X-Men Days of Future Past

This film has an extremely long title, but there are a few other titles it could be known by. I'm aware of where it's title is derived from, but examples of alternate titles could be, "The Magneto show 2", or "X-Men First Class; second period", and I personally like "Beast Mode". Now, what is amazing about this film to me more so than the absolute fantastic script, and superb direction are the amount of phenomenal actors on screen throughout the film. Merging old and new is just so much fun for the audience who saw the first film in theatres back in 2000. As for the new generation who would not know what a good film was if it bit them in the ass, well, who cares what they think. I enjoyed it and that is all that really matters. The absolute cohesiveness of every aspect of this film is quite impressive, but more than that, is the fact that these guys made a "comic book" film that felt more like a science fiction drama than any of the other Marvel films. It is so apocalyptic, the opening scene feels like a post Skynet Earth. It is just depressing what they make the future feel like. I do consider myself a geek for the sci fi, but I am not that familiar with this story. Apparently Bryan Singer did it a very good job not only appeasing the uber comic book aficionado, but also making the 7th X-Men (if you count the two Wolverine films) super enjoyable to the popcorn eating, summer blockbuster going, casual movie lover. It was easy to follow which is also appealing. More drama than comedy, and the usual one line zingers were also enjoyable. 

Beast looks bad ass, and that's why this inserted picture

The plot revolves around Mystique, and her agenda to right the wrongs of the human population. One human in particular. Dr. Trask (Peter Dinklage; the little dude from Game of Thrones and Elf and In Bruges etc...) has a disdain for mutants and has developed the Sentinel program to hunt and destroy or capture all mutants on Earth. Mystique feels he need not exist anymore which causes the bleak future. The brilliance of this story is how it evolves as time runs by on screen. Every action results in a reaction sort of thing. In the future, Xavier and Magneto know what has to be done, but with sending Logan's psyche back in time, (sorry, should have said "spoiler" there) things get very discombobulated in the space time continuum. Apparently changing the future is a bit tricky. Magneto is up to his old tricks and Fassbender is brilliant in the role, but Nicolas Hoult as young Beast steals the show for me. He is so damn good, it is unfair to whomever is sharing the screen with him at the time. All in all, this film is near flawless. There are several new mutants introduced but not much fanfare. Most of them feel like side notes except for Quicksilver. I do actually wish he had more scenes. His scene was the most fun to watch. There is one F&@# bomb that is unnecessary, but in the specific context it is used, it's actually quite enjoyable. It just sucks because that one word may deter many parents from letting their kids watch this film, and that is the real travesty. However, this film is way more for adults than kids. Story wise more than anything. It does not have near the action sequences than its predecessors, and is way more cerebral than those as well. The younger people may not get it.

NBM rates X-Men DOFP - Phenomenal....it may even be just a tad higher but I have not come up with an adjective for that.

Neighbors

This may be one the most accurate portrayals of what it is like for new parents to transition in to their new adulthood and leave behind their youth. Neighbors is sort of a coming of age film. Instead of adolescents into adulthood, it is more like adulthood into parenthood. This is more of a subplot than what the film is really about. It is about having shit-ass neighbors. Adults buy homes in nice neighborhood because they are done with the college, party scene. Having a fraternity rent the house next door would be an absolute nightmare. Now throw a baby into the mix, and that is grounds for World War 3, which is basically the premise of this film. At only 96 minutes, it is quick to the point, but doesn't fail to payoff. The trailer actually does this film justice. It makes you want to see it because it is chock full of jokes, but there is so much more content available than what we have seen already. I knew I liked Zac Efron (probably because he doesn't seem like a douche in real life), but now I like him unapologetically for playing a douche so well on screen. As for Rogen, well, he is Rogen. Same guy, new movie. Not that that's a bad thing, but we know what we are gonna get, and this role suits him. The junior Franco is getting better with every role, and I like that he is inching his way up the ladder into leading role status with every film. It won't be long till he is top billed in a film of his own. The fraternity to me was an afterthought. I was more interested and intrigued by how the married people would handle the situations. They did not disappoint. It seems like the writers finally got early thirty married people right. We are not that different than we were before had kids. We just have less time to do stuff. Same people, no time. Mac (Rogen) and Kelly (Rose Byrne) want to be apart of life still, but are struggling, so when a frat moves in, they do not want to be the uncool, old people. When Mac has had enough, he makes a vital error. He calls the police. From here on out, hilarity ensues. Not only from the frat, but to watch the responsible adults go to such lengths to shut them down is just awesome. There are very few emotionally heavy moments in this comedy, but the couple that are present are necessary to make the film complete. It is a complete film and we enjoyed it immensely.

NBM rates Neighbors - Phenomenal