Movie Review: ****Cruella 2021

 Cruella is the story of Cruella Deville.  How did she become so evil with a hate of Dalmatians?  This movie answers this question.  Emma Stone does a superb job as the woman with black and white hair.  However Emma Thompson, who portrays the evil baroness and Cruella's biological mother.  In this movie we enter the world of fashion design.  Who is the greater fashion genius, the daughter or the mother?  Playing supporting rolls are Joel Fry and Paul Hauser as Jasper and Horace, who support Cruella through thick and thin.  There is lots of intrigue in this movie and we learn what happens when you design a dress of moths.  

Movie Review: The Croods (2013)

Nicholas Cage and Emma Stone star in this animated feature.  The Croods are a close family, whose life is protected by the confines of their cave.  However when the cave is destroyed by an earthquake their life is thrown out of balance.  They have to find a new place to be safe, no easy tasks in a world of creatures and earthquakes.
This movie focusing on the importance of family, and making decisions to benefit the group.

Movie Review: ****^The Amazing Spider-Man 2

This is the continuation of the Spider-Man based on Marvel comics series.  Peter (Andrew Garfield) is torn about whether he should continue his relationship with Gwen (Emma Stone) after promising her father as he was dying that he would not endanger her life.  There are still bad people out there, and his rescuing causes him to almost miss his graduation. 
His friend from ten years ago, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHann) returns from being away, just before Mr. Osborn passes away, from a genetic disease his son also has.  He determines he needs Spider-Man's blood to heal himself, as it has a power from spiders which self heals.  In the meantime, Max (Jamie Foxx) has fallen into a vat of electric eels at Oscorp, and becomes Electro.  Peter also slowly unravels the mystery behind the disappearance of his parents.  His Aunt May (Sally Field) is able to give him some information.  And with a note he finds in his dad's briefcase, he discovers a secret lab.  However, Oscorp, unknowingly throws two monsters against themselves, and against Spider-man.  Electro, and the Green Goblin who is also Harry. 
I don't want to be a spoiler, but both Tony and I came home sad from this experience.  It did not end the way either of us thought it would.  Although Peter does make a decision about himself and Gwen.

Movie Review: ***^The Help

This movie was very enjoyable, during the Kennedy years, and start of the civil rights movement.  It took a lot of courage in those days to confront your environment, especially in the South under Jim Crow laws. When segregation is the law, it is hard to stand up.  This move has Emma Stone as a young author, writing about the injustices she sees, and through time recruits a group of "Help" to tell her stories; positive stories and stories of injustices.  Viola Davis and Octovia Spencer are "The Help" first help with the book.  Bryce Dallas Howard portrays the worse of the racists.  She is just evil, wanting to pass a law requiring extra bathrooms for "Black Help."  It is fun how the book comes out, and how they are able to do just enough so they can publish the book without being arrested.

Movie Review: ****^The Amazing Spider Man

I have now seen this movie twice, 3-D and regular.  I can't say that 3-D added a lot, except at the end when he is flying around.  I saw another review that said it was good; but not amazing.  I would say it was amazing, but not perfect.  There are plenty of special effects, there is a love story, which doesn't mimic the other Spider Man movies, there is a nerd who becomes Spider Man, there is a different villain.  All of these make for a great movie.  Tony came out of the movie climbing the walls in the restroom.  Now that is great.

Peter (Andrew Garfield) likes Gwen (Emma Stone), who is a fellow scientist at school.  She claims to top of her class.  Peter's father is a former scientist at OsCorp, but hid a secret formula and fled, but he and Peter's mother died in a plane crash.  Peter crashesbreaks into OsCorp, which leads to the famous biting.  Peter designs his own webslingers based on technology of OsCorp.

Peter goes to dinner with Gwen, whose father is a Captain (Denis Leary) on the police force.  The police do not appreciate Spider Man, and have been trying to arrest him.  However he does let Gwen know of his secret

Oh, in the mean time, Peter has inadvertantly given to Dr Conners (Rhys Ifans), his father's ex partner, the formula his father hid.  Dr. Connors uses the formula, and turns himself into a super lizard.  Peter/ Spider Man feels responsible and sets out to stop him.  He tries to warn the police, but they think he is crazy.

I liked the movie--except the crane scene.  I thought that was corny.