I’ve been trying to find a bit of a theme for my mini review posts recently. My mini reviews are basically an eruption of thoughts without much focus at the best of times, so it’s nice to have a bit of order somewhere. So what do a super pig, a mathematical genius kid and a 10-year old period drama have in common? I watched them all over the last 2 weeks and they all made me ugly cry!
Okja (2017)
Back in 2014, the blogging world alerted me to Snowpiercer (2014), a crazy movie directed by Joon-ho Bong. Last month, a movie recommendation site threw a fascinating crime story called Memories of Murder (2003) at me, also by the same director. So, when my blog feed got filled with mentions of Joon-ho Bong’s latest movie about a super pig named Okja, I knew I had to see it!
Okja had just been released on Netflix so I didn’t even bother with a trailer. I figured it would be some kind of family-orientated movie with a happy ending. Ohh, I was so wrong. This movie is dark. So, very dark. It’s worth it alone for the cast to be honest, but Okja is a movie that will make even the biggest meat-eaters out there question themselves. I did a lot of crying and felt guilty as hell about my bacon sarnie the next morning…
Gifted (2017)
So I judged Okja terribly, but Gifted is absolutely a movie for the whole family! It stars Chris Evans as a single parent to his niece, who just so happens to be a mathematical genius just like her late Mother. It sounds like your bog-standard, average family movie but there’s a lot to be enjoyed here, it certainly stands out from the crowd. Think Matilda meets Manchester by the Sea!
Unlike a lot of child actors, McKenna Grace is an absolute gem and a pleasure to watch in this movie. Her comedic delivery is spot on and she nails that dead-pan kind of humour. I really hope she lands some more lead roles in the future because she’s one to watch! Gifted really pulls on your heart strings and I wouldn’t say it has a predictable plot at all, I was left guessing right up to the end.
Atonement (2007)
Why did I watch Atonement when I have such a passionate dislike for period dramas? My littlest Brother was coming to stay and I told him we’d have a movie night. He loves plot-twist movies but wanted to watch something none of us had seen before, so I put together a little list. Atonement wasn’t what we watched (we went with The Village) but it kept cropping up in my searches and I couldn’t understand why a movie like that would be considered a plot twist movie. Safe to say, my curiosity got the best of me.
I ended up watching Atonement over 2 days in the end, and at the point the movie tells us who actually committed the crime, I whinged and complained about wasting so much time to a twist that wasn’t even a twist. Then I realised I still had another 20 minutes of the movie to go. If you’ve seen Atonement, well, I know you won’t have forgotten what happened next. That ending destroyed me. I went to bed in silence that night and still felt upset the day after!
Often Off Topic 
I love Atonement – I love THE BOOk as well, loved it first. It’s a pretty good prep for Dunkirk too.
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Yes! My history knowledge is awful but I’m so looking forward to seeing Dunkirk soon!
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Gifted looked a little too sugary for me so I haven’t seen it, but I loved Okja and Atonement. Atonement completely wrecked me. I was sobbing as I left the theater from that one.
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I thought that about Gifted too but it’s a little darker than what you might expect. Nothing groundbreaking at all but worth a watch if you have nothing better in your watchlist!
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I loved Okja! It was dark, yet weirdly funny at times. I was definitely impressed with the depth of the narrative. Also the trailer was what intrigued me in the first place
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I really hope Okja becomes more well known outside of the blogging world because it really is impressive!
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I’ve seen one of these and when you said ugly cry I was like, damn it, do I even have the strength to watch the other one?! Probably not. Atonement, which is the one I saw, I actually stopped in the end. I think I didn’t see like the final act or something. In other words, I realised what was coming, I panicked, I was already crying, and then I paused the movie and I will never watch it again. It’s probably the most devastating movie fr me ever…
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If it’s any help that was the one that made me ugly cry the most! I’m all for a twist ending but I had no idea that one was coming and ugh, I don’t think I’ll ever be the same again!
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I guess I’m THAT guy. I couldn’t stand Atonement. It bored me to death. I may have been too harsh on it. Maybe one of these days I’ll revisit it. Haven’t seen your other two movies, yet.
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No I don’t think you were too harsh! Generally I just can’t stand period dramas and I dozed off in the middle of Atonement, it’s just that the ending made it worth it for me 🙂
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I’ve only seen Atonement on your reviews here, and I was an emotional wreck afterwards. Gosh!
Okja and Gifted both sound pretty good too!
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