“Black Panther” is a superhero movie that is actually good

“Black Panther” is one of the best Marvel movies to come out recently. It veers a little farther away from all of the latest intertwined Avengers films and has an amazing cast that comes together to make a compelling story.

This movie has a storyline that provides great overarching messages in regards to the conflicts the characters deal with. It touches base a lot with the theme about helping others and trying to prioritize personal/local conflicts and collective/worldwide conflicts. This is a good thing to focus on and for a younger audience to learn from, especially in today’s social and political state.

One of the biggest factors that I think makes this film so memorable and excellent is the representation it has for people of color and African culture. It is very rare in the movie industry for a big film to have any major representation, not only in the cast but also in the production crew. In such a Eurocentric and white-washed industry, this is a huge deal and a big step forward for minorities who are involved with film making. “Black Panther,” alongside other films like “Moonlight” and “Get Out,” is a great example of a recent film that gives much better presentation of minorities and people of color in non-stereotypical and realistic ways.

The film follows T’Challa, the new king of Wakanda, and his struggle against a strong enemy. He must help and protect the people of Wakanda, while also sustaining his place as the Black Panther and the king.

The film has a good mix of the exaggerated superhero world and modern day society. It is enough to keep the audience attached and able to build a connection to the characters, while also providing for an exciting action flick.

Overall, “Black Panther” is an outstanding film that tells a great story with an exceptional cast.

James Franco’s “The Disaster Artist” equal parts tragedy, comedy

“The Disaster Artist” has the perfect mix of comedy and drama. Unlike more recent films, the comedy in this movie feels more natural, as it’s based off of real events that happened with the main character, as opposed to the more common forced humor that usually involves some type of cheesy comedy that is simply unrealistic.

Alongside the humorous aspect of this film, the story it tells is very intriguing. Tommy Wiseau is a man like no other. He’s mysterious and very unusual, and his character is what makes the movie what it is. James Franco does an incredible job at portraying this character in a way that makes the audience laugh, while also feeling perplexed at his background and frustrated in certain situations.

“The Disaster Artist” tells about the making of the cult-classic “The Room”, a movie commonly known to be “so bad it’s good”. It was directed by a very peculiar and intriguing man named Tommy Wiseau. The movie is based off of the book written by Greg Sestero, who worked very closely with Tommy during the making of “The Room”.

The audience gets very attached to the main character Greg too, to the point where when something happens to him, the audience feels as if its happened to them too (in terms of strong emotions like betrayal and disappointment). His standpoint in the film is extremely parallelled to the audiences. The way we view Tommy is through Greg’s eyes and how he views him.

Overall, James Franco’s take on “The Disaster Artist” makes for a fantastic tragicomedy. It tells a compelling and comedic story that pulls the audience into the shoes of the main character and is sure not to disappoint.

New Netflix Documentary explores the blurred line between art and artist

“Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond” is an insightful and compelling documentary that includes behind the scenes footage and life changing advice from american-canadian actor Jim Carrey. It shows the type of thought process and effort that an actor/actress can put into a roll. The movie does it in a way so the audience can clearly understand the background that goes into such a mind boggling amount of commitment, as Jim Carrey gives insight on his past self from the present.

Not only is the background of what goes into the making of a movie very interesting to see, but Jim Carrey’s present narrative while watching himself get into character in the past has a very personal and interesting aspect to it as well. His remarks on both the footage and on life in general are very thought provoking and interesting to hear. Especially from such a familiar face that we’ve seen in popular films like “The Truman Show” and “Ace Ventura”. His world view is one like no other and he makes points that give the viewer eye opening perspective on the way we live our lives and reality as a whole.

“Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond” is a documentary about Jim Carrey reflecting on the making of “Man on the Moon”, a biographical film about Andy Kaufman (who is played by Jim Carrey). Andy Kaufman was an extraordinary man who would do bizarre and out-of-the-ordinary things in the entertainment industry and Jim Carrey dives into this role completely when he’s casted as the lead for “Man on the Moon”, to the point where he sort of loses himself and “becomes” Andy Kaufman. A documentary was being made at this time but was never released. That is, until “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond” was made.

Overall, this film is completely captivating and gives great insight on the film industry and worldview through Jim Carrey’s perspective. “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond” is an amazing documentary with a variety of compelling aspects to it.

Click here for more stories in Volume 3, Issue 6.