Grant Minnick's Movie Reviews

“He’s living proof our people can coexist.  He could unite our worlds one day.” - Queen Atlanna Aquaman is a superhero action movie directed by James Wan and starring Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Dolph Lundgren, Willem Dafoe, Nicole Kidman, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.  It tells the story of Arthur Curry (Momoa) a.k.a. Aquaman, and his fight against King Orm (Wilson) to prevent war in Atlantis from coming to the surface. Aquaman has a lot of things to like about it.  For example, I thought there were some cool visuals, and the colors were very pretty.  I liked the soundtrack, and the story was interesting. I thought that the way that Aquaman was portrayed in the movie was really cool, because you don’t really get to see many superheroes in DC movies that can find ways to laugh at themselves and make jokes in the heat of battle.  I thought that the majority of the acting in this film was pretty good for the most part, and I thought that Momoa a...

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry for everything.” - Earl Stone The Mule is a based-on-a-true-story crime drama directed by the one and only Clint Eastwood, and stars Clint Eastwood as 90 year old drug mule Earl Stone.  Also starring are Bradley Cooper, Michael Peña, Andy García, Laurence Fishburne, Taissa Farmiga, Dianne Wiest, and Alison Eastwood. The story follows Stone, who, dealing with family problems and financial difficulty, turns to running drugs to make a quick buck.  Meanwhile, Agent Colin Bates (Cooper) is investigating how all of these drugs are getting from one place to another, and who could be running them. I started getting into Clint Eastwood’s films a couple years ago when I watched The Outlaw Josey Wales for the first time.  Ever since then, it’s safe to say that I have been a fan of his work. However, with the way his last film The 15:17 To Paris turned out, I was a little worried that the director was losing his touch.  Man, was I wrong. ...

“The darkest nights produce the brightest stars.” - Memo Bumblebee is a Transformers prequel about how the Autobot Bumblebee came to Earth in the 1980’s.  Once he lands, he takes the form of a yellow Volkswagen Beetle, and meets a young girl named Charlie, who takes care of him.  The film is directed by Travis Knight, and stars Hailee Steinfeld and John Cena. I wasn’t expecting to love Bumblebee as much as I did.  When I walked out of theater with my little brother, after thanking me numerous times for taking him to see the film, he told me that it was his new favorite film of all time.  (His previous favorite was the excellent film Radio, followed by the Harry Potter series.) I chuckled at this, and while I definitely didn’t think that it was anywhere near good enough to be my new favorite film of all time, or even my new favorite film of 2018, I still really did love this movie. Bumblebee is the first modern Transformers film to not be directed by Micha...

“I’m a cotton-headed ninny muggins!” - Buddy Hobbs Elf is a 2003 holiday comedy film directed by Jon Favreau, and starring Will Ferrell as a human named Buddy, who was raised by Christmas elves.  When Buddy finds out that he is not an elf, but a human, he travels to New York City to find his real father, (James Caan) who happens to be on the naughty list.   After rewatching this classic film with my family on Christmas Eve, I was reminded of just how magical this movie really is.  This is a great family movie, and it’s easy to see why so many people love to watch it every year around Christmas time. To start off, Will Ferrell’s acting in this film is very impressive.  He reminds me of a new age Robin Williams. The enthusiasm and silliness that he brings to the role of Buddy really shows his passion towards not only this film, but also acting in general. James Caan, Peter Dinklage, Mary Steenburgen and Zooey Deschanel also shine bright.   The music i...

“Perhaps we’ve learnt, when day is done, some stuff and nonsense could be  fun! Can you imagine that?” - Mary Poppins Mary Poppins Returns is a new sequel to the 1964 Disney classic Mary Poppins.  The film is directed by Rob Marshall, and stars Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Whishaw, Colin Firth, Meryl Streep, and Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins.  When the now grown up Jane and Michael Banks find a notice of repossession on the door of their house, Mary Poppins shows up once more to save the day. To start with the things I liked, I thought that the acting was stellar all around.  Emily Blunt brings back the old Mary Poppins that we know so well, but also makes the character her own.  Lin-Manuel Miranda was great as usual, and Meryl Streep brought a charmingly zany performance which really worked well in contrast to the prim and proper aspects of Blunt’s Poppins.  I could tell that everyone relished their time on screen, and that was really a good thing...

“Spider-Man doesn’t wear a cape.” - Peter B. Parker Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse is the new Spider-Man film starring Jake Johnson, Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, and Liev Schreiber, and directed by Peter Ramsey, Robert Persichetti Jr., and Rodney Rothman.  When young Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) is bitten by a radioactive spider, he develops strange powers that could lead him to become the next Spider-Man. Meanwhile, the villainous Kingpin (Liev Schreiber) tries to open up a portal to different dimensions, which causes Spider-People from other realms to appear in Miles’s dimension. This film was extremely inventive, and creative, and showed us the virtually infinite directions that the story of our friendly neighborhood crimefighter could take.  To start off, the story of this film is incredible. This is easily one of the greatest Spider-Man stories ever told. The voice acting is amazing, and all of the actors did a fantastic job.  Speaking of actors, the...

“It’s a helluva thing, killing a man.  You take away all he’s got, and all he’s ever gonna have.” - William Munny Unforgiven is a 1992 western drama starring Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, Gene Hackman, Jaimz Woolvett, and Richard Harris.  The film is also directed by Clint Eastwood. After a prostitute is cut up by a drunken cowboy, the girls she works with offer a reward to anyone who kills the cowboy and his partner.  When retired gunfighter and outlaw William Munny (Eastwood) hears of the bounty, he and his friend Ned Logan(Freeman) go out to use their guns one final time, and carry out the deed. Unforgiven is in my opinion, a very fine western if ever there was one.  The script is written very well, and the dialogue gives a look into the complex minds of the characters.  I loved how the characters are not just one dimensional “good guys” or “bad guys”. They each have flaws, and redeeming qualities.  That’s one thing that I’ve always thought de...