As you all know February was shorter than January, yet I somehow managed to watch almost the exact same number of movies in February. I watched 11 movies in January, one being a short film. While, in February I managed to watch 10 full length movies in a span of 29 days. Impressive, at least for me it is anyways. Now let’s get into all of them.

21 Jump Street (2012)

A movie I had never planned on watching. I don’t have anything against Jonah Hill, but Hill’s comedy has never done anything for me. So, I never planned on watching 21 Jump Street, but it was on television one day in February and I found it actually funny. Shockingly funny, I was taken aback by how much I laughing at it. It’s not a perfect comedy. It still has the outrageous out there comedy that I’m not completely a fan of, but regardless I really enjoyed this. Guess the saying that you shouldn’t judge a book by it’s cover holds true. I recommend, if you are looking for a movie to give you a good laugh.

In the Heat of the Night (1967)

The first of four Sidney Poitier movies I saw this month, much like I did for Marlon Brando in January. In the Heat of the Night was my favorite one I saw of his movies this month. Poitier was phenomenal and I thought the movie stood quite well on it’s own. I was interested in the movie’s plot and the twists and turns it took. Even without Poitier, the movie held it’s ground, but luckily for the movie, it does have Poitier. His performance was terrific, the plot well done, all around a great movie. I highly recommend, I think there’s something in it that everyone would find something to enjoy it.

The Defiant Ones (1958)

The second Sidney Poitier I watched, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I enjoyed In the Heat of The Night. It didn’t have as much to carry it like In The Heat of The Night did. Aside from great performances from Poitier and Tony Curtis, there’s not too much happening. It’s solely about them and them being stuck together while on the run. Luckily, their performances are very good and well worth watching the movie for. I recommend, but know outside of the performances there isn’t much more to be invested in. Also doesn’t hurt that there is some clear gay subtext between the two men that I got a kick out of.

To All The Boys: PS I Still Love You (2020)

I don’t want to make To All The Boys 2 sound like a bad movie. It’s not, but I would be lying if I didn’t say I was disappointed with it. I really loved the first one and this one just didn’t compare in my opinion. Much like my feelings for the book, I thought it was cute, but unnecessary. It wasn’t needed and it felt like a lot of filler. The directing was considerably worse since they changed the directors. This movie wasn’t bad, but it was all around a disappointment for me. If you haven’t seen this franchise, check out the first movie, but the sequel isn’t worth it in my opinion. Unless you just really loved the first movie.

The Naked Gun (1988)

This is one of those movies where I watched because I needed a laugh and a movie that wasn’t complicated or convoluted and The Naked Gun was the perfect choice. I always wanted to watch this movie just because of that infamous gif from the movie (if you know, you know). I didn’t know anything about it, just that was funny and had slapstick comedy. Slapstick comedy isn’t my favorite, but wow did it work for me in The Naked Gun. Or maybe it was just so satisfying to see O.J. Simpson get treated like a punching bag the entire movie. That was especially fun. The Naked Gun isn’t a new favorite comedy for me, but it was plenty of fun and I would watch again and I’ll probably check out the sequels as well. I recommend.

Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner (1967)

The third Sidney Poitier movie I saw and I thought Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner has a lot more to it than The Defiant Ones. Still, you can’t ignore that Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner is very outdated with it’s ideas. It feels like a public service announcement for 1967, it’s not something that stood the test of time. But, Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner feels like a very well done public service announcement. The performances from everyone are great and knowing that this was Spencer Tracy’s final movie and that he was dying while filming the movie makes Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner flaws fade away at least for me anyway. Seriously, his last speech during the last few minutes of the movie makes the entire movie worth it and makes it so much more special than it would have without the speech. I recommend, for Spencer Tracy’s last speech alone.

A Raisin in the Sun (1961)

The final Sidney Poitier movie I saw during February. Though like I stated before, In The Heat of The Night was my favorite of the four films of his I saw, but A Raisin in the Sun gave it a nice run for it’s money. I had read the book the movie was based on back in the eighth grade and I surprisedly really enjoyed it. I say supposedly, because I wasn’t into reading novels at that point, but nonetheless I liked A Raisin in the Sun. I figured I would enjoy the movie as well, and I did. I had forgotten some things about the book, aside from the general premise. So, when I began to watch it all the memories of the book just flooded back to me. It was nice to see the actors matched the characters. Every character was as complex as I remembered them. It’s a faithful adaptation to one of the first books I ever actually took a liking to. I would also say that this was my favorite Sidney Poitier performance. It was the most different and intense performance I saw of his movies and it stood out from among the town. It’s a great movie, I recommend.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

I finally did it! I watched Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and it was as great as many people told me it was. What’s there to say about this movie that hasn’t been said before? I wasn’t sure if I would like it as much as everyone else does. I hadn’t yet found a John Hughes movie that I completely adore, (Home Alone would have been the closest) but Ferris Bueller would be the expectation. It was a blast I had a lot of fun watching it. I saw nothing problematic about it like some other John Hughes films. It could be argued that Ferris, the character itself was a jerk, but you can’t deny the movie wouldn’t be as entertaining without him. Though, I would say most of us are the Camerons in life and not Ferris. Overall, Ferris was an enjoyable time and I can’t wait to revisit it sometime in the future. Maybe a day where I ditch school? Yeah no, I’m too much like Cameron to actually ditch school, but it was a nice thought anyway. I recommendit if you want to have a good time.

Risky Business (1983)

I did a double feature with this and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Though, I did prefer Ferris overall since I could relate to it more, but I loved many things about Risky Business. To start, Tom Cruise’s performance, it’s so different from his other roles that we are used to now, but he effortlessly pulls off the role of a teenage kid with a chip on his shoulders. I loved how outrageous the plot was, I didn’t expect it to be quite so out there. But, most importantly of all the thing I loved most about Risky Business was none other than it’s the soundtrack! It only took a few songs for me to declare that I am in love with it’s soundtrack. Once I finished the movie, I went and played the soundtrack. The soundtrack makes for a good time, much like the movie. I recommend, it’s a good movie with an even better soundtrack.

Collateral (2004)

The last movie I watched in February was no other than Collateral. No, I did not plan on watching two Tom Cruise within a few days of each other to end February. It just sort of happened that way. I had wanted to watch Collateral for a long time and I saw it was on television and went for it. It was nice to see Tom Cruise play a villain for once. I had never actually seen him in that role, but as you can imagine he plays it well. Jamie Fox was terrific as the everyman hero. I was shocked by how much action took a backseat to the more character driven moments between the two, but it was just as enjoyable as the action in my opinion. The action we did get was pretty great and the final confrontation was a masterclass in creating tension. I am surprised this doesn’t get talked enough about. It’s not my new favorite Tom Cruise movie or anything, but it’s worth a watch and a discussion about it. I recommend.