Showing posts with label Pat Casey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pat Casey. Show all posts

Movie Review Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 

Directed by Jeff Fowler 

Written by Pat Casey, Josh Miller, John Whittington

Starring James Marsden, Jim Carrey, Ben Schwartz, Idris Elba 

Released April 8th, 2022 

When I had read that Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was more than 2 hours long and included a mid-credits scene, I was expecting to be deeply impatient and unhappy. It really is rather inconsiderate to make a kids movie that lasts more than 90 to 95 unless you’re Pixar. Fact of the matter is that the target audience for Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is not one expected to have an attention span to be in a public place for more than 2 hours. 

On top of which, you aren’t being considerate of parents who likely are not fans of Sonic the Hedgehog and would rather be just about anywhere else. That’s not even mentioning how unfair to film critics it is to ask us to sit through Sonic the Hedgehog 2 any longer than we should. Sure, some of us get paid to do this, why else are we adults at a kids movie and taking notes, but even with our meager pay for this task, 2 hours is asking a lot for Sonic the Hedgehog 2.

Find my full length review at Geeks.Media, linked here. 



Movie Review: Violent Night

Violent Night (2022) 

Directed by Tommy Wirkola 

Written by Pat Casey, Josh Miller

Starring David Harbour, John Leguizamo, Leah Brady, Alexis Louder

Release Date December 2nd, 2022 

Published December 2nd, 2022 

I've long had an aversion to Christmas themed horror movies. I'm a big fan of the innocence of Christmas. I love that I was part of maintaining my Goddaughter's belief in and love of Santa Claus which has continued long after many other kids lost their sense of magic. Santa Claus is sacred to me and thus I have a strong distaste for movies that score points on making Santa look bad. It's one of the rare places in popular culture where I become a pearl clutching media watchdog. I worry about little kids who might see Santa portrayed as a murderer and lose their sense of his magic. 

Thus, my initial reaction to hearing about the new movie Violent Night, was a pit in my stomach. Here is a completely mainstream movie that was set to place Santa Claus, played by Stranger Things star David Harbour, an actor beloved among a relatively young audience, in a bloody, violent, horror movie context. I was more than just skeptical of Violent Night, I was worried that it could be a watershed moment in the horror portrayal of Santa Claus. That makes this review a bit of a catharsis for me as my worries have been allayed by seeing the movie. Violent Night may place Santa in a violent and bloody story but at least he's the hero in this story. It's a little thing, but it made it easier to take and even enjoy. 

Violent Night introduces us to a Kris Kringle who has lost his smile. As we meet Santa on Christmas Eve, he's getting very, very drunk before heading out for his night of delivering presents to kids. Meanwhile, the gears of the story begin to turn as we meet the Lightstone family. Dad, Jason Lightstone (Alex Hassell), and mom, Linda (Alexis Louder), are spending Christmas together for the sake of their daughter, Trudy (Leah Brady). Mom and Dad have split up but Trudy is hopeful they can be reunited. In fact, mom and dad are at the center of Trudy's Christmas wish for her family to be whole again. 

The family is reuniting for one final Christmas with the uber-rich Lightstone family. Jason is planning to abandon the family business and has concocted a convoluted plan. Also attending the Lightstone family Christmas are Jason's greed addled sister, Alva (Edi Patterson), Alva's airhead, movie star boyfriend, Morgan Steele (Cam Gigandet), and Alva's influencer son Burt (Alexander Elliott. Overseeing the whole Christmas get together is the imperious mother of the Lightstone clan, Gertrude (Beverly D'Angelo), a corrupt businesswoman who may or may not have $300 million in cash stored in her basement. 

That would explain why the Lightstone Family Christmas is overtaken by terrorists led by Jimmy Martinez (John Leguizamo), codename Ebenezer Scrooge. Jimmy and his team infiltrated the family Christmas under the guise of caterers and are in place for a violent takeover once the family is all in the same room. What they don't know is that someone else is crashing Christmas, a drunk Kris Kringle is has dropped in and it's no surprise that Jimmy and his entire team are on Santa's naughty list. 

Read the complete review at Geeks.Media 



Movie Review You Can't Run Forever

You Can't Run Forever (2024) Directed by Michelle Schumacher Written by Caroline Carpenter and Michelle Schumacher Starring J.K. Simmons...