Quick Movie reviews - November-December 2017

Here are some short reviews of recent movies I've seen.

Justice League

Up until Wonder Woman, the DC Universe (DCU) was a disaster. DCU movies were dark, depressing, and murdery, with almost no humor. Wonder Woman changed that earlier this year and Justice League was another step in the DCU's redemption. The first act was episodic and didn't hang together very well, but once Batman, Wonder Woman, Aqua Man, the Flash and Cyborg came together as a team, the movie improved and became, dare I say it, kind of fun. Fun is a first for a DCU movie not called Wonder Woman. So a HUGE improvement over every previous DCU movie (not called Wonder Woman). I'm actually looking forward to seeing it again some day.

COCO

Another triumph by Pixar. Wonderful, warm and filled with touching moments, Coco focuses on family. Every Pixar movie seems to set a new bar for beautiful, brilliant animation and Coco is no exception. I really appreciated the Mexican setting and artistic style. This is another example (like Moana) that a focus on something other than western culture doesn't mean that audiences won't connect with the story and characters.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

I only saw this a couple of days ago and I'm still unsure how I feel about it. I loved the focus on people in the SW universe NOT named Skywalker and really enjoyed all the Rey/Kylo Ren interactions. I'm not sure about the tortured logistics of some of the narrative, and was let down by the abandonment of several mysteries raised by The Force Awakens. But I think right now that it's a good addition to the Star Wars story. Oh, and PORGS RULE.