Rated R

Red, White & Royal Blue  – JenEric Movie Review

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Hello Cinephiles,

Today we’re talking about the 2023 film Red, White & Royal Blue.

Story

I haven’t read the book that this is based off of, but unlike a lot of literary adaptations, I didn’t feel like I was missing too much. There were a few aspects that felt rushed, the trip to Texas and the initial series of incidents that transition from enemies to lovers.

That being said, the important parts, the romance, longing looks, and establishing camerawork were all done at a pace that made you feel for the characters.

Although I appreciated the low homophobia content, it was a little jarring with the level of angst from the characters.

The main love story is done well, but nothing in it is particularly original.

Score: 0.5

Characters

There is so much charisma in this movie that it practically floods out of the screen. The mains are not only attractive, but clever and have an endearing charm. Most of the secondary characters are equally as charming and those that aren’t, are still interesting.

Score: 1

Dialogue

The line, “He grabbed my hair in a way that made me understand the difference between rugby and football,” will live rent free in my head for a long time. It’s the perfect summation of the style of dialogue which favours heart and quip above sap or forced misunderstandings. Something a lot of romantic comedies could learn from.

Score: 1

Visuals and Music

The cinematography and camera work was artistically above almost every movie I’ve seen in recent memory. The visuals managed to convey location, emotion, and movement all while painting the main characters as likable.

The music was good and did its job setting the mood and the feel of each location.

Score: 1

Fun

This movie was extremely enjoyable. I watched it with my wife, after the kids were in bed. That was a good plan since there’s way too much swearing, smoking, and alcohol for my liking. It’s the only thing that dampened my enjoyment of the film.

We both had a lot of fun and she spent a good amount of time afterward looking at gif sets on tumblr.

Score: 0.5

Overall

One of the most beautiful and stylistic movies I’ve seen, and one of the most entertaining romantic comedies in a long time. This will make you smile and make you happy. It is not for kids however, due to the large quantity of alcohol consumption, smoking, and swearing.

Final Score: 4 Stars out of 5

Palm Springs – JenEric Movie Review

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Hello Cinephiles,

Today we’re talking about the 2020 Film Palm Springs.

Story

I love time loop movies (writing a time loop book is hard though). This is a passable example. A lot of the awkwardness and swearing felt made just to shock and bring up the rating.

There’s some fascinating concepts on time and they started examining what would happen with the limits of human memory, but then backtracked and just made the character a liar.

It’s a mixed bag with all the awkwardness of an adult comedy and a few cool ideas.

Score: 0.5

Characters

Adult comedies and time loop movies have a commonality of character: likeable but selfish protagonists that make very bad decisions. In a good time loop movie, the character learns and grows through the ordeal. These characters learned very little other than to love each other. They end still selfish and making bad decisions. It’s very frustrating.

That being said, the actors managed to make them likeable and even fun to watch.

Score: 0.5

Dialogue

So much swearing with none of the finesse or charisma of Deadpool.

Beyond that there are a few really funny lines and some interesting dialogue, but since more than half of what the the main characters say are lies, it makes it hard to care.

Score: 0

Visuals and Music

It’s a very pretty and stylistic movie that definitely has a surreal quality.

The music is acceptable but nothing special.

Score: 0.5

Fun

So glad I didn’t watch this with the kids. It was pretty awkward to watch at times, other than the “gives up and has fun” phase. It had some cool ideas, but was bogged down by its need to be adult.

Score: 0.5

Overall

Fantastic comedy actors in a mediocre time loop story that is more interested in its adult gags and swearing than finishing any of its substance. Anything new they bring into the genre, they undermine with lies and characters making more bad decisions.

Final Score: 2 Stars out of 5