Saban's Power Rangers fans relive the cheesy glory days

Movie Title:  Saban's Power Rangers

Grade:  C+

Rating:  PG-13, 124 minutes

In a Nutshell:  Does anyone actually care about the Power Rangers anymore?  My 4 sons absolutely loved it…back in the day, but I didn’t think it was even relevant to kids anymore.  

Seems like just a morphin cash grab to me in more ways than one.

Uplifting theme: 

• Friendship, loyalty, teamwork, sacrifice 

Things I liked:

• Fans of the Power Rangers will probably enjoy it just for old time’s sake.
• The characters are pretty well fleshed out with back stories, which pleasantly surprised me.
• The training sequences were pretty fun.
• Bryan Cranston is awesome in everything.  Did you know he actually voiced some of the characters in the original 1990’s TV show?  Cool.  Billy Cranston’s character in the movie was actually named after Bryan Cranston.  Even cooler.
• Their outfits have definitely gotten an upgrade.
• There is plenty of trivia for fans to sink their teeth into as the movie does a pretty good job paying homage to the source material.

Things I didn’t like:

• Krispy Kreme gets HUGE product placement.  Kind of weird, right?  Product placement always kind of annoys me, because it's so manipulative and an obvious cash grab. In this case, it’s a BIG part of the story line. Did you hear that Krispy Kreme is actually changing the name of the company in England, because customers there can’t figure out how to pronounce it correctly?  True story.
• Most of the lead teenagers are super annoying delinquents who are rude, self-absorbed, and whiny. They almost try to out-do each other to see which one of them is least understood and outcast. Even before the five teenagers get their special powers, they’re involved in very dangerous activities.  These kids are not great role models.  Of course, they finally figure out how to work as a team and sacrifice for each other (not a big spoiler alert), but I didn’t like most of them.  On top of that, they all buy into killing Rita within minutes.  I did, however, think R.J. Cyler (Blue Ranger) was the most compelling Ranger and did a great job.
• Rita Repulsa.  What a name. Ha ha.  Instead of declaring her intentions to conquer the world or the universe, she pretty much just trashes a little town.  Ha ha  Elizabeth Banks’ accent seemed off, but I appreciate that she was trying to go over-the-top campy like the original TV character did.
• Some bad editing moments.
• The original 90’s TV show was super cheesy and knew it.  That’s what made it really fun.  This movie mixes up the cheese with serious drama, so it often feels disjointed in tone.
• For an origin story, it’s fairly cliché.
• There are some really inappropriate jokes.
• It’s kind of like the directors picked out what special effects they wanted to use and then built a story around it.

Funny lines:

• “Yippee Kayay, Mother Fu….Mother.  Mother’s good.” – Blue Ranger (R.J.Cyler)
• “You five are the Power Rangers!” – Alpha 5 (Bill Hader)

“Are we like Iron Man or Spiderman?” – Blue Ranger

• “My guess is we have 11 years.  No, days.  Eleven days.” – Alpha 5
• “I’m pretty sure I’m a super hero.” – Pink Ranger (Naomi Scott)

“Pee in that cup!” – Kimberly Hart’s mom

• “Jason, did you just slap her?” – Blue Ranger

“I did.  Weird, right?” – Jason Lee Scott/Red Ranger (Dacre Montgomery)

• “Sorry, Bumblebee!” – Blue Ranger (Transformers reference)

Dumb lines:

• “Take that!” – Pink Ranger
• “Bring it on!” – Pink Ranger
• “We got this!” – Pink Ranger
• “My family is so normal.  Too normal.” – Yellow Ranger (Becky G)

Tips for parents: 

• Lots of fighting and destruction.
• A surprising amount of profanity.
• There are some subtitles you’ll have to read for little ones.
• There are several inappropriate jokes that will, hopefully, go over the heads of most kids.

If you love the Power Rangers and can't get enough, check out Saban's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers - The Complete First Season on 6 Dvds - 60 Episodes Uncut

@trinaboice 

Why Him? features comedic talent, a gazillion F-bombs, and tons of crude jokes

Movie Title:    Why Him?

Grade:  D

Rating:  R, 111 minutes

• In a Nutshell:  This film definitely earns its R rating for every reason. 
•  If you use a language or content filter when you watch this movie on DVD, it will basically be a 5 minute silent movie.  It’s FILLED with trashy, raunchy humor.  There is a LOT of inappropriate behavior, images, and language. 

Uplifting theme: 

• “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” – Ned Fleming (Bryan Cranston)

Woah.  Chills.” – Laird Mayhew (James Franco)

• Give people a chance to be who they are.

Things I liked:

• The cast includes GREAT comedic talent: James Franco, Bryan Cranston, Megan Mullally, and Keegan-Michael Key.  They all have excellent comedic timing and an even spread of funny lines between them. 
• Awesome toilets!  (Not the potty mouths.)
• Did you know Kelly Cuoco from The Big Bang Theory: Season 9 was the voice of Justine? 
• I liked that they got real celebrities to play themselves: Elon Musk, Steve Aoki, Richard Blais,  and Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley from KISS!
• I admit it.  I laughed out loud a few times.
• There's a reference from the movie The Pink Panther (2006) Did you ever see that movie?  Pretty fun.
• “Kevin!” (video clip from Home Alone)  I love it when movies reference other movies.

Things I didn’t like:

• Have you ever known anyone without filters?  Weird, right?.... and yet oddly refreshing.
• Director John Hamburg recycles a plot that is completely predictable with nothing particularly new to see.
• There were some other good comedy actors in the movie, but they were only given teeny, tiny parts: Adam DeVine, Andrew Rannells, Cedric the Entertainer, and Casey Wilson.
• They started to create a character who worked for Laird and did degrading jobs while he uttered “Pay my student loans, pay my student loans”, but then they didn’t keep the gag going very long.
• It always bugs me when they make child actors say and do crude things.
• There were scenes advertised in the trailer that never made it into the actual movie.  

Funny lines:

• “I feel like I’m so normal.” – Laird
• “Scotty, shut it and eat your paper.” – Ned
• “You think you’re at war with Laird, but he’s not fighting.  It’s just you.” – Barb Fleming
• “I’m going straight to hell just for typing this.” – Ned
• “I’m down to my last 97 million…197 million.” – Laird

“Barely scraping by.” - Barb

Tips for parents:   

• This is a Rated R movie for a reason.  It’s an even trashier version of Meet the Parents .  You really do NOT want your kids to watch this garbage.
• The language is really, really bad.  There is barely a sentence without profanity. Gustav explains, “He speaks English and you speak English with resounding amounts of F***!”  There are about a million F-bombs.
• You see James Franco's rear end.
• You see Bryan Cranston sitting on the toilet.  Of course, that's nothing new if you ever watched Malcolm In the Middle (loved it!) or Breaking Bad: The Complete Series   I don't know what it is about Bryan Cranston, but he loves to be seen in his underwear.

Godzilla proves to be a monster at the Box Office

Movie Title:  Godzilla [HD]

PG-13, 2 hour 3 minutes

Grade:    A-

 

In a Nutshell:   I love it when a movie trailer doesn’t reveal major plot points in an upcoming movie so that you’re pleasantly surprised.  Godzilla [HD] has all of the intensity, stunning visual effects, impressive sound design and suspense you’ve been wanting from this franchise for years.  Suspend your disbelief and enjoy the monstrous fun.

Box office sales proves that, just like Godzilla, this movie franchise won't die.

Uplifting theme: 

• There are good monsters and bad monsters.  Humans too.  Awww.
• There are nice examples in the flick of heroism, loyalty, sacrifice, and honor.

Things I liked:

• Disaster movie lovers will get a kick out of watching Las Vegas and San Francisco get destroyed.  Great special effects.  I loved the TV ticker line “Breaking News: Live Terror in Vegas!”
• The movie makes it current by including present-day concerns about compromised Japanese nuclear power plants being a danger to nearby communities and beyond.
• I liked how it tried to wrap the story around the 1954 Godzilla movie’s fear of the atomic age.
• Bryan Cranston makes everything better.
• Monsters Director Gareth Edwards is great at creating chaos and pandemonium.
• I watched it in IMAX 3D, which offers some moments when I really felt inside the movie.  At one point, I thought an audience member was standing in front of me and I almost asked him to move, but then realized it was the 3D effect.
• Go Army!
• (SPOILER ALERT)  I loved it when a “certain” monster glowed with fire inside.  Godzilla spews cool blue fire.
• I loved the scene where the skydivers dropped from the clouds, trailing red flares.
• Aaron Taylor-Johnson conveniently arrives in the right place at the right time to offer the ongoing thread that keeps the human story running alongside the monsters.  He’s likeable enough to get the job done as hero and provides another shout-out to the real everyday heroes in today’s U.S.Army.  My oldest son is an officer in the Army, so can I get a “Hooah!”?
• It was clever to show old movie clips in the beginning to bring newbies to the Godzilla franchise up to speed.
• One of the few funny moments of the flick featured some Japanese parents in an airport getting annoyed at their Emo kid.
• I loved seeing the city and aerial views of Tokyo.
• One of the best lines in the movie was when a Japanese doctor gets to say “We call him… Godzirra.”
• There are a few scene transitions that made the audience laugh out loud because they were expecting to see a real monster, but instead, saw a pet chameleon and a toy dinosaur.

Things I didn’t like:

• Audiences can’t help but compare this film to last summer’s blockbuster Pacific Rim .  They’re both fun, but Pacific Rim had some fresh elements that Godzilla [HD] can’t compete with (uber cool, digital kaiju, gigantic robot soldier fight scenes).  Click here for my review of Pacific Rim.
• While the 1998 Mathew Broderick version felt more like a cartoon, this one is full of drama.  In fact, it needs a touch of humor to offset the fact that it takes itself so seriously.
• The back story provided some meat, but was a bit contorted at times.
• Not nearly enough monster fight scenes.  Not nearly enough Godzilla.  He almost plays a supporting role.
• Dr. Ishiro Seriwaza does two things well in the movie: utter profound statements about Godzirra, and stare in disbelief with his mouth open.
• Thanks for the uncomfortable reminder that I live near Yucca Mountain...

Interesting lines:

• “The arrogance of man is thinking nature is under our control and not the other way around.” – Dr. Ishiro Seriwaza
• “The king of monsters is the savior of our city.”
• “Nature has a power to restore its bounds.  I believe he is that nature.”  - Dr. Ishiro Seriwaza

Tips for parents: 

• Loving married relationships instead of sexual content is refreshing.
• Very mild profanity that’s hardly noticeable because so many other things are going on.
• Lots of destruction and monster violence.  That's what you came to see though, right?