Cinema Civilian

This review will contain spoilers for IT: Chapter 2. Set 27 years after the events of Chapter 1, IT Chapter 2 focuses on the adult versions of the Loser's Club as they have to face the dark entity known as IT once more. However, is this a climactic finale filled with terror, or, more like King's novels, is the ending weak enough to almost ruin the entire story? For me, this film was incredible to watch. I was a huge fan of Bill Skarsgard's performance in the first film, and was delighted with the increased presence of the character. Once again, Pennywise is simultaneously charismatic and horrifying, especially when he meets with Vicky. This tender lure, much like Georgie in the first film, shows just how perfect IT's hunting techniques have become over the centuries. This film definitely has more humor than the first, with every loser having at least one good zinger in the film. Personally, the humor never felt forced or random, and greatly helped alleviate bot

*This review will contain spoilers for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark . Full disclosure, I did not grow up with the stories this film is based off of. I do enjoy short story horror, but have yet to read these works. With that in mind, I still feel this is a film worth discussing. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark is the first horror movie in a while to actually get my blood pumping, the most recent prior being IT Chapter 1 , whose sequel is mere weeks away. The pacing and effect of several of the books effectively created an amazing sense of dread, often with no true giveaways about where the scares would come from. Probably the best example of this was in Augie's attack (Big Toe Stew), where initial build up makes you believe the scare will be quick, but rather turns into a long, slow build to a rather effective jump scare. What made this scene especially good is that they chose to show the corpse before the actual scare, allowing the extremely-creepy character design to

*This review will contain spoilers for Mary Poppins Returns Many decades ago, Mary Poppins arrived on Cherry Tree Lane to amaze and enchant the silver screen. Now, Disney has released a sequel, but is it as incredible as all those years ago? In my opinion, this film manages to capture the essence of the original impeccably. From the high energy magic to the blurred lines between reality and imagination, the feel is absolutely astounding, and accurately captures the essence of the original, but with a few changes. Set 15 years after the original, Michael Banks, now a father of three, is about to lose the beloved family home from a loan. This places him in some paths similar to those of his father, including snapping at his children. The arrival of Mary leads the family on a path of discovery and growth, all the while educating the viewers on remaining optimistic in dark times, as there's "Nowhere to go but up". Emily Blundt plays a different, almost slightly cold