May 1, 2021

Monthly Media Recap - April 2021

 Wow, was it just me or did April fly by? 
 

Streaming

I happened on this when channel surfing and really liked the art and weirdness to it. Since all the eps are on Disney+ I decided to check it out from the start. I'm only a handful of episodes in but I am loving it. It's got an Adventure Time/Gravity Falls vibe to it which is not surprising, since the creator did storyboard art for GF and GF's creator is a creative consultant!
 
Creepshow (S2, Shudder)
I thought they were going to shoot themselves in the foot this season by putting what will likely be the best episode up first. The rest were pretty good and the season finale was great. Not as good as the opener but close behind.

Mindhunter (S1, Netflix)
I had seen a lot of people talking about it online but never really gave it a look until GI Jigsaw recommended it to me in last month's Recap when I mentioned I was on the lookout for some good true crime. I was a little hesitant at first because it was a show and not a documentary but it hooked me in pretty quickly. A couple eps in and Anna Torv showed up adding a whole new dynamic to the two main characters and that pretty much sealed the deal.

Yeah, yeah, I know. Not something I would ever expect to see show up here either! Mrs Dex wanted to watch it so I gave it a shot and it's really good. The Girls have great chemistry, the dialog is insanely witty, and there's plenty of people in the cast before they became household names to have fun going "Hey, look who it is!"

Movies
  
I guess they didn't think as many people would watch it if they called it "Kong: Hollow Earth with special guest star Godzilla". Make no mistake, this is a Kong movie. I love that they leaned more into the sci-fi/pulp stuff than the previous movies. This is what I want to see more of! The final battle felt a little goofier than I was expecting. It had the vibe of a classic Toho "man in suit" throw down which, at the end of the day, is really a compliment. Kong, I love you, but if you need a magic axe to step in the ring, Godzilla is still King. I think this would have done tremendously if it could have been a proper summer blockbuster. Really would love to have seen it in IMAX.

Rating: 7/10
 
 
Like a lot of zombie movies, this isn't a direct sequel but another story set in the same world. This time we've got a heist movie. I didn't think it was as good as the first one, which really made an impression on me. That said, this is still a good time and probably better than some random zombie flicks out there. The young kid that drives like she's seen too many Fast & Furious movies is too cool for school.
 
Rating: 6/10
 
Young kids would probably like this but I imagine most of the 80s video game references will go right over their heads. There are a few flaws/inaccuracies in the script that will no doubt nag at 80s arcade rats like me but it's a fun ride if not a great movie. Something that feels like an amusement park dark ride where you shoot targets. It's great seeing so many video game characters come to "life", especially ones that don't get the pop culture spotlight. If you somehow haven't seen the 2 minutes short that inspired the movie, check it out!

Rating: 7/10, slightly biased by my love of classic video games



Game of Death (2017, Shudder)
No, not THAT Game of Death. This 2017 flick pits teens against a bloodthirsty "game" that kills a player if they don't kill someone before the ambiguous timer runs out. I like the premise but I don't feel like they did anything great with it. Yes, there's gore and blood...maybe too much blood for something that's not a comedy. Once the final act kicks in, someone decided they wanted to make an homage to Natural Born Killers for reasons.
 
Rating: 5/10
 
Mortal Kombat (2021, HBO Max)
Like Gozilla vs Kong, I'm not here for the deep characters or intriguing plot. I'm here for the fighting and it's a good thing that's what I want. Instead of drawing on almost 30 years of history, the main character is brand new for this movie and his special move is...making a golden armor shirt appear? He is so bland he makes beige look like a rainbow and is pretty terrible fighter. The most interesting character is Kano, he steals the show when he's on screen! I do appreciate the R rating and finally getting a level of violence to match the game.

Rating: 6/10, (7 for enjoyment but docked a point for the main character)

Month
  New: 5   Rewatch: 0
 
Year to Date
New: 26  Rewatch: 0

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