review
Reviews of the top geek movies, tv, and books in the industry.
The Breakfast Club Review
This review comes from my Letterboxd profile, where I review all of the movies I see. This is a movie that I should have watched ages ago. I started watching it in my sociology class on Thursday, after which I bought it on Criterion Blu-ray because I knew it would be a special movie for me. I continued it on Friday and I just finished it now. I'm gonna watch it again with my parents tonight to get a better idea of how the movie feels watching it in one sitting, but for now, I just have to say that this is the kind of movie I especially love: a movie that explores the lives and inner thoughts of a bunch of people just trying to make it out of a certain situation. The Breakfast Club definitely has some 80's sexism thrown in there every now and again and some of the relationship arcs between the characters don't feel completely cohesive, but I really can't say that there's anything big wrong with this movie. It's just fun.
By Jamie Lammers5 years ago in Geeks
The Day of the Doctor Review
This review comes from my Letterboxd profile, where I review movies and limited series consistently. Yeah, I'll admit, as a piece of media on its own accord, The Day of the Doctor definitely has some structural issues that would actually make this more of a four-star program. That being said, as a Doctor Who fan, there are so many perfectly built-up and established arcs here and the ending (for the most part) is so phenomenal that I have to give it four-and-a-half. Yes, it definitely does appeal to the geeky fan side of me that loves this show (and admittedly, it sometimes does it too much, which I will get into), but overall, this is a really great episode of the show and probably the best 50th anniversary special the crew could have made.
By Jamie Lammers5 years ago in Geeks
Warren Miller's Timeless Movie Review
This review comes from my Letterboxd profile, where I write movie reviews for everything I see. My school hosted a special showing of this film because part of the film was shot in Eldora, which is actually really close to the school. It prominently features places in Nederland and Boulder and even has a face or two that most of the audience personally knows. Plus, my parents love watching Warren Miller's skiing films, and since this is the 70th film made under his name (even though he had no involvement in the production since he died in 2018), this is a pretty special one. So what did I think? This is another one of those instances where, in terms of the filmmaking, I would probably give this four stars, but in terms of my personal enjoyment of it, I would probably give it three.
By Jamie Lammers5 years ago in Geeks
My Review of "Awake"
Awake is one of Netflix's latest 2021 movie releases. I gained some interest from reading outline of what the movie was about. Unfortunately, there are a lot of inconsistencies throughout the movie that kind of makes the movie fall flat for me. It's too bad because they did have a very interesting concept but if you can't stick to your own rules then things get kind of muddy for me. I know how difficult it is to write sci-fi movies. At least we got a new sci-fi movie this year.
By Brian Anonymous5 years ago in Geeks
The Music Man Review
This review comes from my Letterboxd profile, where I write about all of the movies I watch. Okay, fine, this movie isn't an objectively perfect film in any way. I'll agree with the vast majority of people that the pacing starts to drag in the second half from what the first half set itself up to be, there are one or two songs that feel a smidge out of place, there are definitely a few dated aspects to this movie's plot (although not enough to feel like it harms the story at all), and the ending scene feels a little too over-the-top to feel believable even if it is the best ending a musical like this could have hoped for. That being said, I don't care. This movie excited me in a way that I haven't felt excited about in a while. I'm a theater kid, I've missed theater since quarantine started, I didn't remember how excited I got about it after a while. This is the first time I've been euphorically excited about musical theater since my school's production of Urinetown was canceled last spring. Meaning, this is the first time I've been euphorically excited about a musical since I was last involved in one. This is not a musical that was adapted into a movie, or even a movie musical. This is a musical in movie format, through and through. The choreography, set design, and character work is often captured in wide shots that capture the entire set, much like a real musical would allow you to see the entire set as everything happens at once, and as my mom pointed out, there are even moments where the lighting makes it seem like the stage lights are going out. I've never seen a movie fully embrace the format of a musical like The Music Man did, but my god, was it engaging all the way through.
By Jamie Lammers5 years ago in Geeks
Funny Girl Review
This review comes from my Letterboxd profile, where I review all of the movies I watch. God, I can't tell if I'm being easy or hard on this movie. Okay, so, let's get the positives out of the way first. The music is pretty good and well-written, and the singing is all great. The cinematography and direction is solid. The story beats for a potential rise to fame are all there and are all intriguing. That being said, I have a huge problem with this movie, and it's the two leads. Barbara Streisand and Omar Sharif do a phenomenal job in this film as actors, they're not the issues I have. The character of Fanny Brice is just consistently unlikable to me. Look, I want to make my stance clear on this issue: A lot of people interpret this film as an inspirational piece that shows a woman overcoming oppression to become successful in something that she's passionate about. That's a fantastic message, and Brice is not unlikable to me because of that struggle. She's unlikeable to me because, throughout the film, she and her love interest Nicky are shown to be completely stuck-up attitude-ridden people who believe they are special and deserve success because wow, they're so incredible and they're not recognized for how incredible they are. Brice has an entire opening number that basically says "No one notices how talented I am, look how amazingly talented I am, no one notices my talent" and then complains about getting a job because she didn't have to suffer through it first. How in the world am I supposed to relate to this character?
By Jamie Lammers5 years ago in Geeks
Best Player Review
This review comes from my Letterboxd profile, where I review every single movie I watch. Honestly, at this point, I'm having a lot of trouble being able to give anybody the benefit of the doubt here. I just finished my iCarly marathon earlier today (the day I wrote this review), and it was great. When I finished that marathon, I just scrolled through again to see what else there was and I saw Best Player, a movie I haven't seen in years and wanted to at least see one more time to get my thoughts on it. I really tried to at least give this movie another chance and try and see the positives in here, but honestly, there really aren't that many. The actors are trying their best and the direction is polished, but that's pretty much all I can say about this completely ridiculous and poorly thought-out film with an illogical script and poorly edited comedic timing.
By Jamie Lammers5 years ago in Geeks
An Adventure in Space and Time Review
This review comes from my Letterboxd profile, where I review every film I watch. I remember when I watched this film for the first time at a time when I was absolutely obsessed with Doctor Who. I adored this film and put it as one of my favorite films of all time. After watching it again now, it no longer falls in the top 10 or even necessarily in my favorite films, but I still think this is a really darn good TV movie, especially for Doctor Who fans. There's a lot to like about this movie, but there's also a lot that feels like already seen territory, so let's talk about all of that.
By Jamie Lammers5 years ago in Geeks
My Review of "Young Rock: Season 1"
Young Rock is a semi fictional and semi-non-fictional tale of the Rock, Dwayne Johnson. It's a new TV series that came out on NBC in 2021. It has a lot of elements that remind me of the writing from "Fresh off the Boat." Since I liked Fresh off the Boat you can probably tell that I really enjoyed this season.
By Brian Anonymous5 years ago in Geeks
