t have the show completely covered in nostalgia so I was more receptive to it.

Power Rangers are teenagers that are given devices that allow them to morph into armor that puts them on the same strength level as galactic monsters bent on destroying them and the universe. Why you would give teenagers that power, who knows? But there you have it.

I appreciated that they weren’t racist like the original series was with color choices. I liked that the yellow ranger was unsure of her sexuality. I liked that the blue ranger was autistic, at least I believe he was. Red ranger was eh, but he’s never been my favorite. Pink ranger was a mean girl that was redeemed because she’s hot? I’m really not sure about her and hope there’s more to her story. Hopefully, the next movie introduces a hot green ranger.

I hate teenage angst, but it’s very much part of the Power Rangers formula so it wasn’t out of place in this movie. The only thing that I really thought they could have done better with was the action scenes and the revelation of the Megazord. Power Rangers is great when it comes to action and this movie was seriously lacking. Two car crashes, but you could barely see them kicking butt.

I’m interested in what the next movie will be like and hope they’re able to improve on this one, but keep in the same vein on everything else.

3/5

Ready Player One (2018)


Ready Player One (2018)

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Starring:

Ty Sheridan

Olivia Cooke

Ben Mendelsohn

Lena Waithe

Mark Rylance

Plot:

When the creator of a virtual reality world called the OASIS dies, he releases a video in which he challenges all OASIS users to find his Easter Egg, which will give the finder his fortune.

Review:

I read Ready Player One by Ernest Cline back in 2011 when it came out and I freaking loved it. I gave it to my dad as a Christmas gift that year and everything. Sure it was packed full of 80s references but it was fun! I will judge all VR by the VR in the game and it will probably never live up to that in my lifetime. I never went back and read it again, even though I own it on hardback, and after watching the movie I’ve realized it did not age well.

Wade Watts, Ty Sheridan, lives in the stacks in Columbus, OH. His parents are dead and his aunt is “raising” him, her abusive boyfriend is clearly the priority though. Wade spends all of his time in the OASIS, which is the VR world. That’s where everyone lives. Wade doesn’t seem to have a job or go to school instead he is a gunter, he hunts for Easter eggs to unlock the dead creator of the OASIS billions.

Wade is a pretty one note character, there is almost no depth here. He lives and breathes Halliday, Mark Rylance, and everything that Halliday loved so that he can win the contest. Somehow, even after thirty years or so, Wade figures it all out and against all odds wins.

Naturally, there’s a girl, Olivia Cooke. There’s a romance here, but you never really figure out why Samantha likes him. She seems to have more depth than him, she wants more, and is leading a resistance or something, and yet she falls for the nerd that can’t tell you anything about the real world. It’s very wish fulfillment and disappointing.

Visually, the movie is shot beautifully, of course, Steven Spielberg. Unfortunately, that doesn’t really save the movie for me. It was nice to hear the random 80s theme song notes every now and then too. It’s just…the world has changed since this book came out. I’ve changed. Seeing a white boy with no thought to anything outside of old pop culture just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

There were lots of changes from the book, there would have to be in something like this, however, I felt like most of the changes were not for the better. All in all, it was a pretty disappointing movie and I’m kind of scared to ever go back and read the book.

2/5

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet


The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) By: Becky Chambers

Plot:

A rollicking space adventure with a lot of heart

When Rosemary Harper joins the crew of the Wayfarer, she isn’t expecting much. The patched-up ship has seen better days, but it offers her everything she could possibly want: a spot to call home, a chance to explore the far-off corners of the galaxy, and some distance from her past.

And nothing could be further from what she’s known than the crew of the Wayfarer.

From Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, to Kizzy and Jenks, the chatty engineers who keep the ship running, to the noble captain Ashby, life aboard is chaotic and crazy—exactly what Rosemary wants. That is until the crew is offered the job of a lifetime tunneling wormholes through space to a distant planet. Sure, they’ll earn enough money to live comfortably for years, but risking her life wasn’t part of the job description.

The journey through the galaxy is full of excitement, adventure, and mishaps for the Wayfarer team. And along the way, Rosemary comes to realize that a crew is a family, and that family isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the universe… as long as you actually like them.

Review:

This was a nice change of pace, the universe was no more negative or positive than our own, which was nice. It painted a future that wasn’t dystopian that I enjoyed. There was a ton of detail put into the different races, the worlds, and the tech. It was very impressive, though, at times a bit more than I cared to know.

One of the things I appreciated was the diversity of the races and their cultures and norms. We met several difference races since the ship was multispecies and the differences and the attention to detail Chambers goes into was interesting.

The story was a bit lacking. Most of the book was details about tech and the different species and cultures within the universe and on the ship. We did have some character development but it followed the entire crew so it was spread thin. While I appreciated the details, there could have been a bit less and a bit more to the story. Basically the crew traveled from one place to another with little stops during that time and only a couple off minor incidents until the end.

I liked the characters and I would be interested in reading more, but the pacing was a bit slow so I’m hoping that future installments have a bit more happening or something more.

3.5/5

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Seasons 4 & 5


Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Seasons 4 & 5

Network:

ABC

Creator:

Maurissa Tancharoen

Jed Whedon

Joss Whedon

Starring:

Clark Gregg

Ming-Na Wen

Chloe Bennett

Ian De Caestecker

Elizabeth Henstridge

Henry Simmons

Natalia Cordova-Buckley

Jeff Ward

Plot:

The missions of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division.

Review:

I dropped Shield three episodes into season 4. Later I heard so many people talking about how amazing it was and how the last two seasons were the best and after watching several other superhero shows I decided to go back and give it another shot.

First off, I have to disagree about Season 4, it was very much more of the same for me. The virtual world they were in was interesting, but went on way too long. I never warmed up to the Ghostrider arc.

Season 4 overall, was alright, but didn’t do much for me. It just kept dragging out the relationship drama more and the big bad never seemed to be beat, but they were fighting it forever. It was draining. Just when you thought there was a resolution, they’d discover some new connection, or their “solution” would have all kinds of bad consequences.

Finally they beat it, take a breath, and then disappear. I was all prepared to drop Shield again, but the Season 4 finale had me deciding to try out at least the first episode of 5, which then had me watching the entire season.

Season 5 was, for me, when things finally got good. I love time travel, I love space, and Fitz, Iain De Caestecker, as a mercenary is something I never knew I needed in my life until now. The first half was fun, though, by the end it had gotten increasingly darker as more revelations about the future were made. They finally get back home and things just get horrible.

It was back to the constantly trying to fight an inevitable conclusion that finally wasn’t resolved until the last episode. It’s one thing to hint at something throughout a season, but having it basically be the focus for entire episodes is just draining. I just wanted it to be over. I wanted Fitz and Simmons, Elizabeth Henstridge, to be together and not fighting to survive the destruction of the world. I wanted Deke, Jeff Ward, to stop being a love sick puppy and go back to being a Dollar Store Starlord. I wanted Daisy, Chloe Bennett, to just be gone. And please, everyone, just get off of Yoyo, Natalia Cordova-Buckley, back. She made a hard decision that needed to be made and most of the team *cough* Daisy *cough* were being absolute hypocritical assholes about it.

The ending had me in tears. Not because Phil, Clark Gregg, was leaving, even though he’s one of the best characters, but because they fucking killed Fitz. But then, they didn’t. There’s a second one floating in space waiting for them to find him, because of course there is, but that’s honestly the only reason I’m going to watch the next season. I’m really hoping for a less world ending season and more of a focus on smaller things. Leave the world to the Avengers, please.

2/5

A Wrinkle in Time (2018)


A Wrinkle in Time (2018)

Director:

Ava DuVernay

Starring:

Storm Reid

Oprah Winfrey

Reese Witherspoon

Mindy Kaling

Levi Miller

Deric McCabe

Plot:

After the disappearance of her scientist father, three peculiar beings send Meg, her brother, and her friend to space in order to find him.

Review:

When I was a child I read the first book in this series, I know I did, I vaguely remember it, but I don’t remember really anything about it. Still, I was excited to see this so as soon as it was out at Red Box and I had time I rented it.

Visually the movie is stunning. The settings and costumes are gorgeous. So bright and colorful and fanciful. I loved them all.

Sadly, the story was lacking. I don’t remember the book, but the movie felt disjointed and it jumped around. It didn’t flow very well. One minute things were progressing at a breakneck speed and then all of sudden you’re looking at flowers in a field. Honestly, I got bored. Things were crazy but it didn’t hold my attention. I didn’t care about what was happening. I liked the characters alright, but you were just thrown into this mad world and it just didn’t work for me. Made me sad because I was hoping for another “Tomorrowland.”

I wanted this movie to work for several reasons, female director, kids sci-fi, but it didn’t.

2/5