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Ghost in the Shell 2017

I found myself appreciating the live action Ghost in the Shell movie, but did find it lacking in some emotion. Given this is a story about AIs, cybernetically enhanced people and robots, maybe that is to be expected.

I cannot compare this to the original animated movie from the 90s. It has just been so long since I saw it that it would not be fair. Plus, I expect plenty of differences when something is adapted from one medium to another.

I enjoyed this take on defining a sense of Self and Identity. We see characters lose and find themselves. One sequence with a Father wanting to see his daughter felt poignant. A mother discussing her deceased daughter also hits you.

Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Pilou Asbæk, Takeshi Kitano, Juliette Binoche, Michael Pitt, Chin Han, Danusia Samal, Lasarus Ratuere, Yutaka Izumihara, Tawanda Manyimo, Peter Ferdinando, Anamaria Marinca

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Power Rangers

I was never that into Power Rangers when I was younger. It was not the low budget special effects of the Zords and fight scenes, it was more the American scenes. I loved the concept, it felt like a live-action Voltron.

But this movie…this movie right here spoke to the adult me. You have 5 very different people come together and slowly build a rapport. The diversity does not feel forced. You just have 5 kids from different walks of life. When they get their powers, they are not immediate masters of them.

If you are a fan of the original series, you probably have already seen this. If you were not a fan, give it a shot. I saw a lot of parents bringing their kids to see this movie and the kids loved it. They had scenes they cheered for and scenes that had them worried for the heroes.

This was not a perfect movie by any stretch. But I found it just as fun and interesting (in a different way) than Life.

And yes, they do break out the classic theme song at one point in the movie. :)

Starring:Dacre Montgomery, Naomi Scott, RJ Cyler, Ludi Lin, Becky G., Elizabeth Banks, Bryan Cranston, Bill Hader

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The Belko Experiment

The trailer for the Belko Experiment pretty much lays out the plot. Office workers get locked in their building and have to jump through murdery hoops to “win”. A lot like Battle Royale except it does not start out as a free-for-all. The man behind the intercom wants them to start out slow and kill a couple of people.

We are briefly introduced to a lot of the 80 office workers. You can kind of guess who are important to the story based on the time spent each character’s introduction. It is one poor woman’s first day of work, too.

I enjoyed this violent romp through cubicles.

Starring: John Gallagher Jr., Tony Goldwyn, Adria Arjona, John C. McGinley, Melonie Diaz, Owain Yeoman, Sean Gunn, Brent Sexton, Josh Brener, David Dastmalchian, David Del Rio, Gregg Henry, Michael Rooker, Rusty Schwimmer, Gail Bean, James Earl, Abraham Benrubi

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Life

Life is an entertaining scifi thriller set in the very near future. We have an international crew aboard the ISS awaiting an unmanned capsule with samples from Mars. The movie sets its feet firmly in reality with interviews to the crew from reporters on earth to a naming ceremony for the lifeform discovered. We get to see the early days of the examination of the lifeform before the inevitable incident that lets it loose.

Life feels very much like the original Alien in places. Minus the murdery android.

I did kind of see the ending coming. But it was still an interesting ride with a small cast in a central location.

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, Hiroyuki Sanada, Olga Dihovichnaya, Ariyon Bakare

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Logan

I caught Logan and it gave a nice cap to the Fox X-Men series and High Jackman’s run as Wolverine.

Logan definitely earns its R rating. Plenty of violence and foul language (some from an unexpected source) with brief nudity. I would not recommend bringing young children to see this movie.

We are introduced to a world 29 years removed from the events of the first X-Men movie. A world seemingly without mutants and a Wolverine showing the effects of aging and a slowed down healing factor. We get introduced to Laura (X-23) at the same time Logan does.

At first Laura seems like a normal if mute little girl. Until she is not. She turns into a little Tasmanian Devil , Whirling Dervish of destruction. Easily more violent and vicious than we have seen Logan before. Then, we get the road trip from Hell with Logan, Laura and Professor X.

This movie leaves the door open for more future films in this series, but also leaves it at a good finishing point. Barring the Deadpool franchise, I would love to see a reboot of the X-Men movies with different people at the helm.

FYI, There are no mid-credit or post-credit scenes.

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Dafne Keen, Boyd Holbrook, Stephen Merchant, Richard E. Grant, Jason Genao

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