Review Day

There are no major spoilers in these reviews.

Murder on the Orient Express (PG-13):
This is a light, forgettable whodunit with fun performances often overwhelmed by CGI shots of trains. Hyperbolically speaking, almost half the movie consists of CGI trains chugging through the mountains, CGI trains with real people inside, and CGI trains unfolding into weirdly placed camera shots, even though no trains are given mention in the credits.

Final Grade: B-

American Made (R):
An embellished true tale of a pilot who gets caught up in the 80s drug trade, this movie stars Tom Cruise as Tom Cruise and feels a bit repetitive after having watched 3 seasons of Narcos.

Final Grade: C

Coco (PG):
Pixar's latest animated movie is vividly rendered, if not uniquely imaginative. It reminded me of the old game, Grim Fandango, but is probably not a movie I'd watch multiple times.

Final Grade: B-

Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb:
The second book in the Farseer trilogy has a confusing beginning, which backtracks in time before the end of the first book before rejoining the established canon. There is plenty of character development throughout this (slightly too long) book, but absolutely no plot satisfaction in the end. I appreciate that the second book always has to be like Empire Strikes Back, but when I got to the last page, I felt like it was a stopping point rather than a conclusion. In spite of this, I enjoyed the book and started on the 3rd one immediately. However, if I were a slower reader, I probably would have gotten bogged down halfway through this one.

Final Grade: B-