Change Your Image
mattatthemovies
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
American History X (1998)
Incredibly relevant to this day
With the rise of racism and right wing ideology around the world, this movie is perhaps more relevant today than it was back in 1998. American History X is a genius depiction of how young and impressionable kids can be radicalized into violent bigotry. It shows how hateful beliefs are often passed down from generation to generation.
The cast of actors is truly excellent, from Edward Norton's academy nominated performance to superb supporting cast of Edward's Furlong, Beverly D'Angelo, Avery Brooks, and Stacy Keach.
The direction by Tony Kaye is top notch. I loved the pacing in particular, no scene felt unnecessary or undercooked. The use of black and white to differentiate flashbacks is also simple yet genius filmmaking.
This is an excellent piece of cinema and something I strongly recommend every person watch at least once.
The Love Guru (2008)
Unfunny and very racist
I was cringing for the entire ninety minute runtime. Whose idea was it for multiple white actors to dress and act like they are indian? The plot is paper thin and the jokes are groan-worthy and extremely surface level. Basically every joke in this movie falls into one of three categories. Mike Myers saying something in an Indian accent, dick jokes, or Verne Troyer is small.
I hated every minute of this, it's no surprise that this movie was apparently written during a writers strike because the comedy writing is just so low effort and lame. This is one of the worst comedies I've ever seen. It's no wonder we haven't seen much of Mike Myers since.
Showgirls (1995)
They thought they were making gold
Showgirls has an interesting legacy as both a theatric flop and a cult classic. It received a second life in the physical media and rental market, mostly from people wanting soft-core smut with hollywood production value. You can frequently find Showgirls included on worst film lists across the internet. First, I will start with the few things this film does well. The locations, costumes, makeup, and choreography are all quite good. That's the extent of the good things this film has to offer.
The acting is pretty bad, especially Elizabeth Berkley who plays the lead role of Nomi. She plays a very childlike, unstable vagabond who hitchhikes to Las Vegas with the hope of becoming a showgirl. She is incredibly unlikeable and very poorly written. The script doesn't do Berkley any favors given the dialogue often feels disjointed, lifeless, and often downright cringe. You can tell this movie about being a woman in a cutthroat business was written and directed by men.
You also have a very awkward and graphic scene where the only morally good character is sexually assaulted. It's unforgivable and totally out of place in this movie.
This movie is trying to say a lot of different things about topics like femininity, sex work, and show business. Unfortunately the people behind this movie were not knowledgeable or competent enough to pull it off.
There is a good movie somewhere inside this mess. Unfortunately the most memorable thing about it is the crazy bad sex scene where Nomi flops around like a fish out of water.
Risky Business (1983)
Snooze
This is one of those 80's movies that doesn't stand the test of time. It's labeled as a comedy but isn't particularly funny. You are supposed to like these characters but there are completely insufferable. Tom Cruise is a rich and entitled suburban jerk who gets in trouble with a pimp after not paying one of his prostitutes. To pay off his debt he turns his house into a brothel so that a bunch of minors can engage in sexual relations with a group of prostitutes.
You have to give it to Guido, he runs a tight ship. His girls look more like beauty queens and less like your everyday hooker (definitely would cost more than $300).
This movie is like a boring and bad version of Ferris Bueller's Day Off. There's a reason Tom Cruise dancing in his underwear is the only thing people remember about this film.
The Happening (2008)
A total conceptual failure
The Happening is a complete failure from concept to execution. Never before has a disaster thriller been this poorly conceived. The plants are releasing toxins that cause the human brain to malfunction and cause the host to kill themselves. These toxins only affect humans when they are in big groups, except when it doesn't. This movie does not want to stick to any of the rules it sets. Nothing makes sense and there was never any effort to make it make sense.
The dialogue was truly ahead of its time, and by that I mean it sounds like it was written by Chat GPT. There are some truly horrible lines of dialogue and none of the characters feel at all like real people. The acting is horrible and the direction from M. Night Shyamalan is even worse.
Since when are hot dogs a road trip snack? Who's eating cold hot dogs?
This movie is saved from a lower rating in my eyes because it does have value as a film you can laugh at. There are a number of parts that are unintentionally hilarious.
Cuckoo (2024)
Huh?
The plot of this movie is totally nuts!
Some crazy science lunatic uses his hotel as a way to breed these human-like beings with special abilities. Gretchen is a teenager that moves along with her family to live in this hotel. Strange things begin to happen shortly after their arrival.
This movie has a few really good scares and scenes that build tension really well. The scene with Gretchen riding her bike is easily the best and scariest part of this movie. I thought the hooded woman was quite creepy in the scenes she appears in.
The plot is just a bit too much for me. The way it unfolds and the way backstory is revealed is unsatisfying and slightly confusing. The movie doesn't really explain why the doctor is developing this cuckoo species other than that he's a "preservationist", which is obviously a dumb reason.
I overall enjoyed watching this, there are a few memorable scenes. But I probably won't be revisiting. This feels like a Walmart brand Ari Aster film.
The Cat in the Hat (2003)
Disturbing
The saving grace is that it is only about 75 minutes long. Mike Myers was forced to be in this movie for contractual reasons and his lack of enthusiasm about the project shows.
The humor is mostly lame with some adult jokes that are the furthest thing from subtle. I like to imagine the amount of parents who had to explain the dirty hoe joke. Not to mention the cat wants to bone Kelly Preston and Paris Hilton.
Mike Myers career has gone done the toilet after colossal flops such as this and The Love Guru. This movie is just flat out not worth watching under any circumstances. It's no wonder the widow of Dr. Seuss hated this movie, it's completely disrespectful to the source material.
The Room (2003)
You're tearing me apart!
What more can be said about The Room? Notorious for being one of the worst films ever made, it's received a second wind as a cult classic and to many qualifies as a so bad it's good flick.
I half agree with that assessment. Yes there are famously hilarious moments such as the flower store and the football in the alleyway scene. However, there are also way too many boring scenes that aren't funny or entertaining.
The dialogue is bizarre, it makes you wonder if the script was written by aliens. The acting is also terrible, although the amateur actors that fill out the cast look like Marlon Brando compared to Tommy Wiseau. Anytime Tommy enters a scene he brings an element of chaos, as if truly anything could happen next.
As ridiculous as he is, this movie wouldn't be remembered if it weren't for Tommy. He is the only reason this is worth watching. The element of an overconfident, ego-driven weirdo thinking he's making some masterpiece is what makes this movie so irresistible.
Weird Science (1985)
John Hughes wasn't even trying
I did some reading on this movie and discovered that John Hughes wrote the script in just two days and only took on this project so he could direct The Breakfast Club. Hughes lack of passion for the project is obvious, there was not much care put into this film. It feels like something that was made due to obligation.
The first ten to fifteen minutes of this movie are perfectly fine. Two nerdy teenagers (Gary and Wyatt) are striking out with the ladies and decide to attempt a Frankenstein-esque experiment to create their ideal woman using computers, playboy magazines, and a barbie doll. Basically as soon as Kelly LeBrock (Lisa) is introduced, we start to fall off the rails.
Thankfully, this movie recognizes that this twenty something year old cannot have sexual intercourse with these two minors. But the script still blurs the line between relationship mentor/wingwoman and lover a little too close for comfort. It's very uncomfortable to watch this adult woman make out and shower with characters who are not even old enough to drive yet.
The last hour of this movie feels like a jumbled mess. Lisa, Gary, and Wyatt go to a club so the boys can learn to loosen up a bit. We then get a very yikesy moment where a drunk Gary does a black voice. The movie closes with a party where things happen with no rhyme or reason. A nuclear warhead is magically manifested and a biker gang straight out of mad max crashes the party and Gary and Wyatt must save the day.
This movie contains the skeleton of something that might actually be good or entertaining at the very least. Perhaps with a different director it would have been better off.
Bill Paxton is excellent as Wyatt's older brother Chet. The best part of the movie is the amazing theme song that plays over the credits.
Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd (2003)
Inept and Cringeworthy attempt at Comedy
This was a trainwreck that everyone should have seen coming. A sequel to a comedy classic that had a new director, new writers, and new forgettable nobody actors playing the leads. Lloyd is played by Eric Christian Olsen, who is most remembered for his role in Not Another Teen Movie and as a regular on NCIS: Los Angeles. Olsen does a fine job imitating Jim Carrey's Lloyd Christmas from the original, but the writing doomed this movie. Derek Richardson plays Harry Dunne, Richardson is most remembered for his role in Eli Roth's film Hostel just a few years later.
The comedy in this film is extremely underwhelming, I didn't laugh once. Even the best jokes this movie has are only slightly amusing, you may crack a smile but nothing more. Eugene Levy and Bob Saget are the saving grace that keeps the movie out of 1 star territory for me. Both actors are trying their best and are easily the funniest parts of the movie.
It's truly incredible that the original film has aged as well as it has. All the jokes that landed in 1994 still land three decades later. The same cannot be said about the follow up, which has aged like a raisin in the Nevada sun. Whether it be having the Asian foreign exchange student referred to as Ching Chong. Or the many jokes about special needs students, or a gay slur being used repeatedly by the protagonists. These cringeworthy missteps just shows the difference that quality script writing and directing can make.
Trap (2024)
So bad I couldn't believe it
It's almost hard to believe that M. Night Shyamalan at one point actually made good movies. The Sixth Sense is one of my favorite movies of all time. This movie pales in comparison to Shyamalan's directorial peak. Toni Collette received an Oscar nomination for her performance in The Sixth Sense. Nobody is getting any awards for this movie (perhaps a razzie).
The failures of this movie begin with some truly awful casting. For the role of the pop singer, Shyamalan decided to cast his daughter instead of a real actress. You have to respect the blatant nepotism, because this girl can't act. You also had the role of the lead FBI investigator, a role that could have gone to a number of notable actors. Instead, for some insane reason they cast a 78 year old Hayley Mills. It's totally ridiculous to give this role to this sweet old woman.
The script is also horrible, so even the competent actors had no chance. The dialogue is bad or downright cringey at times. The music is quite bad, and the long concert segments make me wonder if this movie was made solely to try to advance his daughter's career. The plot has a number of stupid moments where Josh Hartnett is able to evade police capture despite impossible odds.
The last half hour of this movie is unbelievably boring for what is supposed to be a thriller. The whole movie drags on for what is a pretty miserable viewing. I paused this film to check the remaining runtime fully expecting to see 15 minutes left, WRONG! 45 god damn minutes left!
The ending is so stupid! Some of the dumbest cops in film history. Do not watch this, it's not worth your time and is a waste of what is admittedly a pretty intriguing premise.
Gigli (2003)
Fails at literally everything it tries
I think even the "people get offended by everything these days" crowd would admit that this movie crosses the line. Justin Bartha's portrayal of a mentally disabled man will cause your jaw to drop to the floor with just how ableist it is.
As many others have noted, this movie also contains the cringey trope of a straight man being able to seduce a gay woman with his charm and excellent sex. He practically guilts her into sleeping with him. Boo Hoo Gigli, I don't care that you are sad because the pretty lady won't have sex with you. Cry me a river!
Now that the offensive stuff is out of the way let's talk about the many ways this fails as a film. First, the dialogue is beyond awful. So much of it will make you cringe so hard you can't believe an actual human wrote it and it passed editing. From a painfully long yoga debate between the two leads about whether gay sex is better than straight sex, to Justin Bartha saying god bless you to his penis presumably because he jizzed in his pants, all the way to Jennifer Lopez inviting Ben Affleck to perform oral sex on her by saying "Turkey time, gobble gobble!" This movie contains some of the worst dialogue I've ever heard.
I also think the story is incredibly lame. The premise of the film is that a powerful attorney's disabled brother is kidnapped for blackmail purposes. I kept drawing comparisons to the movie Alpha Dog (2008). That movie does the kidnapping plot so much better because we get a perspective beyond just that of the kidnappers. Gigli desperately needed Christopher Walken to be a character with more than one scene. We need to see the police investigation into the kidnapping in order to build up tension for the audience and pressure for the characters in the movie. This movie is supposed to be a crime drama but has no stakes until Al Pacino shows up way too late. There is no buildup or climax, then the movie just kind of ends.
A minor grievance I had was that Brian (Bartha) needs to be read to in order for him to fall asleep, so Affleck resorts to reading the label on a bottle of Tabasco sauce because he doesn't have any books. The movie then cuts to Jennifer Lopez reading a book in the bedroom of his apartment. She didn't think to maybe loan him her book for a minute to get this guy to sleep?
This movie is beyond bad and is 100% deserving of its reputation. It's no wonder the actors involved desperately want this to be forgotten and the director quit directing following its box office bomb.
Wild Wild West (1999)
A steaming mess of a sci-fi western
This movie is not very good, I'm giving it four stars though because it isn't boring or insulting enough to warrant a lower rating in my opinion. The comedy falls flat, the script is just terrible in general and it wasn't a surprise to see this movie had several rewrites. This movie had several production issues throughout its development, and you can tell from the final product. Practically everyone involved with its creation has disowned it since its release.
The aesthetic of a steampunk, post civil war, reconstruction era America is a really interesting setting for a movie, but the execution is so poor that it feels totally wasted.
This isn't the worst thing I've ever seen, but I will never be watching this again.
Interstellar (2014)
Incredibly overrated!
Christopher Nolan is very hit or miss for me. This movie is quite overrated in my opinion. I think the first hour of this movie is incredibly boring, while the last half hour is remarkably dumb and needlessly contrived.
I also can't get over my dislike for Matthew McConaughey as a leading man. I can't stand his stupid voice and his stupid face. McConaughey alone forces me to subtract two whole stars.
The supporting cast is good, Hathaway, Chastain, Damon, Lithgow, Caine, Affleck, and Chalamet all are positives.
I enjoy the themes of time and sacrifice that this movie touches on, there are some genuinely emotional moments. But the ending with Cooper in the tessaract is just another example of Nolan creating a needlessly complicated plot device to conclude his movie in a way that only makes sense to him.
The middle third where the crew is exploring space for potential habitable planets is when this movie is at its best. Unfortunately the run time of almost three hours makes it impossible for me to recommend it.
L.A. Confidential (1997)
Difficult to follow at times
This is a pretty standard crime drama. Given its IMDB rating I was surprised at how unexceptional it is compared to similar 90's films of the same genre. It has its moments, but overall the film falls short of being in the same category as other 90's crime thriller classics like Heat, Fargo, Seven, and Reservoir Dogs.
I think the biggest issue with this movie is that there are a number of minor characters that this movie expects you to remember and keep track of. I'm sorry but I don't remember the name of that random cop who was in one scene earlier. I also don't understand Dudley's plan, why not just kill Exley yourself? Why go through the trouble of putting Bud White against Exley, seems like an unnecessary risk to take?
I also found it shocking that Kim Basinger won an Oscar for this performance. Not that she's bad in this role, but this performance is totally unremarkable.
Inside Out 2 (2024)
Slightly disappointing
The first movie was quite good. It did an amazing job of explaining human emotion in a fun and easily digestible way for audiences of all ages. The way that Riley and Joy grow together over the course of the first movie is impressive writing. We learn that humans are complicated beings and that all our emotions are necessary and make us who we are.
The message in this film is basically the same thing except this time it's the new character, Anxiety, that has to learn it. There are a variety of new emotions that are added, although they seem to just be mixtures of the already existing emotions (wouldn't Anxiety just be a mixture of Sadness and Fear?). Joy and Anxiety are the only emotions that matter to the plot, the others are thrown aside and relegated to making jokes.
This movie follows Riley as she tries to make the high school hockey team while adjusting to a new school and the challenges of making new friends. I think it was a mistake to make so much of the story center around this hockey team, it is far less relatable than the first movie. We can all relate to growing up and clashing with our parents. Why couldn't this movie be about high school, and drama, and boys, and awkward teenage emotions? We get some of that during the scenes in between hockey montages, but there isn't enough of it.
There is a lot to like though. The voice acting is good, the animation is great, the music is excellent, and some of the jokes are well written and funny. I enjoyed this movie, but I was really hoping it would be better.
Twisters (2024)
Extremely dumb but very fun!
Please turn your brain off before pressing play. You will enjoy the movie a lot more than you would otherwise. This sequel loosely follows the plot of the original with a brand-new cast of characters. One thing that the 1996 original will always have against this sequel is the quality of its cast. I just can't see anyone from this film winning any academy awards in their future.
Regardless, the action is fun. And the scale of the disaster is amplified. The special effects are also greatly improved compared to the original.
I really hated the music. I get the whole country rock vibe its going for, but some of these songs they chose a truly awful.
MaXXXine (2024)
Bigger but not necessarily better
While this is technically the worst of the trilogy, there is still plenty to like about this movie. The music is excellent, the cinematography stands out in a big way, the gore is amazingly gross, and the acting is a tier above the two preceding films. While it was always going to be hard for Mia Goth to top her performance from Pearl, It's the supporting cast that truly makes this movie worth watching.
The downfall of the movie in my opinion comes in the way the writers decided to tie the story together. The ending is weak and the reveal that Maxine's dad is the murderer falls flat considering he is not a character in any of the three movies. The satanic panic is a consistent theme throughout the movie, and while it could have been interesting, unfortunately the final product is cliched.
I never thought I would see a penis get crushed by a high heel shoe in a major motion picture, what a memorable scene that is.
The Princess Bride (1987)
Reputation built solely off nostalgia
When you ask people what their favorite movie is, a somewhat frequent response is this movie. Despite the fact that fantasy is not really my cup of tea, I decided to see what all the hubbub was about.
My theory is that this movie's reputation has been built solely off of people who grew up watching this movie and feel great nostalgia for it. It was shocking to me how unremarkable it was, containing absolutely nothing worthwhile in its 98-minute runtime. The story is lame and one-dimensional, the characters are underdeveloped and stereotypical, and the cinematography is amateurish. While the protagonists are in the fire swamp, there are multiple shots where hands and feet of different crew members can be seen.
The comedy is decent, but not good enough to make this worth watching. Wallace Shawn is maybe the best part of this movie, the scene where he tries to decipher which chalice was poisoned is the only entertaining scene in this movie.
Holes (2003)
Shawshank for young adults
Don't be fooled by the Disney logo, this movie is clearly intended for more mature audiences. Both in the way of the more convoluted plot as well as more adult themes. In hindsight, it's shocking that this movie was able to get away with a PG rating. The story centers around a bunch of minors being exploited in a prison labor camp, and around halfway through we get a flashback containing a somewhat distressing depiction of a lynching. I wouldn't recommend this movie for kids under the age of ten. However, I think this is an excellent movie for young adults.
I was a little disappointed by the ending. It seems a little anticlimactic with the way the warden and her lackeys are foiled. Otherwise, this is a perfectly solid movie.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
Fun 80's madness
This movie is an underrated gem. I can understand why this movie failed at the box office, but I agree with John Carpenter's original vision for this film franchise. We should have gotten more movies like this one and fewer horrible Halloween sequels simply for the sake of having more Michael Myers.
Season of the Witch is a lot of fun, it's a great example of a cheesy 80's horror B-movie that delivers in all the right ways. The acting, the effects, the ridiculous plot, and the kills are excellent. I love that the protagonist is a drunken scumbag doctor who abandons his family on Halloween to investigate a mystery and to have sexual relations with a much younger woman who is grieving her recently murdered father. I love that the antagonist's plan is to kill a bunch of children using evil monster masks that are powered by Stonehenge magic. Most of all, I love the Silver Shamrock jingle that plays all throughout the movie. It is impossible to watch this film and not have the jingle stuck in your head for the rest of the day.
This movie is a perfect time capsule of 80's horror, containing all the best elements of the decade. I recommend this movie, it's a lot of fun.
Horton Hears a Who! (2008)
Fun Dr Seuss Adaptation
As far as animation goes, I've certainly seen worse. The two lead actors make for an enjoyable viewing experience with excellent comedic timing and delivery. The comedy is hit or miss with a few legitimate laughs but also some dated humor including what I think was a Henry Kissinger reference (who is that for?)
I love that this film makes its main villain an anti-intellectual parent that homeschools her children in order to shield them from ideas she personally finds distasteful. This movie was ahead of its time in that aspect. The kangaroo is played by Carol Burnett who does a wonderful job voice acting and is a welcomed addition to a stacked cast of voices. I enjoy this movie, it's both charming and funny.
A Quiet Place: Day One (2024)
Why was this needed?
This movie serves as an origin story for the first two films, depicting the first moments of the alien invasion. However we kind of already got this aspect during the second movie in the form of flashbacks. This whole movie feels pointless, like they produced this script purely to ride the coattails of the successful first two films. Krasinski wasn't event back to direct this time.
The idea behind this film was clearly "what if it happened in a city?" Although this movie does not take advantage of the setting. There is really only one scene that includes the mass hysteria and chaos of New York City. You will have to keep the remote control nearby for this movie since it switches from barely able to hear the dialogue to blowing out your eardrums in an instant. This movie is not worth your time.
300 (2006)
Boy this movie looks terrible
There certainly is a lot of criticism surrounding this movie and its lack of historical accuracy. In this movies defense I don't believe it presents itself as a faithful retelling of historical events. There are clearly elements that are fabricated or exaggerated. However, I can understand how some take umbrage to the portrayal of the persian army and the overall message of a nation of white people defending against an invasion of brown foreigners. Some have called this movie fascist propaganda, and while I don't believe that was the intention I can see how some may have that takeaway.
The biggest problem with this movie is that it's an eyesore for the viewer. I was not surprised at all to read that only one scene was filmed outdoors. It's painfully obvious that most of this movie was shot in front of a green screen. It looks terrible, 99% of the colors in this movie are yellow, grey, and brown. I'm not a fan of Snyder's style, but this is much worse than some of his other work.
I used to get this movie confused with Ridley Scott's "Gladiator" (2000). But upon revisiting both films recently, it's pretty obvious that Gladiator is the superior film in every way. Better acting, better action, better characters, better writing, better music, and better visuals.
300 is totally unremarkable and boring. It does not hold up in the slightest. This movie looks terrible, even compared to other movies from that time.
Longlegs (2024)
Missed the mark
I'd say that the first hour or so of this movie is perfectly fine, but the last act really fails to bring it all together.
There were a lot of ideas that went into this film, very few of which actually get some kind of payoff. We get creepy dolls, satanic cults, coded serial killer letters, christian themes, psychic character, homicide investigation, creepy basements, and possession. It's almost as if the creators felt the need to jam every single horror cliche in one movie.
Maika Monroe's performance is a little flat. She is a capable actress who has been good in things. I have a feeling she was going for the homicide investigator who's been desensitized from all the gruesome cases she's worked. However we don't get enough of the police procedural stuff for it to work. Instead, her character is almost zombie like. The movie tries to attribute her near catatonic state to childhood trauma, but that doesn't really work either.
Nicolas Cage is also pretty bad in this movie. It feels like the only direction he was given was "act crazy". The makeup for his character is terrible as well.
It's truly baffling how bad the third act is. The plot holes are numerous and the devil magic is so poorly defined. Why does Harker not shoot Carter before he kills his wife? She knows that he's been possessed, and she knows that the devil possesses the father and kills both the wife and the children. But for some reason Harker just allows this woman to die for no reason. Why does the devil need dolls to kill people, who knows?
This movie had potential, but ultimately feels like a jumbled mess of ideas. If you are expecting scares, this is not a very good horror movie either.