18 Comments
author
Oct 2, 2023·edited Oct 2, 2023Author

Going Star Wars on this one. After the disappointment of the prequels we thought Star Wars was dead and I for one did not mourn. So when news came out about a sequel trilogy I was guarded. The Force Awakens was passable enough that I was willing to give this new Disney Star Wars a chance, but prior to it coming out, everything about Rogue One looked forced and silly.

Then we saw it, my oldest son and I.

Wow, Rogue One blew my mind and I recall telling him on the way home it was probably the second best SW movie after Empire. They had the guts to make a war movie, with all of the stakes and sacrifice that goes along with it. The action was first-rate, it had great characters, and was a stand alone story that made me appreciate episode IV all the more. Far from detracting from the OT (as the sequel trilogy would eventually do), it enhanced it.

Rogue One is a masterpiece. Every SW entry since is junk.

Expand full comment

It's my favorite Star Wars ☺

Expand full comment
author
Oct 2, 2023·edited Oct 3, 2023Author

[Note about the post image]

With these fights I always try to pick an image from a movie that works for the question, but probably won't be a winning answer. The image for this fight is from a beautiful little movie called The Map of Tiny Perfect Things. Ordinarily I don't recommend anything by Amazon, but back when I had a Prime account I saw this one come across my suggested list and gave it a try. I started watching it by myself while up late one night. After thirty minutes I paused it and realized that Shannon would probably enjoy it as well. It's the story of two teenagers each caught in a Groundhog Day style time-loop thinking they are each in it alone, until they meet up.

It's sweet, funny, original (despite the premise), has good writing, good performances, and takes you on an emotional journey you didn't realize you were on. I would have chosen it for this question's answer but I figured it probably wasn't well-known. That should change. I recommend it, and I hate recommending anything Amazon.

Expand full comment
Oct 6, 2023Liked by Vince Guerra

Felix and I watched this the other night -thanks for the recommendation :)

Expand full comment

I loved that movie! And I had the same thoughts— Amazon movie bleh 🤢 , but then pleasantly surprised.

Expand full comment

Ok, to weigh on my own question I have to go with a film that may surprise you all as it is widely considered a true classic now.

Raiders of the Lost Ark

That’s right I had low/no expectations of this odd movie from the director of Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

Context is everything. It was 1981, opening weekend and Spielberg was not yet a household name. I was a sophomore in high school and my friends and I were actually trying to see another movie, High Risk (not a classic), but it was sold out. There were, however, seats available for Raiders, thus, I proposed we give it a go. My friends were less than enthusiastic.

It was some sort of period piece with Han Solo riding a horse in a hat. The title was weird. We didn’t have any clear idea what the movie was about.

THAT was the mindset we had going into the film that was to re-define action movies for all time.

The opening sequence alone was worth the price of admission. Clever, beautifully shot, perfectly scored, edge of your seat thrilling. And the climax of the film (spoiler alert) was beyond belief. I mean GOD kills the nazis??????!!!!! Wow!

So there you have my low/no expectation entry. It’s clear that Raiders of the Lost Ark went beyond them.

Let’s just say I went in Spielberg’s next movie, a cute little film about a boy who befriends an alien, with a bit more anticipation.

Expand full comment
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
author

None of our kids have seen it yet because it's got some of those intense jump scares. But I'll recommend it to the older ones now. The way it shows how you just don't mess with the power of God is incredible.

Expand full comment
Oct 2, 2023Liked by Vince Guerra

I was going to say Free Guy, because I went in thinking it didn't sound like my thing at all, and I ended up loving it, but I think I had lower expectations for Big Hero Six.

It was a girls lock-in, at half past midnight (ish) and I didn't have very much trust in their opinions on movies, but to the other girls it was a unanimous choice. Not wanting to be that one person who complains, I kept my mouth shut and let them turn on what I expected to be something super cheap and cheesy. Ten minutes in I thought, "Yeah, this is weird..." But then it started making sense, and then I was laughing out loud, and before I knew it the credits were rolling and I was left with that satisfaction you get from finishing a perfect meal, closing an amazing book, or, in this case, watching a really sweet, funny, well-written, tug-on-the-heartstrings movie.

Big Hero Six, final answer.

Expand full comment

Oh man, great question. Ahhh, umm...gahhh, not really sure, there are so many. I'm going through the mental list and realize I'm really torn between three movies, all of which are about dysfunctional families involved in crime (not my favorite theme, I don't like movies when you're rooting for the bad guys) but in two of them, you don't know who the bad guy is until the very end -- and in all three, the twists are so surprising and satisfying.

So. Arghhhh...I'm going with Knives Out, which managed to be excellent in spite of Jamie Lee Curtis' involvement and also the presence of Daniel Craig, whom I was prejudiced against because I despise James Bond.

Expand full comment
author

I watched it despite having a soul-deep loathing for Rian Johnson and had to grudgingly admit it was pretty good.

Expand full comment
Oct 3, 2023·edited Oct 3, 2023

I'm curious what the other two were 😁

Expand full comment

Logan Lucky and Ordeal By Innocence. :D

Expand full comment

I just had this happen recently, so I’ll go with what’s fresh in my memory 😁

First, let me preface my answer with this— I have been a die hard Marvel fan right up until it went “woke”, but putting that aside, it must be said the DC franchise can’t hold a candle to Marvel. That said, my pick is Flash.

Two nights ago, out of pure desperation for something entertaining and fun to watch, we decided to give the new Flash a chance. As we hit “play”, I felt pretty certain we’d be turning it off after only 10 minutes because it would likely be filled with indoctrinational-woke-agenda-nonsense. It never came. We watched on.

The story line was interesting and surprisingly pretty clean— a movie that actually deserved it’s PG-13 rating for a change! It definitely won’t win any awards or anything, but it had me laughing and crying and routing for the good guys just like the movies from the good ol’ pre-woke days. So, yes, refreshing and a surprising and therefore well worth the price of the ticket.

Expand full comment

I do like the DC movies. The Man of Steel and Batman Vs Superman are two of my favorites, as is the first Wonder Woman. I think part of the problem with the franchise is that general audiences do not appreciate the differences between the two franchises. For example, when Spider-Man was re-booted with The Amazing Spider-Man I suspect audiences were used to/expecting the first trilogy thus they were disappointed. Too bad. I like Andrew Garfield's portrayal and it was refreshing to see Gwen on the screen.

DC is darker and I think does a better job of highlighting the internal struggles of its heroes. The MCU has fantastical CGI and the humor is great.

I really want to blame the audience for the lack of enthusiasm for the DC Comic movies, but honestly there are a few other factors that have impacted it. Zack Snyder has incredible vision. Unfortunately he's had a lot of roadblocks and not all of them have been overcome. Glad he was able to re-do the Justice League.

Expand full comment

I liked Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man best as well. He brought a lot more depth to the character. And what a great actor he is 🤍And I loved Man of Steel too... but after that everything kinda fell flat for me. 😕

I still watched them and enjoyed them, but they didn’t make me feel as invested like the Marvel movies did. And I think that’s for a lot of reasons, but chief among them is their consistency with the integrated story lines and the characters (and the actors who play them). I think this creates a strong relationship with the audience that DC missed the boat on... but don’t get me wrong, I DO agree there are some great movies in the DC franchise! But do let us all try to forget about Aquaman, yes? 😉😁

Expand full comment
author

And the winner is David McDaniel. Congratulations on back-to-back wins, David.

Expand full comment

13 Going on 30. Jennifer Garner giving such a charming performance in a good natured little movie with a good moral.

Expand full comment

I'm okay with Cameron Diaz not being nominated for Oscars. She has made some very awful films (i.e. The Sweetest Thing is not the sweetest thing.) So didn't expect much from her in a romcom by the name of In Her Shoes, but my wife suggested it from the Amazon choices. There are so many bad romcoms in this world of ours. But as the credits rolled, I saw it was directed by Curtis Hanson, who directed a favorite of mine, LA Confidential, so a glimmer of hope peaked in. A story about sisters turned out being pretty darn good. Expectations quite exceeded.

Expand full comment