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There has be a lot of movies released over the time of my hiatus or should I say that I've seen quite of a bit of movies. More and more I try to avoid any movie that I feel will be generic or just another cinematic universe building film because I just don't care about those anymore. Not to say that I am staying away from superhero films because superhero films aren't the only ones trying to stay in the cinematic universe building game.

Recently I have just watched Logan for the first time and I while I really enjoyed it I can't help but feel like it was a end of an era. That same feeling of having to move on. Modern movies have certainly lost their edge compared to what they used to and that not to say that they have become worse. That statement just isn't true as there will always be bad movies but the good ones will continued to be remember and often looked at when movies are released that year. No what I am talking about is the "playing it safe" factor that I see in so many modern movies.

I mention Logan because it reminded me of why I like when movies take chances and try something new even at the cost of a marketable film. After watching X-Men: Apocalypse last year I said to myself "its time to end the X-Men movies" After watching Logan, I said the same thing, but the meaning was completely opposite to prior statement. The prior, a sense that this franchise and others like it have plateaued and no longer had anything new to offer. The former, a satisfying conclusion to a long running story that now has come full circle. Nothing else it needed to tell after its already been done.

Now I know there will continue to be X-Men movies. Even as I am typing this the studio is probably announced a whole slate of movies planned to 2030. But that doesn't necessarily mean I have to watch them or even considered them a continuation. Now I days I find myself deciding when and where a movie series should end even though more sequels are released to follow.

Naruto is a long running franchise that I have kept up with for close to 13 years now. But, similar to X-Men, the series has ended. Well not exactly. The story contributed by the original creator has ended. But the "story" goes on in the form of the "Next Generation" by the studios that know Naruto makes money. I know I don't have to watch it and I don't plan to, as for me the story has ended.

Which makes me think about the future of movies, of course we will still get great stand alone films but more and more are we getting movies that are made by a chart that says what the average person does and doesn't want to see in a movie with an end result of mediocrity. Where as just a few years ago I was going to the theaters as much as I could to see every movie was that released to today where I see maybe one or two movies actually in theaters.

Clint Eastwood can have hit and misses in his films but over the years he has been tackling true events stories from recent years and portraying them in a way that feel very real and unbiased. Is his latest film a hit? Tom Hanks is always a likable actor and most characters he plays are always likable and here, its no different. We follow the story of Chesley Sullenberger, who became a hero after gliding his plane along the water in the Hudson River in 2009.

What really caught my attention was how this movie really focuses more on the aftermath of the plane crash than the actual crash itself. We do get the see the crash but it is much later than I would've expected, where most movies would have something like this as the first scene of their film. A lot of this movie is about the aftermath drama as companies are looking for a person to put the blame on this as you watch as Sully tries to defend himself. Of course the situations are never that simple as the people after him really try to pick everything apart to find every flaw that they could use to blame him.

My only complaint about the film is that I felt that it would've been better told if all the even were in chronological order. I understand why flashbacks and past experiences are shown as it takes a break from certain scenes but most of the time I like to see things play out one after another. This movie has a number of flash backs including the plane landing and even dream sequences showing what could have happened if things didn't go the way they did. Not many movies take the time to dive in this much to a situation and it was nice to see that here.

Sully's biggest strengths was the runtime. The movie isn't that long and is paced in a way that could've been misused very easily if they wanted to extend the time. It feels way to early to say if this film will carry on to the Oscars season, because a Clint Eastwood true even story seems like a movie that would be, but regardless this a good movie and I would say one of the better ones of this year. I think it will be best to catch this film in a matinée price if you are looking for a good drama that isn't just about the action set piece of the film.

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Nicolas Winding Refn is one of the few directors that just by releasing a new film I am automatically interested in seeing it. Drive was the first film of his that I watched and while every film hasn't been as straight forward and Hollywood like, his films are always different and fantastic visually. The Neon Demon is no exception to that. Unlike his previous films I do feel like this film was a tad bit mis-marketed. You are lead to believe that this was going to be a horror/thriller only to really find out that this is just a dark comedy. In many ways this is the best parody film I've seen in quite some time, that doesn't just spoof the popular movies that year.

In the film we follow Jesse (played by Elle Fanning) who is trying to make it as a model in Los Angeles. Right away you get the feeling that this movie doesn't take place in the real world. Everything acts weird, the conversations and dialogue are slow and strange and things only continue to get weirder as Jesse gets more involved in the fashion industry. Its really when she gets in where we begin to see the type of movies this is going to be. Everyone who already works in the industry in the film feel like super exaggerated versions of what people would think these type of people would act.

Again, this is really made clear until much later in the film but as we start off you don't really know what the film is trying to do. Early on you notice that everyone that comes into contact with Jesse is memorized to the point of obsession. The is shown in the few interview scenes as well as photo shoot scenes Jesse partakes in where most of the other models are put to the side as everyone becomes obsessed with Jesse's beauty. The obsession only continues the grow as other models become threatened by this and the concept of natural beauty is explored a bit through the exaggeration of these characters.

You really have to accept this world that that things that wouldn't pass here are not only pushed aside but are welcome as this world in the film clearly flipped. I find it weird criticizing this movie because I think a lot of the complaints I have is what the film was trying to do on purpose as everything relates to the fashion industry and really the imagination people have of it. What do I mean by this?

Well one example is that the film is gorgeous, every shot every new scene is lit and colorized in the way that I don't think I've seen in any film. But the movie looks so good all the film to the point that if feels empty. I don't know how else to describe it really, the films looks good but I don't really remember any singular shot as they all kind of blend together. As for the parody side, I feel like not everyone will be able to get what Refn is parodying if they have no context as to how LA feels or really what the fashion industry is like. It doesn't have a wide appeal, which again isn't necessarily a bad thing.

The one thing I can always say about a Refn film is that is unlike any movie I will see that year. The Neon Demon is one of those films, I can also see this film gaining a cult following as years pass as this films seems to be very decisive already. Maybe its because I am tired of seeing the same old Hollywood movie or that this was a much smarter film that people are giving it credit for. Again, not for everyone but if you are interesting in seeing a different film this is one for you.

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