Not so scary movies about scary things

 

I thought I would never watch Sinners simply because it was labeled "horror." Eventually enough people told me it wasn't that scary, at least two people told me it was their favorite movie of 2025, and I found a friend to watch it with. So I watched.

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Sinners (2025) - directed by Ryan Coogler

 

I am a liker of Sinners. Big fan of the overall vibe and the music. Setting cool. Michael B x2 cool. All the other performances were good too. It also wasn’t boring (high bar). 

The build-up to the conflict was enjoyable, but I thought things became less interesting once it turned into a monster movie. If there’s a thematic explanation that ties it all together, I’m not getting it, but I genuinely want to. 

I like how Michael Smoke and Michael Stack wear different hats so I can tell them apart. Much appreciated, thank you Ryan Coogler.

 

Watched: August 23, 2026

Rating: ★★★★ / 5  

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Miscellaneous thoughts on Sinners:

 

Genuinely very entertaining story and beautiful cinematography. Setting and time period are brought to life really well. 

 

Movie takes its time to set up some interesting character dynamics, but the second half derails that progress. Ideally, the character stories would grow along with the plot, but I don't think that's done in a satisfying way here. I often use Once Upon a Time in Hollywood as an extreme example of this: a setup that brings up a lot of interesting questions and an explosive ending that answers none of them. 

 

I feel like the female characters are fleshed out well in some respects and not in others. Don't know how to elaborate over text or if I should try. I understand what the movie is going for, but it feels a little bit off to me. 

 

So many big movies these days are part of a franchises or are based on other media, so I appreciate this being an original screenplay a lot.

 

That one scene that everyone talks about is good. 

 

Low-key wanted/expected this movie to have a time jump or some time travel. Me and my want of sci-fi 😫

 

First movie started and finished on *my* TV. Shout out to Sandesh.  

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My blog is five movies behind again, so I have many choices of what to write about next. Keeping with the monster movie theme, let's talk about Jaws. 

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Jaws (1975) - directed by Steven Spielberg

 

Not the first time I’ve rated a movie I barely watched, but I don’t usually feel this guilty about it. Next time I go to Coolidge Corner I will eat less pasta and more popcorn 🫠 had one of the most relaxing naps of my life while this beach was being terrorized. 

It was a fun watch, you know, while I was conscious. It had a good script, a bunch of amusing moments. I liked the three main dudes, even if I could not understand a word one of em said. And I think that shark was nice n menacing, even if this movie is unfair shark slander. 

I liked the first two thirds more than the last act on the boat (though ironically, I was the most awake at the end). Brody dealing with the dumbasses that won’t close the beach was pretty good. The last part felt very Old Man and the Sea for some obvious reasons (not a bad thing, just observing).

Ugh I wanna watch it again right now. Hope Jaws and I will get to have a rematch soon, and I think this rating can only go up.

 

Watched: September 7, 2026

Rating: ★★★★ / 5  

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Once again, I enjoyed the Coolidge Corner Theatre experience a lot. "You're gonna need a bigger boat" got big claps. 

One parallel I've noticed between my thoughts on these two movies: I like both first halves better, when the movie is more focused on build-up and people. Once the movies starts focusing on strategizing and actually killing the monster(s), it sometimes feels less personal to me. In the same vein, I'm not super into fight scenes either. All important data for making The Ultimate Pratima Movie. 

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Post written while trying to explain HTML to a ten year old. Hope you enjoy.