#i know. i did the voiceover. it’s a pretty personal film 🥴

[kidovna]

made an instagram for my grad film If I Raised My Mother! I’ll be posting behind the scenes and more on there 🫂

[destinyc1020]

My "Cherry” Review

***Disclaimer*** - Please keep in mind that these are only my own PERSONAL thoughts and feelings about this movie, so it doesn’t make it “law”.  These are just my personal opinions.  If you disagree, then that’s fine, but just know that a pro OR a con is not a reflection on how I feel about the actors as individuals in this film at all.  

***SPOILERS: If you haven’t seen the movie, then you might not want to read my review if you don’t like spoilers***

Okay....Where to begin.....

PROS:

Okay first of all, can I just say? I LOVED seeing Tom in a role that is so DIFFERENT from anything he has ever done before! 👏  I feel like this movie really showed more of his range (not that his other films haven’t, but this one showed more of his full range I felt).  

LOVED the chemistry btwn Tom and Ciara in this!  Omg they did such a good job!  Both of them killed it with their acting imo.  I had no idea Ciara had it in her either!  😂   Perfect casting of Ciara Bravo to play Tom’s wife in the movie. 

I know some people had issues with the way the movie was shot, but I actually felt the movie was shot beautifully!  Great cinematography!  I loved the usage of camera angles. 

Tom did a really good job at making me feel some type of sympathy for his character, even though he was doing some pretty horrible things after a while. I can definitely see why the Russo’s cast him.  

Can I just say?? When watching Cherry and Emily in the film, I was like: “See, THIS is how Peter Parker & MJ’s chemistry should have been built up in the Spider-Man films!”  Instead of making them both two socially awkward teenagers who can barely talk to each other w/out stuttering lol. 😅  The way they developed their relationship (very easily and quickly mind you - within the first 20 min of the film actually) was perfectly well-done imo.  Marvel/Jon Watts could take some notes lol.  

Tom killed his druggy/high scenes most of the time.  I also saw how he could play crazy really really well if he’s ever cast in a film like that one day lol.  👀  

I didn’t think I would like a film that showcases war (or drug abuse for that matter), but I actually didn’t mind as much because the war scenes weren’t throughout the movie, they were only a small part. Plus, Tom in uniform looked really nice... 😍 

CONS:

The voice-overs...  Oh gosh...the voiceovers. 🙈 I’m not someone who usually likes voiceovers in films.  I don’t mind them in the beginning of the movie, and maybe sprinkled a little throughout (like, in “TDATT”, the OG “Spider-Man” movies, or “The Notebook”, for example), but when it’s all through the film in almost every single scene, it kind of makes it hard for me to focus, and it gets annoying after a while. 🥴  I hope CW isn’t going to be the same way... I understand why they did the voiceovers (to make you understand what’s going on, since a LOT takes place in such a short period of time) 

I also didn’t really like the breaking of the 4th wall.  It wasn’t as bad as the constant voice-overs to me, but I’m not a huge fan of breaking the 4th wall.  I don’t mind it as much in comedy films, but it feels weird in a dramatic film like this one I guess.  

Soooo many F-bombs!!!  🙈   Y’all know me... I’m not a huge fan of F-bombs in films every two seconds.  🥴 

I think this was the first movie where I could sort of feel Tom acting in certain scenes (usually I NEVER feel him acting), but I guess that’s because this film was really emotionally taxing.  

I think Tom’s voice still sounds kind of young compared to the rest of his co-stars, and I think it’s something that he will probably just have to work on in his future films so that people don’t just see a “kid” onscreen when they watch his movies. It’s the same feeling I had with Zendaya in M&M...Z still has a very youthful energy about her, so putting her opposite someone who seems “grown” like JDW was a little weird...not because of the age difference, but just the “energy”.  

I was kind of mad that they took out the scene where Emily’s dad slams Cherry on the ground, and beats him up in the hospital. I remember how emotional that whole day was for Tom, so I was looking forward to seeing how it would turn out. But I guess that scene didn’t come out right onscreen?  🤷   

OVERALL TAKE:

Overall, I enjoyed this movie quite a bit!  I didn’t really have high hopes for it, especially given the horrible reviews, but overall it wasn’t bad at all.  I definitely don’t think it deserved the overly negative reviews from critics.  

I feel like this movie was probably (unfortunately) shot too weirdly for it to get any serious awards, but the acting was really GOOD imo. I think if the Russo’s had simply shot the movie like a normal/regular movie, and lessened the voice overs and not broken the 4th wall, I think it actually would have been a better film overall. I think they were trying to shoot the film in a stylized way, and while I didn't mind it (it was shot beautifully imo actually), it may have been "too much" for an award race type of film. This movie  really shows the seriousness of drug addiction. I don't think I've ever seen it quite depicted this way at all before onscreen. It was real and RAW.  Some of the things I see Cherry and Emily go through was like...WOW....  😳😱   This should be a movie they show people to convince them to NOT do drugs lol. 😂    

My gut ached seeing what Cherry went through in war. My gosh...some of those war scenes.... Omg... 😭 😭   That was gut-wrenching... It’s no wonder he had PTSD coming from the  military. It’s so crazy how his character totally changes after coming back from war.  

Again, LOVED the chemistry btwn Tom & Ciara. They nailed their roles.  I felt like their scenes together were just effortless. If any fans of Tom want to see what “boyfriend Tom” looks like, you can just watch Cherry and get a glimpse lol.  😂 A lot of Cherry and Emily’s pre-druggie scenes together are really cute, sweet, and touching. 😊   

I’m just glad that I got to see Tom in this movie, and I remember when he was filming this in Cleveland, and I’m so proud of him for taking such a huge leap and doing something different in his filmography!  😃👏 

I think if the film had been shot differently then it might have received more award/Oscar “buzz”, but overall I don’t think the movie is half as bad as some critics were making it out to be. I will definitely watch it again just to see if my view changes on the film w/a second watching.    

Lastly...WHEW!  This movie is a willllld RIDE.  They went through a LOT!  This movie is crazy y’all lol. 😅

MY SCORE: 7.5/10