I’ve seen The Matrix countless times but there were several friends who had never seen it so we watched it together. It’s kind of fun to watch this movie from the perspective of someone that’s never seen it. I picked up on little things I hadn’t remembered or noticed before.

This film is such an important film in terms of its influence on movies ever since. Many of the camera moves, filming techniques, and even computer imagery are staples of modern blockbusters now. But what was most surprising this time around was how innovative the story is. There is a gigantic revelation every 10 minutes or so of the running time. The ideas just keep coming. It’s amazingly brilliant and deserves every bit of the accolades its received ever since.

One of the better Keanu Reeves performances I’ve seen in a while. This one is dumb fun with an emphasis on phone. Sure, the plot revolves around some bad guys that kill John’s dog and he goes on an unstoppable revenge killing spree but that’s all part of the fun.

There is some great action sequences here. Lot’s of interesting camera angles, grapple moves, and fist fights. This is probably one of the best straight-up action movies I saw last year and watching it again, I think I might have even liked it more.

One of my favorite things is that the camera was stable during the action so you could actually see what was happening and enjoy all the great stunts the actors were doing.

This had just enough to justify a final sequel. The tropes are definitely feeling tired by now but luckily, the writers knew this and put quite a few twists on the classic lines to make them feel fresh one more time. It’s odd but somehow, even though these movies were comically over the top, the characters grow on you. There’s a definite chemistry in the cast and by the end, you actually feel some emotion for these characters. I didn’t expect that but I can’t deny there’s some heart here.

One of the aspects of this series that I’ve really admired is the way they depicted Murtagh’s family. It was great to see a strong black family depicted throughout the series. Really great family dynamic.

Many of the stunts here are are clearly done with stunt men and it does become distracting at times. The cast is clearly getting older by this point and can’t do the action they used to. The addition of Chris Rock doesn’t really do anything for the plot or laughs. He gets a few “okay” lines but he’s nearly superfluous here. Joe Pesci on the other hand gets some real dramatic stuff toward the end and knocks it out of the park.

One shocking thing were all the Asian-racist remarks from the main characters. Asians seem to always get the short end of the stick in American cinema. Those racist comments and jokes were pretty distracting especially considering that the series has gone out of its way to address black issues in America.

This one takes a while for the actors to slip into their old characters. The first 25% feels a little “off” but once it kicks in, the momentum keeps up and by the end, it all feels earned and actually sports quite an emotional, crowd-pleasing ending. I can see why this was popular with audiences at the time. It may be dated but there is undeniable charisma to the whole thing.

I’m still standing by my previous impression that Lethal Weapon 2 is the best so far. I’ve still got number 4 to watch but in my experience, sequels that far away from the original rarely reach the same heights.

This isn’t a bad film and frankly, could be a good ending to the overall series. There were some fun moments but not nearly as many as number 2 or 1. Leo’s schtick is starting to wear thin. Riggs and Murtagh still have good chemistry though and hold things together.

One of the most surprising aspects was the acting. Danny Glover really does some outstanding work here. I was shocked at the depth he brought to his character, emotion shown, and pathos he put into what should have just been a simple action/comedy. He really is the best part of number 3.

In a lot of ways, this is a better movie than Lethal Weapon. It doesn’t have Rigg’s satisfying character arc of the first but there are so many memorable scenes here that the combination seems to push it over the top. It’s a rare thing when a sequel bests the first but this just might have done it.

The toilet bomb scene alone is worth watching but there are so many others from Joe Pesci’s Leo character saying “ok” endlessly to the house on stilts stunt to the condom commercial to the iconic nail-gun fight. One thing’s for sure, this film is a lot funnier than the first and that helps it immensely.

So far, all of these Lethal Weapons look horribly dated and much of the time, it feels they are parodying themselves but it’s still fun, good cast chemistry, and some nice action pieces that feel all the more real because they are actually real (stunts instead of CG).

There’s a lot of fun moments here. The movie really is just a modern-day take on the classic James Bond spy movie tropes. Some gags work better than others.

The real shining star here is Colin Firth who absolutely owns every scene he’s in. In fact, he’s such a force in this that [SPOILER] when he is gone later in the film, it loses huge amounts of momentum.

Newcomer Taron Egerton is also quite good as the young lead in the film and the chemistry between him and Colin Firth is solid.

Sam Jackson provides tons of laughs as a lisping megalomaniac bad guy. And it’s nice to see some fun twists in the third act from the likes of Michael Cain and Mark Strong.

Where the film really breaks down is in the pacing. It’s about 30 minutes too long. The third act drags heavily as we are treated to endless shootouts, explosions, and mayhem that becomes tiresome the more it drags on. That being said, I was entertained for most of the running time and it’s worth seeing just for Colin Firth’s performance if nothing else.

This has been a family favorite Disney movie since I can remember. I’m not sure why actually as this isn’t the greatest Disney movie but there are enough fun moments that it somehow caught hold in our memories.

The kids and I watched this again over the weekend and I realized how great some of the skiing stunts and action are. Disney regular, Dean Jones, is fabulous as the clueless dad. There’s some really funny moments and it’s got a lot of heart.

This is one of the lesser-known Disney films of the 1970’s so it’s definitely worth watching for the Disney completist. Just might find a hidden gem.

Man, this has not aged well. I missed this whole series when it hit theaters and never got around to watching it. I think I may have watched a scene or two over the years when it ran on TV but never watched it start to finish. And I’m kind of shocked this series was as popular as it was.

It’s not a terrible movie. It’s just so dated. The action and situations are so ridiculously over the top that it’s hard to suspend disbelief to fully enjoy the film. I can see this as a guilty pleasure like Commando or other crazy 80’s action movies. There is some good writing here in terms of the characters though. The positives on this are the chemistry between Gibson and Glover, crazy Gary Busey, the hostage exchange in the desert, Murtaugh’s family dynamics, and Mel Gibson being crazy. It’s enough to make this an interesting watch but just go in with reasonable expectations if you’ve never seen this before.

I’ve only seen a few parts of this over the years but it’s always been on my list. I finally got to see an HD version of this and it’s pretty awesome. It’s by far, the most epic version of King Arthur’s story I’ve seen. There’s magic, huge knight battles, love, betrayal, and a 10 year+ quest for the holy grail.

There’s some pretty cheesy acting in some places (but no uncommon for films of the era). The music has its moments (some beautiful stuff here) but it also gets bombastic at points and ruins otherwise interesting moods. There is some absolutely fabulous cinematography. The colorization on this film is gorgeous.

Recommended for any sword and sorcery fan.