April 2024 airplane movie review
These are the movies that I watched on a plane to and from Tokyo in April 2024. I suppose it’s a bit outdated, and my memory is not as fresh. I’m going off what I can remember, and refreshing my memory with what I wrote in my Instagram stories.
tl;dr:
1. Anatomy of a fall 9/10 - great. watch it.
2. Past lives 9/10 - great. watch it.
3. Puss in boots: the last wish 7.5/10 - good. watch it.
4. American fiction 7/10 – funny and smart
5. Elemental 7/10 - good
6. Suzume 6/10 - beautiful
7. anyone but you 5/10 - fun
8. the super mario bros movie 2/10 – not convinced it should have been made at all. do not watch it.
in-depth
(serious spoilers are avoided, but if you want a pure movie-watching experience I would skip the rest)
1. Anatomy of a fall 9/10
It’s a courtroom drama from the side of the defense, what’s not to like? Swann Arlaund is very nice to look at, and the French is fun (as an American). The story is riveting for a movie that’s mostly a depiction of trial preparation because it explores gender dynamics in marriage and beyond. The murder-mystery-who-dunnit aspect helps, of course. P.S. SNOOP.
2. Past lives: 9/10
The most amazing moments were possibly when they weren’t speaking at all. Greta Lee is stunning and brilliant. Where has she been all our lives? Is it my fault that I didn’t know who she was until I saw this movie, or Hollywood’s? In any case, I’m happy I’ve seen her work now.
3. Puss in boots: the last wish: 7.5/10
Of the Shrek cinematic universe, I have only seen Shrek 1 and Shrek 2. This is apparently the third Puss in Boots movie, and it is SOLID. The art style is beautiful, cats are great, and the movie was a contemplation of fear and death and acceptance which was cool. A lot of fun, and emotionally satisfying to boot. (see what I did there)
4. American fiction: 7/10
This movie had an amazing and hilarious cast, and touching supporting characters. I LOVED the main character’s girlfriend. I’m also happy with how the movie ended in that regard. Overall though, the movie felt a bit uneven with what felt like an abrupt ending. I’m still glad I watched it.
5. Elemental: 7/10
Since Pixar has become Disney-fied I haven’t quite felt the same about it. I don’t religiously watch “Pixar” movies in theaters anymore. But on the plane with nothing to do, and having heard good things about this one, I put it on.
I am both water and fire. Maybe I’m their future mixed water-fire child. To me it’s a relatable and fine story. I was worried the premise was going to be a bit more stupid and silly, and it wasn’t. I love Wade so much. It’s far from a perfect entry, but it’s the only movie that made me full-on ugly cry on this list.
6. Suzume: 6/10
Your Name is still #1 in my book. I feel like Suzume is neck-and-neck with Weathering with You for me. Weathering went off the rails towards the end (I actually burst out laughing in the movie theater), and with Suzume I was tempted to turn it off and go to sleep after 15 minutes because I had no idea where it was going. It felt really repetitive, and I kept thinking to myself “she should really go back to class.” I’m glad I didn’t turn it off, but meh. This is the first movie I cried to on the plane, though.
7. anyone but you: 5/10
I went into this one with lower expectations, knowing it was supposed to be a light rom com loosely based on a Shakespeare play. I forgot how much I miss rom coms. And Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell are super nice to look at. The dialogue was wooden at times (ha ha) but I enjoyed myself enough.
8. the super mario bros movie: 2/10
Ugh. 1 point for the kids, 1 point for the video game references (“I see what they did there”). The story and dialogue were so terrible that I actually took off my headphones but left the movie running as I tried to fall asleep.