Batman: Bad Blood (2016)

20181028:
Batman goes missing in Batman: Bad Blood, and it's up to new and supporting characters to save him. In addition to Nightwing and Robin, there's Batwoman and Batwing. Of course, Alfred continues to play a critical role as well, he even gets a share of some hand-to-hand combat.

This movie was non-stop action and I absolutely loved the fight choreography.

Batwoman / Katherine Kane (Yvonne Strahovski) and Batman / Bruce Wayne (Jason O'Mara)

One small aspect of the plot which I wanted to pick at was the ability for Luke to wear and familiarize himself with the exosuit. Granted, he's supposedly got smarts, but there's got to be a learning curve to that equipment. The plot point certainly requires suspension of disbelief. Perhaps Luke is a natural at it.

Overall, the movie's strengths most definitely outweigh whatever weaknesses it may have. In fact, this is one of the best, if not the best animated Batman movies I've seen to date. If you enjoy animated Batman movies, then you most definitely have to watch this one.

Nightwing / Dick Grayson (Sean Maher)

Netflix determined the movie for me as a 98% match. I decided to give the movie a thumbs up.

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Instant Comments:
Quite the opening sequence.
Haha. Nightwing groans, Damian lands, gives Nightwing a look, and says "What?"
"Just because I wear this, doesn't mean I'm part of your little cult."
Lucius's son packs quite a punch.
Interesting plot twist. He saves Damian. [It's soon explained.]

Grayson temporarily dons the Batman mantle and Robin / Damian Wayne (Stuart Allan)

Hmm. Quite a scene. But seems to ruin the potential coolness of the action.
"That would make them nun-jas."
Smile. He took Nightwing's line: "You want a megaphone to announce that?"
Of course. Fancy footwork gets met with falling block.
That's quite a way to die. [Head exploded]
Ha. That ending. Batgirl.

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Watched 20181028 (Netflix, Instant)
Batman: Bad Blood (2016) Jay Oliva. 72 min

Batwing / Luke Fox (Gaius Charles)

Relevant Links:
Batman: Bad Blood (IMDb.com)
Batman: Bad Blood (RottenTomatoes.com)
Batman: Bad Blood (Wikipedia.org)

Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979)

20181022:
I decided to watch this movie mainly because it's by Monty Python, the British comedy group that did Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), but also because I had the gut feeling that I've seen something related to it. I later learned that I had watched Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy) (2010) which is an oratorio based on Life of Brian.*

Brian Cohen (Graham Chapman)

Life of Brian is a religious satire which follows a young man named Brian Cohen. Avoiding spoilers, Brian lived during biblical times and is eventually mistaken as the Messiah. Despite his repeated refutation of such claims, Brian ends up having to accept his untimely fate. On a positive note, he's reminded to "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life."

I enjoyed the film because it pokes and targets many problem points of religion in a clever manner. For example, at one point in the movie (as alluded above), the protagonist suddenly builds a group of followers and the followers begin to attribute miracles and signs to him without his say (and in some cases against his direct plea). In a related scene, one of the followers asks his mother if his mother is a virgin. She simply states that's a personal question and the crowd assumes, that because she didn't tell them, that she is, in fact, a virgin.

Centurion (John Cleese) and Pontius Pilate (Michael Palin)

Unfortunately, like most British movies I watch, I had trouble understanding the British accents and so I had to turn on the caption. But turning on the caption for a comedy can often ruin a comedy. As such, I would probably get the most out of this movie by watching it a couple times, with and without the closed captions.

Overall, I would highly recommend the movie if you enjoy satire and consider yourself open-minded. With that being said, I would also recommend the movie to every movie fan, as the movie is considered one of the best.

Netflix determined the movie for me as a 98% match. I decided to give the movie neither a thumbs up nor a thumbs down.

Lead Singer Crucifee (left, Eric Idle) and Brian (right).

*Spamalot, the musical adaptation of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, preceded Not the Messiah - just as the Holy Grail movie preceded Life of Brian.

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Instant Comments:
Lol. The stoning.
Ha. This clean-up.
This conversation about a right to have babies.
Ha. The Romans did a lot of stuff for them but they still want to rebel.
"The Judean People's Front?"
"Biggus Dickus"
"He has a wife you know. Incontinentia... Incontinentia Buttocks."

Wise Man #1 (John Cleese), Wise Man #2 (Graham Chapman), Mandy Cohen (Terry Jones), Wise Man #3 (Michael Palin)

WTF. Alien spaceship. Things just got weird.
That "You're supposed to haggle" scene was well done.
Smile. This whole situation where the people believe Brian is the Messiah and he can't do anything and they just make up a bunch of stuff. It would seem like the time would be ripe for that sort of behavior. I'm sure this even happens nowadays.
Frontal nudity.
Ha. "You're all individuals." "Yes, we're all individuals." etc...
Hahahaha. They're just pretending.
Parody of Spartacus. "I'm Brian" in place of "I'm Spartacus."
I've certainly heard this song before: "Bright Side of Life."

Brian and Judith (Sue Jones-Davies)

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Watched 20181022 (Netflix, Instant) (English captions)
Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979) Terry Jones. 94 min

Relevant Links:
Monty Python's Life of Brian (IMDb.com)
Monty Python's Life of Brian (RottenTomatoes.com)
Monty Python's Life of Brian (Wikipedia.org)