I’m still trying to catch up on reviewing everything I have watched this year because I have watched a lot of things. Hopefully, I’ll catch up soon now that I’m blogging consistently again.
btw, I would love to add more people on Letterboxd, if you have an account please share your username in the comments. My username is @sofiazuluaga
Dune Part 2 (5 stars): This movie was so incredible that no review can do it justice. The pacing of this was relentless, it didn’t let me catch my breath, and the way sound was used kept me focused, it made it impossible to look away. I was at the edge of my seat the entire runtime and this is not a short movie. The cinematography was breathtaking and the performances were outstanding. There were so many charismatic actors in this movie and they all did a fantastic job. This is my favorite role of Timothée Chalamet, I also loved Austin Butler, Zendaya, and Rebecca Ferguson. To name just a few. Javier Bardem stole the show, he was hilarious, and by the end of the movie I wanted to slap him. There are some interesting themes explored in this movie about fanatism and the use of religion to control people, and I think that exploration was handled well. I can’t wait to see where the story goes in the next movie.
Asteroid City (3.5 stars): Visually this movie was so cool, the performances were great and, overall, it was an entertaining movie with a quirky humor that worked well. Unfortunately, thematically it went over my head. But as the movie says: “Don’t try to understand it. Just keep telling the story”, so I just kept watching and enjoying it even if I didn’t quite understand the point it was trying to make.
Top Gun: Maverick (4 stars): I usually don’t watch action movies, so I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed this as much as I did. This was very entertaining, the action scenes were mindblowing, the movie was so intense, and Tom Cruise did a fantastic job in his role. Also, the soundtrack was great. My one issue is that I wish there was more time spent on the relationships between the characters. I especially would have liked to see more of Maverick and Rooster, because the reconciliation felt a bit unearned; it seemed like there was an important conversation between them missing from the movie.
Players (3 stars): This wasn’t terrible from an entertainment point of view and I liked the performance of the two protagonists. But it slightly romanticizes stalking, and the movie spends too long focused on the wrong relationship. I love friends-to-lovers stories but not like this, not when it happens like an afterthought towards the end of the movie, there needed to be more time and scenes spent on the actual romance in this romantic comedy. It needed a lot more pinning and a bit more angst.
Upgraded (2.5 stars): I was stressed the entire time while watching this, the main character made terrible decisions, one after the other. Then at the end, everything gets magically fixed which was obviously going to happen because it’s a rom-com, but it was a bit frustrating how unrealistic the ending was. Also, the movie spends so much time focused on other aspects of her life that there were not enough scenes between the two protagonists for me to be invested in their relationship.
Four Weddings and a Funeral (3,5 stars): This movie is funny, the friend group is great and Gareth and Mathew’s story is devastating. There is a lot to like about it. My issue is that the main character Carrie is so poorly written, she has no personality beyond sleeping with a bunch of men and being manipulative. Also, the two main characters barely know each other. For those reasons, I couldn’t really be invested in the romance.
Book Club: The Next Chapter (3 stars): I appreciate that they are making more rom-coms with older women as protagonists. This wasn’t great but it wasn’t terrible either. It had some funny moments but also a lot of the jokes didn’t land. Still, it had a beautiful setting and was a perfectly ok movie to pass the time.
Irish Wish (1.5 stars): This was terrible. Most of the performances, the script, everything was terrible. The one thing that made this bearable was Lindsay Lohan’s performance; she was the only not terrible thing in this terrible movie. If you think I said the word terrible too many times in this review, you don’t want to know how many times they said “Paul Kennedy” in the script of this movie.
Theater Camp (4 stars): This was a joyful, chaotic, heartfelt, funny movie. The performances were great, and especially the kids stole the show, they did such a fantastic job.
Pride and Prejudice (5 stars): This was a rewatch obviously. The cinematography in this movie is so lovely, as well as the costume design. The script adapts the book and captures its essence so well. The performances are all subtle but wonderful. And the love story, the chemistry between the characters, it just impossible to look away from them. The scene of the love confession and subsequent rejection under the rain is such a masterful scene and it perfectly encapsulates the theme of pride and prejudice of the story.
Música (3.5 stars): This was fun and creative and you can see Mancuso’s passion for this story. It’s visually interesting, the music scenes were cool, and the puppets were a surprisingly good addition. The representation of Brazilian culture gives this such a unique touch and Camila Mendes does a great job infusing her character with so much charm. Everyone is saying that this is a rom-com and parts of it are, a big part of the movie is focused on Rudy’s relationships, but I think it’s mainly a coming-of-age story. As such, I think the last part of the movie was a bit rushed and could have been more fleshed out, for the main character’s journey to be more satisfying. There’s a scene that lasts about 15 minutes towards the end of the movie, which is so stressful that I was distressed watching it. Mancuso did such a great job acting and directing that scene. And in general, the movie.
Bookish Wanderess 
I truly do not understand all the hype I saw back when Upgraded came out, it was such a bland rom-com, with not much romance tbh. But Pride & Prejudice always saves our need for romance 😍
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A re-watch of Pride and Prejudice is on my list of movies to watch! I recently decided I was going to watch the movie adaptations to the classic books I’m reading… so I have my work cut out for me! I’m on Letterboxd, you can find me at WhimsicalMM!
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