Jacob Suggs

Was pretty locked into this one…until the last thirty minutes. Ending felt extremely rushed. I feel like there could’ve been a lot more done with this premise. Honestly really wild that this film has such a short runtime. Again, I feel there’s a lot more to appreciate here than to critique, but I feel like it ultimately doesn’t say as much or do nearly as much as it really could’ve. The cinematography and atmosphere were great though, and I think there’s a lot of potential for Chris’ career as a filmmaker. Fun debut overall, and it sucks to see so many people online acting like this is the worst thing they’ve ever watched. Proud of Chris for actually making something and having it widely released in theaters.

Much like many others, Sam Raimi's Spider-Man films meant everything to me growing up. I had all of the toys, the games, and the web shooters. I know that's not a unique experience, but instead is shared by so many. Which, in return, makes these films so incredibly special to both discuss and rewatch. I had the experience of rewatching the entire trilogy with my best friend a few weeks ago, and truthfully: it was one of the highlights of my year. In short: you don't need me to tell you that Spider-Man 2 is great. You already know that (I hope). But I need to be a bit personal: It's been hard lately. I've been waking up from restless sleeps virtually every night, but I can seemingly only find relief when I'm asleep. I have never been more stressed and depressed in my entire life than I am right now. I'm exhausted. Every day my heart feels like it's beating out of my chest, and instead of problems being solved, more and more seemingly appear out of nowhere. I feel worthless, and as much as everyone tells me I shouldn't/am not...it doesn't excuse the fact that it's how I feel right now, and just want it all to stop. I'm burnt out. I needed a moment to breathe, and after a highly emotional rewatch of Spider-Man 3 in theaters last month, a spontaneous rewatch of Spider-Man 2 just felt right. The first 20 minutes of Spider-Man 2 follow Peter Parker as everything goes wrong for him academically, financially, emotionally, and more. He comes home from a truly awful day to his aunt and friends, realizing that in the midst of all the chaos: he forgot his own birthday. It doesn't take much thought to realize that these first 20 minutes ultimately tell you the thesis for what the entire film is trying to say. And, perhaps more than ever, it really emotionally resonated with me. For a long period of the film, Peter Parker is trying to figure out who he needs to be: Peter, to solve all of the everyday issues he's having, or Spider-Man, the hero that everyone loves. And, despite a moment of weakness and giving up, he ultimately realizes that both Peter Parker and Spider-Man are still HIMSELF. The momentary catharsis we feel when Peter gives up doesn't last forever, and I think that's important to both acknowledge and remember. But what's arguably even more important is that he doesn't realize this and overcome these obstacles alone. Spider-Man is saved through Aunt May, Mary Jane, and the city of New York. Not just Peter Parker's decisions and actions. The first "good" thing to happen to Peter Parker in the entire movie is when his landlord's daughter politely offers him a piece of homemade chocolate cake. Even in the end, when Peter DOES decide to merge Parker's life with Spider-Man's, it's made explicitly clear that it STILL won't always be perfect. Life can be hard, and even when things are seemingly great, can still be a hard thing to navigate through. Again, I'm not doing great right now. But if my childhood hero can overcome the obstacles that life throws at him - not just by himself, but along with the support and kindness of others, then maybe I can too. And you know what? I'm thankful for that. “I believe there's a hero in all of us that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble... and finally allows us to die with pride. Even though sometimes we have to be steady and give up the thing we want the most. Even our dreams. Spider-Man did that for Henry and he wonders where he's gone... he needs him.”

Divas, I honestly had a lot more fun with this than I expected I would! Not perfect, but a really fun slasher that’s arguably better than the original. Not that the bar was necessarily high, but…hey!

Weirdly enough, I watched Casper for the first time a few years ago. I always saw the VHS and DVD at my local blockbuster, but growing up in a very religious household, horror movies weren’t really allowed or encouraged. And as much as Casper isn’t necessarily ‘scary,’ I wasn't allowed to watch it either. So I guess you could say that I’ve always had this weird, nostalgic feeling towards this movie’s vibes, despite not having seen the film until I was an adult. It was the same way with Hocus Pocus. By no means a perfect movie, but it’s so charming and fun that it pretty much makes up for its shortcomings. Bill Pullman’s performance in this movie is especially great. An imperfect movie, yet perfect watch during the month of October 👻