How To Train Your Dragon 2

Oh boy. Oh boy oh boy.
I'm sorry this is so late, but first the premier screening I went to had a technical error and we only had sound but no picture. So the screening go cancelled after 45 minutes of them trying to get a picture, and I went home very upset. But later that day I found out that in the city 30 minutes away I could see it with original voices and without subtitles. Which for me is the dream. So two days later I finally sat down to watch How To Train Your Dragon 2. And goodness grief it was an heartbreaking journey.

The story of How To Train Your Dragon 2 about when Hiccup and Toothless discover an ice cave that is home to hundreds of new wild dragons and the mysterious Dragon Rider. The two friends suddenly find themselves at the centre of a battle to protect the peace.

Now, I the second reason I haven't gotten around to writing this post is that I am struggling to find the words to express how much I liked this movie and how it shattered my heart into a million pieces. Like, seriously, this movie should come with a dang warning. I had been so anxious about this movie because I've seen the reaction of some the people I follow on social media sites and it didn't seem to bode well for my emotional well being.
So I guess, sorry in advance if this is gonna be a short review.

First off I guess the positive and good points about this movie, because about the first hour or so was a parade of happy tears and laughter and I started to have hope about this not being so painful after all. Silly me.

So yeah, the dragon races and Hiccup and Toothless flying high in the sky and mapping about the islands surrounding Berk was amazing and I could physically feel my heart grow. And my gosh, I didn't think Toothless could be any cuter but DEAR ME, when he discovered his back flaps (or whatever they are called) I nearly died. HE WAS SO HAPPY AND ODDLY PROUD OF HIMSELF. JUST LOOK AT HIS LIL' FACE ♥♥(ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧♥♥

But as we all know nothing good last forever. And here I'm afraid I need to get into some spoilers, so do no read on if you don't want to be spoiled. I'll give a lil' signal to mark I'm done with spoiling.
[SPOILERS AHEAD]

So yeah. The worst part of this movie came not long after my naïve thoughts about this not being a sad movie. When Toothless was being controlled by the Alpha, my heart was already breaking. Seeing Toothless attacking Hiccup? Worst thing in the world. Because you know that Toothless would never ever ever hurt Hiccup, even if his own life was on line. So seeing him getting closer to Hiccup, knowing that underneath the mind control Toothless knew what he was doing but could do nothing to stop it. The guilt he must be feeling. It was awful.
And then it got worse.
And I died of a broken heart, right there in my seat in the cinema.
Because you know what I loved about the first movie? Hiccup and Stoick's relationship. How they grew to accept each other for who they are. Accepting each others flaws and differences. Them getting closer as a family. So seeing Hiccup and Stoick reunited with Hiccup's mother, and them slowly learning to how to be a family again. And then for it all to be ripped away only hours later? Haha, no thanks. And for it to be Toothless who killed Stoick? Double no thanks, mate. Just... just that whole scene with Hiccup shouting at Toothless afterwards and Drago leaving with Toothless was just too much. Honestly feeling a bit chocked up just thinking about the scene. And gods, I cried so much and it was so awful. I legit felt like sliding down my seat, curl up on the floor and howl like a wounded animal. I just wanted to make it all stop and eject myself from the situation. I don't think I've experience that kind of pain since the end of Catching Fire.

[END OF SPOILERS]


All in all the movie was super great and didn't really disappoint me in any way. Although, the first movie is still my favourite, and it will always be my all time favourite.
So to sum up; 1 hour of fun, 20 minutes of pain and anguish and then about 20 minutes of numbness mixed with an odd kind of happiness. I'm gonna end this now with the closing monologue of Hiccup. It really sums up what's great about these movies and why they mean so much to me.

"This is Berk. A bit trampled, and busted, and covered in ice but it's home. It's our home. Those who attacked us, are relentless and crazy, but those who stopped them, oh, even more so! We may be small in numbers, but we stand for something bigger than anything the world can pin against us. We are the voice of peace, and bit by bit, we will change this world. You see, we have something they don't. Oh sure, they have armies, and they have armadas, but we, we have DRAGONS!"

Guardians of The Galaxy - 3D

~ CUE SPACE MUSIC ~

Yep, another Marvel movie! Can't get enough of them. And this one is another great one, really. 

In terms of cinematography it's a real beauty, because with all the space of shots it gets really vibrant and colourful. And the music, that's only from the 70's and the 80's, really sets up the movie as a more comedy based thing, than for example the X-Men movies.
But that doesn't mean the movie is all laughs. I mean, the first few minutes, where we learn the background of Peter Quill, are quite sad but then it cuts to the title credits and the feel and tone of the movie changes rapidly.

(credit; Jessica)

And I guess, those two opening scenes really sets the entire tone for the rest of the movie. Sadness and laughs. Because as I see it, it's a comedy sprinkled with sadness.

But overall it's a fun ride, and yeah Gamora is a babe and my queen, also Groot is adorable.

Maleficent

Now, this movie was a movie I initially didn't really wasn't that interested in, because I don't really like Angelina Jolie (because of various reasons, I won't get into now). But because of a friend, who honestly is obsessed with Maleficent, I decided to give this movie a chance. 

And boy, what a great decision. This movie is a cinematic wonder, the vibrant colours and weird woodland creatures, made it a feel like a real Disney cartoon movie. Except that it totally wasn't cartoony, but looked real? Like of course the creatures looked cgi, but the nature and sky and all that background stuff (which I'm guessing also is cgi and green screen) looked natural and beautiful.

Now, since this isn't exactly just a live action version of Disney's Sleeping Beauty, I'm gonna just quickly summarize what Maleficent's about. Now this movie is told from "the big baddie"'s viewpoint, like why she was so pissed off at not being invited to the baby party. And it all started in a faraway land, with two kingdoms. One was ruled by the ruthless King Henry, while the other - known as the Moors - was home to magical creatures, such as fairies. The most powerful fairy of all was Maleficent.

And I think that's as much as I want to say about the plot, because the things that happen in Maleficent's past, is the most prominent thing we don't already know from the Sleeping Beauty cartoon. And I want you to experience that for yourself.

Jolie as Maleficent and her own daughter Vivienne Julie-Pitt as Aurora age 5.

One of the things I liked most about the fact that we got to see what excatly motivated Maleficent to go after young Aurora, was that the movie didn't try to make her actions seem entirely justifiable? Like, they didn't make her into a heroine on her path of justice, but at the same time they did. I don't know, they managed to make her both the hero and the villain without it seeming out of character or messy and confusing. You understood why she did what she did, even if you didn't agree with the way she did her thing.

I don't know what much more I can say without spoiling the movie, because most of the movie that involved Maleficent and her interactions with Aurora are a huge part of what differentiates this movie from the original Disney Classic. And I don't want to take that away from you. 

So all I can say really is that Jolie really hit it out of the park with her performance and even though I probably won't be running to the store to buy every Jolie movie out there, I have changed my view of her a bit. Maybe I just needed to see her in the right role (and maybe I won't be so mad at her for the Tomb Raider movies anymore). Oh, I've got to mention Elle Fanning too, because she played young Aurora with a joy and innocence that was so endearing. Also, I am so glad they actually cast someone who looks the age of 16, which Aurora is when she enters her eternal sleep.

So yeah, go see it, it is truly a fairytale movie and filled with darkness and light. I was positively surprised. Oh, and if you can, see it in 2D, don't bother with the 3D version. Didn't add a thing.



And sorry for the last posting, but I've been a bit busy lately and haven't had much of a chance to write this. Again, I'm sorry.

X-Men: Days of Future Past

Are you guys ready for me to cry and get all yelly about mutants? If yes, then read on, because this week's Movie Monday is about X-Men: Days of Future Past.

[intense sobbing heard in the distance]

Okay, so for those of you who have never seen any of the x-men movies, then I would recommend you either skip this week, or get your butt down to the dvd store and buy all previous movies and get on it.
But if you're somewhat familiar with the mutants and their adventures, then I can tell you this new movie is about the X-Men sending Wolverine back into the past to desperate panic to change history and prevent an event that results in doom for both humans and mutants.

I guess before getting more into the movie, I'll just say that if you liked the previous X-Men movies, or just X-Men: First Class, then please do go see this movie. It is totally worth it. Really.

The rest of this review will be filled with spoilers for the movie and the old x-men movies. Because I can't talk about anything in this movie without spoiling it. So you've been warned.

SPOILERS FROM HERE ON OUT!

Still with me? Good.
Now, I've only read about half of the comic that this movie is based on, and so far I've already found several changes. And the changes from the comics to the movie are for me fine, but then again I didn't read the comic back in 1981, so I don't feel any protection towards the storyline or anything. And the first major change I noticed was that they choose to put Wolverine as the person to go back into the past, and not Kitty Pryde like in the comic. And I totally understand why. First of all Kitty was portrayed by three different actors in the first three movies, and therefore was not a very prominent character and one that the regular movie goer would remember. So to suddenly make her the lead, and having to reintroduce her would just take up too much time. And time is a thing they don't have much of in the future timeline. So it was much easier - from a movie maker prospective - to go with the fan favourite Wolverine. And even with that they managed to make Kitty an important character as she's the one with the powers to send Wolverine back in time (in the comic, it's a mutant named Rachel Summers (daughter of Jean Grey and Scott Summers) that sends her back).

From left to right; Sunspot, Kitty Pryde, Iceman & Colossus. 

But enough about the comic and it's changes because the movie works just fine on it's own without you having read it.First things first, I'll say about this movie is that I had not expected to cry that much over it. I mean, I had expected to cry, because let's be real, I'm a major crybaby when it comes to movies (especially movies about mutants), so I wasn't that surprised. And the trailers did warn me about the emotional sea I would be diving into ("I don't want your suffering! I don't want your future!" haha no thanks). But hot damn on a tomato! It only took like the first opening lines about the humans slaughtering all the mutants and hunting them for me to shed my first tear. And then it was just downhill from there. I mean, every character basically had me crying over one thing or another? That autopsy picture of Angel? Yeah, no thanks I didn't need to see that. And then later her wing on display? Like how did they get it? Just ripped it off her? After she was killed? Before? 
Yeah, just the whole thing about Charles and Erik accusing each other of abandoning the mutant race and each other was just too much. And do you know how hard it is to hide the fact that you're crying when you just want to lie down in foetal position and howl like a dying wolf? Not easy I tell you!
So I had kinda a hard time. But enough of me crying at everything, let's talk about Mister Bolivar Trask!

Played by the lovely Peter Dinklage.

I actually liked this character even though he was supposed to be the "villain". But then again, I have a history of liking villains. Nevertheless, he was a great character, because he both feared and admired the mutants. Like, he wanted to study them to learn more about them (although his method of studying them would be better, if he just left them alive and did them no harm), and he appreciated them in a way. But at the same time he wanted to contain them and suppress them and keep them away from the humans. He's like those scientists who wants to keep the monster alive to study it, but also wants to kill it, so it won't hurt people. It's a complicated thing to want, but I think it makes for interesting characters. Because the whole ~conflicting morals~ is a favourite trait in characters for me. Which brings me to Erik  and Raven (Mystique).

Erik & Raven

Oh these two. Both of them constantly going through emotional turmoil and change. Erik wanting not to necessarily do evil, but willing to do it if it helps the mutants. And Raven just wanting revenge over her dead mutant brothers and sisters, while still trying to maintain her slowly dwindling innocence due to her getting more and more reckless and violent in her methods. Or at least that's how I see these two characters in this movie. And I god damn love it.

Okay, right now at the moment my mind is pretty blank on other stuff in the movie, because it's still trying to repair the emotional damage it received while watching it. So for now, this will be the review, until I've seen the movie again this Friday. Then I'll come back to this review and finish it off properly.

Deal? Okay, great.

Godzilla

So for this week's Movie Monday I'm gonna talk a bit about a giant reptile, that since 1998 have held an important place in my heart.

Now, this movie has been on my waiting list for a while now. As soon as I found out they where making another Godzilla movie, I started vibrating with anticipation. Because, I love Godzilla probably a little too much for a girl my age. I don't know what it is, but since I saw the 1998's movie, I was blown away by this giant monster with the charismatic roar. Like for real, I get chills every time I hear it. And thus began my love affair with Gojira.

The plot for this 2014 version is in short about a Nuclear Plant supervisor Joe Brody (Bryan Cranston) who loses his wife (Juliette Binoche) in a devastating accident. He then spends his next many years trying to figure out what really caused the accident, and why the government is covering it up. And then other stuff happens, which may or may not include giant Praying Mantis looking monsters and our beloved friend Godzilla. It's really hard to describe the plot in somewhat detail without giving away most of the movie.

That aside, I was really pumped up to see this new version of Godzilla, especially his new look and roar. And I must say, as much as I loved his slim 1998's look, his new body in 2014 is totally awesome and very reminiscent of his first appearance in 1954.
Just take a look at his picture at the right, that first showed us how the new Godzilla design would look like.
Isn't' he beautiful? So majestic.
According to Gareth Edwards, the director, Godzilla's design is inspired by bears and Komodo dragons; his face in particular is influenced by the heads of bears, dogs and eagles. Edwards said the eagle "has a lot of nobility, it made him feel very majestic and noble.". And I can totally see the Komodo dragon in him!

The movie itself was very well done, the score by Alexandre Desplat was so good and had that old monster movie feel to it, and I love what cinematographer Seamus McGarvy did with the colours. He apparently for the 1950s scenes, wanted "a peeled look with muted colors and diffused highlights." So to do this, he shot those scenes with vintage 1960s camera lenses and additionally had the shades of black in those scenes digitally tinted in magenta. Which made it look so good. And I love muted colours, so it was candy for my eyes.

One of the things I both loved and disliked about this movie was that Godzilla himself doesn't get fully revealed until like an hour into the movie. Which means I was absorbing every little glimpse and mention of him for the first hour like a god damn sponge. But it also meant that I was just about to burst with anticipation when he finally showed his full form. And god was that amazing, I nearly cried. Actually I looked like Brock from Pokémon every time he saw Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny. Big ol' hearts in my eyes.

I don't know what more really to say without accidentally spoiling the movie. Because there's some really cool stuff that I want to talk about, but it gives away kinda important plot points. So the last thing I'll say is that when you watch it just imagine me as Ken Watanabe's character Dr. Ishiro Serizawa. He was also looking and talking about Godzilla like he was a God. And rightfully so. He was probably my favourite human character in the movie, because he understood and recognised Godzilla as the force of nature he was. That we shouldn't try to contain or kill him. We can never win against nature. Which he makes a point out of in this clip.

So all in all, great movie, really enjoyed it. My love for Godzilla knows no bounds, and grew x10 times with this movie.

Now go see it! GO!

Pacific Rim

So I went shopping (despite having no money to spend) and saw Pacific Rim on sale for like 5,45£, so I caved and got it. And then I watched it with my parents. Because who doesn't love giant robots fighting giant monsters?

But yeah, Pacific Rim is basically about a war between humankind and monstrous sea creatures, and a former pilot and a trainee are paired up to drive a seemingly obsolete special weapon in a desperate effort to save the world from the apocalypse.

For all intents and purposes this was a great movie, a real popcorn flick (sadly I didn't have popcorn to chomp on while watching it). It had a great score by Ramin Djawadi, and beautiful cinematography. And I felt the pacing was fine, even though my dad thought it was a bit slow in the beginning, and yeah I can see what he means. Because the movie is one of those movies that has a slow build with a kinda long introduction of the characters and universe. Which I'm fine with, but my dear father have been tainted by his constant use of first-person shooter video games, and basically just want to watch stuff blow up and people dying.

But I really don't have much to talk about with this movie, because I think it has a real particular audience? Like, it's sci-fi, monster movie and an action movie. So if you do like things getting smashed up (but with reason and a plot), then give it a try? I liked it, but then again I have a thing for giant reptiles... which you'll find out next week when I get to write about the new Godzilla movie.

Vampire Academy: Blood Sisters

So this is a movie I've been waiting to see for about a year now. Pretty much since it was announced it was gonna be made. I've read the first three books, and am in the process of reading the fouth at the moment. So I was totally ready to see it on Valentines Day this year, but then, the company responsible for it's release here in Denmark, decided that, based on the lukewarm reception and ticket sale of the American release, that they didn't want to release it here after all. Meaning, that I had to wait for it to be released on DVD. So I did. BUT NOW ONTO THE MOVIE! (I just wanted to share my pain).

Now, it's been about around a year or so since I've read the book, so only like the main points stand out in my mind when I think about it, so I can't tell you exactly if it's a 100% true to the books, but I think that's a good thing. (Especially after what I experienced with watching Divergent right after rereading the book)
First off, before I start babbling about the movie, I'm just gonna give a quick recap of the movie and what it's about if you don't know.

The movie is about  Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They've been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger. St. Vladimir’s Academy is a boarding school where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them.

Our dear Lissa has to feed of Rose to survive.

The movie starts off great, following the book nicely, and moving at a decent pace. We are quickly introduced our main leads, Rose and Lissa and their friendship and current predicament. Thanks to Zoey Deutch who portrays her. She really gives Rose the spunk and sass she needs, but also shows us early on that in the beginning Rose is pretty much all talk no bite when it comes to real danger. She still has much to learn, our little warrior.

Lissa on the other hand, perhaps takes some time to like, but that's because when we meet her she is a troubled scared girl, who dislikes violence and just wants to fit in and stay low. But eventually she opens up and shows off a whole new side to her and you either like that side or not. I did, because I knew what was going on with her and could understand it. And I think even if I hadn't read the book, I would still feel that way. But besides Rose and Lissa the movie offers up another wide range of great characters. One of my favourite ones from the book was Natalie Dashkov, because at one point or another in our life, we've all been her. Just a little awkward and shy and wanting to be more.

And I like her cute attempts at optimism.

But another great character, that I had hoped to see more of, since I loved him the books, was Rose's friend Mason. But I guess he is more prominent and important to the plot in the second book. (so here's to a second movie!). He was just the right amount of friend to Rose but also the friend who is in love with Rose. I didn't feel at any time that we should pity him for linking a girl who just wants to be friends, or that we should hate Rose for "stringing him along" with hugs and kisses on the cheek. He seemed to have accepted that if he can't be her boyfriend, then he'd just be her friend and not make it weird for any of them. He just wants to be around her and be there for her when she needs it.

"Surely you have something more interesting to discuss than my ass?" - "Your boobies?"

And I just really liked that, because they've could have easily turned the whole thing into a typical love triangle, just because it is a teenage movie. And because some movie studios and writers have this crazy idea that young people love the infamous love triangle. (we don't). And then besides the friends of our main leads, we have the mean blonde high school girl, who appears in this movie in the form of Mia Rinaldi. And she was just as mean and evil as in the book. But like a likeable mean girl? Like, you understand why she's mean and I like when the villains have believable motives. And oh, then there's the love interests to our heroines Rose and Lissa.

The serious Dimitri Belikov with the glorious flowing hair.

The smouldering Christian Ozera with the amazing jaw.

They both have great chemistry with their romantic counterparts and I love how the romantic parts of the girls lives were not the important parts. Again, they didn't make the movie about boys and love. And gosh, did I love Christian and Rose bickering at each other, it just showed how much they both care about Lissa. And I also really liked that they actually cast someone who looks the part age wise. He looks just old enough for the age issue between Rose and Dimiti to feel realistic. And their age appropriate behaviour just furthers that point. 

Lindsay on OWN

On July 2013 Oprah managed to strike a deal with Lindsay and her people, to follow her around for a unknown amount of time, without a planned filming routine. The result was to be a one-on-one interview between Oprah and Lindsay, followed by eight episodes following Lindsay after her latest rehabilitation period. The official filming began in august 2013 and the first episode aired the 9th of march 2014 under the name Lindsay

In the first episode we start out by seeing a conversation between Lindsay and Oprah, where they talk about the months of filming to come. Oprah wants to make sure that Lindsay trust´s Oprah and her view on the matter, but also that Lindsay has to be completely honest with her and the camera crew.
Lindsay has just gotten out of her 6th rehabilitation stay, and to make sure that the viewer knows all of the success and downfalls Lindsay has had since the premier of The Parent Trap in 1998, they have listed it in a timeline, shown throughout the episodes.

We also see her struggling with having to pack all her stuff that she has managed to collect over the past 10 to 13 years, in order to move from LA to New York, as part of her healing process.
The following episodes show her struggle with finding an apartment (episode 2), her struggle with the docu-series deal (episode 3), dealing with community service and her work (episode 4), her frustrations with moving the furniture (episode 5), her incapability to keep appointments (episode 6), her wanting to move on with her life in New Yorkher partnership deals, whether that be with the "Just Sing it" app or future movies (episode7) and her partnership deals, whether that be with the "Just Sing it" app or future movies (episode 8).

Throughout all of the episodes we see all of the stuff she is doing in order to get better and back on the right track, but I can´t help to wonder if she is 100% committed. Even though she hires a personal trainer, it does not seem like she want´s to train or even meditate. The only time she is committed to something is when she talks about herself: e.g. in episode 2 she makes fun of the routines her personal trainer wants her to do, but when they sit at a cafe and talk she can´t stop talking. Also in episode 2, when she is sitting at a restaurant with her farther Michael Lohan, she stops him as soon as he starts talking about his "other" family (he has two children, one out of wedlock and one with his new wife).

Even though she try´s to convince us that she hates the paparazzi's and when people stare, it looks as though she is getting some sort of rush, being photograph or trying to escape paparazzi.
I enjoy watching documentaries a lot and especially about celebrities, it´s sort of a guilty pleasure. Watching their downfall gives me a tiny bit relief. And since I heard about this project, being cooked together, I got excited, because even though Lindsay has been in the eye a lot over the past ten or so years, she is sort of an enigma; The person you think you know, but don´t really know after all.

Another tiny issue I have with the series, is their filming technique. I know that documentaries are (often) filmed with a hand held camera and therefore the footage is going to look more rough than a high budget movie, but throughout all of the episodes it seems like the camera is having some focussing issues. Sometimes that issue can be rather minor, but in Lindsay it´s an ongoing problem, which in the end can cause a minor headache, especially when you, like me, watch all of the eight episodes in a row.

Some people mind find this docu-series rather boring, mostly because we follow the crew, the paparazzi and the people surrounding Lindsay more than Lindsay herself. However the times we hear Lindsay speak up, it is clear to see that she is a troubled person, who has people who want to help her, but at the same time treat her like a child and a spoiled brat, surrounding her. It´s as though the people behind the docu-series, Oprah and her company, are more interested in making a good docu-series, than actually helping Lindsay through her troubles, because every time the filming does not turn out as the crew want´s it too, when they don´t have enough footage, or when she has been behaving uninteresting, they want to break it off.
And I believe that the only reason Lindsay has come out with her list of sex partners and her "I-had-a-spontaneous-abortion" news, is a publicity stunt for the series.

All in all, I would recommend it to people who have followed Lindsay in the media and want to get a closer look in to her life and why she does the things she does. It has a lot of good moments, among the bad ones, and all together it manages to be entertaining and perfect time waster to watch.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

There's much I could say about the sequel for The Amazing Spider-Man, but a lot would spoil the movie. Most of interesting things about this movie is heavy with spoilers. I can't talk about it without giving away the best parts of the movie. So this review is gonna be short and to the point. Which is if you should watch it or not. So this review will be spoiler free.

The non-spoilery thing I can say is the general plot of this movie.
The second movie takes place a while after the first one, and for Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield), life is busy – between taking out the bad guys as Spider-Man and spending time with the person he loves, Gwen (Emma Stone), high school graduation can’t come quickly enough. Peter hasn't forgotten about the promise he made to Gwen’s father to protect her by staying away – but that’s a promise he just can’t keep. Things will change for Peter when a new villain, Electro (Jamie Foxx), emerges, an old friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), returns, and Peter uncovers new clues about his past.

The movie as it self works great, and I don't even think you have to have seen the first one before this. I mean, it's probably the best thing to do, but I don't think you'll be too confused if you are just familiar with the original origin story of Spider-Man and how he came to be. But I can only recommend watching the first one, because that is a great movie.

One of the only flaws, so to speak, in this movie is that I think it has one too many villains? It was the same problem I had with Spider-Man 3 (also that movie was spectacularly bad), because we had New Goblin, Sandman and Venom (who was my favourite Spidy villain as a child), all at once. It was just too much, because they all had to have their origin story crammed into the movie and it was just all over the place and bad. Which I think they came close to doing again with this one. They have two villains in this one, (sort of three), when only one would have been enough. I think they could have waited with the Green Goblet until the next one, because this move would have provided a great set-up for that particular character.

And speaking of villains, I did not really enjoy Electro. Mainly because his character, Max, before the transforming accident, was just too creepy. He totally belonged in an episode of Criminal Minds. He had one conversation with Spider-Man, (who was just being his usual nice self), and then BAM, he starts to imagine this whole friendship between him and Spidy, and it just got weird. It creeped me out. And his whole reason for doing evil was kinda weak too. I don't know, I didn't like him. But now that I think about it, and what I remember from the 1994 cartoon tv-series, most of Spider-Man's enemies were pretty lame in their goals and driving force? They were basically normal people who got into a freak accident, and then went on a rampage. Or I am totally wrong, and I am sorry. 

So other than that, I did enjoy the movie. Even though I was in a constant state of stress towards the end because I knew from the comic books what was going to happen at the end (one of the major spoilers). Oh, and also my heart was breaking for the character of Harry Osborn. Damn, did my love for him soar. I never really cared for him in the comics or the cartoon, or even the previous movies, where he was played by James Franco. He just seemed like a spoiled prick in those? But this movie gave his character heart and Dane DeHaan knocked it out of the park. I was insanely invested in his character and his story, that I almost forgot who the movie was about. And his chemistry with Andrew Garfield was amazing, really. They did seem like natural friends, and it seemed real. 

god, and look how gorgeous they both are?

Did I say they review would be short? Ah, guess not. But yeah, to wrap up this thing, I would say that The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is a great and enjoyable movie, with a top notch cast and crew, wonderful score (shout-out to Hans Zimmer), and just overall greatness.

Go see it if you like action, comedy, and a bit of heartbreak.

Top Ten Movie Scores

For this Movie Monday, I decided to try something else. Because I haven't seen a new movie since Divergent, and I'm not seeing one until Thursday (The Amazing Spider-Man 2), I thought to myself - "why not try to expand this Movie Monday universe?" and then I got the idea for this post.

So, it's not surprise to anyone who knows me, or have read my past reviews, that I have a strong love affair with film scores and their composers. So here is my Top Ten of Movie Scores!

10. Batman Begins (Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard)
This score for me is just the epitome of Nolan's dark and gritty Batman, and I absolutely love it. The two composers collaborated on separate themes for the "split personality" of Bruce Wayne and his alter ego, Batman. Which I totally dig, and I also find it hella cool that the names of the tracks, are the Latin names of different species of bats.

All in all to me, this score is the shiz, and I encourage all of you to give it a listen. [x]

09. Sherlock Holmes (Hans Zimmer)
Another Hans Zimmer score? Yeah, get used to it. That man is magic and genius all rolled into one.
What I love about this score is that is sounds so squeaky and wrong, like everything is played on broken instruments. Which is partly was, because according to Zimmer, they "did hideous things to a piano." It is what makes this score unique and wonderful.
You feel so adventurous and strangely empowered when you listen to it. [x]

 08. Remember Me (Marcelo Zarvos)
This score for me is just an emotional punch to the gut every time I listen to it. The heavy use of violins and piano, is what makes this score so hauntingly sad and beautiful. And it fits the movie to a T. You get to experience the heavy emotions of the movie all over again  and I love it when a score can take you back into the movie. Especially the track "I Know You Can Hear Me" is an all time favourite of mine, and the one track I always come back to. It takes you through so many different strong emotions in just about 7 minutes. [x]

07. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Klaus Badelt)
OH YEAH! LET'S GO STEAL SHIT AND HAVE SWORD FIGHTS!
Nothing more is really necessary to say, to be honest. I think everybody who's ever seen the movie, or just listened to the score knows what feeling you get from it. [x]

06. The Lion King (Hans Zimmer)This score will always have a special place in my heart, because this movie was the first movie I fell in love with. There's really not much more to say. This score was a huge part of my childhood and will always be special to me. This score was also the thing that started my love affair with everything Hans Zimmer ever made. [x]

05. Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince (Nicholas Hooper)
Again, not much to say other than this is my favourite Harry Potter score. And it's magnificent and full of emotion.
[x]












04. How To Train Your Dragon (John Powell)
This score is made of friendship and magic, with just a bit of heartbreak added to the mix. Just... just listen to it. And try not to cry. I dare you. [x]

03. Divergent (Junkie XL)
Even if this score has only been in my life for about 2 weeks, it quickly planted itself deep in my heart. Again, the emotions that runs through me when I listen to it are overpowering and strong and I feel both invisible and utterly crushed at the same time. Especially the track "Faction before Blood" makes me want to curl into a ball and cry forever. [x]

02. The Host (Antonio Pinto)
I'm getting emotional just thinking about this score. I've had no real experience with Pinto before this movie, because he's mostly done Brazilian scores, but boy was I pleasantly surprised. This is a score that deliverers on the whole spectrum of human emotions and still manages to make you feel like you are in outer space.
I don't know really how to put into words how much I love this score. There's just something about it, that makes me fill up with joy and sadness. [x]


01. The Hunger Games (James Newton Howard)
This score is truly a gift to my soul and ears, and I want each song to be played at my funeral. My last wish would be for everyone attending to listen to the whole score and remember me as I was. Because the songs on this score resembels every emotion I have ever been through, and will eventually go through again.

I don't really know what to say more about this score, because it always leaves me speechless.
[x]




That's it! That's my list! And of course the list really could go on, but I had to cut the list off at some point. Because really, there are so many beautiful scores out there, that deserves to be acknowledged. And I'm sure if you asked me in about a week, this list would look different. My preferences tend to shift with my mood, so not all of these are set in stone. But by all means, go listen to them all now! I've linked to one song from each score, so you can start with those! Go experience the magic of a good score. Go on!