Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle

As I entered the theater today, I was very skeptical about seeing this film, having prejudices about it because of the original film, Jumanji, which starred Robin Williams and Kirsten Dunst. I really thought that it was lame putting Dwayne Johnson in such a role. Was I wrong? Yes, I was. I not only loved Dwayne Johnson in the film, but I commend him for being brave for taking the role of the geeky strong guy.

Karen Gillan, Jack Black, and Kevin Hart all did a superb job in bringing the movie to the golden screen. It may not be roles in which they will win an Oscar for or any award for that matter, but they definitely deserve a round of applause for making the chemistry between them work. I will watch this film again, in fact.

Defending Star Wars: The Last Jedi

For people who watched the Film:

Well, like everything in the world, you can't please everyone; however, since there are some critics on the movie that didn't like the new installment, I must say that I can't blame them because I can understand how it somehow lacked its prototypical warriors' journey.  For instance, the transition of Luke Skywalker from hero to a somewhat cowardice figure who got soft and couldn't cope with his nephew turning evil seemed a little off character to many people. His father was Darth Vader, for goodness sakes, and, he just gives up on the Jedi, the way of life in which he lived after all those years? Really?

But, if we really dig down to the core, Luke Skywalker in episode 8 is not the same as the Luke we all know from episodes 4,5,6. He is now an old man, all battered up from the battles of the past. We must construct that he may have seen his nephew, Kylo Ren, as his last hope for the way of the Jedi to survive. So, when he felt that Kylo was becoming more evil, naturally, he must have panicked because he would have interpreted it as the same transition his father, Darth Vader, underwent in the past. 

Episode 9, hopefully, clears much of the questions that episode 8 left behind. But, in terms of its worthiness in the spectrum of the Star Wars franchise, I am not disappointed.

Almost Christmas

Relaxing 

Well, as the year comes near to a close, it is almost time for Christmas once again. Many would say that Christmas is just another holiday, but it is much more than that. It is the time that we actually realize that we need other to be happy. Sure, we might actually know that subconsciously already, but for certain, it is on Christmas that we do actually hope that someone is thinking of us to hope for some kind of present on Christmas day, even if indeed that gift is just a pair of socks. We can hope for something more, but a gift indeed can just about bring out a smile, even in a form of disappointment because we never got the gift that we had hoped for to get. But, instead, we get a pair of socks.

The Random Nice Man

As I walked at the cross section this morning, I came across random people who walked to the opposite direction I was going to. And, in the mix, there was an elderly woman struggling to cross the street. Then, out of nowhere, it seemed, a rugged looking man appeared. He didn't seem like the type who would help an elderly woman cross the street that's for sure. But, he did.

It had left such an impression upon me that I still think about it 12 hours later. This shows that you just never know which person has a pure heart.

I hadn't found anything to write about until that very moment this morning. I was so touched by the care that the man showed to the elderly woman that for some unknown reason I had started to tear a little. Kind of sounds cliché, but it is what it is. It is those kinds of moments that makes a person realize that no matter how cruel the world may seem sometimes, there are good people that make the world a better place every day.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

I have a love-hate relationship with Star Wars. No matter how I try not to watch it, I end up seeing it anyway. For some reason, I always get swayed into watching it. Perhaps, I never quite understood why I liked it before. Growing up, I always thought that the themes in the series were too complex, probably because there are too many characters that even now I can't name them all. But, as a screenwriting student years ago, I began to understand why people love 'Star Wars'.....

I don't want to get into too much details because being a screenwriting graduate, I could go on forever about structure, character personas, and setting, etc. There's a reason why they teach screenwriting. Just like everything else in this world: there are right and wrong ways to do things. I just feel that learning screenwriting structure is not for everyone because it will change one's perspective on movies. Well, that being said, I must be the first one to admit that the creators of 'Star Wars' have mastered how to make people care about the characters. That is part of the aura that makes the entire series enticing to many viewers and readers of the saga. It goes beyond the cool outfits, the cool fighting scenes, and the bad ass villains.

I am also a big fan of Felicity Jones, so there is no way I am going to miss this new film in which she is the major character in.

INFERNO: Movie

Tom Hanks is a great actor. There is no question, but I am a bit disappointed with the movie in general because it is just so far off from the "Da Vinci Code" and "Angels and Demons"...... Perhaps, it may be because it is one of which I had never read the book version of. It seemed, to me, superficial. Don't get me wrong. I happen to like the previous two installments of the Langdon character in movie form, but something was definitely missing in this one. 

The movie is doing well in the box office, mostly because the Langdon character in "Inferno" is played by Tom Hanks. I don't want to give any spoilers to those who had not seen the movie. I just want to know if other people feel the same way after seeing the movie.

Watch the movie and tell me what you think.

Dear Readers:

To those who followed my sports blog page, I humbly had to delete it because I simply don't have the time to actually do any kind of research for the said topic.

Humbly,

Russell Pennwright