Movie Reviews (May 2026)
May 8th, 2026 at 8:56:01 AM
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Project Hail Mary
Everybody seems to be gushing over this movie and falling in love with Rocky the alien. However, I didn't like it as much. I felt it was too long and tried too hard to pull at the heartstrings of the audience, like ET. The soundtrack was also overpowering and distracting. Space is supposed to be quiet. Personally, I like my aliens scary who are hell bent on killing every last human. I'm open to nice aliens, like in Micky 17, but this movie was too warm and cute, like a Hallmark commercial. Still, it wasn't terrible. I give it a 5 on the 0 to 10 scale.
The Devil Wears Prada 2
I loved the original movie and have seen it several times. I've been looking forward to the sequel for months. I was disappointed. Somehow it lacked the humor and magic of the original. It wasn't terrible but doubt I'll watch it a second time. I give it a 4 on the 0 to 10 scale.
Michael
I watched the first 20 minutes of Michael when I snuck in before seeing Project Hail Mary. I enjoyed that 20 minutes so much I returned the next day to finish it. Jaafar Jackson, the real life nephew of Michael Jackson, did an outstanding job. Other Jackson names were all over the credits. Ultimately, I judge movies by whether they told a good story, and Michael absolutely did and told it well. The only thing I might fault it for is it ended at an arbitrary point, late 80's, so I didn't have a sense of the story ending. However, it's well set up for a sequel.
I give it a 9 on the 0 to 10 scale.
Everybody seems to be gushing over this movie and falling in love with Rocky the alien. However, I didn't like it as much. I felt it was too long and tried too hard to pull at the heartstrings of the audience, like ET. The soundtrack was also overpowering and distracting. Space is supposed to be quiet. Personally, I like my aliens scary who are hell bent on killing every last human. I'm open to nice aliens, like in Micky 17, but this movie was too warm and cute, like a Hallmark commercial. Still, it wasn't terrible. I give it a 5 on the 0 to 10 scale.
The Devil Wears Prada 2
I loved the original movie and have seen it several times. I've been looking forward to the sequel for months. I was disappointed. Somehow it lacked the humor and magic of the original. It wasn't terrible but doubt I'll watch it a second time. I give it a 4 on the 0 to 10 scale.
Michael
I watched the first 20 minutes of Michael when I snuck in before seeing Project Hail Mary. I enjoyed that 20 minutes so much I returned the next day to finish it. Jaafar Jackson, the real life nephew of Michael Jackson, did an outstanding job. Other Jackson names were all over the credits. Ultimately, I judge movies by whether they told a good story, and Michael absolutely did and told it well. The only thing I might fault it for is it ended at an arbitrary point, late 80's, so I didn't have a sense of the story ending. However, it's well set up for a sequel.
I give it a 9 on the 0 to 10 scale.
"My life is spent in one long effort to escape from the commonplace of existence. These little problems help me to do so." -- Sherlock Holmes
May 8th, 2026 at 9:27:55 AM
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Movie being revived from the dead, online: because of the Hanta virus panic:
The X-Files (June 1998) $2.99 on Amazon Prime
In a small Texas town, a mysterious black substance emanating from the remains of a prehistoric human engulfs a young boy and his rescuers. Later, FBI agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) are in Dallas to disarm a bomb set to detonate inside a federal facility. Unfortunately the bomb explodes -- leaving four inside dead. Mulder and Scully then receive a tip that the disaster was a government effort to cover up an alien virus linked to the boy's death.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120902/
Mulder and Kurtzweil («The X-Files: Fight the Future»)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2o85p2lfRM
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Tara Reid stars in a new movie called Dr. Q (for Dr. Quarantine) (2026, just released) - available for $4.99 on Amazon Prime
A mother loses her mind in early 2020 as COVID lockdowns take hold.
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Right at Your Door (2006) - When a dirty bomb is unleashed on Los Angeles, an everyman finds himself unable to contact his wife and begins a descent into paranoia.
Free on tubitv
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458367/
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Lockdown: 2025 (2021) - On Amazon Prime
Virus outbreak leads to nationwide lockdown, martial law declared. A family confined at home faces an internal evil force threatening to destroy them while external dangers loom.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14096564/
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Several years ago there were a couple YouTube channels that claimed there was a parallel Earth where nobody exists anymore. They would roam the streets of major cities and show there was absolutely nobody there. They'd break into stores and banks and arenas and police stations and nobody would be there. They must have had a people remover filter, but still, no car traffic but there were parked cars. It was set in the future, like in 2027 and these videos came out in 2020-21. Viewers could leave things at certain coordinates and the vlogger would pick it up to use in the next video, and the vlogger could leave things behind for other vloggers to pick up despite the time difference.
This movie seems to do a retake on that, with no people. The Last (2025) on tubitv
A man wakes up to discover every living thing in the world has disappeared. As he seeks to find answers, a dark element surrounds him and slowly tries to corrupt him.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt36041986/
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The X-Files (June 1998) $2.99 on Amazon Prime
In a small Texas town, a mysterious black substance emanating from the remains of a prehistoric human engulfs a young boy and his rescuers. Later, FBI agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) are in Dallas to disarm a bomb set to detonate inside a federal facility. Unfortunately the bomb explodes -- leaving four inside dead. Mulder and Scully then receive a tip that the disaster was a government effort to cover up an alien virus linked to the boy's death.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120902/
Mulder and Kurtzweil («The X-Files: Fight the Future»)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2o85p2lfRM
*********************************************
Tara Reid stars in a new movie called Dr. Q (for Dr. Quarantine) (2026, just released) - available for $4.99 on Amazon Prime
A mother loses her mind in early 2020 as COVID lockdowns take hold.
********************************************
Right at Your Door (2006) - When a dirty bomb is unleashed on Los Angeles, an everyman finds himself unable to contact his wife and begins a descent into paranoia.
Free on tubitv
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458367/
********************************************
Lockdown: 2025 (2021) - On Amazon Prime
Virus outbreak leads to nationwide lockdown, martial law declared. A family confined at home faces an internal evil force threatening to destroy them while external dangers loom.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14096564/
*********************************************
Several years ago there were a couple YouTube channels that claimed there was a parallel Earth where nobody exists anymore. They would roam the streets of major cities and show there was absolutely nobody there. They'd break into stores and banks and arenas and police stations and nobody would be there. They must have had a people remover filter, but still, no car traffic but there were parked cars. It was set in the future, like in 2027 and these videos came out in 2020-21. Viewers could leave things at certain coordinates and the vlogger would pick it up to use in the next video, and the vlogger could leave things behind for other vloggers to pick up despite the time difference.
This movie seems to do a retake on that, with no people. The Last (2025) on tubitv
A man wakes up to discover every living thing in the world has disappeared. As he seeks to find answers, a dark element surrounds him and slowly tries to corrupt him.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt36041986/
****************************************************
Last edited by: ChumpChange on May 8, 2026
May 8th, 2026 at 3:08:29 PM
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Quote: WizardProject Hail Mary
Everybody seems to be gushing over this movie and falling in love with Rocky the alien. However, I didn't like it as much. I felt it was too long and tried too hard to pull at the heartstrings of the audience, like ET. The soundtrack was also overpowering and distracting. Space is supposed to be quiet. Personally, I like my aliens scary who are hell bent on killing every last human. I'm open to nice aliens, like in Micky 17, but this movie was too warm and cute, like a Hallmark commercial. Still, it wasn't terrible. I give it a 5 on the 0 to 10 scale.
link to original post
I liked it up until most of the main mysteries were revealed. And after that the rest of it felt too long.
Sanitized for Your Protection
May 8th, 2026 at 4:42:02 PM
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Quote: rxwineI liked it up until most of the main mysteries were revealed. And after that the rest of it felt too long.
link to original post
I agree 100%.
"My life is spent in one long effort to escape from the commonplace of existence. These little problems help me to do so." -- Sherlock Holmes
May 8th, 2026 at 4:52:24 PM
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I only see about one new movie every three years or so but I am looking forward to this one.
You can't know everything, but you can know anything.
May 8th, 2026 at 4:56:14 PM
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Quote: WizardProject Hail Mary
Everybody seems to be gushing over this movie and falling in love with Rocky the alien. However, I didn't like it as much. I felt it was too long and tried too hard to pull at the heartstrings of the audience, like ET.
When I saw ET in the theater in the very early 80s I walked out halfway through trying not to puke. That movie was so sugary and stupid I was physically sick. It was basically two and a half hours of watching a puppet.
"It's not called gambling if the math is on your side."
May 8th, 2026 at 5:45:00 PM
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I really enjoyed Project Hail Mary, especially the big-screen theater experience.
One of the reasons was because I hadn't seen trailers for it and didn't know anything aside from it being in space. It was reminiscent of my first time seeing 2001: A Space Odyssey—also in a theater.
Not knowing what to expect in a movie hits differently. After I saw the trailer, I knew that I wouldn't have felt the same kind of suspense and tension about the alien. Knowing how it looked, and its antics, would have ruined the wonder and discovery.
It was indeed a bit long, but I didn't mind because the opening seemed to hint that it would be an epic-style movie, and I had the expectation it would be more than 2 hours. I liked how it cut back and forth between the present and the setup to the mission, and the two timelines converged, similar to Memento.
Did anyone recognize the actress who played the female Russian astronaut?
For The Devil Wears Prada 2, I enjoyed it. I liked the story and style, though it had lazy fan service callbacks to the original. I liked all the characters again, though I thought Emily Blunt's character got elevated unrealistically to give her an important role in the movie.
One of the reasons was because I hadn't seen trailers for it and didn't know anything aside from it being in space. It was reminiscent of my first time seeing 2001: A Space Odyssey—also in a theater.
Not knowing what to expect in a movie hits differently. After I saw the trailer, I knew that I wouldn't have felt the same kind of suspense and tension about the alien. Knowing how it looked, and its antics, would have ruined the wonder and discovery.
It was indeed a bit long, but I didn't mind because the opening seemed to hint that it would be an epic-style movie, and I had the expectation it would be more than 2 hours. I liked how it cut back and forth between the present and the setup to the mission, and the two timelines converged, similar to Memento.
Did anyone recognize the actress who played the female Russian astronaut?
For The Devil Wears Prada 2, I enjoyed it. I liked the story and style, though it had lazy fan service callbacks to the original. I liked all the characters again, though I thought Emily Blunt's character got elevated unrealistically to give her an important role in the movie.
