Valery’s Gallery

Weekender Editor Valery Caraballo reviews and rates Spring blockbusters.

 The Invisible Man

It’s 3 in the morning and somehow you have found a way to rip yourself out of his grasp and escape . Yet as you remove yourself from the bed even after being sure he couldn’t hear you , the fear of being caught still lingers in the back of your mind. Will you make it to freedom or will he catch you in time ? The movie already has you at the edge of your seat piecing together the reason for such urgency from the very beginning. The invisible man is a very clear physiological horror that truly left a lot of the audience tense the entire film. Elizabeth Moss though already a great actress played an incredibly strong lead role giving me a chance to believe she had been completely traumatized by her previous marriage.  The plot was really well done as well as a number of unexpected twists that occurred throughout the film. Though the director used a lot of empty spaces and stillness to construct the horror of the film the lead actress Eizabeth Moss played the role so well that it is hard not to notice the physical and emotional investment she gave to this role. The action scenes were shot so well and was extremely suspenseful. Throughout the whole movie even after learning about her exes death and receiving his fortune there is a constant fear that someone is hunting her down. Aside from this the film traumatizes and lingers onto the audience in the same way that abusers do.Though you can never physically see the abuse that she endured the opening scene gives a peek into how life threatening her relationship with him had been.Moving on from that being as traumatized and paranoid as she was it had also saved her life.  Overall , everynight spent crying on the bathroom floor or laying in the dark is relatable for everyone in the audience. Without spoiling too much of the film it is definitely worth a trip to the theater. You never know who is lurking in the corner.

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The Photograph

The clear winning romantic film gives off more of a soapy predictable sort of context  making it very easy to predict some events in the film. Though the film is slow and cliche from the beginning, the charismatic leads give off the perfect level of intimacy and spice needed to make the film better. Throughout the female not much had come together or been easy for any of the audience to piece together after the film. It seemed that after the first thirty minutes or so in the film it just fell into the expectations of a romance film. Unfortunately I found it confusing especially with the lack of attentiveness to the foundation of the story which was the mother-daughter relationship before relating to how she constructed this new relationship. Though the actors were attractive and comfortable the roles they played seemed to safe and needed to be more adventurous which might have made it better. This is definitely a movie for people who are into soaps or typical romance shows but not at all worth a trip to the theater. 

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Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

 If you have seen the previous Jumanji then you’ve laughed and enjoyed a pretty intense virtual reality, especially when you are literally sucked into the game. Luckily the film gives off a reunion kind of foundation from the moment the old characters get together. It avoids the sequel expectation while still remaining action packed and adventurous. The characters that they switched bodies with were very enjoyable in both films, but the one-year reunion did seem like a switch. Surprisingly in this version none of the characters played the same characters they did in the last film.  The movie is still very funny and especially with the new characters, I personally enjoyed it. Kevin Hart is originally a comedian and so he definitely shows the audience gives the audience a good laugh. The characters from the previous film though they believed they knew how to win the game are surprised when a lot about Jumanji has changed. This film is definitely something you can watch with your family and even the elderly would enjoy it. Anyone in the audience can tell that these actors are truly enjoying themselves. Of course, our real best friends Dwayne Johnson and Kevin hart managed to show off their bromance a little more than we expected even throughout this film. Much like the previous film there are still graphics death that have some humor to them but are probably not recommended to sensitive viewers. The humor of some violent scenes are recommended to people with a dark humor. The film still contains some intimate scenes but nothing too intense. The first film had been based on the forming of a clique or friendship being formed while this second film had come together to replenish their friendship. Overall the ending is similar to the first film but just as satisfying, It is definitely worth a trip to the movie theater. 

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Valery Caraballo
vecaraballo@vwu.edu