I was very impressed with the musical. I really thought it was going to be cheesy and suck so bad. To clear things up, I have never seen the Broadway version nor even heard of it until I saw the trailer on TV. As I write this review, I am currently listening to Broadway playlist on Spotify.

Into the Woods stars Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt (Edge of Tomorrow), Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air, Pitch Perfect), Chris Pine (Star Trek, Jack Reacher), and Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean movies, Sweeney Todd, Edward Scissorhands).

I would like to start off that I really liked the idea of combining these fairy tales together into one story. When the characters get their wish, they then show the consequences of their actions. By depicting a more realistic story for the characters, Into the Woods is a cautionary tale that describes the pros and cons of getting what you want- all while not ruining your childhood.

The songs in the movie are amazing! Although I’m slightly upset that the songs were pre-recorded before filming, I really enjoyed listening to them. “Agony,” “No One is Alone,” and “The Last Midnight” are my top three favorite songs.

i highly recommend this movie to anyone! It has A-list actors, great storyline, great acting, and awesome songs. While the message behind it can be cliche, there’s no doubt that “Into the Woods” is inspirational.

Click here to check out my colleague’s review of “Into the Woods.”

My friends and I had high expectations for Mockingjay pt. 1, and  I will honestly say that I was a bit disappointed with it. However, I didn’t think it was that bad either. The following paragraphs will explain why. POTENTIAL SPOILERS AHEAD! I recommend not reading until you’ve either seen the movie or have read the books.

Mockingjay Pt. 1 stars Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle, X-Men: First Class), Josh Hutcherson (Journey to the Center of the Earth, Bridge to Terabithia), Liam Hemsworth (The Last Song, The Expendables 2), Elizabeth Banks (Zack and Miri Make a Porno, Scrubs), Philip Seymour Hoffman (A Most Wanted Man), Woody Harrelson (No Country for Old Men, Zombieland), and Donald Sutherland (MASH, Pride & Prejudice). The movie shows Katniss in District 13 after she’s rescued from the arena of the 2nd Quarter Quell, and helping President Alma Coin (Julianne Moore) and the rest of Panem fight against the Capitol.

The movie had a slow buildup, with at least three major action sequences: the bombing in District 8, Panem citizens showing acts of defiance, and Peeta’s rescue from the Capitol. Now, this first part focused more on Katniss’s inner struggle between her love for Gale and Peeta as well as her duties as the Mockingjay of Panem.

While it is also considered a war movie, the first half is mostly a political commentary on dictatorship and poor government decisions. This does reflect the actual first half of the book but, since it is told from Katniss’s point-of-view, it is more limited. In contrast, the movie showed citizens actually protesting the Capitol, and showing what Katniss’s propaganda looked like. I’m sure that Mockingjay part 2 will be more action-packed since that will be when Katniss and the rebels take on the Capitol.

Lastly, I’m giving a shoutout to Lorde for curating the soundtrack. The songs are amazingly beautiful. Kudos to her for doing at 17 too! I’m predicting tons of awards for Lorde and the soundtrack album. Click here to view the music video to “Yellow Flicker Beat” by Lorde.

I’ll admit that this movie wasn’t the best, but I still can’t wait for part 2. It is still accurate to the book adaptation, albeit a few changes. I have no doubt that the second half will be very good, if not better, as well.

Before I begin, let me just say that I have not read John Greene’s book yet. I have heard several good reviews about it so I am psyched to read it. Cancer sucks. It does. It can affect anyone regardless of race, religion, gender, or age. It is literally a pain in the butt.

The Fault in Our Stars stars Shailene Woodley (Divergent), Ansel Elgort (Divergent), Nat Wolff, and Willhem Dafoe. The story is about two teens, who both have different cancer conditions (Woodley and Elgort), fall in love after meeting at a cancer support group. 

I know four people who suffered from cancer, two that have lost their battle with cancer. Watching The Fault In Our Stars just reminded me of the suffering they went through. Thus, I was able to relate to Hazel and Augustus’s battle for their lives. What interested about their love story is what I like to call the ultimate YOLO. Both characters accept that they will have short lives, but they tried to make the best of it. For example, Hazel told her parents to get her a fake ID so she can party in clubs and take pot. I know that’s not the wisest things to do (especially for a 16-year-old), but it shows her ambition to check things off her “things-to- do-before-I-die-from-cancer” list. If I was in her position, I’d totally understand. Heck both of them get a chance to go to Amsterdam and meet Hazel’s favorite author. 

I am not usually a fan of romantic movies because they’re usually too predictable, but TFIOS is an exception. I’d recommend this movie to anyone who want a truly inspirational story.

To be honest, I initially never wanted to see this movie. A lot of people, myself included, thought  that this was going to be the first Marvel flop (worse than Iron Man 2). But as always Marvel knows how to entertain people. Guardians of the Galaxy is now one of my favorite Marvel movies. The film is directed by James Gunn and stars Chris Pratt (Parks and Recreation), Zoe Saldana (Avatar), Lee Pace, Dave Batista, and features the voices of Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook) as Rocket and Vin Diesel (Fast and Furious movies) as Groot.

Unlike the Avengers, the movie did a great job of introducing the individual characters in under 5 minutes (each character introduction was about one minute). Also, the characters were all unknown to everyone–they began as criminals and brought together in prison by accident. Eventually that accidental joint grew to friendship and teamwork. This was especially evident when they agree to stop Ronan from destroying the planet Xandar. Ironically that’s where the Guardians were imprisoned for the first half of the movie, so it was a (somewhat) awkward situation when Quill asks for their help.

Another thing that made the movie entertaining was the music. As a big music fan, I got really excited when I saw the Awesome Mixtape on iTunes because I knew most of the songs on there. The way the movie incorporated the songs were also very entertaining I actually giggled every time I saw a musical scene!

Lastly, Guardians of the Galaxy brought a lot of Marvel-style humor. Humor is one of the main components of Marvel entertainment so there’s no question it had a LOT of it, with the majority coming from Peter Quill and Rocket. Honestly, I think Rocket deserves an award for the Best Scene Stealer ever.

The only problem of this movie was the post-credit scene. I was expecting a scene that’ll lead to a future movie, like Ant-Man, but I thought this scene was completely random (unless Marvel is secretly setting up a Howard the Duck movie).

So I don’t know if it was a smart idea or a stupid decision for Marvel to include what they did in the trailer. Either way, I thought that the movie was phenomenal. I’d definitely recommend it to other Marvel fans and superhero fans in general.

When I saw The Maze Runner back in September, I did not read the books. This was one of my times where I come to the novel-to-film books blind. I was very impressed with the acting and the story. Although I heard that the movie was different than the book, I’m sure the changes were for a good reason (and it was!). The movie stars Dylan O’Brien (Teen Wolf), Will Poulter (We’re the Millers), Thomas Brodie-Sangster (Game of Thrones), and Kaya Scodelario (Skins, Clash of the Titans).

Here’s a quick rundown: after Thomas’s memories are erased, he finds himself deposited in a community of boys. They soon learn that they’re trapped in a maze that requires Thomas to join forces with the “runners” to find an escape route.  I liked how the movie commented on the government’s inability to handle an epidemic, especially one that has spread worldwide. In the case of the movie, the organization WICKED tries to eradicate the Flare disease by establishing the Glade.

The movie is a modern day Lord of the Flies with an element of Survivor in there. I’d totally recommend this movie to anyone. My goal before the sequel is to read the books. I want to see the changes they did from the book and also read the next two books to know what to expect (sort of because I know that the sequel is gonna be slightly altered because of the previous events of the first film).