Aladdin (2019)

I'm actually really on board with the recent trend of remaking classic Disney animated films in live-action, but Aladdin is not very good. The story is kind of flimsy. There is new music made for this adaptation that does not gel with the original. Alan Menken from the original, and Pasek and Paul of La La Land fame, wrote cringy pop music. Some of the songs are actually not even long enough to qualify as songs, merely two or three sung lines. It is the exact criticism that people who don't like musicals have: the switch from singing to speaking is too abrupt. The acting is good but the singing is not quite hefty enough from the leads. It is nice to hear Will Smith singing again. He is actually quite good, even though I was skeptical of him at first. He adds some much needed humor and levity. The production, set, CGI and costumes are beautiful, but I'm not sure about the accuracy of the costumes. They seem too colorful and revealing for Arabian dress. Jasmine is modernized, given a voice and more agency. That was a nice touch, but the accompanying song is not good.

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Avengers: Endgame is the serviceable capstone on a decade's worth of serviceable movies worth billions of dollars. There are millions of superfans all around the world. And this is for them. This movie is 100% fan service. One last hurrah for the old guard of Avengers. I'm unfortunately not one of those superfans. I think I missed a lot of the references to the older films. I think they didn't have as much of an emotional impact for me because I am not attached to the characters and I don't recall the details of the old movies. The explanation of time travel from The Hulk is brushed over really quickly and I didn't catch it. But I think there are some significant plot holes that I'm willing to overlook. The movie runs way too long. There are a lot of subplots they could have cut out that serve only to prolong the movie. And to top it off, I fell asleep during the climactic battle scene. We can blame jet lag, but also, I have a tendency to fall asleep during battles.

Much Ado About Nothing (The Public Theater) (2019)

This is the best and most modern Shakespeare I have ever seen. Kenny Leon's take on Much Ado About Nothing is fresh and lively. It is subliminally political; the first thing you see is a prominent "Stacey Abrams 2020" banner. It's not quite as on the nose as the Donald Trump Julius Caesar from a couple summers ago. But the undertones are there. We hear a beautiful rendition of What's Going On sung by Danielle Brooks. This community is in the contemporary resistance. Taking place in the near future with an all black cast, it is about community and black love.The music and choreography are simultaneously unexpected and perfect for this modern, unabashedly black show.

Mary Queen of Scots (2018)

There were some things I liked: the color blind casting and the ravishing costumes. The movie is otherwise really boring. I fell asleep in the middle and when I woke up, I did not bother going back. I couldn't even tell quite how much I had missed.

The Namesake (2006)

I love the novel The Namesake. And while this movie is very beautiful, I don't think the adaptation does the novel justice. What it lacks is time. The joy of reading Jhumpa Lahiri is inhabiting the lives of her characters. You can't do that in a two hour movie that had to cut out all the character development, some of the most touching scenes from the novel. It doesn't even fully explain the traditional naming process that encounters a hitch when grandma dies. Such a sprawling story makes adaptation difficult. I know you can't expect a perfect 1:1 translation, but I think I loved the novel too much to be satisfied with anything less. Irrfan Khan and Tabu are precisely what I envisioned in my head. Kal Penn not so much, but he may never escape Harold and Kumar.

Brexit: The Uncivil War (2019)

Eh, it's too soon. It's really painful to watch because you know it's true. Benedict Cumberbatch basically plays Sherlock, which we already know he's good at and it irks me.

At Eternity's Gate (2018)

Willem Dafoe is excellent as Vincent Van Gogh. His portrayal of a mentally unstable man is harrowing. It is accented by some crazy camerawork that is wildly distracting and made my head hurt. Maybe that was the intention. But it was very uncomfortable on the plane. The pacing of the movie is also not really conducive to watching it on a plane, but I quite liked it.