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Suzume no Tojimari (2022)
A Masterpiece
This movie was not on my radar. I only knew of it due to an add before Totoro during Studio Ghibli fest, but it caught my attention. I went into the movie with reasonable expectations, hoping it would blow my mind. Well it did and it broke my mind.
Let me clarify quickly that I watched the English Dub, even though I booked tickets for the Japanese Dub. This anime took a great and somewhat scary start when our main protagonist Suzume is walking to school after awaking for the day from a nightmare. On her trip to school she runs into a handsome young man who asks for directions. She provides them before proceeding to school, only to realize she has seen the man before in her recurring nightmares. This causes her to leave school in hopes of finding him in the area she directed him too. This quickly turns into chaos when she finds a door in the middle of nowhere, no frame or anything to hold up upright yet there it is. She opens the door to see a whole new world but every time she steps inside the door she just ends up on the opposite side of the door in her own world. Without spoiling anything important, the man from earlier shows up to find her and all hell breaks loose.
From there it's almost non-stop action with occasional feel good moments, character growth, and relationship development. It never feels slow, sappy, or like an average love story. Every time you get comfortable or think you know what's next you inevitably end up on the edge of your seat. You will stay on the edge of your seat until the end, where you'll find an amazing emotional conclusion. I love a good heart wrenching ending as much as most people but this one really got me. It was by far one of the best endings to a film I've seen and I'm not ashamed to say I ugly cried.
This movie is definitely my favorite of the year and I think it has a good chance of keeping that spot. If you like anime and love a good story then this is the movie for you. If you've got a child that's into anime then treat them to this, but make sure you go along with them, regardless of your stance on anime. This movie will win awards this year, calling it now. Do yourself a favor and watch this masterpiece in theaters while you still can!
10/10 - A true anime masterpiece the likes of which only Studio Ghibli could come close to achieving. You will not be disappointed.
Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (2022)
A Fitting Title
What? You say you never thought that?!? Well I guess I never really did either but now we know the answer to that question, it's this movie.
Weird is exactly what it says it is, weird. It should be known right away when going into this movie that everything is exaggerated and not remotely true, well minus a few small details. The movie is just flat out dumb at times but also brilliant in others. You get a lot of humor and cheap gags just like with Weird Al's music.
The film itself is nothing more than a satire biopic on the artist himself. I'll be honest, I had high hopes for this movie. I somewhat hoped it would be an accurate depiction on his life but instead Weird Al did what he does best, changed his whole life (just like another artists music), and made it weird...yet funny. I give him a lot of credit in making his life more interesting but it leaves a lot to be desired. You will see big time skips, sudden story arches, huge life events glanced over, and get some cheap laughs along the way. Go into this film without having high expectations and you may enjoy it. It's definitely better if you're a Weird Al fan and to be honest I'm not sure someone who isn't could get the film for what it is. Most movies don't life up to their name but this one does even if that sets it back in some ways. This movie in my opinion is a bit bland and unexciting but it has a special place in my heart for being so weird. I give it a 7 out of 10.