Grant Minnick's Movie Reviews

“I’d like to purchase some of your finest beer, please!” - Billy Batson a.k.a. Shazam Shazam! is a new DC superhero movie starring Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Mark Strong, Djimon Hounsou, Grace Fulton and Cooper Andrews.  The film is directed by David F. Sandberg, and follows Billy Batson, (Angel), a young orphan who acquires the powers of an ancient wizard, causing him to turn into a grown superhero (Levi) when he says the word Shazam.  When the Seven Deadly Sins are released upon the world, our hero sets out to stop them. I really enjoyed Shazam! , and I consider it to be one of the best DC movies in recent years.  DC has not really been setting too high of a bar for superhero films lately, but I am really happy that this one turned out to be as good as it was.  I will begin this review by saying that all of the acting in the film is universally really, really good. Zachary Levi brought so much fun and energy into his performance as Sha...

“If you wanna get crazy, we can get crazy!” - Gabe Wilson Us is the second motion picture from modern horror master Jordan Peele.  It stars Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseph, and Evan Alex.  The film tells the story of the Wilsons, an African-American family who are on a vacation.  When they are hanging out in their house one night, a family of doppelgangers comes and breaks into their home.  And so begins another fantastic and twisty tale from Jordan Peele. I am a huge fan of Peele’s previous film Get Out .  With Us , he proves himself again.  The direction in this film is masterful, and so is the writing.  Peele can craft a smart, surprisingly funny and socially aware horror flick better than most modern horror directors can today.  The story is deep, complex, and intricate, and makes you really think about the events you just witnessed. There are enough crazy twists in this movie to keep you invested, while also being...

“Don’t worry about being the next me.  Be the first you.” - Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Fighting With My Family is a comedy-drama based on the real life story of former female WWE wrestler Paige.  The film is written and directed by Stephen Merchant, and stars Florence Pugh, Nick Frost, Lena Headey, Jack Lowden, Vince Vaughn, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.  The story follows the Knights, an English family consisting of all wrestlers. When 18 year old Saraya “Paige” Knight (Pugh) and her brother Zak “Zodiac” (Lowden) get offered a chance to make it big in the WWE, only Paige gets accepted to the next level, creating conflict between she and Zak.  Enduring grueling trials during her training course, Paige strives to become the next reigning Divas champion. I went into this movie not quite knowing what to expect.  What I got was an inspirational, uplifting, heartwarming, and surprisingly funny film about following your dreams, doing the impossible, and what...

“I do not stand by in the presence of evil.” - Alita Alita: Battle Angel is the new film by director Robert Rodriguez.  It is a cyberpunk sci-fi action movie starring Rosa Salazar as the title character.  Also starring are Christoph Waltz, Mahershala Ali, Ed Skrein, Jennifer Connelly, and Jackie Earle Haley.   The film is about Alita, a young cyborg girl rebuilt by Dr. Dyson Ido (Waltz), who just wants to know more about her past, and where she came from.  Ido is very protective of her, as there is a lot of crime happening in the streets. Nonetheless, the curious Alita goes out exploring every day, and meets a boy named Hugo who she falls in love with.  Meanwhile, there is some villainous activity going on involving a man named Vector, and a mysterious figure called Nova who lives in Zalem, a giant floating city where all the upper-class people live that hovers above the city below that is home to all the lower-class citizens. Alita: Battle Angel is a...

“They’re coming to get you, Barbra!” - Johnny Night Of The Living Dead is a 1968 sci-fi horror film directed by George A. Romero, and starring Judith O’Dea, Duane Jones, Karl Hardman, and Keith Wayne.  The film starts with Barbra (O’Dea) and her brother Johnny going to a cemetery to put flowers on their late father’s grave. It is there that they have their first encounter with a zombie.  Johnny falls, hits his head on a gravestone, and dies. Barbra runs back to her car, and makes her way to a farmhouse where she meets Ben (Jones), a strong and kind black man who takes charge of beefing up the security of the house.  There, the two of them meet Harry Cooper, the antagonist of the film, his wife Helen, their sick daughter Karen, and young lovers Tom and Judy. It is then that they realize that they need to work together as a group to survive. This movie was absolutely revolutionary in that it was really unlike anything anybody had ever seen before at the time. ...

“That’s a bingo!” - Colonel Hans Landa a.k.a. The Jew Hunter Inglourious Basterds is a 2009 war film starring Brad Pitt, Eli Roth, Michael Fassbender, Mélanie Laurent, and Christoph Waltz, and directed by my all-time favorite director Quentin Tarantino.  Set back in WWII in Nazi-occupied France, the film tells two different stories about revenge against the Third Reich. One of these stories is about a Jewish woman who creates a new life for herself under a new name and sets up a plan to kill the Nazi colonel who killed her family.  The other story follows the journey of The Basterds, a group of Jewish-American soldiers who have one goal in mind that they intend to achieve: kill as many Nazis as possible. I shared this movie with my father the other night, and needless to say, he loved it.  My father and I have bonded over many different movies together, but Quentin Tarantino movies are usually the ones that we have the most fun watching and talking about. ...

“I feel like I’ve been in a coma for the past twenty years.  And I’m just now waking up.” - Lester Burnham American Beauty is a 1999 comedy drama film directed by Sam Mendes, and starring Annette Bening, and Kevin Spacey.  The movie is about Lester Burnham (Spacey,) a 42 year old man whose marriage and life are tearing at the seams. Throughout the film, the lives of people related to Lester in some way are explored, including his own family, people he works with, his neighbors, and his acquaintances.   I wanted to take the time to talk about this movie in depth with no restraint on spoilers, but since I recognize that there are people who have not seen the film, I will first go over my basic thoughts of it, and get into the really in-depth stuff later in this review.   I will start by saying that this film is a true masterpiece, and I believe that it’s a film that should be seen by everyone at least once before they die.  It’s a brilliant satire on ...