A Look Back into the Films of 2019
By Brendan Higgins
| Hi Movie Nerds! 2019 was a great year for movies, from live action Disney movies to big hits. The 2020 Oscars are going to be a huge competition but first, here is a look back at a few of my favorites from the year. Everyone has their own movie and tv icons that are a part of our childhood. I mention it because we all grow up with them. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is about one of those icons. The movie is about a reporter named Lloyd who was hired to interview everybody’s favorite tv icon, Mr. Fred Rogers, played by Tom Hanks. There was more than an interview that Fred Rogers wanted to talk about. The exact point of the movie was how Fred Rogers touched the world and people’s lives and his special connection to Lloyd. Lloyd was a reporter who hid his feelings and Mr. Rogers saw that and tried to help him discover his true feelings. With no spoilers, this is Tom Hanks’ best movie since Forrest Gump and he was amazing as Fred Rogers. I give it a 10 because just like movies and tv shows like Frozen, Inside Out and Mary Poppins Returns, they don’t try to talk down to kids about serious issues.This movie was for people like me who could relate to it. It is important for people to not talk down to children and young adults who are struggling. I want to give a shout out to my F.R.E.E family and people from the F.R.E.E Players Drum and Bugle Corps who are part of the wonderful community I belong to. There is always someone you can tell your feelings to when you are struggling. Find a friend or an adult you trust to help you through. Mr. Rogers did this for many people and it was a very touching movie.
Next is the review for everybody who’s afraid to be themselves. The Peanut Butter Falcon is about a 22 year old named Zak who has Down Syndrome. He teams up with an outlaw, Tyler and goes on a road trip to follow his dreams.The exciting part of the movie is how Tyler shows Zak that there’s more to life than just having a dream, you can show the world you can make it happen even if you have a disability. I give it an 8 because the movie reminds me of a Disney Channel movie called True Confessions that focused on autism but The Peanut Butter Falcon is focusing on down syndrome. I get it, the movie is focusing on an important message but it is also entertaining and beautiful. The Peanut Butter Falcon is similar to Stand by Me, a coming of age adventure. This does not have an over the top plot but it is about how one act of kindness might change a person’s life and that makes for a great movie. Frozen 2 was one of the biggest movies that everybody was talking about. Frozen 2 is about how sisters Anna and Elsa go on a quest to save their kingdom and the people who are trapped in the dark forest. Along the way, they both discover the truth about what happened to their parents. The exciting part of the movie is the mystery of how Elsa got her ice powers and exactly what happened to Anna and Elsa’s parents.That’s the main focus of the movie. I liked the adventure that Anna, Elsa and the rest of their friends go on to solve the mystery and how they helped save the people who were trapped in the dark forest. I enjoyed the music the most. It is hard to top “Let it Go” and the rest of the music from the first movie but I did like the new songs from the 2nd movie. I give it a 10 because the first Frozen is always going to have a special place in my heart and I feel it is a Christmas movie, but Frozen 2 happened to have a lot of questions answered that made it twice as good. As for Cats, I had some mixed feelings about it even though it was popular. As soon as I saw the trailer over the summer, I started to hate it because unlike the Who’s in the live action Grinch, I didn’t like how the cats looked . When I saw the movie, I thought the first half was creepy with too much singing and not much dialogue. I ended up liking the 2nd half better because the plot of Cats from the Broadway show kicked in. The movie is bad but I enjoyed it for some weird reason. I heard the same reaction from other friends who saw and loved or hated 2012’s Les Miserables. Let’s end with a big bang. Bombshell is based on a true story about Megyn Kelly and the drama that started when she questioned then candidate Donald Trump and then had to decide if she was going to let the world know that her boss Roger Ailes harassed her. The Fox News Channel is the main setting for everything that happens. I saw it twice and it was great. I want to see it again for the 3rd time. I smell an Oscar win for the movie, Bombshell. It is my Wolf of Wall Street . That’s it for 2019 aka the last year of the decade. 2020 is going to be a big year for movies. Which was your favorite movie of 2019? Be sure to check out my movie blog at moviesnerd.weebly.com. |
About the Author
A true cinematic fanatic, Brendan Higgins is a twenty five-year old with Down syndrome from the Long Island area who lives, speaks, and breathes movies. With over 1000 movies in his collection, Higgins spends his spare time devoted to learning, watching, and ranking flicks of the past, present, and future. Brendan is also a Special Olympian. He competes in soccer, floor hockey and swimming. A true family man, he likes to vacation with his family on the island of Nantucket in his summers, and some of his favorite hobbies are writing movie scripts and going to the beach. Some of his athletic endeavors include soccer, swim and floor hockey. He hopes to one day become a professional movie critic for the New York Times so that he can continue doing what he loves best.
In the world of cinema, some of Higgins’ favorite actors are Tim Allen, Johnny Depp, Dwayne Johnson, and Adam Sandler. His favorite leading ladies are Amy Adams, Reese Witherspoon, Sandra Bullock, Melissa McCarthy, and Kirsten Wiig. A sucker for Romantic Comedies, some of his favorite movies are Crazy Stupid Love, Something Borrowed, and, his personal favorite, The Vow. He honors true classics such as The Santa Clause, Old Yeller, Willy Wonka, and Jaws.
He dedicates his work to his family, friends, and girlfriend, and hopes his audience will enjoy reading MovieNerd as much as he enjoys writing it.
