Pokemon Detective Pikachu (2019)

Rob Letterman took big risks that mostly paid off. I didn't know at first how to feel about the 3D Pokemon, rendered in CGI. But I quickly acclimated to all but Mr Mime. Mr Mime is freaky. But Pikachu is adorable. Ryan Reynolds will forever be known for his sublime voice work as Deadpool and Pikachu. I would have been on board if Pikachu decided to curse a bit. But even the voice was just enough to evoke the comedy of Deadpool. The story is mediocre but the nostalgia mixed with Ryan Reynolds makes for an enjoyable time.

Deadpool 2 (2018)

I don't even really remember anymore what I wanted to say about it. I saw it nearly a month ago. But I remember that I wasn't impressed. And I did not really like the ending.

The Hitman's Bodyguard (2017)

I saw an advance screening of The Hitman's Bodyguard. It's decently funny but not nearly as funny as the loud man in the movie theater would have you believe. It kind of works. Samuel L. Jackson and Ryan Reynolds have this buddy chemistry because this genre of film, that is ridiculous action comedy, suits them both. Ryan Reynolds will never get away from this genre post-Deadpool. And Samuel L. Jackson is well known for yelling profanities in a forceful manner thanks to Quentin Tarantino. It's funny enough to be entertaining and bloody violent. We're in a John Wick-era of violence nowadays--it's becoming rather normalized I think.

The film does do a ridiculous disservice to international law. It has a terrible understanding of the purpose of international law, which I took some offense to as a student of international law. It also does not feature the actual ICC, which I went to in the Hague. The real deal has much more intense security than the movie version I know it's not the point of the movie, but they could've done some research.

Deadpool (2016)

Deadpool was good but I don't know if it's as amazing as everyone has been raving. In the same vein as Guardians of the Galaxy, it is a parody of the superhero genre. The difference is the self awareness of Deadpool. He constantly breaks the fourth wall, acknowledging the Marvel cinematic universe ironically. I wonder how he actually fits into that universe as he actively makes fun of it, both the characters and timeline and the actors themselves, aware it is a movie. Is he in X-Men or what? It is unconventionally funny. There is also an exceptional amount of R-rated violence and humor for a Marvel movie. Some of it is excessive. I get that's the point, but sometimes they're just unnecessary side remarks. Ryan Reynolds is perfect for the role, much better than his turn as the Green Lantern. Story-wise it's ok. Its strength is in its comedy.

The Woman in Gold (2015)

This movie is dramatization of a true story of Nazi art theft and the legal nightmare that Maria Altmann went through to recover the paintings that were stolen from her family.  These five Klimts include the iconic Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I, which exemplifies Klimt's golden phase.  This movie combines two things that I like: legal drama and fine art, all set against the backdrop of the Holocaust.  Not only is the story fascinating, it is devastating. The movie is driven by themes of legal right versus cultural right. Klimt has come to be representative of Austrian culture, and his artworks are national treasures. Altmann hires a family friend to be her lawyer, an inexperienced Randol Schoenberg, the grandson of the famous Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg. Altmann came from a wealthy Jewish family in Vienna that hosted the Austrian intellectuals of the day in a renowned salon.  Both characters are steeped in twentieth century Austrian culture, but their families were lain victim to the atrocities committed by Austrians complicit with the Nazis, yet the Austrian government has the audacity to suggest a cultural right to the paintings.

Helen Mirren is excellent as always as a woman torn between the rush of terrible memories Austria reminds her of and the pursuit of what is legally hers.  Tatiana Maslany convincingly plays a young Altmann, whose story is told in stylish black-and-white.  Ryan Reynolds plays the inexperienced lawyer and he comes across as kind of awkward, which is not necessarily a bad thing.