Jack-Jack Strengthens the Famcentric 'Incredibles 2'

Incredibles 2 begins where the first one ends, wherein the arrival of a new villain in town called The Underminer wreaks havoc. The titular family once again don their superhero costumes to save the town. But since the first one ends happily ever after, and they, yet again successfully prevent The Underminer to cause destruction, writer-director Brad Bird creates another conflict for the Parr family.

It's a new day in Metroville, and superheroes are forced to permanently comply to their secret identities. We can all just imagine the effect of this to "The Incredibles" and to no surprise, we are right--Mr. Incredible becomes heavy-headed as the homedad cluelessly dealing with Violet's teenage problems, Dash's Math homework, and Jack-Jack discovering his incredible superpowers. Even worse, his wife Elastigirl is selected to be the forefront of DEVTECH, a private organization allegedly proposing a blueprint to reclaim the public's love for superheroes, and it makes Mr. Incredible even more insecure.

Mr. Incredible and Jack-Jack, Pixar

The focus is more on Elastigirl, the DEVTECH tycoons and their marketing stunt to put the heroes in good light. Bad news is it's pretty unremarkable. Good news is, her absence in the Parr household opens up interesting side storylines. Mr. Incredible having a hard time controlling his kids is a joy to watch. Violet's teenybopper puppy love arc is really cute, and her awkward relationship with her dad is even cuter, as cliché as it may have played out. But the cutest is, without a doubt, Jack-Jack unknowingly discovering his superpowers, which apparently is the best, since it's a combo of his whole family's powers. This paves way for a funny and heroic Tully-esque role for Edna Mode. All of these make up for the lackluster Elastigirl/DEVTECH story that involves a villain called ScreenSlaver, and other newly introduced D-lister superheroes except for Sophia Bush's eccentric but helpful Voyd who has the same magical teleport power like Doctor Strange.

The movement of the film is smarter and faster this time, but the third act really picks up bigtime when the fast track action starts to kick in. The animation is even more impressive, slick, and gorgeous, especially with the reddish sunset sky in the background during the high-strung climax. "The Incredibles" work best when all of their superpowers are in display, and with the addition of Jack-Jack's superpowers, they become even more invincible. Add Frozone's icy display, and it superbly matches CGI packed actions films of today, and to be honest, put others to shame.

It's also really commendable the lack of emotional punch in this as if it's the film's twists as we all know that Pixar is known for its dramatics. It's pure comedy and action and I love it for it. I'd rather watch a film with harmless family jokes than offensive ones with Deadpool in it.

'Ocean's 8' is Unabashedly Funny, Dainty and Criminal

Ocean's 8, Photo Credit: "Warner Bros. Pictures."

Everything is a heist for Debbie Ocean, and once she got out of prison, she hasn’t changed her ways. Her intentions on the other hand is another story, as she plans to execute the ultimate robbery 5 years in the making. She plans to rob a jewelry necklace worth $150 million, and she only needs eight to do it. No hims allowed,

The film starts with Sandra Bullock’s Debbie, the sister of the infamous Danny Ocean, trying to trick her way out of prison through her manipulative rhetorics, saying she wants a simpler life after her five years, eight months and 12 days of imprisonment. It's bullshit. She’s the opposite of simple like she claims to be. Good news is we are never led to believe that she's changed and instead, we are encouraged to be with her along her thefty ways. Voila, as soon she gets out of prison, she performs the easiest, funniest and my favorite among the neverending heist in this film, setting the tone of what the film has to offer.

As soon as she gets reunited with her partner-in-crime, Cate Blanchett's Lou, you can just FEEL the star wattage power wearing out on you from the silver screen. Their power is real or it's just me fanning. Bullock and Blanchett together are incredible, even when they do not do much aside from talk, be glamorous, and be unapologetically deceptive as hell. Blanchett in particular doesn’t have the most scene-stealing material, but her chill persona with a calm & collected attitude, is remarkably sexy and regal, enigmatic even. Different from her past roles, but first-rate as always.

Anne Hathaway as Daphne Kluger, and Helena Bonham Carter as Rose Weil
Photo Credit: "Warner Bros. Pictures."

Then there’s Anne Hathaway as the ditzy, narcissistic celebrity Daphne Kluger (are they shading Diane Kruger?), giving one of her best comedic performances to date. As soon as she gets introduced, the film assures that the audience is set for a hilarious ride. Hathaway delivers the sex and the laugh-out-loud laffos while adding beauty and glam to the overall dirtiness of the heist. We get to see what Hathaway is first known for and what she does best. Comedy. And here, she's a hoot.

The rest kick ass, they all do. Rihanna as the group’s hacker, may be silent but her scene stealing shot comes at the peak of their robbery when she is dressed incredibly elegant in the MET gala. How appropriate is that? Sarah Paulson as the team’s insider of the event is also great as expected, and Awkwafina’s comedics make a mark. There's something off about Helena Bonham Carter. She seems a bit out-of-place but okay overall, I guess. It’s Mindy Kaling that gets the least action but some of her one-liners are good enough to be remembered.

The comedy here is non-stop and so are the tricks. It's unabashedly funny, dainty and criminal all throughout the film. The heist, however, may not be as impressive as others, it’s pretty basic. Luckily, this is really a film about the cast and a job well done to Gary Ross and the ensemble for juicing out the best in each of them. No preachy statement needed, this film only wants us to have a good time.

Grab Some Popcorn, 'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom' Escapes the Park!

Dinosaurs are a thing of the past, literally. But thanks to Steven Spielberg, it continues to live on. It's been 25 years since Jurassic Park and it's still one of the best blockbusters ever. Whether you're a curious child or a mere adult, Spielberg made dinosaurs even more interesting as they are. And now, it's a franchise and on its fifth installment.

Photo Credit: Universal Pictures

Three years after Jurassic World was wrecked by unleashed dinosaurs, and of course, greedy human beings, Owen (Chris Pratt) and Claire (Bryce Dallas-Howard) are back to save the same dinosaurs that made them miserable from Isla Nublar's roaring volcano, Mount Sibo. Owen wants to save his raptor Blue, and Claire made it a mission to protect them.

Dinosaurs plus raging Mother Nature plus humanity's selfishness, it's a recipe for a popcorn-grabbing disaster. Helmed by J.A. Bayona, I knew this would be in good hands. He's not a freshman when it comes to disaster films as his The Impossible is one of the greats and not to mention, it's very emotional. Bayona knows how to make great action sequences that puts you on the edge of your seat. Fallen Kingdom has a lot of them, and it's hectic, stimulating, and nerve-wracking.

Once they got out of the island, Bayona finds more ways to make this even more interesting and unfortunately for haters, fuels the franchise's longevity. Like The Lost World, the dinosaurs and the heroes find themselves out of containment. This time, they were held captive in a hidden facility in a grand mansion ala monsters and horrors in Cabin in the Woods, for sale. It's interesting stuff and the exhilarating chase scenes continue to excite and terrify.

Bryce Dallas-Howard as Claire Dearing in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
 Photo Credits: Universal Pictures

The duo of Owen and Claire are compelling to boot. Their side hidden-desire-for-each-other love story isn't overblown, and the humor is always present yet reserved. But even as individuals, they deliver. Introduced via her running stilettos, Bryce Dallas-Howard's Claire Dearing (who btw made my top 25 of 2015's Best Movie Characters) is as appealing as ever. It's as if they didn't expect her to be a big deal in Jurassic World that they made it up for her in this film by giving her more material to be cute and badass. Jeff Goldblum also makes an appearance as Dr. Ian Malcolm preaching the ignorance of humanity for letting dinosaurs live further and emphasizing they they don't need our protection, rather they need our absence.

Overall, this is one of my favorites in the franchise. Heck, Jurassic World 3, the franchise's worst reviewed film is my favorite so take that as you may. One thing's for sure, this one will have you sipping on your drinks at the movies, and that's what matters to me when it comes to dinosaurs. It will never be as smart and as epic and as classic as Jurassic Park, it may even be forgettable (who knows?), but it sure as hell is entertaining.