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kaygravelle
Reviews
Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)
A fun lil adaptation
If you are a die-hard RWRB book fan you've got to see this movie almost as a work of fanfic. This is Matthew Lopez playing with our two fave guys and just putting them in situations just to watch what they do.
The plot deviates a bit from the book but I loved the way this new version played out almost as much as I loved the book.
The two leads are perfectly cast and have loads of chemistry. It was nice to see a queer story with SO MUCH SMILING!
The way they did the text and phone interactions was super cool and gave those interactions the perfect feeling of getting close to someone even when you're far away from each other.
The Paris scene? God. Intimate to the point of almost needing to look away for fear of intruding on a beautiful, personal moment.
I laughed, I squeed, I cried at Henry's sad puppy face, and I cheered for Alex & Henry to have their love with no pushback.
Also, Amy & Zahra we're *chef's kiss* so perfectly cast and played by their respective actresses.
I'll be watching again just like I used to do with silly little romcoms when I was a kid only this time I get to experience a love story that represents my community and that's super cool.
The Little Mermaid (2023)
A lovely lil updated mermaid tale
Guys, Prince Eric has an actual storyline in this one!
I love how they had him be as passionate about life underwater as Ariel is about life on land and that both of them were struggling to be heard until they met each other.
The visuals were more lovely than I expected (flounder notwithstanding), especially during Under the Sea and Kiss the Girl. Halle's voice is truly gorgeous and she really embodied Ariel beautifully. I love her and Eric's day out together. Halle did an excellent job using her face & mannerisms to communicate without speaking.
Melissa McCarthy sounded and looked fantastic but I found her Ursula to be a little hokey. I liked poor unfortunate souls more when I listened to the soundtrack than I did with visuals. Melissa is a gem though and it's always nice to have her.
I especially enjoyed good ol' Grimsby in this adaptation. He was perfect and oh so helpful.
Daveed Diggs was a great Sebastian and he and Scuttle had me giggling throughout.
My one criticism is that 2h15m is a bit of a marathon for kids in a theatre but luckily the popcorn and the songs kept them mostly paying attention/occupied.
I can't wait till it hits Disney+ so I can rewatch it a million times!
Requiem (2021)
Bella is a force
The emotions this actor can convey without uttering a word are truly exceptional. This was a short and devastating film and yet both Bella and Safia filled the screen with emotion and longing surrounding their forbidden love. In less than a half hour I was ready to fight for them to be together; pretty impressive overall.
Evelyn's resignation about her future juxtaposed with Mary's more hopeful, seemingly nonchalant attitude is fascinating to watch riiight up until it becomes devastating.
Bella's performance during the final scenes is so heart-wrenching. No one does agony quite like Bella Ramsey. If you're into short, historically-inspired horror this is for you.
The Last of Us: When We Are in Need (2023)
WILD RIDE
Holy crap on a cracker this was an action-packed episode.
Being a veteran of the Hannibal fandom, I guessed pretty early on what was going on with David's group (I haven't played the game so I went in blind but no show focuses on shots of the food unless you're going to seriously regret watching people eat it lololol) and it was perfectly awful.
The twist that David knew exactly who Ellie is was so well done as were the scenes with Ellie in the cell. Bella is a force and it's so great to watch them play all the parts of Ellie. Last week she was all sly grins and heart eyes and this week she's weaponizing her bite, breaking fingers and stabbing dudes. Get you a girl that can do both.
I am on the edge of my seat all week waiting to see how this season ends. It's been a hell of a ride.
The Last of Us: Left Behind (2023)
To the "Filler Episode" folks
I've just finished a rewatch of the series and the events of 1x07 are referenced by Ellie in every single episode. This was clearly a massive moment in her short life and is shaping her entire approach to her continuing existence. Not wanting an expansion on those references is indicative of folks not caring about character development! Or, of course, "filler" could just be the term a lot of people have decided to hide behind rather than coming in mask-off with their bigotry.
This episode was a beautifully shot, gorgeous look at two children of the End of the World who managed to connect with each other in a world where holding onto humanity is easily one of the hardest things to do. I loved the simple things we take for granted being so THRILLING to Ellie and that Riley knew they'd be thrilling to her. I also loved that I totally believe that Bella Ramsey had never seen an escalator before; solid acting going on there!
These "slower" episodes are strategic. The show is called The Last of Us but it doesn't just mean the last humans, it's talking about our humanity. Humanity is arguably the main character and to be able to see the things that have tested people's humanity and how they evolve after each of those tests is the point of the show. The mall was the biggest test of Ellie's humanity. To face death bravely after you've just touched love for the first time and then to survive while your best friend and strongest connection not only dies but dies at your hand? This episode has already informed every move we've seen Ellie make so far and now that Left Behind has brought us all in to the fold we'll be very aware of what is influencing Ellie's moves in the episodes to come. In my opinion this episode is one of the most important ones we've seen so far.
Accused: Ava's Story (2023)
I enjoyed it
There wasn't really a "bad guy" here (although Max had his moments). It was a really interesting exploration of communication, listening and perspectives and I enjoyed it.
Everyone did a really beautiful job acting. Ava's connection with Jenny was very lovely and was the thing I really mourned as the story unfolded. Most hearing parents of deaf/hearing loss kids don't have a person who can help built right in and if Max had been able to CHILL for a minute I feel like they all could have built something really beautiful for Lucie right off the bat. It's this perspective that leaves me not unhappy with the ending. I agree with the judge, it would have been a miscarriage of justice to lock Ava up for 15 years. I do think some consequences were necessary, like mental health support but that's not always interesting television. In the end I thought this was a really important 44 minutes of television and I encourage folks to forget about the realities of the justice system for a moment and really listen to Ava on that stand because she's saying some incredibly important stuff.
Bollywed (2023)
Just a really good time
This family is wonderful. Watching their adventures these last five weeks has been a delight and an honour. Kuki is hysterical and so, so sweet and he and Sarab are such a lovely couple. I appreciate how they support each other and their children.
It feels like a special thing to get to see the fashion and the people that come through the store. I especially appreciate Chandan's ongoing commitment to inclusion of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and was ecstatic to see the show go out of it's way to showcase the diversity of the community Chandan Fashions serves.
If you're looking for a feel good show that doubles as a bit of an education about another culture this is 100% the show for you.
A League of Their Own: Perfect Game (2022)
Turns out there IS crying in baseball
My goodness this was an excellent series with these last two episodes being jam-packed with action and emotion all while setting up the next act (c'mon season 2!) with a delicate perfection that you don't even notice until that final moment hits and you realize you still need so much from these characters and their lives.
I hope we'll see all these folks again next season and have the chance to see Max grow into her independence and identity and Carson grasp her identity firmly and revel in her freedom. I'd love to see Shirley, Annabelle, Jess and Lupe get into some shenanigans together, and of course, spend more time with Uncle Bert & his world. There's so much left to explore!