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YouTube Movie Review: The A Team (2010)

This movie is a lot of fun. It has explosions, some decent action, and fun characters. The story is a little lacking, but you aren’t watching this movie for the story. You are watching this movie for chases, explosions, and gunfights. Although some of the action falls flat because of the shaky-cam, it redeems itself with its antics. What other movie involves people flying a plane? A bit of warning, you will need to suspend your disbelief a lot for this movie. The antics are not realistic, but they are cool non the less. 

My only issue with this movie is that it does try to drive its story. The plot twist is obvious, you will know the plot twist in the first 5 minutes. It is obvious. The movie will spend the rest of the time trying to hide this from its audience, but there is no need for so much misdirection. All this time could be used on more explosions and helicopter chases. Another weakness of this movie is how much it tries to tie in the original show. Some of the references, like Mr. T., feel forced and out of place. When Quinton wasn’t awkwardly adding “foo” to his dialect, he is a pretty cool character. 

Overall, if you are looking for a movie you can watch mindlessly, The A Team is a solid choice. This movie doesn’t need much investment, but you won’t hate having watched it. The story is simple, the action is fun, and the cast is solid. You can watch this movie for free on YouTube. You can do a lot worse for free.

YouTube Movie Review: Grumpy Old Men (1993)

Grumpy Old Men is a cute story about friendship and growing old. The movie is about two stubborn old men who can’t let go of their petty grievances. They have grown complacent in their routine and waiting to die. All of this changes when Ann-Margret moves in next door. She helps them move out of their comfort zone and start enjoying life again.

I like this movie a lot. It has a great cast and a sweet story. The chemistry between the cast is what sells this movie. I love their grumpy back and forth. It truly feels like I was watching two old friends. They bicker, play pranks on each other, but they also care enough to check on each other. They care for each other in their own weird way, but they will never admit it. It is a rivalry that exists because neither character wants to admit their wrongs, and it takes Ann-Margaret to help make their friendship stronger.

What this movie does very well is how they deal with old age. Grumpy Old Men addresses a lot of issues that come with growing old. Their friends die, their health is failing, they are lonely, and they aren’t financially secure. These are issues that are part of the experience, and it is sad. You can see that it affects them, but their pride won’t let them admit it. It affects the characters to the point where they stop trying. It is only when they stop living in the past do they begin to enjoy life again and become a lot less grumpy. 

This movie has a simple plot with an amazing journey. You can watch this movie free on YouTube. 

YouTube Movie Review: A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)

A.I. Artificial Intelligence is a live-action adaption of Pinocchio set in the future. It features a great cast playing interesting characters in a cool-looking world. My only complaint is that it is a bit on the longer side. Some of the scenes are a bit drawn out, but I enjoyed the experience nonetheless. As far as live-action adaptions, this is easily one of the best. At the very least it is better than the recent Disney live-action movies. Cruella is possibly the only exception.

A.I. deals a lot with what makes someone human. It explores humanity through the eyes of a boy learning about the world set as an epic adventure. This adventure feels epic, full of challenges and intrigue. The world that Spielberg creates for this film is one you will want to explore. The colors, the noise, its inhabitants are all icing to an already solid movie. I can see the influence this movie has had in other films of the genres.

The adventure is the most important part of this movie. David learns about the cruelty of humanity, but he also learns love and compassion. He learns about lust and desire, but he also learns about love. It is an interesting attempt at defining humanity. But there is also that overarching criticism of society. Through David’s adventure, this movie tests the limits and bounds of human compassion. A.I. makes powerful criticisms about humanity in a spectacular way.

A.I. Artificial Intelligence was a solid movie that you can watch for free on YouTube. You can do a lot worse for free.

YouTube Movie Reviews: Legally Blonde (2001)

Legally Blonde is free on YouTube. What can I say that hasn’t already been said? It is a great movie with a fantastic cast and a great story. Without question, it is easily one of my favorite movies. The sequels are also available on YouTube, but I can’t speak on how good they are. It has been a while since I’ve seen those.

This movie made a huge impact on me when I watched it in my youth. Although I am a strait Mexican-American male, I empathized with a lot of Elle’s struggles. My whole life people do not take me seriously because of how I look and speak. I find that I am constantly being judged for my appearance and interests. I have to constantly prove myself to people because most think I am just some dumb Mexican kid. I was Elle’s strength and perseverance. Although our struggles are completely different and Elle has advantages that I don’t, I know what it feels like to be dismissed because of my appearance. I know what it feels like to constantly have to prove myself. It hurts when people think I am dumb. It hurts when people are shocked that I can speak English or that I study for tests. This movie helped me deal with a lot of that. 

I will be so bold as to say that this movie is a timeless classic. It has a strong and capable female lead who goes on a journey where she experiences growth. The issues she experiences are relatable. The lessons it teaches are important. If you haven’t seen this, add it to your list. For the rest of you, it’s free!

YouTube Movie Review: Rollerball (2002)

Time has not been kind to Rollerball. The acting is bad, everything feels dated, and it is cheesy in the worst way. If you have fond memories of this movie from your youth, do not watch this. Cherish that memory because reality is very disappointing. There is no amount of nostalgia that will save this movie. The acting and story in this movie are terrible, which hurts the movie. I will excuse bad acting and storytelling if the movie is fun, but this movie is boring. Don’t be distracted by the sick stunts and explosions, nothing interesting happens in this movie. You get to sit through terrible line reads and a lead who is constantly throwing tantrums. I was not entertained.

I don’t know how it compares to the original, but this execution was terrible. Don’t waste your time here. There is nothing here for you. But if you don’t believe me, it is free on YouTube.

YouTube Movie Review: Dirty 30 (2016)

I went to this expecting another bad and generic Superbad rip-off, but I was pleasantly surprised by a quirky and delightful movie. Dirty 30 is funny, dumb, and cheesy, but all in a good way. While it will not win any awards, it is a movie that should not be overlooked. This movie is about a group of friends dealing with being 30. It is a midlife crisis movie where the characters work through their dilemmas, and grow from the experience.

My issue with movies of this genre is that the main focus is always the wacky antics. They steal a tiger, fight a gang, they get into very illegal situations because that is the formula that works. These movies tend to fall victim to a lack of structure because the goal isn’t to tell a story but to have characters react to wacky situations. You have long-drawn-out party montages and crazy over-the-top scenarios that aren’t always funny. The narrative is reactive and redundant. Dirty 30 is a more grounded approach to the genre where the narrative is a lot more active. The antics are realistic, and the story is never out of the control of the main characters. 

This movie is about the characters taking control of their lives and maturing. It explores a lot of experiences that come with age. The main character can’t get friends to hang out with for her birthday because everyone is busy with their life and kids. She realizes she isn’t where she thought she would be in life. She has to deal with dating weirdos while she is looking for love. This movie does a great job of dealing with these themes in a fun and quirky way. More importantly, it shows that what was important to us in high school isn’t what is important to us today. The friends, rivalries, and goals of our lives have shifted with our worldview, and that is okay.

This is probably more analysis of a b movie that probably wasn’t intended to be taken as seriously, but I liked it so much that I felt obligated to do so. This movie is a lot of fun for what it is; a dumb movie about getting old. The actors are fine, the characters are unique and memorable, and it has a solid narrative. It is cheesy, but that’s okay because it works. You can watch it for free on YouTube.

YouTube Movie Review: Clue (1985)

I had a lot of fun watching Clue. This movie is cheesy and over the top, but it is a tone fitting for the narrative. I mean, who doesn’t love an over-the-top Tim Curry performance? The rest of the cast is fantastic! Each character is unique and memorable, and the way they work together truly sells this movie. The writing is also great! I am a huge fan of humor based on wordplay, and this has more than enough to satisfy my itch. I laughed through almost the entirety of this movie, despite the story being full of murder.

As far as movies based on board games go, this is great. It is better than Real Steel, and it is leagues better than Battleship. This movie gives me hope that maybe one day we can get a good movie that is based on a video game or board game that isn’t generic garbage. As far as murder mystery movies go, I think it is fine. It isn’t meant to be a serious installment of the genre, but it is a fine attempt. I don’t have too many examples to compare it to, but it was better than Murder on the Orient Express.

I don’t think this movie is for everyone. I think the cheesy tone and the jokes might be a bit much for some modern audiences. If you are a fan of murder mysteries, this might not be enough to scratch your itch either. It might not be serious enough. This is more for people who enjoy this era’s humor and enjoys hyperactive narrative. But it is free on YouTube. You can do a lot worse for free.

YouTube Movie Reviews: Battle Beyond The Stars (1980)

Battle Beyond the Stars is a Sci-Fi movie I didn’t know I needed in my life. YouTube has been recommending this movie for a while now, and today I finally decided to give it a try. I found it delightful. Fans of Sci-Fi or Fantasy, this is the movie for you. There are space battles, an evil warlord, unique characters, and an epic journey. This is a fun film, and I recommend it to everybody. 

I will say that some modern audiences might find the pacing a bit slow. I believe the pacing to be fitting, but it is something to keep in mind. The movie is also very cheesy, but the cheesiness is part of the charm. For those of you who love cheesy 80’s, you should at least consider Battle Beyond the Stars.

My favorite aspect of this movie is the creativity. From the different aliens to the space ships, the filmmakers build a universe that feels diverse and expansive. You can tell this movie was low budget, but that doesn’t matter because the story is worth it. I didn’t care that some of the spacesuits were cardboard and duct tape. I didn’t care that the space battles were toys. I didn’t care because the story was so compelling. I admire how much suspense this movie creates with such a small budget.  Battle Beyond the Stars proves that a good movie doesn’t have to have a million-dollar budget to be good. All it needs is a good story.

For those interested, you can watch it on YouTube for free.

YouTube Movie Reviews: Arthur and Merlin (2015)

This movie is boring, don’t watch it. The acting is bad, the pacing is terrible, and the plot is generic and predictable.

What kills this movie for me is the pacing. It is slow; nothing ever happens. The only reason this movie is two hours long is that everyone talks so slowly. I don’t mind slow-paced movies when they are fun and interesting; this is neither.

There is no world-building. I can’t tell you where the story is set or what is going on because the storytelling is bad. I will forgive a lack of world-building if the action and the characters were interesting, but this isn’t the case here. Arthur is a generic noble action hero. Merlin is a weird cringy character. I think they wanted to make Merlin the comic relief, but none of his jokes are funny. The rest of the characters are forgettable. Even the villain fails to hold any weight in the narrative he is controlling. It is difficult to care about this movie when nobody on screen is interesting or unique.

The plot fairs even worse. Arthur and Merlin are on a journey to stop the evil wizard from summoning the ultimate evil. They blow through easy encounters and tell terrible jokes along the way. There is no urgency, despite the timer counting down. Nothing happens in this movie.

There is too much wrong with this movie for it to be worth your time. The fights are boring, the magic is inconsistent, and the pacing is horrible. Don’t watch this movie! Even if it is free, your time is better served elsewhere.

If you don’t believe me, you can watch it free on YouTube.

YouTube Movie Reviews: Permanent (2017)

This is a hard movie to recommend because of how niche the tone and pacing are. The pacing is slow, the characters are awkward, and the story is mundane. This is a very quiet movie about a group of awkward characters becoming comfortable with themselves. If you are a fan of Napoleon Dynamite, you will probably enjoy this movie. It has similar pacing and tone, although it is a bit tamer.

Permanent is a coming-of-age story about a young girl trying to fit in. As these movies go, she spends the whole movie figuring out where she fits in. There is a lot of emphasis on the mundane and weird aspects of life in a sleepy town somewhere in Virginia. I like the family dynamic that plays out on screen and the journey Aurelie goes on. The problem with this movie is the pacing, it can drag at points, but it is a pace fitting for the narrative.

This movie is a cute story about people overcoming their insecurities. The pacing and the subject aren’t for everyone. I recommend watching this in the background while you do chores or the like. You can do a lot worse for free. You can watch it on YouTube or Amazon with a Prime subscription.