A “QUICK!” Review of “Belle (2021)”

Belle is a modern Japanese take on the classic Beauty and the Beast story. The director Mamoru Hosoda made some wonderful anime movies such as Summer Wars, Wolf Children and Mirai which I absolutely loved. So I was no doubt going to watch Belle.

I love the contrast in art and animation style between the real world and the virtual world. The real-world uses 2D fluid and dynamic animation while the virtual world uses this 3D dazzling and beautiful aesthetic. Both are amazing to look at. One of the biggest highlights though is the music which is just wonderful. The final performance is just absolutely stunning!

I also enjoyed how Mamoru put a new spin on the classic tale through the use of a virtual world. It made the story feel fresh even though it goes through a lot of the same beat for beat story you have seen before. The characters are also quite lovable in their personality and I adored the character development that our main lead Suzu goes through. The story does juggle a lot of plot points and doesn’t give a completely satisfying resolution to everything. However, the story has a lot of heart and soul in it that it comes out as very sweet and touching by the end.

I had a blast with the 2 hours watching Belle and I do not doubt that you will too.

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A “QUICK!” Review of “Badland Hunters (2024)“

Ma Dong-Seok is one of the coolest dudes in Korean cinema. I do think the film is a little disappointing as the post-apocalyptic setting isn’t used in an exciting way. The plot is also nothing special. It is incredibly dumb and predictable while also having minimal explanation about anything. The characters are also very bland. There is barely any exploration of any of the characters including the main character. Due to this, they all come off as one-dimensional and this makes it very difficult to care about anyone. However, it has some incredibly well-choreographed and fun action sequences. Who doesn’t want to see Ma Dong-seok kick ass!

A “QUICK!” Review of “Kingdom 2: Far and Away (2022)”

This sequel is 130 minutes of our main character, Shin, fighting in a war. We get great action set pieces after another, each of them being well-choreographed. Kento Yamazaki returns as Xin and is still lovable but the new character Qiang Lei, played by Nana Seino, is the new highlight. It is an incredibly fast-paced thrill ride! The film captures the scale of the war but it does still have that same issue from the first where they kind of make it too light-hearted. The plot is weaker as well since it is mostly just the war with some character development for Xin and Qiang. It is also disappointing to see 2 of the original main trio, Ying Zheng and He Liao Diao, do nothing in this entry. It does feel a bit long for what feels like a minimal plot as well. Still, wish more people were watching this as it is still very entertaining.

A “QUICK!” Review of “Monkey Man (2024)”

Dev Patel is an actor I admire so of course I was interested in his directorial debut. There is a lot of great stuff here but there are some issues too. The first act has a great build-up with its sprinkle of backstory and world of crime. The action scene is fun albeit it is overly edited and has a lot of shaky cams. The movie’s pacing then goes to a complete stall with its boring second act that goes on for too long. Nothing of importance occurs apart from explaining something the audience already knows and a pointless side quest. The final act is a full-on action set piece that doesn’t use shaky cam but is incredibly predictable. Monkey Man has an interesting spin with the added Indian mythology but it is just an overstuffed and over-explained revenge story. It is a great start for Dev Patel and I will look at his director career with great interest.

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