Off the Cuff Reviews Grease (1978)

This is one of those situations that I dread as a critic. Having to write a somewhat negative review for a beloved classic; I can already hear the hate coming in. That's not to say I hate this movie, but do I like it? Ehhh... I guess. To me, Grease (1978) is only okay. I've seen it several times now, and I still don't quite understand the mass appeal that's kept it relevant in popular culture to this day. Hear me out. Just hear me out. Starring John Travolta as Danny Zuko, Olivia Newton-John as Sandy Olsson, Stockard Channing as Betty Rizzo, Jeff Conaway as Kenickie Murdoch, Barry Pearl as Doody, Michael Tucci as Sonny Lantieri, Kelly Ward as Putzie, Didi Conn as Frenchy, Jamie Donnelly as Jan, Dinah Manoff as Marty Maraschino, Eve Arden as Principal McGee, Dody Goodman as Secretary Blanche Hodel, Sid Caesar as Coach Vince Calhoun and Frankie Avalon as Teen Angel.

Grease (1978)

Alright, let me start out with my least controversial opinion: the music is by far the best thing about this movie. This is the one aspect of the movie that I find has held up extraordinarily well. As I mentioned, I've seen this movie multiple times, but before watching it for the purposes of this review, it had been many years since I'd seen it. And, yet, I knew basically every word of every song. They're catchy, memorable, perfectly placed in the context of the movie, and the songs are good enough on their own that they work outside of that context as well. 'Grease is the Word', 'Summer Lovin', 'Hopelessly Devoted to You', 'Greased Lightning', 'You're the One That I Want', 'We Go Together', all of them are great. 'Born To Hand Jive' is clearly the best, and it's the one that I find myself humming the most when the movie's not on.

Stockard Channing as Rizzo

The songs are also sung well, and all the actors are very talented singers. Olivia Newton-John probably has the best voice, but that might just be because Sandy has the biggest vocal range. It also really helps that everyone in the cast has great chemistry with each other. The T-Birds act like a tight-knit group of friends, as do the Pink Ladies. The way they all interact with each other is great to watch; it comes across like they really have known each other for years and years. Each of them has a specific role in their individual friend circles, which is something a lot of other friendship groups like this in movies don't get right. John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John also have really good chemistry with each other, especially by the end, and their voices sound great together, both of which are elements of the romance that help save it in the end, though I'll get back to that shortly. The cast also do a great job with the more humourous moments overall, and I'd forgotten how funny this movie could be at times. The T-Birds in particular are great comedic foils, and the Principal/Secretary dynamic is always hilarious.

Olivia Newton-John as Sandy

Sadly, this is where the praise stops, as I now have to address my problems with this movie. One of the big issues is that film has dated significantly in the last 40 years. A lot of the elements of the story just don't hold up anymore. Call it 'a product of the times', and the fact that it's set in the 50s is certainly contributes to that, but it doesn't make some of this stuff not bad. Things like lifting girls' dresses being played for laughs, the general attitudes of a lot of the main cast, and, my main problem: Danny Zuko himself. I'm sorry, this character would not be the hero figure in a story made today. His aggression, his spineless nature, the way he treats Sandy; he did not deserve the happy ending in this story. Exhibit A: he comes on too strong with his date, ignores her protests, then once she runs off on him, sings a song about how he's not sure why she did it. Maybe, if his character was the one with the main arc by the end, it might be fine, but Sandy's the one who ends up changing for him, not the other way around. Whether or not the initial intention was 'This is how far I'm willing to go for you, Danny, now shape up and do the same for me' or not, it just doesn't come across.

John Travolta as Danny Zuko

In fact, the story itself is the weakest element of this story by far. I find the main story incredibly boring, to the point where several times I'd forgotten about key plot elements in the story before they happened, and, remember, I've seen this movie several times before. Until the lead in, I'd completely forgotten 'Beauty School Dropout' was even a thing at all. The entire 'Danny plays sports' plot thread ultimately led to nothing. Even the school dance scene, which is great, is marred by the plot. The whole reason for Sonny and Cha-Cha interrupting Danny and Sandy seems very half-baked, and Sandy being as mad as she was didn't make sense, especially considering how clearly not on board Danny was with the whole thing. Honestly, this is the main reason I don't hold this movie in such a high regard. In my opinion, the entire movie is just a great song, then a bunch of noise while waiting for the next song to come on. In that sense, just listening to the soundtrack is much better, and takes up less of your time. That said, there is juuuuuust enough to the movie that I would justify taking the time out to watch it occasionally. Maybe not religiously, like a lot of people do, but every now and then, it's fine for a watch.

Jeff Conaway as Kenickie

Grease (1978) is another one of those classics that I just don't think is as good as people say it is, although I do find it entertaining enough overall to say the positives outweigh the negatives. Only a little bit, though. Like it if you want, it's just not for me. 6.5/10.

Off the Cuff Reviews South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)

I've literally been sitting at my computer for the last 5 minutes trying to think of a way to begin this review. An exclamation of joy, a statement about the show, some philosophical talk about what movies can be, but nothing feels appropriate. I really don't think that would be in the spirit of the movie I just saw. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999) is truly unlike any movie I've seen, and I'm glad I got the chance to see it. Starring Trey Parker as Stan Marsh/Eric Cartman/Gregory/Satan/Mr. Garrison/Mr. Hat/Phillip Niles Argyle/Randy Marsh/Clyde Donovan/Midget in a Bikini/Adolf Hitler and others, Matt Stone as Kyle Broflovski/Kenny McCormick/Saddam Hussein/Terrance Henry Stoot/Big Gay Al/Stuart McCormick/Gerald Broflovski/Butters Stotch and others, Mary Kay Bergman as Liane Cartman/Sheila Broflovski/Sharon Marsh/Carol McCormick/Wendy Testaburger/Clitoris and others, and Isaac Hayes as Chef Jerome McElroy.

South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)

First of all, I'd like to address how genius the premise of this movie is. The entire point of the film is everyone getting worked up over foul language being used in a movie, which I'm sure echoes sentiments being thrown around about the show at the time, and maybe even today. This kind of satire is exactly what makes the show so great. I'm not a die-hard fan of the show, but I've seen the first couple of seasons, and a handful of later episodes, and it's definitely something I'd be interested in catching up on at some point. The writing in this movie feels true to the show, as if a regular episode was extended by 400% and made somehow crazier. Because, yeah, things take an insane turn multiple times over the course of this movie. It's patently ridiculous how much things escalate and how quick, that a little kid being sent to hell just feels normal by the end. And it's wonderful. With the internal logic of the show, watching everything get so f***ing out of hand is just beautiful, and the organised chaos of the whole thing was written so intelligently, you have to respect it, regardless of how juvenile everything is.

Matt Stone as Terence and Trey Parker as Philip

The animation is wonderful to watch. I love the style of the stilted, felt-like world of South Park. The characters' movements, the minimalist backgrounds, it's so deliberately low-effort that when it gets bigger and there are more characters and more movements happening on screen at a time, it just looks amazing. I said 'low-effort', but I'm sure there's a lot of work that goes into making everything look the way it does. I'm not sure if it's fully CGI or if it's something more akin to stop-motion (though I'd wager it's the former) and either way it looks great. What's really impressive, however, is how the animation style of South Park blends seamlessly with other computer effects, namely the sequence where Kenny gets sent to hell. I was in awe throughout that entire scene, and it happens a few other times throughout the movie as well. Then you get the incredibly, incredibly low-effort moments like Saddam Hussein's animation and all 3 styles just work hand-in-hand with each other to produce something that looks truly unique.

Matt Stone as Kenny & Trey Parker as Satan

The songs in this movie are especially good. I'm familiar with some of Matt Stone & Trey Parker's other musical work, and I've been impressed before, but this takes the cake. They use typical tropes of musicals and flip them on their heads, like being super crass and pessimistic in the uplifting 'lovely day' opening number that you usually get. Not only are the songs well written and perfectly placed, but each and every one is a banger. They're all toe-tapping gifts to the ears, and I'm sure with a few more listens, these will become part of my regular 'shower-singing' repertoire. I saw 'a few more listens' as this is one of the few problems I have with the movie is that, in moments, the lyrics can become a little muffled and hard to understand. This is mainly when there are lots of people singing at the same time, like the back ends of Blame Canada and Mountain Town Reprise, as well as La Resistance. I'm not sure how this could have been remedied, other than slowing it down a little, which would also be a little distracting in some moments. I'm not a music creator, so I wouldn't know, but, on a first watch at least, some of the lyrics, could be a little difficult to understand. I'm sure, once I get to know the songs better, I'll be able to pick up on the lyrics better, but the first time round, a lot of it was lost on me.

Mary Kay Bergman as Sheila

The voice acting is wonderful, as well. Stone & Parker provide the majority of the voices, and they're all juuuuuuuuust distinctive enough that I can call them varied performances. It's was to the point where I was surprised by some of the characters they voiced when it came time to list their credits, so there's that. I also love the main actor that voiced the female characters, Mary Kay Bergman, and I genuinely thought they got multiple different actors to do so many voices. Isaac Hayes plays Chef, and he's absolutely my favourite character in the series, from the episodes I've seen and this movie. I was also utterly shocked to find that George Clooney played a part in this film, and I still can't pick out which character he played. Of course, these voice performances go hand-in-hand with the writing, which is hands down the best part of the movie. It's just so quick, and there's joke after joke after joke, and they all land. It uses immaturity to disguise how legitimately clever the movie is, and that's the kind of humour I like the most when it's done right.

Isaac Hayes as Chef

South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999) absolutely does it right. This was a delight to watch, and I'm sure to return to it in the future. I'll also be checking out more of the show, and I'm glad there wasn't some entry barrier, such as prior knowledge of the series. Mainly because it doesn't screw with my OCD. 9/10.

Off the Cuff Reviews Toy Story 4 (2019)

I still feel really weird about doing these movies out of order, but here we are. It's the movie that I, and many others, didn't want to exist. The previous movie was so good and ended things so well that adding another chapter to the story felt wrong. Fortunately, Toy Story 4 (2019) ended up being a worthy inclusion to the Toy Story saga, and while it's not my favourite Toy Story movie, I'm glad it exists, which is more than I thought I'd be saying after the announcement. Starring Tom Hanks as Woody, Tim Allen as Buzz Lightyear, Annie Potts as Bo Peep, Tony Hale as Forky, Keegan-Michael Key as Ducky, Jordan Peele as Bunny, Madeleine McGraw as Bonnie, Christina Hendricks as Gabby Gabby, Keanu Reeves as Duke Caboom, Ally Maki as Giggle McDimples and Joan Cusack as Jessie.

Toy Story 4 (2019)

Right from the opening scene, this movie makes it clear why this story was necessary to tell. Toy Story 3 was this big, grandiose adventure, and Toy Story 4 is far more personal. The opening scene with Bo Peep being given away makes that abundantly clear. It's rare that all of my doubts about a movie can be quashed within 5 minutes, but there we go. This movie did it. Quick note: how far have we come with animation since Toy Story 1? It's really easy to be disenfranchised by CGI nowadays, since really good animation is becoming commonplace, but I'm always going to be impressed by it. The rain effects and the way the water shines off the plastic toys, the lighting effects in the sun, the human characters... the human characters! Do you remember how off they looked 20 years ago? Comparing the dog from Toy Story 1 to the cat from Toy Story 4 is just... well, there is no comparison. I think it mainly comes down to attention to detail; imperfections in the skin and plastic that make everything seem just that little bit more real.

Tom Hanks as Woody and Annie Potts as Bo Peep

I mentioned that this movie was a more personal story. To a certain extent, all the Toy Story films are personal stories, but this feels like the most personal. It's all about Woody, and his arc in this movie is really compelling. A toy that wants to be helpful who is no longer helpful; that's just inherently interesting, and the opening act does a great job of setting up where Woody is in this movie. Bringing Bo Peep back was a great choice, as I always liked their relationship in the earlier Toy Story movies, and Tom Hanks and Annie Potts have great chemistry. Woody in general is such a great character. I love his unwavering stubbornness, and the Woody in this movie really feels like the natural progression from where the character's come from in the rest of the series. To a certain extent, the way Buzz is used makes it feel like they just threw him in because they had to, as he's not super integrated with the main plot, but that's really only a minor quibble, since I do like how he was used. The 'inner voice' jokes were consistently effective, and varied enough by the end that I didn't mind that it really was the only joke Buzz got in the entire movie.

Tim Allen as Buzz

I really like all the new characters they introduced in this story, particularly Forky. Forky as a concept is a really great one, and it makes the world of Toy Story feel a lot bigger than it did in the past. Knowing that it's not some manufacturing trick that brings the toys to life but is instead the children themselves just makes the whole thing feel a lot more magical. Forky on his own is a great character as well. They rode the 'trash' jokes as long as they could before switching tactics, turning Forky into a wide-eyed, almost childlike innocent, and his naivety as he's learning about the world is really great to watch. Duck and Bunny also ended up being far less unbearable than they looked like they were going to be from the trailers. They ended up being really funny, though I guess that was inevitable when you cast Key & Peele as a duo. I'll be honest, I wasn't as enthralled with Duke Caboom as the rest of the internet seemed to be. I feel like everyone jumped aboard the Keanu hype train and didn't notice that the character wasn't really that funny. I laughed, don't get me wrong, but with a character like Duke Caboom, I feel like he could have been much funnier.

Tony Hale as Forky

You might notice I haven't talked about the other returning characters from the Toy Story series, and that's because the movie sidelines them in a really disappointing way. I feel like the heart of these movies, or a part of it, has been the family unit that was the group of Andy's toys, and seeing them stuck in the RV, and not even cutting back to them all that often, was a little, like I said, disappointing. In general, the movie seemed a lot slower than past Toy Story movies, which wasn't inherently a problem on its own, since it allowed for the more personal story to shine through. The downside is that the movie was lacking a final act intensity that you normally get with a Toy Story movie. The stakes never seemed as high as they have in the past, and I'm not saying you have to go to the level that Toy Story 3 did, but the climax was basically the first movie's final act all over again, just less tense or exciting. Part of that comes from the lack of a real villain. Gabby Gabby was a great character, but, by her nature, not really a villain. Not every story needs a villain, but this one really felt like it did, as there needed to be an external force making things harder for our heroes. I've been a little hard on this movie's finale, since there's one thing it did that elevates it a little higher: it made me cry. The personal payoff worked, and just in case you haven't seen it, I don't want to spoil it, since it's worth going in blind. I feel like Toy Story 3's ending might have been a little sadder, on a more fundamental level, but this one hit me harder.

Christina Hendricks as Gabby Gabby

So, yeah, Toy Story 4 (2019) is a movie that I'm glad was made. It's not the best, it's really just a good Toy Story movie, but a good Toy Story movie still equals a great movie overall. Let me put it this way: after seeing this movie, I wouldn't be upset if they announced Toy Story 5, since seeing this movie has given me faith they would only do that if they had a good idea for it. 8/10.