Opinion as a Movie-freak

Summary 
The monster does not come walking often. This time it comes to Connor, and it asks for the one thing Connor cannot bring himself to do. Tell the truth. This is a very touching story about a boy who feels very damaged, guilty and mostly angry. He struggles at school with bullies, and pity looks from everyone, and at home with his mother's sickness. Will Connor overcome his problems? Will everything be okay? Will Connor be able to speak the truth?

Genre : Drama/Fantasy
Country : USA/Spain

Cast : 
Lewis MacDougall : Conor

Summary 
Ten-year-old Sophie is in for the adventure of a lifetime when she meets the Big Friendly Giant. Naturally scared at first, the young girl soon realizes that the 24-foot behemoth is actually quite gentle and charming. As their friendship grows, Sophie's presence attracts the unwanted attention of Bloodbottler, Fleshlumpeater and other giants.

Genre : Fantasy/Family
Country : UK/USA/Canada

Cast : 
Mark Rylance : BFG

Summary 
Following a ghost invasion of Manhattan, paranormal enthusiasts Erin Gilbert and Abby Yates, nuclear engineer Jillian Holtzmann, and subway worker Patty Tolan band together to stop the otherworldly threat.

Genre : Fantasy/Comedy
Country : USA

Cast : 
Kristen Wiig : Erin Gilbert

Summary 
Alice returns to the magical world of Underland, only to find the Hatter in a horrible state. With the help of her friends, Alice must travel through time to save the Mad Hatter and Underland's fate from the evil clutches of the Red Queen and a clock like creature, known as Time.

Genre : Fantasy
Country : USA

Cast : 
Johnny Depp : Hatter Tarrant Hightopp

Summary :
Zac and Eva live with their parents in isolated-mysterious farmhouse. The family lives' in the 1800s manner and doing the old-fashioned chores. When their mom becomes seriously ill, the sibling begins to discover family dark secrets and supernatural abilities to teleport themselves, which threaten a family to splintered. One and Two is the story about the bond and love between the siblings. 

Genre : Drama/Fantasy
Country :USA

Cast :

Summary :
Set, the merciless god of darkness, has taken over the throne of Egypt and plunged the once peaceful and prosperous empire into chaos and conflict. Few dare to rebel against him. A young thief, whose love was taken captive by the god, seeks to dethrone and defeat Set with the aid of the powerful god Horus.

Genre : Fantasy
Country : USA

Cast :
Brenton Thwaites : Bek
Courtney Eaton : Zaya
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau : Horus

Director : Alex Projas

Summary :
From the bitter quest of the Queen of Longtrellis, to two mysterious sisters who provoke the passion of a king, to the King of Highhills obsessed with a giant Flea, these tales are inspired by the fairytales by Giambattista Basile.

Genre : Fantasy
Country : Italy/France/UK

Cast :
Salma Hayek : Queen of Longtrellis
Vincent Cassel : King of Strongcliff
Toby Jones : King of Highhills

Director : Matteo Garrone 

Alternative title : Il racconto dei racconti

Summary :
The modern world holds many secrets, but the most astounding secret of all is that witches still live amongst us; vicious supernatural creatures intent on unleashing the Black Death upon the world. Armies of witch hunters battled the unnatural enemy across the globe for centuries, including Kaulder, a valiant warrior who managed to slay the all-powerful Queen Witch, decimating her followers in the process. In the moments right before her death, the Queen curses Kaulder with her own immortality, forever separating him from his beloved wife and daughter in the afterlife.

Genre : Fantasy/Adventure
Country : USA/China/Canada

Cast :
Vin Diesel : Kaulder
Rose Leslie : Chloe
Elijah Wood : Dolan 37th

Director : Breck Eisner

Summary :
12-year-old orphan Peter is spirited away to the magical world of Neverland, where he finds both fun and danger, and ultimately discovers his destiny -- to become the hero who will be forever known as Peter Pan.

Genre : Adventure/Fantasy
Country : UK/USA/Australia

Cast :
Levi Miller : Peter
Hugh Jackman : Blackbeard
Garrett Hedlund : Hook

Director : Joe Wright

Summary :
Hermann, a failed sculptor, is about to kill himself when he finds a strange, talking hole in the wall. The creature in the hole has the power to fulfill his wildest dreams, but things go horribly wrong and when the killing starts, Hermann is thrust into the worst nightmare of his life. Deep Dark is a twisted tale warning you to be careful what you wish for, because it just might get you

Genre : Horror/Fantasy
Country : USA

Cast :
Denis Poirier : The Hole
Sean McGrath : Hermann Haig
Anne Sorce : Devora Klein

Director : Michael Medaglia

Summary :

After almost drowning in a lake, Madison finds herself bound to a life of fear. Unable to describe what happened to her during the moments she was underwater, she begins to develop hydrophobia: an abnormal fear of water. Crippled by her post trauma, Madison attempts to shut out the world but her fear intensifies and she is faced with the vision of a dark figure that haunts her day and night.

Genre : Horror/Fantasy/Thriller
Country : Canada

Cast :
Michelle Mylett : Madison
Caroline Palmer : Hannah
Gemma Bird Matheson : Kobie

Director : Chad Archibald

Summary
Max Simkin repairs shoes in the same New York shop that has been in his family for generations. Disenchanted with the grind of daily life, Max stumbles upon a magical heirloom that allows him to step into the lives of his customers and see the world in a new way. Sometimes walking in another man's shoes is the only way one can discover who they really are.

Genre : Comedy/Drama/Fantasy
Country : USA
 
Cast :
Adam Sandler : Max Simkin
Steve Buscemi : Jimmy
Dustin Hoffman : Abraham Simkin

Director : Thomas McCarthy

Summary
John Gregory, who is a seventh son of a seventh son and also the local spook, has protected his country from witches, boggarts, ghouls and all manner of things that go bump in the night. However John is not young anymore, and has been seeking an apprentice to carry on his trade. Most have failed to survive. The last hope is a young farmer's son named Thomas Ward. Will he survive the training to become the spook that so many others couldn't? Should he trust the girl with pointy shoes? How can Thomas stand a chance against Mother Malkin, the most dangerous witch in the county?


Genre : Action/Adventure/Fantasy
Country : USA/UK
  
Cast :

Jeff Bridges : Master Gregory
Julianne Moore : Mother Malkin
Ben Barnes : Tom Ward

Director : Sergey Bodrov

Summary
In the aftermath of his girlfriend's mysterious death, a young man awakens to find strange horns sprouting from his temples.

Genre : Horror/Fantasy
Country : USA/Canada

Cast :
Daniel Radcliffe : Ig Perrish
Juno Temple : Merrin Williams
Joe Anderson : Terry perrish

Director : Alexandre Aja

Summary
A beautiful, pure-hearted young woman, Maleficent has an idyllic life growing up in a peaceable forest kingdom, until one day when an invading army threatens the harmony of the land. Maleficent rises to be the land's fiercest protector, but she ultimately suffers a ruthless betrayal - an act that begins to turn her pure heart to stone. Bent on revenge, Maleficent faces a battle with the invading king's successor and, as a result, places a curse upon his newborn infant Aurora. As the child grows, Maleficent realizes that Aurora holds the key to peace in the kingdom - and perhaps to Maleficent's true happiness as well.

Genre : Adventure/Family/Fantasy
Country : USA

Cast :
Angelina Jolie : Maleficent
Sharlto Copley : Stefan
Elle Fanning : Aurora

Director : Robert Stromberg

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Genre : Action/Drama
Country : USA
 
Cast :
Eva Green : Artemisia
Sullivan Stapleton : Themistocles
Lena Headey : Gorgo

Director :
Noam Murro

Summary
After its victory over Leonidas' 300, the Persian Army under the command of Xerxes marches towards the major Greek city-states. The Democratic city of Athens, first on the path of Xerxes' army, bases its strength on its fleet, led by admiral Themistocles. Themistocles is forced to an unwilling alliance with the traditional rival of Athens, oligarchic Sparta whose might lies with its superior infantry troops. But Xerxes still reigns supreme in numbers over sea and land.

Genre : Action/Adventure/Fantasy
Country : USA

Cast :
Keanu Reeves : Kai
Hiroyuki Sanada : Oishi
Kô Shibasaki : Mika

Director :
Carl Rinsch

Summary
While hunting in the forest, Lord Asano of Ako and his samurai find a young half-breed and take him with them to live in the castle. Several years later, Lord Asano holds a tournament to welcome the Shogun to Ako. The night after the tournament, Lord Asano is bewitched into hurting Lord Kira of Nagato, and is punished into committing seppuku by the Shogun. Realizing that it was a Lord Kira's evil plot, the samurais and the half-breed sets out for revenge against the Shogun's order.
My opinion

I see only samurai before me.

After reading some reviews about "47 Ronin", I expected a terrible Hollywood attempt to make a film about a Japanese legend. In the international press, the movie has been mercilessly, how appropriate, put to the sword. Some of the jargon on "Rotten Tomatoes" : cloddish, dour, tedious to watch, a funeral march, humorless as your junior high principal, as Japanese as a grocery-store California roll, Keanu Reeves looks as miserable and bored as the audience ... ". And it goes on like this. The 13% score is in that case logical. It's obvious that Keanu Reeves is seen as unsuitable for this role as a samurai.
Well then there is something wrong with me, cause I didn't really saw it that way. Personally, I have a feeling that this is just another exaggerated hassle and rabble rousing in a negative way. "Gravity" was praised by the experts and overwhelmed with Oscar nominations (erroneously , except for the technical part of course). "47 Ronin " in contrast gets the full load and then got slated.

On 3 February 1982, there appeared in the weekly magazine "Spirou " a new comic hero, Kogaratsu, a samurai who became a ronin, made by Michetz . On the front page it said « Kogaratsu , a comic like you've never seen before ... ". Since the 70s , I am an avid reader of this magazine, and have therefore read the first episodes with growing amazement. It was a totally different way of approaching a comic and I also devoured these stories . What was so unique about this comic besides the style ? That was the introduction to a unique Japan : the traditions and customs that surprises us western people, the loyalty, the honor, the calmness and serenity, the rituals, the mystical and magical atmosphere. All contained in this comic, and to be honest, I thought that was also present in "47 Ronin" .
This action-adventure film went on for two hours and was finished before I knew it. Kai (Reeves) is a half-breed, half-Japanese, half-British, which was found by Lord Asano in the woods. Asano took him under his wing. However, Kai was never fully respected and ostracized by the other samurai led by Oishi. One day their master Asano is sentenced to death by the shogun Tokugawa Tsunayoshi and the samurai are banished and became ronin. Kai is removed and sold as a slave. Eventually these samurai take revenge with the help of Kai for what was done to their master.

Keanu Reeves actually did a great job playing the role of Kai. He looks a bit Asian and he also has the right appearance. Reeves really has such an apathetic and emotionless facial expression. But most Japanese people also have that look, so he fits very well in between those other samurai. Besides, Tom Cruise already played such a part as samurai in "The Last Samurai". And to be honest, I really think Cruise wasn't suitable for that. That the Japanese are speaking a flawed (although not as flawed as stated) stuttering English, didn't bother me. You can enumerate many WWII movies where the Germans always speak English with a greasy dialect. Or even more recent in the movie "The Family", where an entire village in France speaks flawless English. You can be certain this was a commercial decision to keep it English and ask Keanu for the title role.
The film has a variety of beautiful images of nature and the community where Kai resides. Smooth action and battle scenes with other samurai, mythical creatures and magical characters. And a lovely surrounding with lavish and colorful settings and costumes. Various times we are treated with stunning digital effects. The orange-colored monster with six eyes and an immensely dangerous swishing tail. The witch Mizuki who repeatedly changed form, moving around like a flapping garment and adorned with Medusa-like winding tresses. The most successful effect was the low hanging clouds which formed human figures. The test the samurai had to undergo in the forest Tengu was pretty exciting. The grand finale is the storming of the palace of Kira.
An underrated action movie mixed with elements of a fantasy. I was afraid that Reeves would look like a Japanese "Neo", but it turned out better than I thought . A wonderfully successful film for me.
My rating 7/10
Links : IMDB

Genre : Fantasy/Adventure
Country: USA

Cast :
Henry Cavill : Superman
Michael Shannon : Zod
Amy Adams : Lois Lane

Director :
Zack Snyder

Summary

A young boy learns that he has extraordinary powers and is not of this Earth. As a young man, he journeys to discover where he came from and what he was sent here to do. But the hero in him must emerge if he is to save the world from annihilation and become the symbol of hope for all mankind.

Genre : Fantasy/Action
Country : USA

Cast :
Hugh Jackman : Logan
Tao Okamoto : Mariko
Will Yun Lee : Harada

Director :
James Mangold

Summary

In modern day Japan, Wolverine is out of his depth in an unknown world as he faces his ultimate nemesis in a life-or-death battle that will leave him forever changed. Vulnerable for the first time and pushed to his physical and emotional limits, he confronts not only lethal samurai steel but also his inner struggle against his own immortality, emerging more powerful than we have ever seen him before.
My opinion
What they did to me, what I am, can't be undone.

Despite the fact that "The X-Men" were never my favorite superheroes, this film could still fascinate me. The script wasn't entirely accurate and you ended up with a huge number of questions in some situations. It's a long time ago I've watched the original X-Men movie. And "The Wolverine" is the most imaginative character off course. It's therefore normal there are apparently a number of spin-offs about him. By choosing Japan as the location, the interference by the Yakuza was a logical consequence. The positive result is that you sometimes get flashy and highly entertaining action moments, with a mix of "Martial Art" and the cutting and slicing actions of "The Wolverine" as an excellent combination, presenting exciting movie moments. Unfortunately, these moments are extremely scarce. What a shame!.
Hugh Jackman is magnificent as "The Wolverine". A legendary role that fits him like a glove. Since there are no other fellow mutants, he has the difficult task to carry the whole film. He does, but unfortunately it is not enough to make it a real epic super-hero story. There's also the fact that the movie focuses on the personal emotional state of Wolverine and the process of dealing with the death of Jean Grey, his beloved. Apparently he is guilty for her death. Cause of the lack of any prior knowledge of the entire X -Men saga, those flashbacks were completely useless to me. Further, the role played by Rila Fukushima (Never heard of her before) as Yokio was a sublime addition to the main character. Her oddly shaped face made ​​her look like a bizarre partner. But it's the action she shows, with her ​​flashy moves, which made it a pleasant movie to watch. Tao Okamoto as Mariko was necessary for the overall picture, but otherwise I thought it was a kind of a pathetic performance. Especially the amorous part I didn't like although it probably was mandatory to use.
The story on its own was not very original, and as mentioned earlier, at some times it didn't make much sense to me. In a nutshell, you can summarize it as follows: Yashida, a Japanese industrial magnate is being rescued by Logan during the bombing of Nagasaki. Yashida is eternally grateful for that and invites him to japan. He wants to thank him just one more time before he pasts away. To redeem Logan from his eternal suffering and life, Yashida suggests to give that gift to himself so he can enjoy eternal life. Logan refuses and the assistant of Yashida (who is also a mutant apparently) implants a type of pacemaker in his heart.  His self-healing powers gradually disappear and he becomes vulnerable.
Eventually there remain a few unexplained questions . Wasn't it the case that those claws of Logan couldn't be destroyed ? After drilling in the knuckles of Logan the self-healing forces seep into Yashida , who also looks visibly younger after that. Yet only moments later he  dies from a simple stab wound. Weird ! From where did Viper come? What purpose did she have in mind ? She is a kind of mutant that knows a lot about different poison and shows a snake tongue as it suits her. Wouldn't it make more sense that she reduces Logan's powers, by implanting poison in his heart, instead of a futuristic type of parasite. And how the hell did she get that thing in there ? Did that intense french kiss help her getting it in there ? What was the skin replacement all about ? The do-it-yourself heart surgery Logan did, was a bit excessive ! How the hell did he get through his ribs? The high-speed chase on the train, even though you're a superhero, breaks with all the laws of physics. And my biggest question was : If Yashida really wanted to take over those powers, why take the risk to reduce Logan's powers so there could be a possibility he died ? He could forget about that eternal life if that happened !
In the end it's just another superhero movie in which the superhero rather looks like a sad,isolated individual whose superpowers slowly diminish. You have to be patient to see some action until the funeral of Yashida. But when that moment arrives, you're glued to your screen. Unfortunately that feeling doesn't really come back and you can only look at a kind of tourist guide of Japan in which all aspects of the country are reviewed. The end is unbelievable and sometimes downright ridiculous.

It's entertainment but not at an exceptional level.

Not quite so super ! 
My rating 5 /10
Links : IMDB

Genre : Horror/Fantasy
Country : UK

Cast :
Saoirse Ronan : Eleanor
Gemma Arterton : Clara
Sam Riley : Darvell

Director :
Neil Jordan

Summary
Two mysterious women seek refuge in a run-down coastal resort. Clara meets lonely Noel, who provides shelter in his deserted guesthouse, Byzantium. Schoolgirl Eleanor befriends Frank and tells him their lethal secret. They were born 200 years ago and survive on human blood. As knowledge of their secret spreads, their past catches up on them with deathly consequence.
My opinion

I write of what I cannot speak, the truth. I write all I know of it, then I throw that pages to the wind, maybe the birds can read it.

A non-traditional approach to the vampire genre. A new refreshing look from a different angle. Not the stereotypical image of pale creatures of the night provided with bloodshot eyes and sharp fangs  hiding in dusty basements in a coffin. No melting, burning or imploding is involved when they are exposed to sunlight. No here we have persons who are part of an alliance and inherited a centuries-old tradition.
It's the story of a mother (Gemma Arterton) and her daughter Eleanor (Ronan) who have been hiding for years because women actually aren't allowed in the alliance. And let me tell you, I'll gladly surrender myself to Gemma the female vampire so she can catch me and plant her teeth (in this case the sharp nails) in my flesh. Immediately she made ​​me think of the pulp booklets of Vampirella that used to lay in the newsstand. Same proportions and dimensions of lustful flesh.
Once again Ronan plays a convincing and brilliant part (recently I've seen her in Hanna) as the daughter with scruples and who'll sacrifice anything in order to tell her secret to a mortal instead of scribbling it down on a paper and then throw it away. Not only she looks stunning, she also has that serene look and empathy to interpret this role in a sublime way.
The images used are magnificent. Marvellous images of the coast, interspersed with flashbacks to the 1900s. Slowly the whole story unravels. The denouement of the alliance was not so obvious but the end with Darvell on the island together with Eleanor, becoming also immortal, wasn't exactly a surprise. For me the movie was, how appropriate, drop-dead gorgeous.
My rating 7 /10
Links : IMDB