Triple Movie Review Weekend

AKA Tomb Raider (2018), I Kill Giants (2018), and Game Night (2018) 

Life has its ways of catching up with you one way or another. Between school requirements feeling more and more as a chore for kids, and work being more of a burden than it is as a blessing sometimes, everybody needs a break once in a while. You know what, let's watch some movies to destress and have a good time.

For the last few weeks there were some good movies that came out and a movie that I had so much hype for but was glad I didn't watch (*cough* *cough* A Wrinkle in Time *cough*). Oddly enough though the films I'll be reviewing are perfect stress breakers and one of these films is perfect for anybody dealing with loss.

Each mini review would be a condensed version of my thoughts. Before everything else though, here's a TL;DR on what I would rate the movies:

Tomb Raider 7/10
I Kill Giants 5/10
Game Night 10/10

Tomb Raider (2018)

Heading straight for the gates on Tomb Raider, just a quick recap on Lara Croft since her last venture in the film industry. Previously played by Angelina Jolie, playing Lara Croft necessitates that she be portrayed as a strong female role model. No prince charming shticks or damsel in distress scenarios, just a strong woman with a sense of adventure.

Pros:
- Definitely a strong performance by Vikander as the titular lead Lara Croft serving as a great role model for little girls everywhere
- Cutscene worthy sequences making it not only feel like you're watching a film but playing the video game as well
- Great villain portrayal by Walton Goggins, deranged, driven and intense as needed.
- Recreating Lara Croft's recent game reincarnation was a nice touch (Yes Lara uses a bow now)
-  World building and actually giving a backstory for Lara as to how she's even able to do what she does.
- Asian sidekick that wasn't racist ala Short Round in the previous Indiana Jones film (Daniel Wu was great)... and while were on it

• The way the film turned out makes her as this generation's Indiana Jones is a good way to establish the Tomb Raider franchise as a legitimate film series  hopefully bringing out new games for the current generation of consoles <3

Cons:
- Being driven to be daddy's little girl all throughout the film :(
- I'm pretty sure the scene at sea could cause seizures :o
- The "Tomb" could have been a bit more thought out going more labyrinth that it should of but that wouldn't be a fun film would it?

Verdict
Watch it while you can because in all seriousness it's a good film
7/10

Oh how far we've come

I Kill Giants (2018)

I had high hopes for this film. I really did. Its trailer gave me these vibes that were so reminiscent of my favorite film Scott Pilgrim Vs The World (highly recommend it not for the relatively simple story but for the graphics as well). I was ready to stay hyped and be invested while watching I kill giants and sure I was entertained but after the film, all I was feeling was confused and let down.as

Just a quick note though but apparently I Kill Giants was based on a a comic by Image Comics. Film adaptations are hard to translate to the big screen and looking at the source material I can definitely see why. Anyway off to the giant killing

Pros:
- Great cinematic effects for sure reminiscent of films such as the aforementioned Scott Pilgrim film
- Great character development delving deeper and deeper into the main characters psyche
- Zoe Saldana was perfect for her role
- Madison Wolfe as Barbara in this film is another entry into the awkward kid category
- Deals with heavy topics such as loss in a manner both respectful to the party experiencing it and the party assisting.
- Yay for LARPing and nerd culture being showcase

Great costume design BTW

Cons:
- Is there really suppose to be a Ron for every Harry Potter character?
- The giants weren't actual giants but a metaphor. (Let's face it you probably won't watch this film)
- All this exposition on giants but at the end of it all nothing actually happened
- So many expectations from the trailers shown of it before only to be a completely different film
- The whole film felt like it was missing some parts moving too quickly then moving just at the right pace
- Sure towards the end of the film watching it and understanding it's plot would make a lot of sense but between the forest giant and the whole train scene what actually happened behind the scenes. It's all in Barb's head but come on, how's the audience supposed to know. I get the random clues and all but the film just got to a point where it went straight for the feels instead of expanded where it should have. #rant

Anyway the film's a 5/10, definitely a nice movie for it's effects and main character and for being a sort of reverse Harry Potter (she even gets a bolt lol). You could skip this film and not really miss much honestly but it's still worth the money if you can spare the time and resources.

I'm interested in the comic now though (released 2008)

Game Night (2018)

Fastest review of my life. If you enjoyed We're the Millers and or need a really good laugh, watch this film. See it for yourself  if you can. Just know that I haven't laughed as hard as I did recently and it was because of this film. Perfect for a week ender especially if you had a really stressful work week.

Watch it. 10/10. No questions asked, take a ride and enjoy the film as I did.

See the trailer for yourself and enjoy <3