The Case of Christ

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Jon Gunn

Cast: Mike Vogel, Erika Christensen, Frankie Faison, L. Scott Caldwell, Kevin Sizemore, Tom Nowiki, Robert Forster and Faye Dunaway.

Rating: Very Good.

Director Jon Gunn brings “The Case for Christ”, his 6th Feature Film and before watching this film I honestly didn´t had any expectations but again I was wrong.

Based on true events, the movie tells the story of Lee Strobel (Mike Vogel) an investigative journalist from the Chicago Tribune who witnesses with his wife Leslie (Erika Christensen) an event that almost cost their daughter´s life.

Leslie thinks that the event was a miracle while Lee thinks it was a coincidence since he is a proclaimed atheist. Eventually Lee´s wife will become a Christian and this will represent a series of conflicts between the couple.

Now Lee will embark in a journey that consists in the disapprove of the existence of Christ. This eventually will lead him to write his novel, which became a Best Seller.

Movies which are based in Christianity once they are brought to the big screen usually don´t work but “The Case of Christ” is the opposite.

Yes, the context of the film is about faith and a way of life but it´s also a journalism investigation told from another perspective and that´s the reason why it works.

The screenplay written by Brian Bird who wrote episodes of the series “Touched by an Angel” (which he also produced) and “Bopha!” had interesting moments and I liked the fact that most of the film was told by Lee´s point of view.

Some of the dialogue of the film is over the top but at the same time I understand why it had to be that way.

The direction by Jon Gunn in terms of technical choices was but there were moments that I felt that some of the scenes were too long and the characters had the tendency to over explain things when we already know what´s going on in the film.

The chemistry between the characters works and I did like Mike Vogel´s performance as a man who indeed wants to prove a point but at the end he cannot do it and it brings consequences like being distant with his family.

Other gems in this picture are both Robert Forster and Faye Dunaway which  is delight seeing them in the big screen, even though both actors did not had enough time screening specially Dunaway who´s scene is the best in the film.

Also this is film that is related to forgiveness and cherish special moments with your loved ones.  I was touched by the message of this film and I left the theater with a huge reflection in me.

With that being said “The Case of Christ” is a big surprise and I give a good recommendation to it.

Colossal

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Nacho Vigalondo

Cast: Anne Hathaway, Jason Sudeikis, Austin Stowell, Tim Blake Nelson, Hannah Cheramy, Nathan Wilson and Dan Stevens.

Rating: Very Good.

Spanish writer/director Nacho Vigalondo brings “Colossal”, a both comedy and drama that I was very pleased with it and enjoyed it.

The movie tells the story of Gloria (Anne Hathaway) a girl who likes to party every single night and literally is out of control until one day her boyfriend Tim (Dan Stevens) kicks her out of her apartment ending their relationship since he gets tired of Gloria´s behavior.

Now Gloria decides to go back to the town where she grew up and meets her friend Oscar (Jason Sudeikis) who helps her and gives his total support to her.

One day while Gloria is watching the news and see´s a monster  attacking South Korea she begins to see that the monster begins to have a relationship with Gloria. If Gloria begins to walk, scratches her head or stretchers her arm the monster begins to do the same thing.

Now Gloria begins to suffer a mental breakdown and first she shares this with Oscar who at the beginning  doesn´t believe her but then when he see´s what´s really happening on the screen and with her friend he is in shock and will try to help her in every way he can before she looses her mind and the problem gets worse.

One of the things that I enjoyed from “Colossal” was that the film was very original and full with so much creativity on it.

Nacho Vigalondo´s writing was top of the notch and the way he crafted his screenplay was very interesting. In this movie he deals with themes like Alcoholism and Bullying in a different way that has never before seen and that is one of the things that made the movie work.

His directing was very sharp and I must say that the performance that surprised me the most was Jason Sudeikis who we don´t see in this type of roles since he is more a comedy actor but he can do serious roles as well and gives a fantastic performance.

The cinematography by Eric Kress  was very well made and it was very interesting the way he played with the contrast of the characters.

In another note there were things specially in the third act that could have been more clear like the way both inner and external conflicts on the main characters were triggered.

I think that if the movie should have been  triggered to a one theme instead of multiple ones since by moments was confusing.

Still the movie does deliver the goods and like I mentioned before it´s very original.

“Colossal” is a movie filled with drama but also with a lot of humor. I laughed on many of the scenes of the movie.  I did feel identified with the characters and I put this movie as one of the surprises of this year and hopefully you will enjoy it as I did.

Going in Style

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Zach Braff

Cast: Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Alan Arkin, Ann-Margret, Joey King, John Ortiz, Maria Dizzia, Peter Serafinowicz, Matt Dillon, Kenan Thompson and Christopher Lloyd.

Rating: Good.

Zach Braff, director of “Garden State” and “Wish I Was Here” brings “Going in Style”, a remake of the 1979 film starring George Burns, Art Carney and Lee Strasberg that does entertain and make you feel good at all levels.

The movie center in three long time friends and senior citizens Joe (Michael Caine), Willie (Morgan Freeman) and Albert (Alan Arkin) who one day  are surprised when they receive the news that the company the three men work for has been bought out and their pensions got frozen.

The three men not only are disappointed but are upset and blame the corrupt system that is run by the banks for this.

One day Joeshares an idea with both Willie and Albert of robbing a bank. They both think Joe is crazy and at the beginning they don´t want to do it due to the risks that implicate of pulling a heist specially because the three men are not young.

At the end of the day  the three accept on doing the job and they will perform it carefully without getting caught and most of all to enjoy every single moment that life has to offer.

One of the things that I liked of “Going In Style” was seeing the main cast which are Hollywood Legends and of course Academy Award Winners.

Seeing this three actors made me smile and there were moments the three of the them with their humor made me laugh.

The screenplay was written by Theodore Melfi, who in this past awards season  got all the praise with his latest film “Hidden Figures” and again he did a very good job despite having a third act of the film that it could have had a better execution.

Zach Braff´s directing was very sharp and I did like how he manage the timing of the film and the comedy which are crucial for this kind of movies. By far I have to mention that this is Zach Braff´s most ambitious movie due to the high caliber actors he directed.

Normally remakes of movies don´t work but this one did. I felt identified with the characters of the film and seeing this three actors in the big screen indeed a huge blessing.

As I mentioned previously the only problem I saw with the movie is after they rob the bank. Here the movie goes by moments downhill and the resolution could have had a better execution.

The third act of a movie is as important as the first two acts since it defines the essence of the movie. Still the movie delivered the goods.

Theodore Melfi who besides being a brilliant director is an outstanding writer could have worked more in the screenplay but still he did manage on doing a good job.

“Going in Style” is a movie that I´m sure you are going to enjoy specially of the fact of watching three Hollywood legends on the big screen and I give a recommendation to it despite of the flaws that the movie had during the third act.

Smurfs: The Lost Village

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Kelly Ashbury

Cast (Voice): Demi Lovato, Rainn Wilson, Joe Manganiello, Jack McBrayer, Danny Pudi, Mandy Patinkin, Michelle Rodríguez, Ellie Kemper and Julia Roberts.

Rating: Poor

Sony Animation Pictures, brings “Smurfs: The Lost Village”, another film of the blue creatures and again the results were disappointing.

A completely animated film, the movie tells the story of Smurfette (Demi Lovato) the only female Smurf in the village that has a lot of questions that go beyond her existence. One day after she is captured by the evil wizard and her creator Gargamel (Rainn Wilson) she will see a map that contains “The Lost Village”, which is one of the major secrets of The Smurfs.

A determined Smurfette is willing to go to the village and she will be joined by Hefty (Joe Manganiello), Brainy ( Danny Pudi) and Clumsy (Jack McBrayer). The four of them will embark a journey to the Lost Village.

The problem is that Gargamel and his cat Azrael are in the same quest and want to capture all the smurfs. Now Smurfette and her friends are in a race against time to make a major discovery or else they will be history.

The main problem of this reboot of The Smurfs is the story. I was seeing an exact same episode of the cartoon show from the eighties but in a ninety minute film. The reference of the episode is “The Smurfette”, which tells exactly the same origins of where Smurfette comes from.

The screenplay was too predictable and there wasn´t any humor in it. In fact there was a moment that I just wanted the film to be over and was too long unnecessary.

I might sound harsh but this movie shouldn´t have been made in the first place since the other previous Smurf movies where a major disaster.  

The animation of the film was not that bad and it had some similarities with the animation of the cartoon show from the eighties which made it interesting. Yes, there was improvement compared to the other two films but still this wasn´t a good reason to have a better reaction towards the film.

The problem is the story that it was weak and I couldn´t care less about The Smurfs. 

One rule for this genre is beside having the comedy in it is that you don´t have to make it predictable and this movie crossed the line to the fact that instead of making the film a good and entertaining film the result was the opposite.

I´m surprised that one of the writers Pamela Ribon who  wrote last year´s “Moana” which was a very good movie and had a lot of heart. Here I can see that Ribon  and her cowriter Stacey Harman didn´t care about the project and just wrote pages randomly.

This movie could have not only a good story but also heart which I never saw. One of the things that I noticed is that they watch the episode from the show many many times and just made it longer but it never worked.

The casting choices were interesting in voices like Mandy Patinkin, Joe Manganiello and Julia Roberts but unfortunately the cast cannot save a movie when you have a weak screenplay and story.

This movie for sure is going to entertain kids but it will lead to boredom to some adults

“Smurfs: The Lost Village” is one of the worst animated films from this year and honestly it´s better to have a good memory from the show than investing ninety minutes of your time with this movie.

Gifted

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Marc Webb

Cast: Chris Evans, Jenny Slate, Mckenna Grace, Lindsay Duncan, Glenn Plummer, John Finn and Octavia Spencer.

Rating: Very Good.

Marc Webb, director of the 2009 hit  “(500) Days of Summer” brings “Gifted”, a drama with a lot of heart that you will be moved by it.

The movie tells the story of Frank Adler (Chris Evans) a boat repairman who takes care of her niece Mary (Mckenna Grace) after the passing of the girl´s mother Diane. She enjoys the company of his uncle and of her neighbor and best friend Roberta (Octavia Spencer).

One day at school Mary meets her teacher Bonnie Stevenson (Jenny Slate) and she begins to ask her a series of math problems which Mary answers correctly and Bonnie is impressed with her student.

She then talks to Frank and tells him that her niece is gifted, which Frank ignores. Eventually he will be offered by the principal of the school a full scholarship for Mary to go to a Private School for Gifted Children which Frank turns down.

After that meeting both Frank and Mary will receive and unexpected visit by Frank´s mother Evelyn (Lindsay Duncan) who see´s something special in her granddaughter and will fight for the custody for Mary.

Now Frank will do anything to have her niece at any costs before she loses her.

With “Gifted” Marc Webb directed that not only has heart but also a lot of humor in it. This movie has some of the style of “(500) Days of Summer” due to the visuals of the film and pacing as well. Although the plot is different from the previous film but it does work as well.

Tom Flynn`s screenplay was very well written and he created true, deep and powerful characters in this film. Once the movie starts you immediately have a total connection with this characters and you see the internal and external conflicts that have and at the same time you feel for them.

Marc Webb´s direction towards his actors was very good and sharp specially for Chris Evans which I can say that this is so far the best performance of his career and I was very surprised with it. I´m glad that he left his image of Steve Rogers/Captain America from the Marvel universe and played a character that is willing to protect her niece.  

Mckenna Grace´s performance as “Mary” was stunning and she played the role with so much tenderness and realism. I hope we can see more from this young actress and I must say that her future is very bright if she continues through this path.

With that being said if you liked “(500) Days of Summer” you will definitely  enjoy “Gifted” since I guarantee that you will be moved and touched with it.

Ghost In The Shell

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Rupert Sanders

Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Pilou Asbaek, Takeshi Kitano, Michael Pitt, Michael Wincott, Chin Han, Lasarus Ratuere, Peter Ferdinando and Juliette Binoche.

Rating: Very Good.

Rupert Sanders, director of “Snow White and The Huntsman” brings “Ghost in the Shell”, his second feature film and compared to his first one the results of are interesting.

Based in the comic of the same name by Masamune Shirow, the movie takes place in the near future and tells the story of Major (Scarlett Johansson) a human saved who is enhanced in a cyborg and created to be the perfect soldier.

But now she is facing a new issue where terrorism at the peak of it´s level and hacks the minds of people and controls them. Major is assigned for this investigation.

During the assignment she will make the discovery that she has been lied and her life was not saved. It was stolen.

Now she is in the pursuit of the company who created her and she will try to stop it before it continues to hurt more innocent people.

“Ghost in the Shell” I would define it as an entertaining science fiction and action film. I noticed the film has a lot of influence of film like “Blade Runner”, “ The Terminator” and “The Matrix” due to the look and the theme of the film that takes place in the future.

Both Jamie Moss and William Wheeler wrote an interesting screenplay and I see the film as a full and frontal criticism towards big corporations around the world. It also criticize the greed on how CEO`S can abuse of their power in the decision making.

The directing by Rupert Sanders was good; he was very wise on making good technical decisions and the camera work of the film is interesting.  

The only problem I saw was the directing of the characters that was cartoonish and by moments  laughable.

Scarlett Johansson again kicks ass like she did in the 2014 “Lucy”. This time her character is way different and we can see more her internal conflicts and how desperate she is on seeking the truth about her past and this is what really makes the movie interesting.

The Cinematography by Jess Hall, which credits include “The Spectacular Now”, “The Switch” and “Hot Fuzz” was interesting and he did a very good job on creating a world like if you were in a comic book. I like the color palette that he used for both day and night scenes and the use of camera angles in the action sequences were very well executed.

The score by Clint Mansell, who has done the Scores for movies like “Requiem for a Dream”, “Black Swan” and “The Wrestler” was again superb and this time he teamed up with Lorne Belle, which credits include “The Lego Batman Movie” and a member of the Music Department on movies like “Inception” and “The Dark Knight”.

They both combined very good elements and for most of the sequences the use of the music really works, specially for the climax of the film.

Overall I did enjoy “Ghost in the Shell” and is an entertaining film but the film is a little slow by moments and before you watch it I encourage you to be patient with it since it takes time to get on to it.

With that being said “Ghost in the Shell” is an entertaining film and I give a huge recommendation for the screenplay, directing by Rupert Sanders and the look of the film which are completely futuristic.

The Zookeper´s Wife

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Niki Caro

Cast: Jessica Chastain, Johan Heldenbergh, Timothy Radford, Efrat Dor, Iddo Goldberg, Michael McElhatton, Val Maloku and Daniel Brühl.

Rating: Very Good.

Director Niki Caro, who made the dramas “Whale Rider” and “North Country”, brings “The Zookeper`s Wife”, another movie from the genre and I must say that despite of the cliché moments the movie had the results were interesting.

Based on true events, the movie takes place in Warsaw, Poland and tells the story of Antonina Zabinski (Jessica Chastain) a woman who works with her husband Jan (Johan Heldenbergh) as keeper´s of the zoo.

They both are animals lovers and literally take the zoo as their home. Everything will change when the Nazi´s bomb the zoo killing most of the animals and the Zabinski´s are left only  with their priceless animals until Nazi Zoologist Lutz Heck (Daniel Brühl) makes a deal with Antonina to deliver the animals to Berlin and Heck will deliver them back to Warsaw once the war is over.

At the end the Zabinski`s agree to Heck`s offer. Now the zoo is with no animals and the Zabinski`s will take the advantage of using the zoo to hide Jews without the Nazi`s even noticing it.

Now the Zabinski`s will risk their lives on hiding Jews despite knowing the consequences if they get caught.

We have seen movies that have delt with the theme with holocaust in a mediocre way and for momets cheezy. Yes, “The Zookeper`s Wife” has those moments but at the same time I give credit of a movie that is well told and most of it is from Antonina`s point of view.

The script written by Angela Workman, who adapted Diane Ackerman`s book of the same name got into detail and tell`s the perspective of the war in Poland but from another angle that has never been seen and that`s one of the things that I consider interesting about this film.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiEfrA6MWs4The movie still deals with a very delicate subject matter and this theme is not an easy one to bring to the big screen due to the realism and the suffering that was involved.

The directing by Niki Caro was sharp and I liked the way how she manage the tension in the most crucial scenes of the film. There were moments that I felt Chastain`s performance was a little bit overacted but other than that Caro was very smart on the direction she gave to her cast, specially Daniel Brühl who gives a very interesting performance as a two faced man and you really believed his role.

 I felt the movie was by moments slow and too long. I think that a movie like this could have been told in less than two hours and other elements of the film were not necessary to be told but I guess they wanted to fill the movie with too many clichés.

The cinematography of Andrij Parekh was very well executed and the how he portrayed the contrast of before, during and after the war were very interesting as well as the score composed by Harry Gregson-Williams, which I liked who the musical cues were used in the moments where tension begin to built the most.

I enjoyed the movie but I could have enjoyed even more if some elements could have been avoid,l ike the ones I previously mentioned.

I do think the movie could have more potential to become even better of the result that I saw in the screen but still I accept it.

“The Zookeper`s Wife” it`s a hard movie to watch and be prepared in all the aspects before you watchi this film. I do recommend it but it could have had a better execution if the clichés would have been avoided.

The Boss Baby

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Tom McGrath

Cast (Voice): Alec Baldwin, Steve Buscemi, Jimmy Kimmel, Lisa Kudrow, Miles Christopher Bakshi, Conrad Vernon, James McGrath and Tobey Maguire.

Rating: Poor.

Director Tom McGrath teams up again with Dreamworks Animation Studios and brings “The Boss Baby” and the results unfortunately they aren`t satisfying.

The movie starts with a boy named Tim (Miles Christopher Bakshi), a seven year old that is raised by beloved his parents (Jimmy Kimmel and Lisa Kudrow). Tim has it all and he is the king of the house until one day he receives a big surprise when his parents bring home a baby with a business suit (Alec Baldwin).

This will upset Tim and finds out that the baby is no ordinary baby and he can really talk like an ordinary human being, in fact he is in a secret mission.  At the beginning this will be a rivalry between brothers and they both competing to see who can get the better attention from their parents.

Eventually The Boss Baby will make a deal with Tim that consists that if he helps him to stop a dastardly plot from the CEO of Puppy CoFrancis Francis (Steve Buscemi) which is the creation of the forever puppies and eliminate Baby Co for good. If the Boss Baby succeeds he will go away and if he fails he will stay forever with his brother.

Tim accepts but eventually they will be a a bond between brothers. Now both The Boss Baby and Tim are in a race against time to stop Francis Francis to achieve his plot before it`s too late.

“The Boss Baby” had good moments of comedy but at the same time they became redundant.

The major problem of this film was the screenplay written by Michael McCullers, who wrote 2014´s  “Mr Peabody and Sherman” was not as clever and fun. The dialogue and the plot of the film are not interesting at all and again for a movie of this genre you need to have a better screenplay. This is the trademark of a good animated feature film.

The animation it was fantastic and the cast were good but the problem is that no matter how hard they tried on making the movie look good the damage was already done.

Alec Baldwin he was good and funny but this cannot save a film.

The plot was all over the place and the characters were by moments annoying.

I do think that if some time would have been invested in rewrites of the film this could have been a very funny animated movie since it had elements to be one.

The ending of the movie doesn´t work and some scenes of the film do not make any sense at all.

I´m surprised for a director like Tom McGrath who directed the three “Madagascar” films and “Megamind” which not only were good movies but had a lot of heart on them. The directing was good for moments and there funny moments but one of the things that I have to mention is that this is so far McGrath`s weakest movie and I hope this is a huge lesson for him.

“The Boss Baby” is one of the biggest dissapointments of this year and when I saw the first trailers back in November I thought there were funny and I was having high hopes of being a funny and entertaining film. It was funny and made me laugh by moments but this was not good enough for a recommendation.

Life

By Emilio Frenk

Director: Daniel Espinosa

Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, Ariyon Bakare, Hiroyuki Sanada and Olga Dihovichnaya.

Rating: Very Good.

Daniel Espinosa, director of “Safe House” and “Child 44” brings “Life”, a science fiction thriller with an interesting premise and a very good execution.

The movie tells the story of a group of scientists that are aboard The International Space Station and make one of the major discoveries ever: the first alien life form from Mars.

The group will name the specimen “Calvin” and begin to study it. The problem begins when Calvin begins to take his real form and begins attacking the members of the crew.

Now the crew must deal with the situation and figure out how to get rid of Calvin before he finishes with their lives and threats all life on earth.

I could tell that with “Life” director Daniel Espinoza learned from his mistakes in previous movies like “Child 44” which was a failure of the box office in 2015 and made the movie complete mess. Here not only did he directed a very good thriller but he knew how to capture every single moment where we are filled with fear and with his direction the cast delivered solid performances.

The script written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who both wrote last year´s “Deadpool” did again a remarkable job. I can tell that both writers are fans of the science fiction genre since I saw many influences from movies like “Alien”, “Aliens” and “2001: Space Oddissey”.

They created very good characters and wrote very intense scenes that work at every single level.  

One of the major flaws that I have seen in this genre is that it has become a very predictable genre and actors that are involved in it have the tendency to overact making it by moments laughable.

With “Life” there was not a single moment of laughter and on the contrary it was a very tense movie.

Daniel Espinosa was very smart on using those elements of surprise. Just when you think that everything was going to be fine and nothing happens and suddenly you jump from the seat and the tension begins to escalate with this film.   

The cinematography by Seamus McGarvey, who has shot films like “Nocturnal Animals”, “Atonement”, “Anna Karenina”, “The Avengers” and many more played a key role in this movie since every single shot had a meaning of the film.

The point of view from the alien when he is about to attack is very well made and director Daniel Espinosa made a good choice in illustrating that.

The score by Jon Ekstrand also plays a good role in this movie since the scenes with more tension the use of the music was very effective and you were in the shoes of the characters and had the feeling that you were in the space ship when the alien was inside.

“Life” is not just an ordinary science fiction film. It´s a thriller that doesn´t have the typical ending of good defeats evil. This is the opposite and is one of the most surprising endings that I have seen in a film of this genre in a long time.

I hope a sequel of this film doesn´t get made since it was clear what was going to happen.

Honestly I didn´t had any expectations for “Life” but again I was completely wrong and I was very impressed with the result of the film.

“Life” is one of the surprises of this year and I give it a huge recommendation for the directing and a very well written screenplay.

Power Rangers

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Dean Israelite

Cast: Dacre Montgomery, Naomi Scott, RJ Cyler, Ludi Lin, Becky G, Elizabeth Banks, Bill Hader and Bryan Cranston.

Rating: Average.

Dean Israelite, director of “Project Almanac” brings “Power Rangers”, a movie based on the nineties tv show and the results could have been much better.

The movie tells the story of five high school kids conformed by Jason (Dacre Montgomery), Kimberly (Naomi Scott), Billy (RJ Cyler), Zack (Ludi Lin) and Trini (Becky G) who have nothing in common until one day they go to a mine and they find a series of mysterious gold coins.

This will eventually take them to a secret cave where they will meet the robot Alpha 5 (Bill Hader) and Zordon (Bryan Cranston) who recruits the teenagers and the become the Power Rangers.

Now the Power Rangers are in a mission to stop Rita Repulsa (Elizabeth Banks) who wants to collect all the gold from Angel Grove and create the monster Goldar. This will represent a threat to humanity and now the Power Rangers have to stop her before she does real damage and takes total control of the planet.

This version of “Power Rangers” could have been a better film if the story was better told. The screenplay by John Gatins, which credits include “Flight” and “Coach Carter” was predictable and weak and I´m surprised since the previous movies he wrote had not only very good dialogue but had heart on them.

On a positive note there were very good moments and scenes on the film that were very interesting and this was before the characters in their suits as The Power Rangers where it was when the movie became weak and the third act of the film which by the way a rule of thumb no matter what the genre is but this act has to be strong no matter the genre.

I was impressed by the cast of the film and the chemistry between the actors which it did work. Specially RJ Ciller who plays Billy is the one that gives the best performance is the most likable despite of the moments were he was annoying but he has some humor in his character.

Compared to the 1995 film, this version is by far superior and the production was better.

Dean Israelli´s direction by moments look like he was directing a Michael Bay film specially in the climax of the film where we see a battle “Transformers” style that looks to cheesy and I was laughing of how silly it look.

There were positive notes on the film like the ones I mentioned before but in terms of performance specially by Elizabeth Banks, who I consider a good actress but I didn´t buy her character of Rita and I was seeing the exact same version of the villain from the TV Show but scarier.

Bryan Cranston is one of the best things that happen with this film and I consider his personification as Zordon a very good one.

Overall I did enjoy the film but I do think it could have been a better movie if time would have been more invested in the screenplay.

For fans of “Power Rangers” I think you are going to be pleased with this film.

With that being said I give “Power Rangers” a slight recommendation due to the things I previously mentioned but honestly I did think the movie was going to be a complete fiasco but I still enjoyed it.

CHIPS

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Dax Shepard

Cast: Dax Shepard, Michael Peña, Jessica McNamee, Adam Brody, Ryan Hansen, Kristen Bell, Vincent D`Onofrio, Cameron Cruz, Rosa Salazar, Vida Guerra, Jane Kaczmarek, Maya Rudolph, Isiah Whitlock Jr, Mae Whitman and Erik Estrada.

Rating: Poor.

Actor and Director Dax Shepard brings “CHIPS” based in the eighties tv show and like many adaptations from tv series to film this one failed and big time.

The movie tells the story of rookie Police Officer Jon Baker (Dax Shepard) who teams up with the experience Frank “Ponch” Poncherello (Michael Peña) to investigate a series of robberies and heists that involve crooked police officers.

At the beginning they begin to have constant arguments and Poncherello gets annoyed by Baker´s behavior and incompetence as a Police Officer but they must work together in order to stop this heists and of course to keep their jobs in the force.

Like I mentioned previously, most of TV Shows that are brought to the big screen don´t work and “CHIPS” proves my point.

Dax Shepard he only should have acted the film since it has been proved that he doesn´t neither have the experience on writing and directing a movie of this caliber.

The script was all over the place and it was filled with backstory which honestly I never cared from the beginning. The dialogue was to on the nose and the character of Jon Baker is like if you were watching a Drama Queen constantly that he wants to fix his marriage, which by the way he mentions that through 50% of the film.

In movies like this you have to go straight to the point and say what is important. Otherwise it will lead to a disaster and this movie it´s a major mess.

The jokes weren´t funny and the script wasn´t either. I´m surprised because both Dax Shepard and Michael Peña besides of being talented and charismatic actors could also be very funny but here there weren´t at all

What I saw in “CHIPS” was that Dax Shepard was trying to go to a direction like “48 HRS” and imitate with his screenplay most of the humor that both Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte had in their film.

But here is the thing,  what made a movie like “48 HRS” work is beside being a buddy comedy filled with action and humor was the story itself. I didn´t see any story on “CHIPS” besides the fact that involve corruption in a Police Department. That I wanted to see more and Dax Shepard didn´t dig enough into that specific area and focused more in the male side of the characters.

With his direction I could tell that he made a huge effort on convince us as members of an audience that he is funny but in this film he isn´t and this film was a complete waste of time.

I loved the TV Show from the eighties but here it was not even close and led to an ultimate disaster.

With that being said “CHIPS” is one very bad film and for fans of the TV Show indeed you will be disappointed.

Wilson

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Craig Johnson

Cast: Woody Harrelson, Laura Dern, Judy Greer, Isabella Amara, Cheryl Hines, Brett Gelman, Mary Lynn Rajskub and Margo Martidale.

Rating: Very Good.

Craig Johnson, writer/ director of “The Skeleton Twins” brings “Wilson” a comedy with melodramatic elements that works at all levels.

The movie tells the story of Wilson (Woody Harrelson) a neurotic and honest middle aged man who lives alone with his dog.

One day after having a surprising encounter with his ex-wife Pippi (Laura Dern) he finds out that he had a daughter and Pippi gave her for adoption.

Wilson is more happier than ever and with Pippy they decide to meet their daughter Claire (Isabella Amara).  

The encounter will represent for both Wilson and Pippy an opportunity to known each other even more and to enjoy every single moment that life offers.

Craig Johnson is a director who likes to illustrate the internal conflict of his characters with humor but at the same time you can see the loneliness and the darkness of his characters in his films.

We saw that in “The Skeleton Twins” were both the characters of Milo and Maggie played by Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig portrayed people with emptiness and they were pretty messed up.

Here with Wilson it´s not the exception and Johnson this time teams up with Daniel Clowes, who not only wrote the screenplay but also wrote the graphic novel.

This marked the debut of Clowes as a feature film screenwriter and indeed I was impressed. With “Wilson” besides having the advantage that he wrote the novel and knew the characters from head to toe, he created interesting ones.

They are both filled with humor and at the same time that have that loneliness inside of them that makes them even more special.

Craig Johnson from the beginning of the film knew how to connect with the audience and with his direction, the cast delivered sweet and touching performances.

The chemistry between Woody Harrelson and Laura Dern works at all levels and both of them are hilarious at all times.

The cinematography by Frederick Elms,  which credits include “Blue Velvet”, “Patterson” was very interesting and the use of the visuals of the film made you feel like you were inside a graphic novel.

Again Craig Johnson hit another home run and with “Wilson” he directed a funny, sweet and touching movie.

Seeing actors like Woody Harrelson and Laura Dern is a blessing and of course the performance by Isabella Amara in the role of Claire was very good and hopefully we can see from her more in the future.

With that being said, I enjoyed “Wilson” for it´s humor, the directing by Craig Johnson, the performances by the cast and a fun screenplay and I give a recommendation to it.

T2 Trainspotting

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Danny Boyle

Cast: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Johnny Lee Miller, Robert Carlyle, Kelly Macdonald, Anjela Nedyalkova, James Cosmo, Irvine Welsh and Simon Weir.

Rating: Excellent.

Academy Award Winning Director Danny Boyle  brings “T2 Trainspotting”, the sequel of the 1996 film that launched his career and like the first film delivers again.

Based on the novel by Irvine Welsh and set up twenty years after the events of the first film, the movie centers on Mark Renton (Ewan McGregor) a Scottish ex junkie who resides now in Amsterdam.

He decides to go back to Edinburgh to make peace with Daniel “Spud” Murphy (Ewen Bremner) who continues with his struggles with heroin and Simon “Sick Boy” Williamson (Johnny Lee Miller) who not only continues with his cocaine addiction but now is in the blackmailing business with her girlfriend Veronika (Anjela Nedyalkova).

At the beginning they are both still angry since Renton stole their money from them in the first film but eventually they put aside their differences.

The major problem is when Francis “Franco” Begbie (Robert Carlyle) escapes from prison and wants revenge against Renton. 

Now Renton will need to avoid Begbie at any cost before it´s too late and immediately this will be an opportunity for Renton to redeem himself.

Danny Boyle directed another winner with T2 Trainspotting and like the first movie this had an interesting premise and a very good screenplay written by John Hodge.

One of the things that worked in this sequel was the fact that there is still the essence of the first film, although  the plot is slightly different than the first film.

Besides being drug addicts, the characters from “Trainspotting” are filled with humor and you feel for them specially for the character of Renton, who constantly gets himself into trouble like the other three.

The directing by Danny Boyle was sharp and the cast delivered very good performances.

Like I mentioned before in this space, I´m not a big fan of flashbacks but here there were necessary since 20 years have passed after the events of the first film and it´s very easy to forget those moments.

I did feel the movie was a little bit slow for moments but that didn´t bother me at all.

I laughed very hard with this film like I did with the first one when I saw it twenty years ago and I have to say that it´s one of my favorite films from 1996.

John Hodge wrote another great screenplay and a very interesting ending that was completely unexpected.

I never expected that there was going to be a sequel for a movie that it´s considered an icon but it did work and I was very surprised with the result since movies that were very good when they do sequels most of them do not succeed. This one did and delivered good results.

I prefer more the first film which not only the length plays a major role but the overall of the story was very well set up.

Danny Boyle did again an amazing job with T2 Trainspotting and I highly recommend it but I suggest to watch the first movie if you can since you can remember the events of the first film. If you haven´t seen the first movie than definitely see it before watching this sequel.

Beauty and The Beast

By Emilio Frenk

Director: Bill Condon

Cast: Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans, Josh Gad, Kevin Kline, Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellen, Emma Thompson, Nathan Mack, Audra McDonald, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Stanley Tucci.

Rating: Excellent.

Bill Condon, director of “Dreamgirls”, “Gods and Monsters” and “Twilight: Breaking Dawn Parts 1 and 2” brings “Beauty and The Beast”, the remake of the 1991 film that made history on being the first animated feature film on being nominated for Best Picture. Like it´s predecessor the results of this one are pretty satisfying.

Based on the tale by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont, the movie takes place in France and tells the story of Belle (Emma Watson) a town girl that is a book lover and tries to enjoy her provincial life despite of everyone in town talks behind her back.

She will be spotted by Gaston (Luke Evans) a narcissist and war veteran who will try to win Belle´s heart at any cost.

One night her father Maurice (Kevin Kline) a painter is  kidnapped by the beast and Belle will try to rescue him.

When she has that encounter she bargains with the beast to take his father´s place in the castle. This encounter will represent an opportunity for the beast to break the spell which he is cursed as well as the employees of the castle.

Now the Beast will try to win Belle´s heart so he can be human again at any costs before it´s too late.

One of the things that I liked of this version of “Beauty and The Beast” was the director Bill Condon respected the essence of the 1991 film and didn´t make a carbon copy.

The screenplay by both Stephen Chbosky and Evan Spiliotopoulous was written with so much wit and originality that it made it enjoyable. One of the elements that made this film successful was the fact that it was not redundant and we had the opportunity to see elements like the backstory of Belle´s mom and whatever happened to herand that made it interesting.

In the past I´ve been very critical towards Bill Condon´s work specially with movies like the last two Twilight Films of the saga that the acting was so ludicrous and the movie was all over the place. This time not only directed a very good movie but at the same time an enjoyable experience.

The score was again composed by Academy Award Alan Menken and it was such a delight to hear it like in the animated film.

The Production Design, Costumes and Visual Effects played a key part in this movie and there were very well made. Of course in a Disney movie that is one of the major requirements to have this elements previously mentioned.

Emma Watson´s performance as Belle is remarkable as well is for the rest of the cast like Academy Award Winner Kevin Kline who I have always enjoyed watching a performance by him and it´s a blessing to see him in the screen.

Bill Condon directed a winner here and without a doubt this is the most ambitious movie of his career as a filmmaker and I was very happy that he was loyal towards the tale and the animated feature film.

With that being said “Beauty and The Beast” is a delight for all the family and I give a huge recommendation to it.

The Belko Experiment

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Greg McLean

Cast: John Gallagher Jr,  Tony Goldwyn, Adria Arjona, Melodine Diaz, Owain Yeoman, Sean Gunn, John C. McGinley, Brent Saxtor and Michael Rooker.

Rating: Poor.

Horror Film director Greg McLean joins forces with writer/director James Gunn with “The Belko Experiment”, a thriller which the execution was very poor.

Set in Bogotá, Colombia, the film tells the story of 80 Americans working in corporate facility named Belko Industries.

Minutes later there is a voice in the intercom that tells the employees that in order to survive they have to play a game of kill or be killed.

Now the employees are in a race against time to stop this deadly game or end up killing each other  in order to survive.

“The Belko Experiment” could have been an interesting thriller if the execution would have been done properly. The major problem of the film is that it was to predictable and you knew exactly what was going to happen from the minute it started until the end.

James Gunn, who is well known for directing and writing “Guardians of the Galaxy”, which will have a sequel to be released in May, knows the genre very well but this time he did fail and badly.

The characters that he wrote  were to vague and full with emptiness thatyou don´t care for anyone.

The directing by Greg McLean was not precise and the performances by the cast were a complete mess. The visuals and the camera was also a huge factor in this film and visually could have been a good experience but still it would not have worked due to the poor screenplay that was written.

Instead of being scared, I was laughing of the moments that were supposed to be scary since they were hilarious.

When the second act of the film started it was the beginning of the downward spiral. From the beginning you knew exactly who was going to be the survivor in the deadly game and they weren´t any surprises that you need to use in this kind of movies to make them work.

The movie had an interesting cast with actors like Tony Goldwyn, John C. McGinley and Michael Rooker who were very well known by at eighties and nineties but still the movie is a disaster.

There were moments of tension that were interesting but for a movie like this you need to be smart on how to play with the audience and I didn´t see anything of it here.

The ending of the film was poorly executed and should have ended in another way.

“The Belko Experiment” is one of the worst movies I have seen in this 2017 and I cannot recommend it.

And please think about it twice before watching this film since it´s is a big waste of time and money.

Personal Shopper

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Olivier Assayas

Cast: Kristen Stewart, Lars Eidinger, Sigrid Bouaziz, Anders Danielsen Lie, Ty Olwin, Hammou Graïa and Pascal Rambert.

Rating: Excellent.

French director Olivier Assayas teams up for the second time with Kristen Stewart after their previous collaboration on “Clouds of Sills Maria”. Together they bring “Personal Shopper” a frightening thriller that works at all levels.

The movie tells the story of Maureen Cartwright (Kristen Stewart) an American Personal Shopper who recently lost her twin brother and  works for a model and celebrity in Paris.

After a series of events that begin to happen during her stay in Paris, Maureen begins to feel the  spirits that have a relationship with his twin brother. She eventually begins to establish communication with them and this will represent an opportunity to Maureen to find peace and try to move on after the tragic death her brother suffered.

“Personal Shopper” without a doubt is one of the most finest thrillers I´ve seen and at the same time is very well directed and acted.

Olivier Assayas not only directed a good and intense thriller, but wrote a marvelous screenplay. He knew how to play with tension and manipulated us as the audience from every single moment the movie starts.

The screenplay is very well written and Assayas was very smart in how to take advantage on key moments and wrote a great character on Maureen, who constantly we see her both internal and external conflicts during the film.

Kristen Stewart´s performance as Maureen is real and I have been very impressed with her growth as an actress. The way she brought her character to life  is filled so much realism that we fill her and we are constantly in her shoes.

I felt that Olivier Assayas was very influenced by movies from Alfred Hitchcock specially because of the way how he shot his film and the way he manipulated the audience and was very smart on using correctly the elements of surprise of the film.

Other thing that I loved of “Personal Shopper” was the fact that it´s taken place in the fashion world which has never been seen before and I loved how Assayas portrayed that world in his film.

As I mentioned before Kristen Stewart´s growth has been surprising and this is so far the best performance of her career. 

This movie has a fantastic ending and honestly once I finished watching the film I left the room with a lot of questions.

“Personal Shopper” is one of the year´s best thrillers and I give it a huge recommendation for the directing of Olivier Assayas, his screenplay and the performance by Kristen Stewart.

Kong: Skull Island

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Jordan Vogt-Roberts

Cast: Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman, Brie Larson, Corey Hawkins, John Ortiz, Toby Kebbell, Tian Jing, Thomas Mann, Jason Mitchell, Shea Whigham, Richard Jenkins  and John C. Reilly.

Rating: Very Good.

Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts brings “Kong: Skull Island” an adventure film and reboot to the “King Kong”franchise that is entertaining from beginning to end.

Set after The Vietnam War, the movie tells the story of government agent Bill Randa (John Goodman) and geologist Houston Brooks (Corey Hawkins) recruiting a group of professionals to seek the whereabouts of Skull Island.

The group will be conformed by former British Captain James Conrad (Tom Hiddleston),  The Colonel of the United States Army Preston Packard (Samuel L. Jackson) and The Photojournalist and Peace Activist Mason Weaver (Briel Larson).

Once the group is in the island, they will realize that they are in the territoryof the legendary gorilla Kong.

In the expedition they will encounter with the eccentric lieutenant Hank Marlow (John C. Reilly) who since World War II has been trapped in Skull Island and will help the crew to leave Skull Island and survive before it´s too late.

“Kong: Skull Island” is a movie that besides being entertaining is very well made and very well written.

The screenplay written by Dan Gilroy, Max Bornstein and Derek Connolly, which most notable works are movies like “Nightcrawler”, which Gilroy also directed, Godzilla and Jurassic World respectively . The three wrote a very fun and entertaining screenplay with very interesting characters and I loved the fact that they did it after The Vietnam War and the setup and tone of the film is one of the major brands of the film and works.

Jordan Vogt-Roberts directing is very well made and he made very good technical choices since there were very good camera movements and angles during the film.

In a movie like this normally not many people care about the acting but there were very good characters like the John C. Reilly one, which in my opinion givers the best performance of the film and when he appears during the second act the movie the movie begins to be even more enjoyable.

All the characters were very well written and you can understand all the conflicts that each and every single one of the characters have during the film. 

Yes, the movie was predictable by moments but honestly it doesn´t affect a single thing since it´s pure entertainment.

The use of CGI of this film and the visual effects are impressive and both the battles scenes and fights where Kong is involved against a group of monsters are impressive and the use of sound and imagery was neither fake or cheap and the post production department did a really good and impressive job.

The editing was fantastic and it was very fast paced. The movie is almost two hours long but they go pretty fast.

So far I have been very impressed of the quality of the blockbuster films that have been realeased this year. First it was “Logan” which like I mentioned before not only is one of the best X-Men films but it´s a movie with a heart and a great story.

Here with “Kong: Skull Island” it was no different and the story was very well told and I say that is one of the movies of the “King Kong” franchise that I have enjoyed the most.

The way how the filmmakers used the events of history like World War II, The Vietnam War, The Kennedy Days on the White House and others it was very well used and look pretty original. 

You can tell that the writers made a lot of research of the themes I just mentioned and it really paid off.

“Kong: Skull Island” is pure entertainment and I can guarantee you that you will be satisfied once you leave the theater of this movie.

The Last Word

By Emilio Frenk. 

Cast: Shirley MacLaine, Amanda Seyfried, AnnJewel Lee Dixon, Thomas Sadoski, Tom Everett Scott, Joel Murray, Anne Heche, Gedde Watanabe and Philip Baker Hall.

Rating: Very Good.

Mark Pellington, director of musical videos for rock groups like “Pearl Jam”, “U2” and many others and movies like “Arlington Road” and “The Mothman Prophecies” brings “The Last Word” a drama that brings positive results.

The movie tells the story of Harriet Lauler (Shirley MacLaine) a retired businesswoman who after seeing an obituary in a local newspaper decides she wants to write her own.

She seeks the help of local writer Anne Sherman (Amanda Seyfried) who will not only be writing Harriet´s obituary but at the same time she will be in the search for truth about Harriet´s life and colleagues.

Eventually this will  lead to a friendship between them and Harriet will teach Anne the real meaning of life and to cherish every single moment of it.

One of the things that I liked of “The Last Word” was the performances by both Shirley MacLaine and Amanda Seyfried and of course the directing by Mark Pellington who knew how to capture those moments between the two actresses.

The screenplay by Stuart Ross Fink, which happens to be his first one is written with so much detail and the use of both comedy and drama of the work at all levels.

Fink achieved a very funny and engaging script and the chemistry between MacLaine and Seyfried works at all time.

The movie by moments was a little bit slow paced but I understood why it had that pacing and it´s completely justified.

There were moments of the film like that were predictable but it didn´t bother me. 

The message of the film which is of acceptance and forgiveness is very powerful and I was very moved from the film and the friendship between the main characters which I enjoyed.

The third act of the film it has been one of the acts that has been most moving and I was very moved with the message of it. 

“The Last Word” is a movie that I hope you enjoy it as much as I did and I give it a huge recommendation for the performances of Shirley MacLaine and Amanda Seyfried and the originality of the story as well.

Logan

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: James Mangold

Cast: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Dafne Keen, Boyd Holbrook, Elizabeth Rodríguez, Richard E. Grant and Eriq La Salle.

Rating: Excellent.

Hugh Jackman brings again to the big screen the character that led him to fame and stardom in Hollywood for the last time in “Logan” and I was very impressed by it and I really enjoyed it.

The story takes place in the near future where we see an aging and weary Logan (Hugh Jackman) who works as a Limo Driver and takes care of an ailing Professor X (Patrick Stewart).

One day Logan receives the visit from Gabriela (Elizabeth Rodríguez) a nurse for the Laboratory Transignen and Laura (Dafne Keen) a girl with a unique and special gift.

Gabriela explains to Logan how the children from the laboratory are mistreated and trained as assassins.  

At the end Logan agrees to protect Laura and together with Professor X will go to North Dakota for Laura to seek shelter. The problem begins when the Chief of Security from Transignen Donald Pierce (Boyd Holbrook) finds about this and he will stop at nothing to retrieve Laura.

Now Logan will have to protect both Laura and Professor X from “Evil Forces” before it´s too late.

“Logan” without a doubt not only it´s a superhero film but at the same time I see it as a drama and it really set up the tone.

James Mangold directs again another installment to “The Wolverine” franchise since he did the one from 2013 which was a fun and entertaining film but this time Mangold´s directing was even superior than it´s predecessor.

Mangold wrote the screenplay with Scott Frank, who wrote the film from 2013 and Michal Green which credits include “The Green Lantern” and TV Shows like “Smallville” and “Heroes”.

The three of them made a unique and remarkable screenplay filled with drama and this time we see Logan´s internal and external conflict more marked than in the previous films.

James Mangold has been known through all his career as a director who likes to get into the head of the characters, revealing their internal conflicts making it one of his brands as a filmmaker. He has done it in movies like “Cop Land”, “Girl, Interrupted” and “Walk the Line”.

Here it´s no different and not only he achieved that successfully but we have even more sympathy and we like more the character of Wolverine.

“Logan” is filled with amazing action sequences and yes the rating it´s totally correct since for being a movie based on a comic book it´s very violent but at the same time it is completely justified.

Hugh Jackman says goodbye to an iconic character indeed and what a remarkable way to do it. Jackman´s career has been taking off and he has proven himself to be one of the most complete actors there are in Hollywood.

Also I consider “Logan” the best film of the X-Men series and not only I enjoyed the film but the performances as well. In movie like this it´s very rare to see good performances but this time they really paid off.

Boyd Hollbrook, gave life to a memorable villain in the form of Donald Pierce and he is pure evil in this film and I consider him one of the best villains from the X-Men films.

“Logan” is one of the best films of 2017 and I give a huge recommendation to it.

Before I Fall

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Ry Russo-Young

Cast: Zoey Deutch, Halston Sage, Logan Miller, Cynthy Wu, Medalion Rahimi, Kian Lawley, Nicolas Lea, Erica Tremblay and Elena Kampouris.

Rating: Good.

Ry Russo-Young, brings another the drama “Before I Fall” and I have to say that I was pleased with the result despite of the cliché moments.

Based on the novel by Lauren Oliver the movie tells the story of Samantha Kingston (Zoey Deutch) a very popular high school girl who usually  hangs out with his best friends Lindsay Edgecomb (Halston Sage), Ally Harris (Cynthy Wu) and Elody (Medalion Rahimi).

On the night of February 12, which happens to be cupid day Samantha and his friends go to a party but on the way back they are involved in an accident which causes Samantha´s death.

Now Samantha will woke up everyday reviving the same day over and over until she realizes the mystery around her death and everything she is in danger of losing before it´s too late.

“Before I Fall” is an interesting drama despite of the title of the film that reminds me of the title of a soap opera.

The premise of the film is very good and it´s not the typical drama that it´s filled with tragedy. Here we have an interesting premise that is surrounding a girl who has major inner conflicts on regards of her death.

The directing by Ry Russo-Young is quite good. The technical choices she made in terms of the look of the film were really good and the performance that she had from the cast specially Zoey Deutch was really interesting despite of the moments that was a little bit of overacting.

The screenplay written by Maria Maggenti was written with a lot of detail and originality. I loved the fact that it was happening in the same event and with different descriptions. The ending was one of the things that surpised me the most and does work at all levels.

I was surprised by the length of the film and went pretty fast. Usually the length of this films can be an issue but here it wasn´t the case and it was one of the things that made me appreciate it more.

I liked the message of the film that is about learning to cherish and enjoy every single day like if was your last.

Zoey Deutch is an actress who begin to attract attention last year with movies like “Everybody Wants Some” and “Why Him?”. I do think she is very talented and she has everything to succeed in her career.

I hope that she continues on this path and hopefully she will get very far.

There were cliché moments of the film as I described before and some of the acting was over the top but I enjoyed the film.

When I first saw the trailer of the film I didn´t had any expectations whatsoever and I had said to myself: “Not another cheezy movie filled with tragedy”. Once again I was wrong and I was surprised with this film.

The movie works in so many levels and it is very well made.

With that being said “Before I Fall” is one of the biggest surprises of this year and I recommend it.