Peter Pan & Wendy (2023)

Peter Pan & Wendy (2023)

 

7/10

Starring

Jude Law

Alexander Molony

Ever Anderson

Yara Shahidi

 

Directed by David Lowery

 

This movie adaptation is some nice work by Disney. While it doesn’t quite capture the magical essence of the 1953 animated version it was adapted from, it carves its own path and brings out its own enchanting tributes to the tales of Peter Pan. The ending is particularly well-crafted, doing its best to answer questions like: Where did Hook come from? Why do Peter and Hook hate each other? and more.

I wouldn’t have thought Disney would go ahead with this much tweaking of the story, especially in a way that doesn’t make Peter Pan the all-around good guy. That alone made this movie captivating. The moral dilemmas shown, and the way the characters handle their situations, portray both Peter Pan and Hook as victims of each other’s decisions and as perpetrators of their conflicts.

The movie starts like the animation, introducing the Darling family: Wendy (the eldest), John, and Michael. The children are play-fighting in their room, causing havoc, when their father sternly reminds Wendy to grow up and act her age. This makes Wendy wish she could never grow up, which leads to Peter Pan arriving at her window.

I’ll skip many of the familiar events here since they mirror the animation, but the flight to Neverland takes a different turn. Of course, fairy dust and happy thoughts are still required to take flight, but when they arrive, Hook attacks them and even captures John and Michael.

Wendy crash-lands on the beach and is surrounded by the Lost Boys, who are led by Princess Tiger Lily. From here, the movie ventures down its own unique path. Peter Pan eventually comes to the rescue and reunites Wendy with the Lost Boys and her brothers, but their home is soon attacked by Hook and his crew. Everyone except Pan is captured.

On the ship, Wendy steps up to take responsibility for the Lost Boys and her brothers, even sacrificing herself for their safety. Then, we reach that funny part from the animation where Hook and his crew await a splash.

How Peter saves the day and how it all ends is something you’ll have to see for yourself when you watch this Disney movie on Disney+.

Is it worth it? Yes, this movie is worth the time I spent watching it, and I’ll definitely make time to watch it again in the future. It stars Ever Anderson, the daughter of Milla Jovovich, as Wendy, and Jude Law as Captain Hook.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)

 

7/10

 Starring

Chris Pine

Michelle Rodriguez

Regé-Jean Page

Justice Smith

Sophia Lillis

Hugh Grant

 

Directed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley

 

This movie is cool, and I can understand why it’s a hit with both audiences and critics. It has a nice blend of fantasy, adventure, and comedy. This family-friendly movie got me in the end with its emotions, and it did well in not making me guess how the stone, which is the centerpiece of the journey, would be used. While it was easy to figure out when the opportunity to use it arose, the movie distracted me with so much going on that I often forgot about the stone altogether. These distractions include a lack of solid plans, how seemingly amazing plans fall apart in the end, and just when you think our heroes are on their way to a happy ending, you remember the villains aren’t just bad—they’re downright evil.

The movie is said to stay true to its source material. Since I’m not a fan of the original material, nor have I read any of it or played any of its games (video or board), I’ll have to take the audience’s word for it. This alone is one of the movie’s biggest selling points—the way it handles its magic system and introduces someone like me, who knows nothing about the world of Dungeons and Dragons, to its lore. I got swept up in the charm of this movie and now look forward to a sequel.

The plot centers around Edgin (Chris Pine), who forms a crew with Holga (a barbarian and the adoptive mother of Edgin’s daughter, Kira), Simon (an amateur sorcerer), and Forge (a con man). The crew makes a living through heists, stealing just enough to take care of themselves. One day, a mysterious woman named Sofina approaches the group with a job, offering to join them. Edgin is hesitant, but Forge convinces him that this journey might even help him reunite with his late wife.

Things don’t go as planned, and Edgin and Holga are captured and imprisoned for two years. During this time, Forge steps in to care for Kira, while Simon flees. When Edgin and Holga are finally released, they discover that Forge is now a leader of a town, with Sofina by his side. Kira has grown close to Forge and sees him as her adoptive father. The reunion doesn’t go as planned, forcing Edgin and Holga to go on the run. They must rebuild their crew to steal back the treasures they lost during the heist that led to their capture. Meanwhile, Forge isn’t willing to let Kira go, and Edgin must prove himself if he wants to win back her trust and love.

This is a fun movie with plenty of twists and turns. I won’t say much more to avoid giving anything away, but it’s worth your time to check it out.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)

The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)

 

5/10

 

Starring the voices of

Chris Pratt

Anya Taylor-Joy

Charlie Day

Jack Black

 

Directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic

 

This movie is not engaging. The story is bland, the emotion is missing, and I applaud myself for staying awake while watching it. This new animation hasn’t received high ratings from critics, and I completely agree with their view.

The standard of cinema seems so low that audience ratings for movies like this are high. I’ve seen this movie rated on par with The Incredibles and The Incredibles 2, and it makes me wonder what people even find interesting. While the animation is colorful, it’s nowhere near the level of Toy Story. I was so disappointed, constantly expecting something more to happen. Each time I checked the runtime, I grew more disheartened. Knowing how much time was left and seeing nothing worthwhile unfold was frustrating.

This movie feels tailor-made to be a box-office hit, but even that is a sad achievement. The Mario games by Nintendo, dating back to the 80s, have been a franchise beacon for how gaming worlds should be built. The games are among the most recognizable and profitable in history. The addition of Donkey Kong and Yoshi has made every gaming journey into this world memorable. Unfortunately, this animation, much like the live-action movie from the 90s, fails to live up to that legacy.

Even the inclusion of Donkey Kong’s world couldn’t save this movie from being what it is—a setup for future Mario movies without any effort to make this one truly memorable. If you haven’t played the games or watched gameplay, you might find yourself completely lost while watching this movie.

Here’s the plot:

The story follows brothers Mario and Luigi, who quit their jobs to start their own plumbing business. Things aren’t going well, so when Mario notices a sewage issue in the city, he decides to investigate, hoping that solving the problem will give their business the boost it needs. Luigi joins him on the mission.

While investigating, the brothers are sucked into the Mushroom World. They get separated, with Luigi ending up in Bowser’s homeworld and castle, while Mario finds himself in Princess Peach’s domain. Bowser, bent on conquering the world, has stolen the Star Power-up to achieve his goal. He has one condition to stop his plans: Princess Peach must meet his demand.

Meanwhile, Mario meets Toad and Peach, who introduce him to how this new world works. Together, Mario and Peach must save her world—and, in turn, Luigi—from Bowser’s clutches.

In the end, we’re forced to sit through this movie, which feels more like a springboard for future franchise instalments than a memorable standalone film.

Murder Mystery 2 (2023)

Murder Mystery 2 (2023)

 

6/10

Starring

Adam Sandler

Jennifer Aniston

 

Directed by Jeremy Garelick

 

If you saw Murder Mystery 1 and thought your life was missing a part two about the remaining alive characters, and what happened to those two unprofessional humans who happen to be married and forced into detective work, well, Netflix has got you. It may have taken four years, but Netflix delivered with a part two, and I enjoyed it just as much as the first one.

The first film had its haters, with many saying that Sandler and Aniston (as Nick and Audrey Spitz) weren’t strong enough as a duo to carry the movie. But I disagreed then, and I still do now.

This sequel is just as good as the original—and could have been even better if they toned down the “dumbness” of the couple, who have now decided to become real-life private detectives. Funny enough, they’re worse at solving cases when being paid for it than when detective work was just thrown into their laps.

In this film, Nick and Audrey are struggling with their failing detective agency when they receive a wedding invitation from their friend Vik, who’s joined by Colonel Ulenga from the first movie. (The Colonel, by the way, is now missing an arm after saving Vik from an assassination attempt.)

During the wedding preparations, Vik gets kidnapped. Amid all the commotion, a murdered man is found in his place. Nick quickly suspects that this was a diversion to allow the real culprit to escape with Vik. He rushes outside just in time to see Vik being taken away in a boat.

Nick and Audrey decide to involve everyone at the wedding as they try to use this case to prove their worth and save their struggling agency. But their plans take a hit when Vik’s company hires a professional hostage negotiator with a skilled team of detectives to handle the situation.

Things could have been smooth sailing from here, but the kidnappers specifically demand that Nick and Audrey handle the money exchange. Naturally, this goes horribly wrong, and before long, the couple is being framed for both a murder and the kidnapping.

Watching how Nick and Audrey wiggle their way out of this chaos is a lot of fun. The movie delivers even more intense and silly moments than the first one. While I didn’t laugh out loud as much this time, I was completely hooked, curious to see how all the madness would eventually unfold.

Murder Mystery 2 is out now on Netflix—go check it out!