A “QUICK!” Review of “Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (2018)”

Maquia is a magically wonderful movie. The relationship between a mother who could live for 100s of years and a normal mortal living child makes for an engaging story. There was definitely some worries that the story might go in “that” direction. Thankfully the movie sticks to the mother and son theme and it is all the better for it. Even though you know how this film is going to end from the get go, it still manages to tug on your emotional strings.

The art style is gorgeous with beautiful backgrounds and stylish character designs. There are some CGI incorporated which is especially noticeable for the dragons but it’s never that off-putting. The music score is phenomenal as well, having been composed by the legendary Kenji Kawai or IP Man and Ghost in the Shell fame. The main characters, Maquia and Ariel, are great with a strong supporting cast as well.

The only issues I had is with some slow pacing and the fact that some subplots don’t have as strong of a resolution as the main characters. This results in some lingering questions by the end concerning Leilia subplot and the whole Red eye disease having no explanation.

Nevertheless, Maquia is one of the most memorable original anime movies in a long time. The story will stick with me for a long time.

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A “QUICK!” Review of “Spy × Family Code: White (2024)“

This movie is two hours of Spy X Family goodness! Everything you love from the show is in here: the fun family slice-of-life dynamic, the ridiculously fun comedy with wacky goofiness from lovable daughter Anya, the suave spy action from Loid, and badass fight action set pieces from Yor. The animation is mostly similar to the show, but there are moments in the final act where the animation is glorious! However, the story isn’t really much to write home about and the villain is very "underbaked” (pun intended). Overall, this is a very fun movie set in the Spy X Family universe. If you love the show, you’ll love the movie.

A Review of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)”

Guardians of the Galaxy was one of the best and most surprising things to come out of the MCU. They were an unknown group with heroes that were even more unknown than Iron Man (at the time). However, thanks to director James Gunn, he made them one of the most popular Marvel characters and team. I loved the first one and it is still up there in one of my favourite Marvel films. The second one is a great movie but not as good as the first one. There is a joke that the 3rd movie is always the worst which did occur with Ant-Man recently. Does Guardians of the Galaxy fall into this or does it deliver an epic trilogy? One of the core themes in the Guardian of the Galaxy movies is family and loss. This is still prevalent here and still as powerful. We see the Guardians feel closer as a family than ever but also argue a lot like family too. In terms of character arcs, Peter is still reeling from the loss of Gamora, Yondu and even his mother which is making him go to the bo...

A “QUICK!” Review of “Until Dawn (2025)”

It’s disappointing that this film is “Until Dawn” in name only and doesn’t truly adapt the game. However, the time loop element is intriguing, and I did enjoy the group’s camaraderie. Unfortunately, the horror is generic and uninspired, and the visuals are equally dull, marked by flat cinematography. Overall, it’s a shallow film that delivers a lackluster execution of what could have been an interesting concept.

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