Category: Reviews

Animation, Movies, Reviews

‘Abominable’ Brings All the Charm in This Magical, Heartfelt Adventure

Lauren Lola

Yi (Chloe Bennet), a teenage girl in modern-day China, longs to travel to all the places in the country she and her dad were planning to go to prior to his untimely death. In the midst of this mournful longing, she encounters a Yeti of all beings on top of her apartment building, hiding from scientists (Sarah Paulson and Eddie Izzard) wanting to expose him. It is suddenly on her and her two friends Peng (Albert Tsai) and Jin (Tenzing Norgay Trainor) to get this Yeti — whom Yi calls Everest — home to the Himalayas, even with the scientists on their tail.

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Movies, Reviews

NOC Review: Rian Johnson Slays with ‘Knives Out’

Constance Gibbs

On the morning after his 85th birthday party, acclaimed mystery writer Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is found dead in his study, a cut carotid and blood splashed everywhere. His family, a classic Christiean cast of characters, are all waiting to find out the contents of his will. It’s with this well-known whodunit premise that Rian Johnson’s uproariously hilarious Knives Out begins.

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DC Comics, Movies, Reviews1 Comment

NOC Review: Wait ‘Til They Get a Load of This ‘Joker’

Mike Manalo

Hey NOCs! My camera is on the fritz so until I get things fixed, I’ll be going back to written reviews for a bit, starting with our review of Joker, which debuts today at the 76th Venice International Film Festival. Minor spoilers ahead!

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Movies, Reviews7 Comments

Quentin Tarantino’s Bruce Lee Problem

Keith Chow

Back in March, when the trailer for Quentin Tarantino’s latest — and allegedly penultimate — movie, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, hit the internet, there was one scene that concerned anyone who wasn’t already a die hard Tarantino stan. In it, Brad Pitt’s character seemingly fights Mike Moh’s Bruce Lee to a standstill. Needless to say, I wasn’t encouraged.

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Animation, Movies, Reviews

NOC Review: ‘The Lion King’ — Slimy or Satisfying?

Mike Manalo

The Lion King roars back into cinemas on July 19th–this time painstakingly brought to life by Iron Man, Chef, and Jungle Book maestro, Jon Favreau. Are we feeling the love tonight? Or is this one stuck in the elephant graveyard?

Find out by watching our NOC’s review of the movie here:

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Movies, Reviews1 Comment

NOC Review: Oh, I Believe in ‘Yesterday’

Mike Manalo

The latest from the team that brought you Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones’ Diary, and Love Actually hits theaters this Friday. Will audiences long for Yesterday the same way they swooned for those films? We’re here with the full review!

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Animation, Movies, Reviews5 Comments

NOC Review: Another Delightful ‘Toy Story’

Mike Manalo

Toy Story 4 hits theaters this Friday! And we want to give you nerds the full breakdown of the movie!

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Marvel, Movies, Reviews4 Comments

NOC Review: Dull ‘Phoenix’ Barely Rises Above Subpar

Mike Manalo

Sometimes when the public gets hold of bad buzz regarding a studio tentpole, they end up pleasantly surprised by the result of the film. Wonder Woman was at one point considered to be “a mess” thereby worrying audiences before release. Aladdin was getting blasted online, and Disney was getting ready to take another Solo-sized bath.  However,  Wonder Woman went on to become the DCEU’s best reviewed film and a huge box office hit, and Aladdin went on to positive audience reviews, and grossed a healthy $100M in four days, two weekends ago. Nope, negative buzz isn’t always reflective of the final product itself… Unless you’re Dark Phoenix. Then it’s entirely true.

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Movies, Reviews, Sci Fi1 Comment

NOC Review: ‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ Review: King Me!

Mike Manalo

I’d like to start the review by posing an analogy: Why do we go to and love John Wick movies? Is it because of the story or character? Hell no! We go because we want to see Keanu capping people left and right with well-choreographed action sequences of hardcore violence and badassery. And when we get that, we appreciate and shower praise on a film like that because our expectations are met (89% on RT). The filmmakers know consciously what kind of movie we want, and that’s what they give us.

Therefore, if we are going to shower praise over John Wick for delivering what we expect and what it promises, we must do the same for Godzilla: King of the Monsters. For me, this is a perfect summer blockbuster through and through, and the first time an American-made, big-budget Godzilla movie genuinely felt like a real Godzilla movie! In other words, this movie delivers what it promises — on what it’s supposed to be — and more!

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Movies, Reviews

LAAPFF Review: Charming ‘Blinded by the Light!’ is a True Film for Every POC

Mike Manalo

The 35th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival has come and gone, and among one of the gems The Nerds of Color had the privilege of watching was  Gurinder Chadha’s (Bend it Like Beckham) latest film, Blinded by the Light. The film is inspired by British journalist, Sarfraz Manzoor’s real-life story of growing up as part of a conservative Pakistani family in a racist 1980s England. It chronicles how Manzoor, called “Javed” in the film rose above the challenges of growing up during that era through his discovery of Bruce Springsteen’s music.

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Movies, Reviews, Video Games

NOC Review: ‘Detective Pikachu’ Falls Short of Being the Very Best

Mike Manalo

Did I like Pokémon: Detective Pikachu? For the most part, yes. Would I recommend this movie to everyone? I don’t know if I can.

To elaborate, growing up, I played Pokémon Red, Blue, Yellow, Gold, and Silver. Then my mom wouldn’t buy me a Game Boy Advance, so I stopped counting after 251, and never played another console Pokémon game thereafter (at least until I became a grown-ass man, got a job, bought a Switch, and started playing Let’s Go Pikachu!). Then naturally the Pokémon Go phase happened, and I got obsessed again. However, as they began expanding the roster of Pokémon beyond the 251 I knew, I was completely lost about what any of the Pokémon that appeared from the Advance generation and up were, and ultimately stopped playing.

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Marvel, Movies, Reviews

‘Avengers: Endgame’ is an Emotional Journey of the Past 10 Years

Laura Sirikul

The epic conclusion to last year’s Avengers: Infinity War is finally here. Everything that you thought was going to happen in Endgame –throw that out. This film is nothing like you expected at all. Which does not mean that it is not good. It is actually really good and will have you going through many different emotions –good and bad.

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DC Comics, Movies, Reviews1 Comment

NOC Review: ‘Shazam!’ is Impressive

Mike Manalo

That’s two in a row for the DCEU! At this point in time, given that even other WB/DC properties like The Lego Batman Movie have openly mocked the franchise’s former unnecessarily dark and cynical roots, we’ve certainly seen a gradual shift towards optimism and fun from Wonder Woman to Justice League. Then to the colorful craziness of Aquaman,and now, Shazam!; DC’s lightest and most family-friendly movie to date. And honestly, especially after seeing Shazam!, in my opinion the results work so much more than they did in the earlier stages of the franchise.

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Marvel, Movies, Reviews2 Comments

‘Captain Marvel’ Goes Higher Further and Faster For the MCU

Laura Sirikul

Sorry to burst your bubble, haters, but Captain Marvel is really good.

With all the controversy surrounding Captain Marvel, created by internet trolls, it was refreshing to watch the film and see how wrong they were about it. Captain Marvel has been labeled a feminist film, and it is, but it does so without dragging men down. Instead, the film focuses on women empowerment, sisterhood, and friendships.

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Anime, Manga, Movies, Reviews

NOC Review: ‘Alita: Battle Angel’ is Less Than the Sum of Its Parts

Mike Manalo

I’ll get this out of the way right now — Alita: Battle Angel is not necessarily bad, per se. However, it is something of a disappointment and/or wasted opportunity given that the combined talents of Robert Rodriguez (The El Mariachi Trilogy, Sin City, From Dusk Til Dawn) and James Cameron (Terminator, Titanic, Avatar) ought to yield something phenomenal. I’m a huge fan of both, believing Rodriguez to be a master in the domain of stylish genre action, and Cameron to be a master of groundbreaking science-fiction. Thus, when the most I can say about it is that it’s “not bad” it should give you a good idea of how let down I was by a movie that had so much potential.

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Animation, Marvel, Movies, Reviews2 Comments

Spider-Man Enters the ‘Spider-Verse’

Shawn Taylor

I can’t believe I live in a world where I was able to see both Black Panther and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in the same year. Just as the warmth of the Wakandan sun was beginning to fade, I’m swinging through Brooklyn (my birthplace) with Miles Morales (Shameik Moore is Miles; an amazing performance) the Spider-Man of Earth-1610. And I couldn’t be more elated.

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Movies, Reviews, Toys

‘Bumblebee’ is ‘Transformers’ Finally Done Right

Keith Chow

Several years ago, I wrote about the Transformers movie that broke me. Revenge of the Fallen wasn’t just a bad movie, it soured me on Transformers altogether. I was resigned to let the iconic toys and cartoons of my youth stay there in the past, and accepted that Michael Bay’s overindulgent vision for Transformers — awash in testosterone and jingoism — would never sync with my memories of the property.

Then I saw Bumblebee.

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DC Comics, Movies, Reviews3 Comments

‘Aquaman’ is the Hapa Superhero We Deserve and Need Right Now

Melissa Slaughter

OK, let’s get one thing outta the way first: yes, Jason Momoa is gorgeous as Aquaman. He’s dripping water and shirtless, pecks heaving in the first 10 minutes of the movie when he saves a submarine. The meme was true: we get a sopping wet Jason Momoa and it’s everything fans could have wanted. Praise be to director James Wan who realized that women, gay men, and people who appreciate the male form pay to see superhero movies. The shots of Momoa seem to be crafted with the female gaze in mind. (Seriously, he is shirtless a lot and it is a gift to humankind.)

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Movies, Reviews1 Comment

Foxy Goes to ‘Night School’

Foxy Jazzabelle

SPOILER ALERT: This review drops certain actions depicted in the movie. Read at your own discretion. — Foxy

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Literature, Movies, Reviews

‘If Beale Street Could Talk’ is an Impressive Achievement

Valerie Complex

New York City isn’t the diverse utopia many think it is. If there is any system that shows just how broken things are, it is the city’s police force where “protect and serve” is on a circumstantial based on the color of your skin. This is among the many themes in James Baldwin’s If Beale Street Could Talk, which is in good hands with director Barry Jenkins.

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Movies, Reviews4 Comments

‘Crazy Rich Asians’ is Exactly the Movie We Needed

Melissa Slaughter

Leaving the theater for Crazy Rich Asians, I couldn’t help but feel like all the articles and podcasts and panel discussions had somehow culminated in this one movie. I feel like I’ve been screaming from the rooftops for something just like this. Why did it have to take 25 years for this kind of major studio-backed all-Asian movie? In absolute truth, it’s not just good for an “Asian” film. It’s just plain good. And it is exactly what we needed.

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Fantasy, Movies, Reviews, Sci Fi3 Comments

‘Sorry to Bother You’: An Endorsement

Shawn Taylor

It has been an experience watching people twist and bend, trying to slot Sorry to Bother You into some kind of familiar category. “It’s Michel Gondry married to Spike Jonze,” or “Wes Anderson by way of Charlie Kaufman.” Not only do these comparisons try to position this flawed masterpiece in a white filmmaker pantheon, but it also disrespects Boots Riley’s vision and execution. Let Riley live. 

Oh yeah, let’s stop it with the Get Out comparisons. Lazy.  Continue reading “‘Sorry to Bother You’: An Endorsement”

Animation, DC Comics, Movies, Reviews3 Comments

‘Teen Titans GO! To the Movies’ is Fun for Kids and Their Grown-ups

Jason Sperber

As a geek parent, I, for the most part, have been unsuccessful in passing on my enthusiasms to my teen and tween daughters. Sure, my eldest is now a confirmed Potterhead, but only years after her mother and I bequeathed her our books, which she refused to read because they were ours. She discovered and fell in love with Stranger Things on her own, too, which I guess is what works with her — if we’d told her to watch it, maybe she wouldn’t have listened. Her younger sister is a bit more open to my suggestions, and loves anything with magic and the fantastic, and she happily displays my gifts of Pop! figures of strong female characters on her shelf. However, she scares very, very easily, so attempts to watch Star Wars movies, for example, are interrupted by frequents runs out of the room or outright refusals, no matter how much likes likes the characters.

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