OliverGbyrne

Every one who was born during the VHS era has a memory of the Karate Kid. It was the type of film they use to show in film nights at summer camp between E.T and back to the future. With all that love for that film I started watching Cobra Kai with slight fear like " I hope they are not gonna spoil the memories I have from this film" and thankfully they did not. The Karate Kid remake was a failure in my eyes because it just followed the exact same beat of the original, only in a different setting. Cobra Kai take the essence of the film and flip it on the other side so it feels different from the film yet very familiar at the same time. Now we follow Johnny Lawrence (Played masterfully by William Zabka), a down on his luck, failed husband, failed father drunk still haunted by that crane kick he received from Daniel Larusso at the end of the first Karate kid. He barely lives day to day until he becomes an unlikely hero to a neighborhood kid who is very reminiscent of Danielle Larusso, this meeting along with faith making him cross path with his arch nemesis reawaken in Johnny a sense of purpose and he reopens the Cobra Kai Dojo much to the dismay of Danielle Larusso. We spent 3 film with Daniel now it's Johnny story and man does it flesh out his character. He his no longer the two dimensional bully of the first film, we get to know his background through childhood flashback and yeah it's crazy but by the end I liked Johnny better than Daniel! I love a good redemption story and this is the best one I have seen in a while. The younger cast that populate the Cobra Kai dojo are also quiet good, they feel like real kids that were put through the ringer. One thing I appreciate is that the show does not adopt that PC attitude of "Fight your bullies with love" , Johnny tell these kids stop being the victims and be proud of who you are and it's awesome! Without spoiler another thing I liked about this show is that it avoid a perfect ending, it's not a bad one nor a good one it just address the negative side of Johnny teaching as well and the no mercy rule. It is a fantastic reboot done right and the easiest show to binge watch in a while. Well done to all involved.

I really cannot understand for the life of me how any one would really dislike this charming retelling of Anne of green Gable. It seriously beat the other recent adaptation with Martin Sheen in every category. The actors are all pitch perfect in their role. What this version does better then any other version I seen before is the way it showed Ann struggling to fit in Avonlea. Episode 3 was a hard watch because it basically showed Ann being bullied and judged by all the Avonlea resident.Other version touched a little on that but in this one you really feel for Anne, she sure did not have it easy. This make it more satisfying when she proves people wrong. The actress who play Anne is an absolute delight! A lot of Fan girls who grew up with the 80's mini series will say there is only one Anne and it's Megan Follows but they really need to get over that. Amybeth McNulty is quite brilliant as Anne, she gives a performance that is wise beyond her years. I personally felt this version was a trow back to Canadian shows I used to watch growing up (Road to Avonlea,Emily of blue moon etc..) We really need more of these types of shows. Hopefully this show will be renewed.

Disney really are into something with their live action remakes. After the delightful Jungle book, it is time for Pete's Dragon to get the live action reboot. However, the original jungle book still hold well today while the 70's Pete's Dragon has not aged really well in comparison and was not considered a jewel crown in the Disney film catalogue to begin with so a remake was a good idea. This Pete's Dragon is not a musical and the director chose wisely to cut the unnecessary trimming from the original. No more razzle Dazzle three dimensional villains, no more outdated animation that distracted us from actually genuinely caring about the two main protagonist the film was named after. This film is refreshingly simple. It's about a lost little boy and his pet Dragon who get their little world turned upside down by the outside world. Firstly Elliot the Dragon is just adorable, the director decided to give him the mannerism of a dog and that works perfectly as it makes him more relatable to audience. Oakes Fegley gives a very touching performance as Pete! Seriously it's easy to forget that the kid was mostly working with thin air yet he makes his bond with Elliot feels so real and strong. It's a very quiet and beautiful performance for a child actor, you really genuinely care for little Pete, a lot more then you did in the original. The other supporting actors are also very good. Bryce Dallas Howard has a real warmth to her that the director uses to great effect.she his very endearing as the kind Park ranger and mother figure to Pete and has real chemistry with Fegley. Robert Redford has the narrator is wonderful, after all he his Robert Redford! Wes Bentley is not much in the film but does a decent job, same goes for Oona Lawrence as the little girl who guides Pete to the scary outside world. Karl Urban plays the incredibly human antagonist, I say this because he his not really bad, there is no real villains in this film, I personally liked this. To make it short, if you are looking for a big blockbuster film with a fire breathing Dragon on a crazy and wild Adventure stay away but if on the other hand you are open for a sweet, more intimate emotional film that will probably make you tear up a little, I couldn't recommend this film more for all kids and kids at heart. I give Pete's Dragon a 8 out of 10.