My Thoughts on 2019 Movies: Part 1 (Did They Meet My Expectations?)

There were many excellent movies coming out last year. (Half of them sequels, it seemed like.) Did I like them as much as I thought I would? Did they fail or succeed in my eyes? That's what we're going to be talking about today.

I normally divide this into two posts, one later in the year since not all of them have been released or I've seen them yet. This year I have a surprising amount that I've already watched, so I'll save some of those for part two. Without further ado, let's get started.

Captain Marvel

Expectations: I was very excited to see Marvel's first foray into a female lead film. I just hoped they wouldn't' make it too feminist or ruin it somehow.

After Watching: I loved it. I got to go see it in theaters and it was great. I loved Captain Marvel herself, as well as her and Nick. It was just overall enjoyable and I ignore haters who didn't like Brie Larson's performance.

The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part

Expectations: I'm always nervous when it comes to sequels. Will they do the first one justice? Will they ruin it? So far the Lego movies have been pretty good, but you never know.

After Watching: It was pretty good. That plot twist at the end blew my mind. The fact that they made it a space opera with actual singing was kinda fun. So yeah, I enjoyed it.

Dumbo

Expectations: Disney's live action remakes have been hit and miss. I did like the director they had, but I would wait to see how it came out.

After Watching: I thought it was pretty good. Maybe lacking in a few areas, but it had beautiful visuals. That pink elephants scene was perfect. It kind of gave me Greatest Showman vibes.

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World

Expectations: I was excited and nervous to see how they would end the franchise. I know how the books end, and I hoped they would stick to that, even if it broke my heart a little.

After Watching: It was good, but not quite as good as I hoped. Mostly because nothing about it surprised me. Everything went exactly the way I thought it would. Not to say I didn't enjoy it and loved seeing more of Hiccup and Astrid as they both become the adults they were meant to be. I just wished they had done more.

Avengers: Endgame

Expectations: Obviously I was excited for the biggest film in practically all of cinema history. Who wasn't? But I was also terrified because this was another one that couldn't end well, and I wanted it to.

After Watching: It was so good. Long, but good. I cried. That scene, with all the heroes, thrilled my heart. It was a roller coaster of emotions. It will be interesting to see what the MCU is like after that.

Shazam!

Expectations: It looked like a fun and interesting superhero movie unlike any of the DC ones we've seen so far. But would it be as good as it looked?

After Watching: First of all, there was a lot more scary and dark content than the trailers showed. My younger siblings couldn't finish it. I did like it, though. I thought Billy's arc was good and I loved his foster family. They warmed my heart. Especially the one with crutches.

Aladdin

Expectations: I hoped it would be good, because I love Aladdin. I also hoped they might add some more elements of the original tale.

After Watching: Some people didn't like this movie, but I did. I admit, the beginning didn't introduce the characters as nicely as the original, but I loved the more Bollywood feel of the music. The actors were great, especially Will Smith, and "Speechless" is a great song.

Godzilla: King of Monsters

Expectations: *shrugs* I don't know. I didn't have a lot of expectations. Kong was good, but Godzilla was a bit weird.

After Watching: I have no idea what happened in that movie. There were too many monsters and Godzilla and Eleven and it was always dark. Was there even a plot? I don't know.

Toy Story 4

Expectations: Again, my expectations were low. Toy Story 3 ended the franchise perfectly, so why were they making this film? It seemed unnecessary.

After Watching: It was as bad as I thought it was going to be. The characters didn't seem to match what they had been before. Bo Peep wasn't the china doll I fell in love with. Most of it seemed to take place in an antique shop. Also, the themes were a bit weird. That whole thing with Forky trying to throw himself away is creepy if you equate him to a human. Same with Gabby Gabby. Just no. Don't bother with this one.

Men in Black: International

Expectations: I hadn't watched any Men in Black yet, so I was mostly interested because I knew the films were popular and I like Chris Helmsworth. Tessa Thompson, I was less sure of.

After Watching: By the time I watched this, I had seen all three originals and enjoyed them. This film fell flat of the originals. There were no characters from the first three, for starters, and Tessa Thompson was about the same character as Valkerie, who I didn't like. Some good action sequences and funny lines, but not super memorable.

Descendants 3

Expectations: The Descendants movies have been some of Disney Channel's best work in recent years, so I couldn't wait. How would they end things for these characters?

After Watching: The release of the film was damped by the sad death of Cameron Boyce, the youngest of the four main characters. That made the whole thing a bit hard to watch. But other than that, it was great. I loved Audrey in this one, and Mal as she tries to become a good queen. Plus Hades was in it and he was an epic rocker, so that was awesome. It was a great finale.

Have you seen any of these movies? Do you have a favorite from 2019? Tell me in the comments.

Suggested Posts:

2019 Movies: Part 1

2019 Movies: Part 2