Today, I will be reviewing two movies so different that the only major similarity that I can think of is that they both have the word "the" in their titles. I will be reviewing "The Drop" which is a crime drama with an insanely talented cast. I will also be reviewing "The Boxtrolls" which is the latest animated feature from Laika Studios which is responsible for "Coraline" and the criminally underrated "Paranorman." Before I get started, I'd like to give a shoutout to the Free Gamer's Alliance YouTube channel. Their videos cover everything from walkthroughs, glitches, easter eggs, and various amusing video game related content, all of which is delivered with some colorful commentary while they have buckets of fun doing it. Here is the link:
https://www.youtube.com/user/FreeGamersAlliance/.
Lets kick this off with "The Drop." Here is the trailer:
- This movie has an insanely talented cast. As usual, Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace give outstanding performances. The one that steals the show here, however, is the late James Gandolfini. I wouldn't be shocked if he got a posthumous Oscar nomination for this one.
- The characters are very interesting and it doesn't take long for the audience to become invested in them.
- There are some truly unsettling moments that will satisfy fans of crime dramas.
- The story takes some fantastic turns that keep this movie from becoming predictable.
- The minimal use of music really added to the atmosphere of the movie.
The Bad:
- The pacing can be rather slow at times and some may find that off putting.
The Verdict:
"The Drop" is a well written and well acted crime drama that I found quite interesting. I would definitely say this is worth a watch in the theaters.
Lets move on to "The Boxtrolls." Here is the trailer:
- As is normal with movies from Laika Studios, the animation is nothing short of fantastic! They really bring this incredibly imaginative world to life.
- The music choices are quirky but delightfully so. It really helped with the atmosphere of the movie.
- The voice acting is superb and it really helped bring these colorful characters to life.
- Ultimately, there are some good life lessons that kids can learn from the movie.
The Bad:
- The biggest problem with this movie is with the writing. I think it largely stems from a script that tries to cram way too much in and seems to lack focus. There are several subplots many of which feel rushed and extraneous.
- One would think that with an overstuffed plot that pacing wouldn't be an issue. However, there are several moments in the movie where the momentum in the movie comes to a screeching halt due to scenes that are incredibly long but still manage to go nowhere.
- There is some really heavy handed dialogue in the movie that, in my opinion, is either trying way too hard to be clever or is a result of the writers thinking that the audience is stupid and I found that to be very off putting.
- There are many attempts at humor in this movie and just about all of them fall flat. This is usually because the humor is either poorly timed or overly juvenile even for a movie aimed at children.
The Verdict:
If I am being honest, I am pretty disappointed with "The Boxtrolls." It isn't a terrible movie but it ends up being only ok due to a script that seems to be lacking in inspiration. It has some really good moments but considering the fantastic quality movies that Laika has previously made, this should have been a lot better.
Thanks for reading everyone! Feel free to leave a comment but please be advised that if you are going to read any potential comments that there may be spoilers.